Wolf Shield Investigations: Boxset

by Dee Bridgnorth

  “Okay.” He held the phone to his ear, staring at the slit screen. The muscles in his jaw twitched and jumped, leading her to wonder what he was thinking. “Logan? I’m at the house. Somebody else has already been here.”

  Chapter Nine

  “Let’s have the rundown.” Logan stood in the center of the living room, his sharp eyes taking in everything around him. Jace and Zane stood by the stairs. Braxton was looking around outside for any hints of who might’ve vandalized the house.

  “At first glance, nothing is out of order.” Sledge looked around, noting again how neat everything was, how deliberate Marnie was with where she placed things. “She’s particular when it comes to where things go and doesn’t like having her belongings touched. There’s no way of knowing whether the person who broke in was aware of that or if they were just so skilled that they knew how to proceed without their presence being noted later.”

  “Let’s go with the latter,” Logan suggested. “Though we can’t rule out the former.”

  “The more she looks around, the more little things she’s noticing.” Sledge glanced up the stairs to where Marnie waited in her bedroom. He’d done a thorough search of the room—closets, under the bed, the whole thing, and the attached bathroom before she would consent to be alone.

  All it took was a slit window screen to change her tune. Now the last thing she wanted was to be alone—not that he could blame her. Not that he would leave her alone either.

  To think she’d ordered him out of the house. Not that he would’ve gone, not unless she’d called the police and he’d had no choice but to go. Thank God she hadn’t gone that far.

  Even then, he would’ve found a way to keep an eye on her.

  “What kinds of things?” Jace asked, unaware of the different directions Sledge’s thoughts were going in.

  “You have to understand how particular she is,” Sledge insisted. “There’s a magazine out of place. Her soap dispenser isn’t exactly where she left it on the counter in the bathroom. Small things, the sorts of things she might not even have noticed if it wasn’t for that slit in the window.”

  “She might’ve just set things to right and moved on,” Zane mused with a frown.

  “What we have to do first is make sure there are no devices around the house.” Logan looked around. “You know what to do.”

  Yes, they did. They had to conduct a thorough sweep to make sure the place wasn’t bugged or otherwise rigged. God only knew the sorts of things this person would’ve done, this burglar.

  Or assassin. They could very well have been that.

  “Maybe it would be better to take her outside,” Jace suggested. “In case we do find something in here.”

  “Good idea.” Sledge climbed the stairs two at a time, then tapped at her door. It sat at the top of the stairs, straight ahead, facing the backyard. “Marnie?”

  “It’s open,” she replied in a soft voice. He reminded himself how fragile she would be and took a deep breath before entering the room.

  She was pacing from one end to the other, hands tucked beneath her arms. “I don’t even want to touch anything,” she spat, disgusted.

  “I don’t think there’s any risk,” he offered, hoping to ease her mind.

  “It’s not that I think it’s risky,” she explained. “It’s just that nothing seems like mine anymore. Whoever was here was touching things, putting them out of place, even though they were careful about it. Which means they probably touched a lot more things. I feel like my whole life has been torn open for them.”

  “If it means anything, you have the best of the best in your corner. I know that’s easy for me to say, being one of them, but we’re all good at what we do. We don’t let things fall through the cracks. We’re extremely thorough, maybe even to a fault. We’ve certainly never gotten any complaints.”

  “That’s good to hear.” She didn’t stop pacing. He guessed mere words weren’t enough. Would they be for him? Probably not, especially considering her house was full of strangers.

  Their line of business didn’t exactly lead itself to glowing references from past clients. They made a point of keeping their involvement quiet to the point of secrecy. There wasn’t much he could offer other than words, nothing to convince her she was in the right hands.

  “And why aren’t we calling the police? Remind me of that?” She cast a skeptical look his way when she passed him.

  “That’s not how we operate,” he explained with a shrug. “Our work is extremely discreet. Unless someone is watching your house right now at this very minute—and we will make certain there aren’t any video or audio devices here—whoever’s doing this won’t know we’re here, won’t know anyone else is involved. The police are hardly so discreet. Your driveway would be chock full of cars in an instant.”

  “I guess you’re right about that,” she admitted.

  “Come on. Let’s go sit out back. We’ll let the guys do their work while you and I talk.” He held out his hand, knowing full well she might not take it but feeling the need to make the gesture anyway. “You could use the vitamin D. We probably both could.”

  She nodded, agreeing, but didn’t take his hand. What could he expect? Sure, she’d been all over him, wrapping herself around him as a vine wrapped itself around a tree trunk, but that was different. That was when she was probably more terrified than she’d ever been in her life.

  Now she was trying to get herself back together again, to regain ground she’d lost when revealing how vulnerable she felt. He sensed how much she hated it, along with sensing a lot of other things about her.

  It seemed like an invasion sometimes, how in tune he could be with the energy and emotions of others. Like he could take a tour through their head, sort of, and look around without their knowing it.

