“It’s you.” A bolt ran right through her system. Her inner wolf, normally silent unless she called upon it, instantly perked up, as if something interesting had captured its attention. It let out an inner growl that was so loud in her ears, she feared everyone else heard it.
The room suddenly felt too small and she couldn’t breathe. Flashes of her dream came back to her. Strong arms wrapped around her. His skin smelling all male with a hint of vanilla. The bird tattoo on his left wrist. The feel of electricity when his fingers touched her cheek. And those eyes.
“You know this man, Adrianna?” Frankie’s gaze zeroed in right at her.
“Yes. I mean … no?” She buried her face in her hands. Oh, God, she was going crazy. She didn’t know this man, but yet she did. Those half-formed dreams she’d been having were coming back. “I remember now.” She lifted her head tentatively to face him. “You were at the ascension ceremony.”
“Darius?” Corvinus seemed confused as well. “What is going on?”
The expression on his handsome face remained impassive, but a muscle in his jaw ticked. “I was at the ball. Remember, Uncle? You sent me. She must have seen me there. As a guest.” He too, had an accent, but it wasn’t as thick as Corvinus’s.
“It’s not just that,” Adrianna insisted. “You took me away.”
“Took you away?” Frankie’s voice rose by a decibel. “Where?”
“I mean … everything from the time of the explosion to when I was revived is a blur, but I know you were there.” She searched his face, but any indication that he recognized her was gone. He held the key to what really happened. Why was he acting like he wasn’t even there? “You carried me out of the ballroom and brought me to the ladies’ room.”
“Is this true, Darius?” Corvinus asked, his eyes narrowing at his nephew.
He cleared his throat. “As I tried to escape, there were two men in my way, and I took them down. I saw a woman, and she was in my way as well, so I picked her up and then deposited her in the women’s facilities before I left. I did not realize that was the Alpha’s daughter.”
He treated me like I was a sack of potatoes! She felt her cheeks go hot with embarrassment and anger. Her mother gave her a strange look, but she managed to compose herself. “I guess I should thank you then. Or maybe say sorry because I was in your way.”
“There is no need.” His eyes stared ahead, not meeting hers. “It was inconsequential.”
Corvinus gave an impatient snort. “Could we continue with our meeting now, Primul?”
Frankie hesitated, but nodded. “Go ahead and grab a chair,” she said to Darius, then turned to Corvinus. “I don’t like to waste time or words, so I’ll get right to the point. Anatoli Corvinus, it has come to my attention that you’ve been operating your own little criminal empire in my territory.”
Corvinus smiled like the Cheshire cat. “My family has had a legitimate trucking and construction business in New Jersey for decades, Primul. My father moved us here from Romania and built everything from the ground up, expanding our interests across the state. We have had no complaints nor has anyone been convicted of any kind of wrongdoing, except for minor inconsequential infractions. What’s the saying here in America? Innocent until proven guilty?”
“This is not a court nor am I bound by any laws, except Lycan ones.” Frankie’s voice became cold, and the power of an Alpha rippled across the room. “I’m not stupid, and I’ve been turning a blind eye because as you said, you haven’t risked exposing us to the humans. But all illegal activity must cease. I know everything. The kickbacks, the bribes, the loan-sharking, everything must stop now. Or else I will go to the Attorney General’s office and show them what evidence I do have.”
Corvinus’s face turned red. “You cannot mean that.”
“This is an order from your Alpha.” Frankie looked at Adrianna. “My daughter will ensure that you follow this order. She will be taking my place as Alpha as soon as possible.”
Adrianna cleared her throat. “You will give us a list of all your activities. Legal and not.” Under the table, Frankie squeezed her hand and she felt the tension leave her body. “We want to know about every pie you’ve got your fingers stuck into. Every politician you’ve bribed, every kickback you’ve received. If you’ve been hustling old ladies for their pension money, we want to know it too.”
“We do not harm the old, the sick, women, and children.” It was Darius who spoke up, but he still didn’t meet her gaze. “That is a rule we follow.”
“Gangsters with a code honor,” Julianna snorted. “How noble.”
Adrianna fought the urge to glare at her sister, but continued. “Still, we want to know all your ‘business’ dealings.”
“And you mean to shut everything down?” The anger from Corvinus was palpable, and the tension in the room thickened. “Don’t you know what that means? What about the Lycans—your subjects who live here—who rely on us for their livelihood? We have brought many of them here from Romania, and they send their earnings back home. They have families, children who depend on them. Will you take the food from their mouths, even now as you sit here, rich and well-nourished?”
“Don’t think for one second I don’t know how much your pockets have been lined because of their work.” It was Frankie who spoke, and again, she made the raw power of her Alpha wolf known. “You’ve been bringing people here from the Old Country, thanks to the loopholes in the Constanta Agreement. After all, I’m
