Chapter Four
Kieran waited until Dakota had walked into the kitchen before collapsing in the chair in front of the laptop she’d set up. He hadn’t even known that a database of all Walkers existed. His family would be on there. The family that had sent him away. Dakota, Caspar and the others knew nothing about his family. Smith wasn’t even his real last name. This fucking night was turning into a complete mess.
His hand shook as he scrolled down the page until he saw what he was looking for.
Argent
“Fuck,” he murmured. Just seeing the last name made him sick. It wasn’t as if he didn’t often wonder about his parents or siblings. It hadn’t been his choice to leave, though. Fearing the power Kieran might gain with age, his father had sent Kieran away to start his own life. Kieran still didn’t understand why he hadn’t been accepted as his sisters had been. He hadn’t been shown much love by the patriarch of the family growing up, but Kieran thought his mom would have argued for him. Instead she’d merely turned her back and watched as Kieran’s dad had sent him away.
Kieran hadn’t been ready. Having been home schooled and having lived his entire life inside the mansion, Kieran hadn’t been prepared for the real world. That was how the shifters had captured him in the first place.
“K?”
Dakota’s hand came down on his shoulders and he jumped.
“What is going on?” she demanded.
Kieran knew he wouldn’t be able to hide his feelings from her. He was going to have to admit a few things that he’d held back. “My family is on this list.”
She shook her head. “I looked at the names when you were on the phone with Damon. Smith is missing from the list. I figured Caspar didn’t put them on there to protect you.”
“My last name isn’t Smith.”
He stared at the screen instead of looking at her. He knew Dakota would be angry. He hadn’t lied to her, but Kieran also had hidden everything.
“I… I was going to tell you one day,” he whispered. “They… I mean my real last name—”
“No,” Dakota cut him off. “Don’t tell me.”
Kieran snapped his head up. “What?”
“That’s not who you are anymore.” Dakota set the mugs down that she’d been holding before lowering herself between his legs. “I know who you are, Kieran Smith. You’re my lover, you’re Remy’s best friend and a great agent. Caspar is more your dad than the man who raised you. I don’t care what any of those files say. I know you.”
Relief flooded him. He grabbed Dakota, yanking her into his lap.
She wrapped her arms around his neck. “I know you.”
Kieran kissed her hard. He’d feared the day that he’d have to confess who he really was. The Argent clan was rich, powerful and respected. They also didn’t believe as the Organization did that paranormals and humans could live in peace. The Argents thought that they were better than humans.
“Now how should we start?” she asked, once they’d separated.
“It’d be easier if we knew what they looked like,” Kieran said.
“Call Jackson,” she said. “I’ll get a hold of Damon and see what the kids said. We’ll go through the files and pull out all the photos that match the description. Tomorrow, we’ll pass out the pictures to the teams and have the entire city searched.”
“That’s a good idea,” he admitted. It made him feel better to have a plan.
“So separate the list. You can take your own family and that way I won’t know which of the twenty-five it is. Then we’ll get to work.”
“Thank you,” he murmured.
“Baby, you don’t have to thank me. I’ll always be on your side.”
He nodded.
“Okay, I’m calling Damon back.” She rose before placing a soft kiss on his lips.
Kieran picked back up his cell as she moved around. She pulled her bag onto the couch, setting up her own laptop on the coffee table. Kieran stood, taking her coffee to her. Dakota smiled at him even as he heard the phone ringing.
With her busy, getting to work, he sent an email to Jackson with all the information he had so far and what the plan was. Jackson had said that he was going to be in his office, so he should still be awake. Then he looked back at the list of names.
“I’ll take the first twenty-five and you take the last,” he called to Dakota.
She gave him a thumbs-up before her call was answered.
Kieran tuned out their conversation and decided to just get it over with. He clicked on the link under Argent.
The first thing that he saw was the family crest.
