by W. J. May
“I would, too,” he joked as he poured our drinks. His jade green eyes flashed bright in the bar light overhead as he met my gaze. “So, when are we doing breakfast?”
Once, Shaz and I had a routine of going for breakfast every morning. Since I’d started working independently for Veryl, I couldn’t recall the last time I was actually awake during breakfast hours.
“Let’s make it dinner. Why don’t you come by the house one night this week?”
“Are you cooking?” He raised an eyebrow at me skeptically.
“No, I wouldn’t do that to you. We can order in or go out. Maybe Kylarai will want to come.” Kylarai and I share a house on the west side of town. It backs onto a farmer’s field with a tree line of forest only a short run away. It’s a perfect location for wolves.
“Sounds good to me.” He pressed my drink into my hand, and the barest touch of his fingers against mine made the wolf inside me raise its head in recognition. For the briefest moment, our two wolves shared a wet nosed greeting. A longing deep down inside me sought the scent of the forest and the exertion of a good run on all fours.
We’d just left the bar and begun looking for a place to sit near the pool tables, when a few guys sitting nearby beckoned us over. When we ignored them, the ringleader of the three got up and approached us.
“What do you want?” Jez snapped. If he had known that she’d been knuckle deep inside somebody’s spleen tonight, I doubt he would have tried.
“Take it easy, girl. I was just going to ask if you wanted to join us. We have some extra chairs at our table.” He shifted his body in a lame attempt to flex his muscles. I could only imagine how many times he would try this in a night.
“No, thanks,” I said. “We’re fine.”
Jez shot me this look that said she didn’t understand why I bothered trying to be polite. There were a few reasons; one of them was that a bar fight would bring cops, which I didn’t need.
“Come on, ladies. I’ll buy you a drink.” He looked at us expectantly, almost eagerly. Did he not realize that Jez was shooting daggers at him with her eyes?
“Save us the song and dance. You’re wasting your breath here.” I met his eyes when I said it so he’d see that I was serious. However, like most guys his age that are in a bar looking for women, he chose to disregard the fact that we were really not interested.
“Well, you don’t have to be such a bitch about it.” The minute the words left his lips, the energy level surrounding us tightened with the tension. I was suddenly very aware of Arys’s eyes on us from across the room.
“What did you say?” Jez’s tone was frighteningly similar to the one she’d used with Morgan.
“You heard what I said. I’d think you would have been flattered.” His conceited words made me suck in my breath. If only he knew what he was dealing with.
Coolly eyeing the redheaded chick cuddled up with his buddy, she said, “I’ll take her over all of you chumps in a heartbeat.”
Before he could open his mouth again, there was a faintly cool breeze behind me as I felt Arys’s approach. The young man’s egotistical demeanor melted away.
“Is this guy making trouble for you, ladies?” The vampire’s voice was low and velvety.
“No, Arys. It’s fine.” I said. “He was just walking away.” I gave Arys an irritated look that he chose to ignore. I didn’t need him coming to my aid. Not this again.
He said nothing, but I knew he’d heard me even if he wanted to pretend he didn’t. He’d already gotten into a brawl here with a man who’d been dumb enough to drunkenly grab at me a few months back. That man hadn’t been seen here since. Suspicious. I wasn’t planning to make a habit of letting Arys save the damsel in distress.
“It isn’t in my nature to allow a lady to be threatened.” Arys looked directly at the guy who lifted his hands in surrender and quickly returned to his table.
“I’m not threatened, and nobody is threatening.” My voice was flat. I meant it. I hate being treated as a weak female. I might be five foot one and counting, but that doesn’t mean shit when it comes to what really makes you tough.
Arys stared down at me for a long moment before giving me a curt nod. Things were different with him than with most people. He was neither wolf nor human, the two things I knew best, and I found these situations uneasy. We were left to stare at one another like two dogs unsure of whether to wag tails or tear each other apart.
