A week into their woodland getaway and Peter had finalized his plan to lure Lake into a trap for the last time. There was no room for mistakes or hesitation, but he wasn’t the same man he’d been back then. Back then, he’d had to choose between the man who’d been his brother and only friend since he could remember and a man he barely knew yet bore an undeniable connection to. Now, he knew what it was like to live without John and the idea of risking John’s safety by sparing Lake’s life was unforgivable.

Lake had to die. Neither of them would ever truly be able to live until he did. The rest was just a matter of logistics.

He planned on telling John his plans that night, and he’d wavered about that decision for a few days. In the end, he’d decided that he had given John his word and wasn’t going to start their second chance off on another lie.

Not that that meant the beta was going to like his plan. The dinner he was making was meant to butter him up a little, literally. Vegetable carbonara with sun dried tomato, basil and buttery noodles had always been his go-to get out of trouble meal, and as lean as John was, food was the surest way into his good graces.

Like clockwork, John came shuffling down the stairs in that damn robe Peter was going to burn the first chance he got. As far as he was concerned, the other man could walk around without wearing anything, but he was sure John would have some qualms about that. He was as conservative in dress and manner as they came, and Peter knew his own lifestyle was going to require some adjusting if he lucked out and convinced John to stay in California with him when all this was over.

“You made food?” John asked, yawning as he reached into the refrigerator for a bottle of water.

“Mhm. Your favorite.”

The beta cocked an eyebrow, suddenly wide awake. “What did you do?”

“What do you mean?”

“You always used to cook when you did something you knew was gonna piss me off,” he said, sitting at a chair by the counter.

“That’s not true.”

“That ‘shipment’ you kept in the closet for a week?” he challenged.

Peter winced. “That was for a friend. Okay, not so much a friend of mine as a friend of the police chief’s who I needed to keep looking the other way.”

“And the Rottweiler?”

“I thought we needed a good guard dog to keep an eye on the house while I was gone,” he said defensively. “Besides, I thought you’d like him.”

“He made my cat run away.”

Peter pursed his lips. “Right, that is what I told you.”

“Peter!”

“I’m kidding. I’m sure he’s making some old lady real happy right about now, puking in all her shoes.”

John folded his arms. “What is it this time?”

Peter sighed. “Okay. I figured out how I’m gonna kill Lake, but you’re not gonna like it.”

“I don’t like that you’re going to kill him at all,” John muttered.

“My point exactly.”

“Just tell me what it is.”

“When Lake’s people raided your apartment, I figured they went off script. He wouldn’t have risked killing you that easily.”

John shuddered. “Go on.”

“My point is, he wasn’t in New York or he would’ve done it himself, which means he’s making up for lost time and his attention’s divided. I’ve been following up on some of my connections all week, and I finally managed to trace him,” Peter explained. “His ‘business’ suffered while he was behind bars, so he’s been cleaning house all along the West Coast. Two dealers turned up in SoCal, another in Portland.”

“So he’s not only an assassin but a drug kingpin?” John asked in disbelief.

“One industry kinda bleeds in the next,” Peter said, giving his mate an apologetic look. “You said you wanted me to shoot straight with you.”

“I do,” John muttered. “Now, what’s the part of this plan I won’t like?”

“Us getting away forced Lake to regroup, and right now, he’s focused on regaining control of his little empire. Now, I happen to know with a ninety-percent chance where he’s gonna be in a few weeks’ time.”

“Ninety percent, huh? You got a software program you ran those numbers through?”

Peter smirked, tapping his forehead. “Only calculator I need, baby.”

John rolled his eyes. “I’m guessing this appointment he has isn’t just to meet with his regional branch manager.”

“Nope. It’s a guy named Viper who’s been taking the top off payments. If I know Lake, he’s planning on icing Viper and replacing him with someone easier to control.”

“So you want to warn Viper?” John asked, frowning.

“Warn him and enlist his help. When Lake shows up, he gets an unexpected surprise and Viper gets to keep his life and his cut in the business. Win-win.”

“The enemy of my enemy,” John muttered.

“Exactly.”

John hesitated. “You already know what I’m going to say.”

“Yeah, but you can say it anyway,” he said, turning off the stove. Maybe he should have waited until the food was on the table.

“It’s too dangerous,” John insisted. “There are so many variables, and if one thing goes wrong or this Viper tips Lake off to make amends, you’re dead.”

“If we wait around for Lake to come find us, we’re both dead,” Peter shot back. “I didn’t survive this long being a sitting duck.”

“I know that, but there has to be some other way we can fix this.”

“What, like talking to him?” Peter scoffed.

The lack of humor on John’s face made it clear he didn’t think the idea was all that absurd. “You love each other. You could have killed him and you didn’t. Surely that means something to him.”

“Yeah, it does. It means I’m weak. In our world, respect means a hell of a lot more than love and the moment I let Lake take the fall for Creed’s murder, respect went out the window.” He walked over to the beta, putting his hands on John’s shoulders. “Look, I know you mean well and it’s cute as hell that you worry about my feelings and shit. Infuriating, but cute.”

John scowled. “He’s your brother, Peter.”

“He was.” The Alpha cupped John’s face in his hand, gazing earnestly into the beta’s eyes. “I knew when I met you that I’d have to give up everything, including him. That’s a price I’m willing to pay and this is the only way to do it. I’ve made my peace with that. I just need you with me.”

“You know I’m with you. I hate this, but I’m with you.”

Peter leaned down to kiss his mate, savoring the soft brush of John’s lips. “Good enough for me.”

