Drake’s brows drew together. “Can I give you a piece of advice?”
“Sure.”
“Don’t lie to them.”
“Why would I—”
“We’ve had spies try to infiltrate before.”
“Um, I’m not a spy.” I tried to laugh off his words because, hello, insane, but one look at his expression, and I knew laughing would not go over well. His gaze turned sharp, and I knew he was trying to detect something specific about me. But what?
“That’s what they all said too.”
“Look, I don’t know who you think I am. But—”
“Not who. What.”
“Excuse me?”
“We all want to know what you are.”
“I guess I’m like you,” I said uncertainly.
He shook his head. “Walks like a human. Smells like a human. Except…not quite.”
He cocked his head, the friendly expression suddenly wiped clean from his face. Instead, he looked calculating. Suspicious.
“What are you, Ash Lawson? My guess is the rumors were true about your old man and you’re working for the hexerei. And that makes you the enemy. Or didn’t Cohen explain all this?”
Frustration bubbled to the surface, and I glared at him. My patience was sitting at a negative number right now. After the last twenty-four hours, being accused of…whatever this was…definitely wouldn’t end well for him. What the hell was a hexerei anyway? And why did people keep accusing me of working with this Cohen person? And now there were rumors about my dad? That was the last straw.
“Listen, Drake. I’ve had a fucking day, so why don’t you just take this fake friend, fishing for gossip bull shit act of yours and shove it up your—”
His expression twisted, and his eyes flashed as he stepped close enough that I drew back out of reflex. “If you have magic, they’ll know,” he hissed. “And if you lie about it, they’ll kill you. And not even Kai fucking Stone will be able to stop them.”
He turned on his heel and slipped into the shadows.
Rattled, I didn’t wait to hear the door shut behind him before I hurried from the garage and up to the apartment. I had no idea what half of his accusations even meant. Cohen. Magic. Rumors about my father. It was all foreign to me. But the look in his eyes and the threat in his body language was clear. And it felt different from Kai or the others. Crueler. With a sharper edge to it.
I found myself actually scared of whatever he was alluding to. Maybe being confined to these walls for the foreseeable future wasn’t such a terrible plan after all. Ridley Falls just kept getting weirder and weirder.
Chapter Twelve
By Friday, my bruises were completely healed. Or, at least, the ones anyone could see. I’d spent the last three days playing the role of obedient niece and avoiding anything remotely real with Kai Stone—who honestly just kept getting sexier the longer he pretended I didn’t exist.
What was it with me and assholes?
Why couldn’t I have gone for the Momma’s boy who loved holding doors for me and reciting turn-of-the-century poetry?
Oh, because those kinds of guys didn’t exist in this town. Literally, every male resident, and honestly the females too, were all pretty short on patience and kindness.
It was weird.
Oscar was surprisingly attentive, though. Every night after the shop closed, he’d head upstairs and help me with dinner. Then, we’d do the dishes and watch TV together until bedtime.
He never asked or pushed me for information about Dad or what I thought about the wolves. Or Kai. Especially Kai, actually.
If anything, he seemed content to avoid conversation beyond small talk and chores. But he was present. And it was nice to have someone there who didn’t spend their waking hours watching for ghosts or drinking until they didn’t feel watched all the time.
Oscar was sane, and he was nice to me.
It was the best living arrangement I’d ever had, which only made me feel more like shit about what had happened to Dad in the end. And it kept me from mentioning my run-in with Drake. The last thing I wanted to do was admit one of his employees had it out for me. Or worse, force him to choose a side. I couldn’t be sure he’d pick me, and why should he?
Drake had been here for years. I’d shown up mere days ago with a sob story and a broken face. I was a burden with baggage that dragged on the floor behind me. And everyone had a line on what they could handle. I didn’t want to find Oscar’s.
I did wonder about the rumors Drake mentioned. And about my dad being alpha. What had made him leave? And did it have something to do with whatever we’d been running from all of those years?
Was someone in this town the reason my dad had pulled up stakes and ghosted his own family? If so, Oscar didn’t seem aware of it. He seemed just as mystified as me about what had driven my father away.
On Friday, just after closing, a familiar Mustang pulled up out front, and judging from the way the tires screeched to a stop, I knew it had to be Idrissa behind the wheel. Sure enough, I watched her climb out and march inside to where I waited behind the counter.
“Bish, are you trying to ghost me or what?” she demanded.
“No, I’m not ghosting you,” I said. “I texted you back.”
We’d texted a lot, in fact. About shifters and about how she and Isaac hadn’t been at that wolf meeting but they damn sure had known it was happening. And about my dad. Apparently, Idrissa didn’t know why he’d left either. Only stories. And rumors. None of which she’d share with me even when I’d begged.
“I know that,” she said, her pouting lip reminding me of a similar expression Isaac had given me once. “But your texts are vague, and we haven’t hung out, and it’s giving me a complex.”
My brows rose.
“Besides,” she added, “Isaac is busy with some guy he met on Hinge, and I’m bored.”
I’d already learned Isaac was a serial dater. Never more than once with the same person, though.
“Well, I’m on house arrest, so I can’t help you,” I told her.
