Betrayed: Days of the Rogue (33 page)

Half an hour later, her hands were
shaking. There was a pattern, a definite pattern in each autopsy
report. She’d laid them out, side by side in order to be sure, but
there was no denying the facts. The organ weights, the internal
examination reports and even the toxicology results were identical
for each dead rogue. Why hadn’t she noticed it before? Probably
because she’d never had cause to read one right after the other,
until now. And if the pattern was apparent to her, then surely
someone else would also see it. The pathologist had simply copied
and pasted a set of standard results into each report. How had such
sloppy workmanship been allowed within the organization? Of course,
it would lead to an investigation. Her thoughts raced as a plethora
of repercussions came to mind.

Pressing her hand to her stomach,
she forced herself to breath calmly. There was a way out of this.
There always was a way if you took the time to consider the problem
from different angles. Before she had time to decide what those
angles might be, the phone rang.

“You have information?” It was her
contact.

“Yes. Dr. McRae informed me he
intends to bring Damien Masterson in tomorrow.”

“Really?” There was a pause. “That
will work in with our plans. Perhaps we can even kill two birds
with one stone.”

“Two?”

“McRae might get caught in the
crossfire. My most recent report has it that he’s now associating
with our latest target. It would seem he’s chosen sides and it was
the wrong one.” A soft chuckle accompanied the statement.

“Dr. McRae?” Annette raised her
eyebrows. “He’s never been a target.”

“He’s a quarter Fae, so he
qualifies.”

“But—” Annette pressed her lips
together tightly. She had a certain fondness for the doctor, and
had always considered him more Lycan than anything else. This group
wouldn’t care about her personal opinion, though.

“He’s been asking questions about
the dead rogues. That makes him a liability.”

“I suppose.” She responded slowly.
The Fae were a plague on the earth so she had no compunction about
their fate, and rogues…well, some could be saved and some couldn’t,
but in the end they were disposable. This, however, didn’t sit well
with her.

“I hope you’re not having second
thoughts about our agreement.”

Something about his tone of voice
made her pause before answering. “No, of course not.”

“Good. I’d hate to have to
terminate our association. Things like that can be so…messy.”

Annette swallowed, not liking the
turn the conversation was taking. What did the man have on her?
She’d overdosed Dr. McRae’s last case with a benzodiazepine, but
surely no one could prove it; she’d personally edited all the
existing records related to the case. Her gaze lighted on the
autopsy reports spread out on the table. That couldn’t be
considered her fault, could it? She filed the reports, the contents
had never been her responsibility. Just in case, she decided
against mentioning her discovery.

“I know more about you than you
might think,” the man warned softly, making her wonder if he’d
known the direction her thoughts were taking. “Tread
carefully.”

The line went dead.

Slowly, Annette set the phone down.
Things were not going as she’d planned, not at all. It had all
started with that last rogue. He should have died in the field, but
somehow he’d survived. When he claimed to be recalling bits and
pieces of what had happened, her contact had told her she had to
act quickly to shut him up. With little time for research, she’d
grabbed onto an idea she’d read in novel and given him an overdose
of the first benzodiazepine she’d found by adding it to his can of
soda. Unfortunately, rather than slipping into a coma as she’d
planned, he’d had an adverse reaction and turned violent, attacking
Doctor McRae!

The following days had been fraught
with tension as she’d waited for someone to realize what she’d
done. Thankfully, everyone had been focussed on the doctor’s
injuries, and she’d been able to intercept the blood sent for
toxicology testing, switching vials of blood. She’d even finished
off the rogue with a few more overdoses and no one had been any the
wiser. It was a shame the doctor had been injured; she rather liked
the man and felt badly about how that part of her plan had turned
out. Perhaps that should have been her first clue that time was
almost up for this scam. But of course, she’d had to try one more
time.

Now, her contact was making vague
threats against her, and the damning autopsy reports… Annette shook
her head and sighed. All good things come to an end. She wondered
how her other buyer would respond to the news that she was going
out of business. Picking up the phone she called Dee.

