Fated Mates: Book 1 of the True Mates Series (27 page)

“What the fuck!?” The other man ripped his headphones off and tried to stand up. Nick grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and shoved him against the nearest wall. “What the fuck do you want? My mom has jewelry and stuff upstairs, go and take that and get the fuck outta here!”

“Is that what you think I’m after?” Nick was tempted to show his fangs to this boy, but of course, he couldn’t risk it. “Fred Allman?”

“Yeah, what?” he asked, still struggling to get away from Nick’s grip. “Whaddaya want? Did Joe send you? I already sent him the money I owe him and the interest! Tell your boss to leave me alone.”

“Joe didn’t send me,”
Must be a loan shark
, Nick thought. “I’m here about the night at the Waldorf.”

Though it was dark, Nick could scent the sudden fear from Allman, his sweat leaking out of his pores, smelling of terror and panic. “Hey man, I don’t know nothing about that!”

Nick shoved him harder. “We can do this the easy way or the hard way,” Nick stated. “Easy way would be to tell me what happened and I leave. The hard way…well, if you want to find out what that is, I’d gladly oblige, but I don’t think you’ll stand more than 5 minutes of what I’ve got in store.”

“Alright alright!” Allman cried. “What do you want to know?”

“You poisoned the glass you handed to the girl and then took away the evidence.”

“No!” he denied, which made Nick throw him to the ground. “I…I didn’t poison her! I mean, it wasn’t me!”

“But you put the poison into her champagne?”

“I didn’t know it was poison,” Allman confessed. “Look…I got a call two days before the party. Said that they would give me $25,000 dollars if I just do this one thing,” he scrambled to get up. “I just had to make sure this substance went into something she ate or drank. Someone at the party put a vial in my pocket at some point - don’t ask me who, we aren’t supposed to stare at the guests - and then I put it in her champagne. That’s all I know I swear!”

“And the money?” Nick asked, a hard edge to his voice.

“Cash. Showed up in my mailbox! I had enough to pay off my debts to this loan shark I owed money to!” the frightened man cowered. “Please don’t hurt me! I swear I didn’t know what it was.”

“You idiot,” Nick spat. “What else could it be? Did you think it was vitamins? Someone paying you to make sure she didn’t get a cold?” He hauled him to the wall again.

“Look, I thought you said if I’d told you what happened, you’d go away!”
 

“Who was it? What do you remember? Was it a man or a woman?”

Allman shook his head. “I don’t know. The voice called me on my cell was muffled. Could’ve been a man?”

Nick grunted in frustration and threw him over the back of the chair again. “Don’t leave town. Don’t even try to disappear - you know I’ll find you. And if you alert anyone, well, you’ll find out what the hard way is.”

The other man nodded, “I swear…I won’t.”

Nick turned and walked up the dingy stairs, and straight out of the house. He parked his car a few blocks away, but he didn’t have to turn around to know that Allman was not following him.

As soon as he got in and started driving, he dialed Grant.
A dead end
, he thought. The Alpha wasn’t going to be happy, but it was better to tell him sooner than later.

Alynna walked out of the elevators with a spring in her step. It was the first time in weeks that she actually felt somewhat…normal. Things were falling into place and she found a new purpose. She stepped into the lobby of the Fenrir building, looking around for Tate Miller, who brought her here.
Hmmm…no sign of
 
him
. Alynna shrugged and looked outside. It was a nice, sunny day and it had been a while since she had just walked around New York City.

Alynna waved to the friendly receptionist at the lobby and went outside. It was a lovely late summer day, though she could feel just a slight bit of autumn in the air. She walked north on Madison, grabbing an iced coffee and two bagels at an Au Bon Pain cafe. After a couple of blocks, she turned west, towards Central Park.

Normally, the entrance to Central Park was teeming with people, but it was one of those strangely lucky days when it seemed the city was not full of tourists. She continued to walk through park, meandering her way through the The Pond, the Bethesda Fountain, and eventually, the Met. She wasn’t following a particular route, just working her way through the park. She planned to cut across after the reservoir through Bridle Path and make her way to the Enclave.
 

