“Neil is scribbling on the walls in marker, a confirmed stalker and very possibly a murderer,” Cooper said bluntly. “With all due respect, I’m done taking his opinions about me seriously.”
“If you like.” Cola shrugged. “But others won’t be so quick to dismiss the idea. And seeing as how someone has been going through a lot of trouble to make these murders look like the work of the Moon, the accusations won’t stop there.”
Cooper gaped at her. “You’re not saying I’m being framed for murder, are you?” He looked at Park, hoping to see his own incredulity there, but Park didn’t look skeptical at all. He didn’t even look surprised. “That’s absurd.”
“Is it?” Cola asked. “Even before this fascinating little development, it was obvious you’re involved up to your elbows, one way or another. You were the one to find both bodies, despite not working the case. Both victims specifically caused harm to wolves you care about. And don’t try to tell me you haven’t noticed the cause of death is exactly the same as the injury that brought you into our world to begin with.”
Cooper’s hand went reflexively to his belly. He scratched at the thick scars there. “But that’s all just...circumstantial.”
“Agreed. You’ll notice I’m not arresting you. But we’re talking about rumors now. Gossip. Fear. Take a look around, Dayton. You’re one or two well-placed whispers and a printout away from wolves thinking you’re some vigilante killer and Neil Gerhart not only knows it, he’s used those thirty years of undercover experience to build an entire case proving it.”
Cooper didn’t know what to say. His head was spinning, trying to make sense of it.
“But for what purpose?” Park asked, saving Cooper from having to respond. “Why kill Arthur and James? Why do any of this?”
“Well, I don’t think it’s a friendly wedding gift, do you? Maybe to pull Dayton back into his life. Maybe revenge. You tell us,” Cola said to Cooper. “You know him best. What’s Neil like?”
Intense. Manipulative. Vindictive. Someone who liked games. Someone who didn’t know when to let go.
He thought of their last conversation, just yesterday. Tried to remember his exact words. I understand now. I get it.
And here was Cooper thinking Neil was trying to tell him he’d matured and seen the error in his ways. That hadn’t been it at all. He’d been trying to tell Cooper he knew about wolves. Trying to tell him he knew Cooper was...the Moon?
I can help, Neil had said. Help him do what, exactly?
“I don’t know,” Cooper said finally. “I—I thought I knew him once. But this is...he wasn’t like this before. I don’t know this person.”
Cola shrugged. “What we do know is he’s obviously aware of wolves. From what I’ve read here, it all seemed to start when he looked into your attack. Maybe he even did it to help you, once upon a time. Obviously, he couldn’t handle the truth.”
“Most humans can’t,” Park said. “Particularly ones not partnered with a wolf to help them through it. They either attempt to ignore our existence, pigeonhole us, or crack trying to make sense of a reality that no longer makes sense.”
“Since Gerhart’s wallpaper pattern of choice is your face, I’m guessing he went with option number three,” Cola added. “And can you blame him? Wolves cost him his career. His lover. His well-being. I’ve seen humans driven further off the edge for less.”
“Neil and I didn’t stop fucking because I became aware of wolves,” Cooper said.
“Didn’t you?” Cola countered. “Because from where I’m standing, you dropped your old life and everyone in it without a second look back.”
Cooper felt like he’d been slapped.
“That’s not fair,” Park said loyally.
“They’re not going to be fair. Not when speculating about someone they fear. You of all people should know that, Oliver,” Cola said meaningfully.
“But I’m not frightening,” Cooper said. “I’m nobody.”
“That’s what I thought. But even I’ve got to admit a suspicious number of big things seem to happen around you, for a nobody. We partner you with our most feared Trust agent to determine if you’re responsible for a trail of slaughtered wolves. Your regular partner is arrested and you come back with the Shepherd trailing after you like a puppy. Submitting to you. Marrying you. You go on holiday, and two men next in line to inherit control of the most powerful pack on the eastern seaboard are exiled. You go to a simple missing person’s case in the mountains and take control of one of the most critical territories on the continent. You can’t be surprised you’ve garnered a bit of a reputation.”
