My wolf growled at him anyway.The same low territorial rumble he always produced when Michael was near her.I had never liked how close he stood to her, how easily she accepted his touch, how much access his position gave him to the woman who was mine.
But jealousy was not the same as suspicion.I dismissed him from the list of suspects because the evidence demanded it.Michael had worked for the Hughes family for over a decade, had been vetted during my initial security assessment, had no criminal history, no financial irregularities, no connections to anyone who might want Lena harmed.My wolf’s possessive snarling was about territory, not threat.I had growled at every man who looked at her too long.That didn’t make them murderers.
The wolf’s instinct and the man’s logic pulled in different directions.I chose logic.
“Mr.Antonov.”The detective approached me, a woman in her fifties with sharp eyes and the kind of skepticism that came from decades of dealing with people who thought money placed them above the law.“I’m Detective Marsh.I understand your wife owns this hotel?”
“She does.”The word still sat strange in my mouth.Wife.Wrong and right at the same time.A label that didn’t capture what we were.Enemies forced into alliance.Strangers sharing a bed.Two people circling each other like wolves unsure whether to fight or mate.
“And your reason for being here?”
“I was informed of the situation and came to assess security.”
Detective Marsh made a note, her pen moving in quick, economical strokes.“Your security team was on site before we arrived.They’ve been thorough.”
The way she said it made clear she didn’t appreciate Petrov’s men securing the scene before her officers could contaminate it with their standard procedures.I didn’t apologize.
“We’ll need to speak with everyone who had access to this area,” she continued.“Your security team included.And I’ll need to interview your wife.”
“Of course.Petrov will coordinate with your officers.My wife will make herself available at her convenience, not yours.”
Her eyes narrowed, but she didn’t argue.She had dealt with men like me before.Knew when a battle wasn’t worth fighting.
I left her to her work and found Viktor waiting in the hallway, his expression unreadable.
“The Diamantis clan,” I said quietly.“They’ve been probing hotel security for weeks.Ever since the wedding announcement.Have Dmitri pull everything we have on their movements.”
Viktor nodded slowly.“You think this is vampire business?”
“Someone killed a woman in my wife’s hotel.Someone who had inside access.”I thought of the Pakhan’s scrutiny, his eyes on every move I made since the punishment.Long enough for one of the Bratva’s rivals to plant someone inside?“If anyone is making a move on what’s mine, I want to know about it.”
“I’ll have Dmitri start pulling intel.”
A door opened at the end of the hallway.Lena.
She walked toward the commotion.Spine straight.Her hair was pulled back in a knot so tight it must have hurt, and she had buttoned her blazer all the way up as if the extra layer could shield her from what was coming.A staff member stopped her halfway down the hall, tears streaming, and Lena took the woman’s hands in hers.Spoke quietly.Nodded.Let herself be hugged before gently stepping back and continuing toward the crime scene tape.
Our eyes met across the distance.
My wolf went still.Every thought in my head quieted, every instinct narrowing to the singular awareness of her.The harsh overhead lights caught the gold in her hair.The rigid set of her spine spoke of control held by force of will.And underneath the professional mask, I could see the cracks.The tightness around her eyes.The way her fingers curled at her sides.
I could see the purple shadows under her eyes, the evidence that she had slept as little as I had.I could see the way her lips parted slightly, the quick rise of her chest as her breathing quickened.I could smell her even from here, that sweet scent overlaid with the sharp edge of stress and a thread of the same confusion I had seen in her eyes when she had left my bedroom.
She didn’t know what we were anymore.Neither did I.
She looked away first.
I watched her approach Detective Marsh, watched her shake the woman’s hand and start answering questions.Her voice carried across the hallway, steady and professional, betraying none of the woman who had ridden me into oblivion twelve hours ago while using my body to burn away her fear.This was the legacy keeper.The woman who had inherited an empire and refused to let it crumble.
My chest ached with pride.And underneath that, a fierce, possessive certainty that this woman was worth everything I had done and would do.
Michael appeared at her side, one hand settling on her shoulder.She didn’t flinch.Didn’t pull away the way she had when I had tried to touch her face last night.She leaned into it, just slightly, accepting the comfort he offered.
My wolf coiled tighter.
I forced the reaction down, but the bitter taste of it lingered.She would take comfort from him.From a human who meant nothing, who had no claim on her, who didn’t lie awake at night tracking her footsteps through the house.But not from me.Never from me.
The rational part of my brain reminded me that Michael was useful.Competent.That she needed someone watching her back when I couldn’t be there.The wolf didn’t care about rational.The wolf only knew that another male was touching what was ours, and she was letting him.