“I’m sorry,” Elizabeth said, stunned. Her own childhood had been rough, but nothing like that. “Scott and Olaf have similar stories?”
“Scott came to us because the Shiftertown he was in couldn’t handle him. There weren’t any other Bears there, only Lupines and Felines. It’s hard enough for species to get along, and he went a little crazy being the only Ursine there. So I offered to take him. Scott’s not bad, just a pain in the ass. He’ll be fine once he finishes his Transition.”
“No parents?”
“Father died right before he was born, and his mother died of bringing him in. He’s been alone since.”
“And Olaf?” Elizabeth bit her lip.
“Saw his mom and dad shot and killed in front of him, but thank the Goddess, he doesn’t clearly remember it. Hunters, somewhere up in the Arctic, near Russia. They said they didn’t realize the bears were Shifter. Sure. Olaf is cute, so they didn’t kill him, but they did try to make a pet of him, like Cherie. Except Olaf nearly killed one of them, so the Russian Shifter Division got him and locked him up for a long time. Again, I got word and said I’d take him. That was a year ago.”
Ronan related the tragic tales without changing expression, as though these things were commonplace, which made them all the worse.
“I’m sorry,” Elizabeth said again. “That’s so wrong.”
“At least I have a good Shiftertown leader who lets me help. Some leaders can be real shitheads. I just hope I can help the kids out.”
“You already have,” Elizabeth said. “I grew up in foster homes, Ronan. I see your house, and it’s like paradise. Cherie, Scott, and Olaf are happy there. They can be normal. That doesn’t always happen.”
Ronan nodded without conceit. “It’s funny, when I lived in the wild, I was by myself most of the time. I preferred it. I had miles to roam, didn’t have to see anyone if I didn’t want to. I never thought I’d be holed up in a house with a prickly she-bear and three cubs, trying to be a substitute dad. But what the hell?”
“From what I can see, you’re doing an amazing job.”
Ronan pushed himself up from where he’d been leaning on the counter. “Stop flattering me, woman. You’re making me blush.”
“Fine. But if you’re going to hang out here, I have a crate of new stuff that needs to be shelved.” She sent him a sweet look. “Since Mabel’s not here, you’re recruited.”
Pablo Marquez looked across his desk at his little brother Julio, who lounged on the old sofa by the soda machine. Julio’s face was bruised and cut from his wrestling match with the bear, and the back of his head still sported bandages.
Pablo had heard that the Bear Shifter had been let go, somehow convincing the judge he’d only been trying to take the gun away from Julio. The problem was, Pablo believed him. If the Shifter had wanted Julio dead, Julio wouldn’t be sitting here with only a few shallow cuts as souvenirs.
Julio had been quiet and angry since Pablo had paid his bail and brought him home. He’d had to call in a favor to get Julio out of the hospital and to a bail hearing so quickly.
Now he had a problem. Pablo ran a body shop, a great way to do legitimate business and keep the other businesses under the radar. He was new here in Austin and wanted to keep under the radar from many people for a while. Tough to do that when his little brother decided to go out and do something dumb-ass like try to rob a little novelty shop.
“I want her in the ground,” Julio was saying. “That bitch and her trained Shifter.”
“You’re going to leave her alone,” Pablo said sharply. “What the hell did you go in there for? You were going to get, what, maybe two grand, tops?”
Julio shrugged. “I’d get what I’d get.”
“What you got was a trial for armed robbery.” Pablo balled his hands until the skin pulled against his knuckles. He’d promised their mother he’d look after Julio, even though the kid was a big screw-up. Pablo was fifteen years older than Julio, and he swore that Julio was part of the reason their mother had died of the heart attack.
Pablo had learned on that cruel day that all his money and all his success couldn’t keep him from losing the one person in the world he loved. Now he was stuck taking care of Julio and trying to make the best of it.
He continued. “First of all, you didn’t scout the place. There was a Shifter in there, a big one. The guy has to be seven feet tall, and you never noticed him? Dios mio, what do you use for brains?”
