Sex with Liam had changed me. He should have warned me. Now, it was more than just a familiar pulse I felt. Now, there seemed an invisible string binding me to him. It dawned on me the first night without him as I lay in bed in my trailer. Liam’s cavern was directly below me. The realization came over me, sending pins and needles through my body. I threw off the covers and went outside. A light rain fell, making the ground soft and wet.

I stepped off my small, square, cement patio and knelt in the grass. Pressing my fingers into the earth, I felt heat rising up through the ground.

“Liam,” I whispered. I felt his slow, rhythmic breathing. He was asleep. There might be miles of rock separating us, but he could have been standing right beside me. God, had he known? Of course he had. Why else would he have chosen that particular section among hundreds of miles of tunnels to sleep?

It comforted me enough to get through the next day. Still, I felt on edge, hoping to feel his presence. Hoping he would decide spending time apart wasn’t necessary.

I busied myself with charts and patient intake. Bess had surgeries scheduled all day. She’d taken a group of interns with her, so it left Jason and me mostly alone. It’s what I needed.

“How’d it go with your new man last night?” Jason asked, nudging me with his shoulder.

A felt my cheeks heat with a creeping blush. Dammit. My poker face sucked. “Never you mind,” I said. There was no point in trying to deny anything. It would raise more suspicion than honesty.

“Well, good,” he said. “Glad to hear one of us is getting laid.”

I raised a brow. “Oh? Care to share?”

Jason shrugged. “No, Michael’s just off at training for a couple of weeks.”

I’d forgotten, Jason’s partner served in the Kentucky Air National Guard. He’d been deployed a couple of years ago to the Persian Gulf. Jason had been a wreck the entire time.

I came up behind him and rested my chin on his shoulder. “Well, let’s just say my new man and I are dealing with a forced separation of our own. Maybe you should come hang out with me tonight. We can watch ‘90s slasher movies and drink homemade wine. My neighbor makes it.”

Jason touched his temple to my cheek. “That sounds like a slice of heaven, buttercup. Count me in.”

The television we kept above the waiting room benches was tuned to the local news. My heart tripped as the scenes from last night’s fire at Bernie’s came on. Jason picked up the remote and upped the volume.

“This was something else,” he said. “I walked by on my way home from work last night.”

“What are they saying?” I asked, as ice filled my veins.

Jason stared at the screen, gesturing with the remote. “Arson, maybe. At least they’re not ruling it out. One of Michael’s friends from the gym is a volunteer fireman. I called him last night. It’s awful. That husband and wife were sleeping when it happened. They didn’t get out. You know that boy, their grandson?”

My throat grew thick. I gripped the edge of the counter, bracing myself for what I knew Jason was going to say next. Oh, God, I didn’t want to hear it. “Brady,” I whispered.

“Yeah. Sweet kid,” Jason clucked his tongue. “He was up in the attic apartment, I guess. There’s all kinds of rumors floating around. Like maybe the kid was trying to cook meth or something. I don’t know. Anyway, he didn’t make it out either.”

“Brady’s dead.”

“Yep,” Jason answered. “Breaks my heart. He was troubled, that kid. I thought maybe he was autistic or something. I don’t know. Something. The Langleys were doing the best they could trying to raise him. I’d just hate it if they ended up getting burned alive for their trouble. Molly?”

Jason called after me, but I was already out the back door into the alley. I got as far as the dumpster before my stomach lurched and I threw up all over the pavement. Oh, God. Oh, Brady. There was no way this was an accident. This had to be the Chief Pack. They knew. They found out the Langleys were helping Liam and the others.

Clutching the brick wall, I straightened. If they could find out about the Langleys, it meant this clinic might be next. God, what would I do if anything happened to Jason or Bess or the others inside?

It meant we were out of time. I would have to pack up as many meds and supplies as I could today and get them to Keara. Then, we’d have to cool it until the Chief Pack moved on. I just prayed she’d have enough to last for a while.

