Inferno (31 page)

Dante looked pensive, then nodded. “It’s likely. He was too much out in the open last night.

Too ripe for the picking. I think either way it turned out last night, the Vabians gained. If Poferov had defeated us, Siobhan would be thrilled. On the other hand, if we offed Poferov, he would no longer be around to object to anything the Vabians did. The
Venifucus
have been keeping a very low profile. I can’t think that Siobhan’s antics would have sat well with Poferov if he was the head honcho.”

“That makes a lot of sense. I wonder if our
were
friends have any news for us. In particular, I’d love a chance to talk more with those selkies. I haven’t dealt with their kind in far too long,” Duncan said with a thoughtful arch to his eyebrow. “They were always a complex, thorough people. I think those two we met last night could be of great help to our cause if they are willing to help us more.”

“Do you expect further action on the water?” Megan didn’t really understand what help water shifters could be unless it had something to do with the ocean.

“Selkies are more than just seals, my dear,” Duncan said kindly. “They are superb fighters both on land and on the sea. They are the ultimate warriors. Smart, quick and multi-talented. If you had a selkie on your team in the old days, you were almost certain of victory.”

“They’re really that good?” she asked, awed by Duncan’s praise. He wasn’t one to lavish such praise on just anyone.

“Better.”

“That’s it then.” Dante slapped his thighs as he stood. “I’m going to call Kevin. If for nothing else than to thank him for the help last night. Want to listen in?” Dante led the way to his office toward the back of the house. It was more of a library, really, with a large desk at one end and a fireplace with the requisite leather wing chairs at the other.

Duncan pointed at the logs that had been laid in the fireplace, and they burst into cheerful flame.

“Handy to have you around.” Megan gave him a playful smile.

“I try my humble best,” Duncan replied with patently false modesty. He pulled the two heavy wing chairs around to face the desk where Dante sat organizing the call.

Dante moved the phone to the center of the desk so they could all participate. First he called Kevin’s number and told the Alpha he was putting him on speaker. Duncan and Megan said hello, and they got down to business.

“Our watery friends got in touch with me this morning and let me know what happened last night. They were impressed with you three and wanted me to pass on their compliments. They said the man you took out was someone they’d had their eye on for a long time.”

“No kidding?” Dante asked, surprise showing on his face. Megan could feel his satisfaction through their bond, even if she didn’t understand the full ramifications. “As it turns out, we knew him to be a highly ranked
Altor Custodis
agent, in charge of the New York Metro area. We suspect he also played a similar role in the
Venifucus
hierarchy.” Kevin’s low whistle met the pronouncement. “The water
were
already had him under surveillance. They didn’t say why. I should tell you, they don’t share much with me as a general rule. They’re sort of the spooks of the
were
world.” Duncan spoke. “I suspected as much. Even centuries ago, they were always in the thick of things when stealth was called for. I would very much like to speak with them further if they are willing.”

Kevin paused as if considering. “I think they’d be willing, but I’ll have to ask.”

“I understand.” Duncan’s tone was respectful. “Thank you for passing on the request.” Dante took the reins of the conversation back. “Regardless of the outcome, I have to agree with your suspicion that we were set up last night. For one thing, Siobhan was nowhere to be found.

The yacht was empty except for Poferov and his familiar. It clearly wasn’t his home base. I think the Vabians sent him there for us to take care of, wrapped up in a bright, shiny red bow.”

“Igor Poferov?” Kevin sounded shocked even through the speaker.

“You know him?” Megan asked quickly, sending her companions suspicious looks.

“The pack had some dealings with him, though I had no idea he was a mage. I ended the business relationship because he just rubbed me the wrong way. Every time I got near him, my hackles rose. I’ve been Alpha too long to ignore that sort of feeling.”

“Good thing too. The man was a mage to be reckoned with. He was the one who poisoned Megan’s blood, and he placed her under one of the most powerful compulsions I have ever seen.

Any mage who can, and would, do that to a
were
—even a half-
were
—without them knowing, is someone to steer clear of,” Duncan said with finality.

