Just One Drop (32 page)

"I knew this would happen," Costin growled. "Do you know what he's going to do to me when he finds out I helped you, Jen?"

"Jacque dear, that's the past. This is the now, and right now we need to figure out how we are going to keep the big bad wolf from finding out about the three little pigs' scheme."

"Did you just refer to us as the three little pigs?" Sally asked incredulously.

"Oh, good grief. Fine. Three little, hot as hell, give Ms. Piggy a run for her money, pigs. Better?" Jen batted her eyes.

"You're in rare form, Jennifer Adams."

"Okay, so what I'm thinking," Jen continued, "is that Costin or Cynthia will have to be the ones to be on the lookout for Dec because y'all will be able to smell him before you ever see him."

Costin groaned. "I knew I should have just stayed in my room. Kept to myself. But nope, I just had to hang around the hot unmated females. I just had to be my usual charming self."

Jen continued on, ignoring their play. "I don't think we need to change any of our plans at this point. I think we just need to be extra vigilant."

"Seriously, Jen, do you think all those wicked witches look like they've been ridden hard and hung out to dry because it's easy being evil?"

"It's about time, too." Jen nudged Sally with her shoulder. "I was beginning to think that she was beyond help."

"Costin, sweetie, there is no way to
not
draw attention to all this."

"Alina and I will be dining with the other Alphas tonight, and I plan to broach the subject of Decebel and Jen. Hopefully, once I explain things, they will be willing to allow Jen and Decebel to spend some time together without requiring them to participate in any more events."

Jen let out the breath she'd been holding. "Is Decebel going to be allowed out tonight?"

Vasile's eyes softened as he looked at Decebel's mate. "I don't know yet, Jen. If the Alphas don't agree, then it will probably be best to keep Decebel separate from everyone until we return home."

Jen just nodded her head in understanding.

"As for the rest of the day, our females will be having fencing lessons. Some of the older unmated males come from a time period when guns were not the method of warfare."

"No offense, Alpha," Jen spoke up, "but telling us that the males we should be looking for as mates are old enough to be considered exhibits in ancient museums doesn't do much for the ol' libido."

Crina and Marianna snickered while Sally rolled her eyes and covered her face in exasperation.

Vasile smiled. "So, then you will be happy to know that your mate is at least half a century away from being inducted into said exhibit."

Jen glared. "Not cool, V. So not cool."

Vasile chuckled and winked at her.

"Let's eat and be off. Oh, and one more thing, Jen," Vasile addressed her, face wiped clean of the smile. "Please refrain from stabbing some poor, unsuspecting wolf."

Chapter 27

Thad answered the cell phone that vibrated in his pocket.

"What?" he snapped at his contact. "So you have found a location to take her? Did you get the urine to pour on her?” He listened. “I understand that you think it's disgusting, but it would be pointless to hide her if they could sniff her out. The urine will mask it. Do as I ask. You know the price you will pay if you do not." He hit the end button and slipped the phone back into his pocket.

He stepped from the suite into the adjoining area that had been set up as a dining room, and watched as two of his mated females prepared the table for the dinner that would take place in less than an hour. He had made sure every detail had been taken care of, down to the moment he would hand Vasile, the greatest Alpha in two centuries, the fatal drink.

Thad smiled to himself as he thought about how the week had played out. Vasile's Beta was locked up, and they were all so distracted by the situation with him and the American they didn't have any idea there was a traitor amongst them.

He walked over to the mini bar and poured a drink. He lifted it into the air as he whispered under his breath, "Here's to a night to remember." He slung the liquor back, savoring the burn it caused in his throat.

A knock at the door brought him out of his reverie. He motioned for one of the females to open it. Dragomir and his mate Agnes walked in.

"Dragmoir," Thad inclined his head to the Hungary pack Alpha, then approached his mate. "Agnes. Looking ravishing, as always." He took her hand and gently laid a kiss on it.