  This, on the other hand… This was unlike anything he’d ever experienced since escaping the lab. When he was in tune with the frequencies of others, there was still static. Sometimes he could only identify the vaguest impressions like a radio station just out of reach.

  This girl? He was tuned directly into her and could all but hear her thoughts. It was eerie, unsettling in the worst way—and he knew she would hate it if she was even slightly aware of his abilities.

  He followed her downstairs, noting the way she deliberately avoided looking at the rest of the team. For some reason, she was blushing. “What? Are you afraid of them finding something you don’t want found?” He meant it in a teasing sort of way, and he should’ve known better by then. This was not a girl he should tease, especially not in the state she was in.

  Her eyes flashed fire when she turned to him. “Who do you think I am?” she spat. “Someone with secrets, something to hide?”

  “No,” he admitted, chastised. “Sorry. I’m not very good at trying to lighten the mood.”

  “Obviously,” she replied with a roll of her eyes, continuing through the dining room and kitchen, then out the back door.

  “But you know,” he continued, a little more confident now that they were away from the others—he knew they’d heard every word and were probably snickering to themselves even as they worked—“you do come off like someone who has something to hide. That’s not criticism. It’s a fact. It’s almost enough to make me wonder about the sort of work you’re involved in.”

  “If you’re trying to bait me, you’re wasting your time.” She took a seat in one of the wicker chairs arranged around a fire pit, making herself good and comfortable. “I’m not in the mood for debate.”

  “Neither am I. In case you forgot, you’re not the only one who spent the night in the hospital.”

  “Nobody asked you to.”

  “I’m well aware of that.” When she tossed her head to the side, sending a waterfall of brown hair over one shoulder, he both sneered at the gesture and practically salivated over the scent wafting through the air. How could he both resent her attitude and want her at the same time?

  He sat across from her, leaning in wit
h his forearms on his thighs. “But the last time I checked, you’re very lucky I stayed. Just like you’re fortunate that I came here with you and I didn’t leave when you told me to. You keep forgetting who’s helping you through this. What’s the old saying about biting the hand that feeds you? I know I’m not feeding you, but I am trying to help. Why do you keep taking things out on me?”

  Even he wasn’t stupid enough to mention the way she clung to him earlier, though he wanted to. Right then, he wanted to rub it in her face, to remind her she wasn’t half as strong as she pretended to be. That would be small, petty, and he wasn’t either of those things.

  At least, he’d always thought himself better than that. It seemed like Marnie Harris was sent his way to challenge everything he believed about himself.

  She looked at the patio. It was gray stone, and it looked like it had been recently put down. The stones themselves were fresh, barely worn. “I don’t know how to be right now. I guess you could say I’m not generally a very kind or pleasant person. I’ve never been good at getting along with people, hence my living alone and having no one to come for me at the hospital.”

  “That was a low blow, and I never should’ve mentioned it.”

  “You’re right—still, it’s the truth. Beth was the only person I had in my life, my only friend. Even then, we were only friends in the first place because we were roommates. Fate brought us together, and we became like sisters. But if I had ended up with anyone else as my roommate? My life could have gone a lot differently.”

  He settled back in the chair, switching gears. This was good. The more he could get her to talk about herself, the better the chance of learning exactly what her business was and why someone had targeted her and her people.

  “How differently?” he prompted, keeping his voice low, casual. The last thing she needed was to be probed or to feel like there was a spotlight shining in her face like some old crime drama, like she was being grilled by a cop or a hard-bitten detective.

  She shrugged, and a faint smile played at the corners of her generous mouth. Even now, when the stakes were so high, he couldn’t help but wonder what her lips tasted like.

  “She was my guardian angel throughout college. I already told you all about how she protected me from those guys back then who thought they could take advantage of a kid. She made sure people treated me like an equal, not like a kid. She brought me to parties so I could meet people, though she made sure I was safe there.” She sat back, sighing, staring off into the distance. “It was more than that too.”

  “How so?” He couldn’t help but wish he could’ve met this girl. She sounded like something special.

  “She pushed me all the time. It’s easy for a person with a high IQ, whom things have never been that difficult for—I mean, I never had to spend much time on studying and all that—to coast through life. She wouldn’t let me do it. She made me work. She made me want to do better, be better. When I came up with the idea for a business to use for my final project in senior year, she’s the one who encouraged me to turn it into a real thing.”

  “Exactly what is your business?” he asked, though he knew at least in generalities. She couldn’t know they’d already done research on her. On the people who’d died? Sure. But not on her.

  “I run a team of people skilled in processing research.” There was no missing the pride in her voice. “A lot of big corporations run tests—for marketing, what have you—but they don’t have the slightest idea what to do with the results of those tests. Not only do we process it, but we draw conclusions based on what was found and create plans for them to move forward using that research. Yes, lots of places do that,” she agreed before he even had the chance to bring it up, “but we’re different.”

  “Different how?” he pressed. When her brows drew together, he added, “Listen, I understand it might be confidential.”

