Page 40 of Blood and Trouble

Channing chomped on a potato chip. “Before this, she was a ghost.”

“Why’s she in France now?” I asked. “She’s been Stateside all this time? Now she’s gone international?”

“You know why,” said a gruff voice as Mill stepped into frame. He was the head of tech and intel for a reason. I’d seen him do things with computers I didn’t know were possible. “My mate killed her brother.”

“She came here before Maeve killed Marx,” I said. “It doesn’t make sense.”

“Evelyn’s been there a few weeks and hasn’t done anything,” Channing said. “It’s possible she’s not there for Ava. She could be there for business.”

“I doubt it.” I pinched the bridge of my nose, racking my brain for where I’d seen this woman before. In the weeks we’d been here, we’d been to countless fucking dinners. We’d rubbed elbows with the richest snobs in Europe. Had she been one of them?

My wolf yipped and snarled, panting in the back of my mind. He didn’t like this, not one fucking bit.

“She could have been helping him,” Mill said. “And now that he’s gone, she’s taking over.”

“I don’t see her patching a cut and straddling a hog,” Bow added.

“So why not go after…” Locust paused. “Oh.”

“Right,” Mill said. “There are Vanderbilts outside the pack wards right now. Galahad is at college, but we’ve sent a few Bastards to infiltrate the staff and keep him safe. Liam is protected here in Montana, which leaves Avalon.”

“We can cut the trip short,” I said. “I’ll convince her. We’ll come home.”

“Kodiak doesn’t think you should call it quits yet,” Mill cut in. “Neither do I.”

“Why?” I stared at my packmate through the screen. We were blood brothers, sworn to the same alpha, but we were also officers in the RBMC. I was the road captain, the fourth-in-command. The only three above me were Kodiak, Orion, and Moose, the prez, veep, and sergeant-at-arms, respectively. Ultimately, I outranked everyone else on this call. I could pull the plug if I wanted and drag her ass back to Montana, but I waited to hear him out.

“She’s the only one out there,” Mill said. “None of the other Scorpions followed her, or at least we can’t find any evidence they did. Current intel says the Scorpions in France and Denmark are human, and the vampires over there don’t seem to want any part of whatever blood feud she plans to bring with her.”

“If she’s up to something, she doesn’t have any allies,” Channing said. “At least, none that we can find. Doesn’t mean they aren’t covering their tracks.”

“You’ve got a small pack of Montana Bastards with you,” Mill continued, “and the weight of the RBMC Copenhagen chapter, if it comes to that.”

I rubbed my tongue over my canine and considered this proposal. My instincts said Evelyn was up to no good. Maeve had killed her brother. Now, she’d take a sibling from Maeve. But, on the other hand, it could be nothing. We still had a lot of work to do here, and after Ava’s transition, we were four days behind. Besides, the Copenhagen chapter was a large shifter pack, and they’d already extended their hospitality. The Bastards brotherhood pact ran internationally. They’d back us up if we needed it.

“Alright,” I said, giving Mill a nod. “Keep us posted if you hear anything else.”

“We’ll set up eyes and ears,” Locust said, patting me on the shoulder. “We’ve got it, my man. Go get some rest.”

“Yeah, you look dead on your feet,” Channing said. “Worse than that one time you actually almost died.”

“And you wonder why you’re not my most important baby sister.” Technically, she was my only baby sister, but between Ren and me, Channing had inherited my sense of humor and stunning arrogance. Ren was more like our mother: even-keeled, level-headed, and smarter than anyone in any room she walked into.

“Love you, big brother,” Channing called.

“Love you, baby sister,” I said before walking back down the hallway toward Ava’s room.

I hardened myself before walking back in, determined not to let my past get in the way of protecting Ava. I trusted Poe with my life, and he was the only other Bastard I’d trust with Ava’s, but the broken thing between us could turn into a distraction. If I were forced to choose between his life and hers, could I make that call? Could he?

Shaking the thought away, I found Ava in the living room, sitting on the couch with her laptop open on her thighs. Poe’s scent disappeared into the spare bedroom, his typical pine and leather now mixed with something darker…more territorial. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say it was⁠—

“Everything go okay?” Ava furrowed her brows. “You look worried.”

No sense in keeping it from her. If this Evelyn bitch were after her, it would only benefit Ava to know. Poe, too.

“Hold that thought.” I walked to Poe’s room and knocked.

“Yeah?” He opened the door a crack, seemingly surprised to see me.