"Oh, our pack alpha ordered me to do it. Said we had to put up our fair share of volunteers to help with the war effort."

  Troy was sure there was something more to it after hearing about her getting caught with her previous boss.

  "Do you have any training with firearms or any of that?"

  "Uh-huh. Everyone in our pack got trained. I started in the Lycan Army, but apparently someone thought I'd make a better secretary." She shrugged as she sat down. "I like what I do here for Captain Curtis. It's a lot more interesting. I get to schedule shifts, maintenance, deal with crew issues, and order supplies for the helicopters and the alert facility. I take care of everyone's needs here."

  "Does that include the captains?"

  It got quiet then, and looking over at her, he could see she was blushing again.

  "Fair warning—I don't share, Mira."

  "Huh?" she said, giving her head a shake and looking over at him.

  "I don't share. Ever. If you end up my woman, you're just that, my woman," he said with a hint of a growl.

  He could've sworn she shivered a little in her chair.

  Rolling his eyes, he turned back to his work. If they were going to get the data he needed tomorrow, he needed to work on ways to massage it, as well as display it. It bothered him that the djevels were behaving this way down here, and nowhere else. Finding out that there were higher-level djevels at that one spot—no doubt driving them on, he was sure—meant someone was up to something.

  Just what that something was, he was hoping the data would tell him. Or at least give him a clue.

  When noon came, he got up and stretched. "Well, I'm off to lunch."

  "Can I come?"

  "I need to stop by my room and get Nadi."

  "Is that your wife's name?"

  Troy nodded. "We were up all night, so she's probably still in bed."

  "All night?" Mira asked with a blink.

  "Yup." Troy winked. "What's your cell number?"

  She gave it to him, and he saved it in his phone.

  "If she's up for company, I'll ping you," he told her, then left to go back and wake up Nadi. The walk wasn't a long one; the VIP rooms were actually closer than the mess.

  Going into his room, he just stood there a moment and looked at Nadi as she slept on the bed. She looked so happy. Moving over to the bed, he bent down and kissed her. She opened her eyes and smiled at him.

  "Is it time to get up?"

  "If you want," he said, smiling back at her. "It's noon; if you're feeling hungry, we can go get some lunch."

  "Why are you dressed?" she asked, looking him over.

  "Work. I had to deal with things this morning."

  "Now I feel guilty for keeping you up all night."

  "I think the issue of who kept whom up is debatable," Troy said and gave her another kiss.

  "Well, food does sound good," she said, and sitting up in bed, she stretched, and he took a moment to enjoy her nudity.

  "Ah, I'm such a lucky man," he purred.

  She blushed. "You could do better."

  "No," he said, shaking his head. "No, I couldn't. You're perfect."

  "What about Chloë? I seem to recall a few comments about her," Nadi said with a smile as she swung her legs out of bed to get up.

  Troy nodded. "I'll be honest, the thought of running up to Chico and biting her ass has crossed my mind more than once."

  "Really?"

  He nodded as she stood up.

  "Are you going to?" she whispered as she leaned in to kiss him.

  "I don't know, do you think I should? I'm not sure how the two of you would get along. You are first wife, after all."

  Nadi shrugged. "We got along all right when we were together. Are you considering her to be one of your harem?"

  "You don't have a problem with that?"

  "Your father has a harem, and so do both of your brothers." She gave a small shrug. "It's common enough where I come from. Why wouldn't you?"

  "Because I'm not a lion?"

  "But your father is, and you grew up with it."

  Troy sighed. "There are women here who are interested in me and aren't afraid to say so."

  "Well, of course they'd be interested in you!" Nadi said with a happy laugh.

  "And you're okay with it if I decide to check them out?"

  "Why wouldn't I be?"

  "Because you're my wife? I'm serious about you, Nadi. I have every intention of marrying you in front of everyone to make it clear how serious I am."

  That stopped her. She'd just turned on the water in the shower and looked at him.

