Page 64 of Resurgence of the Pack

We. My stomach dopped. Timmy Krieg wasDomini.

Esme and I concentrated and hastily shifted our hands to show sharp claws. The ogre waved at me casually. ‘Don’t get your legs into twisted hose,’ he said. ‘I’m not going to attack you now. I might need you if this piping magic fades again.’

‘But otherwise you’d kill me?’ I asked drily.

‘No, not for now.’ He frowned. ‘I grow weary of The Order’s yoke. I am not a man to be dictated to.’

‘Do you know who runs it?’

He looked at me for a long moment before barking a laugh. ‘Why not?’ he murmured to himself. ‘I believe it is run by an immortal. Over the years I have sought to identify the leaders – surreptitiously, of course.’

‘To become one?’ I asked.

‘To kill and replace one,’ he said honestly. ‘There are only nine seats at the table. To lead The Order, you have to sit at the table – and right now it’s full.’

‘What makes you think it is run by an immortal?’

‘Because for as long as I’ve heard, it has been led by V.’

‘V?’

‘His soledesignation. We’re all given letters. I’m K.’

‘K for Krieg?’ I asked.

He snorted. ‘No. The last K’s surname was Fielding.’

‘How do you know that?’

‘Because I killed him.’

Of course he did. ‘What else can you tell me about the leader besides the fact he’s called V?’

‘Nothing else. He’s a murderous bastard, but no doubt you got that already.’

I had. A chill was sweeping through me. Voltaire had tried to warn me against investigating the Domini – was that becausehewas the ruler? He was immortal, after all. Could the V be for Voltaire?

I licked my dry lips and looked at the man who served my enemies. ‘Is there a way to tell if someone is Domini?’

‘Like what?’ he demanded.

‘Like … a badge or a tattoo.’ Secret societies loved insignia, right?

‘Sorry, love, we aren’t as obvious as that. You want to find us, you’re going to have to work harder.’

‘I’m not afraid of hard work.’

‘Good for you. I like a woman with stamina.’ His gaze was turning flirtatious. ‘You’d forget your wolfie mate in no time at all with me between your thighs.’

‘No,’ Isaid firmly, waving my still-clawed hands. ‘I wouldn’t.’

Krieg sighed lustily. ‘What a woman.’

‘You’ll find your own woman, no doubt.’ I paused as inspiration struck. ‘Candice is a strong woman,’ I said half to myself, parroting the other seer’s words. I thought of how eager she’d been for Timmy and me to have this conversation. Was it for this?

He blinked. ‘Candice? We grew up on the streets together.’

She’ll be perfect for him.Well, who was I to say no to fate? I’d seen the look in her eyes when she’d turned to him and I could be honest about that. ‘She doesn’t feel sisterly towards you.’

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