Dean stood at the railing looking down as he watched Lucy run from the study and he made eye contact with Jerome. “Make sure the enforcers on guard here know to escort her out of the packhouse. I don’t want her cropping up in a place where she no longer belongs.” “Yes, Alpha. I was just in the process. What is going on? It’s like everyone has gone crazy.” Jerome muttered this more than expected an answer. Something was bothering Dean since Lucy opened her mouth. She’d always been a female who found talking and acting dirty a turn on, but he’d stopped feeling it. Right when? That business trip, the one that went belly up and was a complete failure. He’d gone to talk to a druid who wanted to bring a horticultural business to the area. The druid was very strange when they met for drinks. He’d insisted on Dean going to him and they had drinks in the hotel bar. Something was wrong with that, and he should have known about it. He muttered all sorts of str
Dean sat there and all but ignore the protests and threats he received from several of the Elders. Once they’d run out of righteous anger and quieted down, then he continued. “I have received nothing but hate, excuses, and insults in the last few months from the Council of Elders. Then add in the threats and demands that I do specific things that go against my sense and sensibilities. Several messages I’ve received reach far out of your place within the pack and on this council. It’s becoming dangerous for people. I also have noticed that none have asked about one of your long-standing members. Elder Evans is sadly not in good shape. He’s survived surgery, but that’s only temporary. Someone has been providing him with Lycan blood that he’s been injecting into himself. That blood he’s been using hasn’t turned him into a Lycan, instead has damaged most of the organs within his body beyond repair. That includes his brain, all because the Lycan blood was not compatible w
Dean stalked from the building and headed toward the packhouse when he heard a woman’s voice calling from behind him. He knew it was Elder Rutledge calling him, and he turned to watch her catch up with him. “Thank you. I couldn’t say anything to you, but you figured out enough on your own to do the right thing. I’ll make sure that they do everything you have demanded. How is Kiera? No one asked about Elder Evans, but no one asked about her either.” This made him feel better. She was the one elder he felt he could trust. “She’s almost healed enough to come back and then we’ll plan our mating ceremony after that. Right now I need to get onto tracking down a specific disreputable druid.” “A disreputable druid? I have an old friend who might have a son that can help with that. He’s an investigator and as long as you don’t ask too many questions, he gets results.” Dean looked seriously at the elder for a moment. “Do you think he can get results
After that, Dean went to retrieve Kiera from the healing centre. He didn’t like her being there for this long. It didn’t matter that she needed to heal; he didn’t trust that one healer. That’s when he wondered. He speculated whether the healer was related to the druid they were looking for. The healer’s words were so lacking in empathy. Dean feared two polar opposite things, and so he put the guards there while he was gone. That healer either worked with the black market rogue druid, and Kiera wasn’t safe there. Or Dean was seeing conspiracies everywhere that didn’t exist. Could anyone fault him since everything appeared so complicated currently if he was seeing false conspiracies? His father, the wolf, was an enigma. No one would speak about him. Dean had to admit that he’d not tried now that he had a name to find out more about him. That’s when he thought of his uncle’s old files. He kept notes on the pack’s members, all on paper. His unc
Dean helped Kiera into the packhouse with surprising help from other members. From carrying her bag to hold doors open. Others greeted them both. Something changed, and the gossip was as strong as ever it appeared. Kiera sat in the sitting room across from Dean’s study. Someone left them a meal in there to share. It’s been hard to find time to eat. But now, with Kiera home, angry or not with him, Dean was happy. “You really suspended the Council of Elders? Dean, that’s crazy. You need to fix that. There’s a reason all packs have a council.” “I know and I will once. I’m sure they are all fit to represent the pack members’ interests. I would listen if I knew they made sense. But I can’t listen to them if I can’t be sure that they’re compromised and could endanger themselves or others.” “You really believe they are a potential danger to the pack? All of them or one or two?” “One or two, but I have to be fair across the board. If they aren’t inv
Kiera noticed Jerome at the entrance of the sitting room. He had a file in his hand, and he tapped the palm of his other hand. She could see his mind racing over something in his head as he hesitated there in the doorway. That must be the file Dean mentioned, and Jerome must have read it. Whatever was in it didn’t bode well for Dean’s temperament. Kiera was debating whether she should excuse herself or stay for this. Jerome decided for her, and the male entered handed the file without a word to Dean. Without a word, he all but fled the room before Dean could thank him for it. That wasn’t a suspicious in the least. For a wolf, he was a coward sometimes. Why Dean used him in the office when he was desperate confused her. But it wasn’t her business. What really confused her was that the coward was supposed to be an enforcer but couldn’t handle giving a little bad news. “What’s that exactly, Dean?” “My uncle’s file on my father. It must be bad if Jerome
“That’s why you pulled it. To figure out why your father had the Druid cast the spell and later remove it. You aren’t curious about him in any way?” “I’m curious about a lot of things, but I doubt I’ll find all the answers I want. But if I can understand the reason, he is this, I would at least have something to go on. There’s no forgiving him for whatever reason I find out. He wasn’t here to raise either myself or James. Our mothers would never speak of him, so I highly doubt he treated either well.” “True, I know how your mother would clam up when you asked about him. She wouldn’t even tell you, his name. Fine, why not open in and pull the proverbial band aid off? See if there’s anything in there about all of this. I don’t understand why your uncle said nothing about it.” “He claimed he didn’t know the facts. I get the feeling he suspected something but didn’t want to say because he wasn’t sure. She was his younger sister, after all.” Kiera made a
“What are you doing, Trisha?” James came into their room to see Trisha packing a large bag. They were going for the day at most. She didn’t need a bag for anything. “It’s simple. I know you two. You’re seeing Dean for the first time in person since you two had that encounter with that druid. I’m not crazy. One or both of you will fall back into old habits. You’ll both argue, there might be a fist or two thrown. But I won’t let it get farther than that.” She held up a small spray bottle. “What is that?” “This happens when there are too many males in one space and a girl needs to get some peace and quiet. Humans have pepper spray, I have peppermint spray. It’s icy all the time and if you nail the right spot. Well, it’s either a mood enhancer or a mood killer. Then this is my cinnamon version. Let’s just say eyes are the key and never use on humans.” “You are sick, and you can forget taking that bag with you if that’s what you are carrying. I