CHAPTER 1
Conversations and Recon
Something was tickling his nose. He moved a little on his pillow hoping that whatever it was would stop. The tickle continued but now it was on his chin and his lips. Eliot cracked open one yellow eye. The mass of unruly brown hair on the pillow in front of him made him smile.
Curling his arms, Eliot gently pulled Gemma more firmly to his chest. He buried his face in her hair and inhaled the scent of her. She was still sleeping and probably would continue to sleep for a while. The bedside clock said it was four thirty in the morning and they had stayed up late last night talking. He thought about getting up and making breakfast, but he didn't want to let go of her yet.
He could feel the rest of the pack sleeping, except for Nate and Sophie. If he had their schedule right, they should be at the airport in Narita, Japan. He wasn't expecting them in Portland until after six p.m.
Gemma turned toward him in her sleep curling her fingers into his t-shirt. A frown was creasing the spot between her eyebrows, and he couldn't resist placing a kiss there as he let a purr rumble in his chest. She relaxed against him with a sigh, and he felt a smile curl across his face.
~~o0o~~
"So what are you doing today?" Gemma looked at Eliot over the edge of her mug as she sipped her coffee.
"I don't know." He grimaced. "Parker will let us know after breakfast." He wiped down the counter with a frown. "I'm sorry we got tangled up in this job." Parker had announced the job yesterday morning and it was too late to change plans.
"It's fine." Gemma smiled at him. "I'll stay out of the way and maybe do some touristy things or just hang out here and read or watch TV." She'd arrived yesterday evening and was looking forward to spending the week of Christmas with the pack.
Quinn came down the stairs with a stretch and a yawn. He'd heard Eliot and Gemma in the kitchen and couldn't help eaves dropping as he headed toward the coffee. "It's still early in the con. If all Parker needs is recon, I can probably handle that on my own."
He filled his coffee cup and joined Gemma at the island counter giving Gemma's shoulder a nudge with his arm. "Did you get any sleep last night or did you spend every minute talking?"
Gemma couldn't help her blush even though she knew they hadn't been doing anything to blush over. "I hope we weren't too loud. We didn't keep you up did we?"
"Not a chance. With all the sound proofing Hardison's had done to this place you'd be lucky to hear a grenade go off in the next room." Quinn noticed the puzzled look on Gemma's face. He placed a hand over his belly. "I could feel it in the bonds. It was nice." He gave her a quick one-armed hug across her shoulders. "And it's nice having you here for Christmas by the way." He'd stayed late at the gym last night and hadn't made it home before everyone had turned in for the night.
Before long Parker and Hardison came down the stairs and everyone fixed their plates and settled in at the table.
"So Parker, what's the plan?" Eliot took a sip of his coffee and let his knee rest against Gemma's.
"We need pictures of the area around Zamora's shop and pictures inside it."
"I can manage that." Quinn volunteered.
"No I need you to make sure that Peggy's catering company gets hired on for the Jewelers Gala and Christmas Ball."
Quinn shrugged a shoulder and went back to his waffles.
Eliot gave Gemma's knee a pat. "I guess I'm on recon then."
"You and Gemma." Parker proceeded to drown her waffle in syrup.
Gemma felt Eliot stiffen next to her. "I'd be glad to help, but I don't want to get in the way."
"You won't be in the way. You'll be Eliot's cover." Parker cut into her waffle.
"Parker…" Eliot tried to think of a way to phrase things that wouldn't get him on the wrong side of both of the women at the table.
"You know that this level of recon is one of the safest parts of the con. Gemma will pose as your girlfriend, since she is, and you'll take nice pictures of her posing in the park across the street like a good boyfriend. And you'll get me plenty of pictures of all the places I need to know about while you do it."
Eliot sighed forcefully through his nose. "Fine."
Gemma looked hesitantly between Parker and Eliot.
