Caged, page 19
Peasblossom chose that moment to pop out of my waist pouch like a jack-in-the-box. She heaved a protein bar out with her and jabbed it in my direction. “Take it! Give it to the wolf, I want a donut!”
She stilled as suddenly as she’d appeared, finally registering the full magnitude of the situation. Her pink eyes darted from Andy’s gun to the seething werewolf. “Oh.”
Andy set the box of donuts on the small table beside the door. My heart beat faster. Was that a good thing? He didn’t need two hands to shoot a gun, right? I stared at his suit, following the straight starched lines. Pressed suit, calm Andy. Right?
Liam’s gold eyes followed Andy’s every movement. It was the same way Majesty looked at Peasblossom. Curiosity that would either lead to acceptance, or the need to find out just what made her tick. I couldn’t imagine this was the first time a human had pointed a gun at Liam, he was a cop after all. But how many of those humans had killed a kelpie?
“Agent Bradford,” Liam said slowly. “It would be better if you refrained from pointing a gun at me. Especially here. On my territory.”
Andy nodded, but didn’t lower the gun. “That would be my preference. But you can see why it’s a little unsettling for me to get here and find a crowd of anxious werewolves in the hall and you in here alone with Shade. Especially when you seem a little…stressed.”
There it was again. A little too much excitement in that last word. A little too much…anticipation?
Liam still didn’t move. “Your concern is understandable. But I wasn’t just referring to the disrespectful nature of the gesture. I don’t want to sound patronizing. But in the spirit of helping you stay alive in the event you encounter someone less easygoing than me, I’ll remind you that your gun wouldn’t save you if I were inclined to hurt you, or Shade. You’d never get a shot off before I got to you. And unless there’s silver in those bullets, even if you did, it wouldn’t slow me down.”
His voice didn’t change at all when he delivered the last line. It was enough to make me wonder if I was the crazy one in the room, and he hadn’t just told Andy he could kill him if he wanted to.
Andy inclined his head. “I appreciate the warning. On the other hand, maybe I would be fast enough. Maybe you would hesitate because you’d realize that if you kill me, you won’t get the information I have for you.”
Liam straightened, and some of the blue bled back into his eyes. “What information?”
Andy slowly holstered his gun, and my shoulders drooped as I sagged against the table I was leaning on. That wasn’t disappointment I saw in his eyes. I was seeing things. Too paranoid for my own good.
Andy picked up the box of donuts and approached the desk. “May I use your computer?”
The air cooled around me as Liam retreated to sit in his chair. I didn’t know if keeping the desk between him and Andy was deliberate or not, but I didn’t say anything. As Liam entered his password to access the computer, Andy set the box of donuts down and nudged it toward him. As if to keep things amicable, he opened the box and took out a glazed donut. It only took him three bites to eat it, and I wondered if he’d really gotten dinner like he’d said he was going to, or if I was looking at his dinner. My stomach grumbled and I sighed before getting a donut.
“If you get one, I get one,” Peasblossom said quickly.
I broke her off a piece of a chocolate cream stick with lots of icing and we watched as Liam turned his computer to face Andy. Andy lowered himself into the chair facing the desk and got to work.
“First, the bad news. Varca didn’t have another car, so your sister didn’t leave that way. If there were no traces of her leaving the property, then she left in a car that she or an accomplice drove there. Or, possibly, if Paul had a partner, Brenna may still be a victim.”
Liam closed one hand into a fist, then immediately opened it again and pressed his hand flat against the top of his desk. “What’s the good news?”
“I searched social media, starting with the Paw Patrollers Page. I went through their reviews, and matched the names of the people leaving a review with the sales record for the dog. And I found something interesting.”
He opened an email and clicked one of the links, then turned the laptop to face Liam. “This woman left a glowing review for Paw Patrollers, but there’s no record of her having ever bought a dog.”
