Page 81 of Sun-Kissed Fangs
“Jackie still has the largest pack anyone’s seen in centuries. If you want to achieve the same status, then—”
“I did not ask for your opinion,” Kieran snarled. “You had my mate in your hands, and you still lost her. Your advice is unwanted, just like your presence.”
Booker tensed and lowered his eyes. “I didn’t mean to be disrespectful.”
“Your existence is disrespectful. These prospects you’re so hesitant about have more of a spine than you. Until you bring me evidence that you’re fit to be anywhere near my right hand, you are worthless to me.”
Booker cringed and touched the scar running around his wrist. When he’d fled, he hadn’t been so scared that he hadn’t brought his hand with him. A hunt and a shifting had fused the flesh that was severed.
He was a clever sort, when he wanted to be, which was the main reason Kieran had kept him around. Kieran had thought Booker’s main flaw was women, since he fancied them to the point where he forgot everything else. Especially when the women in question didn’t fancy him back. He’d gotten written up for it a few times at the station, only quitting his fondling tendencies when Kieran told him to stop attracting needless attention.
He was loyal. Had decent ideas occasionally. But he ran. It was weak. Offering forgiveness for that would make Kieran even worse than him.
The wind howled, snow whirling through the broken windows. A scent followed. Something sharp and cold.
The cheers died. Even under the smell of sweat and smoke, that scent cut through it all. Like a knife slicing through frozen flesh.
The door to the warehouse blew open, and a woman stepped inside. Her appearance summoned harsh snarls, only growing in volume as she walked through the packed building—back straight and heels clicking against the stone floor.
She stopped a few feet from Kieran’s throne, eyeing the bloody head at his feet.
“I seek the wolf in charge. Is this a bad time?”
Her voice was crisp, sharpened by a British accent. Everything about her was cold, from her pale skin to her silver-white hair to her dark blue suit and skirt.
Her age was indeterminable, her ethereal features untouched by time, but her eyes were old. The kind of old that had forgotten more deaths than most people would experience.
Kieran wiped blood off his mouth. “Your kind aren’t welcome here.”
The woman looked over her shoulder, icy-blue eyes scanning the crowd. It snarled in response. Other than disgust flashing over her features, she didn’t react.
“I do not need to bewelcomed,” she said. “This is strictly business. You’ve recently taken hold of a city. A city that was a useful tool to my faction. A loss, in other words. Most Regents do not take those well.”
“Are you a Regent?”
“I speak for one.” The woman stepped closer, kicking aside the severed head. A layer of hoarfrost formed on the floor. “My Queen prefers to be well-informed about the actions of her enemies. The city you stole neighbors one such enemy and was vital for keeping her updated. Your presence has brought blindness, so I come bearing an offer.” Her lips tensed. In a smirk? Or a sneer? “A deal, if you will.”
A wave of growls echoed through the warehouse. A few people stripped off their jackets, muscles bulging and breaths panting.
Kieran almost joined in. Instead, he narrowed his eyes.
“Your deals are something to be wary of.”
“And yet people take them anyway. They just can’t help themselves.” She gave him a cool scan. “While unrefined, you could still be useful. That is to your benefit. If you relinquish control of St. Louis now and return it to its neutral state, I will help you settle elsewhere. Get you uncontested territory where you can do… whatever it is that you do.”
She made a vague gesture at the severed head.
“And what will that cost me?” Kieran asked. Snow danced around the woman’s body.
“A favor.”
Silence followed, broken only by rumbling breathing and feet scraping over concrete. Violence was in the air.
“Boss,” Booker whispered. “Ask her what she wants.”
“Why would I do that?” Kieran said, not lowering his voice.
“Her kind don’t spend time on anything unless there’s a gain involved. You have something she wants.”
