He raised his eyebrows but nodded his head towards his office. There was one thing about Chief; he was never dismissive.
“Well, what is it?” he demanded as soon as his door closed.
I didn’t even have Ezra or Apollo for backup. It was just me and the chief, and suddenly, that seemed heavier than I expected.
“Well, you obviously know we found an omega,” I started.
“What the fuck does that have to do with this?” he demanded. The fact that he was cursing at all was telling of how stressful the situation was.
“It has everything to do with this,” I said, voice just as hard. “We noticed some burn scars, but we didn’t know her well enough to demand answers. It’s not just an accident, chief. Her ex tried to burn her alive, and he’s back.”
“He tried to burn her alive?! Then how the hell did he get out of prison.”
“That’s something I’d love to know. I’ve got a name at least.”
He swiveled in his chair towards his computer, hands poised above the keyboard.
“The fact I’m just now hearing this is something we can address later. Right now, I need that name,” he said, voice sharp enough that I winced.
I never asked Bea for permission to share this, but this was one of those situations that it no longer mattered. He was harming our whole town and innocent people, meaning that the chief needed to be in the loop.
“Cameron Tucker, mid-thirties.”
His fingers flew over the keyboard.
“This him?” he asked, gesturing to the screen.
I walked around behind the desk, crossing my arms as I stared into the dead eyes of the man I recognize from the video she showed me. There wasn’t a hint of any emotion in them, it was unsettling.
“That’s him,” I confirmed.
“You don’t have to read this,” he warned me as he pulled open the article. “I’m not going to risk my best men going out there and acting irrationally.”
“I’ll keep it together,” I reassured him. There was no way in hell I was stepping away from the screen. My eyes were alreadyscanning over the article outlining the depth of the pain he caused my omega.
“This went beyond her,” he said. “They tried to pin more onto him, but he always seemed to be covering his tracks.”
“Sounds like what we’re dealing with,” I said. That didn’t fill me with confidence. Though, this time there was an entire town invested as the victim. Bea wasn’t alone and isolated from her family.
He scrolled down and my stomach dropped. This was the detailed description of what he did.
“He locked her in that building he burned down in hopes of killing her.” My voice was shaking with rage, and Chief—honestly—didn’t look much better.
“This boy barely served any fucking time for his crimes,” he finally concluded as he finished the article and looked back at me in shock.
“That’s why she ran,” I said with a sigh, “and I guess he’s found her. Or at least he found the closest city. I don’t know how he managed to show up at the game we were at, especially since we don’t live there. It was a last minute decision.”
“I don’t believe in coincidences,” the chief said. “I don’t think you do, either.”
“This is definitely not a coincidence,” I agreed. “From now on, I think I need one of my men at the shop with her at all times. I can’t leave her unguarded. Not with things escalating so quickly.”
“I understand, son. But if I know anything about omegas, it’s that you can’t push too much, too fast.”
I hated that he was right. Bea was independent. She always had been, and as much as she was scared right now, I knew her patience would wear thin.
This was already complicated, and I feared it was only going to get worse before they found him.
The only thing that calmed my thoughts was that her friends generally had at least one of their pack members around.
