by Diane Leyne
She had twenty-four e-mails, seven of them from Sam. She sighed and reached for the phone. Her friend answered on the first ring.
“What took you so long?”
“What are you doing? Sitting by the phone trying to will me to call?
“Yup. I got the craziest call from Sully and I need to know! Are you guys an item? Are they your Mates?”
“Sam, I’ve known them for all of three hours!”
“So? I knew from the moment I met my men that we were meant to be together, even if I protested and pretended I didn’t know. Hell, it took a few weeks for everything to come together, especially with Gabe and his ridiculous spying mission, coming to me in his mangy wolf-dog form. One sec, Ginger.” She could hear a voice in the background and then Sam’s annoyed-sounding voice. “Yes, yes, Gabe. You are a very handsome wolf, but if you ever try to spy on me again, I’m going to shave you all over and parade you through downtown on a leash. Now go away. I’m talking to your cousin.”
There was the sound of some scuffling and some heavy breathing, and then Gabe came on the line. “Please tell me that you are going to run away with these wolf-dog brothers of Sam’s so I can get some peace in my own home.”
“Nice try, furboy. And if you keep talking disrespectfully to me, I’m going to take photos when she’s got you on your leash and post them on all the shifter sites. Now put Sam back on.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
“What did you say to him? He looks half-angry and half-fearful, and now he’s stomping out the door.”
“He’s my cousin, Sam. Of course I know how to push his buttons. Remind me to give you a lesson sometime. But now back to the subject at hand, your crazy brothers.”
“They are not crazy. They are annoying and frustrating and loyal and loving and bossy, but not crazy. And you didn’t answer my question. Are they your Mates?”
“Sam, come on. Give me a break. We haven’t even kissed yet.”
“Doesn’t matter. When they are the ones, you know.”
Ginger looked at the phone as the silence grew. Then she whispered, “I think they are.”
Chapter Seven
Ginger walked around to the back of the house. She could hear the voices. Clearly, there were already a lot of people there already. She checked her watch. It was almost seven. She’d had to work late to make up for being missing in action for a good part of the day, but now she was caught up and free for the whole weekend.
Letting herself into the backyard, she took in the scene before her. Sitting down in a lounger, with her feet being rubbed by her Alpha Oliver, was Penelope, two of her other Mates sitting with Lena’s three Mates, playing cards, and the other two were manning the barbeque. Lena was with Samantha, sitting at the picnic bench, sipping what looked to be margaritas. They spotted Ginger and immediately rushed over to give her a big hug. Penelope gave Oliver a kiss and joined the other women.
“Let’s go into the kitchen and dish while the men prepare our food.”
“Where are…”
“Your men are locked in the den with my men. Either they’ll bond and we’ll both regret it, or there will be fur flying and we’ll need Oliver and Lena to patch everyone up. It’s been kind of quiet in there, so I’m leaning toward the bonding option.”
Ginger laughed at the worry on Samantha’s face.
“It won’t be that bad, if they get along, will it? In fact, wouldn’t that be a good thing?”
“I guess. Maybe. And my brothers are talking about moving here permanently. I’d like that, and it would be better if they all get along.”
“Moving here?” Ginger swallowed hard. She was so discombobulated by the concept that she didn’t even notice the den door open or the men walk out, but they clearly noticed her as Sully, Nate, and Ben, one by one, walked up to her and gave her a kiss on the cheek.
“Sam! That wasn’t your secret to tell.” Gabe gave his Mate a kiss and then a little swat on be backside and then moved away quickly. Nick, Bart, Andy, and Eddie each kissed her on the cheek and then headed out to the backyard, leaving Gabe to deal with his unhappy Mate.
“If my brothers had expected me to keep that a secret, then they wouldn’t have told me. Right, guys?”
Ginger smothered a grin as the men nodded, and Gabe looked abashed. “Sorry, honey.”
