Forbidden Entanglement with Mafia Alpha

7: What Faith Feels Like

It's been enough time between their last encounter to guarantee that Magnus didn't find Faith's appearance suspicious.

Faith let the surprised expression last on her face for a few more seconds before she cleared her throat. "Head Alpha," she mumbled, acting more sheepish than she normally would if anything about this encounter had been truly unplanned. "I... It's nice to see you again."

Magnus Lawson looked even more dangerously hot in a full suit with a dark red dress shirt, his hair slicked away from his forehead. He stepped closer until he was right next to Faith, humming as he stared at the painting. "I'd say it's a pleasant surprise seeing you here, but given how sudden your departure was last time, it appears to be pleasant for only one of us."

Faith took a quick peek behind Magnus to see two familiar faces mixed amongst the guests. Justin Reid was with Piolo Cruz—the werewolf with the eyepatch. Faith did some digging with a tech specialist to find out the unknown Pack member's identity. They were both pretending to find the art pieces interesting, but their eyes drifted too often towards Magnus. This was an open event, with the guest list out of their control. At any moment, things could get ugly, and the two guards closest to Magnus would have to whisk him away. Faith looked away from them before either could notice she had spotted them easily.

She took a sip of champagne, taking her time to respond to Magnus Lawson. "I'm sorry if my, um, exit offended you." Faith turned her head and smiled, nearly wincing; playing up the embarrassed act. "It's not because of you, I promise."

Magnus turned his entire body until he was facing Faith directly. The sudden attention made Faith's grip on the champagne flute tighten. "Do I make you uncomfortable, Ms. Moore?"

Faith did not blush so easily for any man. But Faye Moore did, especially in front of Magnus Lawson.

She shook her head, slowly facing Magnus head-on as well. "I hadn't planned to go home with anyone that night. You were..." Faith pretended to think. "...an exception."

The Head Alpha stared at Faith's face before he gave her an unhurried once over, mumbling as he did so, "Seems we're prone to making exceptions for one another." His arm gestured towards the path behind him. "Would you care to join me?"

They walked at a leisurely pace, arms brushing occasionally. Magnus was intentionally slowing down so he could match Faith's pace. "I was watching you for a moment before I decided to come up and make my presence known. I hope that does not bother you. Do you collect art?"

Faith downed the rest of her champagne. She usually wouldn't drink alcoholic beverages this fast, but Magnus Lawson was already acting way too interested in Faye Moore. It was great for Faith's mission, but such undivided attention from the Head Alpha was also overwhelming.

"I'm not a collector, but as an interior designer, I visit art galleries like this from time to time so I can have ideas on what pieces clients would like." The lie slipped easily from Faith's lips. She remembered how Bilal had sounded shocked that Magnus Lawson suddenly took an interest in artworks and even invested in owning a few. "How about you? Are you secretly an art virtuoso?"

Magnus actually huffed out a quiet chuckle. "You know many Head Alphas who take an interest in paintings and sculptures?"

Faith shrugged as they passed a collection of what appeared to be sculptures of kitchen tools with feet. "I don't make a habit of judging werewolves based on their second biology."

Surprisingly, that earned a pleased hum from the Head Alpha. "I have not met many humans who think the same as you."

"I suppose you should meet more humans then."

"Or you could just be very special, Faye Moore."

Faye did not look at Magnus, but she let him see her broad grin (she could feel his eyes on her, choosing to look at her instead of the art around them). "You're not answering my question, Head Alpha," she verbally nudged him back on track just a little. Faith needed more hints about Magnus Lawson's sudden, unexpected investment in the arts. "Are you secretly an art geek?"

"I'm not a virtuoso by any means, but I've always appreciated art. I used to draw a lot."

It was the tone and drop in volume that had Faith halting in her tracks, Magnus naturally stopping with her. They were in front of a painting of a blue and yellow landscape.

A quick peak at Magnus' face told Faith that she had guessed right; Magnus Lawson was showing vulnerability to her by admitting what appeared to be a random fact but instead, was clearly a big part of his history.

"You draw?" She asked in surprise. "Really?"

