Chapter 13

While Sarandon was in the preliminary court hearing, Jenna waited outside the courtroom, praying everything would go well for him. Jeb, the lawyer, had gone with him, and she knew Sarandon was in good hands. She wished they’d learned about the fingerprint results though.

Jenna began searching Google on her phone for anyone named Dreyfus who lived in the area. She found a few who lived within an hour’s radius of Colorado Springs. She called several of the numbers, pretending she was trying to locate a Burt Dreyfus who had won some contest money, stating this was the phone number he had given, but so far, no one knew of a Burt in the family tree.

“Are you sure the name you’re looking for isn’t Bernard?” one elderly woman asked. “I’m sure Bernie must have won it. Maybe he used his Burt nickname.”

Burt? “I thought Bernie was his nickname.”

“Uh, well, he goes by both.”

“How old is he?”

“Oh, he had to give his birth date?”

“Yes.” Jenna knew the man they wanted was about thirty, and she was certain it wasn’t anyone named Bernard or Bernie.

“June 15, 1943.”

“Sorry. That’s not it.”

“Are you sure? Maybe he gave the wrong birth date. He’s always doing that.”

Jenna smiled. “No. Sorry. Thanks for your time.”

“But—”

Jenna ended the call and checked with the next Dreyfus listed, this one in Cañon City, thirty-five miles from Colorado Springs. Lots of woods for running as a wolf out there too.

“Hello, I’m calling from Johnson and Johnson Contest Winners, looking for a Burt Dreyfus. Is he home?”

“The younger or the older?”

Yes! Jenna’s heart was pounding with excitement at possibly finding the right family. She quickly said, “The form doesn’t ask for a birth date, but he had to share a photo for verification purposes, and he looks like he’s about thirty.”

“Okay, well, my son works for a TV personality, and he’s on an important assignment. I can’t tell you what it is about exactly, but he even did a program at the St. Cloud Hotel here in Cañon City. It’s haunted, you know. I don’t know why he would have entered a contest. Then again, he does a lot of things I don’t know about. I’m surprised he gave our number and not his own cell number.”

“I wouldn’t know. Do you have his cell number so I can get ahold of him?”

“Sure.”

The woman gave it to Jenna, and then they ended the call. Jenna was so excited that she wanted to burst into the hearing and tell Sarandon she’d found where Burt’s parents lived. If Alex was part of the family’s wolf pack, maybe they could discover where he was now.

The door to the room where the hearing was being held opened and Jenna stiffened, holding her breath while she waited to see Sarandon emerge. She prayed he’d look ecstatic or at least relieved.

Jeb was on his phone as he left the court hearing but ended his call. He came to stand beside her and patted her on the back, smiling. “That was a call from the police. Sarandon’s fingerprints came back and are definitely not the same as the suspect’s they had in custody.”

Sarandon came out of the hearing and smiled broadly at Jenna. Then he scooped her up in his arms and swung her around, stopping only to lean down and kiss her.

She hadn’t expected his exuberance to go this far, not in the courthouse, but she totally understood it and was glad he showed it. She was over the moon for him. She kissed him right back and heard some chuckles as people passed them in the hall. Sarandon set her on her feet, put his arm around her shoulders, keeping her close, and shook Jeb’s hand. “Thanks for everything.”

“You were innocent, Sarandon. You had enough verified witness statements, all from credible witnesses, and your fingerprints proved you were not the same man. You did it all on your own. I’m glad to take the credit. And the payment for my services.”

Sarandon smiled at him. “I hope I never have to have a lawyer in the future, but if I need one, I’ll give you a call.”

After they said their goodbyes, Jenna gave Sarandon the good news about locating Burt Dreyfus’s parents. “They may know where Alex and Burt live.”

“That’s great news. We need to speak with them in person.”

“When is your brother going to see us?”

“I’m here,” CJ said, stalking down the hall. “Sorry I didn’t make it any sooner than this.” He eyed the way Sarandon had his arm around Jenna’s shoulders.

“I’m cleared of any wrongdoing,” Sarandon said, smiling.

“Hot damn!”

“And Jenna found Burt Dreyfus’s family’s home. Should we all go out there and pay them a visit?” Sarandon asked.

