Chapter Five
Joanna
The metal door groaned in protest, stealing my attention. Relief washed over me as James walked toward me and the agents, looking the same as he did before we were separated.
In his absence, I told Li and Hill everything I knew about the uprising, even though it wasn’t much.
I explained we’d learned about the threat from Marcus’s beta—but left out that I used to screw the sick fuck. And I clarified Marcus was on the right side of all this shit, leaving out that his moral compass made him easier to screw.
“Are you okay?” James and I asked simultaneously once he dropped into the chair beside me.
I smiled, giving him a small nod in response.
He didn’t smile back. He kept a straight face as his eyes darted across my body, scanning for injuries. Seeing none, he heaved a heavy sigh. “Good.” James crossed his arms with an unamused dullness in his eyes. “I’m guessing you’re Director Li?”
“Detective Cooper,” Li greeted. “Your reputation precedes you.” She gestured toward Hill with a flick of her hand. “This is Deandre Hill. He’ll be working closely with you and Joey for the time being.”
My eyes widened. “What?” I sputtered.
Hill looked up from jotting notes on his file. “According to what you’ve told us, Joey, you believe Thomas was the werewolf who started talks of revolution within the Blackwood Pack, correct?”
The piece of shit had dismissed my question.
“I’m not sure,” I answered, further annoyed by his absentminded cadence.
“Perhaps it started with the beta. I didn’t know Thomas well enough to say whether Ethan lured him or if the elder harbored rebellious thoughts on his own.
” I watched as Hill scribbled down more notes before I returned my gaze to Li.
“What do you mean we’ll be working together? ”
Hill dropped his pen onto the table, tapping the file as he listed off names.
“Ethan. Thomas. Leo. Brian. These are just four members of the Blackwood Pack the Alpha discovered were traitors. And you, a human—a woman who knows what these monsters are capable of—were by his side when he did. Marcus may be a fair alpha, Joey, but pack loyalty also makes him blind to threats right under his nose.”
“No.” A deep scowl darkened James’s face. Clearly, he understood where this conversation was headed. But even with his objection, I struggled to see how what Hill said had to do with us. “I’m trying to get her away from them, Jack. Find someone else.”
Understanding dawned on me. “You want me to spy on Marcus’s pack.”
“The Alpha’s stance in this uprising makes him one of too few allies.” Li declared.
“And you thank him for that by spying on him?” I protested, feeling personally attacked.
Li cleared her throat. “You can hope Marcus will remain reliable, Joey, but his pack is compromised. We cannot risk being blindsided by his switching sides when things get difficult.”
James lunged forward in his seat, slamming his hands on the table. “I said, find someone else.”
Hill’s flinch was subtle, but I noticed the way his body had shifted toward Li with a protective frame.
Li hadn’t moved an inch. Her expression remained a mask of calm authority.
It seemed my foul mouth unnerved her more than a physical threat.
She reached out and rested a hand on Hill’s forearm for only a second before pulling away.
“That’s a waste of time and resources,” she declared.
“Neither of which I’m willing to spare.”
“But her life is expendable?” James forced through his teeth, nodding toward me.
“Joey’s a hunter because of you, Detective.
Haven’t you taught her that risking her life is part of the job?
” Li reached over Hill’s arm, retrieving the manila folder from in front of her agent.
She dropped the file onto the table and opened it.
“Where were you during the warehouse battle, Detective Cooper?”
I frowned. “I told you. It’s because of James and the other hunters that we survived that night.”
“That’s understood, Joey,” Li said with a bob of her head.
“What I don’t understand is the timing of his arrival.
” She scanned the file. “Detective, it says here you arrived at the end of the fight. But that’s peculiar, given our file also says you were the one who brought the hunters to Blackwood’s aid in the first place. So, I’ll ask again: Where were you?”
Afraid to meet his gaze, I watched James from the corner of my eye.
Did I know where he’d gone after he left that night? No. All I knew was that he found out I cared a little too much for the Alpha, and he panicked.
I knew he’d convinced two-thirds of the hunters to leave with him, putting us at a tremendous disadvantage.
I knew he’d abandoned us—he’d abandoned me… and it appeared Li knew it, too.
James didn’t respond. He sagged back into his chair, locking his eyes on Li like twin barrels of a loaded gun.
“Wanting to protect Joey is very noble of you. But don’t allow your regret to make you lose sight of what’s important. Do not impede her from protecting her country.” Li closed the manila folder.
She fixed the cuffs of her white blouse until they again peeked from under her blazer in equal proportion.
