Max gave James a three day timeline to get back with him. If he didn't get back to him within that time, then the deal was off. Max would then have to find the man himself, putting his life at more risk than he would have liked.

By the middle of the third day, James called with some news. It turned out that Max was right and Jackson wasn't keeping Joe in his compound and was instead having him stay at one of his Captain's properties within their territory. James said he wasn't sure about how many guards the man would have, but Max predicted there would at least be one Captain and two Frontlinesmen.

The two hang up without any unnecessary words exchanged.

Max sat going over everything that James had told him. He made his way to Amanda's room for her laptop. Google maps did wonders for planning out a course. He wanted to be as familiar with the layout in Jackson's territory as possible before heading out. The fewer surprises, the better.

He opened the computer and got to work. The majority of Jackson's territory was in the city, with a few larger homes on the city's outskirts. That was where they usually transformed. Each home had around thirty acres, which might be a bit small for some packs, but for Jackson's, it was more than enough space.

Since Jackson didn't have a bunch of territory, it made it more difficult to sneak around uninvited. His city territory wasn't large at all, with most of it being residential apartments. He had a few businesses, some restaurants, a few laundry mats and a couple other miscellaneous shops. Most were pack owned, though there were a few that were owned by humans that were, if not loyal to the pack, at least aware to some extent of its existence. Whether that meant they knew about them being werewolves, or if they only thought of them as the residential gang, Max wasn't sure. Most people assumed that's what a pack was, a gang.

In some ways, it was a pretty accurate representation. In others, they couldn't be more different.

Some packs delved into crime and drugs, but most tried to keep their businesses pretty well within the confines of the law. You didn't want to end up in jail or prison as a werewolf. That was a good way to get you killed.

Most of the time, there would end up being a stabbing that claimed the werewolf's life, probably paid and orchestrated by one of the Five Packs.

The Five packs were the largest packs in the world and their territories overlapped a lot of other packs territories. It wasn't really their territories that overlapped; it was just that they were responsible for keeping the other packs in their area from exposing and threatening the werewolf population. They had contacts in the Witch's counsel and in the Human and Succubus communities that all worked to keep harmony.

Of course, this didn't mean that everything was happy go lucky in regards to the races relations. This was just a way to keep things from escalating too far. Werewolves were still predators that hunted other races, Witches were still self righteous pricks that thought they were above everyone else, Human's were still in control of the majority of the world and Succubi….well they still conformed to their own rules and regulations, many of which could be seen as "inhumane" by other's standards.

Max pulled up the address that James gave him. It was an apartment building, much to Max's annoyance. He had hoped that since the one that was protecting him was probably a Captain, then he'd have a separate residence instead of an apartment.

Max sighed and ran his hand down his face. This job was already giving him a headache.

He started searching through the surrounding buildings and businesses. He sat there, going over the layout of Jackson's territory; he heard the front door open as Amanda came home. He paid her little attention as he continued to sit, trying to plan out his course.

Amanda glanced at him as she strode to her room. She paused in the kitchen before backtracking to stand beside the couch. She watched Max for a while, pursing her lips.

"Is that my laptop?"

Max didn't seem to hear Amanda's question; he continued to take notes.

Amanda rolled her eyes and began to move away, but stopped short and turned back to Max. She hesitated for a moment before stepping closer with a determined expression. She stood next to Max with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Max, are you listening?"

Max still didn't reply. Instead, his brows pulled together as he turned to look at her. Amanda felt her chest constrict ever so slightly. Even if she had no reason to be frightened, Max still scared her. She was apprehensive about confronting him. It wasn't a big deal, she didn't actually care that he was using her laptop; she just wanted him to acknowledge her.

To say something, ask for something.

He narrowed his eyes.

Amanda felt her heart rate quicken ever so slightly. His eyes traveled over her in a suspicious manner. He motioned for her to lean closer. She didn't know why she listened. As she leaned down, Max sniffed her. A frown came to his lips, though it was subtle enough that most would not notice.

"Did you go out again last night?" He asked.

It was Amanda's turn not to answer.

Confusion blanketed her face. Max looked her over one last time, then his brows and frown relaxed as he turned back to the computer screen.

"You smell like alcohol."

Amanda stood in mild shock before turning in a huff to walk away. Her footsteps were heavier than usual as she made her way back to her room.

She pulled off her uniform in irritation and threw on a pair of pajamas. She made to sit on her bed, picking up her phone to scroll through its contents, before abandoning the idea and striding back to her bedroom door.

She wasn't going to let him treat her like this. Who did he think he was, trying to judge her? She stopped short when she saw that he was no longer sitting in the living room. Her laptop was there, though whatever had been open previously on the screen was now closed. Her screen saver began to take over.

She looked up as she heard Max's door open. He had a bag slung over his shoulder and barely glanced at her before heading to the front door.

Flustered, Amanda asked, "Where are you going?"

Max spoke as he pulled his shoes on. "Got a job."

Amanda struggled to find the words as Max stood and began heading out the door. Finally, she spoke up as he stepped out.

"Wait!"

Max slowed, glancing at her from the corner of his eye. Amanda steeled herself and said in what she hoped was a confident and strong voice.

"Make sure you have your key." Before Max could say anything, she continued. "I'm probably going to end up going out again tonight so I might not get back until after you."

Max's brow lifted slightly as his eyes darted across her body, taking in the over sized pajama pants and large ratty man's shirt. His gaze met hers and she felt her face grow just a bit warm from embarrassment from the obvious lie.

He nodded.

"Okay."

Then stepped out into the hall. Amanda stood for a few minutes, gritting her teeth in anger and embarrassment. Damn it, she needed to get over this kid.