#finding out Jake spent years looking for clues and answers and the chance he got he acted out

[timothylawrence]

WAIT. One more thing. I loved that the crux of the crime, the crux of the whole investigation, hinged on two sets of siblings who refused to give up on their sibling.

[velasnyx]

Welcome to the Pack Ch.8

I was about to leave for work when my doorbell rang. Who could that be at this time? I opened the door, revealing Mia.

“Hey”. How the hell did she find out where I live? “Hi. How did you find my apartment?” I asked. “I called the station and a guy told me your address,” she answered. I sighed. She must be talking about Gumshoe. I’ll have to tell him not to give my address to strangers over the phone.

“Alright. Did you need something?” I asked. She dug into her coat and handed me a gun. I looked at her confused. “It’s a replacement for the one I broke. Consider it a welcome to the pack gift,” she explained. That’s right. She crushed my gun to bits last night. It was the same model too. “How’d you get a gun like this?” I aaled. “Let’s just say I know a guy”.

I raised a brow. “I’m not too sure you should be telling a cop that”. She laughed. “Well, I couldn’t let you walk around without one. And I was the one who broke your other one. It’s only fair that I’d be the one responsible for a replacement,” Mia said. I chuckled. “Yeah, I guess so. Thanks, Mia”. She patted my shoulder. “Don’t mention it. Pass by the temple tonight. We’re gonna start your training”. I was a bit shocked.

“So soon?” I asked. She gave me a look. “Listen, you’re gonna want to get this down as soon as possible.The full moon won’t wait for you,” she replied. I nodded. She’s right. If I want to make sure I’m not a threat to other people, I have to devote time to the training. “I’ll be there tonight”.

“Skye, I got a new case for you and Dick. Missing persons,” the Captain said, dropping a file on my desk. I looked through it. “They last saw her at the Borscht Bowl Club, where she works,” the Captain added. Natalia Volkov. 22 years old. Works as a bartender at the Borscht Bowl Club where was she last seen.

“I’ll get right on it, Captain,” I said. The Captain nodded and walked into their office. I searched for Natalia in the system. She doesn’t have a record so it’s unlikely she has any enemies that would want to get back at her. Looks like it might just be the usual. Some sick fuck wants a young pretty girl. How does the world and up with people like this? “Gumshoe, let’s go to the Borscht Bowl and see what we can find out. Maybe we’ll get lucky,” I said.

We got to the club. It wasn’t very busy. They must’ve just opened. “Table for two?” a woman with blonde hair asked. “No. We’re Detectives, here to investigate the disappearance of Natalia Volkov,” I answered.

The blonde woman’s demeanor changed. She seemed bothered by something. Either about her co-worker going missing or us being here to investigate. I wasn’t sure which one it was though.

“Do you mind if we ask some questions?”. She nodded. Gumshoe took out a notepad and pencil. “Did anything seem off with Natalia the day of her disappearance?” I asked. She shook her head. “She wasn’t nervous about anything?”. “No. Natalia’s not one to get nervous. She usually pretty level headed,” the woman responded. “And she never expressed a want to runaway?” Gumshoe asked. “Not a chance. Her and her brother came here from Russia with nothing. They spent fifteen years trying to earn a decent living. There’s no way she’d want to turn her back on that,” she replied. I nodded. I can relate to that.

If Natalia is as level headed as this lady says she is then it might end up being a kidnapping. “So, Natalia was last seen here. So do  you, by any chance, have an idea of where she could’ve gone after work?” I asked. “Well, she didn’t disappear after her shift. She went to take a break in the alley behind the building. That was the last time I saw her,” the woman responded. “I’ll check out the alley. You keep asking her questions,” I told Gumshoe.

Maybe they left some clues. “We usually leave through the back door for a smoke break. It’s past the kitchen, first door on your left,” the waitress said. “Thanks”.

I looked around the back of the restaurant. I noticed marks on the wall. They looked as if knives carved through it. Or…claws. I kept looking around. I started to smell blood. I followed the scent and found it on the floor a few feet away. Something happened between her and another person. There definitely was a struggle. But nobody heard anything?

