by Kathy Lyon
“That’s how I know. It’s a lie, Noelle. It made me feel all powerful, and I’m not.” If only she was. She’d lock up her brother where he couldn’t hurt himself or anyone else. But now it was time to put it all on the line. “Raoul has to pay for his crimes, and Father has to step down. What they’ve done is inexcusable.”
Noelle took a moment to absorb that statement and all its ramifications. She eyed Frankie with a long, heavy stare and then slowly shook her head.
“Without them, who would run the pack?”
Frankie held her friend’s gaze, letting her intention sink in. Noelle got it in the time it took her to adjust Jaxon on her hip.
“You can’t lead the pack!” she friend cried, then her voice dropped to a harsh whisper. “You’d never win the dominance fight. You’ve never even shifted.”
“I’ve been winning since I was a kid.”
“That’s because you’re the alpha’s daughter. No one would dare hurt you.”
Maybe. It was also because she was smart and had trained hard thanks to Hazel. “Plus, I do shift.”
Noelle’s eyes widened, and her expression abruptly turned joyous. “Really? When? Oh my God, you never told me. That’s fantastic!”
Yeah. Well, it might not be once she saw the truth. But rather than explain, Frankie squared her shoulders and made the mental shift to her hybrid form. She looked her friend in the eye and changed. She’d had weeks to practice this, so she knew she had the smell under control, but she’d never done it in front of a true member of her pack. Someone who was a regular wolf-shifter and had no reason to respect a hybrid.
She felt her face elongate, her ears sprout fur, and her hands turn to claws. She tried to do it as slowly as possible, to give Noelle time to adjust, but the whole change was done between one breath and the next. And there she stood holding Harley while Noelle gasped and stumbled backward.
Kennedy came tearing in a second later, his fists up, and his gaze scanning everything. Frankie turned and held up a hand—er, a claw—telling him silently to stay back. He stopped and nodded, his sharp eyes landing on Noelle’s horrified expression.
“She’s not one of the crazy ones,” he said.
“Are you sure? She’s got Harley,” Noelle whispered, and that hurt. It really hurt because even with Harley happily sipping juice in her arms, one of her closest friends didn’t know her as safe. That she’d never hurt her or her child.
“I’m fine,” Frankie said. “It’s me.” And just for emphasis, she snuggled close to Harley who hadn’t reacted at all. Well, not at first. He hadn’t cared that Frankie had shifted, but he was eyeing his mother closely. And in Noelle’s arms, Jaxon was picking up on his mother’s terror and looked ready to wail.
It was a tense situation, especially with the kids hovering on the edge of meltdown, but Kennedy ended the problem with two words. “She’s safe.” Then he went back into the bedroom and came out a moment later carrying another full garbage bag. “I’ll take these down. Unless you want me to stay?” He was looking at Frankie as he spoke, and his steady support slid inside her heart. She didn’t want it to. He was a bear, for God’s sake. But it felt so good.
“No, we’re fine. Right?” she asked Noelle.
Noelle’s gaze hopped between the two of them. Then it landed on Harley who had finished his juice and was now getting restless. He wanted to be put down, so Frankie set him gently on the floor where he toddled off to play at parking cars in a bright toy garage.
Everyone watched the boy go, the child completely obvious to the undercurrents in the room. And just to ease the tension a bit more, Frankie shifted back to human.
“See? It’s still me.” She waved at Kennedy. “Thanks for helping with the garbage.”
“No problem,” he said as he hauled up the two large bags. His muscles bulged, and his back rippled with strength. Frankie watched as he moved, all animal grace in a hot human body. Damn the man was sizzling, and her heart—and some more intimate places—fluttered at the sight.
But then he was gone, and she turned back to Noelle who—apparently—had been watching Kennedy, too.
“I miss my husband,” the woman breathed, as she fanned herself with a hand. “If nothing else, you do know how to pick the hot ones. How long have you two been dating?”
