“Lee,” he barked. “The mayor needs backup this afternoon and for some fucking reason asked that you be assigned. Get going.”
Julianna stood up and walked with Peter as they left the lobby and sauntered down the street to the morgue.
“Did you tell Gregory about Shaun’s accusation?” she asked.
“Of course.”
“And..?”
“What do you think?”
“Now what?”
“Now we go back to the morgue and look at those wolves again.”
“I would think you’d be more concerned about the photos. Marcus told me.”
“Any twelve-year-old can make a photo like that on any cell phone. The wolves, though. And your story. You, I trust. I want to get to the bottom of what happened in that parking lot.”
They entered the morgue and again Peter shuddered at the dark feeling of the place.
“Tell me again how it went down.”
“I don’t know more than I told you this morning.”
She nodded at the receptionist and both of them signed in.
“Just start again. But first, tell me. Why did the police release a statement about bath salts if they never found the bodies of the men?”
“It was the Captain’s call.” She shrugged. “I made my report. Carl made his report. The Captain gave his press conference.”
They walked down the dark hall to the cryogenic lab. They had the lab to themselves this time. As if mesmerized, they both walked to the glowing blue cylinders and the wolves suspended in liquid.
“What did they learn from the autopsy?”
“The wolves were not in the best of health. Both were underweight and dehydrated. They were ridden with bug bites, with an unusual number of parasites on each animal.”
“Parasites?”
“Ticks. Leeches. They both had worms, as well.”
“Tell me what happened that day. Start from the beginning,” Peter urged. “One more time.”
“When the call went out for all units to go to the train station, my partner, Carl, and I were about two blocks away. We were the first officers to respond. We chased the suspects. They turned on us. I yelled ‘freeze!’ and Carl fired. One shot to each suspect. They dropped. We ran to them and neither was responsive. There was no cell reception, so Carl went to make the call for an ambulance. Once I was alone with them, the two men, and they were men, nothing more—they both shuddered and...it sounds crazy, I know. But they both turned into wolves. Right before my eyes. Dead. Wolves.” Tears filled her eyes. “There was nothing I could do. It happened so fast.”
“What about their clothes?”
“They had both been naked...remember? That’s why they initially were accosted in the train station. Public nudity. A train cop tried to arrest them. And that’s when they started attacking people.”
“So there was nothing. After the fact. No proof.”
“I saw what I saw. But I can’t explain it.”
“And, sorry, but I have to ask. You weren’t on medication? No history of mental illness?”
“No. Nothing like that. I was stone-cold sober. Look. I’m a cop. This is my career, for better or worse. I know what I’m doing. And I know when something can’t be explained. There’s no use in even trying to explain the unexplainable. It just exists. It’s part of the world.”
“But...shifters? In Seattle?”
“Why does it even matter? If creatures like that exist and live among us, I say great. I say, I’d love to meet them and learn about their world. I don’t want to destroy them. I don’t know what’s wrong with Shaun.” She turned away from the wolves and shoved her fists into her pants pockets.
“You said he’s not really your cousin. Who is he?”
“We were in foster care together when we were kids. He used to tell the other kids I was his cousin because I was tougher than he was. Even then. He said we were stronger together. He’s not a great person. Let’s just leave it at that. After this stunt he’s pulling on the DA, we’re done. I told him that.” She looked like she wanted to say more.
“What else?” he encouraged her.
“When we were kids, I caught him. In the park and in the backyard of our foster house. He was hurting animals.”
“Hurting?”
“He was torturing dogs, okay? He swore he’d never do it again. Then I caught him with a kitten tied up under his bed. I told our foster mom. She took the kitten to a shelter and Shaun got transferred to a lock-up facility for troubled kids. He was ten.”
They both stared back at the wolves. “So you and Shaun have history.”
“He’s been through some shit, okay? We all went through shit. That’s why we were in the child services system. Some of us made it out fine. Some didn’t. Shaun looks like he did okay. Lawyer. Assistant DA. But when I look at him, I still see the ten-year-old kid I caught burning the paws of a Chihuahua. I see the kid I turned in to save the life of a cat.”
She stared at the pale wolf’s face and then turned to Peter. “I was six.”
“You did the right thing,” Peter said. “He needed to be stopped. I’m just sorry you had to do it by yourself. You were only six. Just a baby, really.”
He patted her shoulder.
“You’re not alone this time,” he said. “I’m not going to let him hurt anyone this time.”
She looked up at him, her eyes full of tears. She nodded and clenched her jaw as if she were worried that if she said one more word, she would break down.
“It’s okay,” he said. “I got this one.”
She let out a sigh.
They both looked back at the wolves.
“They are beautiful, aren’t they?” She smiled. “I wish it were true. I wish wolf shifters did live in Seattle.”
7
Cleo ran up the stairs of the mayor’s mansion, back into the Ballard Suite, and jumped onto the bed.
She had to giggle. What would Peter do when he got back and found her still there? She would pretend she’d been in bed the whole morning. She stripped off her clothes and got back under the covers.
Her headache was gone.
With her fresh nails and makeup, she felt pampered and pretty. Because she’d sipped water all morning, she felt perfectly healthy. No more hangover.
