Page 54 of Warwick

“Yes, and your beast is restless. You need to go be with the pack because I know it’s not only because I’m carrying your babies. Go. Have a good hard run with them. Go to work for a week or two. Besides, how else am I going to find out if you guys get the bad guys in Italy? That’s sexy, by the way.”

I smiled, remembering that conversation. Cecil had freaked out when we’d first been told he would have a six-week gestation when carrying hellhound babies. But after seeing how developed our babies were, he relaxed and suddenly was at ease. I wasn’t quite there just yet, but I was going to do whatever my mate wanted simply because the last thing I wanted was to cause him more stress.

“Why is he smiling?”

I blinked, coming back to the present.

“Probably because he’s thinking about his mate,” Atticus said. “You can’t say that thinking about a mate wouldn’t make you smile, Frederick.”

Frederick’s shoulders slumped. “I would if I had one. Everyone seems to be finding one before me.”

“Yeah, well, we’re all older than you,” Atticus said. He tossed a wadded piece of paper at the warlock, who waved his hand at it. The paper fell to the floor with a thud. It shouldn’t have made much of a sound at all.

“Are you quite finished?” Master Edison asked. “Warwick being here is his choice, and if he wishes to spend a week or two at the council while his mate is in the last weeks of pregnancy, that is their choice. He won’t be going on any field assignments, but his input with regards to previous assignments and what did and didn’t work is valuable.”

“Seriously though. Six weeks?” Benjamin asked.

“That’s what we thought. Apparently, hellhound babies have magic as well. And they use the magic to develop rather rapidly.”

“What if he has one of each?” Sebastian asked.

I looked to Master Edison.

“Already asked, still waiting to hear back from the goddess. I would believe that a mixed-species pregnancy wouldn’t be possible because of the difference in gestations. I’ve all but given up on understanding anything she does any longer. Some things make sense, others leave me with more questions.” Master Edison sighed. “If you have questions, ask Warwick after the meeting. Right now, we need to go over the newest developments with regards to Rocco Conti and his coven.”

“Sorry, Master,” Benjamin said.

“No need. We all understand the happenings around Warwick and Cecil are not only exciting but fascinating. But you have to remember that what is happening with them is their business, and if they choose to share, that is entirely up to them.”

Benjamin looked directly at me and mouthed that he was sorry. I shook my head. There was no need to be sorry. I understood.

“Master Edison,” I said, hoping for his attention and to change the subject so things didn’t become too awkward.

“Yes, Warwick.”

“Might I inquire about Dominic?” I’d asked twice about him already, but none of my pack mates had any information about him.

“He is safe. He is currently being kept elsewhere, somewhere that he can both be watched as well as be protected if needed. His background has been thoroughly checked and found cleared.” Master Edison nodded, then pointed to the wall in front of him. “That will bring us to the rest of the coven. Salvatore and his team have been working as quickly as they can. As expected, the inner circle is dirty. But it goes a bit further than that, and we’re still working through the background searches of the rest of the coven. But with one as large as this, it takes time. Add in that we have other assignments that need their attention as well.”

“Do we know where Rocco is?” I asked.

“Yes. We have tabs on him and most of his inner circle. There were two that got away,” Master Edison said. He indicated the wall, and we all looked. “We are searching for Marco and Riccardo Gallo. Cousins. They seem to share everything, and that includes their love of using their power to get what they want.”

There was an image up on the wall of two men who I would say were brothers, not cousins.

“Do we have any idea where they are or could possibly be?”

Master Edison shook his head. “We do not. Marco is Rocco’s number one when it comes to doing dirty work. Marco often brings his cousin along. They can tend to get messy when it comes to taking care of things.” The next image looked like a bloody aftermath of what I would say was a hit that you saw in certain movies.

“Rocco is not only master of his coven but don of his ‘family’? Sebastian asked.

“Yes. We’re dealing with a mafia family that is very much entangled in the human world. We have to be incredibly careful because not only does Rocco have enemies, but there are others that he has alliances with. Some human, some not. We have to tread carefully when trying to discover who the paranormal alliances and enemies are. Both are trouble to our world.”

There were sighs and groans all around the room. “We’re going to need more enforcers,” someone grumbled.

“We are. More enforcers, more warlocks, and we really could use those last two hellhounds,” Master Edison said.

Atticus looked around at us. “We’ve looked. It’s a lot like trying to find a diamond ring on the ocean floor. We cannot communicate with them without first being brought into the pack. Nor do they have their magic until we locate them.”

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