She remembered him. He was the pack’s alpha. A young handsome man with a boy-next-door smile. She had helped him and his girlfriend—mate—register the pack so they wouldn’t get in trouble with Homeland. They were a cute couple. Full of hope and trust. Things that she had stopped believing in after marriage number three.
What could she say? She was good at repeating her mistakes.
The wolf with Pallas was huge and she had trouble of thinking of it as Ian. He tilted his canine head toward her, ears forward.
She extended her hand for him to sniff. “It’s me, Sheriff Lee.”
Pallas snorted. “He’s not blind.”
“You might hang out with shifters every day—”
“—night,” he interrupted without pause.
“Night, but I’ve never met one in wolf form.” She froze as the wolf padded closer and brushed his shoulder against her hand. She couldn’t breathe and she ran her fingers through his thick fur.
“Stop flirting and shift. You have any clothes in your car?” Pallas marched back toward the cruiser.
“There’s an emergency blanket in the trunk.” She stared into the wolf’s amber eyes and watched them change to human. She stumbled back and caught her balance against the trunk of a tree.
Ian’s body elongated and his fur retreated into his skin. Joints popped and limbs reshape themselves.
Her stomach rolled and she threw up a little in her mouth. Acid burned inside her chest and she coughed to clear her airway. She didn’t run, though. Her instincts cried out Danger! Danger! She had interacted with the pack before. No one ever threatened her, but she had to admit, they didn’t think like people. She watched some bizarre mating ritual a few weeks ago where the female had shot one of the males fighting for her.
The pack had just sat on the manor porch, cheering like it was a football game. She’d wanted to arrest the girl but pack law overruled human law in pack matters. Even the guy shot had been appalled at the idea.
Ian rose to his feet. “Hi, Sheriff.” He gave a chagrined smile and strode toward her butt naked.
She consciously kept her chin raised, maintaining eye contact and not letting her gaze rove lower. “Fancy meeting you here.”
“It’s not a coincidence, if that’s what you’re implying. I’ve been waiting for either you or Pallas to show up.” He winked. “Didn’t expect to find you together.”
“Either of us?” Strangely, warmth bloomed in her chest that had nothing to do with her acid reflux. He trusted her on the same level as Pallas. What had she done to deserve such an honor?
“Sure, you’ve always been a friend to the pack.”
The crunch of boots announced the vampire’s return. He tossed Ian the blanket. “Stop showing off.” He stood in front of her, blocking her view. “How is the pack fairing?”
“The weather hasn’t been bad and we actually learned a few things on our last trip to the wild that are helping.” Ian moved closer, the blanket wrapped around his waist, barefoot in the snow.
“Homeland is hunting the pack. You need to move deeper into the mountains. Past Mount Killmore and into national park territory.”
“Claire is already leading them in that direction.” The shifter didn’t appear bothered by the cold.
Leona had never been one to feel weak or dainty, but her ass was frozen while wearing a parka. “Maybe we should go sit in my cruiser to finish this conversation?” Her chattering teeth made talking difficult.
Pallas scanned her face as if committing it to memory. His dark gaze heavy with regret. “This might be my last chance to save them, Leona.” He cradled her elbow, guiding her close enough that they shared air. “I’ll be back for you.”
“You’re leaving? We discussed this. It’s a bad idea.” She yanked her arm free. “I can’t help you if you disappear.” Not to mention that she wasn’t willing to have him vanish from her life. She had responsibilities, family, friends…
“I can’t ignore the fact that Ian is here. I don’t even need to look for the pack. It’s like fate is guiding me on this path.”
“Fuck fate. We plow our own path.” She jabbed her gloved finger into his stone hard chest.
Ian coughed. “Um, about fate. I was waiting here to tell you that I think I know who killed Bob.” He eyed the vampire as if confused. “You want to run away?”
“Wait.” She stepped in between them, falling back into a comfortable routine as sheriff. “What do you mean, Ian?”
“The murderer was really smart about killing Bob, except he forgot one thing.” The shifter stood straighter, thumb pointing at his chest. “I wouldn’t ever forget his scent.”
Pallas crossed his arms. “Go on.”
“Originally, I came here to wait for orders from you. I knew you’d eventually make it to the crime scene.”
“Did you?” The vampire’s eyes narrowed to dark slits. “I’ve become that predictable?”
Ian turned his attention toward her. “Sheriff, while waiting, I caught a whiff of a familiar scent on the wind and followed it. He knows about shifters and used the easement to cover his scent since city workers walk this land to check the flood gauges.”
“You have my attention, so who is it?” she asked.
Ian held up his hand for patience. Not her strongest suit. “He thought his scent would be missed over the jumble of other humans, and normally, he’d be right, but I don’t know anyone who would forget the person who shot him in the gut.”
“Harold?” Pallas’ arms dropped to his side as he took an involuntary step forward. “That meek, little city mouse?”
“Wait. Harold shot you?” She glared at Pallas. “Ian was the wolf shot?”
“Long story. I’ll tell you it in detail once this is all over.” He turned his attention back to Ian. “Harold was Bob’s brother-in-law. Why would he kill family to frame me?”