I smelt something else. It was sweet. Almost like a vanilla scent. I followed it to a strange purple powder. I’ve never  seen anything like this.

I had to think for a couple minutes. Had to piece this together. Those scratches on the wall… they have to be claw marks. That leaves the possibility that Natalia is a werewolf. Whatever this powder is, it was used against her. I don’t know what it is but maybe Mia will.

I pulled out a plastic bag and scooped some of the powder in. I didn’t take too much. Don’t want to make it seem like I’m tampering with the crime scene.

Gumshoe came out and I quickly put the bag in my coat. “Find anything?” he asked. I nodded. “Yeah. There was blood over there along with signs of struggle by the door and an unknown substance in the floor,” I replied. “So, it’s settled. She was definitely kidnapped”. I nodded in agreement. “We’ll have to get forensics here. Make sure every inch of this place is searched,” I said.

Looking up, I noticed a camera. I hope that thing works. It could blow this case wide open. “Did that waitress say anything about the camera?” I asked. Gumshoe shook his head.

We walked back in. The waitress was nowhere to be found. Instead, we were accosted by a man. “You are the detectives?” he asked. “Uh… yes,” I answered. “Where did that blonde lady g-,” the man cut Gumshoe off. “I’m going to have to ask you to leave,” he said. Well, this came out it if left field. Gumshoe and I looked at each other.

“Sir, we think there might be more clues that can point us in the right direction,” I explained. He shook his head. “I don’t care. If you want to continue searching then you’ll have to get a warrant”. I sighed. “Listen… you know what? Fine. We’ll leave,” I said. “Ema!” Gumshoe said, shocked. “Lets go, Gumshoe”. I started walking away. “But Ema!”. “Don’t worry about it. There’s nothing more to be done here,” I said.

I think it’s best for me to have Mia get involved rather than the police. She’ll know more about this. This is all too new for me so I can’t do it by myself. And to be honest, I don’t know what to do. It this girl is a werewolf then the people who took her had some kind of advantage over her. It could be the hunters that were chasing Mia that night.

“Maybe we could talk to her brother. That waitress gave me his address,” Gumshoe said. “You think he could have some new information on this?”. Gumshoe shrugged. “We don’t have a lot to go on. I think we should take any chance we got. Maybe we’ll get lucky,” he said.

I guess he’s right. At least it could give me an opportunity to talk to her brother. Maybe he has an idea of who took her.

We arrived at the apartment. Gumshoe knocked on the door. We didn’t wait long for it to open. A man, who I could only assume was her brother, stood in the doorway.

“May I help you?” he asked. “Good afternoon, I’m Detective Skye. This is my partner Detective Gumshoe. We’re investigating your sister’s disappearance? We were wondering if maybe you had any clues as to where she could’ve gone or what could’ve happened,” I said. “I wish I knew. If I had any clues, I would’ve gone after her a long time ago,” he said.

I heard a faint thumping. It was fast paced. I looked around but didn’t see anything that could have been making the noise. I tried to ignore it. “You don’t have an idea if someone was targeting her or wanted to hurt her?” Gumshoe asked. The thumping got louder and faster. Her brother shook his head.

That thumping was coming from him. It was his heartbeat. I could hear his heartbeat! “We know that the last time she was seen was at work. She went out for a smoke break and never came back. You don’t have any information we could add to that?” Gumshoe said. “Unfortunately, no,” the brother answered. Gumshoe nodded.

Her brother gave me a weird look. I must’ve been staring at him. I looked away. “Thank you for your time. If anything comes up, you can call us,” Gumshoe said, handing over a business card. “Get the car started. I’ll be right behind you,” I told Gumshoe. “Uh… okay, pal”.

I was left with Natalia’s brother. I looked around, making sure no one was around. “I know what your sister is,” I said. He became bothered. His heartbeat was going crazy. He was scared. “I know someone who can help,” I said. I gave him my card. “Call me directly if anything,” I said. He nodded. He still seemed scared. “Don’t worry. Your secret’s safe with me”.

