Wild Keepers

by Dee Bridgnorth

  The man in the car adjusted the phone. “What is the follow-up, then?”

  “Nothing,” said the man, breathing deeply. “I will keep an eye on them. Possibly tomorrow I will send you out to follow them again. You can go home.” The line went dead.

  The man sighed, tossing the phone onto the console. Then he started the engine and pulled out into the night traffic. His instinct was to follow one of them, but the boss had been adamant. And it had been a long day, after all.

  The man indicated right and turned toward the city. It had been a surprise to see the two of them together, and he had let the boss know immediately. Were they working together to sabotage the operation? It looked like it. But the operation was water tight, and they would deal with this like so much else.

  Mr Stedman and Miss Daly—or whoever they were—would keep. For now.

  Chapter Seven

  Tess leaned over the canvas, applying a few perfunctory strokes. She had been lagging the whole of this morning, and no matter how much she tried to will herself to focus, it just didn’t seem to be happening.

  She put down the brush, staring out the window. She knew that the cameras would be watching, and noting, if she took any unscheduled breaks, but for now she simply didn’t care. She was still processing the shock of it all.

  Finding out that it had been Shay tailing her. Seeing him again after all these years.

  She could still see him, sitting across from her, in that rundown diner. Pleading with her to see him again. She frowned, slightly, staring at the building opposite without really seeing it. She was appalled to see that she was shaking again, just thinking about him.

  Shay Sullivan. The average boy, who had always hung around her, willing her to notice him. The average boy who had wanted to go to law school. And look at him now. A mover of counterfeit art. A path as removed from his first passion as it was possible to get. How had he gone so wrong?

  She had been shocked when he had told her that they were working for the same employer. And the way that he had said it—so casual, as if they were discussing the fact that they were both fast food employees. As if it was nothing out of the ordinary. As if she should have suspected that he would turn into a low-rent criminal.

  She frowned, staring down at her paint brush. But then, Shay didn’t realise, did he? That she wasn’t what she appeared to be. He assumed that she was the same as him; a career criminal. It was normal for him, obviously.

  Tess still couldn’t quite believe that Shay had turned out that way. Even though he had disappointed her that awful night, and deserted her and Eric, she must have thought that deep down he was still an okay guy. That he still had a moral compass somewhere inside.

  She had been wrong. And she was surprised at how bitterly disappointed she was to have found that out. If only he hadn’t followed her. If only she hadn’t decided to confront him. She would never have known what he now was; how low he had sunk. Had it been that awful night, and Eric’s death, that had changed him so fundamentally?

  It was sad, really. Shay had a promising future. He was a clever guy, and could have become a first-rate lawyer. He could have used that intelligence for good; he could have helped people get justice. And all that potential had been squandered.

  Tess stood up and restlessly walked around the studio. She checked her watch. Almost twelve. Mr. Gee would be here soon, as always. She might as well make herself an early lunch. It wasn’t as if she was progressing on the painting that well in her current state of mind, anyway.

  She walked to the kitchenette and got out bread, some cheese and tomatoes. A toasted sandwich would be good. She would have preferred to get out and go to the café across the road, stretch her legs a bit, but she was a bit apprehensive that Shay might be there. Waiting for her. And she really didn’t know what she would do if she saw him, right now.

  She needed time to process it.

  As soon as she had gotten home the night before she had called Paul Hopkins, her immediate superior on this case. The one that she reported to every night. Yes, she had just met with him and Mr. Walker that night for dinner, but this was out of the ordinary, and she needed advice as to what to do.

  A part of her had hesitated, of course. Some residual loyalty to the boy that Shay had once been, perhaps. But then she had squared her shoulders and taken a deep breath. That boy no longer existed. Shay had turned into a man who worked for this organisation. He was a criminal. And this was her job, after all.

  Paul had picked up on the second ring. “Tess. Is something wrong?”