Hardison reached over and patted her hand. "It's fine. When Eliot quits being all 'Alpha Werewolf' and starts thinking like a 'Retrieval Specialist' again, he'll see that Parker's right. This is safer and easier than if he does the recon on his own."
Eliot snorted. "They're right." He rolled his eyes and smiled.
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Quinn tugged his suit jacket straight just before pulling on the wool coat that finished off the look of a businessman on the way to a meeting.
Parker burst into the room making Quinn jump back so as not to get clobbered by the swinging door. "Geeze Parker!"
She paused to look him over. "Oh you look perfect."
"Thanks." Quinn scowled. "I didn't do anything different this is how I normally dress."
"I know. That's why I'm sending you and not Eliot."
"Huh?"
"Eliot's good at being scary, unless he's around Gemma, but we don't want to scare the people setting up the party. We want to charm them."
"Thanks Parker." Quinn couldn't help feeling pleased at the compliment.
"You're the prettiest boy here and no one's scared of you."
"You know that up until a couple of months ago I actually killed people for a living, right?" Quinn was feeling a little insulted. "And what about Hardison?"
"I'm glad you think Hardison is pretty too. I'll tell him." Parker tilted her head.
"No. That's not…" Quinn growled. "Just give me the address."
~~o0o~~
Quinn looked up at the building Parker had sent him to. Blonde brick and white trim in an art deco pattern that wasn't unusual in this neighborhood. The building was well kept, and the neighborhood was one of the nicer ones in this part of the city. Still, it didn't look like the headquarters for a multi-million-dollar association, but then the brew pub was more than it looked too. Quinn just put on a charming, professional smile as he stepped out of the uber with his briefcase.
Before long Quinn was sitting in a chair across from Melony, a woman that looked just a little older than Quinn's actual age.
He smiled when he saw the way she looked at him. Parker was right this shouldn't take anything more than a little charm.
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Gemma shrugged into her coat as a cold wind blew between the trees. They were wandering around one of the many small parks that dotted Portland. This one just happened to be across the street from their mark's shop.
"Just a couple more pictures" Eliot clicked away, adjusting the zoom on Hardison's hi-tech digital camera. "You're doing great."
"What's next?" Gemma blew on her cupped fingers.
"I need pictures inside." Parker reminded them over the earbuds.
"That's so weird." Gemma grimaced. She still wasn't used to hearing the rest of the pack in her ear.
Eliot stood up from the crouch he'd settled into for the last couple of shots. He pulled Gemma close. "Alright. Let's go look at jewelry." Now it was his turn to grimace.
Hardison had felt the twinge in the bonds. "You two just keep in mind that this is just for the con. Don't no body get their expectations up."
"But get lots of pictures!" Parker reminded them. "I need pictures of the back room, so you might have to get creative."
Eliot wrapped an arm around Gemma and walked with her toward the jewelry store.
"Let's get a hot cocoa first." Gemma was eyeing the little shop next door to the jewelry shop.
"Oh, me too!" Parker sounded far more excited than Eliot felt was warranted over plain hot chocolate.
"We'll get yours after." Eliot commented into Gemma's hair to hide what he said from anyone that might be watching.
For a moment, Gemma was confused but she figured out that Eliot had been talking to Parker when he walked them up to the small sandwich shop and held the door for her. A few minutes later, they left the shop with one hot chocolate in Gemma's hands.
Eliot held the door for her again as they headed into the jewelry shop. He led her to one of the counters and as they peered into one of the cases, Eliot angled his camera behind him back toward the door. It was a blind shot, but Hardison let him know when he'd gotten something useful. They moved down the counter looking at this and that. Eliot pointed out the craftsman ship on several pieces and Gemma noticed the pretty colors of the gems on display.
After they'd browsed for a moment, the salesman came over. "Is there anything I can show you? Something you'd like a closer look at perhaps?"
Eliot nodded encouragement at Gemma, and she smiled and pointed out a couple of pieces that were closer to the front door of the shop. Eliot waited where he'd been and started to take a step back toward the curtain that separated the show room from the back of the shop. He'd hoped that the salesman would be too eager to make the sale to notice him slipping closer to the curtain. Unfortunately, the salesman did notice.
