Year of the Tiger by Heather Heffner Read Free Book Online Page B

now. He’ll be after you next.”
    “What if he asks his right-hand woman to bring me to him?”
    She didn’t answer.
     

Chapter 8: Battle Plans
     
    This time, when I texted Rafael, all I wrote was: I know about the invitation. My phone beeped within seconds:
     
    Apgujeong Station, Exit 2. Meet me in front of Galleria Department Store .
     
    “And that’s how it’s done!” I told Saja smugly. His eyes smoldered amber-gold in response.
    I spotted the familiar broad-shouldered figure propped up against the Galleria’s pillars, nodding to the group of giggling female shoppers making quite a few trips back and forth. I pursed my lips.
    “Hey.” I snapped my fingers in front of his face. “Shop on your own time. You owe me answers.”
    “I missed you, too.” Rafael seized me in an unexpected hug, and came away holding my tiger embossed invitation. “What might this be?”
    “Just my old friend Maya inviting me over for a cup of tea…in the Vampyre Court. I mean, shit ! What do I do, Raf? This is the clearest shot I’ll have at rescuing my sister…but there’s no way in hell Maya singled me out to discuss ‘peace treaties’. ”
    “No. More likely fashion tips on how to fit into the twenty-first century. The vampyres gave you this invitation and let you just walk away?” Rafael looked me up and down. “This has to be about something only you can give her.”
    “When were you going to tell me about it?”
    “When I figured out how to fake big Citlalli hair and Citlalli loud-mouth to go in your stead.”
    I punched him in the shoulder and was surprised when he winced. The light caught his brow, and I gaped at the large eggplant-colored bruise winding its way down his temple, his jaws…
    “Who did this to you?” I rolled up his sleeve and saw three distinct slivers of puckered red flesh. Claw marks. “This wasn’t vampyres.”
    Rafael shoved his sleeve down. “Keeping you away was for the best,” he said harshly. “That way, they could only blame me for violating pack orders. They think you followed me out of misguided admiration.”
    “But it was my idea to go to Eve!”
    “No.” Rafael gripped my shoulders. “I was the one who convinced you to go. I was the one who left you alone during the vampyre attack on Hyeon Bin’s house. I was the one who let Khyber hurt you. That’s the story, and if you want to even be considered as the Weres’ representative to the Vampyre Court, then you’ll act like the most innocent calf to ever leave the stables.”
    I was speechless. Rafael tugged my hand. “Come on. Let’s go meet the pack. And when did you get a dog?”
    “He’s Una’s jindo, Saja.”
    “Smells odd.”
    We dove into the byzantine alleys of Apgujeong, fast losing ourselves in the neon-bright lights for bibimbap restaurants, love motels, and high-tech clubs. It was enough to give an epileptic person a seizure. Rafael led me to a small, tucked-away staircase next to a pulsing night club. Saja inflated like a porcupine at the scent of so many wolves, so I tied him up outside.
    The other pack members jumped up when they saw me.
    “Hey, Citlalli.” Kaelan wrapped an arm around me. “How is it being the Nine-Fingered Girl?”
    “Still trying to let go of my dream of becoming the next Robin Hood.”
    “And I, to swim the English Channel.” Kaelan kicked off his boot, and I could see that three of his toes had been blown off.
    “Citlalli.” Moon approached with a tray full of bean cakes. “Eat. You don’t look well.”
    “Next to Rafael, I’d say I could run for the Miss Seoul Beauty Pageant—”
    Rafael shot me a dark glare, and I shut myself up with a bean cake.
    “How’s the war going without me?”
    “Not well,” Kaelan replied. “As you can imagine, replacing the crazy-eyed black wolf with a flock of goshawks doesn’t exactly send the enemy running for the trees.”
    Moon stirred her tea, lips pursed. “We clean them from Suwon. They pop up in Incheon. We clean them