The Road to Redemption (10 page)

Barely, Damien
kept from rolling his eyes. How many times had Reno said something
similar to him during those early days of training to be an
Enforcer? Of course, Reno had been one of the biggest rule breakers
of them all and they’d both often laughed at the irony of it.

The sights and
sounds of Chicago faded as Damien thought of those long ago days.
He and Reno patrolling together, hunting down Purists,
instinctively knowing how the other would react in a tight spot.
They’d been quite the team… Hell, more than that. One of the best
damned teams Lycan Link had ever seen!

Damien shoved
his hands in his pockets and wondered what his former partner was
up to these days. Did he still spread his time between Lycan Link
and the pack in Kolding’s Pass? It was almost two years since he’d
seen the man. Sadly, they hadn’t parted as friends; barely even on
the same side of the law. The broken relationship…hurt. Reno had
been like his brother, and his disapproval—no matter how
justified—had stung.

Noises coming
from his right drew him from his melancholy. A group of young men
had just exited a movie theatre and were rough-housing with each
other, though from the looks of it, one member of the group was
about to lose his temper. Damien instinctively drew Sam closer to
him, wrapping his arm around her shoulders to shield her from the
jostling men. His inner wolf went on alert as well, ready to defend
the female at their side. Muscles tightened, a deadly calm sheathed
his mind. He was no stranger to life and death fights and—

“What do you
think you’re doing?” Sam hissed the words at him and tried to push
away, but he held her in place.

“Acting like a
normal couple out for an evening stroll. A man protects his woman.”
Damien murmured the words through barely parted lips, keeping his
gaze trained on the group. One of the young men noticed his
attention and instantly stilled before nudging a cohort who had a
similar reaction. In a matter of seconds the group had quieted down
and was warily backing away.

Damien curled
his lip as he watched their retreat then brought his attention back
to Sam who was still protesting at his side. She was jabbing her
elbow into his waist.

“We’re not a
couple! And if you call me ‘your woman’ again, I’ll rip your balls
off!” She shoved him again and this time he allowed his arm to drop
to his side, releasing her.

He willed
himself to relax, locking the dangerous half of himself away once
more. “Sorry. It seemed like a good cover. Anyone who knows I’m
staying with you will wonder about our relationship.”

“Let them
wonder. I walk alone. I take care of myself.”

Damien
shrugged. “Sure thing, Sugar.”

“And stop the
‘sugar’ crap.”

Irritation
rolled off her and he chuckled, inexplicably pleased to have gotten
that reaction. “Sugar crap? Sounds like some new brand of breakfast
cereal.”

“Cereal? Wh—”
She snapped her mouth shut, exasperation oozing from her. “Will you
be serious?”

This time he
made no effort to control his laughter and it felt as if something
had been released inside him, allowing the tension to flow from his
body. “Only if you lighten up a bit.”

“Me? You’re
the one that looked like he’d sucked lemons all during dinner.”

“I was
listening, trying to learn everyone’s name. If you want me to be
believable in this role, then I have to do my homework.” He stopped
and lightly touched her arm. Surprisingly enough, she actually
paused and turned to face him. “I was impressed by the way you made
sure Hiram felt like he was still contributing.”

She studied
his face for a moment seeming surprised by his comment, then
shrugged and looked away. “He’s had a hard time of it
recently.”

The light from
the lamp-post caught her eyes, causing the violet to glow like some
rare gem. Not thinking, he reached out, gently touching her chin
and turning her face so he could see the colour more clearly.
Amethyst surrounded by thick dark lashes.

“You have the
most amazing eyes.”

She scowled.
“I hate them. Lycans shouldn’t have violet eyes.”

“I think they
suit you.” He brushed his thumb over her jaw. Something about her
drew him in and stirred his interest. Before he could decide what
it was, she jerked her face away from his hand.

“It won’t do
you any good.”

“What
won’t?”

“Trying to get
between my legs.” She kept her face averted, seeming to be studying
the traffic, but Damien was sure he heard an underlying tone of
hurt beneath her hard response.

“I didn’t
think that’s what I was doing.” Truth was he had no idea what he’d
been doing.