Liam grabbed a donut, but didn’t take a bite. Bits of sugary glaze broke off and left a white, sticky trail from the box to his hand. He leaned closer to get a better look at the picture of the woman kneeling next to her new “service dog.” He raised the donut as if to take a bite, then immediately lowered it. “That’s not a dog.”
“According to the woman, it’s a dog with ‘a little bit of wolf.’” Andy grabbed a napkin to wipe his hand off, then took another donut. After a moment of consideration, he plucked up another napkin and laid it beside Liam’s hand and the trail of broken glaze.
That’s definitely his dinner.
“Little bit my tail,” Liam said grimly. “That’s definitely a wolf.” He squinted at the screen. “Doesn’t look big enough to be a shifter, though.”
“I took the liberty of making an appointment with the owner, Ms. Thomas,” Andy added. “I told her you’re part of the Wild Animal Task Force and if she’d be willing to bring her dog, Luna, here, you could perform an official assessment to deem the animal safe. She was very happy to hear about the possibility that Luna could be federally registered so when someone calls the police to report a wild animal, they’ll be able to see Luna’s papers and she won’t have to deal with the hassle over and over.”
Liam nodded. “That was a good idea.”
“May said Paw Patrollers only works with labs and retrievers,” I pointed out. “And she told me they only use dogs they’ve bred and raised themselves.”
“May might not have known,” Andy said, taking a bite of his third donut. “I also looked at their bank records. May neglected to mention that their business is in a lot of trouble. As of last month, they’re officially operating in the red.”
“So Ruth’s instincts were right,” Liam said grimly.
Andy pulled up another email and clicked on a document. A copy of bank records. “And this isn’t the only time this has happened. They’ve been struggling for years. I looked at the business account and May and Paul’s personal accounts. Within three days of both ‘donations,’ a sum of five thousand dollars was deposited in Paul’s personal account. No matching deposit was made in May’s. But in the month following one of those deposits, the business accounts creep into the black.”
“That can’t be a coincidence.” I started to take another bite of my cream stick, then sighed and broke off a piece for the pixie glaring at me. “So what’s the theory? Paul is selling wolves to people on the side without May’s knowledge?”
“And using the Paw Patrollers name to do it,” Liam said grimly. “That woman with the wolf left a review for Paw Patrollers. Obviously, she thinks her ‘dog’ is a credited service animal.”
“There’s more,” Andy said around a mouthful of donut. “It turns out May and Paul had large life insurance policies on one another.”
Liam sat up straighter, then leaned back. “Having an insurance policy on your business partner isn’t uncommon. Ruth and I have policies on one another.” He drummed his fingers on the desk. Despite his rational words, there was no mistaking the energy crackling around him. “Besides, how does Brenna fit into this? We know she was there.”
A thought occurred to me, and as soon as I had it, I wished I hadn’t. Unfortunately, my face was more expressive than was good for me.
“What?” Liam rose out of his seat, abandoning his donut on the desk and planting both fists so he could lean closer. “You’ve thought of something. What is it?”
“If Paul had access to wolves and was willing to sell them, then why not sell one to Adrian?” I asked. “Adrian had a lot of money, and he was obviously willing to pay top dollar for a wolf.”
“You think maybe Paul wasn’t the one with access to wolves,” Andy said. “Maybe he was just the front man.”
I nodded. “If someone wanted to make money selling service wolves, then they’d need credibility. Most people are going to realize that wolves weren’t meant to be pets, so they’d need to hear it was safe from someone with authority. A veneer of respectability, if you will. So it’s possible that Paul wasn’t the brains behind this. Someone might have been using him.”
“So who was the one actually providing the wolves?” Andy asked.
We both looked at Liam. His aura flared, hot enough that I took a step back. He shoved his chair away and paced the floor behind his desk.
“No. It can’t be Brenna. She would never put anyone in danger like that. Not for any amount of money.”
“According to the review, the wolf is amazing,” I pointed out. “There is no danger.” I hesitated, then added, “And there would definitely be no danger if the wolves are a little more…human.”