“Oh, come on you two, give it a rest. Alexa, you’re so damn stubborn.” Jez shook her head at me and took a long swallow from her glass while I wondered who the hell she was to talk. “What’s wrong with allowing a man to defend your honor once in a while?”
I had no response to that. Hesitantly, I reached out a hand but didn’t quite touch Arys’s bare forearm. His aura was warm, and I could feel his power beneath my fingertips. He blinked dark ocean eyes at me, and I almost expected some kind of displeasure in his expression. Instead, his gaze remained calm and cool.
After a moment, he chuckled and said, “Damn Alexa, you should have been a vampire.”
I wasn’t sure if that was an insult or a compliment. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”
As the words left my lips, my cell phone rang. A glance at the caller I.D. revealed it was Raoul. What could he possibly want?
He knew damn well that I had nothing to say to him. I debated whether or not to answer, but it gave me an excuse to momentarily avoid the awkward tension of the situation at hand.
“What do you want?” I growled into the slim silver phone.
“A ride, actually. If you don’t mind coming down to the police station.” The strain in Raoul’s voice was evident. His wolf was clearly pressing the boundaries of his control.
Arys watched me silently while Jez’s eyes were all questions, all curious cat. I suddenly needed some fresh air.
Chapter Three
Stony Plain only has one police precinct. Just my luck, it was on the same side of town as Lucy’s Lounge. I took my sweet time getting over to the cop shop. My heart was pounding before I’d even left the Lucy’s parking lot.
I wasn’t fond of dealing with either Raoul or the cops. Even when I wasn’t doing a damn thing wrong, I felt like they were picking me apart, searching for something to pin on me. That went equally for the police and my former Alpha.
The Stony Plain precinct was relatively small. It didn’t have much in the way of imprisonment other than a few holding cells. This wasn’t a high crime town. Vandalism and theft was the worst of what we see here, another reason the little town was home. Chances were good that, whatever pathetic little cell they had Raoul in, it had seen more drunk-tank guests than true criminals.
I parked a block away and used the extra walking distance to gain a few added minutes to gather myself. The air smelled faintly of rain, a shower before morning. A red flag waved in my brain, and I questioned if I’d been dumb enough to leave the sunroof open on the car. I considered turning back to double check, but I knew I was just avoiding the awkward moment. I just needed to get this errand over.
I couldn’t imagine what Raoul had done to get arrested. Though, if I had to take a guess, I’d angle toward tax fraud or some kind of international embezzlement. With his love for money and toys, a financial crime seemed most likely.
Of course, he didn’t need money. After fifteen years in real estate, he surpassed the million dollar net margin easily though I didn’t know to what extent. So, I could only wonder what he’d been up to and why he’d called me to pick up his sorry ass.
We’d always had this one-sided relationship. He couldn’t be counted on for a damn thing while I’d constantly been left to pick up the slack. Yet another of the many reasons that I’d packed up years ago and moved across town.
To be fair, it’s not that Raoul is all bad. He took in both Shaz and I. He gave us a pack, a sense of belonging. The seventeen year age difference between Raoul and I cast him in the illusive glow of a leader that I could look to for
guidance. By the time I moved out of his house, I had learned more about sex and bloodshed than living with my dual nature. Raoul was a manipulative player, and I couldn’t take anymore of his bull.
I’d come to a point where I had to assume there was more to being a werewolf than I’d ever learn from Raoul. Of course, I was right. While he counted daily earnings and bedded multiple partners, I ran through the forest on four legs with the moon pulsing in my veins.
It was impossible to avoid someone completely in a town this size, but I’d done a pretty good job so far. The last time he’d bothered me was a few months earlier when he had asked me to run with him. I ran as wolf in the forest behind my house several times throughout the week. Knowing what he really meant, I had promptly told him to get acquainted with his hand.
I squinted in the harsh light as I stepped from the shadows to the cornea-bursting, fluorescent lighting. The first door led me into a very small hallway with a locked security door at the other end. Beyond that was the receptionist behind yet another layer of bulletproof glass.
