“Do we have search warrants?”
“You will by the time we have everyone together.” Arlington looked ready to end the call and get things rolling. Michael was right there with him.
“Curtis and I will be there as soon as we can,” Alpha Wallace added.
“Don’t you have your full moon run?”
“While we do enjoy a good run on the full moon, the mandated two hours are required by human law. Contrary to popular belief, we don’t actually lose complete control and turn into mindless animals if we don’t do it.” She sighed. “But I don’t want to find myself on the wrong side of the SCTF, so we’ll have our run early and join you this evening. If that’s acceptable?”
Michael didn’t think she was actually asking for permission, but Arlington replied with the expected. “Of course. Your help in this will be greatly appreciated.”
“I realise you and your men might be wary of working with shifters on a full moon night. But in light of what you might find in your search, I would recommend involving the members of the Clapham Common pack who you’ve been working with. Alpha Thomas is an excellent alpha. His control will be good, as will be that of his pack.”
“I’ll take that into consideration.”
“See that you do, Detective Chief Inspector. If Wilson has been held captive for all this time, there’s no telling what state he might be in when you find him.”
“Understood.”
“We’ll let you know when we’re on our way to London. Please keep us updated in the meantime.”
“Of course.”
They ended the call.
“Fucking hell.” Frank blew out a breath and sat back in his chair, hands clasped behind his head.
“Quite.” Arlington glanced between Michael and Frank. “Get hold of the whole team and have them meet downstairs in the biggest room we’ve got. I’m going to get us some non-shifter help.”
“Miller?
“Yes, among others. We’ll pair them off with SCTF officers because I don’t want anyone underestimating what we’re up against.”
Michael hesitated in asking his next question. Not sure what he wanted the answer to be. “What about Alpha Thomas and his pack? Are we involving them in this?”
Frowning, Arlington drummed his fingers on his desk. “I tend to agree with Alpha Wallace. Wilson could be in any state by now, and I’d rather have a couple of shifters with us if and when we find him.”
Michael knew there was abutcoming.
“But I can’t see anyone we get from the City or Met being keen to work with shifters on a full moon. Can you?”
Since Michael wasn’t sure how he felt about it, and he’d worked alongside shifters a lot in the past few years, he couldn’t see others being too keen. “Probably not.”
“Our priority is finding Smith before he changes. And according to the council, that could be anytime from seven this evening.” All three of them glanced at the clock on Arlington’s wall. “That gives us just under seven hours to try and find him, because I don’t want to have to deal with Smith as a shifter.”
Neither did anyone else, he’d hazard a guess.
“So,” Arlington continued. “For now, call Thomas, update him on where we are with the case, and ask if he’d be willing to assist us if we locate Wilson. See if he can get Harper and Nash to do their run early. The Met and City boys might feel better knowing they’ve already run it out of their system.”
Alpha Wallace’s words rang in his head. Aaron was probably no more prone to violence during the full moon than he was any other time, but public perception was a hard thing to alter, and those laws were there for human peace of mind more than anything else. “Yes, sir.”
Arlington gave them both a look, which was as good as a dismissal, and they hurried out of his office to get things in motion.
CHAPTER SIXTEEN
Aaron stretched out his arms, working the muscles, but the tension in him refused to ease. The days of the full moon weren’t usually this bad; there was just something about today that unsettled both him and his wolf. Something in the air that wasn’t quite right.
“For fuck’s sake, sit down.” Harry lounged on Aaron’s sofa watching him pace. “We’ve got hours yet.”
