My eyes scanned the area. Even with my collar flipped up, the nondescript baseball hat I wore, and mirrored shades, I still couldn't help but be aware of the dozens of cameras that could track our every move and link our images digitally to any interested parties. Not just track us, but track Matthew. As I well knew, it was far too easy to hack into those feeds. I chewed my lip with concern as I glanced over at Matthew.

"I thought you super agents always wore sunglasses like mine. Isn't the whole idea of being a feeb to blend in, but not let anybody see your eyes?"

Matthew stopped watching for his friend's car long enough to flash me a grin. "I work for the federal government, Shakespeare. Not the Men in Black. Sorry, but I don't have one of those little gadgets that will make everybody forget they ever saw me either. Now, calm down and put the tinfoil hat away. I want Sara to be able to spot us when she walks in."

I grumbled under my breath but kept my thoughts to myself as I took another sip of the acrid coffee this place called their house special blend. Hmmph. The only thing special about it was the price. Almost four dollars for a cup of coffee, my ass. Matthew patted my hand and went back to watching for his friend. We'd had the whole discussion about him at least trying to camouflage himself, but he was determined not to hide—at least, not for this meeting.

"You can relax, Jonah. This is what normal people do. They drop into Starbucks to catch up with old friends all the time. Believe it or not, this is how people blend in. The only thing that would make us stick out is if we weren't drinking anything."

"Have you tasted this coffee? Blegh." I scrunched my nose and forced myself to take another sip of the foul brew.

"That's not coffee, it's espresso. And I told you that you would've been happier getting an Americano or a latte. Hell, I bet you would've enjoyed one of those Frappuccinos I tried to get you to order. Loosen up, Shakespeare. This is just a casual meeting with a friend. Nothing dangerous or scary is going to happen here—unless you try and order a scone. Now that you've been spoiled by Papa P's baking, there’s no way that you'd be able to handle an over-the-counter pastry."

This location was too close to the university, and classes must have let out because there was a sudden influx of customers. The line was going out the door and no matter how we craned our necks, we couldn't get a clear shot of the street. Matthew stood and started clearing our table.

"I know you're not going to like this, Jonah. I can hear you now—street cameras, yada yada yada… I get it. But we need to go outside and sit at one of the bistro tables on the patio area because it's getting way too crowded in here. Not only will she have a harder time finding us, but I don't particularly want to have to scream to communicate—especially not with the sensitive subject matter."

Dammit. Well, in for a penny, in for a pound, right? I bit back my thoughts on the subject and rose to join him. Matthew was already well aware of my feelings anyway. Grabbing my coffee, I followed him to the outside seating area. Matthew led me to a small table at the corner of the patio that had a clear shot of the street in both directions. I tilted the large umbrella that was attached to the table to hopefully block any of the nearby traffic or building cameras that could be used to spy on us. It wasn't much, but it made me feel a little bit better.

Matthew smiled affectionately when I finally sat down. "Feel better now, Shakespeare?"

I lifted a shoulder in a shrug. "Outside, inside… neither option is optimal, but at least out here we’re not as trapped and can make a quicker getaway." I realized how curmudgeonly I sounded so I leaned closer and softened my words. "My wolf does feel a lot better out here. The noise inside was making me antsy."

"See? Sometimes it's okay to take a chance and try something new. Stick with me, Jonah. I'll break you out of all of your comfort zones eventually, you'll see. You might even enjoy it," he added with a wink.

I highly doubted that I would ever enjoy sitting in public, especially within plain view of anybody with a cell phone camera, but I kept my thoughts to myself and simply reached over and squeezed his hand with what I hoped passed for a pleasant smile.

It was hard to tell where my gut feelings started and normal paranoia ended, but my wolf and I were on high alert. Every noise, no matter how common, had me twitching and jerking to see what it was. Although he wouldn't admit it, I could tell that Matthew was also a little on edge by the way he also reacted to the various noises and movements out of the corner of his eye.

He reached over and clutched my arm. "There she is, in the red Mazda that just parallel parked across the street. It looks like she's waiting for a break in traffic to get out of her car. About damn time, I'm going to give her so much shit about women and their innate inability when it comes to keeping schedules."

"Yeah, because that will go over well," I laughed.

Matthew flashed me a wink. "No, it's an inside joke. I screw with her about always being a few minutes late and she's always razzed me about how at least when women arrive they’re put together while we guys generally look like we just rolled out of bed—and usually it’s because we did. And if she really gets going, she'll mention something about me being a troglodyte who eats stale, cold pizza for breakfast. Honestly, let a woman drop by your apartment one time when you're hungover and you never live it down."

I tilted my head to smirk at him. "Why do I feel like there's a story there?"

He shrugged. "I was fresh out of the academy and my roommates were humans. We were working a case together and she came to pick me up. It was the Monday morning after the Super Bowl and I wasn't in my finest form. Let's just say that I've grown up a lot since then."

Matthew stood with a grin and stepped toward the sidewalk, lifting his hand in a friendly wave as Sara started to jog across the street. She was put together well, wearing a dress as red as her car. Did the woman know nothing about stealth? These two really weren’t helping me learn to trust the federal government.

Squealing tires overrode the ambient noise of the street, and I turned toward the sound only to see a black SUV gunning it, racing straight toward where Sara was crossing. Matthew must have seen it too because his hand dropped and he started to rush forward, but it all happened too fast for us to intervene.

We watched in horror as the SUV slammed into her without stopping. Her frail human body flipped over its hood, bounced off the windshield, and slid across the roof before landing in a crumpled pile on the street as the vehicle sped off as though nothing had happened.

