"Who the hell does he think he is?" Ramona thought to herself as she stormed away from the café. As far as she was concerned, as soon as it was possible she would find a way to dispose of this troublesome coyote, but now she had no choice but to see to it that he had no reason to blow her 'I'm dead' act. She thought back to the last time she had seen the worst monster Watcher-Of-Shadows could sic on her. His name was Ze'v, when she employed him, but she was sure that it wasn't his name when he was alive. Like most others she came into contact with she never revealed her identity to him, but, like her, Ze'v was very resourceful.

Ze'v began his career in the United States working as an intelligence agent for one of Chicago's more important vampires. Ze'v served this kindred under orders given by his master and mentor, but when his employer was destroyed he became a freelance agent of the underworld. He worked for some other kindred and even some humans, but when Ramona learned of him, she had to have him for an operation against DNA Incorporated. Their research was involved, publicly, in the treatment of genetic diseases. Their research also involved their unfortunate discovery of werefolk and their treatment of individuals so infected; as if their condition was something to be cured.

Ramona planned to buy the holdings of the company in order to stop the research, but DNA would never sell unless they suffered an enormous loss; that's where Ze'v came in. Ramona called him, with a number supplied by one of her contacts, under an assumed identity. Ze'v agreed to take the contract and laid down his terms clearly; half his pay up front, along with the equipment necessary for the job. As she gave the order to send the equipment he had asked for, Ramona was sure she was about to end the threat of a genetic holocaust against all shifters. The nightmarish situation she unleashed was something that she still kicked herself for not anticipating.

Ze'v carried out the mission, but not in the way she wanted. She had instructed him to destroy their research, but instead, he burned their headquarters to the ground. She watched the news report, that night, with shock and anger, as everything she would have had control over went up in smoke. She thought back to that night and the conversation she had with him: "I hired you to perform a surgical operation, you stupid bastard, not destroy the company"
"I did as you asked, "spider-queen", the records were destroyed; you didn't say how you wanted it done"
"Shut up, do you realize that I wanted that company after you were done? What is there for me now? What am I going to do now? They were still valuable to me"
"Well, their research is still valuable to some associates of mine"
"...What"
"Yes, their research into the "Cure" for lycanthropy, I decided to read those files that you wanted erased before I deleted them and I've decided that they were far too valuable to just destroy"
"Gasp"
"Yes, I thought that would shut you up. You thought you were buying an idiot, didn't you? Your deception has earned your death, as well as the death of all your kind, you disgusting wretch"
"You'll never get away with this, I'm going to stop you from getting that data to anyone who could use it for anything, you fucking corpse, and when I find you, you're going to be fucking ashes"
"Brave words for a dieing species, they may have meant something, too, if I hadn't already sent a copy of the data to some inquiring minds. Rest assured, the data will be used to its greatest potential"
"You monster, I'm still going to destroy you"
"Well, as you may know, this is a mobile phone I'm having this delightful conversation with you on and since you have put forward such an intriguing challenge, let's see if you can back up the threat"

Ramona shuttered as she walked toward her car. She remembered hearing a cell phone hit the ground, somewhere in her office that night, and had just enough time to turn around to meet his first blows. If it hadn't been for her other employees' intervention, that would have been the end for her. She slammed the door on the coup as she thought of how helpless she had been. How slowly she reacted to his attacks. Perhaps, worst of all, her underlings coming to her rescue stuck out in her mind. Ramona wasn't the type to need a rescue and she burned as she thought about being in need of help; how they found her in a pool of her blood, barely clinging to life. She shifted into gear and sped toward the building she was renting, across town. It was time to make a plan; time to try and end her laundry list of problems.