by Renee Rose
He swallowed hard, his Adam’s apple bobbing. Yeah, that got even more of his attention. “I don’t know why you’re telling me this.”
I shrugged. “At the time, I didn’t know either, but he said that since I was the one out in the field actually tagging the animals, he’d cut out the middleman.” I leaned forward. “I’m assuming that’s you.”
“What you’re suggesting is—”
“I know. Unethical. But you have to admit… the money’s pretty good. I mean, I have to teach summer classes just to pay my rent. What he’s going to pay me is way better.” I waved my hands in the air in a rainbow motion.
His eyes narrowed, and I could tell his brain was working. Yeah, he was guilty as hell. I just had to get the proof needed to nail his ass. So I kept going.
“I’m sure you told him no,” he said.
I gave him a thin smile. “Actually, I told you no.”
He frowned, and I filled in the blanks for him. All lies, of course.
“I ran into him bright and early, before our little chat. Remember, you called Sunday morning? I told you I wasn’t tagging any more wolves? Yeah, well, that’s true.” I put air quotes around the last word. “I finished my paper and submitted it. I’m sure it will be well received, so I can keep my grant and keep my study open.”
“You finished it?”
I nodded.
“You turned it in?” He looked at his computer, as if it was in his inbox.
“To the dean.”
“You were supposed to have me review it,” he snapped.
I shrugged again, then pulled off a fake piece of lint from my jeans. “I was, but I was very motivated to finish it. I mean, now I can grow the field and get back out there and tag those wolves.” I winked, then stood. Turned toward the door. “I love those wolves… and the new perks that go with tagging them.”
“Wait,” he said.
Slowly, I turned, crossed my arms over my chest, appearing bored. My heart was practically beating out of my chest, and sweat dripped down my back.
“Tell Hollaroy he can’t cut me out of this. Five thousand a kill was the deal.”
“Only five thousand?” I asked, pretending I’d been offered more.
He bought it. His mouth fell open, then snapped shut. He stalked over to me, and I was suddenly afraid. But we were in a busy building on campus. There were people right out in the hall. All I had to do was scream.
“I’ve given him all the tracking data of every wolf you’ve tagged. It’s not my fault he’s only been able to get the three. You will not take this from me. I will tell the dean. Your job will be done. Your paper will be covered in blood. Your reputation destroyed. I’ll finish you.”
I let my hands fall to my sides. “You want to keep getting paid by Hollaroy, a West Springs rancher, for stealing my tracking data on wolves I’ve tagged for research.”
He sneered. “I hope your paper’s synopsis was as good as that one.”
I nodded, then fled his office.
Once in the stairwell, I pulled out my cell and turned off the recording. I’d had to get him to admit to what he’d done, to name the rancher involved. The guy who pulled the trigger. No wolves would be safe until they were taken down.
I hit a few buttons to get a link for the audio—although it was hard with shaky fingers, the adrenaline pouring through my veins—then shared it in an email to the dean. For the first time in three days, I felt something. Not elation. Not even vindication. I felt… like I’d made things right. I wanted to be part of the Two Marks pack but couldn’t do that until I protected them. Until I did what I could to see them protected, to put those who wanted them harmed brought to justice.
I’d saved the wolves. I ran out of the building and to my car, headed to West Springs. I had to hope I could also save my relationship with Landry and Wade.
23
LANDRY
“Are you sure this is the right move, showing up at her work?” I asked Wade as we walked into the biology building at Granger State once again. I wasn’t one to feel so unsure of myself, but fuck, our mate had left us. I was lost. Angry. Freaked. My wolf was driving me, and I had no idea how to make this shit right. “What if she’s upset and it embarrasses her to be dealing with us with people around?”
He glanced at me, but didn’t slow down. “I’m not sure about anything,” Wade admitted. He’d worn a furrow between his brows over the last three days, and I hadn’t seen him this distraught since his parents died.
