Chapter 10
CAMERON
The air in the office was thick with the acrid scent of adrenaline and barely controlled violence. Ivy sat across from me at the conference table, her fingers drumming a silent, furious rhythm against the polished mahogany. The bond between us thrummed with her fury.
Denver's wolf bristled at the edges of his control, his amber eyes flickering between human and beast as he paced.
Brody shifted to my left, the leather of his jacket creaking as he rolled his shoulders. His usual easy grin was absent, replaced by a grimace that deepened the scar along his jaw. "Boris has eyes on the docks," he said, sliding a grainy surveillance photo toward Ivy. "But he's not stupid enough to show his face there himself."
Ivy didn't flinch. She picked up the photo, her thumb tracing the blurred figure in the corner, a hulking shape that could've been any of Boris's enforcers. "We can't just sit here waiting for him to burn down the company," she said, her voice low but edged like a blade. "I need to be part of this. After all, I'm the bait he wants."
"Ivy," I growled, "you're not trained for this kind of fight. Boris doesn't just want to hurt you, he wants to unmake you. In front of me."
Her chair screeched as she shoved back from the table. "And what? You think locking me in a gilded cage will stop him?" Her laugh was sharp enough to draw blood. "I've dealt with men like Boris my whole career. They're all bullies who crumble the second someone stands up to them."
Denver chuckled darkly from his perch against the wall. He'd been silent until now, arms crossed over his chest, his amber wolf's eyes tracking every flicker of tension in the room. "She's got fire," he mused. "Pity it'll get her killed."
The growl ripped from my throat before I could stop it. Denver's smirk widened.
I slammed a fist onto the table, cracks spider-webbing through the wood. "She's not bait."
Ivy leaned over the table until her scent wrapped around me. "You said we were partners," she whispered. "Partners don't get benched when the game gets rough."
The conference room door burst open before I could respond. One of my security team staggered in, his shirt sleeve torn and dripping crimson. "They hit the warehouse again," he panted. "Tore through the guards like they were paper. Left a message."
He tossed a crumpled note onto the table. The paper reeked of gunpowder and something sickly-sweet. Wolfsbane.
"Next time, it won't be rats. It'll be her throat."
The room tilted. My wolf surged forward, fangs shredding through my gums as the shift threatened to take me. Ivy's hand clamped down on my wrist, her nails biting into my flesh. "Breathe," she ordered, her voice steady despite the rapid pulse pounding in her throat.
Denver snatched up the note, sniffed it, and snarled. "He's got a traitor in your security detail. Only someone with clearance could've gotten this close."
Brody's phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen, then paled. "The test kitchen's security feed just went dark."
Ice flooded my veins. Ivy's grip on me tightened.
"Then we don't wait." She snatched the photo back, her eyes blazing. "We use what he wants, me. We end this tonight."
The test kitchen was quiet despite the danger that awaited nearby. In the air, the scent of onions and roasted spices mingled with wolfsbane. I had given Ivy my laced gun meant to take down any wolf, but I still worried it wasn't enough to keep her safe. Blood would follow. I could feel it in the air and taste it on my tongue.
Ivy's knife flashed, steady and sure, but her pulse was too fast and too sharp, betraying her calm. She moved through the space like a ghost, her knife flashing as she diced onions with deliberate, measured strokes. The rhythm was too perfect. A performance.
I lurked in the shadows by the walk-in freezer, every muscle coiled tight. The comms unit in my ear crackled.
"East entrance clear," Brody murmured.
Denver's voice vibrated through the line. "He'll come through the loading dock. It's where the blind spot is."
I didn't respond. My entire world had narrowed to the curve of Ivy's neck, the way her pulse fluttered just above her collar. The bond between us hummed with nervous energy.
The first alarm shattered the silence.
A blaring high-pitched screech tore through the building. It was a distress beacon from the lobby.
"Shit." Brody's curse echoed in my ear. "They're splitting us up."
The lights died.
For one heartbeat, there was only darkness and the ragged sound of Ivy's breath. Then the emergency strips flickered on, bathing the room in hellish red.
The door exploded inward.
They came in a wave. There were six men, armed with silver-knuckled fists and jagged, wolfsbane-coated blades. I leaped into action, shifting in mid-air. Bones cracked, fur erupted, and then I was a wolf, all fangs and fury.
Chaos. My wolf form, large and monstrous, crashed into two of the men. Knives scattered. Pans clattered. Teeth met flesh. A howl. A scream. We rolled, a tangle of teeth and claws. Blood sprayed. Focus. Ivy.
