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“Full human.”
That was something. The men all but ignored her, their attention on Devlin. Not that she blamed them. He was an imposing figure, and he was on their turf. Humans were as territorial as any wolf pack.
He yanked open the door to the front of the building, and she slipped inside. All but one of the lights was out in the small foyer, but it was surprisingly clean. There was no garbage lying around, no graffiti sprayed anywhere, and all the mailboxes were intact. “It’s better than it looks from the outside.”
“Pack owned.” Hand on the small of her back, he guided her toward the stairwell. “Might only be one or two wolves living here, but they’d keep an eye on it, stop anyone from making trouble.”
“Smart.”
“Country or city, packs always invest in real estate.” They quickly made it to the second floor. Jacobs’s apartment was off to the left. One twist of the handle and a shoulder to the door and they were inside.
“Someone’s already been here.” Clothes were strewn across the floor of the small living area. She swallowed her disappointment.
Devlin shook his head. “No one else has been here. Looks like Jacobs wasn’t big on housekeeping.”
“Gross.” Now that he’d pointed it out, she could see it. The coffee table was buried beneath empty takeout and pizza boxes, chip bags, and pop bottles. She wrinkled her nose. “How could he live like this with his sense of smell?” It was bad enough for her.
“I doubt he spent much time here.” He dropped a kiss on the top of her head and systematically began to search the space.
“I’ll take the bedroom.” If he could ignore the stench, so could she. She crossed the room and paused outside the open door. “I may need a hazmat suit,” she muttered. Holding her breath, she made a straight line for the window, shoving it open. The fresh air didn’t do much to cover the funky smell of dirty clothes and God only knows what else, but it was an improvement.
The nightstand was closest, so she started there. She turned on the bedside light and opened the drawer. “Condoms. Porn magazines. Receipts.” Using the tips of her fingers, she rifled through the random pieces of paper. Most were betting slips and lottery tickets. Jacobs had been a gambler. He likely had debts, which made him an easy target. There was nothing that pointed a finger at any person or place, so she shut the drawer and went to the dresser.
The top drawer was empty except for two pairs of clean underwear. The rest were probably in the pile in the corner. Second one was the same, but this time it was socks. Laundry had been as low on his priority list as cleaning.
Crash!
The sound of wood splintering came from the outer room, followed by a menacing growl. Zoe jumped, hitting her hip on the dresser. There was another growl and then another. How many had come for them? Heart in her throat, she bolted toward the door but came up short when a heavy arm wrapped around her throat and yanked her back.
“One sound and I’ll snap your pretty neck.” Hot breath brushed over her ear, the warning a harsh whisper.
Ignoring it, she reached over her shoulder, dug her nails into his face, and raked downward.
“Bitch.” She was lifted right off the floor, the pressure on her neck increasing until she couldn’t breathe. She clawed at his arm and beat her heels against his shins, but it was no use. He was too strong. “Nice of you to leave the window open. Didn’t even have to break it.”
Oh, God. What had she done?
He carried her toward the opening. She braced her feet on either side to keep him from being able to push her through it. Sweat rolled down her temples. She couldn’t let them take her. Devlin would blame himself.
Devlin!How many were attacking him? Furniture and glass smashed in the outer room, punctuated by snarls and growls and whimpers. They should’ve left the area and come back another time. This was all her fault.
Stop it. Think, damn it.
The wolf carrying her rammed a fist into her thigh. Her yell was mostly strangled by the arm at her throat. When she curled her body inward because of the pain, he shoved her through the opening and tossed her toward the ground.
She couldn’t even scream. Her throat, already bruised by her attacker, constricted with sheer terror. Strong arms caught her, keeping her from splattering all over the pavement, but there was nothing comforting about them as they shoved her through the open door of a waiting van.
“Go,” the man yelled as soon as he was inside. The vehicle pulled away. She swiveled around, desperately trying to look back. There was no sign of Devlin or the people who’d been outside earlier. The street was deserted.
Her captor manhandled her into a seated position and snapped cuffs around her wrists. They were attached to a short chain that was bolted to the floor, allowing her little movement. Raising her feet, she slammed them into his face. His head snapped to the side. A fierce sense of satisfaction filled her when blood spurted from his nose.
He turned his head slowly toward her and licked the blood that trickled down to his lip. “You’re lucky he wants you alive.”
The back of his hand slammed into her face, driving her head back against the side of the vehicle. Pain burst through her skull and the world went dark.
…
Devlin rammed his claw-tipped fist into the chest of the wolf coming at him, gripped the heart, and ripped it out. His opponent’s eyes widened, and his body crumpled, joining the eight others on the floor. The remaining two had already fled. Breathing heavily, his head snapped toward the bedroom.