Kieran ran his fingers over the screen. The familiar circle with ancient symbols and fangs caused an ache deep in his heart. The last time he’d seen that had been the night the shifters had taken him prisoner. He’d never seen his necklace again.
“Thanks, Damon,” Dakota was saying.
He blinked away the tears that had started to gather. He wouldn’t miss a family who had sent him into the hands of monsters. In the ten years that he’d been held captive, plus the more than a dozen since his rescue, the Argents had never searched for him. With their connections, it wouldn’t have been impossible for anyone in the family to locate them. Kieran was certain they’d never tried.
Dakota hung up so he had to tear his gaze from the laptop. “What did he say?”
“Two men, both in their late twenties or early thirties.”
“If they’re Walkers, it would be difficult to tell how old they really are,” he reminded her. Now that he’d reached adulthood, his own aging process had slowed down. Luckily for him, since he was with a shifter, the same applied to Dakota.
She rolled her eyes. “They look to be in their late twenties or early thirties.”
“Sorry,” he said. “Go ahead.”
“One of the teenagers said he thought they might be related since they had such similar features.”
“That’s helpful,” Kieran commented. “We can narrow it down through that alone.”
“Yeah, that’s what I was thinking,” Dakota agreed. “Both have dark brown hair, hazel eyes, clean cut and dressed in dark suits that appeared expensive.”
“That at least gives us a place to start.” Kieran was glad they had something. He really didn’t like the thought of unknown Walkers in his city. He knew Jackson would feel the same way.
“I told Damon I’d email him some possibilities.”
Kieran nodded. He glared back down at his screen. Instead of going further into his family, he needed to concentrate on the task at hand. Now that he knew about the database, he could look into what the Argents had been up to without him later, if he wanted. Maybe he’d just forget it all together. Only pain could come from what he’d find, although he was curious about his mom and sisters.
“Food’s about here,” he mumbled. The scent of their dinner coming had his mouth watering. Plus he’d heard the ding of the elevator.
“It’s weird when you do that,” Dakota stated, standing.
Kieran ignored her. He backed out of his family’s file and opened the next.
Chapman
Dakota moved around the living room, setting his plate and a bottle of beer at his elbow before returning to the couch. The Chapmans weren’t as notable as his own family, but they had a long line of descendants, so it took time to go through each photo.
The Organization had done their homework. Not only was there a profile of every person, but their closest friends as well. The subject’s likes, interests, hobbies, criminal record, suspected activities and more was included. Kieran found it creepy that someone was actually actively stalking the Walkers.
Some of the updates were just weeks old.
Finishing the Chapmans, Kieran moved to the next family. He hadn’t found anyone so far that matched. He hoped to have more luck.
Dakota had ordered steak sandwiches and French fries, so he began to pick at his food as the aroma called to him. Happy with her choice, he looked over at her.
Her long hair was still mussed from their earlier activities and her clothes were wrinkled. It didn’t look as though she cared much about her appearance as she ate with one hand while typing with the other.
She’d surprised him bringing up her desire to go away with him. Dakota was so dedicated to her work it was nice to see that she was willing to step away once in a while. When they’d met, she’d even lived in the Organization dorms, not even having her own place.
Kieran had moved out as soon as he’d been able to.
He’d hated having all the other agents around him so much. Dakota loved it. They were such opposites, but somehow things were perfect between them.
“Quit staring at me,” she said, without even looking up.
Kieran grinned. “I can’t help it. I’m enjoying the view.”
She glanced up. “We need to get through at least half the lists so we can send the information to Jackson and Damon before we get some sleep.”
“Fine.” He returned to work. She was right. The sooner they finished, the quicker he’d be holding her in bed.
Halfway through his portion of the list, Jackson replied to Kieran’s email. He clicked on the icon, bringing it up.
Good, Jackson was going to have his men start patrolling the city. Given that Jackson ran the most successful security company in the country, it would help having his assistance.
