by Geonn Cannon
Dale reached up but stopped short of actually touching Ari’s face. “Oh, god, look at you. I did this. I’m so sorry.”
“Hey, no. No.” Ari kissed her lips. “No. You did this to save me. I’ll never, ever forget that. Thank you, Dale.”
Gwen cleared her throat. “Maybe we should sit before we rile up the guards.”
“Right.”
They sat, Dale and Gwen on one side of the table with Ari across from them. Ari didn’t let go of Dale, transferring her hand from the small of Dale’s back to her hand by skimming up her back and down her arm. They linked fingers and Ari squeezed.
“So did it work?” Dale said.
Ari desperately wanted to say yes, wanted to assuage Dale’s guilt by saying that it had solved their problem, but she couldn’t lie.
“Not directly,” Ari said. “But it did introduce me to someone who did have a solution. It worked in the end, babe. Don’t worry about how it looks. The important thing is that I’m safe and you’re the one who made that happen.”
Dale still didn’t look entirely convinced. She covered their linked fingers with her free hand.
“How are you holding up?” Gwen asked.
“Surprisingly, it’s not too bad. My cellmate is a godsend. She’s been watching out for me. She found out I’m a private investigator and wants me to look into a case when I get out. I figure that’s a fair trade. How are things going on the outside?”
Gwen said, “We’re looking for ways to take Cecily Parrish down before this goes to trial. She and that law firm have some sketchy history. If we can figure out how to use that to our advantage, it would change everything.”
“We meaning you and Milo’s pack,” Ari said.
“And Diana,” Dale added. “She’s been a huge help. I found a security camera in Seward Park that caught a car on the night of the murder. Diana’s trying to figure out where it went. She also thinks she knows a lawyer who will take your case.”
Ari said, “Be sure to thank her for me.”
Dale nodded.
“Is there anything you haven’t told us about your interactions with Cecily or GG&M?” Gwen asked. “Anything that might help us out?”
“I told Dale everything,” Ari said. “I know next to nothing about her other than the fact she’s a succubus and really, really wants to hire me to her firm.”
“We’re finding out more about the firm,” Dale said. “Nothing we can weaponize yet, but we’re hopeful. It’ll just take some time. I wish we had better news.”
Ari picked up Dale’s hand to kiss her fingers. “It’s great news, Dale. Really. I’m just glad you have such a great support team while I’m in here.”
Dale finally smiled. “Yeah, I needed a dozen wolves to make up for you not being there.”
Ari laughed.
Gwen cleared her throat and patted her pocket. “I see some vending machines back there. Why don’t I get us something to snack on while we’re talking?” She caught the guard’s eye and pointed to the machines. He nodded, so she stood up and smiled at them before she made her way across the room to leave them alone.
“Mom’s subtle,” Ari said.
“What are you talking about?” Dale asked. “Was there an ulterior motive for her to leave? I mean, I am feeling a little snacky.”
Ari said, “See, this is why I’m the detective. I notice the little clues.”
Dale smiled, but her tears welled up again.
“Hey,” Ari said. “Cut that out. Don’t cry. I don’t want you to remember this as a sad visit.” She reached up with one hand to brush the tears away with her thumb. “We’re going to sort this out, just like we always do.”
“What if we don’t?” Dale said. “She’s powerful, Ari. And her law firm has been around for over a hundred years. They have experience with stuff like this and they’re used to winning. We’ve spent so much time punching above our weight that maybe we finally bit off more than we can chew. I don’t know if I’ll be able to take only seeing you for one hour every Monday.”
Ari looked down at the table. “If it comes to that, then of course... I mean, I don’t want you to feel trapped by me. If I’m stuck in here, you should--”
Dale smacked Ari’s hand. “That’s not what I meant and you know it.”
“I--”
“Shame on you, Ariadne.”
Ari said, “I don’t want to think of you being alone.”
“I won’t be alone. You might be in here while I’m out there, but I’ll never be alone.”
