Page 27 of Aries
But that little slice of revenge didn’t bring answers. Aries was still out there and none of my software or contacts could find her.
I’d even used software to age her up the twelve years that had passed, but it was never right. Something just didn’t click into place.
Letting go wasn’t an option. We were pack and she was likely my omega, too.
Despite trying not to think about it, I found myself pulling up the tab I kept just for her, the one I checked religiously every time I sat down.
There were no pings for Alice Davis or Aries as an alias.
With a sigh that felt all too familiar, I closed the tab and started a new search.
The Crows had their own network. I’d coded it years ago and it was keyed to certain accounts, so not just any Crow couldaccess it. This didn’t just hide our searches, it went down the darker avenues as well.
Elias Vance didn’t ping any of the normal searches.
So, I dove deeper.
Finally, Eli Vance seemed to be a common denominator in far too many files and reports.
He was not the head of anything, but he had his fingers in it all. One of those people that you thought was at the bottom, but clearly was a weasel. It was a bit too easy to go unseen and fly under the radar.
The exact kind of man that Victor Crow would beveryinterested in.
We all knew this job had to mean something or he wouldn’t have assigned us as the team to eliminate him.
The deeper I went, the more I uncovered. It was like the tip of the iceberg and it had so much more under the surface. The kind of thing most would miss.
Not only did he have a pretty extensive record under his true name, Elijah Blake, but it was some of the worst kinds: trafficking, sexual assault, auctions, the works.
This man didn’t seem to have a whole lot of boundaries and was exactly the kind of man the Crows would eliminate.
Victor himself didn’t have very many things he wouldn’t touch. Money and power were paramount. But the one thing that Nikolai made certain he understood was that we would not be participating in anything to do with omegas or trafficking.
It was another hard line, but it seemed Victor respected it. Sometime in the last eight or so years he’d started to see Nikolai as his son, not that he’d admit it out loud.
As the years wore on, Victor pulled away from several deals because of it. It made our rivals a little richer in those areas, but it also gave him more reason to take them out, somethingNikolai never hesitated to do. The Hellhound was always out for blood as long as it had a purpose.
While the Crows themselves might play on the darker side of things, Nikolai was happier when it was shades of gray.
“Holy shit,” I breathed out as I pulled up another piece of the puzzle, realizing I’d finally struck something.
“What is it?” Ronan demanded as he walked in. Of course, the smug bastard was lingering in the hall waiting for this moment.
“I’ve got him,” I said, my voice picking up, letting out a sharp breath. “He was buried deep. Did you have any idea who he really was?”
“Obviously not,” Ronan said, giving me an exasperated look and waving me on. “But please, inform the class.”
“We knew this wasn’t some low-level bullshit?—”
“It never is,” my packmate agreed as he sat down in the leather armchair in my office, making himself at home.
“This Elias, is Spectre,” I said. “It seems your father figured it out far before anyone else. His whereabouts have been largely unknown until now, haven’t they?”
“Of course, my father knew,” Ronan said with a snort.
Nikolai walked in and Ronan caught him up as he settled into the remaining seat. This was our usual tradition before a job. My office was the easiest place to make plans since I was the one with the answers.
“If we take out Spectre, that means we’re handling one of the biggest thorns in your father’s side. It will double his territory.”