  She had taken another deep breath. “There’s been an unusual development.”

  A pause. “What is it?”

  “I didn’t tell you at dinner,” she said slowly. “But I was being tailed. And when I left the restaurant I knew it was the same person following me. I decided to confront the man, and it turned out to be a guy I knew many years ago. At high school.”

  She could hear a hiss on the other end of the line. “Some guy you knew at high school is stalking you?”

  “I thought so,” she said. “I mean yes, he was. It’s him, absolutely. But there’s more to it than that. This guy followed me because he recognised me when he was tailing our Mr. Gee. He’s just started working for the organisation, too, and was trying to find out if Mr. Gee was trustworthy, apparently.”

  “Okay,” said Paul, slowly. “I think I am following you. This guy you knew at school was just innocently trying to touch base with you and thought stalking would be the way to go? And he’s a criminal on top of that?”

  Tess laughed shakily. “It seems so. Although my relationship with him was complicated back then. We lost touch, but we have a history. He’s not just someone who stared at me at the back of gym class that I’ve never spoken to in my life.”

  “You were friends?” There was a pause. “Or more?”

  “Just friends.” Tess walked slowly over to the living room window. It was true, wasn’t it? She and Shay had been friends, once upon a time. Before Eric had happened. She had even sometimes gotten the impression that he had a crush on her, the way that he used to hang around her all the time. But he had never once made a move on her.

  He had just been one of the gang; a fluid group of friends who would hang in the cafeteria at lunch, or by the benches near the football field. Just a friend. Until they weren’t anymore.

  Her hand gripped the phone harder. For the first time, she let herself feel that loss. She had been so caught up in grieving Eric and blaming Shay for what had happened that she had never acknowledged that she had mourned the loss of him as well. That she had missed him.

  And now, he had suddenly re-appeared in her life. But he wasn’t the boy he once was. No, he was a man now. A very attractive man. A man so attractive, in fact, that her heart beat a little faster even thinking of him. She had always known that he was good looking, but she had never really felt it before. Shay had been in an awkward, gangly phase back then. And, of course, she had been in love with Eric.

  Tess sighed, impatiently. What was she doing? It didn’t matter how attractive Shay Sullivan had turned out. He was a criminal, and part of the network of criminals she was working hard to capture. She needed to focus!

  “Okay.” Paul Hopkin’s voice was smooth. “This can be used to our advantage, Tess. Was he willing to share information with you?”

  “Yes,” said Tess, frowning. “In fact, he volunteered it. He could have just made out that he was following me because he saw me randomly in the city, but he was upfront about the fact he was working for them, and that he knew I was, too.”

  “Did he talk about the organisation at length?”

  “No.” Tess sighed again. “The conversation veered. Stuff from the past.”

  “Are you able to get in contact with him again?”

  Tess smiled grimly. “I walked out telling him I never wanted to see him again. But he insisted on giving me a card with his number on it and told me to call him.”

  “Good.”
Paul hesitated for a moment. “I want you to call him and arrange another meeting. Tell him you’ve changed your mind about him, or whatever. He sounds keen to see you. Then try to get as much information out of him as you can.”

  Tess frowned. “I’m not sure if he knows that much. He’s a hired hand, just like me. He claimed that he was tailing Mr. Gee to find out more about him. It mightn’t be very useful, Paul.” She gripped the phone tighter. The thought of having to contact Shay again made her stomach churn.

  “You don’t know that for sure,” Paul countered. “In fact, you don’t know anything about what this guy’s agenda might be. We must explore all avenues, Tess. What has he been hired for?”

  “Moving the art offshore,” she replied. “Distribution.”

  “Good.” Paul’s voice became more definite. “I want you to call him tomorrow and arrange a meeting. It mightn’t lead anywhere as you say, but it is worth investigating. Anything else?”

  “No, that’s it.”

  “Goodnight then, Tess.” The phone line had gone dead.