“I scouted plenty. I watched that bitch every night for two weeks. I know where she lives and what kind of truck she drives, and what she does after work—which is nothing—she has a boring life. Shooting her would be doing her a favor. I did everything I was supposed to, Pablo.”
“Yeah, well, that Shifter didn’t just grow in there. You are telling me you never saw him walk in?”
“No. I bet he was there in her back room before I got there. I bet she was fucking him. I bet she gets off fucking Shifters in her office.”
Pablo held on to his patience with effort. Julio liked the F-word and enjoyed opportunities to use it.
“So what if she does?” Pablo asked. “The point is, he was there, and you didn’t know it. It would have been justified if he’d killed you.”
Julio looked offended. “What are you saying?”
“I’m saying you screwed up. You decided to pull a smalltime job and then you messed it up by being careless. You’re an idiot.”
“I want that bitch to pay!”
“And she will. But my way. I’m trying not to draw attention to myself, and you are very definitely drawing attention. Killing her obviously will only make it worse, so don’t even think about trying it.”
Julio looked pensive. “What do you mean, killing her obviously?”
“A drive-by, an execution, even a car accident—anything suspicious will point back to you, and then I’ll be up to my ass in cops. I don’t want to be up to my ass in cops. Understand?” Pablo stopped at Julio’s guilty expression. “Why? What have you done now?”
Julio’s voice was so quiet Pablo had to strain to hear him. “I sent Menendez and his brother to wait for her and follow her home.”
Pablo rose, fists on his desk. “You know, Julio, if anyone else in my crew acted like you, I’d lose them. You get away with this shit because you’re my brother, and I promised Mamita I’d take care of you. Get on your phone and call them back.”
“What the fuck? Damn it, Pablo, if you override my order, I’ll never have any cred.”
“Cred. You watch too many movies. Get them back here, now. I can still bust your ass, and I’ll do it.”
Julio said a few dark things, but he took out his cell phone.
Pablo sat back down and started making calls of his own. He needed to do something about the woman with the store, because she was a witness against Julio, and Pablo couldn’t afford to have his brother going to prison right now. He’d put the bitch in her place, but he’d do it more subtly than Julio ever could. As for the Shifter—well, Pablo knew how to take care of Shifters. The Shifter would be the least of their problems.
He ignored his sulky little brother, gathered the reins of his power, and went to work.
CHAPTER 7
Spike came back in to report around three. Ronan talked to him alone in the office, Elizabeth busy out front. She had expressed concern that people would stay away when they found out there’d been an attempted robbery at her store, but apparently, curiosity was a greater motivator than fear.
“Saw a car with two guys,” Spike said. “They went by a couple of times, slowing down to watch the shop. Fourth time they went by, one of the guys was on the phone, then all the sudden, they take off. Haven’t seen them since.”
“Did they see you?” Ronan asked.
“No one sees me if I don’t want them to.”
“Anything else?” Ronan asked.
“No, just those guys. I’ll keep an eye out for them.”
“Thanks.”
Spike
shrugged. “Hey, it’s my job.” He went out the back door to the alley, his movements spare and quiet.
Ronan watched from the office doorway as Elizabeth went about her business. She was a natural at selling, he decided. He watched her greet her customers, talking to them in a friendly way without getting too personal. This was a novelty store, which meant she sold everything from T-shirts with funny logos to plastic handcuffs. Nothing distasteful, just fun stuff that people mostly bought as gifts for friends. The customers tended to be upbeat, laughing with each other over the zany thing they’d give whoever for a birthday, retirement, anniversary, bridal shower, bachelor party.
Elizabeth had a way of putting people at their ease, helping them find exactly the right thing. Ronan saw, though, that she maintained a distance. That made sense while she sold things to perfect strangers, but he’d noticed it at the house too. Elizabeth didn’t let anyone get too close. She was friendly, yes, but any personal question was deftly turned aside or evaded.