That reminded Cooper of something. He tried to determine what exactly while Park spoke up. “But all those things happened because Cooper’s good at his job.”
“Ah yes, the perfectly reasonable explanation that someone else is simply better than you are. That always stops people from talking,” Cola said, rolling her eyes. “Look, starting now, this case becomes need-to-know only. The fewer people involved, the less chance this has of getting out.”
“That’s what Freeman said,” Cooper interrupted, suddenly remembering. Cola and Park looked at him, confused. “I mean, before. She said I was building a reputation and that someone was interested in my potential. Had plans for me.”
“You think she knew about Neil?” Park asked. “How?”
“I don’t know,” Cooper said. He gestured around at the fifty-odd pictures of himself. “But this? This looks like a plan. Not a good one, but still.”
Cola was frowning. “I think it might be time for that check-in with Dr. Freeman. See if she’s in a helpful mood.”
* * *
Every time he’d imagined seeing Dr. Freeman again, Cooper had envisioned himself showing up with a few more answers under his belt. Right now he had so many questions he didn’t know how to begin.
Luckily, he didn’t have to. This time it was not just Cooper and Freeman in the room. She had finally deemed it prudent to include a lawyer, and Cooper was flanked by Cola and Park.
While Cola and the lawyer argued over a deal, Cooper studied Freeman. She’d lost that frenetic, childlike quality he’d noticed when they first met back on the side of the road in Cape Breton, a gunshot still echoing in the air. There was a lazy sort of drift in her movements now, as if floating in water only she could feel. Was it being free of her emotionally manipulative husband that had settled like a quiet cowl over her? Or had her time in custody already broken in to her mind and warped the very core of her, as imprisonment so often did?
“That depends on what your client gives us,” Cola was saying.
Freeman spoke up for the first time. “Perhaps it would be better if we start with what you’ve found out for yourselves. Then we’ll both have a clearer idea of how we can help each other. I assume since you’re here, the killings have begun.”
Park and Cola were very still, but Cooper shifted in his seat, and Freeman’s eyes zeroed in on him. “And you’ve made the connection to the legend of the Moon. Oh my, you have been busy.”
“How do you know about that?” Cola asked sharply.
“After the terrible events at Cape Breton, I took it upon myself to learn everything I could about your world. If you really want to get to know a culture, you study the stories they tell each other. Isn’t that right, Mr. Park? I read your work, by the way. Very interesting. It really is too bad you can’t publish anything on the legends of your own kind, though I suppose you haven’t been doing much writing at all with your new priorities.”
Park shrugged. “We’re really a much more oral species anyway. But I’m flattered you took the time.”
“Oh, I had to,” Freeman insisted earnestly. “I was terribly curious about you two. Especially you, Mr. Dayton. The only human running with wolves, so readily accepted into their most elite circles. Why is that?”
“I’m gr
eat fun at parties,” Cooper said flatly. “What does this have to do with our case?”
“While I was researching you, your past, your life now”—her eyes flicked toward Park—”it didn’t take me long to realize I wasn’t the only one looking. Someone else has taken a deep interest in your work.”
“Yes, my secret admirer,” Cooper said. “You mentioned that last time. I was sort of hoping for more.”
The lawyer spoke up. “My client has already made it clear that we’re interested in a deal. If you’re looking for any more—”
Dr. Freeman, who had been studying Cooper carefully, interrupted him. “No, that’s okay. We haven’t finished going over what you already know, have we? You wouldn’t be here unless you’d discovered Neil Gerhart’s dangerous preoccupation with Mr. Dayton.”
Cooper stiffened in his seat. He carefully didn’t look at the others and kept his face neutral, but it was hard. “What do you know about Neil?”
