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Joey had scraped together a down payment on the fifty grand. The rest he'd get from liquidating his retirement funds. He was supposed to meet Tesler yesterday morning. That's when we'd intercepted him at work. His meeting with the Teslers hadn't been until lunch, but Joey feared they were watching, so he'd brushed Clay off. His instinct had been right and the gang had then followed our trail back to our hotel and had their fun there while we were out.
After our encounter with the Teslers, and Dan's presumed death, Eddie had called Joey back with a new demand. Get rid of us or all negotiations were off.
WE GOT EVERYTHING we could from Joey. It took a while, and by the end of it, he was exhausted by the constant questions. He took a rest while Clay headed outside to scout for any sign of the mutts, and I went to a quiet place downstairs and made phone calls.
I started with Jeremy, updating him and getting his opinion. Then I spoke to the kids. Their patience with their gallivanting parents was again growing thin. They wanted us home. And, talking to them, I wanted to be home. So I kept it short with promises that both Daddy and I would call again before bed and talk to them more.
Next I called Nick. Again, I began with an update.
"Sounds like you two might need some help," he said when I finished.
"We're considering it," I said. "Jaime is staying longer at Stone-haven, in case Jeremy needs to take off, and Jeremy's told Karl to be ready to fly. For now, though, just keep your schedule clear. We don't want to spook these guys by having the whole Pack descend on Anchorage."
"Or they might decide to cut their losses with their hostage."
"Exactly."
"So you think he's still alive? Joey's boy?"
"Joey hasn't heard from him in two days. I can only hope they want the ransom too badly to risk killing him."
"I'm still finding it hard to believe Joey has a teenage son. He's old enough--it's just hard to picture Joey as a middle-aged guy. I picture the kid who left our place twenty-five years ago. It sounds like he's changed, though--and not just his age."
"Clay says so."
A moment of silence.
"Speaking of young werewolves," I said. "How's Reese settling in?"
"Good so far. You were right about giving him chores. I didn't want to--with his hand and all--but Antonio figured you had a point, and gave him some work to do on the grounds, early spring cleanup. That really helped. Reese has stopped eyeing the door, ready to make a break for it."
"Paying his dues. He'll be happier with that. So how is it going otherwise? You seemed nervous about having him there."
"We're being careful. We're not about to give a stranger full run of the house, not when he could obviously use a few bucks. I've been working from home, so someone's always with him, but he hasn't given us any reason to worry. I even thought I'd take him out tonight. Got a party. He might like that. Get his mind off things."
"Next thing you know, you'll be lining up double dates."
"I've already got one for Saturday. Oh, did you mean give him one of my dates? I don't like the kid that much. But I'm hoping the party will cheer him up."
"Is he depressed about his hand?"
"He's not thrilled about it, but there's more. Have you got a dossier on him?"
"A very thin one. He only hit our radar after the problems with Liam and Ramon. All I know is that he's from Australia. Or New Zealand. I never did quite pin it down. Why?"
"I'm trying to figure the kid out. He's been asking me and Antonio about the rules for mutts--where they can live, whether they can get a job, how long they can stay in one city. If we mention the possibility of him going home, he shuts down."
"Something happened. I know that, but I have no idea what. It could be that he killed someone or came close. It seems more personal, though."
"No, I agree. He does mention his family, parents."
"His father, you mean?"
"No, I'm pretty sure both parents are in the picture."
Reese wasn't a bitten werewolf, so to hear that he may have grown up with both parents was a surprise. That's rare enough that I'd only heard of one case in the United States--a mutt with a wife and kids--but he stayed so far under our radar that I'd never been able to confirm the story.
"You think it has something to do with his family, then?" I asked.