A bright red, arrow-shaped sign clearly pointed out the button that I should push in order to ask for admittance. The woman eyed me from behind the safety glass. Despite having already noticed me, she waited to acknowledge me.
I rolled my eyes and tried to resist a glance down at my casual jeans and tank top attire. They weren’t even dirty after the struggle with the vampire. I didn’t think I looked like a hooligan, but the sharp once over she gave me led me to wonder. Well, my tank top did read, “This is so not my eyes,” across my chest in big red letters.
What did she know? I thought smugly as I drew myself up to my full height plus the four-inch boot heels. I fixed her with a direct stare as I jabbed a finger at the button. There, I pressed it. Now let me in! I wasn’t about to be intimidated by some old lady behind a desk.
After an unnecessarily long moment of consideration, she gave in and pressed the door release. Great, now I had to talk to her.
The station was even smaller inside than I expected. I entered a small room and the heavy door slammed shut behind me. The lock clicked, and I realized that one must be let out manually as well. Nice.
I didn’t hesitate in approaching the woman, who glowered at me as if I’d eaten her Grandma. I pulled my driver’s license from my wallet and slid it through the small hole in the window. I just assumed she’d request it.
“My name is Alexa O’Brien.” I gestured to my I.D. card lying between us. I’d always thought that photo looked like a mug shot. “I’m here to pick up Raoul Roberts.”
She cast a glance at my identification and shrugged as she picked it up. “Just a moment.” With another suspicious glance, she’d moved down a hall to the right, beyond my view.
The quiet was deafening. I tapped my nails on the counter to break the silence, and then I chewed on a pinky nail in annoyance. This had better be good, I thought. If Raoul called me here over something stupid like a DUI, I was going to break his nose. If anything, he probably deserved to stay locked up.
The energy shifted, and I sensed their approach before the big man in uniform appeared from the hall. The incredibly depressing receptionist followed and twirled a strand of greying hair between her fingers. She still clutched my I.D. between her fingers, and I extended a hand to indicate that I wanted it.
Her gaze went first to the officer, who stood a full head taller than either of us was. At his nod, she dropped it within my reach.
“Ms. O’Brien, hello. I’m Constable Avery.” He moved immediately to open the high security door and ushered me into the station.
Constable Avery was in his early fifties or so. He had a fit football player’s build that had softened only slightly with time. His hair was cropped short, and his moustache was more grey than brown. Despite the gun at his hip, his crystal blue eyes were serious but friendly.
“Pleased to meet you.” I accepted his offered hand. He judged my handshake as flimsy, but, if I’d been there to out strength him, I could have crushed his fingers with minimal effort.
“And you are Mr. Roberts’s…?” The question hung between us, which left me to fill in the blank.
“Colleague.” The word just popped out. The last thing I wanted was for anyone to assume more than that. “I’m a close friend and colleague.”
“Alright.” He gave me a quick once over and decided that I wasn’t much of a threat. “Why don’t you come on back while I finish up with some paperwork?”
His quick dismissal ticked me off, but I knew it wasn’t personal. If he’d known that I could gut him with my fingers alone, I doubt he would have been so willing to turn his back on me.
I followed him past a series of rooms until they gave way to offices. The majority were empty at this time of night, save one. A uniformed officer spoke loudly into the phone, oblivious to our passing.
“I don’t give a rat’s ass, Jim!” Her voice dropped in pitch when she said, “If you blow this case for me, I’ll bust your balls from here to Timbuktu.”
I smirked but resisted the urge to laugh. A lady needed special skills to work in an industry like law enforcement.
The last two doors were heavy iron with a safety glass window. Inside, Raoul sat at a small table, alone in the windowless room. He clutched a Styrofoam cup of coffee, but he didn’t show much interest in it. He just stared straight ahead and drummed his fingers on the tabletop, while he whistled a jaunty tune. To me, this attempt at keeping his cool revealed exactly how close he was to turning wolf on these people and tearing a few faces off.