“How’d he managed that?” Kevin wanted to know.

“I worked for him.” Even now, free of his taint, Megan felt grimy just thinking about the man.

“I didn’t know he had worked magic on me until it was too late. Heathclif Dean bit me and almost died. Then the compulsion rose to prevent me from even speaking Poferov’s name or disclosing anything that might lead to him.”

Again, Kevin sounded warily impressed. “So now that he’s gone, I assume you’re free of his influence?”

Megan sighed. “Thankfully, yes.” She knew it was too soon to disclose to the Alpha what had happened last night between her and Dante. Their mating was going to make enough waves as soon as it was discovered. No need to borrow trouble by speaking of it now.

“I’m glad for you,” Kevin said in a kind tone. For a big, bad Alpha, he could be as sweet as a puppy when the occasion called for it. “So what next? With Poferov gone, there’s going to be quite a shakeup within the
AC
. Probably within the
Venifucus
too if your theories are correct.”

“Exactly. We need to monitor what happens in both organizations if there’s any way to do so.

My more immediate concern is the Vabians.” Dante stared at the speakerphone as if the machine itself could provide the answers he needed. “They apparently wanted Poferov out of the way. We did their dirty work for them last night. In this case I don’t mind because it solved a big problem for us as well. Siobhan remains a difficulty we have yet to address. If Poferov was holding her leash, she is well and truly off it now. Until another keeper steps into his place, she will most likely be running amuck and I fear she will redouble her efforts to make my life difficult. The biggest problem is that when she comes after me, she invariably puts everyone around me in danger as well.”

“I see your problem,” Kevin spoke in measured tones. “I have a few calls out to my people that haven’t been returned yet. Let me check with them, and I’ll call you in about a half an hour.” He signed off quickly, a man with a task, leaving the three of them alone in Dante’s office, looking at each other as they sat around his desk. Megan didn’t like the feeling of not knowing what to expect next. Dante was right. Siobhan was likely to attack again given half a chance.

They needed to go back on offense. They needed to get her before she got them.

Her new relationship with Dante only increased the feeling of urgency. She couldn’t lose him.

Not when they’d only just found each other.

Dante got up and poured wine from a decanter on a side table. He served all three of them, passing the glasses around.

“I don’t like waiting.” Duncan picked up a pencil and threw it back down in frustration.

Megan almost laughed at his annoyance but knew Dante felt the same way. She was able to glean that much from their constricted connection.

“It is hard to wait when you’ve been bred to action,” Duncan admitted, saluting them both with his glass before drinking deeply.

Before the conversation had a chance to degrade further, the phone rang. She was as surprised as both of the men. Dante went around his desk and sat before hitting the button to pick up on the speakerphone. It was Kevin on the other end, sooner than expected.

“The seals want to meet with you as soon as possible. Given the compromised nature of your home they suggested you meet them at Howlies. Same room as before.”

“When?” Dante asked. Megan knew both men were eager to further their acquaintance with the water
were
.

“As soon as possible. They won’t tell me, but I suspect they know a lot about the inner workings of the
AC
. When I mentioned Megan’s involvement with Poferov, they jumped at the chance to discuss it in more depth with you all.”

“We can be there in half an hour. Will that work?” Dante consulted his watch.

“I’ll tell them. They’ll be here. See you then.” Kevin rang off with a quick farewell and Megan stood. If she was going out to that
were
bar again, she had to change into something a little snazzier.

Seeing them in the light for the first time, Dante got a very different impression of the two selkies he’d met under cover of darkness the night before. They were older than they seemed, though guessing the ages of
were
creatures was never a precise calculation. Depending on the animal that shared their soul, different shifters aged differently. According to what little Duncan had been able to tell them on the ride over, selkies were some of the most long-lived of the many shifter tribes.

Still, something about these two men indicated maturity. Combined with the steely look in their blue eyes, their appearance gave Dante even more confidence in their abilities. These were hardened warriors who had seen and done much in their lives, if he was any judge. He knew the warrior breed well.

One of the selkie males was slightly taller than the other, though both were heavily muscled.

