Chapter 62

Kadeem

Sunday morning, Kadeem was jolted from his slumber by the blaring of Bon Jovi and the vibrating of his phone. The one morning - of course - that he had decided to try and sleep in.

Through half-closed eyelids, he fumbled for his phone on the bedside table, only managing to knock it off and onto the floor in a deafening clank.

He cursed and forced himself up, swatting his hands around until he located it in between the table and mattress.

"Motherfucker," he yelled, swiping it open with an aggressive flick of his finger, to answer it - yes -but mostly to silence the irritating vibration and song.

"Whoa," came Riley's voice through the other end.

"It's fine," Kadeem growled, with a voice ragged with sleep and aggression.

He made an angry mental note to change his goddamn ringtone later. "Shot Through the Heart" had just blasted his own heart with so much cortisol, he was ready to wolf out and strangle somebody - probably Mateo, he thought with a kind of sick satisfaction.

"You're usually out of bed before sunrise," Riley said, some surprise in her voice. Kadeem was admittedly militant about his morning schedule.

"Yeah, well, not today," Kadeem muttered gruffly, pressing the phone tighter against his ear. "My sleep's been shit lately."

Every night Kadeem was assailed by images of vampire attacks on the pack. Riley and their group of Weres had discovered more evidence that seemed to suggest vampires were encroaching on their territory, and he was on edge about it.

"Sorry," Riley said. "I thought you'd want to know this ASAP."

Kadeem took a deep breath and leaned back against the headboard.

"Alright, give it to me," he said, knowing full well some kind of bad news was about to land in his lap.

"So, this doctor you wanted us to track-"

Kadeem sat up straight. "Yeah? What did you find?"

"Some weird stuff. He's been travelling back and forth between our territory and the X pack - illegally. No permission from either side. We've got some intel that suggests he goes once a month, like clockwork."

Kadeem's head began to swirl with questions. "He's trafficking something."

But what?

"That's not all," Riley said, clearing her throat. "He's got some kind of connection to your uncle."

"My uncle?" Kadeem pushed himself off of the bed.

"Knowing the stunt Bob tried to pull a few weeks ago, I would say something's up." Riley's voice was tight.

"Guess I need to pay Bob a visit," Kadeem said, fists clenched so tight his nails were cutting into the palms of his hands.

"Take me when you go," Riley said. "You know I've been itching to get my paws on him."

Kadeem began to pace the floor of the room. "Let me see how I want to play this, first."

Kadeem clicked off and threw on some clothes. He stormed down to the kitchen, where he was met with the pungent aroma of fresh-brewed coffee and the sight of Mateo, slinging spoonfulls of frosted cereal into his mouth, while he swiped through his phone.

"Thought you were sleeping in," Mateo said, not bothering to look up.

Kadeem growled and yanked open the kitchen cabinet to claw out a coffee mug.

Mateo plonked his device down onto the table, so he could noisily slurp the milk out of his bowl. The sound made Kadeem bristle with anger.

"Best laid plans, huh?"

Kadeem tried to control his irritation. He grumbled gutturally as he poured his coffee. Mateo picked up his phone again, and Kadeem hoped he'd finally shut up as he sank into the chair across from him.

But instead, Mateo peered over the top of his reading glasses to study Kadeem. "I see we're non-verbal today."

Kadeem cursed mentally, but ignored him, staring blankly ahead, while he tried to steer his focus on drinking the first, bright sips of his coffee.

"I live with a caveman," Mateo chirped, before turning his eyes back to whatever he was reading.

Kadeem let out a groan. "Look," he hissed. "I don't have energy for your crap right now. And don't pretend that your staying here is permanent - because it isn't."

Mateo raised his eyebrows, but said nothing.

Kadeem went on to stew in angsty silence, nursing his coffee as though it were life itself.

Eventually, Mateo got up from the table to rinse his dishes.

Then, Kadeem felt a hand on his shoulder. Mateo sat back down next to him, a look of empathy on his face.

Kadeem felt a pang of guilt for his angry thoughts and behavior towards his friend.

"What's weighing on you," Mateo asked, half-smile on his lips.

"Most of it's the same old shit. Some of it's new, not in the grand scheme. It's just recycled garbage, back again." Kadeem signed and sat his mug on the table. "Except one thing."

Mateo put his elbow on the table and leaned his head against the palm of his hand. "The answer's yes," he said.

Kadeem's brow furrowed. "You don't know what I was going to ask you."

"Whatever you were going to ask me, I can already tell you what you should do. You should do it."

Kadeem stared at him, with a raised brow, skeptical.

"You want to know why people are plagued with indecision? Why it's this thing that literally keeps people up at night?"

"Tell me," Kadeem said, rolling his eyes, but intrigued.

"Because they already know, Kadeem. They already know what they want or need, but they're fighting against it."

Mateo stared at him with fierce eyes. "The fighting is what drives us mad. The fact that we're not doing what we must." Mateo crossed his legs and leaned in, smiling. "The answer is always, just 'yes,' go do the thing!"

Kadeem snickered softly and shook his head. "This explains so much about your life."

Mateo shrugged and dropped his smile. "Eh," he said, without his characteristic cheer. "I guess it's always easier to give advice than..." His voice dropped off and he bit his lip.

"Do the thing?"

Mateo nodded and leaned back in his chair with his arms folded around his chest. He was silent for a few moments before speaking again. "But you should still listen to me," he said quietly.

Kadeem had watched Mateo hit on women left and right, suck down alcohol and sugar like it was his life's blood, and poke and prod at his Alpha wolf friend right to the point of danger. He lived with a reckless abandon that amused, infuriated, and, sometimes, filled Kadeem with a stunned admiration.

"Mateo," Kadeem said. "What is it you're fighting?"

Mateo's face was blank, but Kadeem could feel the sadness emanating from him.

"Another day," he said. "Just go do your thing."

Kadeem stood on Ardal's doorstep, his heart pounding. He took a deep breath, enjoying the scent of lavender wafting from her small garden. He raised his hand to knock, but hesitated, his nerves getting the best of him. Finally, he mustered the courage and tapped his knuckles against the wooden door.