The flash grenade Phiona had manipulated wasn't meant to blind Conrad-it was meant to jumble up his psychic senses.
For an alpha werewolf, an explosion of pure magnesium light and intense frequency was like a physical blow straight to the heart.
As the white light faded into the air, joanna didn't run.
She leaped over a rusted engine, her boots barely making a sound.
She had spent 5 years living as a "lone wolf"-a wolf without a pack.
She had heard the tales of Alpha Conrad.
They called him "The Master of Deductions."
Rumor has it that he replaced his heart with a microprocessor.
But when their eyes met moments ago, she hadn't seen 'The Master of Deductions' in his eyes.
She had seen a crustam movement.
And she felt it,too.
A heat so violent and unforeseen rushed through her blood. It felt like her whole body was made of molten lead.
'Fated mate'. The thought of it made her want to throw up.
She didn't have time for fate. She had to carry out her task diligently.
"You can't hide from the predator for too long, Phiona," Conrad said
He sounded surprisingly calm for a man who had just been blinded.
Phiona froze, pressed against the cold interior of the iron pillar.
How did he know her name?
She had wiped out every piece of evidence that had to do with her.
"I'm not hiding," Phiona whispered to herself, pulling out a black tablet from her waist bag.
Her fingers roamed around the screen. "I'm calibrating,"
She tapped the final button. Suddenly, the whole plant's ancient PA system screeched to life.
A high-pitched sound began to blast from the speakers.
It was a sound wave that was meant to irritate the inner ear of a shifter, making it impossible for them to track a scent.
"Smart," Conrad shouted over the noise.
He sounded much closer.
"But the Cathridge pack designed that frequency. Do you think we wouldn't have the alter code?"
Phiona mumbled curses.
She swung out from her hiding spot, holding a bow and arrow loaded with tranquilizers.
She leveled it at the contour as she walked through the steam.
" Stop right there, Alpha. I don't want to kill you. I just want the passcode to your server."
Conrad stepped out of the dark shadows.
He wasn't shifted into his wolf form, but he looked as twice as dangerous.
His black jacket was gone, his white rumpled shirt unbuttoned to the collar.
He looked less of an Alpha and more like a sexy CEO with a hint of danger.
Conrad didn't look at the weapon. Instead, he looked straight into Phiona's eyes.
"The moonlight pack sent you," he stated.
It wasn't a question. He was certainly sure of his words.
"They want the 'Cathridge' protocol. They want to know how I've kept my territory hidden from their satellite"
"They didn't send me," Phiona spat, her grip tightened on the trigger.
"I'm working for their enemies. The family they've experimented on. You're becoming an obstacle, conrad"
" An obstacle?" conrad took a step forward
The air between them changed.
"Is that what you call this? This.....force?My wolf is trying to tear through my skin just to get to you, and you're talking about passcodes?"
"It's called biology, Conrad. It's a special trick the moon does to ensure species continue.
It doesn't mean we are meant to be.
It's just our DNA and characteristics that match.
Conrad memory flashed.
" I spent 15 years saying the exact same words. I built my entire empire on the belief that 'love and mates' is a form of weakness used by the weak to control the strong.
He took another step forward, Phiona's weapon inches away from his chest.
"But looking at you, standing here right now...i just realised maybe i lived with the wrong belief for so many years now,"
Phiona's heart pounded so fast, uncontrollable.
"Which is?"
"I can't hold it in anymore."
Before she could reply, conrad moved closer with immense speed.
He swiped her weapon aside.
In the same motion, he pinned her against the pillar, his large hands bracketing hers against the pillar.
Their eyes met, the contact wasn't eletric. Instead, it was like wildfire.
Phiona's breath trembled as the scent of raw power and cold rain overwhelmed her.
Her wolf, usually hidden and silent, began to growl desperately.
Conrad leaned in closer, his nose brushing the delicate part of her neck. He inhaled deeply as he let out an intimate growl, phiona breathes rapidly.
"You smell like beautiful nature," he murmured.
Phiona felt her resolve crumbling. She reached the knife in her boot, but her hands felt heavy, her muscles refusing to obey.
"Let.....go," she gasped
"Not until you tell me why a 'lone wolf' is trying to steal from me," conrad said as his voice dropped to a very intimate level.
"And why my heart, which hasn't beat for anything but duty, is currently trying to break out from my chest loke a thief."
Suddenly, the ground beneath them began to palpitate.
An explosion rocked the plant, followed by a heavy whir of turbines.
Conrad looked down, his expression turned cold.
" The Moonlight pack," Phiona whispered.
Fear cutting through the bond.
"They didn't wait for me to get the key. They're here to get it themselves,"
Conrad looked at her, his grips on her hands tightened-not to restrain her but to protect her.
"New plan, Phiona. You wanted to hack into my servers, right?"
Well you're going to make it happen because the only way we could make it out alive is if the 'Alpha' who doesn't believe in mates and the 'loner' who works alone work together as a pack.
He grabbed her hand, his fingers interlocking hers.
Phiona couldn't explain what she felt when conrad held her hand at that moment.
The flow of adrenaline and purpose flowed between them.
"Run," he shouted
As they ran towards the exit, the first missile hit the plant, turning the night into a hellscape of fire. The hunt had just begun.