I sat at a table with a couple of friends from work. We had won a big case and came to the bar just outside of town, to celebrate. “Wow, look at her,” one of my friends said. I followed their gaze to a woman across the bar. She learned back, resting her elbows on the bar top.

She was stunning. “So, who’s gotta go up and get her number?”. Not this again. They’re always playing this stupid game. “Lana seems mighty interested,” Jake said. I rolled my eyes. “She probably doesn’t want to be bothered,” I said. He shrugged. “Probably. You won’t know until you find out. All you gotta do is go up and take your shot. If she’s not interested then you just drop it and walk away. No harm, no foul, bambina”. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes again. Especially, which his whole cowboy façade. The guy’s from Sacramento for Christ sake. Doesn’t get less old western than that.

“Fine. But this is the only time I’m ever doing this,” I said. “Good luck”. I started walking over. This is so stupid. I can’t believe I’m doing this. Screw it. I should turn back now. I’ll only make a fool out of myself. I don’t even know how to talk to girls. I’m not flirtatious. I’ve got the personality of a lightly salted piece of cardboard, how am I going to be appealing? Maybe I can use one of those pick up lines Ema taught me. How did it go again?

Next thing I knew, I was in front of her. She turned her head to me. “Hello,” she said in a friendly and somewhat silky tone. I tensed up. How do I speak English again? How do I used my vocal chords to make sounds? “Hi,” I said. That it. Is that all you’re going to say? She raised a brow. Abort. Abort. “I’m sorry but my friends made me come up here so I could get your number. I’m sorry I bothered you,” I said. I quickly turned and began to walk away. “Hold on!”. I turned to her again. She smiled at me. My heart was practically beating out of my chest. She’s even more beautiful when up close. Especially with a smile like that.

“You have a pen?” she asked. A pen, a pen. I patted my pockets. I had one in my coat but it’s back at the table. Damn! She chuckled. “Don’t worry about it, hun. Hey, Diego you got a pen?”. A man walked over. My stomach dropped when I saw him. Damn it. Now I really feel stupid.

She handed me her number written on a napkin. She wrote “call me” with a heart next to it. “Thanks,” I said. “I’ll see you around?” she asked. “Yeah, hopefully”. “I look forward it”.

I started to walk away. “We should get going. She’s probably already at the temple,” she said to the main. “Yeah. Hey, can I drive?” he said. “Haha, very funny". I got some sympathetic looks from my friends.

I got to the temple. “You’re a little late,” Diego said. “Yeah, work was really busy today. I’m working a case that I think is gonna need some help from you guys,” I said. He raised his brows at me. “From us? Must be a special case then”. Diego unlocked the hidden passageway and we made our way down.

Mia was waiting for us. With her back turned to us, I noticed she had a massive tattoo on her back and arms. “I hope you’re ready,” she said. “I’m ready for anything. But first, I have something to tell you,” I replied. Mia turned to me. She had a scar that ran down the left side of her face. She was blind in her left eye. I was taken aback by how different she looked from when I saw her yesterday.

“Woah, what happened?” I asked. “Oh, this old thing? Long story,” she said. “Okay… well, this girl, Natalia Volkov, was kidnapped from her job the other day. When I looked in the alley where she was having her break, I found claw marks, blood, and this powder,” I said. I held up the bag of that purple powder I had collected. “Hm. So, you think she’s a werewolf?” Mia asked. I nodded. “Well, you’d be right. That powder is wolfsbane. Odds are she was taken by hunters”. Hunters? God, if she was taken by hunters then what are the odds she’s still alive? What am I supposed to tell her brother? Now I’m nervous. I gave him the idea that I could help him and his sister. I’m not so sure.