Frankie flushed. “Um, we’re not…I mean, we just met. I knew him before, obviously, but—”
“Now he’s looking back at you.”
Frankie shrugged. “Yeah.”
“And you’re a hybrid.”
“Yeah.”
“And you’re going to take over the pack?”
“Yes.”
Noelle sighed as she set down Jaxon, who toddled off to play with his brother. “The pack won’t accept a hybrid, Frankie. You’re going to get yourself killed.”
And now it was time to state her case. “Who else should run the pack? Do you want Raoul?”
The woman shuddered. “Hell, no.”
“And what about my father?”
Noelle tugged her child close. “He’s taken care of us. Except for this last thing with the serum, he’s been a good landlord.”
“Really?” Frankie challenged. “Because that’s been me. I’m the one who watches the properties, helps people when they’re struggling.” She looked hard at Noelle. “I help when the kids are sick, not him.”
Noelle nodded. “But your father told you to do it.”
Is that what people thought? That everything she did was because her father told her to do it? Damn it. She should have been claiming credit every time she turned around, but she hated blowing her own horn. That’s what arrogant men did when they didn’t understand that there is no I in “team.” Or “pack.” But it was time to make the facts clear.
“My father hates that I spend so much time out here. I had to fight for the new swing set and the dog park. I got them to clean the gutters and change the hallway carpet. Hell, he wouldn’t even have fixed the elevators if I hadn’t told him that’s a lawsuit waiting to happen.”
She could see Noelle absorb the information. On some level, she must have known it was true. It’s not like Emory did anything but glad-hand when there was a party and take credit for all of Frankie’s work.
“I’ve been the force behind him for years, and you know it.”
“You always said it was a family effort. That the pack—”
“Takes care of the pack.” She straightened. “That’s because I believe it. Raoul doesn’t. And my father…” She shook her head. “He likes being in charge, but I’m the one who gets things done.”
Frankie held her breath. Did Noelle see the truth? Did she look at Frankie and see just who and what she was?
Noelle shook her head. “They’ll never accept a hybrid as a new alpha.”
“Then you tell me, who else do you want in charge?”
There wasn’t anyone, and they both knew it. Being alpha was a delicate thing. You had to take care of the pack, but quietly. You had to be diplomatic when dealing with other alphas, and yet still show strength when needed. Her father could show strength like no one else, but he’d made some really bad decisions lately thanks to Raoul. Frankie was offering a different way. And yes, she was female and a hybrid, but she could get stuff done. Hell, she’d been getting stuff done for years. She just needed the entire pack to realize it.
But she was in for trouble if she couldn’t get the women on her side.
“I’m doing this,” Frankie said. “And I need your help.”
“No way. I don’t get involved in pack politics.” She wet a sponge from the sink and began to wipe down some of the mess on the counter.
“Well, it’s time now. Your pack needs you.” Frankie stepped closer, daring to touch her friend’s arm. She pulled her around so they looked eye to eye. “I need your help. You have to talk to Brady. I need to know where the serum is held. We have to stop poisoning the city, and we have to make Raoul pay for dumping that shit into the water supply.”
Noelle
winced. “You’re sure it was Raoul?”
“Who else could make my father do something so stupid? We don’t want werewolves to come out from the shadows. I don’t care how many romances are written about sexy wolves, normal people will turn on us. Especially if our first public act is to terrify a city.”
“I know you’re right,” Noelle said, her voice plaintive. “But I don’t see what I can do about it.”
“Of course, you do.” Frankie gently pulled the sponge from Noelle’s hand and tossed it back into the sink. “You have to go talk to your sister and Brady. Find out where the stockpile of serum is located. Brady was transporting the shit, so he knows where it is. Find out and tell me. Detective Kennedy and I will take care of the rest.”
“I can’t leave the boys!”
“I’ll stay with them.”
