You Had Me at Wolf

by Terry Spear

  “Okay, then we’ll have to get both kinds taken.”

  After they finished their meals, Nate, Blake, and Landon planned to head out as wolves with the twin ski instructors who would serve as their handlers in their human form in case anyone who shouldn’t be out there wanted to help look for the last victim. That way, Nate, Blake, and Landon could strip and shift in the office, then go out through the staff entrance into the swirling snow and off to the avalanche site.

  Nicole gave Blake a hug and kiss. “Be careful.” She didn’t want him buried out there should another avalanche occur.

  “I will be. If we hear an avalanche coming, we’ll leave.”

  “By then it could be too late.” He knew it and she knew it.

  “We’ll be careful.”

  Then everyone hugged Landon and Nate and Blake, and they left to strip in the office.

  “Okay, I’m ready to go,” Nicole told Jake. She just hoped they didn’t run afoul of the weather on the way to town.

  After a harrowingly slow drive because of the blizzard conditions, she and Jake finally reached the town and parked at the clinic. A few cars were parked there, buried in snow.

  “Our deputies, Trevor and CJ, are on duty, watching over your suspects. Dr. Weber said they’re fine, but because of both having been unconscious, he had MRI scans done and they looked good. William’s got a broken leg though. Still, they’ve been told they have to stay here under observation. Eli’s been asking about his brother. William’s been real quiet.”

  “All right.”

  “Did you want me to come into the room with you while you’re interviewing each of them? They’re in separate rooms.” Jake walked up to the glass door, and it slid open for them.

  “Just wait. Sometimes when they only have a lone female to talk to, they’re more open.”

  “I’ll wait in the staff lounge. If you need me, let me know. I’ve already read both men their rights, so we’re good there.”

  “Thanks.”

  “First door on the right is where William is. On the left, two doors down is Eli’s room.”

  Nicole decided to see Eli first. She figured if anyone ended up spilling the beans, he would be more likely to. She walked into the room and smiled at the young man. “Hi, I’m Nicole Grayson. My probe found you buried in the snow. I’ve been where you were, buried alive. It’s not something you ever get over. May I?” She motioned to a chair for visitors.

  “Yeah, sure. You’re probably not a thrill seeker.” Eli smirked.

  “You mean the element of danger adds to the thrill? Steep hill, virgin snow, off-limits area, signs posted to keep people out so they don’t cause avalanches like the one that buried you, your cousin, your brother, and six other people?”

  Eli stared at her wide-eyed. Why? Because she’d made him and his brother and cousin? Or, God forbid, they might have killed other people? She assumed he and his brother and cousin were totally self-centered and could only see the fun in it for themselves, not what they could have done to others. Even rescuers were at risk because of their foolhardiness.

  “My… Rhys, is he here?”

  She shook her head.

  Eli’s cocky attitude plummeted, his eyes filling with tears. She glanced at the clock. “Five hours and counting, and they haven’t located him yet.”

  He narrowed his eyes. “Is anyone still looking?”

  “Yeah, at great risk to themselves if another avalanche occurs. The area has whiteout conditions. The snow is falling so heavily it could easily cause another slide.”

  Eli looked at his hands clutched on his chest. “He’s dead, isn’t he.” It wasn’t a question.

  “He might be alive. Or brain-damaged. There’s no way to be sure. That’s a long time under the snow.”

  “I could have skied down with my brother and cousin if my brother hadn’t pushed me. We woulda made it.” Tears spilled down his cheeks. “He should have just let me go.”

  “As soon as any of you started down the mountain, you would have triggered the avalanche. The snow was unstable there,” Nicole said. “Others could very well have died because the three of you went beyond the ski boundary.”

  “Where’s William?”

  “He’s safe. He has a broken leg.” She wanted to tell Eli that he would be in police custody soon. Eli too. “You’ve been read your rights, correct? You know anything I ask you could be used in a court of law?”

  “That’s what the cop said.”

  “Okay, then we know you’re Eli Kovac, Oscar’s younger brother. Kent Albright?”

  Eli wiped his eyes. “How’d you know?”

  “I know just about everything there is to about you, your brother, and your cousin. I’m a private investigator for the insurance company that paid out the money for Oscar’s death. You dumped a cigarette butt in the snow, and you left a coffee cup lying around. We got DNA off both, and since you’d been in jail, they had your DNA on file. It was a match. Not to mention your brother called you by name when we were close by and listening to your conversations. Where did you come up with the names?”

  Eli’s eyes were as blue as his brother’s and cousin’s, and they widened noticeably.

  “I know Rhys is Oscar and not dead.”

  “My real dad’s name is Percy Albright. I just took his name, and he made me use Kent, my grandfather’s name, for my first name. I hated it.”

  “Okay. When your mother and stepdad died, how did that happen?”

  Eli blew out his breath. “I didn’t have nothing to do with that.”

  “With his supposed death? No, I imagine not. That was all on William and your brother.”

  “They didn’t tell me they were doing that. I mean, killing off Oscar in a scam,” Eli said. “They never believed I could keep my mouth shut.”

  “You knew he was supposed to be dead?”

