The Alpha Target

Three

“I already escaped death once, funnily enough I wasn’t planning on doing it again,” Bishop groaned in the back of the SUV.

Darca tutted from the front seat, “grow up.” While Declan, who was driving besides her, only chuckled.

Following the meeting with Blaise Hendrick – where Cora had signed them up to go on a suicide mission – the team had decided the best course of action was to begin trailing Knox and seeing where he led them. To start that task, they were heading to Kettle Black, one of Knox’s bars which just so happened to host events for the elite of the society on a Thursday night. Apparently, Knox sometimes showed up to these events and Cora was praying tonight would be one of the nights he did.

Cora squeezed her brows together, sparing a glance at Bishop. “When did you become such a baby?”

Bishop frowned, straightening the creases out of his blue dress shirt. “When we were tasked with assassinating the devil.”

Trey patted Bishop on the back in a comforting manner. “Do you want me to hold your hand so you can face the big, bad wolf?” he teased, earning daggers from Bishop.

Cora smirked, turning her back on the pair as she pulled down the visor in front of Darca to check her makeup in the mirror. She’d settled on a simple look, always preferring a more bronzed, sun-kissed glow than a heavy face of eyeshadow and liner. For her outfit she’d chosen a strapless black, faux leather jumpsuit which finished in a straight leg cut and her favourite black strappy heels. Her pink hair was styled in loose curls but in a half-up half-down fashion, keeping her hair away from her face.

“We’re here!” Joni announced from the side of Cora. Cora nodded before checking the position of her knife sheath down the side of breast. Satisfied it was securely in place, she led the team out of the SUV and towards the entrance of the bar.

Glancing up at the towering, illuminated letters that read ‘KETTLE BLACK’ in crimson red, Cora directed the team. “Declan and Bishop. Position yourselves by the door, notify me if he arrives. Mingle, get a drink and chat to women. See what they know. Find out if its common knowledge what happens here. Stay alert, stay on guard. Anything out of the ordinary, I want to know immediately.” The duo nodded, before being the first pair to enter the bar.

“Joni and Trey. Stay by the bar, listen for any communication between the staff that may they be helping pick off women. I want to know if their involved in the whole operation. Watch for Knox’s bodyguards, I want to know how many he brings with him and who takes on what role. Figure out who he trusts amongst them and who is simply there for appearances.” Joni and Trey both put in their earpieces and headed inside without a word.

She turned to Darca with a wicked smile. “You and I are on mission Knox, you ready?”

Putting in her earpiece, Darca smirked. “Always.” Game face on, Cora and Darca entered the bar with the upmost confidence.

Music was blaring through the speakers but glasses were clunking against the table could still be heard along with the hiss of a cork being released. Strobe lights illuminated the bar, creating an illusion of shadows beyond the crowd. The black marble bar stood between the bartenders dressed skimpily with glowing trays of drinks and the grinning customers who were eagerly waiting for their turn to be severed.

Several booths with plush red benches and gold round tables lined the back wall with large groups of shifters crowding around each one. Laugher and whistling filled the air, while people dancing in the centre were grinning as they drunkenly swayed to the music. The scent of cologne and body spray were wafting off of clothing, create a thick musk in the already damp air.

The devil did always know how to party, Cora thought as she chuckled to herself. She and Darca forced their way through the bustling crowd to the bar, ignoring Joni and Trey who stood beside them as they pretended not to know each other.

Cora leaned against the bar, pushing her breasts firmly together with the sides of her arms as she signalled for the nearest bartender. Of course, not a second later, an overly eager brunette made his way over to Cora. Wearing what Cora was sure he believed was a rather dashing smile, he leaned across the bar to address her.

“What can I get you, beautiful?” It would have sounded better if he wasn’t yelling it across the music which Cora could only compare to the sound of a car crash.

“Two vodka martinis,” she smiled back, handing the bartender her card. His green eyes landed on the bank card before he subtly shook his head. “On the house,” he winked, before turning to make her drinks.