“But—”
“We have to stop them,” Frankie pressed. When Noelle didn’t look convinced, Frankie turned the screws. “What happens if one of your boys drinks the tainted water accidentally? Or if, God forbid, Raoul shoots up everyone in the pack with the pure stuff?” He’d learned from her experience that it was better to drink an altered serum in water. Getting injected with the pure stuff was a million times worse.
“He wouldn’t do that.”
“Really? He did it to me. I woke up screaming. The pain is excruciating.” She turned to look at the boys. “Do you want that for them? Because if they’re like me and don’t shift on schedule, then you know he’ll do it to them, too.”
“He wouldn’t do that,” Noelle repeated, but there wasn’t any force behind the words. It came out more like a prayer than a belief.
“You know he would. Especially if he has time to solidify his position in the pack.”
“He’s already too strong.”
“No,” Frankie said, investing power in her words. “No, he’s not. Because I’m going to take him down. But I need the location of the serum. I need you to get it from Brady. And if you won’t do it for me, do it for your sons.”
There it was, all laid out. But would Noelle help? Because without Noelle, Frankie was sunk.
Chapter 10
Ryan tossed the garbage in the dumpster, feeling the strength in his arms as he tossed the heavy bags away. His body was solid, eerily so given the traumas of the last week. But that was the only part of him that felt normal. His thoughts, his feelings, even his breath felt different from any other time in his life. And that worried him.
It wasn’t normal for a bear to feel so protective of a wolf woman. It wasn’t normal for him to think of her safety before his fellow bears, his job, or his city. He’d sworn to protect and serve all of Detroit, not just Francesca Wolf.
But what really threw him was the sight of her holding a child. She’d looked so perfect it had felt like a kick in the gut. She’d seemed beautiful, with easy strength in her body as she nuzzled the child’s head. Like she could do anything she wanted with grace. But even more, he’d felt a pang that she wasn’t loving his child. That the babe in her arms wasn’t from him and her in perfect union.
He didn’t even believe in perfect unions. He thought the best relationships struggled and that innate selfishness often won out over love. And yet his mind and his heart felt completely dedicated to her and their child. They didn’t have a child and frankly, the odds of them ever getting together were nonexistent. He intended to make her entire family pay for what they’d done to Detroit. She might end up blameless in that, but she’d never forgive him when he arrested her father. Because he did hold the wolf alpha responsible even if Raoul was the force behind the throne.
That was the price of being a leader, especially in shifter clans. The alpha held ultimate responsibility for the pack actions, and in this case, what the wolves had done was heinous.
He left the dumpster, his senses on alert. Nothing untoward happening out here. He hurried back inside the building and headed for the cases of bottled water. An older gentleman was struggling to pick up a case, so Ryan grabbed two and followed the man to his apartment where his wife was waiting at the open door.
He knew they were wolves from their scent, and they must have known he was a bear just as easily. But though they eyed him and his police badge with suspicion, they accepted his help with grudging thanks. Even told him to be careful because this Flu was hurting everyone.
Which gave him the opening to question them, at least a little. “Isn’t it the wolves who are creating this Flu?” Just how much did the normal members of the pack know about what their higher-ups were doing?
Both of them gasped in shock. “That’s damn crazy,” the man said. “Fact is, latest email said the bears did it.”
Ryan reared back in shock. “The bears? Why? What would we gain from it?”
The wife shrugged. “What would the wolves gain?”
“So you haven’t taken any of the serum or drank any of—”
“Raoul’s vitamin water?” the man scoffed. “We don’t hold with all that chemical nonsense. We eat local farm to table, and vegetables I’ve grown myself at the Wolf Urban Gardens next to the community center. Then Maisy here cooks it from scratch.” His eyes narrowed in aggression. “That’s right. We’re vegetarian wolves, and we’re doing just fine.”
Ryan held up his hand in surrender. “You look like you’re doing great.”
“So you stop dumping shit into the water, crazy bears.” He shook his head. “And if you aren’t the ones doing it, then go out and find who is. Because this Flu ain’t right. Things we’ve seen on the TV, it’s bad for all of us.”