“I’m switching to wine,” Dakota announced. She stretched after standing up.
Kieran glanced over at the window. Dawn was approaching and, since they’d both be on shift that night, they’d have to go to bed soon. “Sounds good.”
He’d only found a dozen possible suspects, which surprised him. He’d supposed there’d be a lot more, but he’d noticed a pattern. Walkers gave birth to three times as many females as males. “How many do you have so far?” he asked.
“Maybe twenty,” she replied. She frowned, glancing up at him. “There’s a lot more females who would meet the age range.”
“I noticed that, too,” he admitted. He wasn’t really surprised that Dakota had caught the same unusual thread. She was a brilliant agent.
“Is that normal?”
Kieran shrugged. “I don’t know. I only have sisters, but I do have several male cousins.”
“You have sisters?” She stopped pouring the wine to look at him.
He shifted in his chair. “Uh, yeah.”
“Huh.” Dakota shook her head then finished pouring the drink. He waited for her to say more, but she remained lost in thought. Since he knew she wouldn’t be shy of asking him something she wanted to know, Kieran let her think.
When she still didn’t say anything once she’d set his glass down next to him, he patted her ass.
Dakota glared at him. “Another hour then we’ll turn in.”
“What if I don’t want to wait that long?” he teased.
She waved at hand at him then flopped back down on the couch. “Get back to work.”
Damn, he did love when she turned bossy. His cock even perked up a bit. He’d stuffed his cock back in his jeans even though he’d left them unbutton. He would be so easy to just slide them down his legs and be on the couch with her.
“An hour,” he repeated. “You’re not any fun.” His complaint drew a smile from her.
* * * *
Dakota rolled over and turned off the alarm before it woke Kieran. They’d worked until eight that morning and had sex in the shower before climbing into bed together. They’d managed to find almost seventy possible subjects who she’d emailed to Jackson and Damon.
She wanted more than six hours of sleep, but she’d already scheduled a meeting with Dean about the shifter teens before work.
“Why are you getting up?” Kieran muttered.
“I have to meet with Dean. I want to check on the shifters before I give Caspar an update. I’m hoping he’ll agree not to call in the Coalition.”
He grunted. Kieran had no love for the Shifter Coalition. Dakota wondered if she would have been offered a job with them if she hadn’t been obligated to the Organization. It might have been fun to work within the agency.
“What time are you going in?” she asked, leaning over to run her hands over his bare chest. Even though his skin was cooler than hers, she couldn’t resist touching him.
“Remy’s meeting me here after he gets up.” Kieran still had his arm over his eyes so Dakota couldn’t see those beautiful blue peepers. “We’ll check in with Jackson and Damon before we go in.”
“Are you going to tell Caspar?”
He groaned but sat up against the headboard. She should have probably let him sleep, but she loved how cranky he was when he first woke. “Yeah, I figured he probably already knows we were using the database this morning. If I don’t, he’ll think I’m hiding something and probably have me followed again.”
“That might be fun,” she commented. “Last time, it was great training for a new agent.”
Kieran scowled. “I almost threw him off the roof of a building.”
Dakota laughed. Caspar really did do everything in his power to protect Kieran, even if Kieran didn’t want protection. “Yes, well, try not to do that again.”
“Just go!” Kieran grouched. “Remy won’t be here for another couple of hours.”
“You could get up and finish the search,” she suggested.
Kieran swiped at her, but Dakota rolled off the bed, dodging him. Strolling to the bathroom, she knew she had his full attention. He never could resist her naked and wet. She barely had time to turn on the water before Kieran embraced her from behind.
“I thought you were going back to sleep,” she teased.
“Someone got me up,” he replied, dragging his morning erection over her ass. “And now that someone needs to take care of me.”
Dakota reached between them to palm his cock.
“Yes,” he hissed, before nipping along her shoulder.