“No?” She
arched a brow. “Just keep it that way, then. If I decide I need a
lover, I’ll choose one. Your job is to be my Beta, nothing
else.”

“Good to
know.” Damien shoved his hands in his pockets not sure what to make
of her response. Not that it mattered. He wasn’t looking for a
lover and if he was, it wouldn’t be someone like Sam. Beth had been
soft and sweet, letting him lead the way. Sam would likely be
issuing orders the whole time.

As if to
illustrate the point, she jerked her chin towards a nearby
nightclub. “We’re going in here.” The neon sign overhead proclaimed
it to be Club Mystique.

He didn’t
question the decision, despite his instinctive aversion to being
ordered about. Instead, he followed behind her like the good little
Beta he was supposed to be.

There was a long line of people waiting to enter
the popular night spot. Sam pushed her way to the front, ignoring
the deadly looks cast her way. The bouncer knew her and simply
nodded and let her pass.

As the door
opened, a throbbing bass beat rolled out of the club and spilled
onto the street. The crowd began to surge forward and the bouncer
moved to block the entrance with his body.

“He’s with
me.” Sam inclined her head towards Damien, shouting the words so
the bouncer would hear her over the music. She needn’t have
bothered. The look Damien gave the man had the burly fellow taking
half a step back. A huff of laughter escaped her. Damn, she’d been
lucky. Damien was one impressive rogue…provided he remembered his
place.

The pass he’d
made earlier—if it had indeed been a pass—had momentarily worried
her. Fighting off males who kept their brains in their dicks wasn’t
a problem—she’d done it often enough—but it was annoying and
interfered with her duty.

She wound her
way through the crowd, heading for her usual spot at the bar and
caught the eye of Tina, the bartender and her friend. Her drink
appeared a moment later.

“Want
anything?” She nudged Damien and he shook his head, obviously too
busy scanning the crowd to even bother answering. Oh well, his
loss.

He finally
focused back on her, his jaw set in a look of disapproval. “Why are
we here?”

“To dance?”
She flicked a glance towards the centre of the room where couples
were grinding to the music.

He snorted and
she laughed.

“Right.” She
took a swallow of her drink. “Hiram was telling me about scenting a
Lycan. I questioned him after dinner. It wasn’t too far from
here.”

“He wasn’t
completely sure.”

“No, but this
is a popular hangout. Lots of our kind pass through.” She shrugged.
“It’s as good a place to look as any other.”

Damien nodded.
“I’ll wander around. See if I notice anything.”

“Meet back
here in half an hour.”

She watched
him leave, slowly sipping her drink and noting how the crowd
instinctively parted for him. Yeah, he’d impress the hell out of
Sinclair or any of the Lycan Link stiffs that might come nosing
around. As he disappeared from view, she turned on her bar stool
and casually gestured towards Tina.

The bartender
nodded and began to make her way back towards Sam, clearing glasses
and wiping the counter as she went along. It gave Sam a moment to
appreciate the woman’s garb. Thigh high boots, a short leather
skirt, a black bustier and a choker chain necklace. It was topped
off with rainbow coloured hair.

Sam grinned at
the woman when she finally stopped in front of her, taking in the
final touch to the costume, dramatic purple eye shadow and the
liberal use of eyeliner. “Nice colours.”

Tina cracked
her gum and grinned. “I couldn’t decide what I wanted today, so I
went with them all.”

“It suits
you.” She took a moment to marvel at the intricate filigree design
that accented the outer corners of the bartender’s eyes. Tina was
studying to be a makeup artist. “Cool eye liner design, too.”

“Yeah, I got a
great mark from my instructor for it.” She studied Sam’s face. “You
know, I’d love to do your eyes one day.”

“I’ve told you
before, that’s not my style, Tina.” Sam shook her head and grabbed
a handful of popcorn from a bowl that sat nearby.

Tina gave a
dramatic sigh. “I know, but I’ll keep trying. Your eyes would be so
much fun to work with.” She glanced along the length of the bar. No
one was demanding her attention, so she settled in to talk. “I’m
surprised to see you here tonight. What’s up?”