“I know that ever since your attack he’s been trying to investigate one of the largest, longest-running cover-ups the world has ever had: the existence of werewolves. I know it’s taken over his life, lost him his job, his relationships, his everything. I know he’s been keeping tabs on you. Believes you might be...important. Why is that?” She held up her hand before an answer could be given, not that anyone seemed keen to jump in. “I know you two were sexually involved, but surely that can’t be the only reason. No offense meant, of course.”
“Of course,” Cooper said.
“I hate to interrupt this charming exchange, but I fail to see what exactly you can offer us,” Cola said bluntly. “We all know that Neil Gerhart has some unhinged fascination with Dayton. I too find it inexplicable. But there are about two hundred people I’d sooner analyze it with before anyone in this room. So, if you don’t have anything to add—” She stood up.
“Were the victims stuck?” Freeman asked quickly.
Cola paused, still standing, but making no move to leave.
“Did they get stuck during the process of their transformation?”
Cola’s lips pursed at the incorrect language but still said nothing.
Freeman apparently took that as confirmation and continued, “I can’t tell you why Gerhart killed who he killed. Maybe to bring Mr. Dayton back into his life. Maybe because he really does believe in the legend of the Moon and considers this a sort of...courtship gift before he loses him to a rival.”
She glanced at Park again, then leaned forward. “But I hope I’m not being too forward in assuming no one at this table actually believes in fairy tales and magic.”
Beside him, Cooper felt Park shift in his seat.
“There must be a medical reason for their...malformation.”
“So, you’re offering your help as a pathologist?” Cola said skeptically. “Believe it or not, we have our own experts here. Got their own test tubes and everything. It’s only a matter time before we determine the cause.”
“You don’t understand,” Freeman said dismissively. “Mr. Gerhart has made a study of the way people think, but he doesn’t know a thing about hard science. He would have needed help to develop such a poison. Someone who knows a thing or two about the, ah, animal side of things.”
“You’re saying you think you know who this partner is,” Park said.
“Last year I was called in to consult on dying wolves at the zoo. I knew right away their illness was deliberate. Someone was experimenting with an early version. Of course, you’ll probably figure that out too, in a matter of time. But time very much matters. What if your agents aren’t the first to find the next mutated victim? You can only get lucky so often.” Freeman tilted her head, which seemed to be some kind of cue.
“Nothing else, until there’s a deal on the table,” the lawyer said.
* * *
Cola sent Cooper and Park home for the rest of the day while she worked on the specifics of a deal with Freeman’s lawyer. Contrary to how it worked on TV, these decisions didn’t actually happen with a snap of the fingers. Particularly not at this hour. Cola had people to consult, negotiations to run, and decisions to make, none of which Cooper and Park could be of much use for. Nor did she want them speaking to any suspects.
“Just...try to keep a low profile for twelve hours,” Cola had said, shooing them away. “Can you handle that?”
They’d spent so many hours sorting through Neil’s room that it was already evening when they got in their car and, not really allowed to do much else, started to drive back home.
“Do you think Cola’s going to do it? Give Freeman time served and witness protection?” Cooper asked as they maneuvered through rush-hour traffic and left the city.
“I don’t know that she feels like she has much choice,” Park said, turning onto the back road that would take them home, and directly into the glare of the setting sun. His skin looked golden in the light and his eyes glimmered and expanded inhumanly. “Freeman is right about getting lucky with who found the bodies so far. It could be anyone next time.”
“You think he’s going to try to expose wolves?” Cooper asked. Neil’s obsession with uncovering their secret existence had taken a serious toll on his life. Was the next logical step wanting revenge? Wanting to show everyone who had dismissed him and forced him into retirement that he’d been right all along?
“It’s not exposure to humans I’m worried about,” Park said. “As the Shepherd, a big part of my job—easiest part of my job—was killing those stories; it’s the responsibility of all the ruling packs. Like Cola said, people want to be told they didn’t see what they saw. Humans would generally rather believe one person tried to pull a trick on them and they were too clever to fall for it than the alternative, which is that an entire population of creatures have been successfully deceiving them for millennia and they’ve only just this one time noticed.”
