Mercy Thompson 01-05 - THE MERCY THOMPSON COLLECTION

Adam’s anger hit him, so I was prepared and let the wave of power wash off me like seawater on glass.
    Maybe I should have explained matters better when I had him on the phone, but where’s the fun in that?
    â€œWhat happened?” he asked, his voice softer than the first snowfall in winter.
    â€œIt’s complicated,” I said, holding his gaze for two full seconds before I turned my head and gestured toward the body. “The dead one is there. If he belongs to you, he is new—and you haven’t been doing your job. He was as deaf and blind as a human. I was able to take him by surprise, then he was too ignorant to realize that the wound wouldn’t close as fast as usual if it was given by a preternatural creature. He let himself bleed out because he was too caught up in the chase to—”
    â€œEnough, Mercedes,” he growled as he strode over to the dead wolfman and knelt beside him. He moved the body and one of the corpse’s arms flopped down limply on the ground.
    Mac whined eagerly, then bowed his head and pressed it against my thigh so that he couldn’t see.
    The sound drew Adam’s attention from the body to the boy at my feet.
    He growled. “This one isn’t one of mine—and neither is that.”
    â€œSo gracious,” I said. “Your mother should be complimented on your manners, Hauptman.”
    â€œCareful,” he whispered. It wasn’t a threat, it was a warning.
    Okay. He was scary. Really scary. He’d probably have been scary even when he was just a human. But it wouldn’t do to let him know he intimidated me.
    â€œAdam Hauptman,” I said politely to show him how it was done. “Allow me to introduce you to Mac—that’s all of his name I know. He was attacked by a werewolf in Chicago about two moons ago. The werewolf killed his girlfriend, but he survived. He was taken by his attacker and put in a cage. A man who sounds a lot like the Chicago Alpha Leo sold him to someone who held him inside a cage in a semitrailer and used him for what sounds like some sort of drug experiments until he broke free. Last Friday he showed up at my door looking for work.”
    â€œYou didn’t inform me that you had a strange wolf on your doorstep?”
    I gave him a put-upon sigh. “I am not one of your pack members, Adam. I know this is difficult for you to fathom, so I’ll speak slowly: I don’t belong to you. I am under no obligation to tell you anything.”
    Adam swore harshly. “New werewolves are dangerous, woman. Especially when they are cold and hungry.” He looked at Mac, and his voice changed completely, the heat and anger gone. “Mercy, come here.”
    I didn’t look down to see what he’d noticed in Mac’s face. I took a step, but Mac was wrapped around my left leg. I stopped before I fell. “Uhm. I’m a little stuck for the moment.”
    â€œFor a smart girl, you’re pretty stupid sometimes,” he said, his voice rich and gentle so as not to startle the werewolf by my side. “Locking yourself in a garage with a new wolf and a dead body isn’t the smartest thing you could have done. I don’t have a connection with him yet. It would help if you have his real name.”
    â€œMac,” I murmured. “What’s your name?”
    â€œAlan,” he said dreamily, coming up to his knees so his face was pressed against my belly. “Alan MacKenzie Frazier after my grandfather who died the year I was born.” The friction of his movement rucked my shirt up and he licked my bare skin. To an outsider it might have looked sensual, but the abdomen is a vulnerable spot on the body, a favorite of predators. “You smell good,” he whispered.
    He smelled like werewolf, and I was starting to panic—which wasn’t a very useful thing to do.
    â€œAlan,” said Adam, rolling the name on his tongue. “Alan MacKenzie Frazier, come here to me.”
    Mac jerked his head away from me but tightened his arms painfully on my hips. He looked at Adam and growled, a low rumble that caused his chest to vibrate against my leg.
    â€œMine,” he said.
    Adam’s eyes narrowed. “I don’t think so. She is mine.”
    It would have been flattering, I thought, except that atleast one of them was talking about dinner and I wasn’t certain about the other. While Adam had Mac distracted, I reached behind me and