Corrigan Fire Bloodfire - Helen Harper Page 0,6

round. ‘What is it?’

‘It’s the Cornish pack, my Lord Alpha.’

I scanned his face. ‘What about them?’

‘Their alpha has just been murdered.’

Chapter Three

I stared at the gleaming black sports car. ‘It looks…expensive,’ I said finally.

‘Do you like it?’ Leah knitted her hands together worriedly. ‘I thought it was the kind of thing you’d like.’

Walking around its sleek body, I couldn’t help be impressed. It was, however, hugely inappropriate. ‘Where did you get the money from?’

‘The Brethren coffers, of course.’

I threw her a look. She stiffened and frowned at me. ‘Corrigan, you need a car that befits your status.’

‘The Brethren money should be spent on more worthwhile projects. You can’t throw it around on cars.’

‘Staines told me to…’ Her voice faltered when she registered my look. ‘Maybe we can take it back to the dealership. There’s nothing else available for the journey to Cornwall unless you want to take the train though. All the other cars are filled.’

I grimaced. ‘There’s no time to wait for the train. I need to get to the Cornish pack as quickly as possible. From the sound of things, they’re in turmoil.’

‘I thought you said that the woman who telephoned had received the Voice?’

‘So?’

‘Well, then you don’t really need to go, do you? She’ll take over and everything will be fine.’

‘It’s not as easy as that. There’s the Way to consider.’ I frowned. ‘She won’t have full possession of alpha powers until the ceremony is completed. And she might not even be the best person to be alpha.’ I thought of Brady. ‘Sometimes the natural order gets it wrong. We need to be sure we’re not setting them up for failure. And we need to find out what happened to the previous alpha too. I’ve checked the records. Nothing like this has ever happened in Cornwall before. I will not allow my alphas’ lives to be placed in jeopardy. We need to find this murderer and ensure justice is served before it happens again.’

‘You’re sounding more and more like the Lord Alpha every day,’ she commented. ‘But are they really going to be thrilled that the Brethren are riding into town to save the day?’

I gave her a hard look. ‘It’s the law. Besides, we have to oversee the initiation ceremony and ensure all the rites are adhered to. As the Brethren, it’s our responsibility to be there. I can’t be seen to be shirking my first real challenge in the job.’

Leah rolled her eyes. ‘It’s a backwater pack. They probably don’t even know who you are yet, Corrigan.’

‘That’s Lord Corrigan to you,’ I growled.

She giggled. ‘Yeah, right.’

I muttered under my breath while she fluttered her eyelashes innocently. ‘Do you want me to come with you? This thing in Moscow is probably nothing. I can put it off for a week or two.’

I shook my head. ‘No. I’ll have Staines to keep me on the straight and narrow. He’s terrified to let me out of his sight in case I do something silly like disband the Brethren altogether when he’s not looking.’

Leah looked alarmed. ‘You wouldn’t do that, would you?’

‘No. But we may well end up bankrupt if we throw money around on things like this.’ I gestured towards the car. ‘I’ll take it for now but we’ll need to try and re-sell it or return it when I get back.’

‘Christ, Corrigan. Live a little!’

‘I do not require a fancy car.’ I shot her a look of faint amusement. ‘It’ll seem like I’m trying to compensate for something.’

Leah winked at me. ‘Hey,’ she said lightly, ‘getting laid will do you some good. Perhaps you’ll meet a pretty Cornish lass who’ll be so blown away by your ride that she won’t be able to resist your other, less charming attributes.’

My mouth twitched. ‘I’ve already had several offers of that ilk, thank you very much. And you should learn your place and treat me with more respect.’

‘You need someone to keep you grounded. Everyone else looks at you like you’re a god or something. Waiting on you hand and foot, cooing admiringly…’

‘Don’t be silly,’ I snapped, at the very moment a weremonkey scampered up and placed my bag in the boot before bowing obsequiously. Leah raised her eyebrows at me. I simply cursed under my breath. ‘Don’t do anything stupid in Russia,’ I told her.

‘As if I would.’ She winked, then reached over and gave me a hug before sauntering off.

***

I’d be the first one to admit that even in convoy with the rest of the Brethren delegation, driving