Especially since our wolves were pushing us to get her back.
Shelby had counseled us to reach out but give Caitlyn space, so we’d sent only one text each, one on Monday and one yesterday, offering our apologies and begging to talk to her. We didn’t call her, and we’d originally decided that showing up at her place would be too intrusive. But now that we were at her office, I was second-guessing our choice.
“Well, I guess we’ll find out.” We rounded the bend in the hallway and headed toward her lab. When we got there, though, the outer doors were locked. I peered through the glass window, but the lights in her office were also off. My wolf hearing didn’t detect any sound from inside. I picked up a hint of her scent, but only because she’d spent time in this space, not because she was present. It would have been much more potent.
Already on edge, something about finding her lab and office empty felt ominous to me. Like our mate had made some significant change or, fuck—what if she was too upset to come into work? Considering how much she loved her job, that would be awful.
And it was all our fault.
“Well, I guess that answers that,” Wade said with a sigh. “Let’s go to her place.”
We returned the way we came, passing a group of students who’d just gathered outside a classroom.
“Did you hear about Andrews?” one of them asked.
I slowed my pace, glancing at Wade to see if he’d heard as well. He gave me a nod. We paused and studied a bulletin board, although I had no idea what the posters were about. With our wolf hearing, it was easy for us to listen in.
“I heard he got fired, but I didn’t hear why,” a young woman answered.
“He’s not fired yet—it has to go up before the ethics committee, but I heard they’re having an emergency meeting to discuss it. Dr. Johanssen told me the whole scoop.”
“Tell me! I couldn’t get the whole story,” the gossiping young woman exclaimed.
We headed into the stairwell but paused, listening to the rest of the conversation, just as riveted.
“Johanssen said he’s on the ethics committee and if the story’s true, Andrews will certainly lose his position.”
“What story?”
“You know how Dr. Shriver has been collecting data on wolves?”
I went still, even holding my breath.
“No, but okay,” the student answered.
“Well, I guess she somehow found out that Andrews was using her trackers to sell the locations of wolves to hunters. It’s totally illegal to hunt them in this part of Wyoming!”
“Holy shit, that’s… evil,” someone replied.
“I know, right? I guess she’s headed out to find the wolves and remove the tags.”
What the fuck?
I met Wade’s gaze, both vindicated and anguished over this information. We’d heard enough.
We jogged down the steps and burst out of the building to talk.
“She did it,” Wade said. “She figured it out.”
I took my Stetson off, stabbed my fingers through my hair. “I know. I’m so damn proud of her, but it kills me that she had to do it alone. That we weren’t here to back her up, standing behind her all the way. And now she’s going to go out there and untag every wolf?”
Wade shrugged. “They’re all over this corner of the state. It’ll take her weeks, even using the trackers to lead her to the animals.”
“Alone,” I snapped. “She’s going to get her ass spanked for that.”
“When we
find her,” Wade added. “But why would she come to any of us? Gib made her feel like she had to prove her innocence. Our mate is desperately trying to clear her name right now.”
Then an even more unsettling thought dropped into my head. “Or worse,” I said. “Maybe she’s not doing this for us at all. Like you said, what if she’s already written us off, and is doing what’s right by the wolves by getting Andrews fired? Saving the rest of the wolves she tagged?” Both scenarios gutted me, since she felt so alone not to come to us or get our help, but to do something dangerous like head back out into the wilderness solo. I started jogging toward my truck. “We’ve got to find her.”
“But where do we even fucking start?”
CAITLYN
My phone rang as I drove into West Springs. Seeing Landry’s name brought on a fresh stab of pain. I hit decline and turned the ringer off. Yes, they’d apologized, but I was still licking my wounds from our break-up. I knew I needed to talk to him and Wade, but first I needed to do right by their wolf-dog population.
I might not have known my trackers were leading to the death of wolves, but I was still responsible. I’d reported Dr. Andrews. Now, I needed to deal with the animals that still had trackers in them. Then there was Tim Hollaroy, the rancher who’d killed White Paw.
