by Carmen Fox
He gave me a sideways glance.
Jonah clearly was a bad influence on Leo, but being the alpha, he could get away with openly judging me. No such luck for his protector.
“I have to live somewhere.” I tightened my tone. “You may not know this, but it’s a rite of passage for royal alphas-to-be to live outside the pack. My dad encouraged me to move out. And just so you know, I like living among them.”
“Hey. I didn’t mean anything by it.” Leo lifted an appeasing finger off the steering wheel. “But you could have lived with another pack instead of humans. That’s the way it used to be done, isn’t it?”
“Maybe. Yes.” I exhaled slowly. “Back then, the alpha-to-be would spend years with a different royal pack on the promise that he would mate with one of the dominant females there. But since the free packs declared their independence, not many royal packs remain. Besides, I’m going to choose my own mate.”
The lie flowed from my lips like a lullaby. The true reason I’d left Germany was that I had no choice. When I was young, Dad told our pack I was forbidden from using my dominance so I might learn the art of diplomacy instead. But once I got older, the whispers grew, and hiding what I was—and what I wasn’t—became increasingly complicated.
Moving in human circles bought me time until my alpha powers broke.
Whenever that might be.
“You could have lived with a free pack.” Leo underlined his argument by moving his shoulders, while his hands remained glued to the ten and two spots.
“Outside the crown, alphas rise to their position by aggression and fights. Don’t get me wrong. I’ve trained all my life to take out guys bigger than me, but despite that, I could be at a disadvantage in a free pack, or at least subject to repeated challenges. That doesn’t sound like fun to me.”
“That makes sense.”
“Besides, a good alpha needs more than the werewolf strength nature provided. She needs diplomacy and tact, empathy when needed and moral strength when called for. What better place to learn these virtues than in a society that doesn’t resort to physical challenges to figure out their problems?”
Leo turned into a parking lot by a long building with a glass front. A huge sign over the entrance read Breakfast Bar. Several other cars had beaten us to it, and the diner’s popularity gave me hope for a mouth-watering breakfast.
Inside, the scent of fried bacon and strong coffee, accompanied by a soft poppy tune from the speakers, combined into what could have made for a relaxed atmosphere, if not for the busy splatter and chatter coming from the kitchen.
We took a seat near the entrance. The benches were narrow, the dark floor scuffed, but the coffee was steaming hot and the plates seemed generous.
The menu came printed in small letters on a single laminated sheet, and the breakfast section comprised too many options. Leo ordered pancakes. In many respects, I’d acclimatized to life in America, but this obsession with sweet stuff on a sober stomach was one I didn’t share. Instead, I ordered a breakfast plate with bacon, sausage and eggs, and a coffee to wash it all down.
“Tell me about Raven.” I leaned back and arranged one arm on the back of the empty seat next to me.
“Do you want to spoil breakfast with talk about work?” Leo’s charm was back on form. Flashing a white smile, he tilted forward. “We could talk about you. There’s much I don’t know about you.”
“What you see is what you get,” I said. “I’m basically all surface. But you agreed to give me the one-oh-one on life in Marlontown.”
The server brought our food, a delicious heap that seemed twice the amount I’d ordered. Marlontown had become a location determined to fatten me up.
“Did you see much of Raven?” I sipped coffee before attacking my eggs.
“Not really.” Leo chewed on his pancakes. “I used to hang with Ralph and the guys. Raven and her friend Sable would sometimes accompany us. Our pack is small nowadays, so we kind of all know each other.”
“Does Raven have hobbies?”
“Well, she’d get really lost in music, but not in a relaxed way. More as if she was concentrating.” He put down his fork and, elbows propped on table, folded his hands before his face. “You get that same expression. I noticed the similarity first time I saw you. Same long hair. Same smile. In fact, you and her could have been sisters.”
I grinned. “That would be unfortunate for her. I’m an only child and don’t like sharing.”
“I bet she could have learned a lot from you.” He held my gaze, maybe a second too long to be dismissed as casual.
What did he want from me? A fling? A relationship? Nothing at all? When I liked a guy and wanted to be with him, I usually told him. At least that was what I did with humans. Werewolves were more complicated. Maybe they were too complicated.
I moved my butt back in the seat and crossed my legs. “Is there anything else I should know about her? Anything that helps me paint an image of who she is?”
Leo picked up his fork and used it to stab at his plate. Once or twice he started to talk, but in the end, he gave a half-assed shrug.
“I’m not part of your pack and very discreet.” I briefly touched his arm to encourage him. “You can tell me.”
He wobbled his head from left to right. “All right. I mean, I don’t know about hobbies, but she and Sable weren’t as wholesome as you think.”
“Interesting. Did you and Raven ever...”
“No.” He directed his gaze to the side. “We did not.”
“But?”
“But Sable and I, well, we kissed once.” He took a deep breath. “It was that one time, that’s it. She kind of waylaid me in her father’s barn. Did it for a bet, she said. You know, making out with the older boys. I only mention it to make sure you get a clear picture of the kind of girls they were.”
Picture received clear as glass. If Sable and Raven toyed with boys, maybe Cody wasn’t Raven’s only secret relationship. An ex could have harmed her, or some other guy could have lured her to a new life.