“Hell yeah.” CJ was wearing his deputy sheriff uniform, probably to impress Burt with how serious this was when CJ interviewed him.

Jenna was impressed.

“Do you have enough time to go with us to Cañon City and then return for your interview with Burt?” Sarandon asked his brother.

“Yeah, and dinner with you before we head back. That way, you don’t have to fly back,” CJ said. “You can ride back home with me when we’re ready to leave.”

Jenna had forgotten that part of the plan—that Sarandon would fly home when he was done here. She really didn’t want to see him go. Besides, he’d said he would help her track down the suspect. Alex might still be in the area. She was about to say so but then held her tongue. It was up to Sarandon to tell CJ what he was going to do. Stay or leave. She sure hoped he’d want to stay.

When had she started wanting a partner to help her recover fugitives? When Sarandon thwarted her from taking him in and took her hostage instead. She smiled.

“I promised Jenna I’d help her find the suspect and turn him in. Besides, I have to make her pot roast. Thanks for the offer.”

She took a relieved breath, and Sarandon rubbed her shoulder, giving her a smug smile. He knew she wanted him to help her on this.

“Pot roast?” CJ asked. “You’re staying with her?”

“Yeah. Her parents live right next door, so she’s safe.”

CJ smiled a little at that. “You didn’t tell me you were getting serious.”

“I’m surprised you couldn’t have guessed. Besides, it was all on the condition that I cleared my name first.”

Still smiling, CJ just shook his head.

“So, if Burt is here, why was he following us?” Sarandon asked.

“Maybe he wasn’t. The Wernicke brothers left Silver Town about the same time you did to get here for their show. Maybe he was just headed in the same direction around the same time and seemed to be following you. The route you took was the fastest to reach Colorado Springs.”

“Okay, that’s plausible. But he returned to the town we stopped in. And what about the wolf we smelled in Jenna’s family’s territory? He was driving Burt’s SUV. We didn’t know the wolf’s scent, but the St. Jameses don’t usually have unknown wolves running in the area. The wolf was brown. Can you ask Stanton if he’s ever seen Burt as a wolf?”

“Your guess is as good as mine. I can ask his boss if he’s ever seen him as a wolf. I thought you’d seen Burt before.”

“I’ve seen him twice, but I’ve never been close enough to catalog his scent,” Sarandon said.

“Okay. So it could have been him. Or Alex, for that matter. Or anyone else. A real wolf, even.”

“Neither were real wolves. The one was driving the black SUV, and the other tried to hide where he was going by swimming in the river.”

Jenna got a call from her mom and felt bad she hadn’t called her right away to let her know how the hearing went. “Sarandon’s name has been cleared, and we—”

“Mate him.”

Jenna glanced at Sarandon as they walked outside the courthouse with CJ. “We’re officially courting each other. He’s making me pot roast for tomorrow. We’re on our way to check out a man’s family who might be with a pack that the suspect was staying with. Or raised by.”

“Oh, that’s good news. We want you to come over for supper again, if you’d like to.”

“Sarandon’s brother CJ is here. He’s a deputy sheriff in Silver Town, and he’s going with us to Cañon City to check out the lead we have. Sarandon and his brother might have plans for tonight.”

“Tell them they’re coming over for supper. Dad is grilling steaks.”

“Okay.” Jenna told the brothers, “My mother has invited you both over for steaks on the grill. Dad’s cooking, if that’s all right with you.”

“We’ll be there,” Sarandon said. “It has to be after CJ interviews another person of interest.”

“Did you hear that, Mom?”

“I sure did. We’ll wait to hear what time that will be. I’m so glad for Sarandon too. I’ll tell the rest of the family.”

“Thanks, Mom. Oh, and did Dad locate the wolf’s trail?”

“Oh, yes, well, it led to a dirt road and then it was gone. Tire tracks were in the dirt next to the road.”

“So, it was a shifter, like we figured.”

“Yes. The wolf is no one we know.”

“Okay, see you later.” They ended the call.

“I’d say we should drive just my vehicle, but if I have to take someone into custody, it would be better to have two cars,” CJ said.

“I agree. Is having supper with Jenna’s family all right with you?” Sarandon asked, even though Jenna had already ended the call with her mother.

“Steaks? When have you ever known me to turn down grilled steaks?”

Sarandon smiled. “Thanks.”

