Page 55 of His Temporary Alpha Mate
“Whatever youwant, my mate.”
Lark was on bed rest, but I was not. The spare room made a handy office since I didn’t want to leave him alone. This way I could work while he rested.
They easily fixed a hairline crack to his skull with plenty of magic. The internal bleeding, cuts, bruises, too. Still, it was a lot... I’d nearly lost Lark. All for what? Some supplies? There had to be a better way of doing things.
We had access to portals. The elves were already doing so much, would they be able to set smaller, stable portals so we could get what we needed to keep our businesses working?
I made some calls. The truth was, they could, but would we be able to trust the portal would be properly guarded on the other side? A permanent portal took a lot of magic to maintain. The elves didn’t recommend it for just transporting goods.
Another problem was that magic, particularly elven portals, could mess with technology. Phones were okay, smaller tech was usually fine. More complex machinery was the issue. We had lost some of the equipment Larken was delivering from the crash, thenmore from the portal which had taken them, and the truck, to safety.
Would the demons help? Their magic could make portals too, though only hellhounds could make them in the same realm. Demons went from their realm to ours with no problem whatsoever. I knew Toth, who was in partnership with the pack, had a hellhound friend. Would he be willing to work with us? We’d pay him, of course.
I spoke to the hellhound, who was apologetic, but until the issue with Basil, the ex-High Witch of the Northarbor coven, was resolved, then he couldn’t take on another job. He gave me the number of the guild instead.
Apparently hellhounds were in high demand. The magic involved in my plan was expensive. Like bankrupt the pack costly.
So my choices were to find some money to pay for a hellhound or find more people to guard the supply routes, which would need to be routinely changed.
I rubbed at my face, tired and more than a little frustrated. I’d slept a few hours with Lark, then woken him on doctor’s orders to check that his concussion symptoms hadn’t worsened. His bruises made spectacular colors over his body. I hated seeing the ones on his face, knowing why they were there.I was just grateful the arrival of the elves made the aviary shifters run.
“Hey, Deke?” I asked when he picked up my call. “Do you think you could bring over some maps? Not just of Northarbor, but further afield. Maybe we need to switch suppliers.”
“Sure. D’you think they were in on the attack too?”
“Call me suspicious, but the reports from the other enforcers tell me something was amiss about this pick up.”
“Right?” I could almost hear the grim satisfaction at being proven correct in his voice. “How they were delayed picking up with the excuse of paperwork? They do it all digitally. We’ve never had to wait for a printed invoice or had a supervisor sign off on the trade of vehicles.”
“Zand said the warehouse was emptier than he’d ever seen it. I wonder if they cleared it out, hoping to trap our people inside.”
“Yeah. I need to report our suspicions to the authorities. They’ve been all up my ass over the damage to the guardrail. Tell me you don’t care about shifter lives without saying it.”
“I’m sorry. You’ve got enough to deal with without the police.”
“Oh, it wasn’t just the police. We had the mayor on the phone. Did you know he’s fae? Got in on a platform promising to control the shifters of Northarbor.”
“He doesn’t have authority over the pack. We have the cou—“
“Exactly. No council, no protection. Sweetwater is safe from him, but we were on their turf.”
“So find other suppliers in the other direction?”
“Please. I’ll bring over those maps and check on Larken.”
“Thanks. Door’s unlocked.”
“Dalton?”
“Yeah?” The seriousness with which he said my name had me alert.
“I owe you an apology. I shouldn’t have asked Larken to go. When he said he would, I was relieved because I know I can trust him, but that nearly cost him his life. You would have had to go through your first heat alone and grieving.”
“Deke—I don’t blame you for what happened. I just don’t want to go through that again. We’ll find another way so we don’t have to risk losing moreof our people.”
I heard Spice making his little ferret noises of excitement and craned my neck to call out for Deke.
“Why is he so cute?” Deke cooed to Spice as he cradled the furry noodle. Spice had never forgotten Deke’s interest in him or the gentle way he reached out to pet his fur the first time they met. Deke had made quite the impression on us all. Even Priscilla, who could be a diva to strangers, was a fan of the former Alpha.