“I agree.”
The man snorted. “So go fix it, cop.” He looked down at the case of water by his feet. “And thanks for the help.” Then he shut his door firmly in Ryan’s face.
Well, that had been enlightening, especially that part about an email saying the bears were the cause of the Flu. He’d have to warn Simon that the lower pack wolves clearly believed they had right on their side. Which made it all the more likely that the wolves would fight tooth and claw to defend their city.
Hell. He hefted the second case of water and headed to Noelle’s apartment while texting one-handed on a burner phone Vic had given him. The need to get back to Frankie was heavy in his gut, but he also needed to solve this crime. Someone was poisoning Detroit—he believed it was the wolves—but he needed to get proof. And that meant pushing Frankie—
He pushed opened the door to Noelle’s apartment, all his senses hyperalert. Then he felt ridiculous standing there all bristling and anxious because everything looked serene. The boys were playing with cars, Frankie worked in the kitchen making something, and Noelle…He cocked his head.
“Noelle in the shower?”
Frankie nodded. “Yup. Have a seat. I’m making dinner.”
Dinner? His stomach growled in hunger, but he looked around in confusion. “I thought we were going to find your brother’s cache of the serum.”
Frankie looked up, her eyes flashing new grass green in the sunlight. “We aren’t.”
“I’m not letting you go alone—”
“I’m not either.” She took a deep breath. “Noelle’s going to talk to her sister and brother-in-law. If it works, they’ll tell her, and she’ll tell us.” Frankie gestured to the boys. “We’re on babysitting duty until she comes back.”
“Babysitting?” he asked, his tone incredulous. It wasn’t that he objected to it. Hell, he’d watched his niece and nephew a few times when his sister was in a jam, and he’d really enjoyed it. But the city was in crisis. How could he just sit out the problem for a few hours because—
“You want to find the serum? This is the way we do it.” Frankie came around the kitchen counter to look him in the eye. “Sometimes you have to trust your friends to do their jobs. No one can do it alone. Lone wolves get picked off…” Her voice slowed down, cutting off the rest of the typical saying. But Ryan had heard it before and knew what she was covering up.
“Lone wolves get pick
ed off by bears. That’s what you meant to say, isn’t it?”
She shrugged. “We’re stronger together.”
It was true. Especially since the bear side of the saying went “Bears get taken down by wolf packs all the time.”
“Besides,” she continued, “I know you feel good right now, but you’ve been through a lot in the last twenty-four hours. I’d feel better if you took some time to rest and regroup.”
“And what about the city of Detroit?”
She snorted as she passed him her phone. It was open to a news app. “Quarantine’s lifted. CDC has identified that the Detroit Flu is not a virus and is not contagious. It’s caused by an unknown contaminant in the water. Residents are advised to drink bottled water only until the source of the problem can be eliminated.”
He frowned as he scanned more news articles. “They’re bringing in the National Guard to help law enforcement.” He breathed out a sigh of relief at the next headline. “Looting ended. That’s good.”
She grinned. “The city is well on its way back to normal.”
His gaze dropped heavy on her face. He didn’t speak, but just watched her. She saw his expression and sobered as well.
“This is good news,” she pressed.
“It will be when we find the source of the contamination and end it. Then we’ll make those responsible face justice.”
“I agree.”
“But you still want me to sit and wait while I trust your people to do my job.”
“You mean trust wolves.”
He arched a brow. They both believed the wolves were responsible, so why should he trust her? She was the alpha wolf’s daughter. She answered before he voiced the question.
“Don’t trust wolves, then. Trust me. I want this over as much as you do.”
And there was the crux of the issue. He was trusting her to do what needed to be done. He was trusting her people, her methods, even that her serum wasn’t going to turn him into a drug-addicted crazy hybrid. That was a lot to ask of a bear. It was even more to ask of him because he’d been betrayed by everyone in his life including his former alpha Nanook.