She figured Peter would be back soon from his lunch with Gregory. It was weird that she knew his schedule so well. He was predictable. She liked that about him. She looked at her phone. She figured he’d be back within twenty minutes. She could wait that long.
She stretched out under the covers. Maybe she would just close her eyes for a few minutes. She’d had a stressful week. A little rest would be nice.
When she opened her eyes, the sun was slanting through the window. It must be early afternoon. She stretched and then sat up with a start.
Peter was sitting on a chair. He had been watching her sleep.
“Hi,” she said. “What time is it?”
“It’s very late. You’ve slept, let’s see, sixteen hours?”
“Oh, sorry,” she said, stretching again and feeling a little ridiculous. “I thought you’d be back sooner from your lunch. Usually you get back around noon.”
“I had another commitment afterwards.”
“It wasn’t on your schedule.”
“No. It wasn’t. “
It suddenly hit Cleo that Peter might already be dating someone. Maybe that’s why he didn’t put any moves on her last night. God. And here she was naked in his bed, waiting for him.
What an idiot.
“Will you hand me my clothes, please?” she said, pointing to the foot of the bed where she’d left the sweats in a neat pile.
“Are you okay?” He lifted the pile and handed it to her.
“No, I just. I’m fine. I fell back asleep, I guess.” She pulled the clothes under the covers and slid into them. “I’ll get out of your way.”
No! She had to seduce him. Focus, Cleo!
“Do you have plans for to
morrow?” she asked.
“Tomorrow? Sunday?”
“Are you going to the island?”
“Not this week,” he said. “Why?”
“Maybe we can have a do-over of last night? I don’t usually drink like that. I wasn’t used to it.”
“A do-over? Tomorrow?”
“Please?”
She finished getting dressed and got out of bed. She pulled up the covers.
“What’s going on?” Peter asked. “Why do you want to have dinner suddenly? Not just once but twice. It’s not like you to drink too much, either. I’ve never even seen you finish one cocktail before.”
“There is something I want to talk to you about.” It was time to tell him everything.
“Good. Let’s talk.”
“Would you mind if I had some water first? I’ll be right back.”
She went into the bathroom. He was so sweet, really. She could tell him.
She looked at herself in the mirror. Her makeup hadn’t been ruined by her nap.
“You can do this, Cleo,” she told herself in the mirror. “You’ve got this, girl!”
When she went back into the bedroom, Peter was standing by the window, looking out toward the fern garden behind the mansion. The sunlight created a halo around his body. His mood seemed pensive.
“What is it?” she asked.
“I met with a police sergeant named Julianna Lee today. Have you met her?”
“No,” she said. “I haven’t.” Had he been on a date?
She sat on the edge of the bed and felt fear and apprehension spread across her body. Cleo had never heard of Julianna Lee, but she already hated her.
She was jealous!
“She told me that female officers have regular desk duty and male officers do not. She’s a sergeant. But she sits behind the desk like a clerk.”
“That doesn’t sound fair.”
“I want to start an investigation. Will you develop a police department online survey tomorrow? We’ll need to go to the office for a few hours, but I think we should do it right away. Find out if the department is being run as it should be.”
“Sure,” she said with a nod. “Do you want to do it right now? I’m not busy tonight.”
“We’ll have to do it tomorrow. I have another appointment.”
Another appointment. Probably a date.
How had Cleo missed this in the months she’d known Peter?
If Peter was dating this Julianna Lee, then there was no way he would agree to father a baby for her.
She couldn’t tell him anything.
Also, his nonstop flirting with Cleo. What about that? Was Peter some kind of player?
It seemed that he had to be.
Well, she would play him to get what she wanted. One dose of sperm. She remembered that she had a backlog of e-books ready to read. Tonight she had a date with her Kindle.
“What did you want to talk about?” he asked, turning to give her his full attention.
“Nothing,” Cleo said, shaking her head. “Absolutely nothing. I’ll see you in the morning.”
They were past talking. If Cleo wanted a baby—and that is exactly what she wanted—it was time for action.
8
Peter hated to leave Cleo, but he needed to get this situation with Shaun behind him so that he could finally focus on their relationship.
Gregory had been right. It was time for Peter to mate and start his family. Or maybe it was that it would never be the perfect time. There was just now.
He felt that things were getting murky between him and Cleo, and he needed to fix that as soon as possible. Tomorrow night if possible.
God, he couldn’t wait enjoy her lush body: to touch her, to kiss her, to fuck her.
Hell, yes, his bear said.
Right now, though, it was time to confront Shaun. Find out exactly what he knew. Peter drove across town to the District Attorney’s office and parked.
He hadn’t expected to learn anything about Shaun from seeing the wolves again with Julianna. He wanted to know what she knew and what she believed. Instead, he’d gotten a detailed snapshot of Shaun’s pathology. It went deeper than Peter had thought. Anyone who tortures animals has no place working in the criminal justice system.
When Peter arrived at the DA’s office, he wasn’t surprised to find Shaun at his desk, poring over papers. He’d always been a nose-to-the-grindstone kind of lawyer. That had been one of the reasons Gregory had promoted him. But Peter had to wonder if Shaun had any sort of personal life.
