Bite Me

CHAPTER 11

Vic, leaning back against his SUV, glanced over at the full-human female standing next to him.

“I really appreciate you guys helping me with this,” he said.

Dez MacDermot smiled up at him, squinting one eye closed against the midday sun. “It’s no problem. Things are pretty quiet right now for me and Crushek anyway.”

“You know, I heard from Dee-Ann that her bosses and Cella’s have had them back off the Whitlan case. Any idea why?”

“Nope. But our department hasn’t been pushing us, either. Which is weird, because for a while there, that’s all they had me and Crush working on. But Dee-Ann quietly mentioned that you were looking into it for us.”

“Yeah. Just seeing if I can find out anything on my own.”

“Well, just let me know if me and Crush can help you. It bothers me that Whitlan might be able to get away with all this bullshit. I’ve heard rumors there are a lot of fellow law officers who don’t want Whitlan caught. Some high-level guys whose careers will be very hurt if Whitlan’s brought in.”

Frankie “The Rat” Whitlan had turned out to be quite a piece of work, using cops to protect his illegal business by turning rat on fellow criminals who were in his way.

Yet none of that was why shifters of every breed and species had been after the son of a bitch. It was because he’d run one of the most successful shifter-hunting businesses in the world. For an exorbitant fee, Whitlan could arrange a hunt involving anything from lions, bears, tigers, wolves . . . any type of shifter. And for hard-core hunters, shifters were the ultimate prey. The power and strength of the predator combined with the intelligence of thumb-possessing humans.

The fact that an untold number of shifters were stuffed and on display in rich people’s homes was what made Whitlan “most wanted” among their kind. So for any of the protection agencies to be backing off this guy was strange.

“You don’t think that’s what’s happening here, do you? That someone from our side is trying to protect Whitlan?”

Dez jerked a bit in surprise at Vic’s question. “No. I wasn’t thinking that at all. Are you?”

“No. But I do feel something’s going on.”

She snorted. “There’s always something going on. You guys are always involved in such complicated politics.”

“True.”

Crushek walked out the side door, Livy and six other honey badger females behind him.

Vic studied Livy as she caught sight of him and began to move his way. Despite some already healing bruises on her face, she appeared to be just fine.

Until one of the other badger females said something to Livy. Something only Livy could hear. But whatever was said, it was enough.

Livy turned wickedly fast, her open hand flying out and slapping the other female right across the face. Hard. So hard, the blow had the other female stumbling, briefly dropping her to her knees. She was up fast, though, charging Livy.

“Crush!” Dez called to the polar.

“What?”

She motioned to the women behind him, and Crush turned, eyes widening in shock. But before he could move, the other females stepped in, separating the cousins and moving them away from each other.

Vic motioned them over with a wave of his hand, now recognizing Melly as the one Livy had slapped.

Once the females were in front of him, Vic announced, “Listen up, ladies. I’m going to make this very quick. You have not been bailed out. Instead, you’ve been released, and any record of your arrest has been expunged.”

Melly threw both fists high in the air. “Rock on!”

“Hold it,” Vic cut in before she could walk off feeling invincible.

Vic pointed at Dez. “This is Detective MacDermot. She’ll be accompanying you ladies back to Livy’s apartment, where you will clean up whatever mess you left there.”

“Fuck her,” Melly snapped.

“You’ll clean it up,” Vic continued on, “or Dez will be dragging your ass”—he pointed right at Melly—“back to prison.”

Dez looked at some papers she held in her hand. “Melanie Kowalski. Nice little sheet you have here, Mel.” She looked up, studied Melly. “Have you been drinking, Miss Kowalski? Because according to what I’ve read here, the judge—”

“All right, all right!” Melly crossed her arms over her chest. “I’ll clean up her apartment.” Then, quite suddenly, she burst into tears. “I just don’t know why you’re all being so mean to me!”

It was quick, what Vic saw. But he knew he’d seen it. The way Melly’s cousins had looked at her. If they’d been full-blood honey badgers, they would have torn Melly apart, destroying her for being weak.

“Oooo . . . kay.” Vic glanced at Dez. “Why don’t you and Crush take the ladies to Livy’s apartment?”

“You’ve got it.”

Vic caught Livy’s arm before she could follow her cousins. “Come on. You’re coming with me.”

“I can’t,” she said.

“Well, you can’t stay with Melly.”

“Fine. Then I’ll go somewhere else.”

“Is there a reason you can’t go with me?”

“Because at this moment,” she said flatly, “I can only think about wrapping my hands around your scrawny neck and choking you until you pass out or die.”

Frowning, Vic brushed his free hand against his neck. “I don’t think anyone’s ever said I had a scrawny neck. Even when I was a baby. In grade school, they called me Big Neck Vic.”

“It’s not you,” Livy admitted. “I’m just projecting my feelings for my cousin onto you, which I’ll admit is hardly fair. But I’m . . . unbelievably tense.”

Vic thought about that a moment. “Tense? So tense that if some tourist came up to you and asked you how to catch the J Train, you’re likely to beat them to death in the street?”

Livy shrugged. “Probably.”

Vic opened the passenger door. “Then you better get in.”

“Yeah, but—”

“In. My ‘scrawny neck’ can handle you . . . but some poor full-human just visiting for the day? He or she would probably not be so lucky. So get your ass in the car.”

“I guess you have a point.” Livy walked toward the car.

“So where are we going? Your house?” she asked.

“No. Someplace else. You’ll like it.”

Livy started to get in the SUV, but stopped, looked at Vic. “I . . . appreciate all this, but I’m still not ready to talk about—”

“I’m taking you someplace where you can relax. That’s it. Besides, I’m not really in the mood to fix a bunch of badger holes in my house.”

Her smile was small, but there. And he was surprised how much he needed to see that smile.