“No problem. Sounds to me like you’ve gotten yourself hooked into this, and you’ll need someone who’s level-headed to check out the situation,” CJ said.

“Ha. As if he needs you to check out my family,” Jenna said.

CJ actually smiled, shocking her.

Before they headed to Cañon City, she told them exactly what Burt’s mother had said. “The phone number is listed for Sarah and B. Anton Dreyfus.”

“Okay, let’s get there and get this done so I can get on with the interview of their son. Both of you can come with me when I question Burt. If Burt sees Sarandon, he might be even more rattled than if I spoke with him alone,” CJ said. “And if he knows what you do, Jenna, he might be just as worried.”

She hoped Burt spilled his guts.

They left for Cañon City, and Sarandon said to Jenna, “I think we shocked my brother when he learned about us. He doesn’t shock easily.”

“How do you think he feels about you living with me here, so far from your family? If that’s what happens?”

“I think what’s most important is that the mated couple is together.”

“You’re close to your family, and I’m close to mine.”

“Yours wouldn’t consider moving to Silver Town, would they?”

She hadn’t thought of that possibility. “They’re pretty set in their ways. I doubt they would.”

“I can see the benefits of living at your location. In Silver Town, the whole place is wolf-run. Everyone there is ready and willing to help you out.”

“I saw that. Even for newcomers to the area?”

“Absolutely. When CJ’s wife and her two sisters moved into the Silver Town Hotel to renovate the place, we were all over there to help them out. I’ll admit we kind of got underfoot.”

“Four brothers interested in three sisters?”

“Two brothers. Brett wooed Ellie, CJ courted Laurel, and Megan’s seeing Peter, the sheriff.”

“Aww, so that left you and Eric out.”

“Eric needed his own pack to lead, and Pepper, an alpha she-wolf who was running her own pack after having lost her mate, had property north of the park where he works as a ranger. Eric was perfect for the job—and to be her mate. Even though she emphatically said she didn’t want an alpha male taking over. They’re perfectly suited and perfect as the leaders for their pack.”

“And they still live close by?”

“Four hours away.”

“So not all the Silver brothers live in town or on the outskirts.”

“No. We can move to other locations. It just depends on what we agree on. I’m flexible.”

She really hoped he was.

CJ called Sarandon, who put the call on speakerphone. “We’re almost there. They live on the outskirts of town, and I’ll go first. You just wait for me.”

“Are you sure you don’t want all of us to go? What if they know Alex really well, and they see Sarandon and the expression on their faces gives them away?” Jenna said.

“Good point. Just park behind me, and we’ll go to the door together.”

They got out of the two cars and headed up the long, curving front walk to the door of the brick house. CJ knocked on the door, looking official and imposing.

The man who answered the door looked like an older version of the police sketch Lelandi had Peter draw.

“Mr. Dreyfus?”

The man immediately smelled they were all wolves, but his eyes widened when he saw Sarandon, and his jaw gaped. “Alex?”

That was the proof they needed.

“I’m Sarandon Silver. I’m trying to locate my brother,” Sarandon said.

The man paled.

“Who is it?” a woman asked. “Alex?” She wore the same puzzled expression.

“Sarandon Silver, ma’am. I’m looking for my brother, Alex. We share the same birth father, Sheridan Silver.”

The woman looked so pale that her husband quickly took hold of her arm to steady her. “We never told Alex who his father was. Ritka’s sister, Evie, gave us the boy to raise. We didn’t have a child of our own and were convinced we could never have one. Not until we began caring for Alex, and then lo and behold, we had a son. Why…don’t you come in?” Anton glanced at CJ and frowned. “Why would a deputy sheriff need to come too?”

“He’s my brother. And Sarandon’s. I’m CJ Silver.”

“I’m Sarandon’s mate,” Jenna said brightly.

Sarandon and CJ looked shocked. Then Sarandon smiled, leaned down to kiss her cheek, and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “You sure are.”

She’d only meant to give a reason why she was here with the two brothers looking for their half brother. She was good at improvising. Sarandon seemed to be taking her declaration as a statement of fact.

“Well, come in, come in. My wife needs to take a seat. This is all a little too much for her.”

CJ closed the door after them, and they followed Anton into the living room where he eased Sarah into a chair. “Would anyone like anything to drink? I need to get my wife something.”

