All Novel Romance
77
The reality was that I was Yuri’s best assassin. A smart weapon he would launch, one that never came back to him without the target being destroyed.
The computers were the only place that could tie me to him that way, so they had to go. Yuri was paranoid about security, so one of the items he obtained from Russian military sources on the black market was a radical new weapon. The warhead was designed to knock out electronics, and instead of a normal blast it generated a high-energy pulse of ultra-high-frequency radio waves that could melt electronics nearby. If our escape route to the bunker had been blocked, he might have used it.
It would be the perfect diversion for my escape.
Buried just below the foundation of the office building, it would turn the servers into useless scrap while knocking out all electronics, phones, computers and vehicles in a five-block radius. Beyond that, power would be knocked out for another ten or so blocks. All in all, the place would go dark and quiet and in the confusion a wolf could easily sneak out.
The blast wouldn’t do much damage to the building, and Yuri would survive in the bunker. Eventually, the police would find him, but he would never talk. He would die first.
I went to my room and got my go-bag; along with some food, water and some clothing, it held what I needed to get out of the country safely. I checked my escape documents; fake passports, driver’s licenses, cash, untraceable debit cards, accounts only used for escape. Going to the ones for Yuri, Shura and Natasha, I took the cash and debit cards and transferred them to my own. The stylish backpack was easy to carry in human or wolf form. I wasn’t a stupid woman, I had been paid handsomely for my wet work and I had my own hidden accounts. When this was all over, when I had my revenge, I would retire with a new identity and new appearance, never to be noticed again.
I went into the server room, pulling the dead technician out of his seat. The timer for the EMP bomb was under a glass case, and needed a key that I had taken from Yuri. Turn it one way, and the device detonates immediately; turn it the other, and there is a two-minute timer. I put the key in and set the timer. A computer voice started counting it down as I ran to the emergency escape.
The bunker only had one entrance, but it had a second exit. A foot of vault steel, covered by rock veneer, in the ceiling of a maintenance tunnel for the underground electric grid. I unlocked the padlock, again with a key from Yuri’s key ring, then started moving the levers that held the plug in place. I got to the last one, then waited until I heard the explosion and everything went dark. The last lever was pushed aside, and the hole in the floor opened up as the plug crashed into the tunnel.
I dropped the backpack down, then lowered myself into the tunnel. Only four feet tall, with cables running along it, the tunnel was completely dark and it was totally silent. I headed east, using all my senses to navigate the complete darkness, until I came to the access point three blocks away. Climbing the ladder, I used my strength to pop the manhole cover off and shove it aside. When I poked my head out, it was chaos.
Lights were out, people were milling about in the streets wondering what had happened. The police were busy dealing with accidents and trying to prevent a riot, no one paid any attention to the tiny woman with a hoodie and backpack walking away. It took me hours to reach the safe house, it was far enough outside the city it still had power. I could sense it was empty, no one had been here in weeks, and I let myself in.
I locked the door behind me and went through the kitchen to the garage. Inside was a car, clean title, registered to a shell company that couldn’t be traced to Yuri. I tossed my backpack in the passenger seat, opened the garage door and drove out into the night. Making my way to the main roads, I headed south towards Moscow.
Moscow was where my vengeance would begin.
John’s POV
The knock on the door woke me up. “John, Jessie, it’s dinner time, then we need to meet with the Council,” Stan said into my mind.
Jessie was still sleeping soundly on my chest. “We need to visit the Pack Doctor first, please have them hold a meal for us,” I sent back.
“Everything all right?”
“I think everything is going perfectly, but she isn’t recovering as fast as before and I need the doctor to run some tests.”
“Go to the doctor right after dinner, I’ll push off the meeting for a while. Patrick and Mischa just landed in Duluth an hour ago with both sets of parents, they’ll be here after dinner. I’ll ask the Councils to talk to them first.”
Now I had to get up. I kissed Jessie’s forehead, pushing her onto her back and kissing my way down her face and to her neck. She moaned in pleasure, her arms reaching up around me as I sucked and nibbled on her mark. “It’s time for dinner, love,” I said as her hands moved down my back. I relaxed into the tingles as the bond filled with our love for each other.
“No time for…”
“I’m sorry, Jessie, but we do have to go. We need to eat, see the Pack Doctor and then we are meeting with the Council.” I rolled off her, feeling the lust through the bond as I stood up and walked over to get clean clothes. “Later, I promise. I’ll love you until you beg me to stop,” I said.