Denver's snarls echoed from the hallway as he tore into the stragglers. Brody was a blur of motion near the sinks, his fists a deadly metronome. But my focus never wavered from Ivy.
She'd grabbed a cast-iron skillet from the rack, swinging it like a mace. It connected with a thug's temple with a sickening crunch . The man crumpled.
Pride flared through the bond. My mate was as fierce a warrior as any wolf.
A seventh dark figure slid through the fray. Tall. Lean. Moving slickly on all fours.
Boris.
He moved like smoke, slipping past Denver with the grace of an alpha wolf.
He lunged for Ivy.
My heart stopped.
The howl that ripped past my throat shook the walls. Her scent and her heartbeat were my compass in the chaos. I didn't think. I moved, launching myself across the room, but Boris was faster. He swiped at her, but she dove under him, rolling to her feet. She reached into her waistband and pulled out the gun I gave her. Her hands shook as she aimed the weapon loaded with wolfsbane-laced bullets.
Boris skidded. For a heartbeat, he hesitated.
I struck.
My fangs closed around his hind leg, crunching through tendon. He snarled, whipping around to slash at my eyes. Pain exploded across my muzzle, hot and wet.
Ivy screamed my name.
He wheezed and lunged at Ivy again. Ivy twisted, driving her heel down onto his leg with a snap.
A gunshot cracked.
"Chef's tip," she hissed. "Never corner a woman who's spent a decade dodging grabby line cooks."
Blood gushed from Boris's chest. He staggered, shifting back into his human form, the power of his wolf fading from him and flickering like a dying light.
My wolf didn't wait.
I moved .
One second, Boris was reaching for Ivy. The next, my jaws closed around his throat. He screamed, the noise dying into a wet gurgling rattle.
The taste of his blood, copper and rot, flooded my mouth. I shook him like a ragdoll, his dying cries music to the predator in my soul.
"Cam, stop!" Denver's voice echoed in my ears, but it was not enough to deter the raging blood lust. I wanted Boris torn to shreds for daring to threaten my mate.
Ivy placed a hand on my nape. "Cameron, please." Her soft voice cut through the haze like a ringing bell.
I dropped Boris. He hit the ground with a wet thud, but I was already at Ivy's side, shifting back mid-stride. My hands framed her face. Her skin was warm beneath my palms, her breathing was ragged but steady. Her eyes, wide and bright in the dim red glow of the emergency lights, met mine. There was no fear in them. Only resolve.
"Are you hurt?" I demanded, my voice rough, still edged with the growl of my wolf.
She shook her head, her hands coming up to cover mine. "I'm fine." Ivy's fingers trembled against my blood-slicked cheeks as she searched my face. "But you're hurt," Ivy whispered, her thumb brushing the torn flesh where Boris's claws had raked across my brow.
I barely felt the pain. Her touch and her concern were all that mattered. The bond between us hummed, a warm balm soothing my raw adrenaline-singed veins. I cupped her cheek, my thumb brushing lightly over her skin. "You're safe. That's all I care about."
Denver stepped next to Boris's corpse, his amber eyes flickering between human and wolf as he surveyed the carnage. "This isn't over," he said, his voice low and gravelly. "Boris had allies. And they'll come for her."
"They'll try," I growled, pulling Ivy closer. My wolf bristled at the thought of anyone daring to touch her again.
Ivy's fingers tightened on mine. "And we'll take all of them out one by one." The bond between us hummed with her conviction, her strength. It was intoxicating, infuriating, and utterly undeniable.
I exhaled sharply, my forehead resting against hers. "You're going to be the death of me," I muttered.
She smirked, the faintest hint of mischief in her eyes. "Guess you'll just have to keep up."
Behind us, Denver cleared his throat. "As touching as this is, we've got a mess to clean up and a traitor to find."
I straightened, pulling Ivy to my side as I turned to face them. "Brody, secure the building. Denver, track down whoever leaked the security details." I glanced down at Ivy, my resolve hardening. "You stay with me. No arguments."
She rolled her eyes but didn't protest. "Fine. But I'm holding you to that partner thing."
"Deal," I said, my lips twitching upwards in spite of myself.
As we moved through the wreckage of the test kitchen, Ivy's hand stayed firmly in mine. The fight wasn't over. But with her by my side, I felt like I could take on any obstacle.
And I'd burn the world down before I let anyone take that away from me.