“If what you’ve said about the Alpha is true, then he has nothing to hide.” I looked up and realized Li’s gaze was now pinned on me. “But standing up for what’s right can make enemies even out of our kin. You’d be protecting him.”
James and I shifted in our seats. I cared for the old man the way a daughter cares for her father, but what happened between us validated Li’s declaration. The warning resonated deep within us both.
“As long as Marcus remains faithful,” Li continued, “we will protect him.”
There was that word again… Protect. It echoed in my mind, reverberating through me and shaking the walls of my self-preservation to ruin.
“What would I need to do?” I asked, as if compelled.
“Agent Hill will be your point of contact. You and Detective Cooper will report to him directly, with updates.”
“How do we reach him?”
“I’ll reach you,” Hill replied with a smirk. “I’ll drop in for a briefing every couple of days.”
I frowned. “You don’t think Marcus will find it strange if James shows up wanting to be friends all of a sudden?”
Li didn’t hesitate with her answer. “If that were his assignment, yes. But Detective Cooper won’t be reporting on Marcus’s movements. He’ll be reporting on yours.”
Great.
James muttered under his breath.
I stayed silent for a moment, wondering if I should’ve felt insulted. Did they expect me to push back and act a fool?
Fuck that shit. If Marcus had nothing to hide, I sure as hell didn’t.
“No more magic hoods,” I finally said. “I couldn’t care less where y’all eat, sleep, and shit.”
A slight twitch appeared on Li’s jaw. “I… agree. We’re on the same side. The hoods are obsolete.”
Hill shook his head in a slow, offensive manner.
I raised my chin, holding Li’s gaze. “And I get to tell Marcus you’re watching him.”
The two people across from me stole a quick glance at each other, their brows knitted in confusion. “Why would you do that?” Between Hill and James, I wasn’t sure who’d exclaimed first.
I crossed my arms and sat back in my seat, having expected a protest. “Because he deserves to know.”
James flung his arms in the air. “See? This is the same shit I was worried about.” The tension in his voice was thick. “Find someone else.”
Li brushed off James’s demand, pinning her almond eyes on me. “Aren’t you concerned he’ll begin altering his behavior?”
“Director Li,” James stressed.
“He won’t,” I replied. “He still underestimates me.”
James leaped to his feet, finger jabbing at Li with every shouted word. “Don’t fucking ignore me!”
Li’s eyes flicked to James, and the temperature in the room dropped.
I watched in horror as James’s eyes grew wide. He gasped, his hands shooting up to his neck.
In the short time it took for me to leap from my chair, the red on James’s flushed face turned a disturbing shade of blue. He clawed at his throat, his nails already breaking skin. He flailed in agony, and I eased his fall as he dropped to his knees.
I could feel the sorcery skimming across every inch of my exposed skin. Despite its violence, it was light and without the mire normally accompanied by black magic.
I would’ve been in awe… had I not been absolutely terrified.
I was right. This woman was powerful.
I turned to Li, ready to beg her to stop—but the witch blinked, her dilated pupils shrinking to normal, and James gasped for air.
He crumpled to the floor, coughing in a violent fit. I rubbed his back as his breath returned in shallow bursts.
“What makes you think the werewolf underestimates you?”
I glowered at Li, but I had enough sense to appease her rather than provoke another psychic attack. “He thinks I don’t know he’s having me tailed.”
I’ll admit, the first night I sensed a shapeshifter behind me in the shadows, it scared me shitless; anyone would be on edge after that battle. But then my fear soon morphed into fury.
Marcus had invaded my privacy, and for a moment, I was ready to send his werewolf back to him in a body bag… until the reality of our situation made me pause.
Marcus knew about Latoya. He knew that my sister’s return was messing with me… more than I’d ever admit to James. So maybe his desire to help was genuine—just in the stupidest way possible.
But I couldn’t deny that I was off my game. I should’ve noticed Tobias and Viper long before I did that morning.
Li nodded her head in approval. Hill didn’t react at all. And James couldn’t lecture me about wolves stalking their prey because he was too preoccupied with breathing.
“Humankind needs another victory, Joey.” Li rose to her feet and smoothed down her pencil skirt.
“Besides the nullified threat to the treaty, it doesn’t seem like this poison has crossed state lines.
” She picked up the manila folder, giving me a pointed look.
“It’s your job to ensure it doesn’t. And the best way to do that is to eradicate it at the source.
The werewolves. Work with the Alpha, Joey. Stop this poison from spreading.”