"Sir, if you wouldn't mind stepping this way. The back room is off limits." The salesman tried to find a balance in his tone between authoritative and apologetic.
Before Eliot could form any kind of response, Gemma reached for the hot chocolate she'd set on the counter and accidentally knocked it over splashing the salesman and flooding the top of the display case.
"I'm so sorry!" Gemma looked truly panicked and Eliot wasted a second before he grasped what was happening and flipped the camera setting to video as he stuck the lens of the camera through the black velvet curtains and moved it in a spiraling motion that would allow the video to catch as much of the room as possible.
By the time that the salesman had retrieved a rag and several paper towels to wipe up the mess with, Eliot was by Gemma's side. "Are you okay? You didn't get burned, did you?"
"I'm fine. I'm just so embarrassed." Gemma let Eliot wrap his arms around her.
"I'm so sorry about the mess!" Eliot dabbed at the mess with one of the paper towels on the counter.
"It's okay. Accidents happen." The salesman assured them as he continued to clean up.
"I am really sorry." Eliot hurried Gemma toward the door. In a moment, they were back outside.
"Did you get the pictures you needed?" Gemma wrapped an arm around Eliot's waist as they walked into the park.
"I did." He glanced down at Gemma. "You did that on purpose didn't you?"
"You needed some kind of distraction, and it was the only thing I could think of." She shrugged under his arm. She'd used similar tactics when working for the vampires and she wasn't exactly sure how she felt about it now. But the proud look on Eliot's face went a long way toward making it all feel right.
Eliot laughed. "That was perfect. You did great."
"Told you she'd be good at this." Parker commented. "Now where's my hot chocolate?"
Eliot rolled his eyes fondly. "I'll make you something better than what they were selling when we get home."
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"So are you ready to face the wolves?" Nate teased as he took Sophie's hand.
They'd rented a car at the airport and were only a few blocks from the pub.
"Quite looking forward to it." She gave Nate's hand a squeeze. "What I can't believe is that Parker booked a job over Christmas." She shook her head.
"It's the perfect way to get through the last of the year!" Nate had been thrilled to hear that they'd be working a job. Especially since he'd been assured that it wasn't another Santa caper.
"I'm not so sure I'm ready to get through the end of the year." Sophie looked out her window in hopes of hiding her expression.
"The thing with Parker?" Nate hadn't been surprised when they'd gotten the excited call from Parker letting them know that she and Eliot had set a date in January to try and change her into a werewolf.
"Yes, the bloody thing with Parker becoming a werewolf." Sophie had been both happy for Parker and intensely worried for her. The more she learned about the process and the odds, the more she worried.
"Bloody indeed." Nate muttered as he turned down the little alley that led to the back of the pub. "I think, with the pack bonds and the time to prepare what they can, she will be just fine."
Sophie felt the squeeze of Nate's hand and tried to comfort herself. "I'm sure you're right."
~~o0o~~
Quinn and Eliot gathered Nate and Sophie's bags while the others said their hellos upstairs.
"How long are they staying?" Quinn asked as he tried to find a way to hang on to one more bag.
"Couple of weeks." Eliot shrugged as he grabbed a few more cases. "They never stay more than a month."
"I don't think I had this many cases when I had all my stuff shipped from North Carolina." One of the handles slipped and Quinn fumbled the cases.
Eliot laughed. "You won't have much longer to worry about anything if you scuff up Sophie's bags."
Quinn rolled his eyes and rearranged the bags so that he could manage the stack without dropping anything.
Just as he and Eliot got to the top of the stairs, the door burst open knocking all of the cases loose.
"Dammit Parker!" Eliot growled.
"What the hell?" Quinn snapped.
Parker looked face to face and at the tumbled luggage. "oops." She dashed back into the loft.