“Poor guy thinks he has a chance,” Darca grinned. “Not that I blame him, you look ridiculously hot tonight.”

Cora smiled. “Well, if I’m going to hell, I might as well look good when I get there.”

Reaching for their drinks off the bar, Cora and Darca made their way to the centre of the dance floor. The drinks were merely for decoration, they couldn’t drink on the job. They needed to be on high alert, ready for anything and able to keep their focus on observing their surroundings. What looked to others like two girls dancing and twirling around one another was actually two agents inspecting every corner of the bar, searching for anyone or anything that could help their investigation.

The air was hot and so were the guys, just how Cora liked it. Though she was actually working, she still enjoyed dancing tightly with her best friend, the music and the filtered lights turning their bodies into fluid rhythm. Time seemed to effortlessly pass by and Cora had almost forgotten why they were there, at least until Declan spoke through the ear piece.

“Knox has just landed.”

“Keep your eyes on him, tell me where he goes.” Cora replied, anticipation building within her.

A twinkle of excitement flickered in Cora’s golden orbs as she locked gazes with Darca, adrenaline cursing through her veins. She found herself impatiently waiting for a glimpse of him, a glimpse of the man who promised nothing but death. She contemplated for a moment why exactly she was so intrigued by this man, the man who was a target and a cruel bastard. She certainly shouldn’t find herself curious about him, no that was the very last thing she should be. But wasn’t the devil’s greatest weapon temptation?

“Heading your way,” Trey announced through her ear. “Looks like he’s heading to an office in the back.”

Shaking her head of the thoughts, Cora noticed the way the bodies around her stiffened, nervously watching something close by. Or someone. The nervousness in the crowd was impossible to ignore. It was in the air everyone breathed, the quake in the skin, the slight shudder of the wolves inside them that wanted out.

Even without sparing a glance, Knox’s presence was so incredibly powerful and large, his dominant aura forcing everyone in the room to bend to him without him even lifting a finger. Through no choice of her own, Cora’s head instinctively turned as crowds of women went running forward, circling the entourage of towering men who strode through the crowed with Knox forcing their way through. Cora couldn’t see his face, but dear god did she want to. Her eyes were glued to the suited army, waiting in anticipation for the tiniest glimpse of him. Just to see if the rumours were true, of course. That was all.

The horde of women flutter their eyelashes attempted to push against his army of guards rather aggressively, but his men do their best to block the surge of people coming towards him. But Knox needed no guarding. He ignored the women, barely acknowledging them or gracing them with a glance, not a single one of them seeming to catch his attention or interest. Cora had heard Knox was unmated, but she had wrongfully assumed that was due to the unmated shewolves being too frightened to show interest. That was very clearly not the case.

In the blink of an eye, Knox had disappeared through the doors at the back of the bar and females pouted at his absence. Cora stared blankly at the door he vanished through, before shaking her head and turning her attention back to Darca, who was studying her warily. She needed to get it together, immediately. “What the hell just happened?” Cora chuckled, hoping Darca would believe her strange reaction was in response to the shock of the women flocking around the Alpha.

Darca grinned, seemingly believing the act. “You’d think Channing Tatum just walked in.” Cora nodded, before pressing down on her earpiece.

“How many men followed him?”

“None,” Trey replied. “He has two stationed by the door, three at the entrance and four outside.”

“I’m gonna need a distraction.” Cora told Darca, who suddenly had a mischievous glint in her eye. The brunette smirked. “Say when.”

Cora abruptly slipped away, heading to the far door when she’d seen Knox retreat. Glancing at the large men stood guarding the door, Cora prepared for her plan. The one closest to her had thick unruly hair and had more tattoos on his body that skin. From his neck to his wrists, he was covered in dark fierce tattoos. His expression was clear with his emotions as his gaze surveyed the crowd… his distrust. If looks could kill, he would have strangled half the people in here.

