by Celia Kyle
This is Inspector Paul Keenan. I’m unavailable at the moment, but your call is important to me. Please leave your number…
Was she listening to the voice of a dead man? The thought made her shudder, and she stuffed her phone away. She crouched with her back to the wall and put her hands to her cheeks. It was time to come to grips with the fact that she was excitable. This wouldn’t be the first time she’d whipped herself up over nothing.
Any number of things could have kept him away, and none of them would find him bundled into the bowels of the Sanguine Sea. Still, she couldn’t help herself. Friends were a rare commodity in Aurora’s life, and she couldn’t help fearing she’d lost one.
It’s okay, she told herself. Everything is going to be okay.
So why didn’t it feel that way?
Twenty
In true fashion, Hollow House had dimmed and cozied up around them. Where doors usually hung, red velvet curtains deepened the sense of opulence. Sconces were replaced with burning tapers, and even the faint trickle of a fountain called out to them from somewhere deep in the house.
This place is laying the romance on thick.
Not that Aurora minded.
The tongue-in-cheek splendor to all of it was irresistible. It made their leisurely evening just a wee bit more fun. Not that she needed a nudge to have fun with this werewolf who pursued her with cautious steps. He was working overtime to embody the picture of composure.
Except for his newfound habit of trying out different pet names and peppering them into his conversation. Eventually, one was bound to stick, but the exercise of it was playful and disarming. When he’d ventured upon “Pookie,” Aurora had reeled off a cackle unlike any that she could remember. She laughed so hard she’d nearly spilled her wine.
At last, she’d truly begun to settle into his company. It didn’t hurt matters any that he had stepped back a bit from his full-court-press brand of wooing. No doubt, if it had been up to him, they would have been screaming through the night on a motorcycle or something. What they settled on was far more her speed.
Time cuddled with Dane on the sofa was doing the right amount of work to dispel the clouds hanging in her mind. He was good that way. As gentle as he was with her, an undeniable wildness about him made her question exactly how he got to be a judge in the first place.
“I mean, I thought members of the National Ruling Council were supposed to be level-headed.”
“Are you saying I’m not?” He grinned at her, obviously taking wicked glee in catching her out.
Instead of backing down, she rose to the bait. “You know what? Yeah! That’s exactly what I’m saying.”
“Oh, wow!” He tipped back his head and let out a throaty bellow of laughter. She admired the lines of his neck as he did. “You’re something else, Rory. You know that?”
“Uh, no,” she said with a good-natured wince.
“What?”
“Rory. Ugh. My mother calls me that and it always makes me feel like I’m six.”
“Noted,” he said, raising his hands in mock surrender. “The bridge too far.”
“It sure turned out to be. Not that I’d ever say that to my mother. You know something terrible? I made the mistake of telling one of the other juniors about it and now they do it all the time.”
“They do?”
“Oh, yeah. It’s a pretty nasty place most of the time. I was fool enough to hand them the ammunition. They can be pretty rough on each other, but it feels like they go out of their way to get under my skin.”
“Nasty little pricks. Want me to go beat them up?”
He was smiling, but she could never quite tell if he meant that kind of thing or not.
“I’d rather you stayed here with me.” The words caught on the ends of her lips.
“You know what? Me too.”
Missing the deeper implication behind her words, he reached over and picked up the bottle of wine from the coffee table. Breezily leaning over and refilling her glass, he barely seemed to notice that she was silently fretting. Only when he was filling his own did he appear to register she had gone quiet. “Everything all right?”
“Yeah, it’s just… Nothing.”
“Oh, really?” He laughed again, putting the bottle back. Her legs were over his lap, and he shook her by an ankle. “It’s never nothing with a busy mind like yours. Tell me. So long as it isn’t work,” he pointed a playful warning finger at her.
“No, not work.” Taking another sip, she edged her way into the thing that had been underpinning so much of their time together. “I’ve been wondering... when are you going back to Florida?”
The question seemed to hit him square between the eyes, and he shook his head. “What do you mean?”
“Now that the trial has been scrapped, aren’t you going back home?”
“Why would I?” He put his glass down and took her hand in his. “Aurora, I’m not going anywhere without you. So until you make up your mind, I’m staying right here in Othercross. And if that’s forever, then I’ll be happy.” He leaned in to emphasize the point with his eyes. “I would never willingly leave you.”
She dropped her head sideways onto the cushions and gazed at him. It was the perfect answer, and it melted a bit of the shield she kept around her heart.
He’s perfect.
Dane clearly wasn’t a patient man, but he was learning what it meant to wait. She was teaching him. Not only that, but she was learning a lot herself. He was showing her how easy it could be to fall and fall quite hard. More than anything, she knew she could trust him. And in a world where trust was something she’d come to guard like gold, that was a powerful realization.
“You really mean that. Don’t you?”
“With everything I’ve got, dear one.” He squeezed her palms. “If you want, I’ll even pinky swear.”
“You wouldn’t,” she cried in pretend shock.
“Try me.”
She held up a pinky and he linked his through it.