I did not hide my smirk when Constable Avery turned a key in the lock and swung the door open. I had a good mind to go in there clucking away like a distraught wife, just to embarrass him further.
His expression clearly stated that he was more than ready to leave. I noted how his first response was to glare at me, then Constable Avery.
I raised a questioning eyebrow and rested one hand on my hip. I stopped just inside the doorway. Coal black eyes fixed on me, Raoul raised the corner of his top lip in the hint of a snarl.
For someone who wanted my help, he sure wasn’t doing a good job of making me feel especially giving. This was a complete joke.
Black hair hung long around Raoul’s face. He’d gotten a trendy cut since I’d seen him last. It now rested just above his shoulders rather than well below. He looked damn good, as much as I hated to think so. His wide shoulders were squared, and he looked tightly wound, as if braced for trouble. He wore his usual dark suit, Armani or something equally pricey. My senses thrilled at his heady wolf scent mixed with aftershave.
A frown creased my brow. Why had I even agreed to come here? Was there really nobody else he could call for this? I’d bet my money that he had several women who would be more than willing to waste their time with this crap. Why me?
Avery lingered near the door as if awaiting my cue for him to leave us.
“Is he being charged with anything?” I asked outright. It earned me a grimace from Avery and a death glare from Raoul.
“No, not at the moment.” Avery crossed his arms over his massive chest and looked down at me from his six-foot-plus frame.
“Then may we have a moment alone?” I followed up with a quick smile.
His eyes darted between Raoul and me as if weighing the odds of it being a bad idea. “I’ll be right across the hall.”
I knew he granted us the illusion of privacy, but it worked fine for me. I wasn’t the one sitting in the hot seat.
“You want to tell me what I’m doing here at this hour of night?” I said when Avery left. “What did you do? Sell someone a shit shack and convince them it was a castle?”
“You’re not funny, Alexa.” He sat back in his chair and crossed one leg smoothly over the other. Raoul looked no less masculine for it. He made a show of fussing with the crease in his pants to avoid meeting my eyes.
“I’m waiting.” I crossed my arms and tapped my foot in an exaggerated display of impatience.
“Julie Price was murdered last night. I was taken in as a suspect due to my previous relationship with her.” He cleared his throat and dared me to make assumptions.
“And? If they’re letting you out, then obviously, you got away with it.” My lips quirked, but I maintained a straight face.
The look he shot me was absolutely murderous. Risking a glance at the open door, he growled. It was so low that it reached only my sensitive ears. My defenses kicked into overdrive, my instincts instantly went on full alert.
Ok, maybe I shouldn’t have said that with a cop within earshot, but Raoul needed to know I wasn’t at his beck and call. I hadn’t been that girl for a long time.
Julie Price, I’d heard the name once or twice before. She had worked for the same real estate company as Raoul. The two became lovers, as was the usual for a guy like him, but it had ended some time last year. If I recalled correctly, they’d broken it off when her husband discovered the affair. That had been months ago.
“Alright,” I sighed and shuffled my feet. I refused to take the empty seat across from him. “Give me the low down.”
The look he shot at me oozed venom. “I didn’t do it.” He spoke through clenched teeth. “As of right now, I’m being released simply because they can’t prove it was me. But, considering they can’t verify my alibi, I’m still under scrutiny.”
“Why can’t they verify your alibi?” I had a few of my own sneaking suspicions why, but I wanted to hear it from him.
He glanced across the hall through the open door, cleared his throat and picked away at the edge of his coffee cup. “I was with Belle.”
Well, that explained it, alright. Belle Listand was nothing but trouble. A mid-thirties werewolf with a fondness for sins of the flesh, she was on my list of least favorite people. Her elderly husband had been ailing for more than a year now. Since he had no living offspring and a whole lot of money in oil, she went to great lengths to keep him in the dark about her many affairs. The old guy had no clue, neither that she spent her nights with other men, rather than in her grand rooms on his sprawling estate, nor that she occasionally ran on four legs and howled at the moon.