“Get under the water,” she ordered. Dakota moved away and pushed him into the stall. Steam rose, but since Kieran loved the water as hot as they could stand it, Dakota knew he wouldn’t have any issues with the temperature.
As the water cascaded down his broad shoulders and pale chest, Dakota lowered to her knees. Kieran kept his gaze on her the entire time as Dakota wrapped her hand around the base of his erection. She ran her palm down his length then back up before leaning forward to take the tip of his cock into her mouth.
“Please,” he murmured.
Dakota slid down his shaft closing her eyes to enjoy the hard silkiness. He tasted so good. Kieran might not have a scent but his flavor burst onto her tongue. She knew how to bring him off, too. Sucking and licking him, she used her other hand to pump. Kieran slapped his hands onto the tile to keep upright. Yeah, he’d begun trembling. Dakota was in power here.
It was easy to ignore kneeling on the tile as she worked him over with her mouth. Kieran’s grunts and moans spurred her on until he came.
“Come up here,” he demanded, helping her rise.
His lips covered hers as he plunged two fingers deep inside her pussy.
Dakota grabbed his shoulders as she rode the climax that exploded from her. She laughed, throwing her head back. “That was fast.”
Kieran frowned. “I can go again.”
“We don’t have time.” She pushed him away so she could actually shower and not just play.
“I’ll wash your back,” Kieran offered.
“I’m not falling for that again.” Dakota picked up a washcloth and the soap and scrubbed down as Kieran picked up a bottle of shampoo.
They quickly finished up and Dakota turned off the water as Kieran passed her a towel. Dakota glanced at the clock. They’d actually been in there longer than she thought.
“Do you want me to order you up some breakfast?” Kieran was toweling off his pert ass and Dakota wished she could take him back to bed.
“I’ll grab something on the way.”
“Okay.” Kieran tossed the towel into the hamper before strolling out naked. “I’ll at least get you coffee.”
Dakota smiled after him. Kieran had a mother hen instinct that no one else knew about. He concerned himself about her eating enough all the time. Once she’d wiped most the water off, she strolled into the bedroom and to the closet.
She’d go with jeans today instead of slacks. If she got the chance to head out into Pack territory to check out where the Walkers had been seen, she was going to. Maybe the two strangers were just in town to do some gambling and partying, but then they should have avoided the local Pack.
“Did you check your email?” she called out.
“Not yet.” Kieran stepped up behind her.
“Jesus!” She jumped and almost fell. “Don’t do that!”
“Here.” He passed her a full cup of coffee. “I’ll go check it now.”
“Thanks,” she said before kissing his cheek. Dakota took her mug with her as she walked back to the bathroom. She took sips in between braiding her hair and applying her makeup.
“Jackson might have someone who saw the two men,” Kieran suggested, strolling in to lean against the door jamb. “They’re sending me the security cameras to look at.”
“That’s good.” Dakota finished up her morning brew. “Keep me informed. I might go out to see Damon.”
“Don’t go alone,” Kieran said. “At least take the bear with you.”
Dakota pushed her empty cup into his stomach before shoving past him. “My partners have names, you know.”
“I’m aware of that.”
“So you should use them.” Dakota didn’t think Kieran actually hated the two agents she was assigned to, but he could make more of an effort to get on with them.
“I let them work with you. I think that’s good enough.”
Dakota stopped, still bent over where she’d been about to pick up her boots. Sometimes the shit Kieran said shocked her. Was he serious? “You let them work with me?”
He nodded before setting her cup on the dresser. “If they disappeared, they wouldn’t be able to work with you.”
“Kieran,” she snapped. “You can’t say that.”
The look that came across his face was pure cockiness. Dakota knew she shouldn’t let this conversation go, but she didn’t have the energy to fight with him. Kieran had his moods and sometimes it was better to ignore them as long as possible.
“I have to meet Dean.” She finished getting ready and stood.
Kieran blew out a long breath. “I shouldn’t have said that. I’m sorry.”
