The Runaway Cat (Book 2 Cloverleah Pack Series) Read online

  Chapter Eleven

  By Monday lunchtime both men had sucked, fucked and done enough of everything else to consider going out of the house. Diablo was surprised to learn that Griff was a creative lover, his combination of gentleness and force a powerful aphrodisiac. They also spent a lot of time talking and Griff was impressed with the amount of intelligence his mate had. Diablo had shared more about his ideas of the type of security firm he wanted to set up and he and Griff were both excited to put some plans into place real soon.

  “Just let me be officially resigned from my job Griff and then we will get started.”

  Griff and Diablo looked at each other and then said at the same time, “Shit my phone.”

  Griff flicked through his messages. A few ribald texts from Scott that he read but did not reply to. A message from Bruno that Ramon had been picked up and was safe. Kane had sent him a text to remind himabout dinner tonight at Kane and Shawn’s which he did reply an affirmative to. His final text was from Tony sent the night before. Ring me when you get this. He looked over at Diablo.

  “Anything interesting?”

  Diablo was scrolling through his messages and looked up. “No. Just a dozen texts from Corbin demanding a status update.” He flipped his phone shut without replying to any of them. “I don’t know what to say to him. I take it Tony Gearson didn’t tell him I had been pulled out of the job.”

  “Hmm,” Griff looked worried. “Tony has text me and wants me to call him. I guess I had better do it. He was going to look into your case because he is worried that Corbin might be abusing his position.” He looked up at Diablo. “Or we could ignore both phones and go out for a run,” he said lightly.

  Diablo came over and gave Griff a long kiss on the lips. “Make the call hon. You can ask him on any ideas on how to reply to Corbin and then we can go for a run, okay? We don’t need this shit hanging over us.”

  Griff nodded already tapping in Tony’s number. Diablo made to leave the room to give him some privacy, but Griff grabbed him and pulled the pair of them onto the couch, his arm firmly over Diablo’s shoulder. Diablo heard the man when he answered the phone. Griff had it on speaker.

  “Tony Gearson.”

  “Yeah, do you want to call me back?”

  “No Griff this line is secure.”

  “Before you say anything Diablo is with me and this is on speaker phone.” Griff’s voice was calm but obviously his words surprised the Director of the FBI.

  “Oh, okay. This isn’t normally how we do things Griff.”

  Griff looked at Diablo and smiled. “It is now Tony. Diablo is my life mate and we don’t have any secrets at all. It’s part of who we are. If you don’t like it then you don’t have to call me anymore. Your choice.”

  Tony laughed down the phone. “Ha ha, Griff you are not going to get rid of me that easily. I planned on talking to Diablo too, after I had talked to you so this is fine with me and I take it for future reference this dual phone thing will be a normal occurrence?”

  “Definitely.” Diablo smiled at Griff’s conviction in his voice and kissed his mate again, curling up in his arms so he could hear the conversation. He didn’t mind too much if Griff had to go off for a job, but he would have hated not knowing about it.

  “Right then. Well hello Diablo. I know we haven’t met yet but I do hope to meet you soon.”

  “Hello Sir.”

  “Call me Tony please. Griff and I are old friends and I think you and I will be too.”

  “Thank you, Tony.” Diablo shrugged at Griff who just grinned.

  “This does concern the both of you. After your call Griff I did some in depth digging into Diablo’s whole case and in particular the part that Corbin has played in it. I am truly sorry Diablo but my findings are not good.”

  Griff and Diablo looked at each other. “What do you mean Tony, Diablo is a bloody good agent.” It was Griff that growled out the response.

  “Oh shit, yes of course he’s an excellent agent. One of the best I have ever seen. Sorry Diablo I didn’t mean to imply that anything you’ve done is wrong. Your findings and intel is the best I have ever seen on any job. There is plenty there to execute the warrants and once these guys are arrested there won’t even be a need for you to testify. You have done a stellar job considering the circumstances.”

  “So what’s the problem?” This time it was Diablo that spoke.

