Chapter 7

The drive back to Asilo had been so peaceful and relaxed that I almost forgot my mate and I were on a mission. He had asked me to drive for the first leg of the journey, which I didn't mind. I loved showing him the gorgeous views and telling him little stories about places we passed. I rarely got to drive. I was usually the passenger. It was nice to reverse those roles.

Thomas sat beside me in the passenger seat, holding my hand and every so often grazing his thumb over it. Each time he did, it made me smile. Who was I fooling? Each time he did almost anything, it made me smile.

Like this morning when he brought in "breakfast in bed." Sure, it was a ham sandwich and nothing remotely breakfast-like, but it was perfection. And he'd snuck down to the kitchen while I was still asleep to do it. I teased him that a sandwich was so cliché.

"Cliché is cliché for a reason. Tell me you wanted oatmeal over this." He had a very solid point and was a master sandwich maker. Not that it took much to be better than I was. I took two pieces of bread, some meat, and called it good. The one he made for me included veggies and condiments. It was fancy shmancy.

And then later when we went to pick up the baked goods, he insisted on carrying all of the sweets, which resulted in him carrying "his alpha" to the car. It was cringe in the very best of ways.

My mate was a touchy-feely creature, as was I. In that way we were very compatible. With cats, you didn't always know what you were getting. It was more common to get an anti-cuddling cat shifter of varieties both large and small. From what I could tell from our night together, he definitely liked to cuddle—at least with me.

As we got closer and closer to our destination, worry began to settle in. Not about the mission, even though that probably deserved some of my anxiety. No, I was starting to panic over meeting his family—his pride. They had every reason to hate me. They didn't by all accounts, but that didn't mean I didn't deserve it if they did. I hoped that when we arrived at Asilo, we would be embraced with the open arms he was hoping for. I'd feel horrible if he brought me home and I created tension for him with his pride.

Meanwhile, I still kicked myself for the mistakes I had made during that first investigation. They weren't just little mistakes either. I was a complete alphahole. I had given Silas, Pol, and Nathan a formal apology, and even an in-person one. It didn't feel like enough. But also, I feared if I went for another apology, they would simply roll their eyes at me.

Each of them had told me it wasn't necessary to apologize and that I shouldn't feel bad. They said I did the best I could with the information I had. And maybe that was true. But what was equally true was that the best I could wasn't good enough. I'd taken the mission before I was ready, and the results were exactly how you'd expect they would be given those circumstances.

Steelwick's Alpha-Elect Armand had intervened before any harm had been done. If it weren't for him, things could've gone so much worse. It had been a hard lesson, but one I'd never forget. Now I needed to prove myself with this investigation—not only to Steelwick, but also to my mate and his pride. And if I were being honest, with myself also.

I'd find the alpha who had hurt my brother, hurt my mate, hurt our pack, and I'd bring him to justice. I owed it to everyone he hurt, especially my brother. It wouldn't bring him back, but he deserved justice whether or not he was there to see it.

"You're thinking very hard over there, mate," Thomas interrupted my thoughts.

He had the seat reclined, his eyes closed, the sunlight illuminating his beautiful skin. Even with all that had been happening, he felt safe enough with me to completely chill in the car. That meant more to me than he could ever know.

"I am," I replied. "I'm simply worried about how your pride will accept me. And also, I want this investigation over and the guilty brought to justice. You know, the little things."

He smiled. "I know all that. But right now, we are on a drive where we can do nothing but pass the time. And overthinking isn't going to make the time go by any faster. Why not just enjoy the quiet?"

My mate was smart. "Is this the meditation you all speak of?" I asked, sitting up and getting a little more serious.

"Not quite. That kind of meditating would have us wrapped around a tree." He chuckled, and I had a feeling I wasn't the first person he'd had this conversation with. "I wouldn't recommend going into a meditative state while driving—you aren't aware enough of your surroundings.

"I'm simply telling you that going over the facts in your head again and again isn't going to be fruitful. It's best if you let your mind rest and live in the moment, rather than dwelling on the past or worrying about what the future might bring."

As if that were easy to do. "It may take time for me to learn that skill." If it were even possible.

"I'll help you. It's literally my job."

"I'll probably take you up on that." Because if I didn't, my job was going to eat away at me.

We were quiet for a while, until we came upon a small town with a gas station. I pulled in. "We're about halfway," I said. "Might as well fill up, and then we can make the rest of the journey without stopping. Would you like anything to eat or drink?"

