A Matter of Convenience

Thirty-One

“You’re still here?” I anchor my feet and cross my arms. Isis turns to the man and wraps both arms around him. He leans down and kisses her cheek. When they pull away from each other, they both have big grins on their faces. I’m doing everything possible to keep my and Blade’s feelings in check. I feel completely disrespected right now. I’m reliving everything that happened with Amara, and my blood is starting to boil.

“See ya, Issy.” The man breaks away from Isis and walks away. He winks as he walks past me, causing me to step back. Isis chuckles, and I swing around to look at her. “Nice walking away, too.” This causes Isis to break into a full-blown laugh, and I step to the side to hide my backside.

“You should see the look on your face right now. It’s priceless.” Isis continues to laugh, and I feel my anger dissipate due to embarrassment.

“What did I miss?” I watch Isis continue to laugh, clutching at her sides. She finally slows up and straightens her clothes.

“Only the fact that Miles seems to like what he sees when he looks at you.” Sh.it, he’s gay.

“So, that guy is gay?” All humor drops from Isis. She steps up to me with her hands on her hips.

“Do you have a problem with that?”

“Why would I have a problem with him being gay? As long as he’s happy and all that, right?” Isis looks me up and down before dropping her arms.

“Why are you still here?” I relax my body and roll my neck and shoulders.

“Don’t you think we should talk?”

“Talk? Where do you want to start? Do you want to talk about your comments at the service? Do you want to talk about what you said today? Do you want to go over what a big asshole you are? Please, let me know where we should start.” I internally roll my eyes. I should have known she would make things so difficult; I mean, she is a woman.

If I were you, I wouldn’t say that out loud. I think you should learn to keep your mouth shut sometimes.

Whatever. As if you could do better.

I bet I could. Without warning, I’m pushed to the back of my mind, simply being an observer. I try to fight my way back, but Blade has a strong wall up between us.

“Let me start by saying what a d***k my human is,” I growl in my mind, and Blade snickers in return. Isis steps back, and a sly smile appears on her face.

“What’s your name?”

“I’m Blade. It’s nice to officially meet you.” Blade holds my hand out, and Isis slowly takes it. I love the warmth that comes from her.

“Same.”

“Look, I know my human can be a tool, but he has good intentions. The plan we have should work as long as we can work together. When he gets to be too much, let me know and I will put him in line. I scoff and roll my eyes. As if I will allow my wolf to run me.

If you want this to work and to gain control of your pack, you will.

Are you done now, hmmm? I would like to have control back. Blade chuckles and moves to the back of my mind. My vision clears, and I see Isis looking at me with humor on her face.

“I have to say, I like your wolf a lot better than you.”

“Whatever. Can we please talk and figure all this stuff out before the elders come back? We also need to figure out an announcement to our respective packs.”

“The only reason why I’m willing to look past everything and have this talk is because of your wolf. You should thank him.” Isis winks at me and turns away, walking toward the packhouse.

Yeah, thank me. I ignore Blade’s laughter and follow after Isis. I have a feeling this is going to be more work than it needs to be.

~Jovanni~

I step over the border of our territory, not really sure what I’m doing out here. It’s a weird request, but it came directly from my Alpha, so who am I to question it? I guess there are things I will never know or understand, seeing as I’m just a warrior and not a ranked member.

I easily find the giant oak tree that I’m meant to wait under. I settle on the forest floor with my back against the tree. I let my mind wander, taking in everything that happened.

Things just don’t make sense, and I know I need to figure out what’s going on. It’s true that Isis rejected me, but I never accepted her rejection. She has a mark on her neck that’s plain to see by anyone who looks at her. How is it that she’s marked by another, yet I can still feel the bond between us? Something isn’t right about that, and I need to figure out what that is.

A twig snaps behind me, causing my body to tense up. The scent of rotten eggs and mold wraps around me, making me want to toss my cookies. I’m a head warrior, and we don’t throw up at foul smells.

I anchor myself against the tree and wait for the person to approach me. “Are you Jovanni?” A shadow casts over me as a burly man stands in front of me. He’s wearing dirty, torn basketball shorts and nothing else. There are various dirt stains across his body, as well as other stains, but I don’t want to know what they are. “Well? Are you?”

“I am. I have the information you need.”

“The money?” I pull an envelope from beside me and hold it up for him. He snatches it out of my hand, and I see how disgusting his hands are. His fingernails are long and jagged. There’s so much gross stuff under his nails, but I don’t want to dwell on it. “This is only half!”

“He isn’t going to pay the rest until he sees results.” He clenches the envelope in his giant paw, spittle accumulating around his mouth.

“He better hold to his word. I’m going to want all of my money as soon as the job is done.” I nod, not feeling the need to verbalize my response. He looks around a few times before setting his eyes back on me. “What does he need from me?”

“We need an attack or two, and we need them to be convincing. If you have anyone you can sacrifice, send them in first. It has to be as real as possible. If you do this, you will get the rest of your money.” He says nothing for a while, and I wait for the response I know I will get.

“When do we get started?”