“I guess that makes sense,” Cooper said hesitantly. “But still, it must happen sometimes. I mean, I’m hardly the only aware human in the world.”
“You’re talking about a huge spectrum of awareness, though. We don’t even use words like ‘alpha’ around BSI agents because of animal connotations. I didn’t use it around you just last year. Now you’re talking AQ, are unfazed by slipping, and know more secrets about the WIP than possibly any other human. Complaining plenty, but never really struggling to recalibrate your understanding of the world.”
“What understanding of the world?” Cooper murmured, but he had to admit what Park was saying rang true. In the BSI, he’d been constantly frustrated by how little they knew about wolves, but really, very few of his colleagues ever even asked. They were happy to stay...separate. For some reason, that had never felt like an option to Cooper.
“You might not be able to notice how quickly you’ve adjusted,” Park continued, “but every wolf you meet can see it’s unusual.” He paused, then added faux casually, “Even I sometimes catch myself thinking one day I’ll go too far. Slip too much, or shift too slowly, and you’ll finally hit your limit. Look at me differently.”
“Oliver,” Cooper said, placing his hand on Park’s thigh and squeezing. “I already look at you differently. That’s a good thing—”
“I know, I know,” Park interrupted hastily. “It’s just I’m not used to being so seen by someone who isn’t a wolf.” He put his hand over Cooper’s, running his thumb over his fingers.
“Okay,” Cooper said. “So if humans aren’t really a risk, what kind of exposure is Cola worried about?”
“If a slipped body is found by the public, the humans will be easily convinced it’s a trick, but any wolf will know differently. Cola has a big enough problem on her hands keeping agents discreet. If it gets out to the general wolf public, you—” Park shook his head, cutting himself off.
“Not this Moon thing again,” Cooper said. “I know what Cola said, and I’m really trying to
keep an open mind, I swear, but I still can’t believe anyone would ever for a second think I’m some kind of—whatever this thing’s supposed to be.”
Park glanced at him so quickly, Cooper nearly missed it.
“You don’t believe it,” Cooper stated, because he couldn’t begin to imagine phrasing it as a question.
“Of course not,” Park said before Cooper had even finished speaking, which for some reason made him more unnerved. “I mean, you’re my moon. And stars.”
“Oliver,” Cooper said flatly.
Park glanced at him again. “I just don’t think it’s unfathomable that some people might wonder,” he said. “Maybe more than some.”
“Well, start fathoming,” Cooper said as the sun glare got more intense with the passing of a cloud. “Because god forbid people actually do start expecting things from me. I’m going to need you there with your best incredulous eyebrow pop to tell them there’s nothing special about me whatsoever.”
He yanked open the glove compartment in search of sunglasses. What he saw instead was a rolled-up pair of socks.
A prickle of tension went through his body as he tentatively picked them up. Had Eli left something else behind after all? Or had Neil bugged their car? Some kind of tracker? A recorder?
“What are you doing? Put that back,” Park said, suddenly sounding panicked, but it was too late. Cooper had already unrolled the socks.
The ring was already in his hand.
Cooper stared down at it, lying flat in his palm. It was sort of a muted, brassy gold. A thickish band. There was no mistaking what it was. For once, there wasn’t a single thought in Cooper’s head.
“Fuck,” Park said, pulling the car off to the side and parking. They were nearly home, and the road was woodsy and narrow, with no houses in sight and hardly anyone passing.
“I, um...” Park sounded uncharacteristically flustered. “I definitely wasn’t going to try to do this today with everything that happened. The blogs said the car is a great hiding place,” he muttered. “I should have known that was a mistake. They also said a good place to give it to you was a nice restaurant, but every time I’ve tried to get you in one it’s led to physical violence, so really I don’t know why I’m even surprised.”
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