Page 69 of Blood and Trouble

“Zion,” he said.

In Calgary, Alberta, another shifter pack had been forming for years, led by a bear shifter and former Bastard named Zion. After the Scorpion attack that had killed half our pack twenty years ago, Zion disappeared, and Bastard protocol dictated we hunt him down and take him out, but Kodiak had never given the order.

But this was something I didn’t see coming. One of our elders said Priscilla came to the pack shortly after the birth of her last child, claiming she was in trouble and needed help. The alpha at the time, Kerrick, had turned her away. Why would he do that if she was supposed to be mated to Zion? In fact, why would she marry Uther Vanderbilt if she was meant to mate Zion? None of it made sense.

Ava sighed and ran her fingers over her forehead. “I was six when she died. I didn’t know she was a shifter. I mean, obviously, she was. But it’s still…it’s confusing. Twenty years and this is the first time I’m hearing that a man wanted to mate her before my father ever met her.”

“I talked to Kodiak,” Lycan said. “He agrees. It seems like more than coincidence that Zion is choosing now to encroach on our territory after four of the Vanderbilt children have transitioned.”

“Did your mom ever talk about her life before she married your father?” I told myself it was none of my business, that I was only asking because of what it meant for the pack.

“I knew she came from California,” she said. “I only met her family once…maybe twice. She wasn’t close with them.”

“Do you think she still has family there? Maybe we could ask them.” I shrugged and stabbed a potato with my fork before biting into it.

“Maybe,” she said. “I want to hear what else Channing digs up. For some reason, I feel like this is all connected—me, Evelyn, Zion…” She shook her head. “My mother.”

“The Bastards and the Scorpions have been enemies for years,” Lycan said. “It’s unlikely that Evelyn and Marx had anything to do with Zion or your mother.”

“Maybe,” she said. “Still, I have this nagging pit in my gut telling me to pay attention.”

The conversation flowed after that, drifting to the rest of our trip and how we’d make our way to London. Mill and Orion thought flying was too risky, even if we chartered a private jet, but Lycan believed the fifteen-hour drive from here to London would put us at even more risk.

“But I want to go. I have to go,” Ava said, grabbing my plate when it was empty to put it in the sink.

I tried to protest, but she waved me off and ignored my groans of, “Don’t do that. I’ve got it. I can clean up⁠—”

“We haven’t secured the deal with the Seventh Earl of Terrible Life Choices yet,” Lycan said.

She rolled her eyes and laughed. “Stop making up horrible names for him.”

“Why?” Lycan grinned and ran his tongue over a canine. “He deserves it.”

They’d told me about Scott Fitzgerald when I first arrived, particularly the part where he and Ava used to date until he wanted to get married and she’d turned him down. I tried not to relate. Lycan and I were in a different circumstance altogether, right? I wasn’t the Earl of Brooding Exes in his book…was I?

“Enough shop talk,” Ava said. “We can figure it out when we get to London. It’s been a rough couple of days, and I need a break. Tonight, I want to have fun. Maybe let myself be a little reckless.” She stood and walked to the end table next to the couch, sliding out the drawer before picking up a deck of playing cards.

Oh no.

No. No. No.

“Who’s in for a game of poker?” She glanced between us and smiled.

“No,” I said at the same time Lycan slammed his hand on the table and said, “Hell yeah.”

“What?” Ava’s features dropped, and she put a hand on her hip. “Why not?”

I looked at Lycan and pursed my lips, recognizing the taunt playing behind his violent, stormy eyes. I knew all too well what would happen if I did this. Lycan played dirty, and he wouldn’t stop until he got exactly what he wanted, which in this case would probably result in continuing whatever fucked-up thing he’d been about to do yesterday before Ava interrupted us.

“He’s scared,” Lycan said, leaning back in his seat while he drummed his fingers on the table.

“I’m not scared,” I snapped.

“Then there’s nothing to worry about.” He laughed as Ava circled the table and brushed her fingers along the back of my shoulders. I tensed to hide the shiver that soared through my muscles.

Why would they want me to play with them? Lycan knew where this would lead. Fuck, he was probably ten steps ahead already. And Ava…she had to know. She’d played poker with him before.

“What should we bet, huh?” She sat and shuffled the cards. “Secrets? Shots?”