Ari pressed her lips together. “I love you.”
“I love you, too. And if an hour per week is all I get, I’ll cope. It doesn’t matter if I get to spend one hour or twenty-four hours with you, Ari, it’s never going to feel like enough.”
Gwen slowly approached the table. She was carrying three bags of chips. “I think I’ve got enough snacks, but I could always go back.”
Ari smiled and motioned for her to sit. “I think we have enough for right now, Mom.”
Gwen put the bags on the table. “I hope you still like barbeque, Ariadne...”
“Mom,” Ari said. “You were younger than I am when I was born. I never really thought about that, but it’s true. Being in this situation and not knowing if there’s a way out, it made me realize how you must have felt. You didn’t have a Dale, Mom. You didn’t have a... you. Or a British pack swooping in to lend a hand. You didn’t have anything. I can’t even fathom how terrified you must have been or how big of a leap of faith you had to take. And looking at who I’ve become, I can’t imagine being in this position if I didn’t have the wolf.”
Gwen was shaking her head, jaw tight. “Ariadne, you’ve already forgiven me.”
“Yeah. But I never admitted that you didn’t need forgiving. You did what you thought was right, what was necessary at the time. I don’t know if it was wrong. All I know is how it turned out, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. You never needed my forgiveness, you needed an apology from me for running away when I found out the truth. I’m sorry, Mom.”
Gwen covered her face. Dale put an arm around her and squeezed, and Gwen leaned on her. Ari let go of Dale with one hand and put it on top of her mother’s.
“Thank you, Ariadne.”
“It was overdue.”
Gwen sniffled. “Apologies or forgiveness notwithstanding, I don’t think either of us regrets where your path has led, Ari. I am so proud to call you my daughter.” She looked at Dale. “To call both of you daughter.”
Dale smiled. She glanced at the clock and reached for the chips just to be doing something with her hands. “I think we should eat some of these chips while we still have time. Are you allowed to take food back to... b-back with you?”
Ari snatched up the barbeque chips. “Let’s not find out.”
Gwen smiled and composed herself. “So... tell us more about this new friend of yours.”
#
Ari spent the entire meeting with a low-key sense of dread, an awareness of the clock ticking down the time she could spend with Dale and her mother. Still, when the guard announced it was time to say goodbye, it felt like a cruel and unexpected surprise. She stood up and hugged her mother, then turned and fought back tears as she pulled Dale into another crushing hug. She took a deep breath, trying to make up for her newly-limited olfactory ability to take in as much as possible. She turned her head and kissed Dale’s hair.
“Take care of each other for me, okay?” Ari whispered against her ear.
Dale squeezed Ari’s bicep. “If you’ll keep yourself safe for me. I need you, puppy.”
Ari nodded and kissed Dale. “Love you.”
“Love you,” Dale echoed.
They stepped away from each other because that would be a better memory than having Ari pulled away, and Dale turned to leave so she wouldn’t have to watch as Ari was escorted out of the room by the guard. Ari’s good mood, which had bloomed inside of her the second she saw Dale, withered just as quickly when she stepped
over the threshold into the darker and colder corridor which led to the visitation room.
She was scheduled to immediately begin work in the library, which meant she had to miss breakfast. She didn’t mind that too much; seeing her family was worth powering through until lunchtime.
There was a full row of books waiting on a cart when she arrived, so she pushed it into the stacks to begin shelving them. None of the returned books were alphabetized which gave her something to do while she got her emotions under control. She heard the library doors close but didn’t give it much thought; there had to be a lot of traffic here throughout the day. She only looked up when someone joined her in the narrow aisle between the shelves.
Kunz.
Ari tensed and looked over her shoulder. Another inmate, one she’d seen sitting with Kunz in the cafeteria, was standing behind her to block the exit. She stood up straighter and squared her shoulders as she faced Kunz again. She was holding three hardback books and was prepared to use them as weapons if necessary.
“I don’t want to fight you,” Ari said, “but I’ll defend myself if I have to.”