  “No. We hadn’t seen each other in years. Then he contacted me out of the blue and said he wanted to see me. That he and William were going to the ski resort, and he wanted to know if I wanted to come along. I was shocked to hear he was alive.”

  “Were you living with your birth father?”

  “Yeah.” Eli shrugged. “He was okay.”

  “Not abusive like your stepfather?”

  “Arthur was never my father. Once he knew it, he took it out on me,” Eli admitted.

  “I’m sorry. No one should ever have had to go through what you had.”

  “But…I never told anyone.”

  “Your visits to the hospital spelled it out.”

  “I couldn’t tell anyone. Arthur said if I did, he’d take it out on my mother, too, and he’d make me disappear.”

  “Did your brother ever protect you?”

  “He tried. But he couldn’t stop Arthur.”

  “Your mother received the payout for your death.”

  “She paid my biological father to take me in. Dad knew about me, but he was happy for Mom to take care of me until Arthur learned I wasn’t his son. Once the abuse started, Mom felt the only way to help me was to get rid of me. She was still seeing my dad, you know.”

  Now that was a surprise to Nicole. “You could have just lived with your father. You didn’t have to fake your death.”

  “He wanted the insurance money to support me. He said it was the only way he would go along with it.”

  Bastard. It also meant Eli’s biological dad could be brought up on charges of defrauding the insurance company. He should have been a more responsible dad and taken care of Eli. “What about your mom and stepdad dying in the fire?”

  “My stepdad, Arthur, set the fire.”

  “What?” Another shocker.

  “He learned I hadn’t died and that Mom and Dad were still having an affair. Arthur said he figured something was up with her, and he followed her to my dad’s house. After
their big fight at my dad’s house, Arthur left, and she went home to try to smooth things over with him. Then the fire happened.”

  So a case of murder-suicide. “You think Arthur took their lives so she couldn’t be with you and your father?”

  “Yeah. Arthur couldn’t bear losing her.”

  “I’m sorry about that. Did you receive any of the estate?”

  “I shouldn’t have. I was dead, but yeah, Oscar came through for me. He gave me half of everything, even though he said I was just a little pipsqueak. But then William had this harebrained idea that my brother should die in a kayaking accident. I would’ve told him not to do it. Being dead wasn’t fun. It was a pain. Though I guess the alternative was that I could have been dead at Arthur’s hands. The abuse wasn’t fun either.”

  “So, Rhys/Oscar and William just wanted the money.”

  “Easy money, new life. And Rhys—I call him that now because he had a meltdown every time I called him Oscar—was obligated to do Army Reserve time, and he wasn’t going to do it.”

  Nicole shook her head. “When you supposedly drowned, how did you manage that?”

  Eli ran his hands through his hair. “Mom and I figured it out. Dad came and picked me up. When Rhys learned I hadn’t really died, he wanted to kill me. But Mom was afraid he would give away the secret when the police questioned my brother and his friends. I had to sneak off. They were so busy ignoring me, it was easy to do.”

  “She and Arthur acted angry with Rhys about losing sight of you at the lake because she was trying to keep up the charade?”

  “Not Arthur. He was glad I was gone. But yeah, she told me she gave Rhys shit for it, then later, she finally told him the truth, once she was safe, having collected the life insurance. Will…will I go to jail?”

  “That’s up to the courts to decide. But at least you won’t be on the run any longer, hiding your identity.”

  “No trip to Acapulco, I guess.”

  She smiled, thinking of Clay being there, sipping a tequila poolside or beachside, waiting for the brothers and cousin to show up. She needed to call Taggart to let him be the bearer of bad news to Clay.

  “What about William?”

  “He took part in the scheme where your brother ‘died’ and received the life insurance payout with the intent to defraud the insurance company.”

  “So if my brother is dead, he won’t have to go to trial,” Eli said, but he still looked upset about the prospect. Maybe he was just coming to terms with the eventuality.

  “Right.” She was going to tell Eli that he’d most likely receive an insurance payment for his brother’s death, but she decided not to mention it. He probably already knew about it. “The police will investigate your story further about your parents’ death. Your own dad could be up on charges if it’s shown he knew he received a fraudulent life insurance payout for your death.”

  Eli looked at his hands again, clutched together. She wondered if he cared. Maybe he figured it served his father right for not just taking care of his son like he should have all those years once he learned about the abuse.

  “I know you care about your brother. I hope they find him alive and well.” Though if they did, he might want to kill Eli for talking so much. “Is there anything else you want to say?”

  “I’m sorry about the people who got caught in the avalanche. And the guys still out there looking for Rhys who could be in danger. But they get paid to do dangerous work.”

  “They’re volunteering their hours and their lives to the cause. They don’t get paid.” Nicole didn’t care if she sounded angry with Eli. Yeah, he wasn’t very old, but jeez, wise up!

  “Oh. I hope no one else gets hurt. When we fell, I figured that could be the end of me. I thought maybe it was karma for faking my death before. And for Rhys too. I knew the three of us were going to be buried, though it was a hell of a fun ride when I was on top. I never thought it would reach anyone else.”

  “I’ll let you know as soon as we recover him,” Nicole said. “I’m going to talk to your cousin and then go back out and help the others look for him.”

