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“The strength and dexterity involved in these hijackings, not to mention the sheer insanity? Got to be Praets. We’re just not sure which ones. There’s two gangs that run that area though, a clutch of vamps called the Trans and the Toretto pack. We need somebody in to investigate them both.”
Brian didn’t know how long Agent Bilkins had been working in the Praeternatural division but he obviously didn’t know dick about shifters.
“I can’t just walk into pack territory.”
“Once a month they run a street race. Anybody is welcome as long as they follow standard hospitality rules.”
Brian shook his head. “Yeah, and? That might get me near them without getting ripped apart, but their alpha will still know I’m lying, hell, if he’s powerful, he’ll be able to smell it a mile away.”
“You saying you can’t handle this job, O’Conner?”
“I’m saying nobody could fucking handle this job, Bilkins! You don’t go undercover with people that can smell every emotion.”
“We already talked about this, Agent Bilkins.” Tanner looked at him and rolled his eyes, putting his hand on Brian’s shoulder. “Relax O’Conner, that’s why you’re not going under.”
“What do you mean?”
“The law says they can’t keep us from investigating. Sure they’ll cover their tracks but just like you can’t hide from them, they can’t hide everything from you either. You go in, sniff around -- literally -- and see what you can find. All we need is enough to take it to the council. They’re putting humans at risk with this shit and that violates the treaty.”
Brian swallowed the ‘fuck you’ that welled up. It wasn’t like he didn’t know that most of the humans on the squad could give a rats ass about Praets if it didn’t affect them. Solving Praet on Praet crime was just a sideline to making sure their hides stayed safe.
He hadn’t been near a pack since Rome and even that wasn’t what any of the rules said a ‘proper’ pack was, no Alpha, no jostling for position, just the two of them, watching each other’s back. They’d never been real big on the rules though; that was why Rome was currently locked up and why Brian was about to go on a damn suicide mission.
**********
Brian reached across the lunch counter. “Brian O’Conner with Praternatural Criminal Investigative Services.”
Mia Toretto glanced at the hand he offered but made no move to take it. “Yeah, you’re not the first cop that’s been by. They don’t exactly come for the tuna. Don't think cause you're one of us, that makes you different. So sniff around or whatever you need to do and then get out of my store. You’re driving off my customers.”
Brian swallowed a sigh. He’d told that asshole Bilkins it wouldn’t be easy. He turned up the wattage his smile, let the genuine attraction he felt the minute he saw Mia come through and was gratified to see her relax a little, lips tilting up, even as she rolled her eyes.
“Whatever, let me get my brother.” She turned around and called through the door. “Dom!”
Brian was braced to meet Dominic Toretto, not knowing how the alpha was going to react to him, but then he walked in and everything changed, and Brian? Brian was more fucked than he could have imagined, because Dom wasn’t just an alpha, he was Brian’s alpha. And shit, that was supposed to be a myth -- a story they read to cubs to put them to sleep at night. Packs were put together by mutual interest, based on respect, support and security, not some fantasy connection. Only of course Brian had to be just that special, because that was exactly what happened when his eyes met Dom’s. It was like everything he’d been missing his whole life snapped into place. Rome was gonna laugh his ass off when he was speaking to Brian again.
Everyone froze, scents subtly changing from ‘stranger danger!’ to ‘pack,pack,pack’ as Brian and Dom moved closer to each other. They were strangers but Brian knew them just the same, now.
“You’re fucking kidding me! No way a cop makes pack.” One of the guys that had walked in with Dom snarled and lunged at Brian only to be stopped short by Toretto’s growl.
The sound ran through Brian like a finely tuned engine and he was hard, and fighting the urge to bare his neck and pissed off about it all.
Snarls turned to whimpers and Dom gestured behind him, eyes never leaving Brian’s. “Get him out of here, Leon.”
Mia looked between the two of them, shook her head and followed the other two out of the store.
Dom crossed his arms. “So, what are we going do about this?”
From his glare, he didn’t seem any happier about the situation than Brian was. “I can’t do anything until I get this out of the way. You ask for a replacement, it’s just going to make you seem guilty.”
Dom stared at him a long moment and Brian stifled a shiver as his alpha's gaze slowly traveled his body.
Then he shrugged and Brian let go of the breath he hadn't know he was holding.
“Do what you gotta do, then. We still need to talk after.”
Brian watched him walk away, digging his nails into his hand hard enough to draw blood to keep from following. The next week was going to be hell.
He put Mia between them because she was pretty much the only thing keeping him from rolling over and baring his stomach at Dom’s feet. She let him because she was nice. She slapped him down when he tried to make it more because she was smart.
“He’s my alpha too and no way am I crossing that line. Everybody can see what’s going on between the two of you. You may feel like pack but you’re still a cop, Brian. You’re gonna have to make a choice.” She leaned in and kissed him on the forehead. “Sooner rather than later.”
When Brian reported back that he didn’t find anything, the look Tanner gave him was more disappointment than betrayal. And because Tanner was always there for him, took a chance on him when nobody thought it was a good idea, Brian wanted him to know. “He’s my Alpha. Even if there was anything to tell, I couldn’t. I can’t betray them.”
Tanner sighed in frustration and anger. “Shit! I knew this was a bad idea from the beginning--sending an Omega into a strong pack is crazy--but a lowly PCIS officer obviously can’t tell a suit anything.” He ran a hand through his hair, made an aborted motion to reach for the cigarettes Brian knew he’d given up months ago. “If they’re on the radar we’re gonna take them down, Brian and you with them. I can’t protect you.”
Brian nodded. “I know.” They wouldn’t be on anybody’s radar though, not for a while. They’d already made plans -- Brian had talked them into skipping Race Wars, using it as a distraction. While everybody’s eyes were in the desert, the pack was going to be in the wind. They’d made enough money from the hijackings to lay low for a while. After that, well, Brian had spent enough years as a cop that he knew exactly how to cover their tracks.