Magnus took a quick scan of their area. Before Faith could do the same, the Head Alpha was rolling up his jacket and button down sleeves, exposing his forearm; the one covered in tattoos. He pointed at the realistic scorpion tattoo, and the dagger piercing into an evil eye; ones Faith had memorized when they had slept together.

"I designed this and handed it to my tattoo artist." Even more shockingly, Magnus pointed to his neck, at the Red Flame Pack tattoo. "This is also my original design."

Faith would have doubted the legitimacy of what Magnus was telling her if she hadn't known that Red Flame Pack members started branding themselves with the enflamed skull tattoo only after Magnus Lawson officially took on roles as Head Alpha and mafia leader.

"That's very impressive, Magnus," Faith found the softness in her own voice nearly appalling. What's worse was that she was genuinely impressed. It was clear that Magnus had put great detail and attention to his drawings, knowing they'd stay on his skin for life.

Faith forced herself to continue down the curated path, prompting Magnus to move his legs to keep up with her.

"I'm not talented at drawing."

"I started drawing because my mother also had an affinity for it," Magnus said.

The New Order had no files on Magnus Lawson's parents. Their identities were unknown. Magnus' original birthplace was also a mystery.

The unprompted mention of the Head Alpha's mother made Faith blink.

She rewinded their conversation in her head, trying to pinpoint what had pushed Magnus to start being overtly generous with information about his hobbies and his past to a woman he only slept with once.

Did he know who Faith was? Did he know that Faye Moore was really just Faith and he was testing her or feeding her wrong information?

She looked into the Head Alpha's eyes and saw nothing that pointed to those possibilities.

But what Faith discovered was even more unnerving.

Magnus Lawson was looking at Faith like she was someone dear to him. The usual hardness of his expression was absent. The most wanted alpha in Dreadus State was in an unfamiliar environment, with his second- and third-in-command nowhere near them (nowhere Faith could see). Yet for some reason, his entire body language was unguarded.

Faith was good with words. In her line of work, she was required to be. But right now, she was having a hard time stringing together a normal sentence.

"If she's as good as you, I can only imagine the pieces she drew." Faith's eyes lingered on the Red Flame Pack tattoo. "Did your mother work as a sketch artist?"

Magnus snorted softly, the softness in his eyes making it very hard to breathe. A vile sensation that felt too much like guilt was building in Faith's chest—a feeling she hadn't felt during any mission in so long.

"I am nowhere near as good as my mother was," Magnus said. He stopped speaking once a larger group passed by them, the five people too busy with their own conversation to pay attention to either Faith or Magnus. Once there was nobody near them, Magnus continued, "She was not a professional sketch artist, but she always had a sketchpad and pencils or charcoal nearby."

"Was?"

Magnus hummed, his eyes on the ground even though his face remained passive. "She passed away when I was very young."

"I'm sorry." The guilt was building. Faith despised this feeling. She wanted to squeeze the empty champagne glass in her hand until it broke.

"Thank you," Magnus said.

Was Faith actually feeling sorry for a man who has killed hundreds and endangered countless lives? SAC Armando Falls had already warned her not to forget who Magnus Lawson truly was—a dangerous leader of the biggest crime syndicate in Dreadus State.

Faith pushed away any thoughts that would distract her from the task at hand.

She imagined building another layer of ice around her heart, locking away the guilt and any other emotion she had for the Head Alpha in a small box in a deep, dark corner.

"Did you buy any of the pieces on display?" Faith thought of asking after seeing another red sticker on a painting of a dining room filled with dogs seated in human clothing.

Magnus took a look at Faith for a few seconds before he nodded. He held out his elbow, "May I?"

Faith placed her champagne glass in a waiter's tray as the man passed by before she looped her arm through Magnus'. Magnus smiled, pleased at the simple gesture, before he led her towards the artwork he'd already bought.

The first two, Magnus explained, were paintings with color palettes he found pleasing.

Mermaids swimming underwater, but everything was in hues of green and yellow. It was entitled "In Deep Dreams."

Next, a landscape of floating islands in hues of green and blue called "A New World Afloat."

Faith liked them. Even if she knew nothing about art, she understood the effort it must have taken the artists to finish the paintings on approximately thirty-six by forty-eight inches of canvas.

But nothing about the paintings indicated what Magnus bought them for. He didn't share anything, and Faith was not sure if

Then, they get to the third painting.