Liam froze, and I rushed to continue. The possibility had to be put out there, whether he liked it or not. “Stephen convinced Brenna to help him build his own pack. If he could convince Brenna, there’s no reason to believe he couldn’t convince others. And if he had other supporters, then maybe they found a way to help him raise the money he needed.”
Liam walked back to his desk chair and gripped the back cushion, his fingers digging into the worn leather. My heart pounded as I waited for him to flip the heavy furniture in a fit of temper. His shoulders rose and fell as he sucked in deep breaths.
“You’re telling me that you think members of my pack are allowing themselves to be sold as pets to help Stephen raise the funds for his mutiny?”
Andy remained quiet and still, but I could see his desire to grab his notebook and write this all down. His eyes flicked over Liam, studying his face, his body language. That strange air of eagerness was back too, and if I didn’t know better, I’d think Andy was hoping Liam would lose his temper.
“I think it’s possible,” I said carefully. “But it might not be members of your pack. It could be some of your temporary people. New Moon’s clients.”
“Best I can tell, the woman that got the wolf had no medical reason for a service animal,” Andy said slowly. “That could mean that whoever gave her the wolf made sure she didn’t really depend on the animal, so much as she wanted one. A lot of people have service dogs or emotional support animals for all kinds of reasons. Some valid, some not. The number of emotional support animals among college students rose thirty percent last year, and I’m guessing at least a few of those people just wanted an excuse to keep their dog at college.”
“Brenna wouldn’t have anything to do with that,” Liam snapped. “And she would know that it’s dangerous for anyone to stay in wolf form too long, especially new wolves. None of our clients here could handle that sort of strain.” He rolled his head in a circle, muscles stretching and tendons releasing pops of tension. “Maybe May is involved, but she’s smarter than Paul and didn’t deposit the money in one of her regular accounts. And she had the wolfsbane. You said she had items of power in her office, so she could be a witch, right?”
I nodded. “The paperweight on her desk was enchanted. And she held that silver letter opener like she was ready to use it for more than paper, which makes me think she knows what you are.”
“Maybe she knew werewolves were real for awhile, but it’s only now she has a reason to see me as a threat,” Liam added. “If what happened today wasn’t planned, then she might be afraid I’ll figure out what she was up to.”
“Let’s say she’s a witch,” Andy said, taking another donut. “Does that mean she can turn wolves into tame pets? Maybe Paul trapped wolves and she used magic to train them?”
“No.” I shook my head. “There are spells that would do that, but they wouldn’t last forever. And the amount of magic it would take to make them last would be too costly, especially if she intends to do this more than once. But May is a dog trainer, so it’s possible she used magic to aid the training.”
“Under this theory, we’re assuming Brenna was caught by accident?” Liam said dubiously. “Paul’s out there catching wolves for May to magically train and he just happened to snag an experienced werewolf?”
“If May’s a witch, she could have trapped Brenna on purpose,” I said slowly. “Especially if she knew Brenna was from New Moon, she’d know Brenna wouldn’t hurt her on purpose. Maybe she and Paul caught Brenna, pretending that they thought she was a normal wolf.”
“Brenna would have played along to protect our cover,” Liam added.
“And then something happened when they tried to sell her to Varca, and she bit Paul and escaped.”
“And May reported the attack to make herself look like an unfortunate witness instead of a co-conspirator,” Andy finished.
“Brenna’s still missing.” Liam braced both fists on the desk, the muscles in his forearms bulging. “In this scenario, are we assuming that May did something to her to stop her from telling anyone what she was up to?”
“Maybe not,” I said quickly. “Assuming May was involved, we still run into the same problem we had with Paul.”
“If she had access to wolves, and the business was struggling, then why not sell one to Adrian,” Andy finished.
“Exactly,” I said. “Suppose May is a witch. Together, she and Paul were selling wolves, maybe preying on clients from New Moon as they’re leaving to go to their new packs, or maybe even new clients as they’re arriving, before they ever register.”
