A surprised expression formed on her face. “Tala?” She pushed to a stand, cocking her head, but when she beheld the scourge of society, a hopeful smile danced across her lips.
My brow puckered. And what the hell was that all about?
“Hello, Mr. King.” The commander dipped around her desk, her eyes on the Fire Wolf and him only. “What a surprise to see you here.”
Mr. King?
The hunter crossed his arms. “That makes two of us.”
She didn’t react to his disinterested tone. “What can I help you with?”
And just like that, she glided right past me with her vampire speed, as if I wasn’t even there. Um, what the hell?
My mouth fell open as she avidly assessed the hunter.
“I’m not here to speak with you about that,” the Fire Wolf said with bite. “I’m only here because of Tala.”
That? There was a that? I frowned. What kind of secret was he hiding now? And what in all the realms? Were he and Commander Klebus an item or something? I tried to picture the two of them together and just . . . couldn’t. As for the slight flare of jealousy that suddenly coursed through me, well, I was just going to completely ignore that.
“I see.” The SF commander frowned. “Then what can I do for you, Ms. Davenport?”
“Her sister was abducted,” Carlos replied for me. “We need to launch a full investigation. It sounds like it goes deeper than any of us have estimated.”
“Is that right?” The commander gave another wistful glance in the hunter’s direction—and now my curiosity was seriously piqued—before she glided back behind her desk and waved at the two chairs across from her.
“Have a seat.”
Since there were only two chairs, Carlos took one and I the other. The hunter drifted closer and positioned himself directly behind me. Not so close that he was smothering my personal space, but close enough that it was obvious he was here for me.
A warm feeling drifted through my belly, and I wanted to kick myself for it. I reminded myself that the Fire Wolf’s interest in me was only because of his damn wolf, and then I forced myself to remember the numerous times in the past forty-eight hours that I’d embarrassed myself when he’d detected my desire. Each time he’d looked amused. Amusement wasn’t really something I was looking for in a life partner. So best to remember that and squash these ridiculous reactions.
“So you’ve confirmed that Tessa Davenport was indeed abducted?” the commander asked Carlos.
He gave a swift nod.
“Where is she now?”
“At our apartment,” I cut in before Carlos could answer. “The Fire Wolf—err, Mr. King—and I rescued her last night from a dance club in New York.”
The commander’s eyebrows raised. “Rescued her how?”
I took a deep breath and glanced at the hunter. His eyes burned into me, those red flames appearing again. Just thinking about last night, about how close we’d both come to being killed, about how we would have been if my forbidden power hadn’t saved us . . . I shivered.
The Fire Wolf placed a hand on my shoulder. It felt hot and heavy, yet also strangely comforting.
Despite the warm and fuzzy sensations his touch was giving me, I shrugged him off and shifted my attention back to Commander Klebus. “The Fire Wolf tracked her there, and then when he’d been inside the club for what I thought was too long, I went in too. I found him surrounded by six supernaturals in their underground rooms. They were talking about someone named Jakub, and we know someone named Damascus is also involved due to another incident. Long story short, we think the European mafia might be involved, or it could all be a cover to hide who really is involved. But anyway, a fight ensued, and we managed to get the upper hand. From there, we—or rather, the Fire Wolf—freed the other supernaturals also held imprisoned. There were seven total.”
“There were others?” the commander asked sharply.
The Fire Wolf grunted. “Six others beside Tessa.”
“Where are they now?”
“Back at their homes.”
“Do you have names and locations?”
“I do,” he replied dryly.
“I’ll need that information.”
“Of course you will.”
The commander ignored that jab. “And you say that two men—Jakub and Damascus—are responsible for their capture?”
“Not Damascus,” the Fire Wolf cut in. “He’s unrelated.”
I frowned. “But in that alleyway in the Shadow Zone with the half-demons, you were asking them about him and Katarina, and—”
“That was a bad lead.” The hunter’s jaw tightened. “Damascus is a known pedophile involved in illegal gambling rings. I tracked him because Katarina was underage and someone he would have coveted, but he isn’t involved in the abduction ring led by Jakub.”
That information hit me like a pile of bricks. And then it all made sense. Of course, Damascus wasn’t involved. Because when I’d first encountered the Fire Wolf, with the half-demons beating him bloody outside of the Black Underbelly, the hunter had been trying every avenue he could think of to find Katarina Varga—all because she’d been gone for too long and his scrying was no longer accurate. Damascus must have been a lead he was grasping for, but when that lead proved fruitless, and I’d told him about Star Tattoo Guy’s constellation tattoo, the hunter had decided to come knocking on my door. Or rather, not knocking, but breaking into my apartment.
I turned in my seat to face the commander as I clenched my teeth. Once again, I was reminded that the hunter had lied to me.
“So you believe that the only supernatural behind Tessa’s abduction is a person named Jakub?” The commander’s expression was calculating as her attention drifted between me and the hunter.
When I didn’t reply, the Fire Wolf gave a curt nod.
“Have you confirmed that Tessa is safe?” Commander Klebus asked Carlos.
My ex’s lips parted before a sheepish expression overtook his face. “I meant to, but things got rather”—he looked at the hunter—“complicated,” he finished.
“She’s at our apartment now,” I added.
The commander picked up her tablet. “I’ll dispatch a team to confirm her whereabouts. She’ll also need to be brought in for questioning in order to learn as much about her abduction as she can recall.” The commander sent off a message, then her attention shifted to the hunter again. “You tracked Tessa single-handedly to this club in New York?”
“I did.”
She sat back in her chair, a contemplative look forming on her face, before she straightened and pulled a crystal sphere from her drawer. “I’ll need a full write-up of what occurred during the past few days, down to every detail of what happened in that club. Mr. King?” She slid the crystal toward the hunter, bypassing me completely.
He scowled and crossed his arms. “Not interested. I’m only here because of Tala. She can tell you what she wishes to disclose.”
The commander’s nostrils flared, but after a lengthy staring contest, in which the Fire Wolf didn’t even blink, she finally slid the crystal in my direction. “Tala, would you please assist?”
I lifted my hand but before placing it on the crystal, I cocked my head and said, “You were wrong, you know, not to believe me about my sister being abducted. I hope you remember that if she’s ever in trouble again.”
The commander inclined her head, although she looked far from contrite. “Noted.”
I barely suppressed my eye roll. With a shake of my head, I set my hand on the crystal. Magic activated, tugging on my mind and memories, and then words began flowing across the commander’s digital tablet as the crystal charm extracted my memories quickly and efficiently. Not even a minute passed before the report was complete, the majority of the last few days’ events translated into a flawless digital format.