  “That’s exactly what it is,” she murmured.

  “But has it occurred to you that something your team worked on is the reason all of this is happening?”

  She shook her head hard, indicating her refusal to accept this. “No. No way.”

  “What makes you so sure? Frankly, if I were in your position, I wouldn’t be so quick to dismiss any theory. We might end up uncovering exactly who the perpetrator is.”

  “You have to understand something. There are all sorts of agreements in place here. Contracts. Nondisclosure agreements. I’m not really allowed to talk about it. Suffice it to say, it’s important.”

  Yes, it was important. And he was starting to get an idea of just how important. Who would demand a nondisclosure agreement, while also having the money to finance professionals like the one who would’ve broken into Marnie’s home? Whoever had done it was at the top of their game, no doubt. He hadn’t even sensed their presence upon entering the house, which unsettled him greatly.

  His immediate instinct was to consider the government, but it was too soon to jump to that conclusion. Besides, he was biased, having been dicked over by them himself.

  Even so, no matter how he told himself to remain objective, goosebumps rose up over the back of his neck. Yes, it seemed like there might be something more at play, and if the government was involved, his team had just stepped into something that could end up destroying all of them.

  Chapter Ten

  There was one part about this whole mess that made her laugh a little when she considered it.

  Never would she have imagined so many men walking around her house at one time. Especially men like these—massive, gorgeous, the sort of presence that made her feel like she might as well be invisible. She could hardly stand to look at them–they were so beautiful, so worthy of admiration.

  “Are you all bouncers in your spare time?” she asked Sledge once they were given the okay to enter the house again. It would take something as terrible as this, something as scary and unpredictable, to allow strangers to roam her house unsupervised.

  And the fact that they were the ones who told her she was allowed to enter? Definitely not something she would’ve put up with under any other circumstances, but this was hardly normal.

  Sledge chuckled, shaking his head. It made his hair move back and forth over his shoulders, and she was struck with the funniest urge when she watched it move. She wanted to plunge her hands into it, to test its thickness and softness. It was powerful enough to practically knock the breath from her body. This wasn’t like her at all. Not that she never noticed men, but she would never have gone so far as to visualize touching him that way.

  Not somebody like him—somebody who could’ve had any woman he wanted with a snap of his fingers. Somebody with deep-set, brooding, dark eyes, soulful when they weren’t narrowed, suspicious.

  Thrilling when anger shone in them.

  “No, we just all happen to be larger than your average guy,” he shrugged, lifting his thick shoulders.

  She had to turn her face away, desperate to hide the blush that covered her cheeks. Was he aware of what he was saying when he made that comment? Or was she a pervert for immediately going to that secret place in her mind?

  “Was that a prerequisite for employment?” she asked, determined to keep her wits about her. She wasn’t flirting—she didn’t know how to flirt—but she was desperately curious. How was it that these remarkable male specimens ended up together?

  “We’re all ex-military,” Sledge explained. “None of us has been able to let go of that training, I guess. Plus, size helps with our line of work. Granted, a lot of what we do involves surveillance and a deeper psychological understanding of the people we stop from doing whatever it is they’re doing, but size definitely helps when it comes to intimidation and power.”

  Intimidation and power. An intellectual like her should hate that. After all, it was always the bigger, stronger people who seemed to come out on top—at least, that was her experience.

  So why did a delicious little shiver run down her spine? Why did goosebumps pop up on her arms?
This was hardly the time to develop some stupid schoolgirl lust for a lughead. Even if that lughead possessed incredibly strong arms and a firm chest just perfect for her to rest her head against while she wept. Even if he made her feel safe when everything was falling apart. Even if her first instinct was to run to him, to throw herself into his arms, to practically beg him to protect her. It was like she’d lost her senses somewhere along the line.

  Maybe she needed a cold shower. Instead of taking one, she sat in the living room while the team gathered around. They were going to debrief her, a term which did sound terribly military.

  “I guess I’ll start,” Logan began. He was clearly the leader, the man who’d started the group. She didn’t have to be told. He held himself like a leader—all of them did, really, but he just had that certain something about him.

  “I’m all ears,” she murmured. “This is all new to me, so I’m sorry if I don’t quite catch on right away.”

  He gave her what she guessed was supposed to pass for a smile. “To begin with, your house is clean—I don’t mean clean in the normal sense. We didn’t find anything to convince us you shouldn’t stay here, though of course that’s completely up to you.”

  She couldn’t even begin to think about that just then.

  He took her silence as an invitation to continue. “It’s clear that whoever did this was no novice. They knew exactly how to behave, exactly how to break into the house in such a way that you might not notice—at least, not immediately. It seems like sheer luck is the only reason you discovered the truth when you did.”

  Luck. That was a funny word, wasn’t it? She hardly considered herself lucky, though when she wasn’t thinking emotionally, she knew she was. Lucky that Sledge had been with her. Lucky that whoever had broken in was gone by the time she got home.