“You think she's…”. I didn’t want to say it. Mia sighed. “I’ll check out the crime scene. Maybe I can find something,” she said. I nodded. “Diego will train you. If I find anything, I’ll call you”. Diego? But isn’t he… “He’ll teach you how to control the first form which will be easy. Then he’ll teach you how to fight,”  Mia said. What? I looked over at Diego. He didn’t seem fazed. “I think I know how to fight,” I said. “Like a human. This is different. You need to learn how to fight like an animal. You fight like a human against another werewolf, you’re dead. You’ll figure that out how much of a disadvantage you’re at when you fight Diego,” Mia said.

You gotta be kidding me. “You’re gonna have me fight him?”. She can’t be for real. Mia nodded. “No. No way. I’m not gonna beat up a blind guy. The fuck, Mia?” I said. She laughed. “Ema, you really shouldn’t underestimate him. He’s one the strongest werewolves in the L.A. packs,” she said. “Was. You’re the strongest, Mia,” Diego said. Mia rolled her eyes. “Don’t hold back with him. You’ll regret it. See ya”. She walked out, leaving me with him.

I still don’t like this. Fighting a blind guy? That just sounds wrong.

[lifebooksloves]

MISTER MONEYBAGS by Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward

Life, Books, & Loves Presents: MISTER MONEYBAGS by Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward

      I met Bianca in an elevator.

She was on her way to interview me when we got stuck.

The beautiful, raven-haired reporter assumed I was a delivery guy because of the way I was dressed.

She had no clue I was really Dex Truitt, the wealthy, successful businessman she’d dubbed “Mister Moneybags”—her afternoon appointment.

Bianca told me how much she hated Dex’s type—snobby, over educated, silver- spooned men who didn’t appreciate the simple things in life.

So, after the elevator finally started moving again, I cancelled the interview and let her believe I was someone I wasn’t—a bike messenger named Jay. I loved the way she looked at the fake me and didn’t want it to end.

I began dating her as “Jay”—all the while letting her interview the real me over email.

I didn’t expect that our chemistry online would be just as hot.

I didn’t expect the mess I’d gotten myself into.

I didn’t expect that Jay and Dex would fall in love with her.

And she was falling for two men.

Only, both men were me.

And when she found out, we were both going to lose her.

Nothing could have prepared me for that day. And I certainly wasn’t prepared for what came after.

All good things must come to an end, right? Except our ending was one I didn’t see coming.

  Add to Goodreads

PRE-ORDER

Barnes & Noble | iBooks | Kobo | Google Play | Audio | Amazon paperback

**No Amazon ebook preorder. Will go live on Amazon on release day. **

Sign up for Penelope & Vi’s mailing list now and be the first one notified when it goes live!

      MEET BIANCA

  I sighed audibly. Are we even moving? It was seriously the slowest elevator I’d ever taken. Frustrated, and maybe a bit anxious to get the interview over with, I took another shot at the elevator panel. Again, pressing the button repeatedly, I groaned, “Come on. I’m already freakin’ late.”

I breathed a sigh of relief when the car seemed to finally pick up speed. But then, it jolted to an abrupt stop, and the elevator went pitch black.

“Well now you’ve gone and broken the damn thing,” a deep voice said from behind me. Startled, I jumped and bobbled my cell phone in the dark, which resulted in it falling. From the sound of it smashing against the floor, I knew it had broken.

“Shit! Look what you made me do.” I bent over and patted the floor, but I couldn’t find it. “Can you at least give me some light so I can find my phone?”

“It would be my pleasure.”

“Thank you,” I huffed.

“If I had a cell phone on me.”

“Are you kidding? You don’t have a cell phone on you? Who walks around without their cell phone?”

“Maybe you should try it. If you weren’t so obsessed with yours, we wouldn’t be in this predicament.”

I stood, and my hands went to my hips. “How so?”

“Well, you were so busy typing away on your phone, you didn’t even notice another passenger was in the car with you.”

“And?”

“Had you seen me, you wouldn’t have jumped hearing my voice and broken your phone. Then we would have had light, and you would be able to see that elevator panel well enough to push that button another twenty or thirty times. I’m sure that would’ve helped.”

I felt the man moving around behind me.

“What are you doing?”

When he answered, his voice came from a different place. It was to my left and beneath me. “I’m on the floor looking for your cell phone.”