“Now,” Cora whispered through the earpiece. “Oh, and Trey? Sorry in advance.”

“What-” he started but was shortly interrupted.

Right on queue, Darca’s voice echoed throughout the bar as she marched up to Joni and Trey. “You f*****g jerk! You told me you were looking after your mother’s cat tonight, but here you are with this slut!” Before Trey could respond, Darca threw the contents of her vodka martini on both Joni and Trey.

It took every ounce of power Cora had to restrain from laughing as Treys eyes practically bulged out their sockets. “What about when you were feeding your neighbours goldfish, huh? Were you f*****g this slut then too?!” Darca demanded, throwing her plastic gup at Joni.

“You b***h!” Joni screeched. “Oh, it’s on,” she growled, before pouncing on Darca. As expected, the two guards quickly left their station to separate the fight taking place between Darca and Joni, giving Cora the perfect opportunity to slip through the double doors.

As Cora closed the doors behind her, she realised the back of the bar was much smaller than she anticipated. There was a door either side of her, one being the toilet and the other being Knox’s office. Crap, she thought. Quietly, she pressed her back against the wall and pressed her ear to the office door. From the muffled sound inside, it was clear Knox was talking on the phone, except the sound of his voice was etching closer and closer to her. He was leaving his office and there was nowhere to hide. Think Cora, think. She told herself.

She quickly swung open the toilet door, opening the room for all to see, and hid between the opened door and wall. Holding her breath, she remained as quite as possible as the sound of Knox’s office door creaking open bounced around her.

“I don’t f*****g care how, just god damn fix it!” Knox yelled down the phone, storming out his office in a hurry. The sound of his gruff voice had her heart doing leaps in her chest, beating quickly and foolishly. If he was going to check on the commotion outside, she wouldn’t have long before Joni and Darca were kicked out and the distraction was over.

At the sound of the double doors clicking shut, Cora quietly rushed inside the office. Before noticing how incredibly clean and modern the room had been furnished, she was hit with an alluring scent that had her mind in a foggy daze.

Sandalwood and pinecones. It was frighteningly intoxicating, so much so she felt drunk on the scent alone. It danced along her skin, engulfing her in an embrace that promised only the sweetest things. Her wolf stirred within her, no longer focussed on the mission but instead wanted to find the owner of the scent and rub herself all over him. Stupid wolf, the scent belongs to the face of even Lucifer’s nightmares.

Forcing herself to ignore the scent, Cora reached into her bra and pulled out several covert listening bugs. She scanned the room, searching for proficient places to place the bugs, before her eyes settled on his unnecessarily large desk. Quickly, she headed to the desk and stuck one of the tiny silver bugs under the grand oak table. Then, she reached for one of the pens in his penholder and unscrewed the cap, dropping a bug inside and screwing the cap back on. She inwardly rolled her eyes as she noticed the Montblanc logo on each of the pens, their worth ranging from 200-2,000 dollars. Show off.

She rushed to his laptop, turning it upside down and taking out the hard drive before hiding another bug inside and popping it back into place. When she set the laptop back down she noticed the screen was displaying Knox’s calendar, so she quickly pulled out her phone and took a photo of the display.

She surveyed the large room further, noticing the original Michelangelo paintings hanging on the crisp white walls. She scoffed inwardly at the such obvious display of someone who had money to spare, before hiding a bug behind the Sistine Chapel frame. Turning on her heel, conscious that she didn’t have much time to spare, her eyes landed on the door which presumably led to his closet.

Swinging open the door, she found she was correct. His black Burberry trench coat hung on the coat rack and several pair of expensive loafers laid neatly on the floor. She always thought the devil was supposed to have hooves, but she guessed he traded them in for designer shoes.

As she searched for somewhere to hide the final device, the sound of footsteps lurking outside the door halted her in her tracks. She glanced around the room looking for an escape route, but the only way out was the same way in. f**k.