Oh, he was so cute when he pouted. He never quite pulled off the innocent look, but still he tried. She stalked over to him. Pushing on his chest, she backed him into the wall. “I like my partners. I want you to get to know them better. I’m going to invite them over, as well as Remy, for dinner this week.”
Kieran whined. “Come on! I said I was sorry.”
“No.” She shook her head. “We’re going to get along.”
“Fine.”
“Now, give me a kiss,” she demanded.
That Kieran did, happily. A little too happy since they were both breathing hard by the time she ripped herself from him.
“You’re an asshole,” she accused.
“Yep.”
“I’m leaving.” If she didn’t, she’d start to laugh and, really, she couldn’t encourage his behavior.
“I’ll probably see you later.”
“Because you’ll show up where I’m at?” she asked. Dakota still hadn’t figured out how Kieran always knew where she was.
“I have to talk to Caspar,” Kieran reminded her.
“All right.” Dakota walked from the bedroom with Kieran on her heels. “I should be able to break away in a couple of hours.”
“I put your travel coffee cup by the door.”
“Thanks.” Dakota whirled around, grabbed his waist, yanking him into her. She nipped his bottom lip. “Behave.”
Kieran was chuckling. “Never.”
She grabbed her weapon, keys, phone and coffee from the table. Kieran really was good about taking care of her. Instead of her spending ten minutes searching the suite for all her stuff, he always put it right where she could find it. Dakota had gotten lucky with him.
Without another word, she dashed out of the door. Dakota scrolled through her phone as she stalked to the elevator. There weren’t any missed calls, but Dean had texted her twice. She responded that she was on her way before pocketing her cell.
The ride downstairs was quiet, giving her time to prepare for her day. There was a lot that she needed to fit in, as well as being on patrol. She might need to talk to Caspar about switching up rotation so she’d be able to look for the Walkers.
By the time she was in her vehicle, driving toward the office, she’d worked out everything she needed to do. It was a good thing that both she and Kieran kept vehicles at the hotel, since she’d left the SUV from the previous night in the garage to go with Kieran.
It didn’t take long before she was pulling onto Falcon Ave where the Murphy Institute was located. Dakota slowed down when she spotted the same dark sedan behind her that she’d glimpsed leaving the hotel. There wasn’t anything out of the ordinary about it—just some gut feeling that she needed to pay attention.
Only her training had had her even picking up the tail.
Dakota pulled into the fast food restaurant on the corner to see if they followed. The sedan continued down the street and she blew out a sigh of relief. The last thing she needed to worry about was someone following her. Kieran would hit the fucking roof. The sedan had kept enough distance that she hadn’t been able to read the license plate. Since she was already there, she pulled up to the drive thru and ordered several breakfast sandwiches.
After she’d paid and pulled back onto the street, Dakota glanced around the neighborhood. Her office was only about six blocks down, so if she had been followed, they would be close by.
She didn’t spot the vehicle and was relieved. Maybe she was being overly cautious. The last couple of weeks since they’d captured the shifters responsible for Kieran’s years of torture had been hard on them all.
Dakota stopped in front of the guard gate and waved before she was allowed in. Parking in one of the open spaces, she noticed that Dare and Gabe were already there. They weren’t on shift yet, so that surprised her. She grabbed the bag of food and her coffee before walking over to the stairs. Her relationship with Kieran had affected how she entered and exited the building. Kieran’s fear of being trapped in an elevator had rubbed off on her. Besides, as good as the food was at the hotel, she could use all the exercise she could get.
“Hey,” she greeted two agents as they went down while she walked up.
“Afternoon, agent,” they responded.
One was human and the other some sort of bird shifter. Kieran was the only Walker they had on staff there. Actually, Kieran was the first Walker she’d ever met. Jackson and his group had been living and operating right under her nose and she’d never known.
“Agent Reese.” Caspar stood at the fire exit door, holding it open.
