Kate Allenton (7 page)

     
Cathy glanced down at the phone. She needed Tara and Gracie. She needed advice, and even
though she was mad at them, she wouldn’t trust
anyone
else with helping her sort through the muck
and the lies.

     
Her phone screen was still black. “Crap.” She
handed
the phone to Jonah. “Can you fix this?”

He pressed a few of the buttons, yet nothing happened with the phone. “I’m sorry, Cathy. I
think it’s fried.”

     
Lydia’s words resounded in Cathy’s head again. Crap. She didn’t want to go play nice with
Edward. She didn’t want to trust him, not after
what he’d
done. Cathy straightened her shoulders.
There was only one way to get the answers she needed. She’d have to go find the wolf.

     
Cathy turned off the water and opened the bathroom door. “Wait here. I need to go find
Edward.”

Jonah’s lips slipped into a frown. “Why would
you
need to do that? You can’t seriously trust
that bastard since he let Black inside.”

     
Cathy patted Jonah on the shoulder. “I’ll be
fine. I
need answers, and he’s the only one who can
give them to me.”

     
Jonah stepped to block the door. “You shouldn’t go alone. Maybe I should go with you.”

Cathy shook her head. “No, I have to do this alone. Just stay in the apartment and lock the
door behind me.”

     
“I don’t like it.”

     
“You don’t have to. Let’s face it, Jonah; you’re an IT guy. You weren’t made to be in the field. I
need to handle this alone.”

     
Jonah grumbled something under his breath, but Cathy didn’t wait around to find out what it
was. She slipped beneath his arm and back out into the apartment. She was out the door before
Jonah ever even emerged from the bathroom. Cathy jogged down the stairs instead of taking the
elevator. She patted the gun that was stashed in the back waistband of her pants. The iron did little
to calm her nerves.

     
She pushed open the stair doors when she reached the bottom. She opened her senses to the
powers nearby. Her ability to pinpoint a specific power worked just as well as a bloodhound sniffing
for clues or, in this case, a wolf. She turned left down the hallway where the strength of the power
increased, so she knew she was getting closer to it, and she knew it was Edward’s. She remembered

the vibrations his abilities had given her. She approached the closed doors and didn’t wait for an
invitation. She pushed the door open and found Edward standing behind the men at the monitors.
The monitor’s screens were black as if they needed to be turned back on, worse than any blue screen
of death, she’d ever seen. Cathy held in her chuckle,
not
wanting to give away that she’d been

somewhat responsible for their blackout.

     
All movement in the room stopped. The computer rebooting process abandoned as they turned
to stare at her.

     
Edward stepped in front of her, obstructing
her
view. “Are you lost, Ms. Fleming?”

     
Cathy shook her head. “Nope, I’m right where
I
need to be.”

     
Edward raised his brow. “Is that so?”

     
She nodded. “Yep, that’s so. You still owe me
a tour,
Eddie. Or did you forget already?”

     
His brow dipped. “What kind of game are you playing?”

Cathy shrugged. “No games, not anymore.”
Cathy
tightened her hand around the doorknob
and tilted her head. “I guess you already know I’m Ethan’s mate.”

     
The lines around Edward’s eyes softened.

     
“Yeah, I thought so.”

     
Edward stepped toward
her and held out his hand. “I wasn’t in the
position to tell you. Ethan
was going to tell you when he got here.”

     
Cathy chuckled. “Dear old dead-beat daddy dearest beat him to it. Now would you care to take
a walk with me or not?”

     
“After you tell me why the change of attitude. You just accused me of putting your life in
danger.” He tilted his head, his gaze searched her face.

     
The change of attitude was simple. She needed him. “You put your wolves in danger to let that
maniac in your home and you withheld Ethan’s secret. There is one thing you can give me that no
one else can.”

     
He grinned. “A list of the exits?”

     
She shook her head. “Answers. You haven’t lied to me yet and even though I don’t agree with
your methods, you’re still the one person that can answer my questions.”

“Very well, if it’s my honesty you seek, it’s yours for the taking. Ask away Ms. Fleming.” He
inclined his head and held out his arm for her to take. She slid her arm through his and let him lead
her around the building. She noted all of the exits, although she didn’t think she was going to need
them. Not anymore.

    
He pushed open the back door, and they stepped out into warm air and onto a walkway lined
with flowers and benches. “This is nice.”

    
He gestured to the forest beyond. “As you can image, we long for the outdoors. We own three
hundred and fifty acres of land behind us and another fifty acres in front of the property. We have
plenty of space to roam and to live without
having nosy
neighbors.”

    
Cathy nodded. “It’s beautiful.”

    
She was disappointed she wasn’t within walking distance to an airport or, hell, even a neighbor,
but she would still find a way off this property.

    
She let him lead her into a wooden gazebo
on the
outskirts of the manicured grass before she
removed her arm from his. She walked to other
side and
leaned against the wood looking out into
the forest beyond. “I guess you read the note?”

    
“I did. I guess you’ve now verified the note’s authenticity.”