Sam raised her
glass to her mouth and replied in a barely audible whisper.
“Looking for information. Any new rumours? Hiram thought he scented
a new Lycan in the area but wasn’t sure.”

Straightening,
Tina wiped the countertop then glanced around. While the
establishment was frequented by Shifters as well as Others, there
were always humans about as well and discretion was needed. “There
is one. One who is, yet isn’t.”

“And that
means…?”

Tina scrunched
her face, obviously trying to explain the feeling she had in words
that a mere Lycan could understand. “You need to be careful. The
wolf has two faces.”

Sam frowned
trying to make sense of what Tina was saying. The woman was one of
the Others, part of the witch and Fae realm, and as such she was
prone to insights about the future. Unfortunately, those insights
tended to be vague, or perhaps it was that Tina had turned her back
on her heritage and made no real effort to refine her skill.

Biting back a
sigh of frustration, Sam nodded her thanks. “If you pick up on
anything, let me know.”

“Sorry.” Tina
tucked a pink lock of hair behind her ear. “I’m pretty sure there’s
another Lycan in the area but…” She shrugged. “Being a witch isn’t
an exact science.”

Sam made a
non-committal sound and downed the rest of her drink. Her
grandfather would have a seizure if he knew she was consulting with
one of the Others. Her friendship with the witch had often been a
sticking point between them.
Non-shifters can’t be trusted
,
he’d growl while she’d argue back that the division between species
was outdated. Having a witch as a friend could be useful…usually…if
you didn’t count the times when Tina’s hexes had gone horribly
awry. If only the woman would put more effort into developing her
skills. Sam shook her head. Others weren’t bound by duty like
Lycans were and there was no point in trying to change them.

She pushed her
empty glass towards Tina along with payment for the drink. “Thanks.
If anything else comes to you—”

“I’ll give you
a call.” Tina pocketed the bills. With a friendly nod, she returned
to her bartending duties.

Sam turned her
seat so she faced the crowd again and considered Tina’s words. ‘One
who is, yet isn’t.’ Someone being deceitful? That was half the
population of the bar right now. She watched as the women flirted
and the men whispered promises they had no intention of keeping.
She snorted and leaned back, resting her elbows on the bar behind
her.

“Great
music.”

Sam turned her
head to look at the young man beside her. He’d been there for some
time but apparently only now had garnered the nerve to speak to
her. He was about her age, short blond hair, average height. Cute,
if you liked cute.

She nodded.
“Yeah. Great.” It was okay, good enough that her booted foot was
keeping the beat.

“So…” He
shuffled his feet, glanced away and then looked at her again. “You
wanna dance?”

Sam flicked
her eyes over the length of him and then slid from her seat. “Why
not?” It gave her a chance to check out who was on the dance floor.
Between the cheap perfume and body spray, a dozen Lycans could be
in the room and she’d be hard pressed to pick up on their
scent.

She led the
way into the undulating crowd, found an open spot and began to move
to the music. The floor reverberated under her feet, the rhythm
persistent and pulsing as it attempted to wrap her in its spell,
but her attention was on her own thoughts.

The Lycan Tina
was sensing could very well be Sinclair’s spy. And if the spy was
already in town, then it was a good thing Damien was part of her
pack. A spy would be looking for weakness, the inability to carry
out the duties associated with owning a territory. That wasn’t the
case, of course. She had the city well under control, but if they
saw Damien
and
her at the helm there would be no doubt in
their chauvinistic little minds that the place was in good
hands.

And speaking
of hands… The man she was dancing with had pulled her close enough
so that he was grinding against her butt.

“Hands off.”
She tried to step away. In response, he tightened his grip on her
hips and nuzzled her neck. Giving her head a slight shake at the
idiot’s audacity, she grabbed one of his fingers and bent it
back.

“Hey!” He
immediately let go.

“I said hands
off.” She turned to stare at him, eyes narrowed, daring him to
complain.

He snapped his
mouth shut and appeared as if he’d like to back up even further if
the dance floor hadn’t been so crowded.