Oh, shit! “Uh, hello, sir.” She dipped her head. He was her boss now and Dakota was sleeping with the man who Caspar loved like a son. “Something wrong?”
“Where are you headed?”
“I’m meeting Dean,” she answered. “But I was going by the medical wing to drop off some food first.”
Caspar nodded. “The shifter kids.”
“Yes.”
“Dean’s there. I’ll walk with you.”
Alarm flooded her. “Did something happen to them? Are they all right?”
“They’re fine,” Caspar said.
He adjusted his long strides so that Dakota wasn’t having to jog to keep up with him. She knew something was going on if she was getting a personal escort. She wanted to press for more answers, but Caspar was still an unknown to her.
As they made their way through the halls, she watched him out of the corner of her eye. It wasn’t until there were no other agents around that Caspar stopped. Dakota wasn’t surprised.
“You opened up the database for Walkers,” Caspar said.
“I did.”
“So did Kieran,” Caspar added.
“He’s supposed to come talk to you later today,” Dakota said. She didn’t want to step on Kieran’s toes.
“Why don’t you tell me now?”
Well, damn, Kieran’s not going to like this. She eyed Caspar, noting for the first time that he didn’t seem to be in a very good mood. Double damn. Dakota moved to lean against the wall as she explained about Damon’s call. She outlines their plan even though Caspar’s expression grew tighter.
“That’s everything so far?” Caspar asked once she’d finished her verbal report.
“Jackson is sending some footage for Kieran to review. It might be of the Walkers,” she said.
“Fine.” Caspar nodded.
Dakota didn’t know if she was dismissed so she stayed right where she was.
“Did he tell you anything about any Walkers in the database?” he asked softly.
“You mean his family?”
“Yes.”
“I had suspected that you would have removed his family to protect him. Especially when I didn’t see Smith under the index.”
“And?” Caspar pressed.
“He told me that wasn’t his real last name.”
“He said that?” Caspar sounded shocked.
“Yes.”
“I’m surprised,” Caspar admitted.
“Oh, I was, too. He started to explain, but I could see that he wasn’t ready. I told him that it didn’t matter. I know who he is now, so it doesn’t matter where he came from.”
Caspar straightened while he stared at her.
“What?” She wanted to snap at him, but this was her new boss.
“Do you mean that?”
“Of course, I do.” No hesitation. Dakota wondered about the family who had thrown Kieran out for no reason, but that didn’t matter to her. Kieran was hers now and that was what was important.
“I always thought you’d be good for him,” Caspar murmured. “Did he seem okay?”
“I don’t know if he opened the file or not. We split the list and I suggested he take the half with his family.”
“That was smart,” Caspar praised. “I’ll do some following up. You can tell him you spoke with me but I still expect a full report from him.”
“Okay.” At least he wasn’t ordering her not to talk to Kieran.
“You supposed to be patrolling tonight?”
“Yes, sir,” Dakota replied.
“I’ll rearrange the schedule. See to the teenagers you found then work on this new development. I’ll keep both your and Kieran’s teams on it. I don’t want the Pack or Jackson getting to them first.”
Dakota nodded. “Yes, boss.”
“Things would be a lot easier if Jackson would just work with us,” Caspar muttered.
She laughed. “If he wasn’t so close to Kieran, I don’t think we’d know anything he was doing.”
“I can see that. Okay, agent, you’re free to go.”
“Thank you.” She rolled the tension from her shoulders as she stalked away. That had been one uncomfortable conversation. Every time she had to speak with Casper, she felt as though she was being judged.
There was only one more corner to turn before she reached the medical wing. Instead of them taking the stairs, Caspar had been leading her the long way around. She heard the shouting and picked up her pace.
Dean was standing in front of Adam, holding up his hands. Jeremy was cowering against the door. She didn’t spot Carmen and that worried her. Dakota didn’t think they’d move too far from her.
“What’s going on?” she asked, reaching them.