“I could think of a reason.” She loved town gossip and the waitresses at the local diner knew it. She usually got an earful when she ordered dinner there, which was often since she couldn’t boil water without burning it. “After those three idiots set fire to your house, word got back to Harold’s boss, who happens to have shifters in his family. He fired Harold.” She pointed where the body had been found. “Bob was the one who pushed to burn your home to the ground. They had a huge falling out. Harold’s wife left him shortly after.”
“Good.” Ian nodded sharply.
The venom in his voice took her by surprise.
He shrugged. “They both deserve what they got after killing Jake and almost killing me.”
“Ian…” Pallas warned, but the shifter didn’t look repentant.
“None of this is going to help Pallas’ case. No judge will acquit him on a scent found by his…wolf. Sure, Harold had motive but we need more.”
“This gives us a place to start,” Pallas responded.
She pinned Pallas with a glare. “So you’re going to stick around?”
“I still don’t believe any amount of evidence will clear my name in the eyes of humans.” He shouldn’t enjoy the way she rolled her eyes as much as he did. His gut instinct was to run because the world couldn’t afford another supernatural war. If Homeland discovered the real purpose of the manor, no shifter or vampire would be safe.
She believed in her kind. That this could be resolved with—
The whirl of tires slipping on ice broke through his train of thought.
He spun around, facing the direction to the road. “Who could that be?” There wasn’t any reason for anyone to check the crime scene in the middle of the night.
Ian crouched, instinctively shifting to wolf form. The blanket fluttered to the snow.
Leona rested her hand on the butt of her gun. “Hide while I checked this out.” She edged forward along the tree line.
He pushed a dazed Ian into the bushes. It took a lot out of a young shifter to change shape twice so close together. Being an alpha, Ian would recover fast and would be useful in a few minutes, but for now he was in danger.
Once his young wolf was safe, Pallas flowed into the darkness, clinging to the woods and followed Leona’s progress from a distance.
She stopped by the icy dirt road. “Agent Thomas? Has there been a new development?” She sounded so calm, but he could hear the racing of her heartbeat.
The Homeland officer scowled. “That’s what I was about to ask you. What are you doing here, Sheriff?”
This human made Pallas’ blood turn to ice. The agent didn’t talk much but heard everything. Men like him didn’t change their minds and Thomas had murder in his eyes.
Pallas’ murder. He would bet his land that someone important to Agent Thomas had been taken by a vampire. From Pallas’ vast lifespan, he had had many enemies and this kind of determined hatred involved some kind of history.
She pulled her hood over her head and danced on spot as if trying to stay warm. It was such a brilliant move. It made her appear less threatening. “I wanted to take another crack at the crime scene. Make sure I hadn’t missed anything.”
The tension in Agent Thomas’ body melted away. “We’ve combed the place. Nothing was missed. Must I remind you, this case is no longer in your jurisdiction.”
“I know, I know.” She still managed to block his path. “But you can’t expect me to stop caring about my townspeople.”
A tickle brushed the back of his spine. He glanced over his shoulder and saw nothing. He reached out with his mind and found them. Other Homeland agents drawing closer. He had been so focused on Agent Thomas he hadn’t heard their quiet approach until now. They had used Thomas as a decoy and Pallas had fallen for it.
The agent pressed a finger to his ear piece. Pallas had been awake long enough to know it was a communication device.
Pallas lowered his body to the ground, crawling on all fours as he moved around the frozen undergrowth toward the armed men surrounding Leona. Someone must have spotted him with her. His mental abilities were not sharp. Emotions fogged his skills as he worried about his pack and his attraction to the sheriff.
Now, his mind was turned toward the gunmen. They had missed Ian’s hiding spot and were converging on his position. Their bullets wouldn’t hurt him but could incapacitate him long enough to move his body to a secure area. Someplace he couldn’t escape.
Leona twisted around and scanned the woods as if sensing something was wrong. “Are you alone?”
“No,” Agent Thomas answered. “And I know you’re not either.” He pulled his gun, aiming at her.
She matched his movement and speed. “Are you out of your mind? Put the gun down.”
“I would ask you the same thing. Why are you harboring a fugitive?”
Pallas bared his fangs and moved toward the man threatening his woman. She was precious and fragile. That gun could take her away from him forever.
The scramble of feet moving reached his ears as the gunmen reacted to his sudden appearance.
Shots rang out.
A bullet grazed the tip of his ear. The burn a mild distraction.
Time slowed as he used his supernatural speed to protect Leona.
Agent Thomas’ eyes widened.
Pallas sandwiched himself between his sheriff and the agent, knocking Thomas’ gun out of his hand. “Run, Leona.”
She gasped as if trying to catch her breath.
The shots had stopped once Pallas had planted himself by Leona and Thomas but it wouldn’t be long before they were surrounded.
He grasped Thomas by the throat and pulled him kissing close. “I didn’t kill Bob, but I promise, if you harm Leona, I will kill you.”
Something hit the snow hard behind Pallas.
He twisted around, glancing over his shoulder.
Leona knelt in the deep snow, her fingers grasping the back of his leg for support. “Pallas...”
He shoved Thomas aside, sending him flying against the hood of his car. Cold claws of fear gripped Pallas’ spine, threatening to tear him apart.
Leona pressed her hands to her stomach. Blood seeped between her fingers.