“Adrian finds out they’re selling wolves,” Andy suggests. “Now he’s really angry that they won’t sell to him. He has one of his hunter pals help him catch a wolf—and he gets Brenna. He calls Paul and tells him he caught a wolf, all Paul has to do is train it. Paul panics because Adrian doesn’t know what he’s doing. He rushes over there to save Adrian from himself.”
“Bad things happen,” I continued. “Brenna bites Paul. May shows up. She panics. Adrian has seen too much. Paul is wild, she can’t control him. She grabs Brenna and runs. Either Brenna’s hurt and May’s trying to nurse her back to health, or she’s holding Brenna until she can think of a way to escape the wrath of Brenna’s pack.”
“You think she’s waiting for me to realize she has my sister.”
“We need to talk to May, and we need to talk to the people who have the wolves. We’ll talk to May first, that way the families don’t call her and warn her we’re coming.” I gestured to the window and the dark sky. “It’s too late to do anything now.”
Liam shook his head. “I’m not resting till I find my sister.”
“You won’t be any good to Brenna if you don’t eat and get some sleep,” I said firmly. “And you know it.”
Liam looked at me and the force of his stare almost pushed me back a step, but I narrowed my eyes. I summoned the best witchy look I had and straightened my spine to look at him from my full five foot three.
“Go to bed, Liam. Eat, sleep, and show up tomorrow ready to find your sister. She’ll need you at your best, wherever she’s been.”
For a second, I thought he’d argue, but then he nodded. “First thing tomorrow, I’m going to talk to May.”
“And we’ll be here,” I agreed.
Andy and I started to leave, but I stopped in the doorway. “Not that I don’t trust you. But you should know, I scanned May for magic and didn’t find any. If she is a witch, then she’s powerful enough to hide her energy signature, and powerful enough to keep Vincent’s spell from showing evidence that she’s a witch.”
Peasblossom paused with a bite of donut halfway to her mouth. Her eyes widened. “You think she’s a…kitchen witch?”
I nodded. “Possibly.”
Andy frowned. “You say ‘kitchen witch’ like it’s a big deal. I thought kitchen witch was slang for the New Age fad of people casting spells from their kitchens with a bunch of cooking spices.”
I didn’t look away from Liam. “It’s true that a lot of people use kitchen witch in a disdainful way, but that was a very deliberate misinformation campaign by the real kitchen witches. In reality, they’re the most powerful witches you’ll ever find. They’re called kitchen witches because it was said they could cast any spell with no more than what you’d find in a kitchen, and they never had to leave the kitchen to achieve their goals. They hide in plain sight, and there’s no way to know if you’re near one unless she chooses to tell you. Or show you.”
I took a step toward Liam, needing him to take me seriously. “Do not question May on your own. If she’s a kitchen witch, you won’t stand a chance. Alpha or no.”
Chapter 18
“What happened to you?”
Not everyone was a morning person, but Liam, Ruth, and Kristine looked like hell even for eight a.m. I set my empty travel mug on the small table just inside the door of Liam’s office and shared a look with Andy before stepping inside.
Liam’s eyes were bloodshot, and he leaned heavily on his desk, slumping in his chair as he poured another cup of coffee from one of the three carafes sitting in a row in front of him. Kristine sat in one of the chairs in front of the desk, clinging to the cup of coffee in her hands as if it were the only thing anchoring her to this world. Even Ruth swayed in her seat beside the short psychiatrist, her head bobbing in and out of the cloud of herbal steam wafting over her cup.
“Nightmares,” Kristine mumbled. “Lots and lots of nightmares.”
“All three of you had nightmares?” Immediately an image of Arianne leapt to my mind, but I pushed it away. The dream sorceress had no reason to send her magic after the shifters.
“You have to sleep to have nightmares,” Ruth said, her lips not leaving the rim of her tea cup.
Actually, it was more than possible to have a nightmare without sleeping, you just needed to work really hard to piss off a dream sorceress. I kept that tidbit to myself.