Chapter 32

Reno shoved a few more papers
haphazardly into the filing cabinet and pushed the drawer shut with
more force than necessary. The captain would have a fit when he saw
the mess the office was in, but it was the man’s own damned fault
for leaving so much paperwork behind.

A quick glance at his watch
revealed that it wasn’t even close to noon. He felt antsy, cooped
up. Everything was about to blow wide open and he should to be in
the thick of things, not pushing papers around in a shoebox-sized
office. With a chopper, he could be in Grassy Hills in no time. His
gut told him being here was wrong, and he’d always listened to his
gut; why wasn’t he doing so now?

Hell, he knew the reason. He was
trying to be a ‘good’ leader. Following the rules, toeing the line,
setting an example. The captain had taken him aside, told him if he
planned on taking over the Kolding’s Pass pack, he needed to be
less of a loose canon. Klaus was getting older and wanted him there
on a more full time basis. The Alpha was ready to retire and Reno
knew he had to be ready to step up to the plate. Shit, he
wanted
to step up to the plate, but inside he had this
niggling doubt that he wasn’t really suited for the job. He’d been
in charge of his unit of Enforcers, but a whole pack? Even Brandi
didn’t know the wedge of self-doubt that plagued him. So here he
was, supposedly in ‘training’ as the captain had put it, and it
sucked. Big time.

Reno scanned the room, wondering
what else he could do to keep himself busy and sat down at the
desk, lining up the stapler, the pen holder and tape dispenser. A
tap on the door thankfully distracted him from rearranging the desk
top again.

“Enter.” He barely kept from
rolling his eyes when Adrian Somerset poked his head in. The man
was under the illusion that they were friends now, though how he’d
come to that, based on their last meeting, Reno had no idea.

“Sorry to bother you, but I thought
I owed you this.”

“Owed me what?” Reno eased back in
his chair, prepared for a long and pointless conversation.

“A heads up about Masterson.”

“Damien? What about him?” He slowly
leaned forward, forcing himself to keep his hands relaxed.

“There’s been a report of a wolf
sighting in Alberta, Canada. The description matches your former
partner perfectly.”

“And…? There’ve been sightings
before, especially in a wilderness area like that.” He kept his
eyes lowered and pulled open the desk drawer, idly searching
through the contents, not wanting to give any indication that his
anxiety level had just skyrocketed.

“This one comes with a set of
complaints from the locals. Savaged pets and farm animals, people
afraid to leave their homes.” Somerset sighed. “It’s a classic case
of a rogue completely out of control.”

Reno looked up, keeping his
expression bland. He knew what was coming but asked anyway. “And
you’re telling me this because…?”

“I’m sending my Trackers to bring
him in.” The man at least had enough grace to look regretful. “I’m
sorry to have to tell you this. I know he was your friend.”

Reno gave a brief nod, his jaw
firmly clenched. “I appreciate the information.” Somerset looked at
him for a moment, apparently unsure if he should stay or go, but
then shook his head and walked out.

Slowly, Reno stood, walked over and
pushed the door shut sealing out the faint sounds of the hallway.
He ran his hands through his hair and then moved to stare out the
window. So it had come to this. Reports of a wolf out of control,
Somerset’s Trackers on their way to apprehend Damien. Damn.

He recalled the first time he’d
seen Damien. Young and cocky, with a chip the size of Texas on his
shoulder. Right away, Reno knew he had what it took to become a top
notch Enforcer. Mind you, they’d locked horns often enough and he’d
had to beat some sense into the boy, but eventually… Eventually
they’d become partners and then friends and finally, within the
soulless walls of Lycan Link, they’d forged their own bond.
Packmates, brothers… Call it what you will, they’d had something
special between them. Hell, they’d even joked about starting their
own pack one day. Pooling their resources and leaving Lycan Link
behind; Alpha and Beta. Those had been the dreams forged late at
night with an empty bottle of whiskey between them. And then he’d
met Brandi and Damien had found Beth. Damn life had been good
then.

Reno cleared his throat and
scrubbed his face. No point in getting maudlin. This was how it had
to be, right?