They had short haircuts and an overall clean cut look that spoke of a military background. They wore dark utility pants and well-worn combat boots with their plain, close fitting T-shirts. They weren’t identical, but they definitely had the same ideas about fashion—or rather, about how to dress to be ready for anything.

The older one greeted Duncan with an outstretched hand as they entered the back room at Howlies. Kevin was also there, but none of the others from the previous meeting. This, then, was to be a private session.

Duncan and the two selkies exchanged greetings in a language Dante had heard once or twice in the distant past. He regretted he’d never taken time to learn that ancient tongue. It was pretty clear they asked Duncan a few questions about Dante and Megan before turning to greet them as well, seamlessly switching to English.

“I’m Nathan and this is Gunnar,” the taller one said as he shook Dante’s hand.

“I’m Dante,” he replied politely. “You’ve met Duncan and Megan, of course. Thanks once again for your help last night.”

They all moved farther into the room and took seats around the big table. Megan sat on Dante’s left, the taller of the selkies, Nathan, on his right. They arranged themselves around one corner of the oblong table, the
weres
on one side, Dante, Megan and Duncan along the other.

“It’s good to see you looking better, Megan.” Nathan nodded toward her.

“Once Poferov was gone, his hold over me dissipated.”

“We recognized his magic but not the man,” Gunnar spoke in a gravelly voice. “We didn’t realize it was actually Poferov until Kevin told us. We could sense the evil. Unfortunately, neither of us got a good enough look at him to be sure of his identity.” Nathan picked up the narrative. “We’ve had people watching Poferov for a while now. We’ve had suspicions about his activities unrelated to his position in the
Altor Custodis
. He’s been doing a lot of moonlighting according to our sources. We just weren’t able to pin down all the details of exactly what he was doing, with whom, or why.”

“He’s been my
AC
contact—my keeper¾since my mother’s death,” Megan offered. “Before that, both my mother and my grandfathers were used by him in the same capacity.”

“The Alpha filled us in on your background.” Nathan nodded toward Kevin. “We’re sorry for what happened to your family after your grandfathers’ banishment. From what we were able to learn today, your grandfathers disappeared off the map after their disgrace. Nobody knew they had a daughter or granddaughter. I like to think some Alpha somewhere would’ve taken you into his pack, had any of us known about you.”

Megan shrugged but Dante knew, through their connection, the selkie’s words touched her deeply. “We did all right on our own. Except for the
Altor Custodis
interference, of course.”

“Well, thanks to the sharing of information, we’ve been able to piece together some of the puzzle we’ve been working on for a few years.” Nathan stood and went to a whiteboard setup that was folded shut on the wall. He opened it up to reveal a flow chart of sorts, with the names, rankings and positions of a network Dante had only begun to guess at. “This is as much as we have for the New York Metro area. As you can see, Poferov was the kingpin. The Vabians figure prominently in the hierarchy and may even be poised to take over that top slot now that Poferov’s out of the picture.”

“Son of a bitch.” Dante had known they’d been used the night before. He hadn’t minded too much at the time, since by killing Poferov they’d managed to free Megan, but this information put a new spin on the situation. The Vabians had gained far more than Dante had imagined. He didn’t like being used. “How does Siobhan figure into this? I assume it’s her father or mother who would step into Poferov’s shoes, right?”

“Exactly,” Gunnar spoke again, his harsh voice driving home the point. “Viktor and Una Vabian. Both are, from all accounts, very gifted magic users. For sheer ambition, my money’s on Una. She seems to wear the pants in the family.”

“They both pretend to be regular mortals. Some of our people have gotten close enough to them to detect their level of magical ability. It’s intense, according to our reports. They also both hold minor administrative positions in the
AC
. Ostensibly, they were members of Poferov’s extended staff. Either could be selected to fill his position once his disappearance has been noticed by higher ups at the
AC
.”

“I always heard the
Altor Custodis
was supposed to be an organization free from magic of any kind. They’re supposed to be regular mortals who watch and record but don’t become involved in supernatural doings.” Kevin looked askance at the two seals.