Page 40 of Cruel Revenge (Jacky Leon #12)

CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

I was ten minutes from the BSA building in Dallas when Heath called. I almost didn’t answer, afraid of what he would say, afraid of what I would say.

But I did, because I loved the man and had bigger things to be truly afraid of than him and us.

“Hey, Heath,” I said, the call coming through my car instead of trying to pick up and use my phone.

“Hey, Jacky,” he said, his voice more normal than it had been since I woke up. “Davor and Dirk just gave me a rundown of what’s happening and what you’re doing.”

“Davor gave me a rundown of what you’ve been up to as well,” I said, tightening my hands on my steering wheel.

“You… sound upset with me,” Heath said, sighing. I could hear a door open, then close. “I’m alone right now. Be honest with me.”

“You’re going to make this public,” I said, trying to contain my frustration with his choice.

“Davor told me how you reacted, so I should have expected that. It’s not as public as you think.

Each pack will send small groups to different witch businesses and calmly ask questions and look around.

It will only stop being calm if the witches decide to fight it. It shouldn’t hit the news or anything.”

“Why?”

“Because if the Tribunal witches won’t police their people. I will ,” Heath said, his words stronger than steel. “And it will end when Carey, Arlo, Benjamin, and Kody are returned to me.”

“So, you’re to pressure an entire group of supernaturals to bring a few into compliance?”

“They do it to us all the time,” Heath retorted.

“And I’m done playing nice. Is this really an argument, Jacky?

Is this where we’re going to draw the line?

I’m the Tribunal Alpha. I have to be able to use that, or I’ll be overthrown before the end of the year.

I’m not as established as Callahan had been for so long.

He won’t do it, but I know if I don’t present a strong front with my daughter taken, then they’ll know I’m willing to roll over for anything. ”

I rubbed my eyes as I stopped at a red light.

“It’s not an argument… I understand all that.”

“Then what is it?”

“It scares me,” I admitted.

“The day we met, you saw a side of me that should have chased you away,” he whispered. “But it didn’t. Why are you scared right now?”

“I don’t know!” I yelled. “I’m not scared of you , Heath. This entire thing scares me! The witches have Carey, and she’s probably a werecat now, the BSA is actively working against us, you control every werewolf in the world… and I…”

Am losing control.

“What?” The question was surprisingly gentle.

And then you won’t love me anymore.

“It could all go so wrong,” I said instead of finishing my thought.

I could lose everything.

“It could… but I trust my decision, and I hope… I hope you can, too,” he said softly.

“Do you trust me about Changing Carey?” I asked, wondering if that street went both ways.

After twenty seconds of silence, I knew the truth.

“You’re angry,” I whispered.

“Yes.” Heath’s detachment from earlier in the evening returned. “And we’ll discuss it later.”

But talking on the phone is easier than in person… I don’t have to see your expression or smell how angry you are…

“I think we can spare a moment?—”

“I can’t talk about it right now,” Heath said sharply. “I can’t think about it right now.”

I didn’t push it, but there was now a widening ravine between Heath and me that I had no idea how to close. After all the fighting to be together, someone came and hit us in our most vulnerable place by taking Carey. I had no idea how we were supposed to come back together at the end of this.

“I’m almost at the BSA. What time does your thing start?”

“It’s already starting,” Heath answered.

“You might like to know that the BSA doesn’t know that I’ve beaten Callahan in a fight.

They’ll think it’s Callahan and the NAWC giving the orders.

You might be able to bargain the truth with them for their intel because Callahan and the NAWC are on the same page as me.

They won’t talk to anyone. The BSA can talk to me if they want answers and want to test me. ”

“They’ll get nothing from me,” I snarled, that uncontrollable temper flaring as my nails Changed into claws on the steering wheel. “Not a goddamn thing.”

I wished I could see Heath’s face for the silent minute he didn’t reply. When he finally spoke, it was once again different.

“Jacky… can you do me a favor?”

“What is it?”

“Stay angry for me.” He took a quick breath. “I have to go. I love you.”

You wouldn’t if you saw me right now. You’re fighting to keep that love for me after I Changed Carey.

“I love you, too,” I said, knowing I meant every word.