“That helps.” I rewarded Leo with an indulgent smile. “Was it mainly Sable, or do you know if Raven sneaked around barns with anyone?”
“This looks cozy.” Drake’s voice cut our twosome into pieces.
A darkness swept his expression, the sense of untamed danger barely suppressed. My skin tautened while the burn of his dominance raged through my flesh. Had my unsanctioned excursion with Leo pushed him to breaking point?
The voices inside the breakfast bar fell quiet. About a third of the clientele sat hunched on their chairs, with conversations suspended mid-word. As werewolves, they’d sense that trouble was brewing. The humans, meanwhile, craned their necks to pinpoint the source of the change in atmosphere—and they were shifting their focus to Drake.
Fighting the tightness in my chest, I forced a smile onto my lips.
Defuse the situation. Deflect attention. Nothing to see here, people.
I touched Drake’s arm. Maybe I shouldn’t have. Anything could set him off.
The pressure in Drake’s lips ebbed away, his fierce squint smoothed into a look of mild consternation. At the same time, his pheromones collapsed back into their source, somewhere inside his powerful chest. Once again, his control was absolute. The mark of a true alpha, not only by nature, but by position.
How was this man still a protector?
Whispers turned into normal conversation as our fellow diners resumed their lives. If I had to guess, I’d say this wasn’t the first public display of dominance in the Triangle.
The blockage in my chest cleared, and I took a deep breath. My father’s pack lived side-by-side with humans, on neighboring estates, but we didn’t mingle. Not like this. Jonah and his protectors clearly had cause to worry after all. One misstep, one careless word, would reveal their existence to humans.
“It’s breakfast,” Leo said. “That’s all.”
He should have been more confident. If he and Drake were truly of equal status, his own d
ominance would have erupted. Instead, he’d remained passive.
I was a dud. What was his excuse?
“I am the princess’s protector.” Drake stabbed the air in front of Leo with his index finger. “You are supposed to organize a meeting with the town planners.”
“I will. Later. This seemed more important.”
“Weren’t you the one who insisted we stop looking into the disappearance of a moody female and focus on real business?”
Leo turned his head toward me, his eyelids low. “Well, things have changed, as you know. Kensi has made progress. I, for one, think that’s important.”
“I don’t even want to know what you two have been up to,” Drake aimed his dark glance at me. “But I hope he made it memorable.”
“Hey!” I thudded my fist on the table’s surface. “I don’t know about the women you know, but I’m not that easy.”
What a cheap attack. And if Leo were truly into me, shouldn’t he have defended my honor?
I took my time taking tiny sips of coffee.
Drake crossed his arms and stared. His mouth moved as if he was sucking candy—probably one of the peppermints he kept in steady supply.
I placed my nearly empty cup down emphatically. “How did you find me anyway?”
“Back in the library, I put an app on your phone. Good thing I did.” Drake’s look was ice, but burned like fire.
Was big, scary Drake actually jealous?
I wished.
It was more likely he kicked up a fuss because I didn’t bow at his feet. Peel the onion, and what you got was a bully. An absolutely lickable, dead sexy bully.
I slowed my breathing, lowered my voice. “You’re spying on me?”
“Doing my job. Now that you’ve finished breakfast, let’s go.”
Leo got to his feet. “We’re not done.”
Nice. Dominance when it was directed at me sucked, but watching two hotties slug it out made for fantastic viewing. Shame I hadn’t ordered popcorn.
“Jonah wants you home.” Drake lifted his chin to play his two-inch advantage over Leo. “Chop chop.”
Leo inhaled sharply. Finally, he turned to me. “Sorry. It looks like Jonah needs me.”
I waved him off. “Some people are indispensable when it comes to running a pack. You should go.”
“I’ll see you soon?” Leo leaned over the table and placed his lips on my cheek.
I kept my surprise to myself. Whatever the reason for Drake’s mood, I liked seeing him on edge.
Leo walked off with a stiff gait.
Drake slid onto the bench opposite me. “You sure know how to pick the bad ones.”
“Most people would think of you as a bad boy.” I pointed at his tattoos.
“I said ‘bad one,’ princess, not ‘bad boy.’” He tapped the table with his fingertips. “There’s a difference. Anyway, back to business. We should go to Lake Marvin. Where the photos were taken, and the last confirmed sighting of Raven.”
I squinted. Once again he’d assumed the lead in this investigation, and once again, his was a good idea.
Damn him.
“Maybe some other time. Today, I have other plans.”
“Without me? That’s not going to happen.”
“I’m not your prisoner. But if you want to come, come.”
“Really?” His mouth opened again and closed.
I could have pressed my advantage, shut him out, but since I’d escaped his alpha-mandated babysitting duties once again, he deserved a break.
“Raven was interested in protecting the environment, and Natalie told me POOF is the place to go.”
“Who?”
“POOF. Protectors of our Forests.”
“Right. And Natalie told you this when?”
I smiled mysteriously, because guilt only took my courtesy that far. “Cody is one human element you hadn’t considered in your prior investigation, and POOF might be another one, so I’d like to get it over with.”