"Thank you, Thad." Agnes smiled genuinely. "We feel honored to be your guests and honored to be included in this monumental event. It's time we stop fighting amongst the packs and join forces to help our species survive."

"Spoken like a true Alpha female."

They continued with small talk as each Alpha and his mate arrived. Vasile and Alina were last, both walking with the confidence that comes with reigning for two centuries. Thad made himself smile and gush over Alina just as he had the other females. He reminded himself that this would be the last time he would have to watch the pair cloaked in their own power. That thought was enough to bring about a sincere smile as he invited them all to sit around the table.

He planned for them to eat and relax, to give Vasile and his mate one more good meal before they left this life. Then he would personally hand each couple a glass of his oldest and most expensive wine. The poison would begin flooding Vasile's system within half an hour of consumption, and all hell would break loose.

"I can't believe that wuss bellyached when I nicked him with the tip of my sword," Jen growled as she and the other TFFs climbed the stairs to convene in her room. They'd finished dinner a couple of hours ago and had been sitting around, shooting the breeze when Jacque glanced at her phone and noticed it was only forty five minutes until Jen, Crina, and Marianna were supposed to meet the males in the gym.

Jen immediately turned and pointed at Jacque and Sally. "Okay, you two are to meet Costin and Cynthia in," she glanced at her phone, "twenty minutes in Cynthia's office." She turned to Crina and Marianna. "I think we should wear bathing suits under our clothes. That way, if the top layer does come off, we aren't showing off our undies."

"Okay, we'll go and change and meet you back here in fifteen minutes," Crina told her as she and Marianna left. Jen gave them a nod, heading for her closet.

"Okay, Jen. We're out," Jacque hollered as she and Sally headed for the door.

"Wait, hold up." Jen stuck her head out from around the closet door. "What did you tell wolf-man you were doing this evening?"

Jen stood in her closet, contemplating just how angry the Beta was going to be. "Won't be pretty, that's for sure," she muttered as she continued to search for her clothes.

Twenty minutes later, Jen, Crina, and Marianna sat in the middle of the gym with a deck of cards, glasses they had stolen at dinnertime, and some vodka Costin had somewhat shadily acquired. They had laid pillows from their beds around in a circle to lounge on, and Jen had set up her iPhone to play club music. Crina managed to figure out how to turn on only half the lights so it wasn't so bright, but a soft glow fell over the floor.

"Okay, let's start this night out right." Jen lifted her glass filled with just enough vodka to throw back. "Here's to a night to remember!"

Everyone raised their glasses and clinks filled the room as they tapped them together and drank.

Jen watched the four wolves to see if there was any indication that they'd realized their drinks were laced. She grinned when they held their glasses out for another. Crina poured the shots as Jen began shuffling the deck.

"Okay, so you boys know how to play poker?"

"We looked up the specifics on the internet," Adrian informed her.

Jen looked at Crina and Marianna out of the corner of her eye. "Excellent," is what came from her lips, but she was thinking,
L
ike taking candy from a baby
.

She dealt out the cards. "We're going to keep it simple and play five card draw. Now, just like in a regular game, you can chose to fold, you can bluff, and you can call. Since we aren't playing for money, the easiest way to determine how the clothes come off are based on the bets. For example, if you bet a dollar that would equal a sock. If you were to bet five dollars that would be a shirt, so on and so forth. Make sense?"

"We Westerners take our poker very seriously, regardless of the method of pay." She set down the cards left in the deck and picked up her own. Everyone followed suit and looked at their hands.

"Okay. So, starting with the player to my left – Crina, place your bets." Jen looked at her expectantly.

Earlier, Jen had told them to only stay in the game when the bet was under five bucks, and fold any other time. She didn't like to brag, but she knew poker. She'd have these guys in their skivvies in no time. She would make the big bets to bait them, and regardless of the fact that they were wolves, they were men and she was just a little ol' girl. They wouldn't want to fold – it would make them appear unconfident and weak.