“Yeah, about that…I talked to some people, and I’m here to spring you.”
“What people?” I asked, suddenly wary. She made it sound way too easy.
She sighed. “Silas. My dad. Oscar. Kai.” Her gaze flicked to the garage, but I waved her off.
“He already left,” I said, referencing the latter.
“Right. Well, anyway, they all agreed that as long as you’re with me, you can leave the shop.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Why what?”
“Why are they letting me leave, just like that?”
“Because it’s me,” she said with way too much smug confidence.
My eyes narrowed. “You didn’t punch anyone, did you?”
“Of course not,” she protested then pouted. “I’m insulted you would think so.”
I snorted. “Apologies, gentle maiden. Of course, you would never stoop to violence.”
She flashed a scary sort of smile. “Unless they deserved it.”
“Speaking of which, how’s that Vinny guy?” I asked.
“He’s fine,” she assured me. “Actually, your concern for him was noted by Presley and a few of the other guys. I think it’s what helped change their minds.”
“About what?” I asked.
She shrugged. “Hating you so much.”
“Gee, thanks,” I said wryly.
“You wanted full disclosure,” she reminded me.
I had made her promise, no more secrets.
“I thought he was dead,” I admit, remembering how Idrissa had knocked Vinny clean out that day.
“Yeah, we need to chat about your little fugue state that day,” she said, and I tensed at the memory of how Vinny’s blood had freaked me out. “Later,” she added. “For now, we need drinks.”
Apparently, my aversion to alcohol had not dimmed Idrissa’s enthusiasm about consuming it herself.
“Actually,” I said, “I could really use some new
clothes.”
Her eyes lit up. “Oh, thank baby Jesus,” she said. “I was trying to be polite and not mention the whole redneck receptionist vibe you have going, but it’s seriously not okay with me.”
I looked down at the shop shirt I’d borrowed from Oscar and leggings with brake fluid stains so faint that, hopefully, no one could see them. Girl had a point.
“Let me talk to Oscar,” I said.
“We’ll talk to him together.” She followed me upstairs without waiting for a reply.
Ten minutes later, Oscar had given the green light, and I’d insisted Idrissa not subject me to her driving. Instead, we were walking the three blocks to the thrift store. I debated spilling everything to Idrissa about Drake’s accusations and what it all meant about my dad, but the moment wasn’t quite right. Or maybe I was still holding back my trust in friendship. Either way, I kept my mouth shut about all of the crazy shit that had been happening.
“I can’t believe you have me hoofing it,” Idrissa complained.
“You drive like a bat out of hell. I don’t need the heart attack today,” I said.
Before she could answer, a familiar figure waved and hurried toward us from the other end of the block.
“Hey, boo!” Isaac closed the distance and pulled me into a hug that completely lifted me off my feet. “Finally. I missed your face.”
“I thought you were on a date,” I said as he set me down.
“He wasn’t a dog person,” he said simply and Idrissa muffled a laugh. “What are you two bitchachos doing?”
“Clothes,” Idrissa said, pointing to me.
“Say no more.” Isaac grabbed my wrist and pulled me into the thrift store. “I got here just in time.”
For the next hour, the three of us pulled clothes off the rack, made choices, tried things on, and laughed until I was sure we’d get kicked out. It was the most fun I’d ever had shopping. Watching the twins poke at each other while they waited for me to check out made my chest ache with a happiness that also felt a little sad.
I was nineteen years old and just now experiencing some of life’s most simple joys for the first time. I was also being hunted by a cold-blooded killer and living under the watchful eyes of a town full of wolf shifters who thought I was the enemy. Oh, and then there was the biker gang I’d pissed off.
Life was complicated.
Outside, the twins helped me carry bags, and we visited a few more stores that left my stash of cash much smaller than when we’d started. But I had clothes. And after a week of owning literally only the clothes on my back, having possessions again—even just a few bags full—made me feel steadier somehow. Like I really did have a place in this world.
Isaac sensed my mood change and put his arm around my shoulders.
“Tell me his name, and I’ll run over his dog,” he said.
“Who’s name?” I asked.
“Whoever made you look so damn sad. I’ll kill him for you. No questions asked.”
The look on his face made it clear he meant it too. That should have disturbed me, but after the week I’d had, at least the murderer was on my side this time. Shit, where was a friend like Isaac all my life? I could have used him back at those shitty diners I’d worked at where the customers were constantly trying to get me to go with them at three am.
Okay, wow, and on that note, I was losing it.
“Actually, I was wondering when we were going to talk about the fact that the two of you are wolf shifters and you didn’t bother telling me.”
Isaac dropped his arm. “Damn. Busted.”
“We talked about it through text,” Idrissa protested.
“Not the same,” I said, pinning them both with a look.
Idrissa elbowed Isaac. “Guess you’re running over your own damn dog.”
Isaac looked stricken. “Not Galileo.”
“Your dog’s name is Galileo?” I asked. “Wait. You have a dog?” I looked back and forth between them. “Isn’t that a little ironic?”
“Are you about to make some weird joke about how we are house pets?” Isaac asked, eyes narrowed. “Because you should know I’ll only allow it if you make it kinky. And Idrissa won’t allow it at all. She usually punches people right about now.”