It really was pitch dark. I couldn’t see a thing, but I felt the air move, and I knew he must have stood back up.

“Put your hand out.”

“You’re going to put my phone in it, right?”

“No, I’ve taken down my pants and I’m going to stick my dick in it. Christ, you’re really a bitch, aren’t you?”

Thinking he couldn’t see me, I smiled at his sarcasm and put out my hand. “Just give me my phone.”

      MEET DEX

  Wow. My little ball player was quite the fox.

I’d only seen her from the back before the lights went out. Now, I was staring into her beautiful, big brown eyes, feeling like this elevator mishap wasn’t such a bad thing after all.

She cleared her throat. “The lights came back, but we’re still stuck.”

I clicked on some of the buttons. “Seems that way. But this is a step in the right direction. I bet this thing will be moving in no time.”

And by this thing moving, I do not mean my dick, although I could have sworn I felt it twitch when she just licked her beautiful full lips.

Do that again.

Fuck.

She is beautiful.

My eyes travelled down the length of her body then back up again, loving how the small buttons on her conservative blouse formed a path up to her delicate neck. I wouldn’t have minded sucking on that skin.

Maybe I could entice her to play hooky with me.

“Where are you headed once we get out of here?” I asked.

“The thirty-fourth floor,” she said.

What?

What is she doing going up to my floor?

I know she doesn’t work for me. I would have remembered that face, those eyes.

“What kind of business you have going on up there?”

“I actually have the pleasure of interviewing Mister Moneybags himself.”

My stomach sank.

Ohhhh.

This didn’t bode well for me.

I swallowed then cocked my head to the side and played dumb. “Who?”

“The elusive Dexter Truitt. He’s the CEO of Montague Enterprises. They occupy the entire top floor.”

Trying to seem like I was not seriously about to lose my shit, I asked, “Why do you call him Mister Moneybags?”

“I just picture him to be this crabby, money-hungry asshole, I guess. Sounds like a fitting name. Of course, I don’t actually know him.”

“Why do you think that way about him, then?”

“I have my reasons.”

      Vi Keeland is a #1 New York Times Bestselling author. With more than a million books sold, her titles have appeared in over fifty Bestseller lists and are currently translated in twelve languages. She resides in New York with her husband and their three children where she is living out her own happily ever after with the boy she met at age six.

  Website | Facebook Fan Group | Facebook | Twitter | Instagram

      Penelope Ward is a New York Times, USA Today and #1 Wall Street Journal Bestselling author. She’s a fifteen-time New York Times bestseller of twelve novels.

Having grown up in Boston with five older brothers, she spent most of her twenties as a television news anchor, before switching to a more family-friendly career. She is the proud mother of a beautiful 12-year-old girl with autism and a 10-year-old boy. Penelope and her family reside in Rhode Island.

Connect with Penelope Ward

Facebook Fan Group | Facebook | Website |Twitter | Instagram

  Other books from Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward:

Cocky Bastard Amazon: http://amzn.to/1LfN3fc iTunes: http://apple.co/1PffE2J B&N: http://bit.ly/1EjxNpY Kobo: http://bit.ly/1UxCSUO

Stuck-Up Suit Amazon: http://amzn.to/1S3LnpZ iBooks: http://apple.co/1Qbwy57 B&N: http://bit.ly/29vrQhV Kobo: http:// bit.ly/1RJdUif

Playboy Pilot Amazon: http://amzn.to/2d5I5rS iBooks: http://apple.co/1Wb06Cf Nook: bit.ly/2caXPEK Kobo: http://bit.ly/2cJDXO1

Other books from Vi Keeland:

Standalone novels

Egomaniac Amazon: http://ift.tt/2kZa0rM iBooks: http://apple.co/2fIsmvC B&N: http://ift.tt/2j9pXvG Kobo: http://ift.tt/2iDoz6w

Bossman Amazon: http://amzn.to/2a8D5B6 iBooks: http://apple.co/25x2jyX B&N: http://bit.ly/29sL4H2 Kobo: http://bit.ly/29lW19I