I felt her naked body press into my back, her erect nipples pressing against my undershirt. “I’ll hold you to that,” she said before she moved away to get dressed. The meeting was important, so instead of jeans I was wearing dress slacks and shoes with a long-sleeved shirt and sport coat, no tie. Jessie pulled on a teal dress that was below the knee with three-quarter sleeves, and a black sweater and shoes. I growled a little as I looked at her, she was beautiful and she was MINE and she was pregnant. I could already feel how much more protective my wolf felt about her now, he didn’t want her out of touching distance. The males we met would quickly learn to avert their eyes from her, and NO ONE was going to touch her. She took my hand. “The Pack Doctor is a mated male, he will have to touch me,” she said, her wolf having informed her of what my wolf was thinking. I walked her to the door, going out fi
rst to make sure there were no threats. “Is this how it is going to be now? I’m not helpless, you know.”
I walked down the hall towards the dining room, my senses hyper-aware for threats. “I think it is. My wolf sensed the baby, I can’t help it. I start going nuts if I’m not touching you, and he’s on edge any time we are out of our room.” I held her back as we got to the main entry area, checking for threats.
“We’re in an allied Pack, with the Councils and a dozen Alphas here. What threat are you thinking is out here?”
“Unmated males.” She snorted. “I can’t HELP it, you’re going to have to get used to it. Every male is like this when their mate is pregnant.”
“When can we announce it?”
“When the Doctor confirms it. Werewolves have a tough time conceiving, but miscarriages are very rare due to our healing capabilities. In another week or two, the smell will be so noticeable there would be no point in hiding it. You do need to be careful, though, and stay in human form.”
“Why? I love wolfing out.”
“The change while pregnant can be tough on the baby, especially as the pregnancy goes on. You wolf will resist changing unless it is needed to protect our child; you can call for the change but she will refuse.”This is property © of NôvelDrama.Org.
“What about my magic?”
“I really don’t know. I see how draining it is on your body, sometimes it takes days for you to wake up, even longer to restore your energy. Even now you aren’t back to where you were before you found Linnea. We can seek out guidance from a Coven, but for now…”
“I shouldn’t use it unless I have to.” I nodded and squeezed her hand, we were on the same page. It was yet another reason why I would be so protective of her.
We reached the dining hall, it was filling with people and the food had not been served yet. The Councils and Alphas were at an expanded Alpha table at the front, the table stretched the width of the room. With mates, there were forty-some people seated around the tables that had been put together.
“John, Jessie, over here,” Alpha Stan said as he pointed to the seats next to him. He was near the far end of the table, and I put my hand on Jessie’s back as we walked over. He offered Jessie a hand as I pulled her chair out, bringing it to his lips before she sat down. I fought back the growl, he was my Alpha and was happily mated, “no threat to mate” I said to my wolf.
I sat on the other side, satisfied that she was protected on both sides I could relax a little. She refused wine, asking for some hot cider instead, and I ordered the same. Dinner was excellent. Alpha Sven’s Pack Chef had gone all out with ribeye roasts, cheesy potatoes, green beans and salad. The ribeye covered most of my plate! It was almost two inches thick, done rare as our wolves liked it. Jessie’s slice was a little smaller, but her appetite had grown since she let her wolf out.
The dinner was pleasant, conversation was cordial, and I kept a close eye on how she was eating as I polished off my own. As her mate, I was responsible to make sure she was fed, cared for and protected so our genes would continue to the next generation. After the third time I moved more food onto her plate, she grabbed my hand and pushed it away. I just smiled and went back to eating.
The doors opened, and I smiled as I saw them come in. Beta Patrick was in the lead, his mate Mischa on his arm, him in a suit and her in a beautiful gown. Behind them, Betas Peter and Abigail followed, along with Alpha Viktor and Luna Marina. I saw the Council chairs rising to go greet them, but nobody was faster than my Jessie. She was up and running their way before I could react, and she almost crashed into Patrick as she hugged him. “Patrick! You’re back!”
I was hurrying over as Mischa started to get jealous, but just as quickly Jessie had let him go and was giving Mischa a big hug. “Oh my god, I’m so happy for you two! I’m sorry I missed your engagement party!”