CHAPTER FIVE: ON MY TERMS

CHAPTER FIVE

***MEI'S POV***

The cinnamon rolls in my mouth instantly taste like ash.

"What do you mean they made their move?" I demand, my voice dropping two octaves lower. The atmosphere thickens as the scent of my aura fills the room.

Curtis looks at me. His shoulders are slack and his face is pale. A very rare sight for even my unflappable omega.

"The head of security called. He said there was a breach." He finally says, after what feels like a thousand years.

I pinch the skin on my brows.

Can't I even have a few hours to myself?

My gaze sweeps through the room briefly before settling on mama. She looks pale too, her fingers fumbling with the buttons on her shirt. The green glint in her eyes is now evident.

I instinctively reach for her hands and touch them for a brief moment, signalling for her to conceal her eyes.

Mama might be a pretty generous and good person, but her kind is still hunted. Decades ago, the Unified Council of packs branded the Moonveil pack too dangerous to exist. Wolves blessed with direct insight from the Moon Goddess were considered a threat. "They know too much," the elders had claimed. So they hunted them almost to extinction.

Innocent lives were lost.

The weak were preyed on.

It's no wonder Mama loves and helps the strays— she relates to us.

Mama quickly adjusts her weight on the chair but doesn't conceal her eyes. Her fingers tapping lightly on hand of the seat.

She must be dream walking— a desperate attempt to seek answers from the Goddess. I reach to stop her, but retract my hands and focus on Curtis instead.

He nods immediately knowing what to do. His hazel eyes beaming in what's left of the sunset as he conceals it for her.

She won't find any answers. I know.

But I leave her to try.

My gaze briefly lands on Devon. His eyes are also widened and his agitation spills thick in the room.

"An explosion at the perimeter of Hub Three in Moss City. Human security tried to engage, but... Mei, the thermal feeds. It was a small strike team. They didn't steal inventory though, but they had impossible strength." Curtis says, after a brief moment of silence. His arms flexing as he palms the back of his neck. The emphasis on the last statement tells me everything I need to know.

​

A warning.

I've always womdered if the Ironclaw were anything more than their strengths. I guess I've confirmed it.

These dense bastards will do anything for territory and power—including risk the discovery of supernatural breeds.

My mind flashes back to the tablet Borin had slid across the table hours ago. The red crosshairs blinking over my life's work. The bastard hadn't just predicted the future, he’d timed his pitch perfectly to match the Iron Claw’s schedule.

I'd expect nothing less from the alpha of shadowcrest. Hoarding information has always been their forte.

I stand to my feet, faster than I'd like. The action causing my chair to scrape hardly on the tiled floors. Everyone in the room flinches and mama finally jerks awake from her dreamwalk.

Werewolves hate that sound.

"Here. Have this." I say, reaching for my purse. I pull out a stack of high denomination bills and slam them on the table. "For Noah. And all the others. I will have someone from my team evaluate the cost of everything you might need, and we will take care of it." I continue, as I reach for my purse to pull out more stacks.

"My baby, you know I cannot accept this." Mama says, when I place them on the table.

"I have to go." I say completely ignoring mama. I do my breathing exercise as I turn to leave without saying another word.

My wolf is already on edge, the last thing I need is to give her a reason to lash out.

"At least let me pack you a takeaway." Mama calls out when I step out of the room.

"Give it to Curtis." I mutter even though I'm few feet away now. I know they can hear me. Werewolves have exceptional hearing.

It only takes a few minutes before comes sprinting into the car. A box of pastries in his left hand and my blazer in his right. I totally forgot I took it off earlier.

"Hotel?" He asks, his hands moving to turn on the engine of the car as he settles himself. It's already late and leaving for Moss could be dangerous. The Ironclaw could ambush us for all we know.

"Yeah." I respond as I reach to collect the blazer and box from the front seat where he's kept them.

He scoffs, a smile creeping up his lips. I don't trust him with my pastries.

"You know, mama said I could have some." He says, looking at me through the rear mirror.

I crinkles my nose and cover my ears. If I didn't hear it, mama can't accuse me of not sharing.

"What are you gonna do?" He asks again after a while. I look at his face through the mirror.

"The Ironclaw want trouble, we'll give it to them." Nobody dares to touch my empire and goes scot free.

The drive to the hotel is entirely silent, save for the occasional tapping of my heels against the floor mats.

*****

Hours have gone by since we arrived the hotel. I decided choosing a hotel for human celebrities with adequate security would be ideal. The last thing I need is for paparazzi to disclose my location. It's enough that the Ironclaw has eyes for me. I don't need social media attention and speculations of why I'm in Vos right now.

"Perharps we should involve the police?" A voice suggests from the other side of the screen. It's Gray—a human member of my team.

That's right, it's eleven pm and I'm in a meeting.

"Involving the police only brings on more attention than needed." Curtis quickly shuns the idea. He's sitting on the seat beside me staring at the laptop in front of us.

We've been running over analytics and strategizing the best approach to the situation.

It's even harder because we can't disclose our true identities to the humans.

They're concerned, and we're in a dilemma.

"What do we do then?" Hannah, another human, asks. The whole room becomes quiet and I can feel their eyes on me in anticipation of a response.

"Darren? Have you run another simulation of how likely we are to get another attack?" I ask looking at the screen in front of me, ignoring the question. For the first time since I started this business, I have no idea what to do.

I do, but I don't like it and I'm not ready to admit to my team that I have no idea what to do.

"Well, that would have been easier if they took something. They just broke in, perhaps as a show of strength. But that doesn't make sense." He replies, adjusting the glasses on his face. The reflection on his glasses shows he's looking at another screen.

"Did they do a sweep of the area?" Curtis asks, relaxing his head on his chin on the table.

Of course they did.

"The security tried to stop them but they were too strong." Gray says almost in an apologetic tone.

"I'm going to need you to track whoever did this. We're goimg to do a sweep on them too." I say taking a sip of the tea mama had given Curtis. He prepared it for me a while back.

It helps calm my wolf.

"On it." Darren says.

"Hannah. I need you to handle the security. I'll send a few recommendations to you and you'll evaluate them and their backgrounds and if they pass all tests, you'll hire them." I say as I set the cup down on the coaster. It's high time I started to hire werewolves as security. I'll have to ask Curtis to scout them out later.

"Yes Ma'am." She says, scribbling something on her note.

I bite my lower lip as I pinch the skin between my brows. We have one last resort and I'm going to have to take it.

Borin.

Borin probably thinks this attack would send me crawling back to his boardroom, tail tucked between my legs, desperate enough to sign whatever contract he places before me.

He's severely underestimated who he's dealing with.

"Yeah and Gray," I call out. The certainty in my voice restoring. I'm going to fix this. Nobody can bring me down that easily.

Empires aren't built by people who panic.

"What's the plan, boss?" He asks, his anxiety completely melting away, replaced by the fierce loyalty I knew him for.

"schedule me a one on one meeting with the CEO of CRESTS TRANSPORT."

Curtis snaps his head to look at me. I ignore him before continuing.

"And let him know the meeting will go on my terms."

He must anticipate my return. he just doesn't know what comes with it.