Ronan had asked Sean to run her name in the database. Sean had access to a vast network, built by Guardians over the last two decades, which contained more information than any non-Shifter could possibly imagine. Humans didn’t know about this network, which ran on a lot of technical know-how coupled with a little bit of magic. Only Guardians knew how to access it, and only Guardians were allowed to use it—Guardians being those Shifters who stuck their swords into the bodies of dead or near-dead Shifters to send their souls to the afterlife.
Sean had run Elizabeth’s name but turned up nothing. She had no police record, not even a minor traffic ticket, and neither did Mabel. Elizabeth was thirty, according to her driver’s license, and had lived in Austin for about six years, owning the store called SoCo Novelties for five. She’d bought the business as a whole from the previous owner who’d retired.
Ronan thought about how she’d skillfully plucked Kim’s card from his pocket, and wondered again. Elizabeth Chapman had picked pockets before, and she fought like a street kid. Juvenile records were sealed, sure, but not to the Guardians. They could hack anything.
Sean had added the little detail that there was no record of Elizabeth at all before her move to Austin. A reference to an address in El Paso when she’d rented an apartment upon her arrival in Austin, but that El Paso address turned out to be bogus. She’d used her store as proof of residence or proof of income for everything else, including the small house she’d purchased a few years ago. She paid all her taxes, no under-the-table dealings, and had a social security number, bank accounts, and IRAs for herself and Mabel.
So who had Elizabeth Chapman been before she’d become Elizabeth Chapman? And why had she needed to turn into someone else?
The store did brisk business, but Elizabeth closed down at eight when the crowd started to thin. People still wandered the streets to seek restaurants or to walk down to the bridge to watch the bats emerge, but all but the most dedicated shoppers departed. Elizabeth turned off her sign and locked up.
“I’m making this deposit tonight,” she said, heading toward the office. “You’ve been here all day, Ronan. Don’t you have a job of your own?”
“Starts at nine,” Ronan said. “I’ll take you to the bank on my way.”
“You go. Spike can drive me. I don’t want you to be late because of me. You’ve already done so much.”
Ronan stepped squarely in front of her. “Spike drives like a maniac, and he’s heading the same place I am. You’re stuck with me, sweetheart.”
“What place?” Elizabeth caught up her lock bag and turned out the lights. “Where do you work, anyway?”
“Shifter bar.” He opened the back door for her but walked outside first, as Shifters did, to check that the way was safe. “I’m the bouncer. Come and say hi to everyone.”
Ronan took her on his motorcycle to the bank around the corner and stood close guard—at the same time keeping himself out of sight of bank cameras—while Elizabeth put the deposits into the slot. After that, she was free.
As Ronan pulled out onto Congress and headed for the bridge and downtown, Elizabeth again felt the heady joy of simply riding with him. She wished they could go on through the city and keep on riding, to the long, empty stretches of highway Texas had so much of. Out there, in the darkness, they could find freedom.
But Ronan had people to take care of, as did she. Responsibility was a tether, but at least in Elizabeth’s case, it was a tether of love. She thought, as they sped toward the illuminated dome of the capitol building and the Saturday night craziness of Sixth Street, that the tether Ronan had found here had become one of affection, even if it hadn’t started that way.
Ronan drove through downtown and out again into darkness and more derelict streets. He pulled up in front of a bar near the open field that led to Shiftertown. The bar was a squat, dark building with no windows and a small parking lot already filled with people. No, not people . . . Shifters.
There were plenty of humans in the mix too, Elizabeth saw as they dismounted and walked to the bar. Shifter groupies, mostly, she saw—humans of both sexes who liked to hang out with Shifters, some wearing fake Collars. More than one woman looked at Ronan with appreciation and calculation, which irritated Elizabeth for some reason.