He shrugged. “Fine. Do you have an address?”
“Even better. I have a napkin.” I retrieved the directions Natalie had drawn.
He stared at the map, nodded, and returned it to me. “Okay. Let’s go then.”
I once again picked up the cup and let the last drops of coffee flow into my mouth. He’d nearly made it two minutes without ordering me around—and then spoiled his record with three little words.
I lowered my hand. “Good coffee. Maybe I should have another.”
“Kensi.” My name wasn’t easily growled, yet Drake managed it beautifully.
Maybe I was getting altogether too much pleasure from riling him.
“Hang on.” I called for the check and paid for my food and Leo’s. “Now we can go.”
Drake frowned but followed me out of the restaurant without any more grumbles.
***
POOF headquarters weren’t what I’d expected. Despite being discreetly located inside what used to be a store, plenty of desks set the scene for a manic rush. Eager fingers attacked keyboards, while whispered conversations and the smell of printed paper saturated the air.
No one took any notice of us at first. How this was possible given that Drake was by my side would remain a mystery.
“Drake? What are you doing here?”
“Buck?” Drake turned his head.
Buck winked at me. “Are you thinking of joining us?”
“Hardly.” Drake jerked his head. “We’re here to find out if Raven was a member.”
“She was, yes.” Buck eyed his fellow POOFers, who were largely people in their twenties and thirties. “How do you know?”
Drake widened his stance and pulled back his shoulders. “Why the hell didn’t you tell us? I asked you to tell me everything you know about her.”
His voice rolled through his throat, but he kept his anger under control.
A shame, because his dominance would have shown me at one glance who at POOF was a werewolf and who was human.
Buck stared at the toes of his shoes. “She asked me not to tell anyone. Her parents would go ballistic if they knew.”
From everything I’d seen and heard, that seemed a fair assessment.
“Mind coming over here?” I nodded toward the entrance, out of earshot.
Both Buck and Drake followed.
“Is this more a human organization or more werewolf?” I asked.
“Half and half.” Buck leaned toward me. “The humans here are really into the outdoors and into fundraising, but their efforts definitely benefit werewolves. A couple of guys have good connections, and I use my influence on them, you know, to see things our way.” He rubbed his nose, while his gaze focused without blinking on my face. “It’s why I joined, you know.”
I’d been around enough liars to spot the signs of lying—covering the face, avoiding contractions, manic stare—and Buck displayed all of them. Pushing him in front of Drake wouldn’t do me any good, though. He’d clam up.
“Did Raven make any friends in particular?” I kept my voice casual. “Anyone we should speak to?”
“She just got on with it, really, but you could speak to Andy. He’s the unofficial leader here.” Buck pointed at a guy with red hair. “They worked on a couple of projects together.”
“One last thing. Can you get me a copy of your membership list?”
“I think that’ll be okay. I’ll send it to Jonah, okay?”
I nodded my thanks at him and made a beeline for Andy, who was poring over a leaflet with another woman.
“Are you Andy?” I clasped his hand between mine. “My name is Kensi. I was wondering if I could talk to you about Raven.”
“Who?” He squinted.
“Raven.” I removed my hands just as his pulse spiked.
Interesting.
“What about her?” He stepped away from his friend and herded us into an empty corner of the office.
I exchanged a furtive glance with Drake, then focused my full attention on Andy. “When was
the last time you saw her?”
“Not for months. Why?”
“Neither have her parents, and they’re getting worried about her.”
He crossed his arms and pivoted his head to the side. “I didn’t know. Sorry to hear that.”
“Do you know anything that might help us? People she hung out with, hobbies, that sort of thing.” I counted off on my fingers.
He slowly dragged his gaze to me. “Who are you again?”
“I’m Kensi. Raven’s mother asked me to look into her whereabouts.”
“Right. I don’t know much about her. We didn’t hang out or anything, other than in the woods or here in the office.”
Drake gave a quiet growl, too quiet for Andy’s human ears, but a sign he was losing patience. Guess it didn’t take a super-sleuth to realize Andy, too, was holding back. Then again, Raven was a pretty woman and Andy an average-looking guy.
“You like her?” I put on a charming, conspiratorial smile.
Andy scratched his chin and angled his body toward the main door. “She’s nice, yes.”
“Yes, but you like her?”
“I don’t see how that’s any of your business. Besides, she has a boyfriend. Why don’t you go and bother him?”
Been there, done that.
Still, at least I’d confirmed my suspicion. He was a spurned admirer, and probably not a homicidal maniac.
“I’m not making any accusations.” I fished a business card from my pocket. “If you can think of anything, anything at all, please give me a call, okay?”
“Okay.” He took the card. “Do you... Do you think she’s okay?”
“I hope so.” I patted his shoulder. “And please ask your friends if they know anything. We’re getting worried about her.”
He nodded and relaxed his posture. His secret was out, and there were no more skeletons for me to find in this particular closet.
I was back at square zero.
Ten
Drake’s truck pumped cold air into my face and onto my arms the second he turned the ignition key.
“You’ve fixed the air con and the blower.” I beamed at him.
