Page 83 of Mitchell's Untamed Mate

“Thank you, Frances.Please make some of your special coffee for Mr.Hyder,” Isabella requested.

“Right away, ma’am,” the plump servant said with a curtsy.

“I see you have been as successful as usual,” she commented, not pulling her gaze away from Hyder until he walked over to the refreshment tray Frances had set out.“Please, help yourself.”

Her edge of sarcasm earned her a sharp glare.She picked up her cup of tea and took a sip.A minute later, Hyder sat down across from her.She was a bit surprised by the hostile stare he continued to give her.

“What happened?”she finally demanded when he didn’t say anything.

He sat back in his chair.“Are you saying you don’t know?”

Irritation flared through her and she pursed her lips.“What I know is that I’m out a lot of money and I have nothing to show for it.Your task was to collect two humans for me, one male and one female, and to kill an annoying wolf-shifter.As far as I can tell, you’ve accomplished neither,” she snapped.

“Who did you send to follow me?Who else did you hire to collect the humans?”he demanded.

She gave him a startled look.“Follow you?No one.You said you had the situation under control.Two humans.If my sources are correct, they were right under your nose!Ty Bearclaw’s human female and the male who was captured and taken to the Bearclaw estate.Two, Hyder.I would have thought that would have been an easy assignment for a shifter with your experience.”

“You didn’t send anyone else to follow me?”he pressed, sitting forward and resting his arms on the table.

“Who would I send?Carter?That warthog couldn’t find his way out of a paper bag if I left a trail of France’s famous sweet cakes.I hiredyouto take care of this,” she insisted.

Her eyes narrowed when he sat back with a muttered curse.She didn’t miss the fact that he hadn’t touched any of the food on his plate.She studied his expression with curiosity.

“What happened?”she asked.

He glanced at her face before looking away.“I called in a favor.Eight shifters, top of the line military training, state-of-the-art equipment, and poof—they were gone.”

She tapped the table impatiently with the tips of her fingers.“What do you mean 'poof, they were gone'?Did they decide not to do the mission?Did you forget to pay them?Did they go rogue?”

Hyder slammed his fist against the table.Isabella jumped with surprise.She steadied her china teacup and stared at Hyder with a growing alarm.She had never seen the man this shook up.

“I mean they were killed right in front of me.Whoever… whatever those things were, they came out of nowhere and?—”

She swallowed when he ran a finger across his throat in a slicing motion.Hyder rose to his feet and walked to the balcony.He didn’t notice when she lifted her hand to stop Frances who had returned with a coffee carafe.She shook her head at the woman, who bowed her head and silently retreated.

“Can they trace you here?”she asked.

He twisted, sighed, and ran his hand down over his face.“No.At least I don’t think so.Hell, I don’t know.I told you.I don’t know who they are.The man… the organization that I contacted isn’t happy.They lost a lot of good men and equipment,” he said.

“I think it is time we ended our acquaintance, Hyder,” she said, rising.

Hyder glared at her.“Well, that’s a bit of a problem.I need somewhere to stay, and this looks like a pretty nice setup you have here,” he announced.

Isabella was about to argue when she thought better of it.Hyder was a desperate man, and desperate men did desperate things.She bowed her head in acquiescence.

“Since you put it that way, I’ll see what is holding Frances up with your coffee and let her know that you will be staying as a guest.Please help yourself to the refreshments.I’ll return shortly,” she said.

Hyder grunted in agreement and returned to his seat.Isabella gave him another serene smile before she retreated into the villa.Frances was standing inside waiting for her.

“We are leaving now,” she stated.

“Yes, ma’am.Would you like me to serve Mr.Hyder his coffee first?”Frances asked.

Isabella looked at the pot of poisoned coffee.She had a feeling it would not be necessary.She shook her head.

“No, we must make haste,” she said.

“This way, ma’am,” Frances said, placing the steaming coffee carafe on the end table before removing her apron and placing it next to it.

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