  “I don’t quite know how to tell you this. It seems that Corbin has been on Georgio’s payroll for the last six months. He has been paid to keep you with the mark including this last two week extension. We have traced financial records that prove a direct link between the two and a bug on Corbin’s phone in place since Saturday has already revealed two calls between Corbin and Georgio, both talking about your specific whereabouts Diablo. Georgio told Corbin you left with Angel but neither one of them have been able to find you.”

  Diablo looked at Griff. “Well that would explain the texts on my phone.”

  “What texts are those, Diablo?” Tony’s voice sounded concerned.

  “Oh nothing really. Just Corbin looking for status updates - about a dozen times since I left with Griff on Saturday night.”

  “Have you replied to any of them?”

  “No, not yet. We wanted to talk to you first.” This time it was Griff who answered.

  “Okay, well good. Don’t answer them for now, Diablo. In fact it might be an idea to turn your phone off completely for now in case they try tracking you with GPS.”

  “Understood.” Diablo shut off his phone and then peeled open the back of it to take out the GPS unit included in the housing. Holding it between his thumb and first finger he crumbled it into tiny pieces.

  “Wait a minute,” Griff was angry now. “Are you telling me that Georgio knows that Diablo is an FBI undercover agent and that it was Corbin who told him?”

  “Yes Griff that is exactly what I am saying. And that’s not all of it. I have been back over all of your past cases Diablo and found three other instances where your handler has been bribed to keep you in a situation with a mark longer than necessary. There is another at least four or five situations where the handler had done it on his own accord in an apparent ploy to either break you or punish you.”

  “For what? Being gay?” Now Diablo was angry.

  “And too good looking apparently. I am so sorry Diablo, I honestly had no idea this type of thing was going on. I am processing your resignation personally. You will leave with the highest honors and a full pension. There will also be a sizable payout for you if you agree not to go to the media or anyone else about this.”

  “Why the hell would I do that Tony? I have never been out to get at the FBI. I was just trying to do my job as best I could.”

  “Again I can’t tell you how sorry I am and these guys will be prosecuted for what they did to you. I will see to it personally.” Tony’s voice sounded genuine enough but Diablo was really upset.

  “You don’t get it Tony…” Diablo was ready to let rip. He was so angry he was close to tears and was now pacing the floor.

  “Diablo, hon…” Griff tried to intervene but Diablo didn’t listen to him.

  “No Griff. Seven fucking years Tony. Seven fucking years I have been an FBI whore, a bloody whore, and now you are telling me that at least seven of my handlers have been responsible for putting me in situations where I could have been killed. Not that they haven’t come close a few times. If I hadn’t have been a shifter I would have been dead by now. I have never had any back up. I have never had any support. I still went in and got my bloody job done even though it made me sick to my stomach at times. And now the FBI thinks that a ‘settlement’ is going to make it all go away because they are worried about the public image of the company? What about my bloody image? My self-respect? My love for my job, my career, damn it?”

  “Diablo please…” Griff was trying to calm him down.

  “No Griff, I know what you are going to say but don’t you see? I could have
lost you when I had only just found you. Six months ago, when Georgio obviously found out I was an agent was when he changed. When he collared me and humiliated me more than I believed possible. And it was Corbin’s fault. When I told you what I had done I fully expected you to leave me, don’t you understand? I mean who the hell wants a man that has spent more times on his knees than he has in the shower? Fuck this could have cost me everything in life worth having.”

  Diablo tore his clothes off and in seconds had shifted into his panther form. Looking at Griff he took off out the back door and ran towards the woods.

  “Griff, Diablo, are you still there?” Tony’s voice came over the phone loud and worried.

  “Yeah I am here Tony and you had better know that I am so angry right now at what has been done to my mate I can barely speak.” Griff growled as he started taking off his own clothes. He had a cat to catch.

  “Look Griff I do understand, I really do. But…fuck Griff I hate to bring this up but I do need you and Diablo to go back to Baton Rouge so I can get a good case on Corbin…”

  “I can’t even think about that right now, Tony. My mate is bloody hurting and has taken off and I have to go and make things right and after what he has heard today I am not sure that’s possible. I will ring you back when it’s sorted.”