  "I love you, Troy. I'm fine with you having more than one wife. As I said, we both grew up with it. It's a part of who we are."

  "I'm just worried about everyone getting along, Nadi. I love you, too, and I wouldn't want anyone who wouldn't fit in with the two of us. You're first, like Roxy—my mom—is to my dad. I don't want to mess that up."

  "Well, your father didn't."

  "My father is a lion. So is SJ, and so is Mike. It's like something they're born knowing. I don't have that."

  "So what you're saying, then, is you want my help?" Nadi said with a bright smile.

  Troy nodded.

  "Well, if I'm truly to be first wife, then it's my duty to help you only get women who will bring happiness and harmony to our household."

  "That went a lot easier than I thought it would," he admitted.

  "After seeing your family, I expected this. Though I will admit," she said giving him a shy look, "I didn't expect to be first."

  Troy smiled back at her. "Go shower, and then we can eat. I need to make a few phone calls."

  Nadi nodded and got in the shower, and Troy went out and sat on one of the chairs. Pulling out his encrypted cellphone, he hit the speed-dial for SJ.

  "Now what?" his brother said in lieu of a greeting.

  "I'm working a couple of leads, and I think I may have an answer for you in a few days. I just hope it's an answer you want to hear."

  "Yeah, I heard from Dad about your data request."

  "Once I find out where the exits are, I may need some ground-penetrating radar to track down the other end."

  "I was thinking we could just pump 'em full of smoke and see what leaks out."

  "That could be a lot of smoke."

  "True, but it'd be easier than rolling a piece of hardware over the ground."

  "Good point. Now, for the real reason I'm calling..."

  "I'm all ears."

  "Why am I suddenly hot to get married and get a little pride of my own going, and more to the point, why are girls suddenly popping out of the woodwork to volunteer?"

  SJ laughed over the phone.

  "So, have you broached the subject with your new wife yet?"

  "Yeah, and as she's from the Asian subcontinent, it's as much a part of her culture as it is apparently now part of mine, thanks to Dad."

  "Okay. Lycans tend to find mates pretty quickly after they hit twenty, according to Mom. By the time they're twenty-four, most are married and raising a family."

  "And I'm surrounded by a lot of young and available women, got it. But seriously, I'm not one of you lion-gods. Why are they so interested in me?"

  SJ laughed again. "Hate to break it to you, but for all your pranks and foolishness, you, my brother, are a high value male. Your father is pretty much king of the lycans, your grandfather is our god, and you're also a magic user, and the simple fact that you can travel to the mountain on your own means some of what attracts lycans to me, Dad, and Mike is going to be working for you, as well."

  "Okay, any other advice?"

  "Yeah, don't have three. Either two or four. Don't do three."

  "Huh? Why's that?"

  "That's what all the lionesses say, and they've been doing this a lot longer than I have!"

  "Truth. Oh, one last thought occurs to me."

  "And that is?"

  "Why are the djevels buying djinn?"

  "I thought we went over that. To smuggle girls and other people in."

  "But that doesn't make sense. If that were the case, they'd want to buy them on the outside, not the inside. They're being smuggled in to be sold, which would only be important if they were using them to smuggle girls or people out."

  "Maybe they can shrink djevels down to fit in a bottle with a djinn?"

  "I don't know. Something doesn't sound quite right here. I think I need to ask Nadi how that whole bottle thing works."

  "Yeah, maybe I should pay a visit to the three we've got here and ask them as well."

  "Watch out you don't end up with a few more wives!" Troy teased.

  "Actually, I suspect Craig and Ian are going to be checking them out."

  He heard the shower shut off. "Well, I gotta go. Talk to ya later, SJ!"

  "Bye."

  Hanging up, he pulled up Mira's number and sent her a text, letting her know he'd be heading to lunch soon with Nadi, and if she got there first, to find them a table. He put his phone away as Nadi entered the room and started to get dressed.

  "Do you know how to use firearms?" he asked.

  "Umm, no?"