Idly, he watched a group of newly
recruited Enforcers in the compound below. They were running in a
square formation, dressed in regulation sweats. Their feet moved in
perfect synchronization. Even their breathing seemed to be in tune
with each other. A sergeant jogged along beside them, barking
orders. Like fucking mindless robots, doing Lycan Link’s bidding at
the drop of a hat.

Reno’s stomach twisted again and a
sour taste rose in his mouth. Was that what he was becoming? Doing
as he was told, not thinking for himself, spending his days behind
a damned desk while his former partner—his
brother
—was out
there facing who knew what alone?

A snarl ripped from him and he
pulled out his phone. “Brandi? Meet me at hanger five. I’m
commandeering a chopper … What’s that? … We’re heading to Grassy
Hills.”

Her enthusiastic whistle nearly
burst his ear drum, and he grinned as he shoved the phone in his
pocket.

Not caring if there were meetings
scheduled for the afternoon, he grabbed his jacket and left the
office. As he walked down the hall towards the elevator, a familiar
voice hailed him. It was the captain.

“Reno! I just got in and was
heading to the office to see how you were handling things.”

“Captain.” Reno paused to let the
man catch up to him. “I wasn’t expecting to see you so soon. How
did your investigation go?”

“Fine. It was a dicey case. The
Alpha cut it close, but given that there was a last minute reprieve
it was determined that he followed protocol for The Keeping as
outlined.” The captain shook his head. “I wouldn’t want to have
been in his shoes at the time though.”

“The pack was Kane Sinclair’s
wasn’t it?” They’d reached the elevator and Reno jabbed the button
to summon the next car.

“That’s right. He’s a good man.
High Council is impressed with his performance so far and rumours
have it he might be on the list to eventually take a seat.”

Reno grunted. A seat on High
Council was a plum job given to only the most capable and learned
of Alphas. Sinclair was young to be considered for the short list,
but it would likely be years before his name rose to the top.

The captain shoved his hands in his
pocket and gave Reno an assessing look. “I only got back half an
hour ago and haven’t even checked in yet. How’s our plan going? Any
problems?”

“Actually, I—”

The captain held up a hand while
glancing about. “Not here. Meet me in the office in ten minutes.
You can apprise me of what’s been going on.”

Reno shook his head. “Can’t do
that. I’m heading to Grassy Hills. Damien is there.”

“That wasn’t part of the plan.” The
captain frowned.

“Too bad. I’m going anyway.”

“Reno, what did I tell you about
leadership? Setting an example? Following protocols? What kind of
an Alpha are you going to be?” Fielding’s brows lowered, a hint of
warning in his voice.

The elevator chimed and the door
slid open. “Guess I’ll be the kind that doesn’t give a rat’s ass
about that crap. I’ll do what my gut tells me is right for my
family, and for my pack.” Reno stepped inside the elevator and
jabbed the button for the ground floor.

Captain Fielding grabbed the door,
preventing it from closing. He looked Reno up and down and then
gave a brief nod. “About time you realized it, boy. Now go kick
some ass.” And with that he stepped back.

As the door slid shut, Reno could
hear the older man chuckling.

Chapter 33

Eve spent minimal time gathering
her possessions from the cabin she’d called home for the past few
months. Not having much money, she hadn’t done any personal
decorating, so really all that was needed was to collect her
clothes and art supplies. Some things were still at Rafe’s place,
but she was too upset with him to go back and get anything. Perhaps
she could convince Caro to drive to Grassy Hills and collect her
stuff. It likely wouldn’t take much effort given how Caro drooled
over the man. Of course, Rafe might not be there; he’d said he was
closing the cabins…unless it was simply a ruse to get rid of her.
Once she was out of the way, he could move that woman, Annette,
right in.

The idea heightened her anger while
at the same time causing her stomach to churn. She compressed her
lips and told herself she really didn’t care that Rafe was
replacing her so quickly. All his talk of building mind bridges had
been a pack of lies. He’d wanted her and made up some elaborate
story about the Fae, but the minute someone better appeared on the
horizon, she was out on her ear.