The Baller Amazon: amzn.to/1PBF2hG iBooks: http://bit.ly/iBooksBaller B&N: http:// bit.ly/BarnesBaller Kobo: http:// bit.ly/KoboBaller

Left Behind (A Young Adult Novel) http://ift.tt/1OkUbJM

First Thing I See http://ift.tt/1PAPKXy http://ift.tt/1ZIYOxO

Life on Stage series (2 standalone books) Beat http://ift.tt/1ZIYL57 http://ift.tt/1ZIYL5a http://ift.tt/1ZIYKya http://ift.tt/1ZIYKyb

Throb http://ift.tt/1HGBNaf http://ift.tt/1OkU9Sj http://ift.tt/1OkU9Se http://ift.tt/1OkU9Si

MMA Fighter series (3 standalone books) Worth the Fight http://ift.tt/1lKkKCQ http://ift.tt/1ZIYLlO http://ift.tt/1ZIYKOD http://ift.tt/1ZIYKOE

Worth the Chance http://ift.tt/1ZIYLlQ http://ift.tt/1ZIYLlS http://ift.tt/1ZIYKOH http://ift.tt/1ZIYKOK

Worth Forgiving http://ift.tt/1tsLJNc http://ift.tt/1OkUd4e http://ift.tt/1OkUbt7 http://ift.tt/1OkUbt8

The Cole Series (2 book serial) Belong to You http://ift.tt/1NwniXI http://ift.tt/1CASPRZ http://ift.tt/1ftzzzg http://ift.tt/1ftzyex

Made for You http://ift.tt/2cwgvSO http://ift.tt/1ftzyeA http://ift.tt/1TpKSql http://ift.tt/1ftzyex

Other books from Penelope Ward:

Mack Daddy: Amazon: http://amzn.to/2kWzE1S iTunes: http://apple.co/2iNrIPj B&N: http://ift.tt/2jRgNIn Kobo: http://ift.tt/2kwHNtL

RoomHate Amazon: http://amzn.to/1TksrpE iTunes: http://apple.co/1PgsvE7 B&N: http://bit.ly/1PLGnSL kobo: http://bit.ly/1POvSnW

Stepbrother Dearest Amazon http://amzn.to/1mFNMeg ITunes: http://bit.ly/YER0mT B&N: http://bit.ly/1taMFjG kobo: http://bit.ly/1fJaaBs

Neighbor Dearest Amazon: http://amzn.to/2aS8BPa iTunes: http://apple.co/29mC6L8 B&N: http://bit.ly/2akQ2aq Kobo: http://bit.ly/2axt1SY

Sins of Sevin Amazon: http://amzn.to/1F9tbc3 iTunes: http://apple.co/1K8mzGg B&N: http://bit.ly/1hTKAKE kobo: http://bit.ly/1OaGY3D

Jake Undone (Jake #1) Amazon: http://amzn.to/1dJrHBC iTunes: http://apple.co/1fJayQ8 B&N: http://bit.ly/1obAwJ6 kobo: http://bit.ly/1SPKl0M

My Skylar Amazon: http://amzn.to/1obOG2F iTunes: http://bit.ly/SLNOTR B&N: http://bit.ly/SLO1qi kobo: http://bit.ly/1kNrtAB

Jake Understood (Jake #2) Amazon: http://amzn.to/1GFdves iTunes: http://apple.co/1DQQwgC B&N: http://bit.ly/1FwJC0z kobo: http://bit.ly/1LQ7Fvk

Gemini Amazon: http://amzn.to/1vgk1SE iTunes: http://apple.co/1QTaONj B&N: http://bit.ly/1KfmLHD kobo: http://bit.ly/1BGJ2wu Disclosure: This information was provided by InkSlinger PR, Vi Keeland, and Penelope Ward. This is NOT a compensated post.

The post MISTER MONEYBAGS by Vi Keeland & Penelope Ward appeared first on Life Books & Loves.

from Life Books & Loves http://ift.tt/2oE6MQG via IFTTT