light tremor shook his entire body, and that tic she’d spotted where he rubbed the scars on his wrists was back.
“Is that so?” Janni said—and launched herself at the guy, nails foremost.
Jeremy caught her in midair and swung her around, setting her down next to Ben behind the island. “Whoa, Miss Miller,” he said. “That won’t get us anywhere.”
“It’ll make me feel better,” she snarled, panting between her teeth.
“Claws in, Hermia,” Ben said. He stroked her hair, but she didn’t act like she wanted to be soothed much, and the tension radiating off him in almost visible waves probably wasn’t helping matters. Janni yanked a stool around and sat down, sulking, with her arms crossed, and Ben snuggled his face into her hair.
Megan parked Alex’s chair beside Jeremy and stood next to them in front of the island, brow lowered, presenting a united front. “Well?” she said.
“I’m not telling you anything, so you can just call the police now and get it over with,” the man said.
“Oh, don’t worry, we’re calling the cops,” Alex said. “How much of you is left when they come and get you—”
The man scoffed. “Like you pansy-asses would do anything to me.”
“Give me five minutes with him, boss,” Jeremy said, balancing a knifepoint on the palm of his hand. “I’ll make him sing.”
“Give me two,” Janni countered.
Megan bet she could get him to tell them anything they wanted after thirty seconds, but that would involve showing him the wolf, so she stayed silent. For now.
“Why don’t we start with what you’re doing on my property with a sniper rifle?” Alex said, gesturing to where it lay on the back granite counter. “It’s a nice gun, by the way. You’re not getting it back.”
Megan thought the guy looked awfully confident for someone tied to a chair surrounded by people who would cheerfully cut his balls off. “Your security is for shit, man,” he said. “How is it I was even able to get on your property?”
“It’s a big place and it backs up to a National Recreation Area.” Alex shrugged. “You’d have had a lot harder time getting in the house.”
“Try me.”
That was a piece of bravado that Megan wasn’t ready to let him get away with. He hadn’t been in the house; she’d have smelled it if he had. Alex had no idea about the extra layer of security her nose afforded him—or that she could smell that the rifle had been recently fired, and could guess when and where. She managed to keep her wolf from actually emerging, but her rage had to come out somehow. Whirling, she lashed out with a foot to the intruder’s chest, knocking him over, chair and all. Alex and Jeremy both looked shocked before grins tugged at their mouths.
Sharpening vision meant her eyes had gone amber. She leaned over the guy, who inhaled with dawning comprehension when she bared her (thankfully still-human) teeth. “Just because you can breach the perimeter of a fifty-acre piece of land doesn’t mean you can get into the actual house,” she said, inwardly cursing herself for nearly letting the wolf out in a moment of weakness. She shoved herself upright and leaned against the island again, glaring, eyes back to blue.
“How well is the industrial espionage business paying these days?” Alex asked, eyeing Megan with surprised admiration. “Because whatever it is, it’s not enough for the world of hurt you’re in.”
Jeremy immediately pulled the intruder and his chair back upright, smiling at Megan. “I guess that self-defense training we’ve been doing together paid off, huh?” he noted.
“Are you going to start the torture anytime soon? Because right now it just looks like you’re going to talk me to death,” the man said, smirking, his eyes locked on Megan’s.
“Ah, screw it, he’s right,” Alex said to the room at large. “I guess we’ll just call his werewolf boss and let him know how sloppy he was, letting himself get caught like
“Is that so?” Janni said—and launched herself at the guy, nails foremost.
Jeremy caught her in midair and swung her around, setting her down next to Ben behind the island. “Whoa, Miss Miller,” he said. “That won’t get us anywhere.”
“It’ll make me feel better,” she snarled, panting between her teeth.
“Claws in, Hermia,” Ben said. He stroked her hair, but she didn’t act like she wanted to be soothed much, and the tension radiating off him in almost visible waves probably wasn’t helping matters. Janni yanked a stool around and sat down, sulking, with her arms crossed, and Ben snuggled his face into her hair.
Megan parked Alex’s chair beside Jeremy and stood next to them in front of the island, brow lowered, presenting a united front. “Well?” she said.
“I’m not telling you anything, so you can just call the police now and get it over with,” the man said.
“Oh, don’t worry, we’re calling the cops,” Alex said. “How much of you is left when they come and get you—”
The man scoffed. “Like you pansy-asses would do anything to me.”
“Give me five minutes with him, boss,” Jeremy said, balancing a knifepoint on the palm of his hand. “I’ll make him sing.”
“Give me two,” Janni countered.
Megan bet she could get him to tell them anything they wanted after thirty seconds, but that would involve showing him the wolf, so she stayed silent. For now.
“Why don’t we start with what you’re doing on my property with a sniper rifle?” Alex said, gesturing to where it lay on the back granite counter. “It’s a nice gun, by the way. You’re not getting it back.”
Megan thought the guy looked awfully confident for someone tied to a chair surrounded by people who would cheerfully cut his balls off. “Your security is for shit, man,” he said. “How is it I was even able to get on your property?”
“It’s a big place and it backs up to a National Recreation Area.” Alex shrugged. “You’d have had a lot harder time getting in the house.”
“Try me.”
That was a piece of bravado that Megan wasn’t ready to let him get away with. He hadn’t been in the house; she’d have smelled it if he had. Alex had no idea about the extra layer of security her nose afforded him—or that she could smell that the rifle had been recently fired, and could guess when and where. She managed to keep her wolf from actually emerging, but her rage had to come out somehow. Whirling, she lashed out with a foot to the intruder’s chest, knocking him over, chair and all. Alex and Jeremy both looked shocked before grins tugged at their mouths.
Sharpening vision meant her eyes had gone amber. She leaned over the guy, who inhaled with dawning comprehension when she bared her (thankfully still-human) teeth. “Just because you can breach the perimeter of a fifty-acre piece of land doesn’t mean you can get into the actual house,” she said, inwardly cursing herself for nearly letting the wolf out in a moment of weakness. She shoved herself upright and leaned against the island again, glaring, eyes back to blue.
“How well is the industrial espionage business paying these days?” Alex asked, eyeing Megan with surprised admiration. “Because whatever it is, it’s not enough for the world of hurt you’re in.”
Jeremy immediately pulled the intruder and his chair back upright, smiling at Megan. “I guess that self-defense training we’ve been doing together paid off, huh?” he noted.
“Are you going to start the torture anytime soon? Because right now it just looks like you’re going to talk me to death,” the man said, smirking, his eyes locked on Megan’s.
“Ah, screw it, he’s right,” Alex said to the room at large. “I guess we’ll just call his werewolf boss and let him know how sloppy he was, letting himself get caught like
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