“Maybe they really don’t understand English,” suggested Eli, though Ally was pretty sure he didn’t believe that.

Bracken nodded. “Only someone amazingly dense would choose the water cure over a swift death.”

Derren sidled up to Nick. “You know, we could always contact Maxim Barinov and ask if he’s heard of these guys.” Maxim was a Russian polar bear they’d met in juvie.

Misha’s eyes widened. “They know The Sniper.”

Derren continued speaking to Nick. “I talked to him a few days ago. He said he’d try to find out who sent out the hit. Bet he’ll be pissed when he finds out two of his own kind tried to cash in on it.” As Derren had hoped, the Russians looked suitably afraid. Maxim’s reputation as a professional sniper and all-around unforgiving bastard was well known.

“Yeah,” agreed Nick. “Wouldn’t surprise me if he came here to join in on the fun.”

Wincing, Derren said, “He can be a sick bastard when it comes to torture.”

“Maybe we should give them what they want,” Andrei quickly proposed to his friend. “I would rather die at their hands than face Maxim Barinov. He would threaten to go after our families. And, truth be told, I would rather avoid The Water Cure. Something tells me that if the Alpha gets started, he will not stop whether we give him a name or not. Look at the bloodlust in his eyes.”

“But if we give them a name, they will find a way to cancel out the hit,” Misha pointed out. “Then no one will avenge our deaths.”

“That is true. We could give them a false name,” suggested Andrei. “A masculine name. Maybe someone who we’d like to see dead. These wolves would easily buy the lie, as they would never imagine a woman is responsible. I was surprised myself—until I heard it was a Seer. They can be vengeful creatures. We’ll tell them it was the Russian polar who—”

That was all Ally needed to hear. “It’s a woman. She’s a Seer.”

Roni blinked. “A Seer?”

Ally nodded. “They didn’t say her name; they intended to give you a false name—pin it all on some guy they hate.”

Andrei and Misha gaped at Ally, who shrugged at them and said, “What, you think you’re the only ones who speak other languages?”

“You tricked us,” accused Misha, switching to English, looking weirdly impressed.

Yes, they had been tricked. Derren had suggested not revealing that Ally could speak Russian; to let them think they could speak freely to each other because no one understood them. “Not so smart, are you?” she asked them in English, paraphrasing their remarks about Nick. They narrowed their eyes.

“Roni, get me the tubes,” ordered Nick. Roni obligingly retrieved two tubes from a tool bench. Ally had no idea if they were props or if Nick truly intended to use them. Given that she wasn’t sure if Nick was totally sane, and his sister had just been shot, it was possible that it was the latter.

Misha and Andrei both stiffened.

Nick glared at them. “I warned you that if I didn’t get a name your punishment would be mine.”

“You have the truth.” Andrei spoke in English. “The female told you.”

“Exactly, she told me. You intended to lie to me.” Nick gave them a disapproving look. “That’s very disappointing.”

“They don’t want a quick death,” Ally told the Alpha. “They plan to escape.”

Derren arched a brow. “Do they now?”

“That won’t be happening,” Nick stated. He turned to Eli and Bracken. “Secure their noses. Marcus, hang back until their stomachs are full. Then you can hit them as hard as you want.”

“Wait,” said Misha desperately in English, “we will give you a name.” Andrei nodded, just as desperate.

“Why would you suddenly want to do that?” Ally tilted her head. “Before, you said you didn’t want to, because if the hit was canceled there would be no one to avenge your deaths.”

“That sadly means I can’t trust a word you say.” Nick shrugged. “Besides, I don’t need a name. There’s only one female Seer who hates both my pack and the Phoenix Pack badly enough to put out a hit on both.”

“I’ll find her, and I’ll kill her,” vowed Roni.

Beside her, Marcus clenched his fists as he growled. “But first, we take care of these two bastards who dared to shoot my mate.”

Eli strolled toward the bears, obviously eager for vengeance on behalf of his sister. “With. Fucking. Pleasure.”

CHAPTER TWELVE

She either thought he was dumb or she believed that he didn’t know her well.

She’d be wrong on both counts. Derren would wager he understood Ally better than most people did, despite only having known her a short time. You could have someone in your life for years but never really know them; others you could come to know in a matter of weeks.

It would be fair to say that Ally wasn’t an easy person to read. She didn’t wear her emotions on her face. But Derren had come to know her so well that, with a single glance, he could tell if she was tired or hungry or pissed or had something on her mind.

Right now, as he leaned against the counter watching her prepare them lunch, he could sense that something was wrong. “What’s eating at you?”

Her almond eyes landed on him for a mere moment. “Nothing.”

“When you lie, you shrug your left shoulder.”