Alynna took her time, enjoying being outdoors and being alone for a change. So much had happened, and she was still trying to process most of it. Now that she finally knew what she was going to do, she was mapping out in her head all the tasks that had to be done. She wanted to start with her new cases right away, maybe visit Gardiners in the morning and then call Michelle Lapicola and see if she was free for lunch the following day. Then if she had some time, maybe she should seriously start looking at college courses or programs she could do part time.
 

Alynna was so deep in thought that she didn’t notice the three men following behind her. She was halfway across the park when she felt the presence behind her.
Stay calm
, she told herself. It was as if every hair on her body stood on end. This was bad news. She clenched her fists and picked up her pace.
 

The path ahead of her seemed long and there was no one else around. She wondered, if she screamed, if anyone would hear her. It was the middle of the day, which actually made it less safe than being out here at night. Since it was daylight, the already-spread-too-thin NYPD or park security probably weren’t sending anyone out here on patrol, plus all the office workers nearby had long clocked into their desks.
 

The footsteps behind her shuffled faster, and Alynna swallowed a gulp.
Now or never.
She broke into a run, getting ahead of the men behind her. But, their longer legs made up for her small lead and one of them overtook her, effectively blocking her path.

Alynna threw her handbag at the man in front of her. “There’s cash there, about $300 and my phone. Go ahead and take it. Take all of it.”

The man in front of her was well over 6 feet and built like a brick wall. He was completely bald, with tattoos running all over his arms and shoulders. “That’s not why we’re here, girly.”

“I don’t wear jewelry,” Alynna gritted her teeth. “We can go to ATM. You can have everything, I won’t try to scream.” She turned to his friends, who were not as large or tall, but still imposing. She considered running off the path and running up to 97
^th
Street, which might be her best chance, but not being sure where she was exactly, she might run into a wall or a big drop down to the road cars used to cross the park.
 

“We don’t want your money,” their ringleader said. Before Alynna could think of what else they could possibly want, he raised his hand, showing her the syringe he was holding. “Now, just stay still and we won’t hurt you. We just want you to come along with us and go for a ride.”

“Ride along with you? Drugged? Are you insane?” Alynna shouted. The men came closer, and the feeling of being trapped was very real.
 

The man holding the syringe quickly lunged at her.
Fuck it
, she thought. Instinct took over and she dodged the larger man. Her would-be kidnappers probably thought she’d just comply, so it was obvious her move surprised them. She wasn’t sure what she was doing, only that she had to run. But before she could step off the path, one of the other man grabbed her arm, pulling her back.

Alynna screamed in pain as she was hauled against the other man, and his other hand came around her mouth to muffle her mouth.

“Just hold still!” the leader ordered.

There was something inside her, an inner voice, seemed to speak to her.
Protect…must protect…

As the large man approached her, Alynna’s eyes rolled and she went limp for a few seconds. The man stuck the needled into her neck, but before he could plunge all of the sedative into her, Alynna’s eyes flew open and she let out a snarl.

“Holy fuck!” the third man, who had standing next to leader, shouted in surprise. “What the fuck is wrong with her eyes!”

“Help…me!” the man who held her sputtered. “I don’t know…she’s fucking stronger than she looks!”

Alynna struggled against the arms holding her, trying to shake him off. The leader threw the syringe to the ground and wrapped his own beefy arms around the other man’s trying to subdue her with his strength.

She made one last push and grunt, then was able to break free as both men toppled to the ground.

“What the FUCK!!” one of them shouted.

Alynna breathed in and out. Her eyes blazed in anger, her arms elongating, the muscles underneath shifting and growing.

“Jesus! What is…
that
?” the man on the ground cursed.
 

She could feel herself transforming, her skin stretching, bones moving. The change felt like it took forever, but in truth it was only a few seconds. It wasn’t painful, but it was a new sensation. Instead of blacking out, like the other times she shifted, she remained fully aware of the change. Black and dark brown fur sprouted from her arms, legs, and all over her body. Her clothes ripped as she grew and changed. It felt exhilarating and freeing.
Protect…save…must protect…
She had never heard that voice before, but she knew it was her inner wolf, speaking to her.
 