  "Okay, after lunch, we'll hit the range here, and I'll teach you. Now put on something sexy, 'cause I want everyone to know that I got the best wife ever."

  Nadi blushed, but she nodded. She'd packed some of the more flattering outfits she'd bought during their recent shopping trip.

  "Oh, I asked Mira to meet us for lunch."

  "Mira?"

  "She's a cute little wolf-gal I'm working with on this project right now who's expressed a very decided interest."

  "And?"

  "And I want your opinion on her before I even consider bedding her."

  Nadi smiled. Someday, maybe she'd write her mother a letter to let her know what had happened to her 'worthless' daughter. Or better yet, her father.

  "Tell me about her."

  Troy did just that as they walked over to the mess.

  Walking into the mess with his arm around Nadi, he couldn't help but smile. Most of the women here were dressed in fatigues or flight suits. Nadi really was a looker, and a lot of people were looking.

  He led her to the serving line, grabbed two trays, and took her through the line. She didn't grab near as much as he did. He had the typical lycan appetite, after all.

  Looking around, he saw Mira, who waved, and he led the way to the table. Setting down the trays, he smiled and introduced Nadi in a voice he was sure would carry.

  "Mira, this is my wife, Nadi. Nadi, this is Mira. Everyone else, hands to yourself, or I'll rip off your arm and beat you to death with it, just like my old man does."

  "Are you talking about Mira or you wife?" some wiseass muttered.

  "Yes," Troy said, grinning as he seated Nadi across from Mira. He took the seat that put Nadi on his right and Mira on his left.

  "Great, now I'll have an even a harder time getting laid," Mira muttered.

  "Oh, you can come by our room tonight; I'm sure my Troy will be more than happy to give you a workout," Nadi said without looking up, causing Mira, who'd just picked up her drink, to shoot soda out of her nose.

  Troy smirked and picked up his fork.

  "Nadi's a djinn, by the way," he said, like that explained everything.

  Out the corner of his eye, he could see that Nadi was smirking as Mira cleaned up the mess.

  "So, Mira, it's a pleasure to meet you," Nadi said, looking up and smiling at her. "I must say, I find the color of your coat quite lovely. How about you show us your human side, and we can get acquainted?"

  Mira nodded. Troy had to admit, she was even more of a knockout as a human than she was as a wolf hybrid. Most lycans stayed in their hybrid forms when on duty, or out at one of the forts, because of the better hearing, strength, and reflexes. As there weren't a lot of humans at most forts, and those who were there were typically magic users, it'd become fairly commonplace to stay that way. About the only time people were guaranteed to shift into their human forms was when they were showering, as skin was a lot easier to get clean than fur.

  He listened with half an ear as they chatted, and he noticed that Nadi quickly put Mira at ease now that she'd broken the ice with that first comment. They mostly talked girl stuff, which he wasn't terribly interested in. He notice Nadi had some sort of empathy thing going on. He couldn't quite pin it down, but he got the feeling it was magical, a bit like the kind of stuff Mom Jolene and Natalie did. However, he'd slept with enough of Jolene's friends that he knew what tantric magic felt like, and while this felt close to that, it still felt different.

  Then again, Nadi wasn't human, so maybe that was why it felt different?

  Something to worry about for another time.

  "Well, I need to get back to work," Mira said. "Are you going to be there?"

  "No," Troy said with a shake of his head. "I'm going to spend the afternoon teaching Nadi here gun safety and how to shoot."

  "Oh! Okay! I guess I'll see you tomorrow, then."

  "Mira," Nadi said in a soft voice, "come by tonight."

  "Ummm," she said, biting her lower lip nervously.

  "He's really good," Nadi said and winked at her.

  "Okay!" Mira squeaked and quickly left the mess. Troy heard a few snickers as he gathered the dirty trays and dishes, and took them to the cleaning area, before heading out to the range with Nadi.

  "So you liked her?" he asked once they were away from the mess.

  "She wants you. A lot," Nadi said grinning.

