Page 70 of Wolf Roulette

“You took ages to call, so I did some digging. Rich people aren’t good at waiting.”

“I wouldn’t know. I’m Poor with a capital P.”

“Ah,that’s probably why I like you.” She held the phone away and shouted. “Tommy, she’s poor like you.”

“Must be cool then”came the feminine reply.

Was that a rule? “Friend of yours?”

“The best.”

“They’re important. Does she know you’re Vissimo?”

Basilia sighed. “Yeah. It was rocky for a while, but I’m glad for it now. Will you become a werewolf with the mating call, or do you have a choice?”

I hadn’t mentioned that yet? “I transformed into a Luther not long ago.”

She was silent. “Well that puts a dampener on my plans to invite you to Bluff City to meet face to face.”

I stilled.

Did she know I couldn’t leave the valley?

“I’ll need you to invite me out there,” Basilia stated after a beat. “Vissimo are super anal about their territory. Julius will throw a tantrum about a werewolf on his turf.”

“Who’s Julius?”

“The king. My father-in-law.”

My mouth bobbed. Theking? “Does he rule the whole city?”

“Yeah. Our territory stops before Frankton Gorge.”

From what I’d gathered, Frankton Gorge didn’t belong to any supernatural race. “I had no idea you were part of the royal vampire family.”

“I know, right. Billionaire and princess—so cliché. I’m mated to the king’s eldest son, Kyros. He’s super hot. And he’d be super angry if I entered werewolf territory without him… When he’s angry, we have great make-up sex. Yes.Yes, this is a great idea. When do you want me there?”

Had I agreed to invite her?

Well, not only did I want to meet Basilia Le Spyre, but her connections could open other avenues I hadn’t considered when first returning her call.

“Is next weekend too soon?” I asked.

“Tommy,” she hollered. “Want to go for a road trip next weekend?”

“Hells yeah!”

“Tommy said hells yeah. We’re in.”

“The drive here is five hours—fair warning. But please don’t worry about coming into werewolf territory. I’m head steward of the Ni Tiaki tribe who govern this land. I grant you formal protection from the moment you enter Deception Valley until you leave again. You won’t be harmed by any pack or tribe member.”

“Wait, so Sascha-No-Sex is the werewolf leader. What’s this about a tribe?”

I sighed. “We’re on opposite sides. Our people don’t get on. At all.”

Her tone sobered. “I see.”

“Yeah. I’ll give you a rundown over a lemon and raspberry gin cocktail next week?”

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