“Not as sorry as you will be!” Samantha clearly loved her men but just clearly wasn’t going to give them an inch. Ginger thought she should keep notes or something. Keeping multiple men in line had to be hard, but Samantha seemed to be blissfully happy, ruling with an iron fist. “Now, I think it’s time we leave them alone. The food will be ready in thirty minutes.”
* * * *
Sully looked at Ginger. It had only been a couple of hours but it had seemed like forever, especially when she was late. When six o’clock passed and she didn’t arrive, he wanted to check on her. By six fifteen, he was pacing in the living room while his brothers and Gabe watched in amusement. Luckily Gabe’s brothers arrived not long after that, and they’d retired to the den to discuss Samantha.
It hadn’t taken long for them to realize that Gabe and his brothers worshipped the ground Sam walked on, and it put Sully’s mind at ease. It had also convinced him to level with the men as to their real reason for coming to Harmony. Gabe, in addition to being his brother-in-law, was the mayor of Harmony.
It had been a good call. Gabe had contacts all over the northwest and promised to help in any way he or his brothers could. They also promised to keep an eye on Ginger. Sully and his brothers would have preferred to keep that job for themselves, but they were there to catch an arsonist before he, she, or they killed someone. It meant that they might not be around as much as they liked, if they had to leave town to follow leads. And if anyone got a sniff of what they were doing, Ginger could be at risk, if she was their woman.
In fact, they had ended up debating as to whether or not they should keep their distance from her until the case was wrapped up so as not to make her a target. In the end, they decided that they’d go slow in their courting as they’d originally planned, but since they’d all been seen out together at Lupo’s, there was no point in trying to hide.
“But that was just one meal,” protested Nate. “It could have been totally innocent.”
“Well, maybe, but I heard that you had your arm around her and then you and Ben were feeling her up until she twisted your fingers or something under the table. And Chief Ramsay came and talked to you, and then she went off on the back of Teddy’s motorcycle, leaving you all flat. Did I miss anything?”
“Hell. Do you have video cameras set up or something?” Ben was shocked. “And she didn’t twist my finger. She pried it backward until I thought it might break if I didn’t let go.”
“What we have here in Harmony, like many small towns, is a very well-developed grapevine. You sneeze and your neighbor will drop off some tissues. From the moment you arrived, you’ve been observed. I’ve been told you are very handsome in your wolf-dog form. Nate needs a haircut, but Sully’s beard is very sexy.”
Nate looked outraged. “Who said that? Was it Ginger? Does she want me to get it cut?”
“No, it wasn’t Ginger. I think she likes it, god knows why.”
“Then I’m not cutting it.”
“Hell, I don’t care about your hair or his beard or why Junior’s hair looks like he just enlisted in the army. I just want to help you stop whoever is targeting our people. Let me know what you need and I’ll take care of it.”
“Thanks, man.”
“Just remember, Ginger’s our cousin by birth, but she’s like a sister, really. Hurt her and we’ll hunt you down, and there are five of us and only three of you. Just saying.”
“I hear you.”
The Alphas shook hands just as Sully caught a whiff of Ginger.
“She’s here.”
So they trooped out into the living room, and there she was. If he’d had any doubts before about her being their Mate, it was
gone the moment he looked at her. It wasn’t just the way his cock kept trying to stand at attention every time he was near her. It was more than that. It was like he was complete when she was nearby.
He barely noticed as Gabe tossed Sam over his shoulder and strolled out.
“Remember, half an hour. Any longer and I’m sending my men in to retrieve Ginger,” she threatened over his shoulder as she was carried out, the sound of another slap to her rear clearly audible.
“What’s going on?” she asked as they led her into the den and closed the door.
Reluctantly Sully guided her to the easy chair and took a seat opposite her on the couch, flanked by his brothers. He’d prefer to have her sitting on his lap, but then nothing would get done as he’d be compelled to make love to her.