“Aurora Rhonelle, I’m not going anywhere. Pinky swear.”
They kissed their thumbs to bind the pact and dropped their hands on top of her lap, still loosely holding each other by the little finger.
“I’m worried.”
“Already?” he asked in surprise. “That didn’t take long. What about this time?”
“Paul Keenan.”
At the mention of her boss’s name, Dane almost choked on a mouthful of wine.
“Really? If you’re worried about him, you’re the only one.”
“I’m serious. He didn’t come into the office today.”
“So?”
“So? He promised to promote me, Dane.” She’d been saving the good news until it was final, but she had to tell him to get across the gravity of things.
“He did? Aurora, that’s fantastic!”
“Yeah, except it didn’t happen. He told me yesterday that, after everything, he was going to start the process of making me a full inspector. Today.”
“That’s amazing! Darling, I’m so proud of you.”
“Dane, you’re not listening. He didn’t come in. He promised he would do it, and then he didn’t show up. I mean, everyone knows he usually takes a few days off after a case, but this wasn’t even his case after he handed it off to me.”
He gave her a level look. “And remind me why he handed it off to you again.”
“You know why. He was assigned a bigger one.”
“Exactly! He’s probably just busy with that other case. You know, investigating.”
“That’s the thing, though. He told me yesterday that his case was going sideways too. I honestly don’t think he’d take time off if that were happening.”
“Huh.” Dane turned his glass between his fingers, considering.
“Yeah. And now the case we thought was just a weird little burglary has cracked into something a lot bigger, so it’s not even over. If anything, it’s become even more important.”
“True.”
“It just doesn’t make sense that he’d not show up and not answer any of my calls or texts. I mean, Dane,” she caught his gaze and worried for a second she might tear up. “I’m worried about him.”
“Worried?” Something in the way all this was settling on him seemed to activate his spine. He sat up straighter, chewing slightly at his bottom lip. “Tell me something, babe. What does your gut say?”
“I’ve never been one to rely on gut feelings.” Yet that’s all she had been spilling out. Suddenly, she felt silly. “You know what? Forget it. You’re probably right. I’m sure he’ll be back in a day or two.”
“Don’t do that. Why are you doing that?”
“What?”
“That.” He put his glass down and pushed all the way up to face her. “You’ve got really incredible intuition, but you’re always second guessing it.”
It was a startlingly forward thing to say, but that was Dane, rushing ahead and damning the consequences.
“Is that what you think?”
“Don’t get mad. You know it’s true. You’ve got the most incredible set of instincts I’ve ever seen. It’s part of what makes you the smart, resourceful person you are. You never do anything without backing it up with ironclad evidence, but it always starts with your gut. So... what does your gut say?”
He had her anatomized down to the smallest fiber of her being. He knew her as well as she knew herself. Maybe it was the bond, or maybe something more; but the permission he gave her made Aurora look deep inside and confront her worries and unfounded suspicions.
“My gut says something is wrong,” she said with finality. “Dead wrong.”
“Okay.”
“Maybe it’s tied to that bigger case? I don’t know. But, Dane, when he wasn’t in by closing, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something bad had happened. You know, I told him about Finch and how we trailed the killer.”
“So?”
“I’m worried he might have gone out on his own.”
“That’s fair,” Dane nodded with full seriousness. “In his position, I might do the same.”
“Exactly!” She slapped her thigh for emphasis. “What if he went out there and found the killer? Dane, what if he found them and things went wrong?”
“All right.” He drained the rest of his glass and stood up.
“Down the hatch,” he said, pointing to her own drink. She tossed it back, as instructed. “Good. Now come on.”
He extended his hand to her, looking every bit like a hero out of myth. Aurora stayed put, her hand hovering just inches from his.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean let’s go.”
“What the... Go where?”
He dropped his hand and laughed, his heroic stance melting into the easily confident stance she could draw in her sleep.
“Babe, you’re forgetting. I’m a fucking wolf.”
“Language.”
He chuckled at her little idiosyncrasy. “Fine, I’m an effing wolf. Tracking people is what I do. Now, let’s get our shoes on and go find your friend. If I can just nab his scent, we’ll find him in no time. With any luck, he’ll be in some seedy bar and we can join him for a nightcap.”
“Deal,” she said, feeling better already.
Within moments, they were out in the crisp night air, walking hand in hand. In the light of day, she might have been too shy to do that, what with the case only being freshly dismissed. Though, in truth, she would have been squirmy holding hands with any man in public.
But, as they carved their way toward the Judiciary under the light of a full Othercross moon, she felt a shift inside her. Day or night, she would be proud to be on this man’s arm.
Twenty-One
Aurora was used to being in the office after nearly everyone else had gone home, but this night felt different. The air seemed charged, and their footsteps echoed deeper into the darkness than usual.
On top of that, Dane seemed on edge, which only made her more anxious. He had gone eerily quiet the closer they got to the Judiciary. Once they were inside, she felt him bristle, as if his hackles had risen, even in human form.
