Wild Hunger (The Phoenix Pack #7)(80)

In short, Drake wasn’t going anywhere. And he seemed very aware of it.

Rather than thrashing around, fighting his restraints, he sat very still. He wasn’t sweating or breathing hard. Though his heartbeat was a little fast, it wasn’t pounding with fear. Drake knew he wasn’t getting out of this alive, and he’d apparently decided to accept that.

Trick’s wolf wanted his fear. Wanted to see and smell it, just as he wanted to see and smell his blood.

The boards creaked with each step Trick took forward. Trey, Ryan, Dante, and Dominic fanned out behind him. Their captive didn’t look good at all. His hair was greasy and unkempt, and his clothes were wrinkled and scruffy. Wherever the guy had been hiding, he clearly hadn’t had access to clean clothes or a shower.

Drake glanced around Trick. “Your girlfriend isn’t with you? Shame. I like her.”

He seemed to genuinely mean it. “She broke your nose,” Trick reminded him.

“And almost bashed my head in with a hammer. She’s a fighter. I like that.”

“She’s not my girlfriend. She’s my mate.”

“Well, that explains a few things. Like why you had your pack mate run me down like a rabid dog.” He flicked a look at Ryan.

Trick folded his arms across his chest. “From the things your Alpha said, that’s pretty much what you are. He suspended you as Beta. And he claims to have cut you loose too.”

Drake scoffed. “Nash is no Alpha.”

“True. And you’re no Beta.”

“True,” allowed Drake, unoffended. “So how is this gonna go? Execution? Brawl? Torture? In your position, I’d go the torture route. I would have tortured your mate if I could have. Well, not until I’d fucked every orifice in her body.” He sighed when Trick didn’t allow himself to be goaded. “Not easy to rattle, are ya?”

“It’s hard to take that kind of stuff seriously when it’s streaming out of the mouth of a guy who got his ass kicked by a girl.”

“She didn’t kick my ass.”

“No, you did the kicking. Cracked a rib. You also bruised her jaw. Put a goose egg on her head. Fractured a bone in her leg. Pricked her neck with your claws. And almost dislocated her shoulder.” Anger thrumming through his system, Trick took another step forward. “So tell me, Drake, what do you think I’m going to do to you?”

“Tit for tat,” Drake guessed, his voice flat, his eyes dull.

“That’s right. I’ll revisit every injury you gave her right on back to you—only each wound will be ten times worse.” And Trick would relish every fucking moment of it.

“If you hadn’t knocked me down at the meeting, Nash wouldn’t have sent me your way.”

“You came after me in the restroom to get even.”

“On Nash’s say-so. He told me I’d lose the respect of the pack if I didn’t retaliate. It wasn’t until later, after my failed attempt to follow his order to kidnap your girlfriend, that I realized he was playing us all.”

Trick lifted a brow. “You think he’s playing us?”

“I’m not the brightest lamp on the street, but even I can see he was using me. If I’d killed you, what would your Alpha have done?”

“Demanded that Morelli hand you over for execution.”

Drake gave a lazy nod. “That’s right. And then your Alpha would have owed Nash. What do you think Nash would have asked for? An alliance, right?”

“It’s a possibility. But it wouldn’t explain why you tried to kidnap my mate.”

“He wanted Trey to go to him for help. I told him it wouldn’t work. I told him that your pack’s tracker would be sent to find her. But Nash was sure that Trey would want his help, and then everyone could work together. Nash planned to call Trey to say he’d ‘found’ your girl. He said he wouldn’t demand an alliance for handing her over. Said he wouldn’t have to. He thinks you’d have felt like you owed him.” Drake let out a long breath. “I wasn’t convinced it would work out that way, but I followed orders.”

“And you think that you should therefore be spared?”

“No.” He released a dejected sigh. “I’ve done worse to others than what I’ve done to your girl. Karma comes for us all. But if I’m going down, Nash can sure as hell come down with me.” His eyes twinkled as he added, “Bet you haven’t been able to find out where he came from. On record, it’s like he just sprang out of nowhere, isn’t it?”

Dante came forward. “You know his real identity?”

“Well, that depends on how quick you intend to kill me.”

Sighing, Dante shook his head. “Why do people always try to bargain for a quick death?”

“It’s the only thing a captive has left to bargain with when they know they’re not getting out of the situation alive,” said Drake.

“That’s true enough.” Trick sliced out his claws, satisfied when their captive jerked. “Unfortunately for you, Drake, I really don’t care where he’s from.”

For the first time, Drake’s eyes flickered with panic. “You should care. Nash wants war.”

“We sensed that much,” said Dominic, sounding bored.

“But did you sense that he’s not working alone?” asked Drake. “Someone picked him, gave him a new ID, helped him become an Alpha, and then set him on a new path.”