It's a painting of bodies; a man with blue hair and a woman with purple on her skin and curly black hair, the two in a throe of passionate love-making on violet silk sheets.

It took everything for Faith not to react at the artwork's title.

"This is my favorite of the three," Magnus smirked, the glint in his eye playful. "For obvious reasons."

Faith gave Magnus a smile in return, but she felt like she was about to throw up from nerves.

What Faith Feels Like.

That was the title of the painting, and it just happened to be Magnus' favorite.

-----

Faith managed to keep it together enough that Magnus didn't sense anything out of the ordinary.

He invited her to the reception party at the Grand Hologram Hotel, as Faith hoped he would do without her prompting.

Instead of a limousine, they took a black car to the hotel. And instead of having one of his men do it, Magnus drove himself and Faith.

"How do you like the city so far?"

Faith fiddled with her purse. "Too soon to tell." She turned her head towards the driver's seat, purposefully staring at Magnus before smiling. "But I think I'll grow fonder of it."

The sides of Magnus' mouth twitched upwards but he kept his eyes on the road.

Faith memorized the make and model of Magnus' chosen black car and the plate number. She doubted it was actually his. It was probably owned by one of his Pack members. The Head Alpha would not make the mistake of using one of his personal vehicles at such a private event.

They reached the hotel less than ten minutes later, with traffic being light on a Tuesday. The valet greeted Magnus Lawson by name, and Faith mentally noted to inform SAC Armando Falls that the Head Alpha had connections in the Grand Hologram Hotel too.

Having done prior research, Faith knew what she'd be seeing the second Magnus ushered her into the main entrance with a hand on her hip, the Head Alpha making somewhat of an effort not to touch the tons of bare skin shown by Faith's backless dress.

The inside was bright and glamorous; with so much crystal furniture and sparkling decor. Unlike other five-star hotels, the Grand Hologram did not stick to a classy and elegant style. It looked like the inside of a diamond.

Magnus did not need to ask any of the hotel's staff where the reception area was. Faith only knew that's where he was leading her to because she'd memorized the layout of this whole place, the same way she memorized the layout of Magnus' home.

A butler welcomed them at the entrance of big, glass doors. Inside the reception area, all the guests were engrossed in different conversations. The name of the art gallery was hung on a large sign, but other than that, not many decorations were present.

Magnus had only arranged this after-party at the last minute, Faith noted.

Magnus offered his elbow for Faith to take again, and he swept her around the room, introducing her to men and women who looked delighted to see Magnus and not at all suspicious that the Head Alpha was only introducing Faith as a friend and not a date. As expected, the majority of the guests were art collectors, art critics, bloggers too.

These were not people Magnus worked with, Faith also observed, as she allowed herself to be nothing but Magnus' arm-candy to all these people. They were too unguarded around him, so they were most likely clueless about his criminal activities. They also did not him enough to feel like they could pry into his personal life.

Something about this whole party felt off.

Faith leaned closer to Magnus' ear after he pulled her away from an elderly couple with a woman who was taller than her husband by a foot. "I need to use the restroom."

"I'll be right here when you get back." Magnus smiled at Faith; the kind of smile that was odd on a face Faith usually saw sporting a glare or an expression of indifference.

But it also looked handsome on him; made Magnus look younger than he was.

Faith pushed these thoughts away and slid her arm away from Magnus', leaving the reception event and heading towards the restrooms out in the hallway they had passed earlier.

She checked all the stalls to confirm they were empty before locking herself in the last one. Her government-issued phone was immediately in her hands, and she clicked on a contact named Burger Pat's Delivery; a local burger joint near Faye Moore's address.

It was actually a fake contact I.D. she gave to Special Agent in Charge Armando Falls' satellite phone. The cover name was a precaution she took in case anyone tried to peek through her phone.

Whole party is fishy. Dispatch undercover officers to Grand Hologram Hotel, but don't get close. Might be a planned cover or distraction.

Keep an eye out for large paintings being transported out of the art gallery at The Fountanier.

Faith debated whether or not she should include the name of the painting Magnus bought.

After a few seconds, Faith hit send, telling herself it was just a coincidence.

She waited for the text to say delivered before she deleted it from her phone.