He looked at Ginger, and the thought of anything happening her, especially now that they’d just found her, terrified him. He wanted to wrap her in cotton or maybe bubble wrap. He wanted to carry her away to some place he could be sure she’d be safe and surround her with a dozen guards, but he knew he was being overprotective. They had no indication that she was on anyone’s radar other than their own. And he had too much respect for her to just take over her life no matter how appealing that sounded.
He looked at her as Ben got up, pulling his phone from his pocket, and walked to the farthest corner of the room.
“Ginger, we didn’t exactly tell you the truth when we met.”
“What about? You are clearly related to Sam. I can see the family resemblance. What else did we talk about? The reason you came to Harmony. The fact you want to see me again? Which were you lying about?”
“The middle one. Why we came to Harmony.”
“I don’t understand. What were you lying about? Sam’s your sister. Why would you come here if you weren’t coming to visit her and check out my cousins?”
“We work for Lupo Security out of Florida. It really is a full-service security firm doing all the traditional sorts of jobs. But only select people know about our other specialty, cases involving shifters, hate crimes against our people, or if a shifter goes rogue and attacks a human. Sometimes we provide security for prominent shifters, particularly those who don’t want to be outed. Other times, we do investigative work.”
“And this time?”
“That fire at the vet’s clinic. You know it was arson, right. That’s not a secret.”
“Yes, but there have been no leads as far as I know. Authorities have more or less come to the conclusion that it was a random act of violence.”
“Not all authorities. Not Gabe or his brothers.”
“No, but they are not professionals. Chief Ramsay says that whoever did it is probably long gone.”
“What if he’s wrong?”
“Are you trying to scare me?”
“Yes.” Sully felt bad when he saw the look on her face, but he wanted her to take this conversation seriously.
“Do you think someone was targeting Lena? Or maybe Oliver?”
“No, not directly. They may not even have known Oliver was sleeping there. Lena was out of town, and it was the first and only night he slept there. On the other hand, he did operate on a prominent shifter, he became a shifter himself, and now he’s opening a practice here, which will attract more shifters to the area.
“We think someone is targeting businesses that are either owned by shifters or shifter friendly. We just nailed a perp who attacked half dozen businesses in the southeast, Florida, the Carolinas, over the last six months. While getting evidence on him, we found that he’d been corresponding with and being egged on by someone else, someone with a long-standing hatred for shifters and who apparently has been carrying out a long-term vendetta against them. After Lena’s clinic, they hit a store in Boise, and we’ve just heard about something in Northern California that may be related. Whoever it is, they are escalating, with the attacks coming closer and closer together.”
“Why haven’t I heard about this before?”
“You’ve probably heard about some of the individual incidents such as that restaurant fire in Orlando, but how many people would know that business was owned by and employed a number of shifters? Or who would know that the Boise clothing shop did a custom business on the side with clothes for shifters made with Velcro and other little additions to make life easier for our people. How could anyone put the acts together except other shifters?”
“But why did you come to Harmony? It sounds like they’d moved on.”
Ben returned to the couch. “It’s confirmed. The Northern California attack was the same perp or perps, and this time, someone died. It was just an innocent homeless person who was sleeping in the doorway to keep out of the rain. There was an explosion, and they got hit with falling glass. Severed an artery and they bled out before help got to them. Our arsonist is now a murderer.”
“Have they ever struck the same place twice? Are we in danger here in Harmony?”
Sully sat back. That was a good question. “No, to the best of our knowledge they’ve never struck the same city twice. Hell, they’ve never struck a place as small as Harmony before where you’d think a stranger would stick out. Which is why…”
“Which is why,” Ginger continued, “you think it’s one of us. Someone in Harmony is a killer.”
Chapter Eight
Ginger looked at Sully and then his brothers. Damn. Why wasn’t one of them contradicting her? Why weren’t they telling her that she was just being paranoid? Instead Sully leaned forward and took her hand.
