Page 21 of Waifs And Strays
‘I’ll kill her myself.’ There was no malice in his tone, Alexander MacTire was simply stating a fact in the same way he might express a preference for beef rather than lamb. ‘But she was right. He does need time. I’m confident he’ll come to the right decision on his own.’
‘You don’t want to have him watched?’
‘If he spotted any trackers, he’d be off like a shot. Perhaps he does deserve this opportunity to work out what’s best for himself. None of the rest of us had that chance.’
Samantha obviously held the position of beta wolf, so MacTire would have no reason to lie to her. He hadn’t been responsible for Nick’s abduction and that left the field wide open. I’d got the information I’d come for – and a whole lot more besides.
MacTire turned to the desk, lifted the pot and poured twocups of coffee. My whiskers twitched and Samantha immediately stiffened. ‘We’re not alone,’ she said quietly.
Uh-oh. Suddenly a new problem presented itself. If I were caught here and whatever powder Quack had dropped into the coffee was detected, MacTire would instantly believe I was the one trying to poison him.
I held my breath and watched as he slowly returned the coffee pot to the tray. When he raised his head again, I almost yowled with shock. Half his face had shifted and his lower jaw and nose were no longer humanoid; instead they were wholly wolf.
I’d never know any werewolf managing a transformation apart from during the full-moon period. Alexander MacTire’s power was unheard of and I couldn’t imagine why he would keep such an ability secret. If the other wolf packs knew what he could do, they’d be terrified into submission.
His nostrils flared as he scented me then his face returned to its original features, albeit with even more of a five-o’clock shadow than before. ‘Cat,’ he bit out.
Samantha was already in an attack stance. ‘Here?’
‘In this fucking room.’
With that, my mind had been made up for me. I leapt out from my hiding spot directly for the desk, landing exactly where I’d planned to knock over the poisoned coffee pot, and kicked both cups. As their contents spilled, burning liquid scalded my side.
I sensed rather than saw MacTire lunge towards me but, in a move that might have impressed even She Who Hisses, I sprang away and threw myself towards a heavy cabinet. The space underneath was only four inches but it was enough for me to scoot out of reach.
I was still trapped, and the office door remained tightly shut, but I had a little breathing space to plan my next move;however, I should have remembered that Samantha had been canny enough to catch She Who Hisses. While MacTire crouched down and thrust his hand underneath the cabinet to try and grab me, she was a step ahead.
‘Wait,’ she said. ‘I’ve got something.’ While I hissed at MacTire’s flailing hand, she knelt down and sprinkled something on the floor. As soon as it hit the polished wood, I knew what it was: magically enhanced catnip. No wonder she’d managed to get hold of She Who Hisses.
As everyone knows, catnip is a potent herb that sends many cats into paroxysms of heavenly delight – and magically enhanced catnip is on a whole other level. There wasn’t a single feline in the world that could ignore its allure. If I’d been a normal cat, I’d already have been bolting out from underneath the cabinet to roll myself onto it. But I wasn’t a normal cat and although the scent was delicious, I was more than capable of resisting its effects. Then again, if I ignored it, Samantha and Alexander MacTire would know that I was more than I appeared. My only hope now was to act like I really was a cat, and I unhappily obliged.
Biting back my next hiss and forcing out a purr, I shuffled out from underneath the cabinet and threw myself at the small pile of dried herbs. I dropped onto my side and started to roll around like an idiot.Mmm, catnip. Mmm, I’m a cat. Mmm, don’t be suspicious of me.
Two large hands reached out and picked me up. Alexander MacTire. I wriggled and jumped away from him to return to the herbs. ‘Where the hell did you get this stuff from?’ he asked Samantha.
Good question.
‘A black-market seller down by the river.’
Trilby. That arse: I’d kill them the next time I saw them. Irolled around some more and purred again, trying to appear ecstatic. It was beyond humiliating.
MacTire reached for me a second time and this time his grip was more assured. He scooped me up, drew me to his chest and held me firm, despite my wriggling. ‘She’s a pretty little thing,’ he said.
Samantha sniffed. ‘She’s a cat. There’s no such thing as a pretty cat.’
‘I know one woman who would disagree with you.’
‘Kit McCafferty strikes me as an intelligent, capable woman, but when it comes to cats, she is very wrong.’
Oh, Samantha. Just when I was beginning to warm to you.
There was a sharp knock on the door. MacTire growled and it opened to reveal one of the courtyard guards. ‘He’s here, boss.’
‘Sitwell? About fucking time.’
Sitwell? That had to mean Gavin Sitwell, the name that had been scribbled onto the notepad. Curiosity scratched at me but my need to escape took precedence. As the door opened wider and a nervous-looking man was ushered in, I took my chance.
I opened my jaws and bit down hard on MacTire’s finger. He hissed with pain and his hold on me loosened. That was all I needed to wrench free and bolt for the open door. I ran between the legs of the guard to the entrance hall. The outer door was still open a fraction and I headed for it, ignoring the minor commotion behind me.