I ignored Jason’s questions when I went back inside. It was now or never. I made some excuse about needing to finish up inventory. Jason hated doing that kind of administrative stuff, so I wouldn’t have to worry about him snooping. Bess shouldn’t be out of the O.R. for at least an hour. It didn’t leave me much time, but it would have to be enough.

I sent a quick text to Keara. “We need to step up delivery. Figure out a place to meet that’s far away from the clinic. I’ll meet you tonight.”

Her answer was swift and decisive. She agreed. She gave me an address just outside of town.

I went back into the supply room. We had a pharmacy shipment coming in tomorrow. Near the end of the day already, I didn’t have to worry about anyone needing things from back here. At best, we’d have some walk-ins needing heartworm pills and flea prevention.

I grabbed an empty box and straightened my back. No time to get squeamish now. I looted as many of the antibiotics as I could, leaving maybe a two-day supply in the cabinet. I arranged some of the other meds to make it look like the cabinet was more full than it was. My hands shook as I grabbed the vials of phenobarbital. It was the most potent drug we had, mostly used for euthanasia. Keara had a theory that in large enough quantities, it might work to incapacitate a shifter...at least for a little while. I prayed none of us would ever be in a position to test that theory.

Once I’d filled the box, I sealed it with packing tape. I’d leave it out in the alley by the dumpster, covering it with old newspapers. Garbage pickup wasn’t for two more days. I should be able to slip out and get it to my car before leaving for the day.

Testing the tape, I slid the box off the counter. The hallway was empty, so I stole outside unseen. I found a darkened corner near the dumpster and plenty of refuse to spread over the top of it. The goods would be safe and sound until I finished my shift. When I turned, I came face to face with Bess, standing in the doorway with her arms crossed.

My spine pricked as my brain went a million miles an hour. I tried to concentrate on keeping my breathing steady. We hadn’t really discussed it, but I knew by instinct that Liam was tapped into my emotional state even more keenly since the other night. If he sensed me in distress, there’s no telling what he might do.

I smoothed a hair out of my eyes and tried to muster the most normal smile I could. “Hey, Bess. Just trying to clean up the mess in the supply room. It got kind of out of hand. How did Dusty’s cruciate repair go?”

She kept her hands crossed, her eyes darting over me. She was sweating beneath her lab coat and I didn’t like the expression on her face.

“You’ve been with me a long time, Molly,” she said. “Longer than Jason, even.”

I moved away from the box by the dumpster, hoping desperately she hadn’t seen too much. The dumpster itself was full to the brim. Pickup was tomorrow morning. It was plausible that I wouldn’t have been able to fit the box inside of it. But, if she’d seen me covering it, I didn’t know how to explain that away.

“I know,” I said coming toward her. “Crazy, right?”

“Five years,” she said. “I hired you right out of high school.”

“Ha! Has it been that long? You thinking about throwing me a party? I’m sure Jason would be all over that. I think when he grows up he wants to be an event planner. He’d be great at it. The 2016 Christmas party is becoming the stuff of legends.”

When I tried to go for the door, Bess moved, blocking my path. “What’s in the box, Molly?”

My heart dropped. Fuck. She’d seen. “I told you.” I figured I might as well commit. She was suspicious, but in the end, Bess had always been a pushover. “Expired stuff. Stuff we don’t stock anymore. Garbage, mostly.”

“There’s a protocol for that,” she said. “We don’t just throw expired medication out in the trash.”

She moved past me and headed for the dumpster. There was no point in trying to stop her. Bess leaned down, stuffed the newspapers in a corner and lifted the flap on the box. Her eyes darted over the contents and all color drained from her face.

Still squatting, she turned to me. Headlights flooded the alley. Bess’s ride had arrived and my heart dropped.

“You gotta be kidding me,” I said. It was too late to make a run for the baseball bat. Zeke stepped out of the driver’s seat. His eyes hardened as he recognized me. The dent I’d put in the hood of his truck was still there.

“This is between us, Zeke,” Bess said. “I’ll be there in just a minute.”

Zeke’s jaw froze mid-chew. He had a wad of tobacco in his mouth. He let out breath and his mouth curved into a snarl. But, he climbed back into the cab of his truck, keeping the window rolled down.