“Yes. We do. But we have no evidence. No suspects. Just our gut instinct and experience. This person, because it’s probably an individual, although they may have contacts across the country, they probably have a deep, burning hate for shifters, obviously. They feel wronged by them in some way. Hell, maybe they had a fight with one in kindergarten or maybe they lost a girl to a shifter. Who knows? But whatever the reason, they have a big-time vendetta against our people, and there are enough others out there who don’t like shifters that they have a network of supporters to help them.”
“But what are they accomplishing? Do they want to drive us out? But where would they expect us to go? And to what end? We’re a thriving part of society even if they don’t want to acknowledge us. Shifters have lived in this country since it was founded. We hold down jobs and get married and have kids…Hell, if only the average person knew about us they’d be shocked at how many shifters live amongst them.” Ginger continued, speaking faster and faster, her tone rising.
“They are just lucky that shifters generally don’t like team sports, or really any sports except distance running. Then our kind would take all the jobs. Hell, even the few shifters in the Major Leagues and NFL have had to hold back and still are tops in their field, not to mention more than one famous actor known as much for his masculine attraction as his acting skills. One of them even played a werewolf in a television show, which was particularly amusing to the shifter community.” Ginger sagged back in her chair, suddenly exhausted.
“What are we going to do?” She looked from brother to brother. “I can help. With my contacts in the real estate business, I can see who’s moved to town in the last few months, whether buying or leasing. And I can ask around about who’s been out of town for the relevant dates.”
“You are not going to do anything. You are going to forget what we’ve told you other than to be very careful to not be alone with anyone who isn’t a shifter, I don’t care how trustworthy they seem or how long you’ve known them. Right now, everyone’s a suspect until we can start discreetly checking alibis.”
“And how to you propose doing that?”
Sully grinned. “You probably don’t want to know.”
Ginger didn’t grin back, so he continued. “We have certain coworkers with a particular set of skills. We can check people’s credit cards and see who was in town on the day of the attacks outside of Harmony. We don’t expect to find anyone stupid enough to have used a credit card
to buy their plane ticket or local supplies. However, we can eliminate folks who were definitely here in Harmony during the timeframes in question.”
“But that’s a few thousand people. And how do you know what credit cards they have?”
“I didn’t say it was quick. It’s not that hard to do when you have good hackers on staff, but it will take time, especially since we have to make sure not to get caught. This plan isn’t exactly legal.”
“What about Chief Ramsay? Are you going to tell him your suspicions?”
“No. He and his men are all under suspicion until we can clear them and their families. Hell, Ginger. Not one officer on his staff is a shifter. That’s probably the only place in Harmony that hasn’t hired a shifter. Half the fire department is staffed by shifters. They are stronger and faster and have more endurance than humans. Those same traits would make them great at police work, but the chief’s steadfastly refused to hire any since he got the job and any shifters who were on staff when he got started have long since left.”
“But I’ve known him all my life. I work with his wife, his second wife, that is.”
“What happened to number one?”
“I don’t really know. She was there and then she wasn’t. It was when I was in high school, I think. I remember his son Tim being devastated, but if there was some talk about why, I never heard it. I was still in school. I’m sure if you talk to someone the Chief’s age, or even to the Chief himself…It’s probably nothing.” Her voice trailed off. “You know, I’ve never actually heard the Chief or his wife, Octavia, say a bad word about shifters. Tim, on the other hand…”
“On the other hand?”
“I ran into him a few days ago. He and I chatted for a few minutes. He, well, he didn’t seem to like shifters, not at all. I don’t remember him like that. I guess something could have happened. I haven’t seen all that much of him since college, other than to say hi in passing.”
“Maybe, maybe not. We’ll look into it, but first things first. We’ll check out the Chief’s whereabouts during the various incidents, Tim’s too. If their time can be accounted for, we can cross them off our list without digging into the Chief’s personal life. Hell, I’m not saying he’s guilty of anything other than being a prejudiced asshole and so, it seems, like father, like son. But until both of them are cleared, we can’t talk to him, not if his son is also a potential suspect.”