The bar inside was crowded, with tunes playing on a jukebox and Shifter waitresses hurrying back and forth to serve beers and take away empties. The bartender was human, Elizabeth saw. Maybe Shifters weren’t allowed to actually dispense the drinks. Liam Morrissey didn’t own this bar, she knew—a human did. Shifters couldn’t own property, but Liam could work for the human owner and manage the place.
A number of Shifters greeted Ronan by name or slapped hands with him as he went by. Interestingly, many greeted Elizabeth by name, including the six-foot blonde called Glory who was a regular at Elizabeth’s store, but they were deferential, looking to Ronan first.
Ronan led Elizabeth through the crowd, staying close by her side. Some of the groupies looked at her with envy, some with resentment.
Kim Fraser came forward to meet her. She opened her arms to Elizabeth and gave her a hug with a squeeze. “I’m glad you came. Let’s go into the office.”
Elizabeth threw a glance to Ronan, who shook his head. “What’s up?” Ronan rumbled.
“Nothing terrible. Liam just wants a word.”
Elizabeth stopped. “I want to call Mabel. We like to check in with each other.”
“Mabel’s here.” Kim pointed across the bar to where Mabel sat in a booth with the lanky Connor Morrissey, Scott, and a dark-haired Shifter woman who was obviously pregnant. The dark-haired woman gave Kim a nod, said something to Mabel, and pointed. Mabel looked around and sent Elizabeth a cheerful wave.
“Andrea will take care of her,” Kim said. “Mabel was getting antsy, cooped up at Ronan’s, so Liam said it was all right if she came. Don’t worry. She’s in good hands.”
Elizabeth was going to have to have a talk with Mabel. Mabel was of legal age, so that wasn’t a problem, but she looked way too cozy laughing and talking with the Shifters. Mabel was very accepting of people as they were, something Elizabeth had always admired about her, but then, Mabel wasn’t the greatest judge of character, either.
Or maybe Elizabeth was being too protective. She’d always gone back and forth about Mabel, torn between wanting to shield her from the evils of the world and fearing to stifle her with too much restriction.
Kim guided Elizabeth to a door marked “Private,” and Ronan came so close behind her that Elizabeth felt his body heat.
On the other side of the door she found Liam Morrissey inside a cluttered office. Liam sat behind a desk, his long legs propped on the desk’s top, and he held a baby on his lap.
Elizabeth wasn’t sure which was more incongruous—the child held up by Liam’s big hands or the man standing on the other side of the room with a huge sword strapped to his back, the hilt slanting above his head.
“He’s underage,” Elizabeth said, looking at the b
aby.
“She,” Liam said. “Katriona Sinead Niamh Morrissey. Sinead for her auntie, Niamh for her grandmum, and Katriona because we like it. Born three months ago.”
“And you’d think she was queen of the gods,” Ronan said. “The attention she gets.” Ronan went around Elizabeth to the baby and gently poked her stomach.
“Shifter?” Elizabeth asked.
Kim reached for the child. At the same time her hands closed around Katriona’s waist, Liam leaned up to Kim and kissed her on the lips. It was a warm, loving kiss, the look in Liam’s eyes heart-melting.
Elizabeth’s thoughts flashed back to Ronan licking the corner of her mouth earlier this morning. His lips had been smooth and warm, soothing. And arousing.
She swallowed and made herself not look at Ronan as Kim snuggled Katriona under her chin.
“I can’t wait to see what her wildcat looks like,” Kim said. “We won’t know for a few years. Shifter-human cubs are born human and then shift when they’re about three. Pure Shifter cubs do it the opposite.”
Kim bounced Katriona as she talked, Katriona looking at everyone with round blue eyes, while trying to stuff her entire fist into her mouth. Kim moved across the room to the swordsman, who relaxed his grim stance to touch the baby’s nose.
Ronan was the only one not at ease. “What do you want, Liam? Elizabeth’s had a long day. I brought her here because I thought she could relax a little and then go home.”
“She will.” Liam retained his nonchalant pose, feet on the desk, hands now laced behind his head. He was watchful, alert while pretending not to be.
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