Then we hung up.

I pulled into the BSA parking lot, taking several deep breaths to calm down.

There were a few members of the press outside the building, all with cameras and microphones.

I decided to park around the side, knowing there was a handful of emergency exits.

I texted Beth to see if she could let me in one of them.

I slipped out of my car and into the building when she popped open one of the doors.

“Luckily, these doors don’t trigger the alarm,” Beth said, closing them behind me.

“Yeah. They probably should,” I said, shaking my head. “So, where are we having our meeting?”

“This way. Third floor.” Beth led me up the emergency stairwell to the third floor, then scanned her card to open the hallway door.

“You’re going to wait in this office for a moment while everyone is still getting together,” she said, pushing open a door near the emergency stairs. “There’s a lot to discuss and a lot of people want to be in this meeting, but they have to wrap up different things before they can meet us.”

“I’ll wait,” I said, going into the office where she wanted me to wait. She closed me in, and I went nonchalantly to the desk and sat down, liking how nice the chair was. I looked under the desk and saw a computer there.

Making it easy for me, huh? I guess you all don’t know about Davor. I guess it should be a good thing they trust me well enough to leave me alone like this, considering the circumstances.

I didn’t see any cameras in the office, so I plugged in the USB and turned on the PC, letting it boot up without touching it anymore. Less than a minute later, still waiting for Beth to get me, I got a text from Davor. His message was simple and exactly what I wanted to see.

I’m in. Turn off the monitor if you haven’t.

I did just that, hitting the button on the monitor to remove the glow from the room. I could have easily explained it away by saying I accidentally woke it up by hitting the desk, but it was nice not to worry about it.

It was another couple of minutes before Beth returned.

“Okay, we’re ready now.”

“Okay.” I got up and rubbed my hands together, feeling somewhat clammy at my duplicitous actions. I wasn’t the one who was good at these sorts of things. I didn’t think what I did was wrong, but it was a violation of the trust the BSA had in me.

Not that it means much tonight. Not with Carey gone. Not with them refusing to give me the information I need to find her.

That thought made me feel better about my actions.

I followed her to somewhere in the center of the building, still on the third floor, and she knocked once.

“Come in,” someone called out, a voice I recognized.

Director Rhodes was waiting at a large conference table, and I decided to come back to thinking about that once I cleared the room.

I recognized no one else. There were so many agents coming and going from the area, being rotated to different places around the country, that I really only knew Beth.

Sometimes, I saw someone I recognized, but Beth was the only person I normally cared about.

I came back to Director Rhodes, my eyes narrowing on him as I walked to the far end of the table from him.

I remembered how we met, the murders that a werecat tried to frame Arlo for.

It had been a challenging period, but I was able to manage a werewolf pack, a group of spitting werecats, and the BSA into working together so we got the real killer and could save Arlo, while protecting the identities and lives of as many werecats as possible.

Heath had railroaded me when dealing with the Director.

They hated each other for many good reasons.

He’d warned me that the Director was the man who would help me and spy on me, that everything that happened in the Dallas office was his choice.

Every decision their agents were making was directed by him.

And the last time I had to work directly with him, I had forced him and his BSA agents to work under the surveillance of two of Heath’s werewolves. Heath had picked Teagan and Kody.

I should have fucking known. Should have thought about him and talked to Heath about the potential that the Director was behind it, when it came to light they were keeping things from us. Of course it’s him.

“Miss Leon. It’s good to see you again, though the circumstances are once again bad,” the Director said as he stood up and smiled. “I’ve been told you want to finally speak to us about the recent events.”

“Why are you smiling like this is a game?” I snapped, ending all the pleasantries he was trying to use. There would be no friendly banter or camaraderie today. “Because my daughter being kidnapped isn’t a game .”

Agents all froze with my first question, and a couple paled as they looked at me when I said ‘daughter’. My temper snapped to its limit once again. That thin thread of control I had was already frayed. It would be so easy to lose it now.

Rhodes lost the smile and sat back down.

“Your future stepdaughter,” Rhodes snapped.

“My daughter ,” I snarled, hitting the table hard enough that it cracked. “Do not fuck with me right now, Rhodes.”