I eyed Idrissa who didn’t contradict Isaac. “Noted,” I said. “And I didn’t mean to insult you, but maybe if you explained some shit, I wouldn’t accidentally say the wrong thing.”
“She has a point,” Isaac said to his sister.
Idrissa sighed and glanced up and down the street. “Fine. But not here. Come on.”
She turned and led the way through a narrow alley, and I followed, fully expecting some secret hideout—or den—hidden behind the dry cleaners and crystal shop we’d cut between. Instead, I found myself in a garden. Stone borders held up raised beds that overflowed with lush, green plants.
Large shade trees rose up at each end, plunging the whole space into shadows. It was cooler here too. And getting cooler the further we went.
I rubbed absently at my arms to ward off the chill.
From other directions, stone pathways all led to a common space in the very center of things. Somewhere nearby, water trickled. A fountain maybe? Or a pond? It smelled like algae.
“What is this place?” I asked, turning a full circle as Idrissa stopped at a small table and chairs set in the very center where all the paths converged. It felt . . . magical. If magic were actually real. And according to Drake and his rude accusations, it was.
“It’s called a garden,” Idrissa said, brow arched.
“Hilarious,” I said.
“I couldn’t resist.”
She gestured to one of the chairs. The iron back was cold underneath my hands, but I pulled it out and sat, dropping my bags to the stone ground.
Isaac took one of the other chairs, and we both looked expectantly at Idrissa.
“The crystal shop owner is a friend of mine,” Idrissa explained.
“I thought you didn’t have any friends,” I said.
She smirked. “Okay, well, we were friends until she slept with my boyfriend senior year, but then I slept with her brother. We’ve decided to call it even.”
I stared at her. “You’re serious.”
“What? You never slept with someone’s brother?” she challenged.
“I slept with someone who had a sister,” I said slowly, frowning at the memory. “I didn’t know who she was and use it against her.”
Nicholas Andre. He’d been a terrible kisser, but I’d needed to feel something, anything that wasn’t the constant stress of dealing with my Dad. Turns out I didn’t need to feel it bad enough to go back for seconds. In fact, every guy I’d slept with—three, which wasn’t many—had been a one-and-done. And not just because of Dad. There was just never anything to them that made me want to go back for more.
Kai, on the other hand, made me wonder if I’d ever stop once we started.
I blinked, forcing my thoughts back to the conversation, and found Idrissa grinning back at me in a way that made the hairs on my neck stand up. “Too bad,” she declared as if pitying me. “It was a fucking rush.”
I shook my head. “You’re crazy.”
“Blame our wild wolves,” she said with a shrug. “Tori’s cool now though. Or cooler than some of the others. Isaac and I helped her put all this together a couple of years ago.”
“It’s beautiful,” I said.
“Our wolves like the outdoors,” she told me, and I nodded.
Even without the ability to shift, I’d always appreciated nature too. The smell of the earth. The wind. Being underneath an open sky. It felt like … freedom. And looking around, I could appreciate how someone had brought little hints of all that freedom into such a small, tight space.
Making do with what you had.
I could appreciate that too.
“Listen, we just want to start by saying we’re really sorry for keeping this from you,” Isaac said.
Idrissa nodded.<
br />
“We didn’t want to. But Oscar and Kai insisted.”
I scowled.
“I forgive you,” I said. “As long as our promise holds true about being honest from now on.”
They both made the motion of a cross over their heart.
“We swear it,” Isaac said.
“Good. Can I ask you guys something then?”
“Anything,” Idrissa said.
“Was my dad really the alpha before he left?”
“Yeah.” Idrissa looked thoughtful. “It was before our time, obviously, but our parents have told us the pack history.”
“Do they know why he left?” I asked. “What drove him away?”
She shook her head. “No. I mean, no one knows for sure. There are theories. Rumors.” She shrugged. “But nothing concrete.”
“What does Oscar say?” Isaac asked.
“As little as possible about pretty much everything,” I said. “I just feel like I keep making mistake after mistake, and if someone would just explain it all to me, maybe it would keep me from making it worse.”
“You really had no idea about any of this,” Isaac said sadly. “About what you are or anything.”
“No.”
“Damn, girlie.” He grabbed my hand. “No one should have to find out like this. I’m sorry.”
“Thanks.” I offered him a small smile. “I’m so glad to have you both.”
Isaac sniffled and wiped a tear. “Me too. We’re going to tell you everything you need to know, okay?”
I nodded.
“Okay, here’s the facts,” Idrissa said, getting down to business like only Idrissa could. “Isaac and I are werewolves.”
“Wait. Oscar said you don’t like that term,” I said.
She rolled her eyes. “The older shifters think it’s offensive and stupid, but I think it sounds badass.” She grinned. “If Jacob can be a werewolf, so can I.”
I laughed. “Got it.”
“Anyway, like I said, Isaac and I are both wolves. In fact, basically, everyone in this town is a werewolf. And now that you know, they don’t want you to leave because they’re afraid you’re going to blab about it and the Men in Black will show up to run experiments on us or make us learn to fetch or whatever.”
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