Unfortunately, repercussions for violations of Fish and Game regulations weren’t that severe, but Hollaroy could face a fine of up to four thousand dollars and the suspension of his hunting license for up to five years. I didn’t think that would actually stop him, or keep him from getting someone else to do his dirty work for him. It didn’t feel like real justice, but it was something.
I slowed my car and pulled up in front of the small Fish and Game shack on the edge of National Forest land. Taking a deep breath, I climbed out of my car and headed to the door. I wasn’t sure whether to hope I found John Randolph, the shifter who’d chased us down the day I was planting trackers in wolves with Landry and Wade, or not. While I did want to see him specifically, I didn’t expect a warm welcome. He might even be outright hostile. I had no doubt he’d heard about White Paw, and my involvement. One thing I’d learned about the Two Marks pack was that they were tight.
Still, he might at least be equipped to help me, and I’d learned from my time with Wade and Landry that I needed all the help I could get.
I knocked on the wooden screen door and pushed it open.
It was the shifter John Randolph who swiveled on a stool and peered at me. His bushy brows slammed down in disapproval. From that one look, I knew everything I’d anticipated was true.
Rather than try to defend myself, I launched into my purpose. “I need your help. My colleague sold the signal trackers to all the wolves I tagged to Tim Hollaroy.”
It only took him a moment to comprehend, and he surged to his feet. His nostrils flared, eyes searching my neck. “Where are your mates?”
I now knew he was breathing in my scent. Wade’s and Landry’s, if what they’d said about the marking was true. John could smell them on me, know I was marked.
“We’re not speaking right now.” I didn’t elaborate. He didn’t need to know the details other than for the business at hand. “I have proof it was Tim Hollaroy who paid for the data, and I can track the wolves’ locations with my phone the same way he did to find and shoot those three wolves. He might kill others unless we get to them first.”
John blinked at me, processing everything I’d said. “All right. I can help you with that. But show me your evidence first.”
I went over to the counter that had trail and topographical maps under glass, and set my cell down. I played the recording of Dr. Andrews’s confession and he nodded, his jaw clenching more the longer he listened. “This is good. Can you email me the digital file?”
I exhaled, relieved I had an ally. He might not like me, but we now had a common purpose. “Yes. Give me your email and I’ll send it right now.”
He shared it with me and I forwarded the link on to him.
“Now, what about those wolves with trackers? They’re not all in this area, are they?”
I sighed, knowing my task was huge. “No.” I pulled out my cell and opened the app that showed the trackers. With two fingers, I zoomed into West Springs and the surrounding area.
He stared blankly down at the topographical map, and thought for a moment. “How many are here in West Springs?”
“Just one. Here.” I pointed at the display. “This is the wolf we need to get to. It’s the closest to us, but also to the cattle ranches of Hollaroy and his cronies.”
John picked up his Stetson from a peg on the wall behind him and dropped it on his head. He wasn’t in a ranger uniform, but instead looked more the cowboy. Snug jeans, sturdy leather boots, and even a huge belt buckle he must have won at some kind of rodeo or other Western-themed competition. “Let’s go get it.”
My mouth hung open at how quickly he was ready to assist. My stomach was still twisted in knots—its constant state since I drove away from West Springs three days ago—but a small measure of relief went through me. I could do this much. John knew the area better, knew wolves better—a PhD couldn’t compare to being a shifter—and was motivated.
I got my backpack out of my car, which held water and snacks, a raincoat, and other outdoor gear, but most importantly, the tranq gun. As I approached John’s truck, he was thumbing over his phone. We climbed into the cab and I pulled up the location of Comet—the name I’d given the second wolf—on my cell. John’s phone beeped, and he read the display of his phone without comment.
He stopped the truck and looked at me over the hood. “I know where that animal is,” he said grimly. “It will take a while to get there.”