  Tess made her toasted sandwich and sat at the kitchen island bench to eat it. She felt ambivalent about contacting Shay again, to say the least. A part of her regretted that she had even told Paul Hopkin’s about him. If she hadn’t, she could have tossed his card in the bin and put him out of her life once and for all.

  She finished her sandwich, and took the plate to the sink, sighing. That was never going to happen, of course. The investigator in her knew that Shay was a potential lead as much as Paul Hopkins had. She was always going to call him and try to get more information from him. It was what a good FBI agent did. And she intended to be not only good, but the best.

  Shay. Even the thought of him made her shiver slightly. In a good way or a bad way? It was hard to tell anymore. She glanced up at the wall clock above the kitchen bench. Mr. Gee was still another ten minutes away. Enough time to make her call and arrange a meeting with Shay.

  Tess rummaged through her bag and found the card he had given her, slipping it surreptitiously into her pocket. She walked into the bathroom cubicle and took her phone out of the same pocket. She couldn’t make the call where the cameras were. They might be super sensitive and even be able to pick up on the conversation. No, the bathroom was the safest place in this studio.

  With slightly shaking fingers, she punched the number into her phone, and heard it connect.

  ***

  Shay pressed end on the call, his heart thumping wildly. He put down his phone, staring around at the warehouse without really taking anything in.

  Tess. He still couldn’t believe that she had actually called him, and not only that, she wanted to meet. He had been so sure that he would never hear from her again. Why had she changed her mind about him?

  He hadn’t wanted to push it by asking; he felt as if he were dealing with something so fragile that a slightly wrong word or pause might shatter it into a thousand pieces. He hadn’t said much, come to think of it. He had agreed to the meeting place and time, and she hadn’t wanted to chat any further. In fact, she sounded like she was in a hurry and ended the call abruptly.

  “Any developments in the case?” Thad’s voice interrupted his reverie with a jolt.

  Shay turned and stared at the alpha leader, who looked like he was just about to head out for the afternoon. What should he tell him? Normally, he would say everything about what had happened so far. But the fact that Tess was involved in all this complicated everything. He supposed he shouldn’t be surprised that his instinct was still to protect her, even though she was now a criminal.

  Once a lovestruck fool always a lovestruck fool, he thought, a little bitterly.

  “Some,” he answered.

  Thad stared at him. “Let’s head out for a bite to eat and you can tell me all about it.”

  They left the warehouse, heading towards one of Thad’s favourite burger joints. The alpha leader seemed to realise that Shay didn’t want to speak yet. As soon as they were settled at a table and placed their order, Thad turned to him.

  “Spill the beans,” he said, gazing at Shay intently. “Something is eating at you, I can tell.”

  Shay sighed, deeply. It seemed that nothing got past Thad. He struggled to formulate what he would say. Thankfully, their burgers arrived, and they were both distracted.

  As soon as he had finished his last mouthful, Thad stared at Shay again. “Come on, man. I know that something is up, and you need to tell me. It’s what I am here for, after all.”

  Shay wiped his mouth with his napkin then threw it onto the table.

  “Okay,” he said, taking a deep breath. “It seems that a girl I once knew is involved with this. And it’s not good.”

  Thad gazed at him. “A girl? Did you know her well?”

  Shay sighed again. “Once I did,” he answered. “At high school, many years ago. We used to be friends, until something happened. And then we never spoke again.” He took a deep breath. “It’s complicated.”

  Thad raised an eyebrow. “I am guessing that your feelings for this girl run a little deeper than what you are saying. Am I right?”

  Shay laughed. “How do you do that? But yes, you are right. I was in love with her, but she never noticed me. She was in love with my best friend, who ended up dying in a strange way. We were both there the night that he died, and she still blames me for it.” Shay looked down at the table, the laughter dried up. Even talking in such a stilted way about it all hurt. It hurt badly.