Kunz advanced on her. “What you said yesterday. When we were fighting. Say it again.”
Ari looked at the other inmate. “I said I’m a wolf.”
“What does that have to do with you attacking me?” Kunz said.
“I needed to prevent myself from transforming. My girlfriend thought that a broken bone was the only way to do it, and I thought you were my best option for getting something broken.” She quietly added, “At the moment I’m kind of hoping I was wrong...”
“And why did you tell me all of that?”
“Dr. Val told me you would understand. She also said I should tell you that I helped end wolf manoth a while back.”
Kunz looked legitimately surprised by that. She blinked and shook her head like she was a robot trying to compute new information.
“Wait. You’re the wolf who took down the hunters?”
“I, uh... I convinced them it was stupid to keep up the tradition and they backed down. Most of them, anyway.” She didn’t feel the need to share her father’s involvement in the whole war.
Kunz moved so quickly Ari only had time to drop the books and bring up her hands in a futile attempt to protect her face. It turned out to be unnecessary, though, as Kunz merely grabbed her wrist, pulled her arm out, and closed her hand in a vice. It took Ari a moment to realize it was meant to be a handshake and not some weird pressurized torture.
“My sister was being hunted by those assholes. One day they just disappeared. They were all over Seattle like damn bedbugs, and then they all just went home. There were rumors about one wolf who walked into their fortress and told them to leave, but we just assumed that was a myth. Her name was like something from a myth, too. Uh... something weird.”
“Ariadne.”
“Right.” Her grin widened. “Holy shit. You’re a goddamn hero.”
“You can call me Ari.”
Kunz laughed and pumped Ari’s hand again. “And you can call me whatever the hell you want. Every wolf in here owes you a huge debt. Hell, every wolf in the city.”
Ari glanced back to see what the other inmate was doing. She looked star stuck. Ari smiled nervously.
“Always nice to meet a fan.”
“You can meet more of us tonight when your shift ends. You know where the gym is?”
Ari nodded and Kunz smacked her on the arm. It hurt, but Ari didn’t let it show.
“There aren’t a whole hell of a lot of us in here, but the ones there are stick together. I feel a little extra responsible for you after giving you that shiner.”
“I think you’ll have to answer to my girlfriend for that,” Ari said.
Kunz said, “Is she tough?”
“Scares the hell out of me.”
“I’ll steer clear.” She pointed over Ari’s shoulder. “That’s Frankie Compton. You’ll get to know her tonight.”
Ari nodded to the other woman. “Nice to meet you.”
Frankie said, “I was stuck in here when wolf manoth was kicking off. My mom, she’s not doing too well, and my grandma was even worse. I was losing my mind trying to figure out how to keep them safe. I was thinking about breaking outta here to go protect them. Then I heard from some other wolves that it was all cool. Heat died down ‘cause of some wolf named Willow and her daughter.”
Ari smiled. “I’m glad Mom’s getting some credit. It was mostly her, anyway.”
“Well, no matter which of you it was, I’ll stand by you.”
“I appreciate it.”
Kunz craned her neck to look at the clock on the wall. “We have to get to our work assignments. The gym. As soon as you have free time.”
“I’ll be there.”
“See you then.” Kunz let Frankie leave first, taking a moment to stare at Ari with something close to awe. She shook her head.
“Welcome to the kennel, Willow.”
Chapter Nineteen
On Monday morning, Milo put on the nicest outfit she’d brought from England. Gwen, of course, made Milo change into something out of her closet once she saw it. The suit she’d chosen was a dark purple pantsuit with a black shirt. It wasn’t something she would have bought for herself, but she had to admit she looked damn good in it. She even put on makeup and pinned her hair back. When she went downstairs, Paige and Benji both did doubletakes.
“Shut up, you knobs,” Milo grunted before they could comment.
