Branded by Fire (Psy-Changeling 6)

"Damn." She tapped her fingers on the desk. "They're actually going to do this, blow something up in our territory."

"I f**king hope not. If they do, it's war."

Mercy took a moment to think. "Maybe the target has nothing to do with us - could be they're here to eliminate Bowen's group."

"With a bomb?" Riley's disbelief was obvious. "It'd be easier to shoot them in some dark alley. They blow something up, it's about getting everyone's attention. Right this second," he continued, "their motivation matters less than finding them. From all the evidence, they're staying on the move, but we've got a scent now."

"I'll get some leopards on it, too." She was already making a mental list of those in the city or close by with the necessary tracking skills. "I'm on my way."

She kept her anger contained on the drive over, and said nothing when she first saw Riley in the warehouse. Instead, she confirmed his findings, then set Aaron, Jamie, Barker, and Kit to tracking. "Kit, I want you paired with Barker."

Kit opened his mouth to complain but she shut him up with a look. "I know you're a good tracker, but you're still in training. Seriously, boy, do not give me any shit today."

Kit blinked. He carried the scent of a future alpha, and one day soon, he'd be able to overpower her in a fight - but she'd be his senior until he became alpha. And not only did Kit know that, he knew how to deal with dominant females, having grown up with Rina for a sister. "Someone made you mad today," he murmured, hands up. "Glad it wasn't me. Is Barker here already?"

"Should be outside. Check in with me by phone every fifteen minutes."

"Will do." Nodding, the young soldier headed out.

The warehouse was clear of everyone but Mercy, Riley, and the scene processing people ten minutes later. Leaving the scientific types, Mercy headed out to her car, Riley by her side. "I've got one question for you," she said as they walked, "what was the tip?"

"That there was a lot of late-night traffic in and out of a warehouse that was meant to be off-limits to anyone but the construction crew."

"That's it?"

"One of the soldiers patrolling this area thought she smelled something dangerous - probably caught a whiff of the chemicals. Rats came through with the same info two minutes later."

Mercy knew he'd received that data directly because he was in charge of city security at the relevant time. "So you knew you were going into danger." She put her thumb to the car door to unlock it.

"It was a possibility." His eyes were calm when he looked at her, but the hand he closed over her door when she slid it open and back, was white-knuckled.

"And is that when you made the decision not to call me?" she asked, holding his gaze without flinching. "When you realized it might be life-threatening?"

"We had no idea what we might be walking into," he said. "The place could've been rigged to blow."

"Answer the question." She didn't break eye contact.

"Yes. I didn't want you exposed to that unstable a situation."

She was so angry she was trembling inside. "That's what I thought - and it wasn't your call to make, Riley."

"What the f**k use would it have been to put us both in the line of fire?"

"Again, not your call." She tried to breathe, but her throat was knotted up with too much fury and air barely seemed to get in. "We're allies. If you start holding back information, that alliance falls."

His jaw tightened. "You know damn well this had nothing to do with the alliance."

"Yes," she said, "it did. Everything we do impacts our packs."

He didn't answer, but she could feel the pulse of his anger.

"Don't you dare treat me like your woman ever again," she said, teeth gritted. "Not when it concerns the safety of my pack. Which is all our 'relationship' is going to concern as of this moment."

"No," he said, grabbing her elbow. "You don't get to end us. Not over this."

The cat growled and she let the sound travel up through her vocal cords. "I get to do whatever I want." She wrenched her arm from his. "I invited you into my home," she said, nose to nose with him. "I trusted you. You just shit on that trust." Sliding into the seat, she pulled the door shut.

He refused to let it close, leaning down to look at her. "I did not break your trust."

"Tell yourself that if it makes you feel better." This time, she pulled hard enough to make her muscles scream, kicking out at his shins at the same time. His grip loosened in surprise, and she got the door moving, sliding her leg back inside in the nick of time. Then she got the hell away from Riley before he did something else that made her heart hurt.

Her eyes burned and that only made her angrier. "God damn you, Riley!" She slammed her palm on the steering wheel hard enough to leave bruises.

Chapter 33

Sascha split off from Lucas as they entered the SnowDancer den. "What did Mercy say?"

"They found what looks like the Alliance's bolt-hole, but the mercenaries are long gone." He thrust a hand through his hair. "We can deal with this before we go down. Mercy's got things under control."

She nodded. "I need to speak to Toby for a few minutes. You go talk to Hawke."

A quiet nod. "I'll back you, whatever you decide. But, kitten, this could be serious."

"I know." She wouldn't make the decision lightly. "Go on."

As he followed the soldier who'd met them at the door, another led her to the schoolroom where Toby was doing math. "I'll be fine now."