The sound of a knock at the door turned his blood to frost and he immediately whipped out the gun on his hip. When he looked over, John had one of his own in his hands, but Peter didn’t recognize it as one of the ones he’d brought.

“Since when do you pack heat?”

John gave him a look. “Since I got a permit and took a class,” he said pointedly. “Who the fuck is that?”

“No idea,” Peter muttered. Jayce knew better than to show up unannounced on a guy who was hiding out with his mate, and the other Alpha had assured him that absolutely no one other than his own mate knew about the remote cabin. “Get upstairs.”

“No,” John hissed.

Peter grit his teeth, walking over to the door. He peered through the peephole and frowned when he saw a tall, dark-haired man in the glaringly obvious “uniform” of a plainclothes officer. “It’s a cop,” he muttered. Not that that meant it wasn’t one of Lake’s “friends.”

“Let me see,” John said worriedly, pushing Peter out of the way to look through the peephole. “It’s Dean,” he cried, reaching for the door.

Peter’s hand shot out to stop him. “Are you crazy?”

“I know him,” he insisted.

Peter kept his gun trained on the stranger in the door as his mate held it open. Dean’s eyes met his and for a man who had a gun on him, he didn’t look overly concerned. The guy was a professional, through and through.

“Well, looks like Max was right,” the Alpha muttered. “He swore something was wrong if you were on vacation.”

John let out a weary sigh. “Peter, put the gun down. He’s a friend.”

Peter reluctantly lowered the weapon and put the safety on, but he was ready to fire if Dean made a move toward either of them. “How the hell did your ‘friend’ find you out here?” He was sure he sounded like a typical jealous Alpha boyfriend, but that was exactly what he was, plus or minus the official boyfriend status, so what was the point in pretending?

“My mate was worried,” Dean said pointedly, stepping inside the cabin. “When I found out about the shooting at John’s apartment building, I traced his phone.”

John frowned. “Without a warrant? Do you know how many laws you probably violated?”

Dean and Peter both gave him a look. “I see you haven’t changed at all,” the other Alpha said warmly. He paused, glancing over John. His attention lingered on the mark on the beta’s neck. “Guess I spoke too soon.”

“Peter Mikhailov,” he said, offering his hand in both challenge and in greeting. “I’m John’s mate.”

“I can see that,” Dean said, returning the handshake. “Detective Dean Garza. The police kind, not the kind that wanders across yellow lines causing trouble,” he added, giving John a halfhearted glare.

The beta smirked. “That’s funny, because I helped your mate find his son before you managed to find Max, so maybe they should give me the badge.”

Dean rolled his eyes. “I looked into that guy you had me look up. Turns out there’s a hell of a lot more to him than the charges that stuck,” he said, eyeing Peter suspiciously. “Now I find you holed up in Jayce Roman’s cabin on the other side of the country with a guy who’s got quite a colorful record of his own.”

“I’ve kept my nose clean since juvie,” Peter protested.

“I’m not talkin’ about the shit that’s in your file, Peter,” said Dean. “Or should I say, ‘Hellhound?’”

“Hellhound?” John frowned. “What does that mean?”

“It’s his alias,” Dean answered. “He’s one of the best-known guns for hire on the West Coast. No one’s ever been able to track him, until now. Maybe you really do deserve that badge.”

Peter swallowed hard. This was not good. If he didn’t think John would have a meltdown, he’d take care of the guy right now, but the way his mate was looking at him after learning his code name didn’t bode well.

“I know who he is,” John said stiffly. Peter could tell the revelation had bothered him, but he wasn’t letting it show with Dean around. “But he didn’t kidnap me. He saved my life.”

Dean listened, frowning. “From who?”

“You might not recognize him by the name of Lake Kristoff, but does the Dragon ring any bells?” asked Peter.

The other Alpha’s eyes widened in recognition. He looked between Peter and John, his concern drawing deeper lines into his forehead. “Christ, John. How the hell did you get yourself mixed up in this shit?”

“Like Peter says, he’s my mate,” the beta answered, leaning against the wall.

“So where the hell’s he been?”

Dean’s question was gruff and to the point, but Peter knew he deserved the scorn. It didn’t matter that he’d left to protect John, it only mattered that he should have been there. He’d fucked up and John was the one who’d paid the price. The least he could do now was man up and face the consequences.

“You know the kind of life I live if you know my street name,” he said with a shrug. “I left because I didn’t want John to get caught up in it, but my past caught up with us both. Lake is the darkest part of that past, and now that he’s out of prison, he’s not going to stop until he uses John to get revenge.”

“Revenge for what?” asked Dean.

“I fucked him over and got him arrested,” Peter answered. “He knew I imprinted on John, and he wasn’t gonna have it, so I got him locked up first. Course, I thought you people could do a little better than five years.”

Dean snorted. “Welcome to my world.”

“Now that you’re here,” John ventured. “Maybe you can help? With your connections, maybe you could get Lake put away for longer.”

The other Alpha frowned and before Peter could shoot the idea down, he said, “I’d like a moment alone with John.”

“Request denied,” Peter answered.

John gave him a pleading look. “It’s fine,” he insisted. “Just give us a minute, okay?”

Peter’s teeth gritted tight and he wanted to fight the idea, but his gut was telling him that Dean was safe. A pretentious jerk, maybe, but a safe one. He probably just wanted to make sure John wasn’t being held against his will or abused.

Grudgingly, he left the room. “I’ll be upstairs.”

At least he knew someone had been looking out for John while he was gone. He just hated himself for not being the one.