  "Yeah, but as just a one night stand, or more than that?"

  "Mira doesn't have much in the way of self-esteem, which I'm sure is what led to that officer taking advantage of her. She likes to show off what she has, and is quick to be bedded, because she wants to belong to someone, which I suspect has gotten her in trouble, as the important men used their position to take advantage of her. She's actually quite smart, but she's afraid to show it."

  "So what do I do?"

  "Take her to bed tonight, have fun, see if you like her. I'll let you know if she likes you."

  "And then what?"

  "Then," Nadi smiled, "make her yours just like you made me yours. Well, maybe a little quicker," she added with a shy smile.

  "Just like that?"

  "Mira needs a man with a strong hand. Once she knows she's found her place, she'll blossom. When you get down to it, she's a wolf, and she needs her alpha, a strong one who'll lay down the law. One who won't be intimidated by her good looks. One who wants her and will keep her."

  He thought about that a moment, then nodded.

  "Now, what other women have expressed an interest, husband?"

  Troy told her all about Healy as they walked the rest of the way to the range. She already knew about Chloë, after all, though he still wasn't sure she was really interested.

  But he intended to find out.

  Progress

  It didn't take him long to teach Nadi all about pistols and rifles. She was an apt student and understood what he told her. While she didn't know how firearms worked, or how to use one, she'd seen them used often enough to understand how devastating they could be.

  She also knew enough about archery to know how to aim a pistol or a rifle. The only thing that took a while was teaching her how to manage the recoil. By the time dinner came around, she'd gotten quite good.

  "Now all I need to do is get Esti and Cali to teach you knife throwing."

  "That sounds like fun," Nadi said, blushing slightly.

  "Yeah, with them, it can be. Now let's clean up and head to dinner."

  "So why did your brother send you here?"

  Troy looked around to make sure no one was nearby before he answered.

  "Okay, this is confidential right now, so don't spread it around."

  "Are you sure you want to tell me, then?" she asked, looking a little concerned.

  "You're family now, Nadi. This is the family business, to put it bluntly. We talk about it with each other, but we're careful about who we discuss certain things with."

  "Okay."

  "We're pretty sure there are lava tubes running under the border in a couple of places, and the djevels have found them and are using them."

  "Lava tubes?"

  "There were volcanoes here a long time ago. Sometimes they leave these big tunnels underground. Those are lava tubes."

  "Oh, okay. And because they're natural, no one knows where they are?"

  "Yup."

  "You think they're smuggling things in and out that way?"

  "Some. You were smuggled in openly because no one knew about the bottles."

  Nadi nodded. "I had most of the girls with me, though they were unconscious at the time."

  "How does that work, anyway?"

  "Well, it's a spell we all know, and we can all do, but we have to prepare the bottle first."

  "Can it be any kind of bottle?"

  "It has to be heavy and well made. Otherwise it could break."

  "What happens if it breaks?"

  "Everyone instantly returns to their full size."

  "That doesn't sound too bad."

  "It is if the bottle's somewhere that isn't large enough for the people inside."

  "Oh."

  "Yes, it's dangerous."

  "Can you get out once you're inside?"

  "Only if the cork is out of the bottle."

  "How hard is it to remove, if it's not?"

  "It depends, but most times, it's not possible."

  "What about food? Air? All that?"

  "It's all part of the spell that prepares the bottle. While you're inside, you don't need to eat or drink. You don't age. You can sleep, but mainly you're just there, with no communication with the outside world."

  "Can you see out of the bottle?"

  "No."

  "What happens if the djinn inside dies?"

  "The spell on the bottle ends, and the bottle shatters."

  "Interesting. What can you take inside with you?"

  Nadi shrugged. "Most anything you can carry, I guess. I never tried to bring anything special inside with me."

  "Djevels?"

  "I don't know about them. Magical creatures can be hard, even impossible to get into a bottle. Things not of our world typically can't. So I'd suspect they couldn't either.