With a snarl Eliot grabbed up several cases and shoved them through the door. He stomped down several stairs grabbing up luggage as he went.
Quinn had made his way to the bottom of the stairs and started picking up bags as he moved back up. He could feel Eliot's irritation through the bonds, and he tried not to let it influence him. He could also feel a wave of nervous energy coming through the bonds. "She's just nervous."
"I know." Eliot grumbled.
"You're nervous too." Quinn had been feeling the tension in the pack but hadn't wanted to make things worse by bringing it up before.
"I ain't nervous." Eliot sighed. "I'm trying really hard not to think about it 'cause every time I do, I see Parker dead."
Quinn blinked. Eliot had never told any of them what he'd been thinking that had made him decide that now was the time to change Parker. Quinn wondered if it was the pack bonds that made him keep it to himself. "Have you talked with Gemma about it?"
"Why would I want to tell her that?" Eliot shifted his stack of luggage around a little.
"Well until just this minute you hadn't told any of us what you've been thinking." Quinn set down an armload of cases. "Maybe it would help to talk about it."
Eliot could feel the flash of hurt that Quinn tried to conceal. "It's not that I don't want to talk to you or the rest of the pack. I just don't want to dump these visions on you guys and make everyone worry more. Everyone is already anxious, and I don't think it will help the outcome for Parker by making everyone scared."
"More scared." Quinn's comment was quiet. "What do you mean 'visions'? Are you telling me you can see the future or something?"
"No. Nati called them visions. It feels more real than a daydream or a nightmare. It feels like I'm really there. Like it's really happening."
"And she dies." Quinn felt a chill slide down his back.
Eliot nodded. "Nati says what I'm seeing isn't true or even an indicator of the outcome. It's just what happens when an alpha waits a long time to change someone that they feel a pull towards."
"I guess it makes sense." Quinn didn't like the idea of trusting the Black Lady for intel, but his Alpha trusted her, and he couldn't gainsay that. "Still, now that I know, you can talk to me. And Gemma is outside the pack bonds so whatever she thinks or feels about the whole thing won't affect the rest of the pack."
"Thanks." Eliot gave Quinn a half smile as he headed for the door with his load of luggage. "I'll think about it."
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"So tell us more about this job." Nate looked at Parker. Dinner was winding down and everyone was still at the table, so it seemed like a good time to talk business.
"Yes, the job you scheduled right over top of Christmas." Sophie gave a little huff to show her dislike of the situation.
"Robert Talbert runs a small jewelry store." Parker got up and waived everyone to the living room where Hardison started sliding things up onto the giant TV screen.
"Insured through IYS." Nate arched an eyebrow when he saw the insurance policy slide up on the screen.
"Right." Hardison nodded.
"Talbert picked up several very nice pieces at estate sales recently, but IYS requires that he have someone else appraise them." Parker had stolen Hardison's remote and brought up pictures of the jewelry in question.
"Talbert hired Ray Zamora for the appraisal. Appraisals are his bread and butter, but he does run a small jewelry shop of his own." Hardison took back the remote and put up several photos that Eliot had taken that morning.
"Where did things go off the rails?" Nate looked over everything on the screen.
"Talbert got called away in the middle of the appraisal and when he got back Zamora had left and almost all of the jewels had been swapped for high quality fakes." Parker frowned at the pictures of the jewels.
"Talbert filed a claim with IYS but…" Hardison shook his head.
"Since the jewels hadn't been appraised, he couldn't file a claim. I bet Talbert went to the police, but they couldn't do anything either." Nate scoffed.
"True." Hardison nodded.
"So we're getting the jewels back?" Sophie smiled as visions of jewels danced in her head.
"That's part of it." Parker smiled with the same twinkle in her eye that Sophie had. She gave herself a little shake. "But…" She clicked the remote and brought up images of the Jewelers Gala and Christmas Ball from previous years. "We're going to expose Zamora in an insurance scam. And the Gala is where we're going to set the hook."