Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Barrett

"It's an easy jump from the window ledge to the bank below," Edirn is saying from where he's peering out the window.

I think of how I'd been aware of the tree outside this morning, my window level with its top branches. We're only on the second floor. She could make it outside.

"But back in?" I call to him. I'm working my way through the rest of the torn sheets, trying to see if there's anything else there. So far, nothing.

"From the looks of it, she came back the same way. Paw prints coming up the ledge. It's a big jump, but it's not impossible."

"She's pretty big in her wolf form. I'm guessing she could do it." I drop the sheets, returning to the living room.

"She's left tracks outside." He joins me. "I think we should see where they lead."

It's the only idea we have right now, so I don't object. We make our way downstairs, following first the paw prints and then the faint scent of her. It's unmistakable to me – wired into my cells. I don't even hesitate when it leads me straight to what looks like a wall of greenery. Edirn stops to watch as I stride up to it, then shove aside a curtain of overgrown shrubbery.

"There's a tunnel back here," I call over my shoulder, the words echoing around.

He's right behind me. "This shouldn't be here. If she could get out, anyone could get in."

"We'll worry about that later." I keep moving forward, stooping at the waist. Foul-smelling water swirls around my boots, splashing with each footstep until we burst out into the light.

I straighten and look around. "Fuck. Look at this."

We're outside the perimeter wall of Steel Lakes, staring into the distance.

"It happened near here. The murder," says Edirn.

"She didn't do it!" I snap.

"I'm not saying that she did. But she did do something out here, Barrett. Something that involved blood."

I can't deny it. But there isn't a single part of me that accepts she could have attacked unprovoked. "Something happened out here."

"Over there." Edirn jerks his chin. "Jagger says it went down about a mile that way."

I scan the area where Edirn is pointing. There's not much to see right now, but as we cover the distance there, my gut clenches at the sight of the police tape cordoning off a wide area. "That's where the body was found."

"We can't get close with all those cops around," Edirn says. "They'll be all over us."

He's right. Drawing attention to ourselves is the last thing we need right now. I rack my brain for another way to get a look at the crime scene but come up empty. My instincts are screaming at me to investigate, but my rational side knows we'd be asking for trouble.

"We could come back under cover of darkness," I suggest, though the thought of waiting makes me antsy. "Get a look around when they're not swarming the place."

Edirn considers it, his sharp eyes taking in our surroundings with that intense focus of his. "Might work. But we should make a wider sweep first, see if we can pick up any other traces before it gets disturbed."

I nod tightly. He's thinking clearly, as always. We split up, fanning out in opposite directions to scour the area around the taped-off zone, staying out of sight. I move carefully, alert for any sign that Cedara might have been here – a trace of her scent on the grass, more paw prints, anything. The minutes tick by with nothing jumping out, and I'm about to give up hope when something catches my eye.

A dark patch of soil.

I move closer, careful not to step on anything. Bushes in the area have been trampled, dirt scuffed up. I reach the patch, stoop, and pinch some sand between my fingertips. I sniff it.

Blood.

Something bled here…a lot.

"Whatever this was, they got away." Edirn's voice has me spinning around.

"Fuck, Alpen, give a guy some warning, won't you?"

He gives a wry shrug. "I heard you thinking when you found it. Figured I'd come check it out."

"Dammit. You'd better not be spending too much time in my head." I scowl at him. "It's bad enough in there right now."

"I read just enough. I don't delve like that, Barrett," he reassures me.

"I'll worry about that later." I set my jaw. "What do you think went down here?"

"Some kind of fight," he confirms my suspicions. "Cedara ran into someone here."

"The Leadmills wolf?"

His lip curls in distaste. "It's our guy. And he left here in a world of pain." His smile is smug. "Your girl did good."

I feel a swirl of pride.

I follow the trail of blood, Edirn beside me. It's clear as day, leading us in the direction of Leadmills. We don't need to go all the way to confirm this – it's obvious where it's pointing.

"It's him, alright." Edirn's jaw clenches. "He crawled part the way, but he got up around here. Staggered from here. Badly injured, but not fatally."

From his expression, I'm guessing he wishes he was.

"We should turn back. There's not much more to see here; we're just wasting time."

Edirn hums in agreement, and we retrace our steps in silence. We're not far from the gates to Steel Lakes when flashing lights up ahead have us both tensing. We slow our pace as we approach the police cars clustered at the side of the road, one of the officers already eyeing us warily.

"You boys need to stay back," he calls out gruffly as we draw nearer. "Active crime scene ahead."

I nod quickly. "No problem, officer. We're just looking around. We live near here."

He sizes us up skeptically. "You mean the weird artist's place? Steel something?"

Edirn and I exchange a quick glance. So much for staying under the radar.

"Yeah," I confirm. "That's us."

"Funny," the cop scoffs, "you don't look much like artists to me."

I take in my rumpled jeans and scuffed boots, Edirn's military-style fatigues. He's got a point – we're a far cry from your typical artsy type.