While Gwen and Dale were visiting Ari, Milo had her own mission. She took an Uber to the Patkanim Building. She’d expected it to be the same as their last visit, but apparently GG&M had taken the wolf invasion seriously. Two armed guards were posted at the elevator banks, and every person who came in had to stop at the front desk to receive a badge before going upstairs. Milo joined the line and waited patiently until it was her turn.
“Good morning, ma’am,” the young man behind the counter said. “Where will you be visiting this morning?”
“Millicent Duncan,” she said. “Gilles Garnier and Moreau.”
He looked apologetically up at her. “Sorry, ma’am, GG&M requires us to call up and approve any visitors.”
“That’s fine. I don’t have an appointment, but tell her that I was recommended to them by Bitches.”
His finger hovered over the keypad. “You...?”
“Bitches,” Milo said again, as professionally as she could muster. She smiled sweetly.
“Oh... uh.” He frowned and pressed the button. “Hi, Tasha. I have a Millicent Duncan here. She-she said she was, uh, recommended by...” His voice dropped at least three notches in volume. “..bitches?” Another drop in volume. “Well, that’s what she said, Tasha!”
Milo had to keep her smile professional, but inside she was howling with laughter.
There was a pause while he listened. Finally he hung up and scanned a blank ID card. “Wear this while you’re in the building.”
“Thank you,” Milo said.
She clipped it on her jacket and moved to the elevators. The guard scanned the card, let her into the elevator, and pressed the button for her.
“Very secure,” she told him.
“They’re not taking any chances, ma’am.”
The doors closed as Milo wondered when she went from “miss” to “ma’am.” A lot of it had to do with the outfit, she knew, but it was still irritating to hear it twice in a row. She looked over her shoulder where she and the others had stripped down and transformed during the last visit to the building. She chuckled to herself.
“Good times,” she whispered.
The doors opened to reveal Cecily Parrish flanked by two guards. Her arms were crossed over her chest. Despite the muscle, she didn’t look particularly frightened.
Milo stepped off the elevator. “Morning,” she said.
“Hello, Miss Duncan. Kindly extend your arms out to the side, please.”
“Are you going to frisk me, Miss Parrish?
” She did as she was asked. “Didn’t know this visit was going to come with perks.”
Cecily nodded to one of the guards, who stepped forward and wrapped his hand around Milo’s wrist. He tugged hard enough to throw her off-balance, and Milo stumbled. He rubbed something against the skin of her forearm and she snatched her hand away from him just as the spot began to tingle. She scratched at it.
“What the hell, man?”
“Wolf,” he reported.
Milo bared her teeth at him. “Canidae, and yeah, I was going to tell you that. Full disclosure, I was one of the wolves who paid you a visit last week, too.”
Cecily raised an eyebrow. “And what brings you back today in your respectable clothes?”
“Maybe we could talk in your office.”
“Here is fine.”
Milo pursed her lips. “Fine. I spent the weekend thinking about this whole mess. I thought maybe there was a simple solution that would make all parties happy. You want to hire a wolf?” She gestured at herself. “I’m a wolf who might be in need of a job here in Seattle. I’m considering a move to the States and I could use a cushy, high-paying job like this.”
“We were offering the job to a wolf who also happened to be a trained private investigator.”
“First,” Milo said, raising a finger, “I don’t like the way you say wolf. It’s canidae for you. Secondly, I’m a fast learner. I’ll figure things out pretty quick. Question is, which aspect is more valuable to you? There’s dozens of private eyes in the world, but none of them could learn how to be a canidae.”
Cecily said, “You’re Ariadne Willow’s friend. Why would you betray her like this?”
“Betray nothing,” Milo said. “I’m offering you exactly what you want, so you can back off on her. Get her out of jail, stop threatening her and the agency, everybody is happy. Of course, you’d have to give up the person who actually killed Shannon Hardy. But screw whoever that is, she’s a murderer. She deserves to be in jail.”
“The die has already been cast in that situation, I’m afraid,” Cecily said. “Ariadne made her choice and we can’t muddy the waters at this point.”