She nodded before turning around. She hopped
up
to sit on the railing. “Of course I did. So
why don’t you be straight with me?” She met and
held his
gaze. “What’s in it for you? Why tell
Ethan you’ll keep me safe and then lead Black right
to
me? Help me understand your logic.”

    
Edward paced the small gazebo. He laced
his hands
behind his back, and Cathy took the time
to study the man. He was
tall, well over six feet, and had broad shoulders,
jet-black hair, and a nice
tan. The muscles in his arms twitched with every movement. He was a good-looking man, even
though she was ready to kick his ass because of the stunt with Black.

    
He stopped pacing and turned to face her. “My sources told me that Black was already having
you followed. He knew you were in my compound, so I made it as safe an environment as I could
when he asked to speak with you. My men were all on alert and advised that he was not to leave the
room with you. Had I not agreed, he would have taken you by force and with bloodshed. So when
you accused me of putting my pack at risk, it was a controlled risk where no one got hurt or, god
forbid, died. I only agreed to the meeting because I could control the environment. I arranged it that
way for everyone’s protection, Ms. Fleming, not just yours.”

Cathy laced her fingers together and let his answer sink in before she spoke again. “Okay, so
you’re not a total putz, but you could have warned me.”

He shook his head. “Had I warned you, you would have tried to either fight or leave. Either
option would have put you in greater danger. The situation played out best for everyone involved.”

    
“Is Ethan going to think so?”

     
The smile on Edward’s face slipped into a frown. “Undoubtedly not. I expect that if I was in his
shoes and was protecting someone as precious as you, I wouldn’t like it either.” He stepped toward
her. “You are special, Cathy. You’re an alpha female, and any alpha male would be honored to have
you as their mate.”

Cathy felt the heat travel to her cheeks.
There was
nothing she could do to stop it. “Are you
hitting on me, Eddie?”

     
He held her gaze, never lowering his head.
“Ethan
Jacobs is my friend. I would never stand in
the way of his happiness. But I can’t deny that I’m attracted to you, Cathy. You’re a strong woman,
beautiful and smart, and you’re the only female
who has
ever challenged me or my authority. I

would be honored to have you by my side, if you
were to
so choose it.”

Cathy lifted a hand to her heart. “Aw…I bet
you say
that to all the girls who kick your ass.”

     
Edward chuckled. “No, I only say that to the smartass ones.”

     
Cathy grinned, having averted an uncomfortable situation. She hopped off the railing and
stepped down out of the gazebo. “Good. Now let’s
get
down to business. How well do you know
Black and my so-called mate?”

     
“We’re being honest here?”

     
“Yes.”

     
“I’m one of Black’s territory bosses.”

     
The thought of being in arms reach of one of Black’s territory bosses sent an involuntary shiver
down Cathy’s spine. Her fight-or-flight instinct was hard to control. Black’s territory bosses had
tried to kill her friends and her. Black’s territory bosses were all powerful and out to destroy the
Phantoms. Why would Edward be any different? Cathy kept walking, even though Edward’s

admission worried her. “So you’re just like the ones sent to destroy the Phantoms?”

     
Edward laced his fingers behind his back and kept walking beside her. “No. You are in my
territory. I don’t kill, and I don’t hurt anyone who doesn’t deserve it, but I do protect what is mine.
When Ethan ignored his responsibilities, I had to step in to take his place.”

Cathy grabbed Edward’s arm to stop him. “Let me make sure I understand this. Ethan was
supposed to be Alpha and he was supposed to be the leader of this territory, but he turned his back
on all of it?”

     
Edward held out his arm to Cathy. She laced her arm through his. “He made sure the pack was
taken care of. I’m also an Alpha. While I was out hunting, my old pack was attacked and destroyed. I
was the only wolf left.”

    
Cathy squeezed his arm. “I’m sorry.”

He patted her hand which was resting on his arm. “Thank you, but it was a long time ago. It
made sense that Ethan trusts me with his pack until he’s ready to accept his position.”

    
“What do you know about Black?”

    
“Ah…well, he’s another story. He’s extremely
powerful.
I’m not sure anyone knows all of his
gifts. Many men have tried to kill him, including
your
Phantoms, but he’s always remained one step
ahead of them. It’s almost like he’s psychic or at
least has
one on the payroll. He knows everyone’s
moves before they make them. He knew you were
going
to look for Ethan.”

    
Edward opened the door to the compound
and
walked into the empty kitchen. He poured two
cups of coffee and took a seat at the kitchen table.
“How
do you suppose he figured that one out?”

    
Cathy doctored her coffee and sipped the steaming black gold. How had Black found out she
was there when she didn’t even know where here
was?
“Where exactly are we?”

    
Edward leaned back and frowned. “You’re
in Texas
at the exact same GPS coordinates that you
had marked on your map.”

    
“I guess anyone at the Phantoms’ compound
who
knew about the tracker in his watch could
have figured out Ethan’s location.”

    
“You are assuming Ethan
is the target. We’re not talking about
Ethan…we’re talking about you,
Cathy. Black didn’t come looking for Ethan. He came looking for you. Who knew
you
were leaving
to find Ethan?”