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“Can you get a fingerprint from it?” I ask, while searching the room for other clues. I really don’t want to look at the body again. Seeing Chad with his eyes open and nothing behind them creeps me out.
“I’m not sure we have the equipment to pull that off here. We’ll have to send it off to the lab.” A pained expression flashes across Jedrik’s face, like he thinks he’s letting me down with that answer.
“Did you guys have any luck?” Andrik asks, moving to stand next to me. When he’s by my side, he bends to brush a kiss against my lips. The comforting touch makes me realize how stressed I am. My emotions are being shoved into a box that’s about to burst. It makes me miss Ry even more. This is something he would’ve realized a while ago and taken care of it before I had the chance.
Suddenly, my eyes fill with tears, and I want nothing more than to hide in my nest and cry for the next week. “Precious, what’s wrong?” Andrik wraps his arms around me, and I bury my head in his broad chest.
Not even a second passes before the rest of my alphas are standing around me, their purrs working to relax me. “I want Ryland.” On his name, my voice cracks and I can’t stop the dam of tears from breaking. Wracking sobs shake my body, making my alphas more concerned.
“The newest murder does clear his name,” Jedrik points out.
“I’ll take her to her room. You clear it with Mrs. Violet and release Ryland. Emmett, can you take care of transporting the body and gathering the evidence from it?” Andrik swoops me into his arms, and I silently cry into the crook of his neck. Now that I’ve started, it’s like I can’t stop.
“I’ll take care of it,” Emmett confirms.
We walk from the room, Kyle keeping pace with us. I know he opens the doors we pass through, but other than that, I don’t pay much attention to what’s going on around me.
“Shh, Precious. We’ve got you,” Andrik says with a softness to his tone. “Can I put you in your nest? Would you like me to stay with you?” The fact that he’s asking before getting close to my nest seems to lift some of the weight pressing in on me.
Unwilling to trust my voice, I nod, and knowing how respectful Kyle is too, I reach my arm out and grasp his shirt, thankful that he’s standing close enough. “Okay, sweetheart, I’ll come with.” I sigh, thankful he didn’t use my normal nickname. I’m not sure I can handle hearing it when it’s so close to what Ry calls me.
Andrik lowers me into my nest and cradles me into his chest, and shortly after, Kyle presses himself against my back. His fingers thread through my hair, massaging my scalp. My eyelids flutter closed, and I relax into the comfort of my nest while tears stream down my face.
Both alphas purr, and I focus on the sound, trying to lose myself until Ry is back with me. They whisper comforting words that I don’t process, but am grateful for all the same.
I’m not sure how much time passes, but the next thing I know is the smell of champagne. I don’t trust it at first, not until my alphas draw away from me, and the warm familiar arms of Ryland pick me up. He cradles me on his lap, rocking me back and forth.
“I’m here, Ver Bear. I’m here,” he whispers into my hair. It takes a moment for the truth to sink in, for me to believe he’s really here holding me. Slowly, my tears dry, and I’m able to wrap my arms around his neck, squeezing him so tight he wheezes. But he never says anything about me loosening my hold.
“You’re back,” I choke out, drawing away so I can see him.
“I am, Ver Bear. I fucking missed you,” he says with a huge smile. I clasp his face with both hands and smoosh our lips together, desperate to taste him again. It feels like it’s been a million years. He slants his head, deepening the kiss, making all my sleepless nights disappear.
When we separate, I nuzzle my nose into his neck, needing to take deep inhales of his champagne. I’ve grown so used to my pears being mixed in with his scent, it’s odd to find it missing now. I hate that he doesn’t smell like me, and can’t help but rub my cheek against his neck and face on both sides.
The sound of his laugh rings out, making my heart feel lighter. Fuck, I’ve missed him. “Never leave me again.”
He grips the back of my neck and presses our foreheads together. “Never again, Ver Bear. I hated being away from you.”
“What the hell happened? Why did you and Matthew get in a fight? That’s really not like you.”
He takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. Clearly getting heated simply thinking about whatever it is. “Matthew was a sorry excuse for an alpha. He came in trash talking you, which I could have ignored, in fact, I was ignoring it. But when I went to bend over and fill my plate, my necklace fell out of my collar and was dangling in front of me.”
He reaches for his neck like he wants to hold the coin in his hand, and frowns, suddenly remembering it’s gone. “He called me—you know what, it’s not worth repeating. But he ended up grabbing onto it and ripping it off my neck, then threw it across the room. That’s when I punched him.”
“Huh, we saw him reach out on the surveillance feed, but couldn’t tell what happened,” I hear Andrik say from somewhere in the room.
“I knew I had to walk away, that he wasn’t worth losing my cool,” Ry continues. “I figured I’d go back later to find my necklace, but never got the chance. It’s probably lost now.”
I reach underneath my shirt and pull out the coin attached to the chain.
His eyes go wide before they get a little misty. “You found it.”
“I did,” I tell him, unclasping the hook before reattaching it around his neck. His hand automatically reaches for it. “I found it next to the body.”
“What?” The word is voiced by more than just Ryland.
Andrik moves to stand next to my nest, towering over us. “I must’ve heard that wrong. Can you repeat what you said?”