Thanks to our heightened shifter senses, it all went down in full Technicolor with surround sound. Every bone-crunching second of it clearly audible. I could scent her blood before the first drop hit the ground. At least the human bystanders were spared that little fun nugget. Matthew was already on the move before the SUV had even left the scene, with me hot on his heels. I knew better than to try and hold him back, yet my heart was lurching in my chest with fear and horror.

People around us who’d seen it happen were pulling out cell phones and screeching about calling for help while Matthew and I raced over to where Sara had fallen. But it was too late. Even before he checked for a pulse, I could smell the stench of death. Matthew knelt beside her, cradling his arm under her head and talking to her as though it would wake her while still trying to find a pulse. My heart was breaking for him, but at the same time I knew that we needed to get out of here. This was not a safe place. I pulled out my phone and called Noah to report in as the sound of sirens approached in the distance.

When Matthew and I arrived back at headquarters after a silent ride, he jerked out of the car as soon as it came to a stop. His shirt was flying over his head and he was kicking off his shoes and pushing his pants down before I could even get around to his side of the car. He shifted right there in the middle of the parking lot and I watched helplessly as his medium-sized brown and russet colored wolf took off in a run toward the field at the back of our complex. I started to pull my own shirt off, but I paused when I saw another pair of wolves race out of the building and take off after him.

Pax stood in the front entrance, shaking his head and holding up a hand as he called out to me. "Let your mate run for now, he needs it. The twins went after him to watch his back. You need to come inside and help me check the cameras to see if we can't find any info to identify the car."

I heard a mournful howl, and knew that Matthew was releasing his grief in the shifter way. Pax was right. I needed to let Matthew have this moment while I helped him in the way that I knew best—digging for information.

As I followed Pax into the building, he looked back over his shoulder. "The accident was all over the news. Some of the witnesses got video of the attack. You know this was a hit, right? Not only did that car not slow down, that fucker floored it, from every bit of footage I've seen. I've been watching the different feeds as they pop up and I have to say, that was some gnarly shit. I'm sorry that happened to your mate's friend—she seemed like ‘good people,’ as I've heard your brother say."

I nodded woodenly as we entered our office area and sat at our desks. We pulled up the feeds and worked quietly for several minutes before I responded. That was one thing that I loved about Pax. He knew how to just let a person be until they were ready to speak.

"It was horrific, and you know that I've seen some bad stuff go down in my time. But the way that driver just slammed into her was awful. I don't think I'll ever get the image out of my head. She had a bright smile on her face and was running across the street to meet us for fucking coffee. Nobody should die like that."

Pax looked fierce as he set his jaw while scanning the different camera feeds. "Don't worry. Whoever did it to her will pay."

"It was Chad."

I startled when I heard the raspy, broken sound of Matthew's voice. He stood in the doorway, stark naked with his fists clenched at his side and a mutinous look in his eyes. "I saw his ugly face in that split second before he struck her. Whatever it takes, he's going down for this—mark my words."

I started to rise, but Papa P walked up behind Matthew and put a hand on his shoulder. "Come with me, honey. Let's get you dressed and have a cup of tea together. I want you to take a minute for yourself before you boys start planning your retribution."

Matthew looked like he was going to argue, but then he huffed out a breath as his shoulders slumped and he nodded reluctantly. As he turned to leave, I heard him ask, "I don't suppose you have any pastries around here to go with that tea?"

A few hours later, we walked into the conference room where the team waited. Matthew looked up at me expectantly, but I shook my head sadly as I walked over to take my seat beside him. Pax delivered the news in a hollow voice.

"Jonah and I checked every feed and I tried every backdoor angle I could think of, but we couldn't pull any identifying information for the car." He looked over at Matthew. "And you are certain that it was Chad Deamer you saw driving? I'm not questioning you—I just want to verify what you said before."

Matthew jerked his chin into a sharp nod. "It was fucking Chad. I saw him clearly. And with that identifying mole on his left cheekbone, and the jagged scar on that side of his neck, there's no room for error. I would testify against him in a court of law and not doubt myself for a moment." Matthew paused, looking down at his lap as he laughed bitterly. "But there's no point if you have no evidence, is there? He won't go to trial on this—it's a case of his word versus mine and I guarantee you that he has at least three separate, ironclad alibis already in place."

The bossman looked grave. "You realize that we will need to up your security now, Matthew. This man has proven that he has no problems doing whatever he needs to do to eliminate anyone standing against him. If he was willing to take out another agent on a public street in broad daylight, there's not much that he won't do. And without Sara's assistance, this also complicates the legal aspects of the case."

Matthew's face looked dark as he angrily slammed his palm down on the table. "Obviously, the law is worthless in this matter. We can't do this the right way; I get it now. It's time for me to cry uncle and give in—that fucker is gonna have to go down the shifter way."

Every face around the table was stunned into silence at Matthew's frustration. The grief and torment coming off him was palpable. I started to reach for his hand, but he jerked away and rose to his feet as he focused on the bossman. "Whatever guards you have to send to our place or strictures you need to enforce, do it. But for now, I need to go home if that's okay. Jonah?" He turned back to me, his eyes raking desperately over my face. "Can you please take me home now?"

The bossman got to his feet. "Meeting adjourned, boys. Let's give Matthew and Jonah their space for tonight; we will reconvene tomorrow after Matthew’s had a chance to decompress. Noah, you take care of setting up better protection for Matthew." I stood while the bossman paused for a second and added another thought. "I want eyes on Cain too. These boys are our family, and they'll get full protection until this Chad bastard meets his maker. Get your ass out of here, Jonah. Take your mate home and let him punch, scream, or bite something."

It was a sad day when not one of the guys had something lewd to come back with after the bossman said that. I took Matthew's hand and quietly led him out of the conference room. Home sounded like a damn fine idea right about now.