When she was fully transformed into her Lycan form, she pounced.

***

Alex waited outside Fenrir building, across the street where he could see the entrance clearly, but not too close. He wore a dark baseball cap to shield his eyes from the sun, as well as obscure his face from view.

He’d been waiting since that morning. He was off-duty for the day, but for some reason, he wanted to just be there. Be near Alynna. Heath had told him he was driving her to Fenrir for a late morning meeting, so he took the subway and planted himself across the street. Right on schedule, the black town car pulled up in front of the entrance and Alynna stepped out. Alex felt his heart skip a beat, seeing her again after that night. Jealousy twisted inside him, remembering how the San Francisco Alpha had kissed her before he boarded the plane. He knew he had no chance - he never did, and he had to remind himself that. He asked Nick if he could take the overnight shift as soon as they got back to The Enclave, knowing that being on duty to guard the Alpha’s apartment was the only thing that would prevent him from storming into Alynna’s apartment and try wipe the Liam Henney’s scent from her and cover her with his own.

Just before noon, he saw a flash of black hair - it was definitely Alynna, but no car had pulled up to pick her up. She started walking north.
What the heck was she doing? Why was she alone?
His jaw tightened, but rather than running across the street to grab her, he pulled the cap lower and started tailing her.

Alex made sure to stay at least a block behind her at all times. Her heightened senses, plus PI instincts might alert her to a tail. He followed her north, hanging back when she stopped at a cafe and waited until she stepped out.
Where the hell was she going?
 

He nearly lost her when she went into Central park. As the crowds grew thinner and thinner, he didn’t have much of a cover, so he hung back even further.
She’s probably gonna try to cut across and walk back to The Enclave
. Alex couldn’t believe the Beta or the Alpha would let her out alone, not after the ball.
 

He followed her until they were almost at the top of the Reservoir, then he felt vibration in his pocket.
Shit
. She would hear him if he picked up the phone, so he let her get ahead of him even further, but kept his eyes on her as he stepped off the path.
 

“Westbrooke,” he answered, not bothering to check who it was. It was his work phone, so it could only be one of the guys or the Beta.

“Alex,” Nick’s voice was tense. “Sorry to bother you on your day off. Are you at The Enclave?”

“No problem, Al Doilea,” he answered. “I’m not at The Enclave. What can I do for you?”

“It’s Alynna. She’s missing again. We found Heath - he was subdued and locked in the trunk of the town car. The receptionist said Alynna walked out into the street and didn’t see what happened after.”

The hairs on the back of Alex’s neck stood up, his heart started to pound. He had a terrible feeling. “She’s here…I mean, I’m at Central Park and I followed her. She’s ahead of me, probably cutting across 97
^th
street to head back to The Enclave.”

“You saw her? What are you - never mind. Grab her and bring her back The Enclave, right now, ok?”

“Yes Al Doilea,” he said. “Wha—“ Before he could continue, he heard a scream. “Fuck! I mean…there’s something wrong.” Alex breathed deeply, in and out, to try and calm down, but his body tensed. Something was wrong, he knew it.
Keep her safe….keep them safe…

He was stunned. His inner Lycan never spoke to him while in human form. Only during transformations, and that was very rare. Even when he was fully shifted and could control himself, the wolf only spoke in growls or single words.
 

“Alex?”
 

He snapped out the trance. “I have to go. She’s in trouble,” he growled softly as he dropped the phone to the ground. His human legs would be too slow to help her, and his wolf was already rearing to get out. He ran towards Bridle Path, shedding his jacket, shoes, pants, and shirt as he fully shifted into his Lycan form.

Alex’s wolf form was well over 6 feet when it stood on its hind legs. Its muscular body was covered it dark brown hair with streaks of light blond. Its eyes were a pure molten gold color and fangs long and sharp. He controlled the wolf expertly, pushing its legs as fast as it could. He sniffed out Alynna’s scent - that familiar, wonderful scent until he came upon her just off the Bridle Path.