Playing both sides

Vanessa’s pov,

When we arrived at Duke’s house, he poured me some wine and told me to make myself comfortable while he started cooking. I walked around his living room, looking at all the pictures on the wall. Seeing pictures of Duke as a kid made me smile, he looked so happy with his big green eyes full of wonder. My heart skipped a beat when I saw a picture of a beautiful young woman. I immediately recognized her from the report that the Alpha showed me. Images of her mutilated body crossed my mind and my body tensed up. I did not even hear Duke approach. “You okay Vanessa?” he asked while wrapping his arms around me. I leaned into his warm muscular body and immediately felt more relaxed. “I am now,” I whispered softly, and Duke planted a kiss on the back of my head. I pointed at the picture, “Who is she? She is beautiful.”

I could hear the pain in his voice when he replied, “That was my little sister. She was the light of our family. Always kind and happy.”

“Was?” I asked.

“She committed suicide or at least that’s what they wanted us to believe.”

“You think something else happened?”

I felt Duke his body tense up, “I knew my sister. She would never put our family through the pain of taking her own life. I just know the Romano gang had something to do with it. Ever since she started hanging out with them things started to change. My parents moved away trying to heal and accept but I can’t accept it. I just know something is wrong.”

I turned around and wrapped my arms around him, “I am so sorry Duke. That must be horrible to live with.” I hesitated, “I could snoop around and see if I can find some information about your sister?”

He looked at me with sad eyes and softly kissed me, “That’s sweet but I don’t want you to put yourself in danger. I care about you, and I don’t want to lose you too.”

My heart made a little jump hearing him say that and I just wanted to tell him about the report and everything Don Lorenzo asked of me. “Don’t let emotions lead you, Vanessa,” Spirit intervened. “You are playing a dangerous game. Be smart and don’t tell anyone more than they need to know.”

I gritted my teeth from frustration because I knew she was right. So, I just embraced Duke until he said he had to go back to the cooking. I could see his mood had changed though. While he went back to cooking, I started to explore more. I decided I would clean up the table for him so we could eat there. I picked up the papers that were lying there but couldn’t help reading little bits. My interest was piqued when I saw a mention of the Gomez gang. The Latin American pack that I just did a spy mission on with Tomasso. I quickly looked if Duke was not around before I read the rest. I gasped when I realized it was a full spy report of some undercover agent who was working his way inside the casino. It said he discovered that the gang works with human trafficking. Later it mentioned that they are planning to arrest them during an event at one of their strip clubs. Which was some very useful information! I quickly took pictures of everything before putting them back with the rest of the papers.

I walked over to the kitchen but stopped when I heard Duke was on a phone call.

“Those damn Irish guys are really starting to be a pain in the ass. We cannot have them escape every time. I don’t know how they get away so quickly. Tomorrow night we will have police stationed and hidden at every escape way of the village. I will go after them so they will think that they are getting chased and just when they think they lost me, you guys will wait for them at every possible exit.”

I knew he was talking about the Irish wolves that had been causing trouble. I had to admit that his plan was smart. “Damn, sexy and smart. I cannot actually fall for this guy!”

Duke hung up the phone and I casually went back to the living room like I had been there all this time. 5 minutes later he walked in with some plates that smelled delicious. He really outdid himself with all sorts of pasta. I happily devoured all the food, but Duke seemed absent the rest of the dinner. Thinking about his sister and stress from work probably occupied his mind. I walked over to him and kissed him softly, “Thank you for the delicious food. You are treating me like a princess.”

Duke stroked my cheek, “I am treating you like how you deserve to be treated.” He looked deep into my eyes, “I am sorry I have been a bit absent during dinner. Have a lot on my mind and I am honestly very tired.”

He put his arm around my waist and pulled me closer. I stroked his hair and replied, “It’s fine. I had an amazing day. I should head home anyway so we both can get some rest.”

Duke seemed relieved I wasn’t disappointed. “Should I bring you back?”

I felt like it would be nice to let Spirit out and run home, so I replied, “No it’s okay. I am getting picked up in the town.” I walked to the door and put my arms around his neck before heading out. “Thank you for the lovely day. Can’t wait to spend more time with you.”

I pressed my lips to his eagerly showing him how I felt. His strong arms wrapped around me, and he pulled me close against his body. My hands went through his hair while I passionately kissed him and explored his tongue with mine. Duke squeezed my butt before letting go and gasped, “If you keep doing that, I won’t be able to let you leave.”

I laughed and gave him one last soft kiss before heading out. I walked to the shadows and shifted into Spirit. Spirit was full of energy, so it didn’t take long before I arrived back at the mansion. I immediately looked for the Alpha to give a report. I found him at the boxing ring, punching a bag as if his life depended on it. Before I could even speak, he snarled, “So what does the sheriff know?”

I thought about it while running home and I decided that I had to listen to Spirit and keep as much information to myself as possible. Besides, I also wanted to protect Duke, so I said, “He didn’t want to talk about it. If I kept asking it would have been suspicious. I just need to get closer to him, so he trusts me enough to tell me about it.”

Don Lorenzo growled displeased, “If being between your legs isn’t close enough then maybe I overestimated your abilities.”

I felt annoyed about him always assuming that my only worth was sexual, but I quickly shook off the feeling. I just walked toward him and shoved my phone in his face, “I found something way more interesting though.”

Don Lorenzo glanced at the screen annoyed but quickly his eyes started to shimmer, and he started laughing. “Ow, this is just brilliant. Now I have something I can use against Carlos. Seems a vacation to Latin America is happening very soon.”

He looked at me sharply, “Send this to me.”

I coldly replied, “Already did Don.”

He studied my face, and I could feel his wolf coming to the surface to show his authority. He seemed unsure what to do with my tone but eventually, he said, “That is very good information. Well done. As a reward, I will let you lead the protection shift tomorrow in the town.”

I bowed my head even though I didn’t want to, but I had to keep playing the submissive wolf for now if I wanted to survive. “Thank you, Don.”

He waved his hand as a sign that I could go but just before I walked out, he shouted, “Better not disappoint me, Vanessa. I do not give second chances not even to someone with an ass like yours.”

Shivers went down my spine while I walked out. Seemed I still had to be careful, I did not know how long the fear of being cursed would protect me from all the pervs that roamed this pack.

Luckily, I never had to face anything alone and I felt strong when Spirit said, “Let them see you as a weak thing only suitable for lust. Imagine how much bigger their surprise will be when we have outplayed them all and show them what real power looks like.”