Adam turned. His face was red and he was breathing hard. “You liar,” he screamed.
Dakota stopped walking in shock.
“You promised!” Adam shouted. “We trusted you.”
“Wait a minute! You need to calm down. I haven’t lied about anything,” Dakota said. “Just tell me what’s going on.”
“We won’t go with them,” Adam said. “I don’t care what you try to do to us. We aren’t going.”
Dakota glanced up at Dean in question.
“The Coalition is here for a different matter and they overheard some talk about the kids,” Dean explained. “One of the agents came down to see if he could help, but when the boys saw him, they freaked out.”
Shit! Dakota didn’t need this. “Where’s the agent now?”
“He went back down to the cells to finish his paperwork. He really was just trying to be friendly. He felt really bad about upsetting the kids,” Dean said.
“We’re not kids,” Adam yelled.
She’d had enough. “Yes, you are. And we’re trying to help you. How is your acting like this good for Carmen? Where is she? And look at Jeremy.”
Adam glanced behind him and guilt flashed over his features. “J! I’m sorry.” Adam grabbed the coyote shifter then tugged him close. Jeremy nodded but was still shaking.
“Let’s go inside and discuss this calmly,” Dakota ordered.
Dakota was pleased that Adam kept his arm around Jeremy, speaking quietly to him. She didn’t want to be too hard on any of them, but they couldn’t act up, either. The Coalition technically had the right to step in and deal with the entire case. Dakota didn’t blame the agent for trying to help. That was his job, after all.
“I brought breakfast,” Dakota said, following them into the room.
Carmen was huddled at the top of the bed with the blankets wrapped all around her.
“It’s okay,” Dakota assured her. “Just a misunderstanding. Let’s eat and talk this out.”
Adam led Jeremy over to the bed, where both teens climbed up. Dakota waited until the shifters were settled before setting the food on the end of the mattress and digging through.
“Smells good,” Carmen whispered.
“I hope you’re hungry,” Dakota said, smiling.
“Yes, ma’am,” Carmen replied. Jeremy had his head buried in Adam’s neck as he breathed deeply.
“Here.” Dakota passed the food to Carmen and let her give it to the two boys.
Once everyone had a couple of the packages, she tossed a few to Dean before sitting in the chair with her own food.
“Can you explain to me what happened?” Dakota asked.
“It’s my fault,” Adam said. “We saw the coyote shifter and heard he was from the Coalition and I freaked out.”
A coyote shifter—that was interesting. Dakota really wanted to talk to this guy.
“Do you know the Coalition agent? Is it the same one who you dealt with before?”
All three teens shook their heads.
“That doesn’t surprise me. He’s from Arizona.”
Dakota nodded. “Okay, everyone eat and we’ll work this out.”
“Thank you,” Adam whispered.
“Of course,” Dakota said. “We really are here to help.”
Jeremy lifted his head for the first time. “Was he really like me?”
“A coyote shifter?” Dean asked.
“Yeah.” Jeremy nodded.
Dean glanced at Adam. “I don’t know. I’m human so I can’t tell.”
“He is,” Adam said. “I could smell him. It’s like the scent of a wolf but different.” Adam looked to Jeremy. “Just like you.”
“I’ve never met another coyote shifter before,” Jeremy murmured.
“Once we figure things out, maybe you’d like to talk to him? Ask him a few questions?” Dakota offered. She didn’t care what the Coalition agent said. She would make it happen if that was what Jeremy wanted.
Jeremy looked at Adam.
“I think it would be a good idea,” Adam said to his friend. “Who knows when you’ll get this chance again? I can stay with you when you do if you want.”
“Thanks,” Jeremy said. Finally he started to open his breakfast.
“You know the guy’s name?” she asked Dean.
“Luca Perez,” Dean answered.
She hoped that this Luca guy turned out to be all right. She wasn’t above using Kieran to threaten the guy if need be.