"We're sculptors," I explain smoothly. "We do concrete installations. Tends to be pretty heavy-duty work."

The cop appears to accept this, giving a grunt of acknowledgment. "Well, you'd best steer clear of the area. Nasty business up ahead."

"We heard something about an attack?" Edirn pipes up, feigning casual curiosity.

The officer's eyes narrow slightly, like he's debating how much to share. "Looks like someone tangled with a wild animal and came out on the losing end," he allows finally. "You boys be careful around those parts."

"Will do," I assure him with a tight smile. "Appreciate the warning."

We turn and head back the way we came, my mind racing. Leadmills wolves killing humans right on our doorstep? That's a bold move, even for them. Edirn must be thinking along the same lines.

"You've got suspicions about this," I murmur once we're out of earshot.

He gives me a grim look, trudging steadily forward. "More than a few."

"Like what?" I'm beginning to draw some conclusions of my own.

"Like, this shit isn't random. The rogues over at Leadmills don't have any issues with killing for sport, but why here?"

"Because they want the cops focusing here. On Steel Lakes." I'm not liking where this is going.

"And now would be the perfect time to pull a stunt like this. After the shit over at Whispering Pines, everyone is twitchy. They're just looking for an excuse to bag a wolf. And Steel Lakes have several hundred of us."

"That's if we shift," I remind him.

He hits me with a level stare. He doesn't have to say the words out loud. The authorities are hunting wolves out here. Meanwhile, my woman is running rampant. The timing couldn't be worse.

We keep walking in silence for a while, our boots scuffing the asphalt.

"I can't say I blame him," I say, at last.

"Jagger." He knows what I'm thinking.

"Yeah. He has to weigh up the safety of the pack against hers. Even if she isn't actually dangerous, he's probably thinking that she might just lose control and draw them to us." I heave a sigh. Talk about a rock and a hard place. "He's just doing his duty. He's a good Alpha."

"Yeah," says Edirn. "Doesn't mean you're gonna give up, though."

"Oh, hell no!" I'm more determined than ever.

"So what's next? We take what we've found to Jagger?"

"Yes. But I want to see Cedara first. Let her know what we found. That there's a way out of this. If I'm going to spend the next few hours browbeating Jagger into this thing, I don't want her sitting there thinking I've forgotten about her."

"Casey's not gonna like that."

"Then you'll convince her to let me in." I grin.

"Right!" he scoffs. "That woman answers to no one."

The gates to Steel Lakes open with their usual clatter as Cody sees us approaching.

"When did you go out?" He looks confused.

"Earlier," I say vaguely. "Maybe you missed us." I'm not about to explain that we've found a breach in security.

"Yeah, I guess I've been distracted," he acknowledges. "More action than I've seen in months around here." He props his elbows on the small ledge in front of him. "With all the cops coming and going, and now you two sneaking around."

"Yeah, the cops." I arch a brow. "They giving you trouble?"

He shakes his head. "Nah, just curious is all. Like when that big shot commissioner rolled through earlier with his whole security team."

I exchange a glance with Edirn. "Security team?"

Cody's eyes go wide. "Yeah, man. Black SUVs, the whole nine yards. I thought it was like the President or somethin'." He gives a snort.

Edirn frowns. "That does seem odd. Calling in someone that high ranking. I know the shit over at Whispering Pines got them rattled, but this?"

"My thoughts exactly," I agree. "You'd think they'd be dealing with regular investigators at this point, not the police commissioner himself."

"Unless there's more to it," Edirn muses.

I consider this for a moment, but I'm drawing a blank on what else could warrant that kind of attention. "I don't know enough about human police procedures to make that call," I admit finally.

Edirn gives a curt nod, the matter clearly dismissed for now as we continue on our way. My steps grow heavier as we near the cells where Cedara is being held. Casey is waiting for us looking skeptical.

"Let me guess," she drawls as we approach. "You're hoping Edirn here can sweet-talk me into letting you see your girl."

"It's worth a try," I shoot back with a grin, ignoring her exasperated huff.

"Don't get your hopes up," she warns, fixing me with a level stare. "My latest instructions didn't come from Jagger."

I freeze, my heart lurching. "What do you mean?"

She shrugs, looking entirely unconcerned by my sudden tension. "Just what I said. Cedara's back in human form…and she refuses to see you. Says you two can't be mates anymore."

The floor seems to drop out from under me. I stare at Casey, waiting for the punchline, for any sign that she's screwing with me. But her expression remains impassive, deadly serious.

"That's…that's not possible," I manage finally, my voice sounding strangled.

Casey's shoulders rise and fall. "I'm just telling you what she said, Barrett."

My head spins. If Cedara has rejected our bond, severed that connection between us…

I pull myself straighter. "Why?" I demand. I'm not taking this lying down. Whatever is going on in my mate's head right now, she's wrong.

"Said something about being a monster. Killing someone. I guess maybe Edirn was wrong after all." She throws him an apologetic glance. "She doesn't want to be with you, Barrett. She says you deserve more."

I can't fucking believe it.