Page 14 of Elusive Mate

“Gentlemen? Refreshments?”

Lucian growled, leaned over the desk, and swept the pastries onto the floor. Colby seemed both nonplussed and unimpressed as he sat down in his chair. “A simple no would have sufficed. So, pleasantries aside, what is it I can do for you, Lucian?”

Colby’s tone was level, but there was no mistaking the threat level that lay beneath it. It was now Lucian’s turn to be unimpressed.

“I want my mate…”

“Don’t we all,” said Colby in a bored tone.

“Don’t think to push my buttons, lynx-shifter. You either have her, or you know where she is. I demand that you either hand her over to me, or give me all of whatever information you possess.”

“What makes you think I even know who your mate is? Is she a tigress from your clan? If so, I would suggest losing her was rather poor handling on your part.”

Lucian growled. “I’m warning you, lynx-shifter.”

“You know,” Colby all but purred. “You say that like it’s a bad thing. I think being a lynx-shifter is the best thing of all, but don’t think to threaten me in my home, Lucian. I assure you, you won’t like the consequences. Now, why don’t you sit down and have a nice cup of coffee? Might I suggest decaf?”

“You’re in league with the Shadow Sisters. Everyone knows it. Normally, I wouldn’t care, but they have snatched my mate and spirited her away.”

“I have never known the Shadow Sisters to snatch anyone who didn’t want them to do so. If your mate chose to spurn your advances, you might want to look at the behavior that caused that.”

“Give her back,” Lucian roared, pounding the desk with his fist.

“I don’t have her.”

“But you know where she is.”

“Actually, I don’t. That doesn’t mean I couldn’t find her if I wanted to, but I really don’t have the girl.”

Lucian sat back. So, the lynx-shifter wanted to deal. “How much would it take for you to want to?”

“It’s not your money I need, Lucian. I have more than enough money.”

Ah, so that was the point of this little farce. The lynx-shifter wanted the Baihu Clan’s strength. Lucian nodded his head. “All right, Reynolds, I’ll deal. If you return Zenya Hale to me, the Baihu Clan will throw in with your Resistance and help you take down the Shadow League.”

“Really? Just like that? Dear god, I thought you would drive a much harder bargain or perhaps offer me more.”

Once more Lucian pounded his fist on the desk. “Damn it, Reynolds. You give me Zenya, and I’ll give you what you need to defeat the League.”

“What’s the alternative, Lucian? Seriously, are you going to threaten to back the League? You might be foolish enough to think they’ll win, but you’re not callous enough to help them do it.”

“Give her back, Reynolds. She’s mine.”

“Have you claimed her? My sources tell me you have not, and she doesn’t want to be with you. She’s a lovely girl. Given your boorish behavior, I don’t blame her.”

“She’s mine. I am her alpha and her fated mate.” Lucian stood. “Do we have a deal or not?”

“Not.”

“What?” Lucian bellowed, not believing he was hearing what he was hearing.

Colby got to his feet. “I said, no deal. Well, actually what I said was ‘not.’ I don’t peddle in flesh—just about everything else but not that. Even if I knew where Zenya was, I wouldn’t tell you. But I do know those who most likely do. If you were to join the resistance, I would promise to give you my best efforts to plead your case to them. Whether or not they would even speak to Zenya or try to persuade her to your cause, I cannot say.”

“I’ll give you a month. If you’re able to get that bunch of rogue females to turn her or the information over to me, the Baihu Clan will back you. You’re right. I would never join the League, but if I don’t have Zenya in my bed within the month, I will do everything in my power to destroy the Shadow Sisters once and for all and I will take Windsong apart brick-by-brick in search of her or the information I seek.”

Turning on his heel, he stalked out of Colby’s office and commandeered the SUV to take him and his men back to the plane. No one tried to stop them as the stairwell to the plane was pulled up and locked into place, taxied down the runway and took off, banking back to the southwest.

“Bastard,” Lucian said as he poured himself a drink.

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