Bess picked up the box of meds and walked it over to me. “What are you doing, Molly? You have to know how dangerous this is.”

My gaze locked with hers. I could see everything she was thinking written plainly there. She knew.

“How long have you know about them?” I asked.

Bess’s brow arched. “That’s what you ask me? How long have I known? Come on, Molly. This is Shadow Springs. My father is a city councilman. My mother works in the mayor’s office.

The Chief Pack is everywhere. That’s what Liam told me when we first met. I just never realized how deep. I took a gamble. She’d either think I was crazy, or she wouldn’t.

“Then you must know all of it. Have you seen what they do? How they force women to mate with shifters against their will? It’s human trafficking, Bess. Do you support that?”

Pain crossed her face. She didn’t think I was crazy. She looked back at Zeke to see if he was paying attention. At the moment, he was fiddling with the radio.

“Molly, this is dangerous, what you’re doing. Never mind illegal. If you get caught…” She didn’t finish the sentence. I couldn’t bring myself to ask her whether she knew about the Langleys.

I grew bold. Stepping forward, I took the box from her. My heart started to beat again when she didn’t try to keep it from me. She heaved it into my arms and took a step back.

“What do we do here, Bess?” I asked.

Her face went white as conflict swirled within her. Bess Kennedy had a big heart. It’s what I liked most about her. I just prayed it would be the thing that kept her from standing in my way.

“No more,” she whispered. “I mean it. I can’t let you risk it. Those meds are assigned to me.”

“Do you think I haven’t thought of that? I’ve scraped off every serial and batch number. If anyone ever finds them, they won’t be tied to you.”

She spit out a laugh. “Jesus, Molly. You’re not dumb. Don’t act like it. How many veterinary clinics do you think there are in Shadow Springs? We’re it. Sure, it might not hold up in a court of law, but that’s not what we’re dealing with, is it?”

“Are you going to turn me in?” I asked. A pregnant pause hovered between us. Bess searched my face. Zeke’s car door opened and he headed for us.

Bess plastered on a smile and turned to him. “Sorry, babe. We just had to go over some things so I don’t forget tomorrow. We’re about wrapped up now.”

“Whatcha got in the box?” Zeke said. The smell of tobacco and liquor wafted off of him. Good God, he staggered when he walked. Was Bess actually thinking of letting him get behind the wheel like that with her in the car?

“Stool samples,” I said pretending to foist it toward him. Zeke drew back. His eyes narrowed with contempt as he realized I’d just been joking.

“I’ll take care of this,” I said to Bess. “You two go on. I’ll see you in the morning.”

“You better watch yourself,” Zeke said, stepping closer. “You’ve got a mouth on you. You’re bossy. You do what Bess tells you, not the other way around.”

“Hmm. I might say the same to you.” God, I don’t know why I didn’t just smile and nod like some simpleton. I couldn’t help it, Zeke brought out the worst in me.

“Molly,” Bess warned. She put a hand on Zeke’s arm and tried to pull him away. “Come on, baby. I’m hungry. You promised to take me to dinner.”

He jerked his arm away from her and raised it. Bess’s involuntary flinch seared through me. She took a few steps back, then turned, heading for the pickup. She’d abandoned me with Zeke.

He licked his lips and leered at me. My stomach rolled again. “I think you might need to start looking for another job. You know if you piss me off enough, I’ll get her to fire you. Bess does what I say.” Zeke got close enough that I could smell the beer on his breath.

A shadow crossed his face. My heart tripped and a hand came down, gripping Zeke’s arm. Liam came from everywhere and nowhere. He pulled Zeke back and shoved him toward the pickup.

“Zeke, I think it’s in your best interests to do what the fuck I say. Get in your car, drive away. Don’t look back.”

Zeke stumbled, but made his way back to the truck. Bess sat slack-jawed in the front seat. Zeke squealed the tires as he backed out and drove away.

Liam turned to me. “Come on. It’s time to get you out of here.”