  “But Griff…”

  “I said I will ring you back, tomorrow morning. You have my word.” And with that Griff slammed off his phone shifting as he ran out the door.

  Chapter Twelve

  When Diablo had taken off for the woods he had no idea where he was going or what he was doing. He just knew he felt so much anger inside he just wanted to slash at something. Kill Corbin and Georgio definitely and then break down and cry for a week. It was one thing to suspect that most of his handlers had problems with him over the years because he was gay but to hear it confirmed from the director of the FBI itself was really hard. Diablo couldn’t bear the fact that Griff now had some idea of how many times Diablo had been a gay lover to his mark to get information for an arrest. The truth was the case number was more than double what Tony had mentioned. It was no consolation that at least half of his handlers were obviously decent enough.

  Diablo had never been able to understand why some of his cases took so long for warrants to get sorted. At the time he thought it was just the FBI policy of being cautious. Getting all of the facts lined up before they acted. That is why Diablo was so thorough with the information he shared. He always worked to get airtight cases so that he could leave his cover and not have to go back. And damn it despite the nature of how he got that information he was proud of what he had achieved. He knew he had one of the highest arrest records in undercover work. He knew he did a good job. Not bad for a gay man with homophobic handlers.

  But at what cost to his soul? Diablo knew that many heterosexuals had the stereotypical idea of a gay man who didn’t want feelings of love or commitment, but who rather went out and screwed anything male with a pulse. Diablo had never been like that. He had the occasional hook-up but given what he did as a job that was more for companionship with shifters rather than sex. Sure he was a cat and as such was a bit of a loner anyway but after spending the last few days with Griff he knew he never wanted to be anywhere but with his mate. He had felt that way after the first night for goodness sake. Griff was a decent and honorable man though and there is no way he could want someone who felt as dirty as Diablo did right now.

  Diablo’s run slowed to a walk as he took in the woods surrounding him. Tall trees were spaced far enough apart to let in some of the sunlight overhead. A thick bed of pine needles covered the woodland floor masking any sound that Diablo might make. Not that he ever made any when he moved, his huge fur covered paws saw to that. Lifting his nose to sniff, Diablo could smell the old scent of other wolves. Griff and the others in his pack most likely. There were no other predators in the area which was probably a good thing. Although a good fight might help with my stress, Diablo thought.

  Hearing the sound of a stream nearby, Diablo headed in that direction, keen for a drink. After quenching his thirst he wanted nothing more than to rest, but years of self preservation saw him moving away from the sound of the stream first. Only when he was confident he could hear the sound of any animal coming near him did he flop down on his stomach, his big head resting on his front paws. Now that his anger had dissipated all Diablo felt was an overwhelming sense of grief and shame.

  Could panthers cry? Perhaps not with tears but when they have a human brain it seemed to trigger something because Diablo could feel the wetness on his furry face. He knew why he had kept taking the shit jobs. In every case he was trying to prove himself, hoping that eventually it was his skills and not his looks and sexual orientation that would get him new assignments. He was sure that if he just kept putting the bad guys away that eventually somebody would recognize his worth as an agent and he would get cases that didn’t require him to suck dick.

  That wasn’t going to happen now he had resigned. But Diablo wasn’t sorry about that decision. If Griff didn’t want him then he would build a new life for himself somewhere close and maybe over time Griff would look past what he had done and want to be with him. He was done with the FBI. They could pay out all they wanted, he didn’t care. It wasn’t as though Diablo needed the money. But wait a minute, no. If he was a whore then he could be bloody paid out, otherwise he was just a slut in an FBI suit. And Diablo definitely wasn’t a slut.

  Chuffing to himself at his twisted logic, Diablo almost missed the sound of another animal approaching. Griff in his wolf form. Diablo could tell by the delicious scent that filled the air. Not sure what his cat would do when faced with the man in wolf form, Diablo just stayed where he was listening to Griff coming forward. Griff wasn’t trying to hide his presence, probably recognizing that Diablo might attack him if he crept up on him.

