Page 23 of The Reaper's Vow

I stare at him, waiting. Nothing.

“Where are we going?”

A beat. Then finally, with a sigh, like it physically pains him to speak.

“Bellandi territory.”

I blink. “What?”

His jaw ticks. “You heard me.”

The name still means nothing to me. I shift in my seat, staring hard at Damien’s profile. “I’ve never heard of them.”

He doesn’t react at first, but I can feel the tension in him spike. His knuckles flex around the wheel. “Of course you haven’t,” he mutters.

I bristle. “So enlighten me, since you’ve already dragged me into this nightmare. Who are they?”

“They’re one of the oldest and most powerful packs on the West Coast,” he says finally. “They rule most of central California—territorially, politically, economically. No one moves against them without bleeding for it.”

I blink at him. “They run California?”

“In the ways that matter, yes.” He glances at me briefly, expression unreadable. “You don’t grow that big and last this long without making enemies. And crushing them.”

I sit back, stunned. This is way bigger than I thought.

“And you work for them?”

He hesitates, then mutters, “I’m on loan.”

“Loan?” I scoff. “Like...a library book?”

He doesn’t smile.

“I’m an enforcer,” he says tightly. “Temporarily. I belong to another pack.”

“So, you work for a crime syndicate?”

He smirks, just barely. “In a manner of speaking, yes.”

My stomach twists. This wasn’t supposed to happen. I was supposed to go out, have a drink with my neighbor, and put Travis behind me. Not end up in a muscle car with a killer at the wheel being taken to the heart of werewolf mafia central.

The road stretches on, twisting deeper into the trees. The city is long gone now, swallowed by black hills and thick forest. I try to keep my breathing steady, but every mile we put between us and my apartment makes the reality of this situation worse.

I don’t know where I am. I don’t know who these people are. I don’t even know if I’ll survive whatever this is.

“What happens when we get there?” I ask, not bothering to hide the edge in my voice. “Do I just get handed off to someone else? Locked up?”

Damien doesn’t answer right away. His hands tighten around the steering wheel, the only sign that I’ve actually gotten under his skin.

“You’ll stay in my quarters,” he says, low and clipped. “Until I speak with the Alpha.”

I stare at him. “Your...quarters.”

He nods once. “You’ll stay out of sight. No one touches you. No one talks to you. Not until I’ve secured your safety with Anselm.”

I swallow hard, turning my face to the window and trying to ignore the way my stomach twists. My wolf doesn’t help. She’s practically curled up in the back of my mind like she’s settling in for a nap, smug and content, like the idea of being inhisspace is the best thing that has happened to her in years.

“Don’t get comfortable,” I mutter under my breath.