Page 24 of Old Secrets

I showed him my teeth, as wolves talked with their teeth and he would receive the message despite foxes using chitters to express their disdain for something. “I am suffering from a severe lack of fluffy wolf lately.”

“You can shift for her in your room in Japan,” Mellisa said. “They’re aware you both wear fur coats and might transform, so you won’t leave evidence you have to cover up.”

Jake sighed. “If a fluffy wolf is what you want, a fluffy wolf you shall have. But what about my needs? Where is my fluffy fox?”

“You get a fluffy fox at least three times a week, else I get really crabby, you get bitten, and exactly nobody is happy,” I reminded him.

“That seems insufficient. I demand four times a week now at a minimum, and one of those days a week, we need to be snuggled together near a campfire.”

“Maybe we should have the house renovated so we have a fireplace,” I muttered.

“We’d have to buy a new house for a fireplace. It’s not structurally sound for one.” Jake sighed.

“That implies you thought about it.”

“Well, after seeing how much you like fireplaces, I may have asked my dad to check. The house isn’t compatible with fireplaces unless we add on an addition, and our house is not really designed to have an addition without it looking idiotic.” Wrinkling his nose, my husband dug out his phone, tapped at a screen, and showed me a rendering, which proved his point. “I was really trying, too.”

“We could just sell the house and get a house with a fireplace.”

“I’m game for that. Mellisa?”

“It would be good for you. Karma won’t have any of the negative memories associated with the new home, and neither would you. Amelia? Feel like house hunting before you get so bored you want to vomit?”

“I ran out of things to do,” the Fenerec admitted. “I have trouble living in houses, but I do like looking for them. Which state?”

I eyed Jake. “Somewhere near a mountain?”

“On or near a mountain. Get Inquisition clearance for the area before setting us up for crippling disappointment. Karma really likes mountains. I’ll text you with our tentative budget, as I’d rather not lose a day or two battling with Karma over it.”

I hadn’t known how much I liked mountains until we’d roamed a while, but I refused to be ashamed of it. “Maybe the west coast? They have big mountains. I agree with excluding me from the budget issues. I’m still having problems processing that memory lapse.”

“It’s fine, Karma,” Mellisa said. “I know it bothers you, but there are sound psychological reasons why you’re suffering from a memory lapse. Just focus on what you’d like in a home and communicate that to Jake. He can handle the financial elements, and the Inquisition will probably offer financial assistance, especially considering the circumstances.”

I could work with that, so I nodded.

Jake grinned at Mellisa and Amelia. “Nothing makes her happier than deep snow and the cold, it’s true. Her fox likes it, too.”

“That definitely supports her coming from Tibet. They have plentiful snow and tall mountains. I’ll see what I can do.” Amelia bounced off and left our suite.

“On that happy note, I’ll leave you two to continue investigating. I’ll get on the phone with someone in the Inquisition and see if I can find out more about the murders associated with the Henry case. I have my doubts, but I might be able to get a better task force assigned to that work now that we’re beginning to put together facts. I’ll also have them search for any cases similar. Maybe we’ll come up with something new.”

We could only hope. “Do you think we’re ever going to get to the bottom of this case, Mellisa?”

“We will.”

“Why are you so confident?”

“Even smart criminals make mistakes, and their key mistake was choosing to continue to pursue you. First, they now have to contend with Jake—a Jake who has almost lost you twice now. And while you may still hold a grudge against his parents, they have more bones to pick with them than you do. And that’s saying a lot.”

“Really.” I raised both brows, wondering how—and when—that had happened.

“While Pauline’s initial behavior was not appropriate or conducive to a good family environment, she is an Alpha, she has decided you are part of her pack. While she’s made more mistakes than most, her pride as an Alpha has been stung. Above that, she is a mother, and these people tried to kill her son. Her status as a mother is going to be a major driving force in her involvement. They turned your ma against you. She will never forgive that, and she will destroy their empire until not even the foundation remains. Once they are identified, your pack will get hunting rights. The problem will disappear.”

“Jake?”

My husband shrugged. “She’s probably right. If someone even looks at you wrong right now, my wolf is ready to tear them to pieces. The instant someone points a gun at you? I’ll be tearing them apart, probably with my bare hands. If I’m in wolf form should this happen? Well, my hands do a lot less damage than my teeth and claws. I’m not nearly as aggressive as my mother or my father. While I’m classified as a moderate dominant, I have certain submissive tendencies, which mean I realistically won’t be taking over any pack.”

I considered my husband with interest. “Is submissive another word for lazy? Or perhaps someone who enjoys being pampered? Otherwise, you don’t seem all that submissive to me.”