  A quick synopsis of the tragedy of his life. It couldn’t hope to capture the pain of it all.

  “Whoa.” Thad stared at him. “That’s intense. Why have you never told me about this before?”

  Shay stared out the window. “Because it’s hard to talk about it. And what point is there, anyway? It happened so many years ago, and I can’t change any of it.” He took a deep breath. “I’ve been trying to deal with it. Move on.”

  Thad nodded. “Yeah, I get that. But it seems that you haven’t moved on, have you? In fact, I’d bet my bottom dollar that is the reason for the revolving door of girls in your life, and your fondness for a night on the town.” He paused. “Have I hit the nail on the head?”

  Shay stared at him. “Maybe. I haven’t really thought about it like that.”

  “Sure you have.” Thad took a long sip of his soda. “You know, deep down. But it’s been easier to do what you’ve been doing. It takes away the pain…at least for a little while.” He stared at Shay. “Are you still in love with this girl?”

  Shay blinked away tears. “Yes. I think I’ll always love her. But I haven’t seen her since high school, and now…”

  “And now she’s a criminal,” Thad finished for him. “Are you sure she’s involved with this?”

  Shay nodded. “I’m sure. She admitted it…after I told her I was working for the same people. She’s an art forger. She was always a talented painter.” He looked down at the table. “She could have been a great artist in her own right. But instead she’s doing this, for easy money. She’s not the girl that I knew all those years ago.”

  “That’s tough,” said Thad. “I feel for you, buddy. Do you want me to take you off the case? I would understand that it’s too close to the bone. Noah should be available by the end of this week, and I could get him to step in for you.”

  Shay stared at Thad. What did he want?

  In one sense, it would be a relief to hand the case over to someone else. He would never have to know what happened to Tess, and he could tell himself that whatever did happen wasn’t his responsibility. He could go back to his old life, and pretend that he had never seen her again. Patch himself up and move on, just the same as he always did. Except the patches never worked, and he didn’t move on. Thad was right. He had never let go of it all. His bender last week proved that.

  He took a deep breath. This was painful. More painful than anything. He didn’t have any terms of reference for it; how did someone work a case where the woman they loved w
as involved? If he managed to stitch it up, it would be the end of her career as a forger. And she would probably end up in jail. How could he do that to her? Especially after everything that had happened all those years ago.

  But then…perhaps he owed it to her, to be the one. Perhaps she might even thank him for it, after the dust had settled. Perhaps she didn’t really enjoy the life she had chosen, and had only done it as a reaction to the trauma of that night and Eric’s death. Perhaps he would be doing her a favour.

  Perhaps he might get the closure he so desperately needed. And so would she.

  He owed it to everyone to see this through, however painful.

  “No,” he said, slowly. “I want to keep working the case. I need to.”

  Thad frowned. “I’m not sure if that is a good idea, Shay,” he said. “You are involved with this woman, who happens to be a part of it. Even though you haven’t seen her in years, you’ve admitted you still love her. That could compromise your work.”

  “It won’t,” said Shay. “I would be doing her a favour. She needs to be held accountable for her actions along with everybody else. I am a shifter, Thad. This is my job. This is what I do. Saving the city from the demons. I won’t let personal feelings sway me from that.”

  Thad stared at him, hard. “Okay,” he said. “But if I suspect even for a second that you are too conflicted to do your job properly, I’ll take you off it.” He paused. “Give me the rundown on what you know so far. There mightn’t be Vilgath involvement in this anyway, and then you can bow out of it and let the regular police do their work.”

  Shay took a deep breath. “Yes, you’re right, there mightn’t be demons involved in it. It’s too soon to tell.” He exhaled. “Tess is one of many artists working in the city. Her employer sets them up in studio apartments. The middle man, Mr. Gee, told me that it’s a two-tier operation: the first forges priceless art, like the Van Gogh, and the second forges less well-known but still expensive art, shipping them around the world to private buyers and galleries.”