Elliot sighs. “Right, I’ll get him food. You finish up here.” He ducks out of my arms.
I watch him walk away. Right, making dinner. That’s what we’re doing. We can continue later. I have to tell him about the new case before he's too sleepy to talk anyway. I only have one and a half hours of fully awake Elliot to do that.
Putting a spring in my step, I quickly chop all the veggies for the salad, then toss them with the dressing. I plate it and bring it to the living room, where Elliot is now sitting with the television on. “I put on the episode where we left off,” he says.
I take a second to admire his casual demeanor, but his eyes give away how much he cares. They always do.
He tilts his head. “What?”
I shake my head and walk to him. He plays the episode as soon as I’ve put the plates down. I take the remote from him and pause it. “I actually wanted to talk to you about something.”
He turns towards me. “Yeah?” He looks at me with a worried expression, like he’s bracing for something.
That confuses me. “Uh… So the meeting I had the other day was about a murder.”
His shoulders visibly relax at my words. “Okay?”
“A werewolf found dead in his home.” I keep my plate down too. What was I thinking, breaking the news over dinner? This wasnota dinner-table conversation.
His perpetual frown gets deeper. “What are you saying, Nicholas?” His voice is low.
“They found Valmeron and Myocardiner in his system.”
His eyes go wide. “What?” It comes out barely a whisper. “How is that possible?”
“I’m trying to figure that out. But I wanted you to know—”
“I stopped. Iswearit wasn’t me. I stopped after Arizona—”
Closing the gap between us, I grab his arms. “I know. Hey.Hey, I know, okay? I’ll find out who it was.”
He stands up and starts pacing the living room. “How could this even be happening? No one even knew they were murdered. How can someone copy murders that weren’t reported as murders?”
My gaze follows him as he walks frantically. “The agents are on it, and I’m spending all my time on this case. Don’t worry, I promise—”
“I need to call Sam.” He almost runs to the kitchen where he presumably left his phone.
“Of course, you do,” I say under my breath, only half-snarky. In my defense, that wasn’t the reaction I expected. Alright, he wasn’t going to crumple in my arms, letting me protect him from the world. But running straight to Sam?
I have an entire tech team on my side. What can Sam add to the investigation?Sure, he needs to know about this because he was the other half of the Vigilante Wolf Hunter, and someone is imitating him too.Fine, he’s known Elliot longer, and talking to him will comfort him… okay, I’m being an asshole.
Sighing, I follow Elliot and hear him talking to the man I’m suddenly jealous of.
Elliot is disconnecting the call when I reach him. He turns to face me, looking visibly calmer than he did a minute ago. “He’s on his way. Would it be alright if we discuss ittogether?”
He looks so hopeful, there’s no way I can say no. “I don’t mind telling him about the Bureau if you trust him to keep the secret?” I have enough dirt on him to keep him quiet either way.
Elliot nods. “He won’t tell anyone.”
Chapter Five
Flustered Moments, Fresh Theories, and Favorable Outcomes
Elliot
How can this be happening? It doesn’t make any sense. I thought this was over. A lucky break that didn’t come easily. But it did, and I was ready to move on. I was supposed to find Raymond, kill him, and try to find a way to live a good life.
No one was ever supposed to know about our little operation. Then there was this entire team that didn’t just know about all of them but was actively looking for me. And now, there’s another murderer? If I were spiritual, I’d have believed this was a sign I’m never supposed to get out. Never be happy.