Thomas shook his head. "The twins have us stocked up with a cooler along with the baked goods. They even sent us iced coffee, of all things."

I wasn't sure how Steelwick survived pre-twins. Sure they were skilled at their craft and that was great. But it was more than that. They showed us what it meant to give back in an authentic way. It was something we all needed reminding of from time to time.

"Yeah, they've been experimenting with their little machine. They sometimes overdo it." All this fancy coffee stuff was not what I would call their gift. But it was the thought that counted.

"I can't believe the number of baked goods they have," Thomas said. "I guess I expected the place to be smaller. But it's a full-on, full-serve bakery and broaching the land of cafes."

"Right? When I first came I thought they made far too many and that they probably had a lot left over at night. How wrong I was. On most days, they actually sell out. They have to hide the things that are special gifts."

"No kidding?" he said.

"No kidding," I repeated.

I gave him a quick kiss and then got out of the car and went through the process of filling up the tank. As I was waiting for it to fill, the hairs on the back of my neck stood on end, and my cat came forward. I straightened, scanning the area for whatever it was that was prickling my senses. The passenger-side door opened, and Thomas got out and looked around, his eyes narrowing just as mine were.

"You sense what I'm sensing?" he asked.

I wasn't exactly sure what it was, but I sensed it too, as did my beast, and he very much didn't like it. He wanted out, to protect. But we were surrounded by humans. He had to stay right where he was.

"Yes," I replied, not wanting him to sense my fear, and was it ever front and present.

This was not good. This was very not good.

The small town was bustling with activity, at least for a town its size. There were plenty of humans around. Some were getting gas, others grabbing snacks, and some others I had a feeling were kids skipping school and not really having anywhere to go. They ranged between the ages of mid-teens to mid-eighties. But in that entire mix, I sensed no shifters.

Then the wind shifted. There was a shifter, one whose scent I would never forget. One that belonged to the entire reason my mate had come to Steelwick.

"You're probably sensing me," said the man at the pump next to us. He pulled his sunglasses and hat off to reveal his identity.

It was Easton.

I growled.

"Not here, Beckett, not where the humans can see you." His voice was already too loud. It would surely arouse suspicion if we referred to each other as shifters. Regular people didn't do that.

"How did you find us? What do you want?" I asked.

"Well, I figured when I sent Thomas here his little message, he would go running to Steelwick, and he did." Gods, the man was evil. He was reveling in this as if it were the best thing that had ever happened to him. Stalking was what gave him joy. Disgusting.

"But really," Easton continued on, "the cherry on top of this perfect sundae is that he went running straight to you. That, I did not expect."

He turned his attention to my mate. "The alpha who couldn't keep his own brother safe… that's a choice. What do you expect him to be able to do for you, Thomas? You'll be just as safe as Benjamin was, won't you?"

I had to keep remembering that he was baiting us. No good would come of taking it. I needed to keep my head about me, to keep my mate safe. He was all that mattered for the moment. Justice could wait.

"What do you want with us, Easton? Coming out in the open like this is only going to get you caught so you can finally pay for your crimes." I stopped short of threatening to kill him myself. If I did that, people were bound to call the human authorities. That would not end well for us. Even saying as much as I had was risky.

"Oh, I'd have come after you sooner, but I was entangled in a bit of a mess." That piqued my interest, but I doubted he would reveal anything else. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to leave. But I just didn't want to leave without saying goodbye. And I'll see you soon."

"Like hell I'm going to let you leave." I took a step forward, but Thomas was next to me, holding my arm.

"You can't go after him here. He's right. There are too many people close by, and we have no backup." My mate was right. Taking his bait, which I had just told myself not to do, was going to get someone hurt or possibly killed.

"Listen to your mate. He's a smart one." Easton winked, then got back into his vehicle and drove off.

I at least had the sense to memorize the license plate, make, and model. As soon as he was out of sight, I sent that information to Steelwick—they could have a tail on him soon.

Once we were back in the car, I took a deep breath. "I feel like he's five steps ahead of us." Or possibly more.

How had he known we were going to stop here? Yes, it was a logical stop, but it was dependent on how much gas we had to start. Had he been following us the entire time and I missed it? If so, was he the only one? This was going from bad to worse with every thought. I reached out and took my mate's hand, needing his touch to ground me.

"We'll catch up," Thomas said. "Everything's going to be fine."

When he said that, I almost believed him.