“We need to talk,” Peter said, interrupting him.
Shaun looked up and smiled, as if he had been expecting good news. “Peter. Nice to see you. Welcome.”
“It won’t be nice for you. Not for long.”
“What are you talking about?” Shaun dropped his papers.
“You’ve got a big problem and you need to decide what to do about it.”
“I have a problem? I don’t have a problem. Gregory has the problem.”
“Your problem is you’ve accused your boss of being some kind of wolf-man. To his boss.”
“A wolf-man? But the pictures. You saw them.”
“You spied on your boss. Made a ridiculous video. Your career in this office is over.”
“That video is real!”
“You know no court would accept that piece of shit as evidence. It’s a hoax. And you fell for it.”
“It’s not a hoax!” Shaun jumped up and ran to a cabinet against the wall. “I’ll show you the surveillance system.”
He opened a cabinet door to expose a row of video monitors showing views of all the offices and surrounding areas in the DA’s office. He pulled a small data card out of the recording machine. “It’s all on these memory cards.”
Peter took it from him. The memory card was tiny in his hand, smaller than a stick of gum.
“You’ve got a huge problem, Shaun.”
Peter pulled his cell phone out of his pants pocket, unlocked the screen, and dialed security. “I need you up in Shaun Randall’s office. Now would be good.”
“You’d better cancel that,” Shaun said with a shaky voice. “Right now. I have a copy of that memory card in a safe-deposit box.” He was starting to look nervous. Clearly, this hadn’t gone the way he’d intended.
Good.
“And I have more cards too. Months of them. Locked away. I know everything, Mayor.”
“What you need to do is decide where you want to go next because I’m going to offer to send you there. If you refuse my offer, I’ll let Greg take care of you. His way.”
An expression of panic flashed across Shaun’s face. “You don’t understand,” he said. “I wanted to work with you. Really clean up this city.”
“I like Seattle as it is. I’m happy with its cleanliness, its livability, its beauty.”
“It’s filled with shifters!” Shaun yelled.
“I’m thinking,” Peter continued, ignoring Shaun’s outburst, “maybe you want to make a move to Texas. Get a fresh start. I have a college chum in Houston. He could help you find a new job.”
“I’m not moving to Texas!”
“You messed up here, but you’ll learn your lesson. Just don’t make the same mistake in your next job.”
“I hate the sun. I need to stay in Seattle.”
“That’s not an option anymore, Shaun. You had a rough start in life. I get that. People make mistakes. But you can’t screw over your boss and get away with it. Not on my watch.”
“What did Julianna tell you? She’s a liar! She’s always been a liar!”
Peter walked behind the desk and slid open Shaun’s desk drawers. “Do you have any personal items in here? Because you should gather them together.”
The drawers were all completely empty. Not even a pen or a paper clip.
“Maybe in the closet?” He walked to it, opened it up.
“Hmmm. Is this your jacket?” He pulled the one personal item out of the closet. It was a Seattle I
s for Lovers rain slicker.
It was sad. Shaun had nothing in the office that showed who he was. No photos. No silly desk toys. Not even a pair of running sneakers.
“Shaun,” Peter said. “Take this opportunity to learn from your mistakes. The next person you screw over might not be as compassionate as I am. And, Shaun. Get a hobby. Make friends. Get a life.”
He handed Shaun the jacket.
Peter smiled sadly. “You won’t be allowed in the building again. Security is on their way up. You can leave town tomorrow and drive to Houston. You’ll be there by Friday.”
Shaun was trembling. He was frantic. “I know everything. Everything! Understand?”
Peter just shook his head. He couldn’t believe it, but he felt sorry for Shaun.
“I know all about you!” Shaun blurted out. “I know you’re a wolf shifter too!”
A wolf shifter? Peter narrowed his eyes.
The silence was broken only by Shaun’s frantic panting.
The security officer knocked on the door. Peter opened it.
“Never mind, Jordan,” Peter said. “I’ve got this.”
He closed the door quietly. He locked it. “Start talking,” Peter said, turning back to Shaun.
“It’s your fault!” Shaun yelled. “You made me do it.”
“Tell me everything,” Peter said calmly. He sat on the loveseat. He crossed his legs and stretched his arms over the seat back.
“I didn’t want to say anything. Not about this. Not now. You forced me to.” Shaun lifted his arm and pointed a finger at Peter, accusing him, as he stormed back and forth across the office. “It’s all your fault!”
Kill him, his bear urged.
Peter ignored his bear. For now.
Peter would do anything to protect the shifters. No matter what. That meant protecting his identity. No matter the cost.
“It’s corruption at the highest level!” Shaun yelled again, ignoring the invitation. “I wanted to protect you in all of this. I only wanted Gregory out. Not you. We could have worked together.”
“You don’t know what you’re talking about, Shaun.”
Peter could calm anyone. It was one of his talents. He put his arm back on the sofa and relaxed more deeply into it.
“Tell me why I should protect you now?” Shaun yelled. “Why?”
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