“Can I help you?” Jenna asked.

“Uh, yeah, sure.” Anton smiled at her. “We always wanted a daughter too, but we were lucky to have our two sons.” He muted the WWII movie on the huge, curved TV mounted on the wall.

Jenna had never seen one of them in someone’s home, and this one was over six feet long. And curved? Amazing.

“Are either of your sons mated?” Jenna wanted to assure him they weren’t here to break up the family unit. They weren’t trying to get Alex to leave his adoptive home to join the Silver pack.

When he and Jenna were in the kitchen, Anton said, “They’ve both dated a lot, but neither has found the right woman.” He brought out glasses, and she began to fill them with ice and water. “What are you doing here, really? After all these years, Sarandon and CJ suddenly are checking up on a half brother they didn’t care anything about before?”

“The truth?”

Anton hesitated to respond. She swore he looked like he was aging several years just standing there, worried about what he would hear. “Yeah. Tell me what’s going on.”

“The Silver brothers—there are four of them, quadruplets—didn’t know anything about their father having an affair with Ritka. He wouldn’t have left his mate for her or any other reason, but Ritka ended up having twins by Sheridan.”

“So that’s the story. We always wondered, and Evie wouldn’t tell us the truth. Evie, Ritka’s sister, raised Alex’s sister, Faye. We didn’t know Sheridan was having an affair with Ritka.”

“I understand. Wolves mate for life. Ritka was so in love with Sheridan that she returned to him to have this secret affair. She hoped she could change his mind about mating her and taking the kids in to live with them.”

“What about Sheridan’s mate?”

“She was killed in a hunting accident when the boys were young. So, she was out of the way, as far as Ritka was concerned,” Jenna said.

“But Sheridan had four boys he was raising.”

“Right.”

“That doesn’t explain why you’ve come to see him now.”

“They didn’t know about Alex or his sister. Not until…well, until I went after Sarandon, believing him to be a suspect in an identity theft.”

“You’re a police officer?”

“Fugitive recovery agent.”

“Don’t tell me. Sarandon wasn’t involved.”

“He wasn’t.”

“And you’re not his mate.”

“That’s how we met—me trying to arrest him. Now we’re courting. But”—she pulled out her phone and showed him the picture of Alex’s mug shot—“you can see how similar Sarandon and Alex look. The same with CJ. Especially Sarandon. His discarded, expired driver’s license was stolen, and Alex used it when he was arrested, stating that he was Sarandon. Neither men had their fingerprints on file. Sarandon cleared his name today in Colorado Springs based on his fingerprints and witness statements that verified he’s been in Silver Town the whole time. We need to find Alex and learn the truth. Is this a case of revenge against one of the brothers for not being raised as one of the Silvers? We don’t know. Only Alex will know what’s really going on.”

“You want to arrest him.”

“The police already have a warrant out for his arrest. He’s going to get caught. It’s only a matter of time. They have his fingerprints. They have his mug shot. He cut his GPS ankle monitor to slip out of the city, so he’s on the run now. My family has one of the best lawyers in the state, a wolf like us. We’ll pay Jeb to represent him.”

“You’re a bounty hunter.” It was taking the poor dad forever to get the gist of the situation.

“Yes. My mother is the bail bondswoman. We’ll have to pay the $150,000 for the bond if we don’t turn him in to make his court date, because the deed he gave us as collateral was forged.”

“He didn’t do this. I know Alex. He wouldn’t have done this.”

“He had passports and other IDs on him that belonged to other people. He impersonated Sarandon. He didn’t have any ID of his own on him. Why wouldn’t he? Why would he say he was Sarandon and get him in trouble? Like I said, we’ll have a lawyer represent Alex.”

“Why? He ran out on the bond, and you could get stuck for it. What’s in it for you?”

“I really care about the Silver family. And they really care about their half brother, despite what he’s done. They didn’t know about him before they started investigating Ritka. They learned about him, and about his sister, in Ritka’s diaries.”

“This news will break my wife’s heart.”

“We have to do something, Mr. Dreyfus. He’s a wanted suspect.”

Anton nodded. “All right.” They carried the glasses of water into the living room, and Anton told it like it was. “Dear, Alex is in serious trouble.”