Page 14 of Scarred Resolve

“I wouldn’t doubt if it aimed at your finances considering your situation, income, employment. There are a few ways the BSA holds werewolves accountable when necessary, but it’s dependent on the supernatural’s circumstances. If it’s a lower-ranking werewolf, the BSA works with the Alpha to come to a decision. With any Alpha, we go to the NAWC and discuss it with them. There are too many variables,” she finished. Her tone gave me the clear visual of her shrug, and I agreed. There was no reason to get into any more detail when I could get the picture clearly enough.

“I’ll follow the orders, including the stipulations of my plus one. You can report that to whoever needs to hear it,” I said, leaning back in my chair as I thought about the one option I had.

“I will, thank you.” There was a beat of silence that made me wonder if she was going to hang up on me. “Jacky, I don’t think you should tell Heath any more than you were ordered to be here at five am.”

“Worried?” I asked softly.

“Honestly, I am, and I… I have a really strong feeling that Heath would know just enough to put something together that could cause both of you problems. He used to be a member of the NAWC. If that hasn’t made him privy to a lot of things I don’t even know, then I’ll eat my badge. So, to keep both of you safe, you should be very vague with him. Tell him where you will be and what time. Tell him when you leave. I can’t tell you not to give him that, but I highly recommend you keep all other details to yourself until we both know more.”

Okay, then… Tell him nothing that could require him to lie under oath or get sniffed out by a strong nose.

“I understand and will follow that recommendation,” I promised. “Thanks, Beth.”

“I’m not only your handler,” she reminded me. She was the closest person to a friend I had inside the BSA. “I’ll let you go. Apologizes for needing to call so early.”

“No worries. Have a good morning.” I hung up and dropped my cell phone on my desk. “Fuck,” I muttered, the strong language seeming too loud even at such a low volume. It was the only thing I could say, though. It was my entire mood. I knew why she had to call so early and give me twenty-four hours’ notice. It was just enough time to call in any of my family if I had no proper backup in the country. If they were hoping for me to bring a family member, that was a bad sign right off the bat.

They could be thinking I might invite someone outside my family, but that’s so unlikely. There’s no way. They know my family rules the werecats.

I knew what I had to do. I had planned to ask him how he wanted to deal with the BSA situation, but now that was going to be decided for us. I texted Niko, wondering if he would even be awake. It was too damn early, in my opinion, but some people out there liked to be awake at five in the morning.

After ten minutes without a reply, I went back upstairs and put my phone back on my table before getting into the shower. I needed the water because going back to sleep wasn’t a great idea. Heath was going to wake up in only an hour, and trying to sleep only for the alarm to go off didn’t sound like a good time.

Maybe the shower did it, but while I was washing my hair, he was awake and joining me well before he normally woke up. He didn’t say or try to start anything, only helping me, massaging the shampoo with me. He gave me a reason to stay under the hot water longer than necessary, though, enjoying this with him when we had the chance. With a kiss, I turned off the water when we were done.

“That’s not nice,” he said, chuckling. “I was enjoying this.”

“Me, too, but I was supposed to take a quick shower,” I said as I grabbed my towel. Once I was wrapped up, I threw him his own.

“Any reason? It’s pretty early, even for me.”

“I got a call, which led to me texting Niko, and I’m impatiently waiting for a reply. I need to talk to him today.”

“You would tell me if it was an emergency, right?” he asked as we dried off.

“Absolutely. We’ll talk about it more once I get ahold of Niko and figure some details out,” I promised, kissing his cheek. “You go do whatever you need to do, and we’ll meet up later.”

“I’ll be heading to Dallas to talk to some people about these plans, then. We could break ground fast if I really push this.”

“Um, if you’re going to Dallas, meet me and Niko at the mansion later today. I’ll let you know when we head out, and we’ll talk there.”

“Sounds great. I’ll text Landon and tell him Carey is his for the day, then.” He swooped in to kiss my cheek.

It was already six when I grabbed my phone to go hide in my office until Niko replied to me. I had to get out of that bathroom as fast as possible because I hated having to bite my tongue with Heath. I wanted to confirm Niko would go with me, though, before I told Heath anything. If I had my plus one decided and ready to go, I knew he would be more comfortable the moment he heard it. Beyond that, I wanted him to focus on the werewolves, not whatever this nonsense was.

I waited only another thirty minutes, playing games on my computer to pass the time. Niko’s reply was short, saying he would meet me and bring some breakfast with him. I could hear Heath leaving, only the smell of coffee left behind finally tempting me to leave my office to get a mug of my own.

When Niko arrived, I locked us in my office, not saying anything yet. He gave me a breakfast sandwich and another cup of coffee, then sat across me. We ate and drank our coffee until he broke the silence.

“So, what’s going on?” he asked, wiping crumbs off his hands.

“I have a meeting tomorrow in Dallas, and I’m allowed to take one other person; however, that can’t be a werewolf,” I explained, doing the same because the biscuits were a bit dry and crumbly. Not my favorite, but I made no complaints because Niko didn’t have to bring me food. It was thoughtful of him, considering I’d messaged him so damn early in the morning.

“Dallas? A meeting with werewolves or humans?” he asked, leaning back as he relaxed.

“Humans. The BSA called the meeting. I wouldn’t doubt if there will be werewolves there, though, since I can’t take any werewolves.” With a tight smile, I gave him a look. “You know what Heath’s relationship with other werewolves is like right now, right?”

“We’ve talked about it. Banning Heath from the meeting is certainly a message.”

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