  A few minutes later a very large grey and black wolf loped into view. It stopped when it saw Diablo and Diablo could feel the wolf sizing him up. Diablo took after his tiger father in size standing just over three and a half feet at the shoulder and weighing close to 400 pounds of pure muscle. His body was long and his paws and head were huge. Because Griff was a shifter wolf he was bigger than a typical grey but even so Diablo had a good 150 pounds on the wolf although he knew that in a fight the wolf could give him a run for his money. Diablo considered shifting because he didn’t want Griff to feel at a disadvantage, but he didn’t want to actually talk right now. So he lay there and waited to see what the wolf would do.

  Griff hadn’t had any trouble finding Diablo. It wasn’t as though the cat was trying to hide his scent, although Griff was a little worried that he might have climbed a tree which would have made getting close to him a bit awkward. But when he actually saw him close up and in detail Griff was stunned. This cat was huge. Far bigger than Griff had anticipated. Rather than be scared, which he probably should have been, Griff was seriously impressed.

  Padding forward slowly Griff put his nose to the ground until he came up to Diablo. Apart from a low rumble of warning from the cat, Diablo didn’t move. Griff sniffed at him, drinking in his mate’s scent. The panther truly was magnificent in every way and for some perverse reason the fact that Griff knew that Diablo could kill him in his cat form was actually a turn on for him. Yeah he must be barmy especially given Griff’s own Alpha tendencies, but shit who couldn’t be blown away by the power in this cat.

  This close Griff could see that said cat had been crying and as he scanned over the cat’s form again he could see the dejected slump of the panther’s powerful shoulders. He quickly shifted to his human form and kneeling down by the cat he rested his hand on Diablo’s big black head stroking the cat between the ears. Diablo stopped rumbling and after a few minutes he pushed his head into Griff’s hand actively seeking his touch. Griff bought up his other hand and stroked and petted Diablo’s head finding the spots that Diablo seemed to like to be touched. Between his ears, across his cheeks an
d under his chin seemed to be favorites. Given how big Diablo was it was unlikely that anybody had touched him in his animal form before, but just like a house cat, he really seemed to enjoy it.

  On his part Griff absolutely loved how soft Diablo’s fur was. A wolf’s hair was long and coass which wasn’t nearly as sensual to touch as the cats’. Not that Griff had touched a lot of wolves either. But Diablo was a perfect contradiction. Too big and powerful for most to get close to, but soft and delicious if you could get close enough. A bit like the man himself. Griff hoped Diablo would shift, but when the big cat put his head on Griff’s naked knee and seemed quite happy there, Griff knew he would have to convince his mate to trust him enough to shift first. He knew that Diablo was hurting and was effectively protecting himself by staying in his animal form.

  “You know,” Griff began haltingly, “I don’t think I have had the chance yet to tell you how bloody honored I am that you are my mate.” Diablo lifted his big yellow eyes to look at Griff’s face but he didn’t move his head from the man’s knee.

  “I mean you look at it. For all intents and purposes I am just a mechanic in small town USA. An ordinary man and an ordinary enough shifter wolf.” Diablo shook his head but Griff continued. “Yes, I could be an Alpha wolf, but I didn’t want to be. Yet I have been blessed with not only an amazing man, but an amazing shifter. The Fates were really looking out for me.” Diablo was still looking at Griff’s face but his head nudged Griff’s hand. Griff went back to stroking him, his big hands running down Diablo’s muscled shoulders.

  “You, Diablo, are an amazing man because you are loyal, and decent and you do your best despite insurmountable odds. And you have done it all alone, without anyone to help you or support you. When I see the size of your cat and the power in your shifted body I am totally awed by the fact that you took so much abuse as a human when you could have easily killed anyone with just one swipe of your big paws. That tells me you have more strength and more sense of what is right and wrong than just about anyone I have ever met.”