  Eli lifted his gaze to hers. “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome. We won’t stop searching until we find him.” Though they might again if they deemed the weather was too risky and Rhys hadn’t made it.

  Then she left the room and entered William’s. She knocked on the door, and William turned his attention from the TV to her. She assumed he’d be hostile, since he would be up on charges of fraud. She spelled out who she was but didn’t take a seat. She didn’t think she’d be here long.

  “How’s Eli doing?”

  She was surprised he’d ask about the younger brother. She suspected William didn’t like Eli butting into his friendship with Rhys.

  “He’s doing well. Better than you as far as no major injuries. And it doesn’t appear the scare of being buried alive has bothered him either.”

  William snorted.

  “How are you doing?”

  “In pain. I have a headache the size of Alaska.”

  “I’ll check with the nurse to have her bring you some more pain medication. So you know why I’m here.”

  “Yeah, to send me to jail. The sheriff already talked to me about it. I want my lawyer.”

  She shrugged. “No problem.”

  He looked away from the TV again to stare at her. “Where’s Rhys?”

  “Buried still. Someone will let me know as soon as they find him. I’m going back out to help with the search.”

  “You? So you can get your man?”

  “I found Eli so he can live another day. My brother, another private investigator who has been helping with your case, found you. Was it a mistake?”

  William pursed his lips and looked back at the TV.

  “Six other people were buried in the avalanche you and your cousins caused.”

  That got William’s attention, his eyes widening. “I…I didn’t cause it.”

  “You were standing with your cousins on the shelf of snow that was about to go. You are just as culpable.”

  He rubbed his forehead.

  “Thank God they all survived. If you want to pull a stupid stunt like that again, let it be on your heads, no one else’s. But the thing of it is, you put the rescuers’ lives at risk too. Anyway, you talk to your lawyer. I’m turning the case over to the insurance company. Pay your dues to society, get on with your life, and stay out of trouble is my advice to you.” But once someone went down that road where they felt they could make a living off criminal acts, working a regular job was hard to do.

  “Good luck on finding Rhys. And thanks for helping.”

  “You’re welcome. I’ve been buried alive in snow before for three hours. It’s a nightmare I’ll never get over so I hope we find him and he’s fine.”

  William looked a little surprised to hear it, his brows raised. “Thank you.”

  She left then, asked the nurse to give William more pain medicine if it was okay, and told Jake she was ready to return to the search. When they walked out into the blizzard to his Humvee, she called Taggart. “Okay, good news and not so good news.”

  “It sounds like you’re standing in the howling wind.”

  She got inside the Humvee. “Yeah, we’re in the middle of a blizzard. I’m sending you all the information you need for your case. Rhys is Oscar, and the DNA evidence proves it. The three men started an avalanche at the resort, and William and Eli are at the medical clinic in custody. William just has a broken leg and can stand trial. Eli’s fine. Rhys is still buried. I’m going back out to help with the search.”

  “Hell.”

  “Yeah. These guys know how to go out with a bang. Anyway, it’s been six and a half hours already since Rhys was buried.”

  “Okay, so we’re looking at only getting our money out of William at thi
s point.”

  “Very likely. Oh, and you might want to tell your other private investigator Clay that they’re not going to Acapulco. So he might want to look for another job.”

  Taggart chuckled. “Clay thought he was going there ahead of the suspects since you had everything covered at the Silver Town Ski Resort.”

  “I did. It’s all done.”

  “You know what, the job’s yours if you like. I can tell him, but I think it would have more impact coming from you.”

  She smiled. “Sure, I’ll tell him.” Then they ended the call. She was watching the road, the wipers going as fast as they could, sweeping away the snow, the flakes coming down even faster. She hoped they were going to make it through.

  “I was going to suggest you just stay the night at my place,” Jake said, “but I know what it’s like to be newly mated.”

  She wondered about that. She couldn’t believe she could go home with Blake and stay in the guest suite and enjoy all the camaraderie with his brother and sisters.

  But she also wanted to help Blake find Rhys.

  “Yeah, I mean, I could have just run as a wolf back to the lodge. It would probably be easier than driving in this stuff.”

  “No way. I’m the pack’s subleader, and I wouldn’t even consider it. Hell, if you got lost, Darien would have my head. Alicia and Carly would never speak to me again.”

  Nicole laughed. The drive didn’t take long from the medical clinic to the ski resort, except in a blizzard. Jake was driving at a snail’s pace. He had to. She couldn’t see the lanes in the road any more than he could. Twice, he hit gravel on the shoulder, and they knew they were too far over.

  “But you can stay at one of the rooms for the night so you don’t have to drive back in this,” she said.

  “That would be very much appreciated. Alicia and my kids would thank you for it.”

  Nicole called Kayla. “Hey, it’s me. Jake’s bringing me back, but it’s taking forever because we can barely see the road. Can you find a room for Jake to stay in?”

  “Yeah, sure. Are you moving out to the house with Blake?”

  “Let’s see how the search for Rhys goes. We might stay at the room, get a little sleep, and head back out there tonight if we still can’t find him. No word, I suspect.”