“This is my priority,” I said, looking him in the eye. “I’ll stay as long as it takes.”
John grunted and drove down a dirt road. After almost an hour of driving in silence, he said, “Your mates… you said you’re not speaking? Was it over these trackers?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.” I shut him down. We might be allies in saving Comet and the other wolves, but we weren’t BFFs.
“No, no, of course you don’t,” he replied. “It’s none of my business. I’m grateful to you for coming to me with the information on Hollaroy and the trackers.”
My fingers tangled in my lap; the pain of the falling out I’d had with my mates was still raw. Focusing on saving Comet would keep my mind off of them, if John didn’t bring it up. I really didn’t want to discuss any of this with a total stranger, even if he was a shifter and understood marking and mating better than I.
He cleared his throat. “Your mates must be frantic to be apart from you. I’m not sure if you understand how much a wolf requires his mate.”
Ugh, couldn’t he just stop?
I licked my lips, turned on the bench seat, and faced him. “Please. I’m not going to discuss this with you.”
“Okay, okay.” He lifted his fingers from the steering wheel so his hand made the stop gesture. “I just hope you’ll give them a chance to repair things between you three. For their sake, and for the good of the pack. I can see how much you care about wolves. You’ll be an enormous asset to West Springs.”
I blinked away the burning behind my eyelids. I had no plans to live in West Springs. I had a job I loved in Granger. But even as those defensive thoughts attacked the idea, I knew they weren’t true.
I loved wolves, not Granger State. My paper would get my name out there, but all the research was tainted now. Knowing what Dr. Andrews had done, how the wolves had been killed, there was no sense of accomplishment. Sure, I’d tweaked what I’d planned to write, but still… nothing seemed the same now. Even worse, I was able to look back and clearly see I’d never quite felt like I fit anywhere until I met Wade and Landry. Until I came here.
My parents’ teaching job offer had been presented from a place of love. The position itself would have been worthy, getting kids into science and hopefully loving it as much as
I did. But it wasn’t me. Now I knew why.
John parked his truck on the side of the dirt road. We were in the middle of a thick pine forest, the land sloping steeply. He got out, looked around as if he was taking stock of his surroundings. “From here, we’ll have to hike.”
I looked about, and tried to see it from his perspective, which I couldn’t. It was just woods to me. “Okay.” Even though I knew they were in there, I double-checked my backpack for the tranq gun and equipment required to remove the tracker, then followed John along an unmarked path.
Twenty minutes later, I was starting to fear he was leading me in circles when he went still, listening. The crackle of twigs and soft footfalls running quickly reached my ears. I drew in a breath to scream at what appeared from the forest.
Two giant wolves leaped right toward us.
“It’s all right.” John gripped my shoulder, and the truth hit me.
These were my wolves.
My mates.
My heart had been pounding out of fear, but that slipped away. Now, my heart was pounding because Wade and Landry were here. Before my eyes, they shifted, then stood.
Naked.
My ovaries jumped for joy at the sight of them. Big, brawny, virile. And very hard. Their dicks were thick and long and bobbing toward me.
Their gazes were dark and eating me up. They clenched their fingers into fists as if keeping from grabbing me.
Grab me! Grab me!
“Randolph, thanks for cluing us in on how to find our mate.”
John tipped his hat to Landry and Wade.
“Sugar, we fucked up,” Wade began, taking a step toward me.
John held up his hand. “If you’re going to make up while your junk’s hanging out, tell me now.”
Wade stopped, and looked to John. I couldn’t help but laugh. Wade and Landry didn’t seem to care that they were naked. They didn’t have a modest bone in either of their bodies. They shouldn’t because they were… incredible.
John turned to me, seemingly trying to look anywhere but at his pack mates. “Give me the supplies. I’ll find the wolf and remove the tag.” He tipped his chin down, and gave me a pointed look. “Your job now is to put these two out of their misery.”