“Is everything all right?” Despite being alone in the building, she felt compelled to whisper.
“No.” The answer sent a chill through her. He kept his eyes ahead, unblinking at the shadows looming in front of them.
“What’s wrong?” Fear made her voice even smaller.
“I’m not sure.”
She could already envision Paul’s body. In her imagination, he was tipped back in his chair, gushes of purple blood spilling down his chest. Those eyes that had only recently warmed to her, staring sightless at the ceiling. It made her queasy.
By the time they reached the offices, her hands were shaking so much, the keys rattled when she unlocked the door. Stepping into the pit, Dane seemed to swell with tension, which wasn’t doing her any favors. It would have been so easy to turn the lights on, but the grip of the place begged for the dark.
“Maybe we could get something in here,” she offered weakly.
Dane shook his head. “We need to go into his office. I need to get his scent. It can’t be mixed with anything else.”
She trembled as she looked at Paul’s door, fearing what they would find inside. It seemed almost cruel. After sniffing Finch out of the air from the beach like a magic trick, why was Dane so intent on pinning Paul down with such certainty? And why did his voice have that throaty quality, like his beast was close to the surface?
They opened the lead investigator’s door and stepped inside. As soon as they did, Dane froze in place. He was coiled so tightly, it made goosebumps break out across Aurora’s skin.
“What is it?”
“It’s Paul.” Dane looked at her at last, and his eyes were keen, even in the shadows. “Paul is who we traced from the gardens. Paul killed Griffin Finch.”
He said it with such certainty, she couldn’t question him, yet the news hit Aurora like a kick to the stomach. Stepping back, she reached out to find something to steady herself.
“A-are you sure?”
Dane just cocked his head and looked at her.
“I’m sorry,” he said, his tone softening, though that animalistic rumble remained. “After all the things he promised you, this must be a shock. But the man who promised to promote you is a double murderer, Aurora. Maybe more.”
“Double?” Her eyes bulged, and she instinctively reached up to run a finger over her pearls as if they’d somehow give her comfort.
“You said yourself you thought the cases were connected. The Abernathy case and the one your boss was working on. Finch and Abernathy were killed in the same way, and that points to Paul doing both of them.”
He was right. The reasoning was watertight, and if she wasn’t so stunned, she would have put it together herself. Only one question remained.
“But why?” she breathed, her mind starting to work again.
They stared blankly at each other as they raced to come up with an answer. She’d spent so much time wondering why someone like Finch would steal such a specific potion. It wasn’t consistent with his criminal record to do something so risky. A career thief like Finch wasn’t stupid. She had no doubt he’d weighed the consequences of each job he did, and his rap sheet showed he’d always been careful not to cross the line into grand theft. No way would he have risked a lengthy sentence getting caught stealing that potion unless he either already had a buyer lined up... or he’d already been paid. And paid well.
“Paul hired Finch to steal Mr. Abernathy’s potion!” It felt right, and Dane’s nod of agreement confirmed it.
“Of course!” Dane cried, grabbing her shoulders with an excited grin. “He tried to use it to break into the Treasury, but for whatever reason, it didn’t work the way it was supposed to.”
“Oh my god.” Aurora sat on the small bench by the office door. “That’s why he needed to be on that case. If he was investigating, nobody could catch him.
It’s why he passed off Finch’s case to a junior like me.” She looked up at Dane, feeling incredibly small. “He must have been counting on me to make a mess of things.”
“But you didn’t. You were too good, and that’s why Finch had to die.” The faintest hint of a smile crossed his lips. “That son of a bitch underestimated you.”
“Language,” she whispered absently as her brain whirled.
She shook her head in disbelief, remembering the amiable conversation she’d shared with Paul over crappy coffee. He’d seemed so genuine. She’d even trusted him enough to confess to liking Dane. It seemed impossible that it had been a rouse, but she knew Dane was right.
His reading of Paul’s scent was unmistakable. Not only did she trust his nose, but she also trusted him. So much, it almost rattled her.
“Who do you trust?” he asked.
She looked up at him in shock, wondering if the bond between them had allowed him to read her mind.
“I, um, I’m sorry, what?”
“We can’t do this alone, Aurora. This guy is too powerful and dangerous. Who do you know that we can count on? Who isn’t going to surprise us by being in his corner?”
“My brothers,” she said without hesitation.
“Call them. We need to move.”
As they hurried under the cover of darkness to Paul’s house, she coordinated with each of the Rhonelle boys. Even at near midnight, they were all ready to spring into action. Particularly given what she had shared about the case at dinner, they leapt at the chance to catch Keenan.
They would all meet outside his house and fan out around it. Once they had the drop on the situation, they would close in together and block any way out. If Paul tried to escape, he would come face to face with at least one adversary. When they had eyes on him, the combined wrath of the entire party would bring him to bear.
Each of her brothers was powerful in his own right, but combined, they were truly a force to be reckoned with. As she hung up from the last call, she counted herself grateful. As much as her family tied her up in knots, the fact that they were primed to leap to her side spoke volumes.
