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Hell, I hadn’t even accused his brother’s pack of anything. Havingone wolfamong hundreds wasn’t exactly something Remus himself could control — not in my opinion, anyway. There were bad people in the world. Some people ended up that way due to what happened to them throughout their life… but some people just weren’t good. That’s just the way it was. It wasn’t anyone’s fault.
A knock at the door stirred me from my thoughts, and I paused, setting my pen down. I hadn’t written anything in the past few moments anyway, but… I knew who was at the door. My wolf had barely stirred from her sluggish sleep, but I didn’t need her extra senses to know who was there. I sighed, staring at the heavy metal door for a few moments before getting to my feet.
At least he isn’t trying to knock the door down.
When I opened the door, I knew it would be Eli standing there — no one else knew where I was staying — but it still surprised me to see him standing there. I had been… well, I’d been harsh on him earlier. Someone calling me ‘crazy’ or ‘paranoid’ wasn’t new — frankly, I’d heard a lot worse in my line of work. This was the biggest, most outlandish thing I’d ever encountered, and I was still struggling to believe it myself, but…
For some reason, his dismissal rubbed me the wrong way. Even my wolf had been irritated enough to make herself known, however faint, which was a rare feat. That made me uncomfortable since she stirred so infrequently, and when she did, it was usually because something bad was about to happen. Sometimes just her presence gave me anxiety. That fact made me feel guilty, and it all just snowballed into… freaking out a little bit. There was a reason I generally didn’t associate with other wolves. I didn’t know what to do around them.
Maybe that’s why I opened the door a little more for him. I didn’t feelbad,but… I could have behaved better. Yeah. That was it.
“Eli,” I greeted him, hovering in the doorframe.
He stood there, looking a little surprised that I opened the door for him. Neither of us said anything for several moments, and eventually, he cleared his throat. “Can I come in?”
I raised a brow before nodding, stepping back to open the door for him.
Once inside, he closed the door and turned to face me. “Look… I wanted to apologize for how I acted earlier,” Eli said, running his hand through his dark hair. I hadn’t noticed how thick and glossy it was before, but he looked like he could model for a shampoo brand. Hell, he looked like he could model for anything when he wasn’t scowling. His face was pretty handsome when it wasn’t twisted into a permanent scowl. “Your… theory really shocked me, but I shouldn’t have called you names.” He grimaced and looked at me. “I shouldn’t have come into your room without asking first, either. I’m sorry for all of that.”
I blinked, a bit shocked to hear those words come out of his mouth — but even more than that, those steely blue eyes actually held a look of remorse. If he was acting — and I really didn’t think so, given how easily I could read his expressions earlier — he deserved an award. “I— Thank you,” I said. My brain felt sticky. Slow.When was the last time someone apologized to me? For anything?
I felt totally off-kilter.
“You have to admit the entire thing sounds… well, farfetched,” he said, offering me a half-hearted smile.
“The truth is often stranger than fiction,” I replied, shrugging my shoulders. I racked my brain, trying to force it back into working order. “I… look, if it makes you feel any better, I thought I was helping a client find a runaway sister. I didnotexpect it to blow up like…” I waved my hand in the direction of my brainstorming wall, “…this.”
Eli looked over at the wall and grimaced, fishing the photo of Ashley he’d taken from me earlier out of his pocket. “I brought this back,” he replied, looking a bit sheepish. “I didn’t mean to take it.” He held the clipping from the local newspaper out.
I took the paper, smoothing her face out. “I kicked you out,” I replied, turning to return Ashley to her place on the wall. I sighed, shoulders slumping a little at the entire group.So many wolves…
“Anyway, I am still struggling to believe that the humans know, and more importantly, that another wolf sold these people out, but… if it’s true… if there’s a military project… if theyknow…” Eli shook his head, cutting off his rambling train of thought. “I can’t ignore that as a possibility, and I’d like to help if you’ll let me.”
I blinked, stunned into silence for the second time in the last ten minutes. “I…” I gave myself a shake, trying to will my brain back into functioning form. If nothing else, I was impressed the man had realized he’d done wrong, and had the guts to come back and apologize for it.
More than that, he was offering his help. Eli definitely had more connections than I did; his father was a pack alpha. He was also related to the Silverstreak pack alpha, even though I wasn’t entirely sure how close they were. It wasn’t something I was willing to ask. It would be easier for him to get into social circles and situations that I would struggle to get into. They ran a successful business, which also afforded him more resources. I didn’t love the idea, but… this wasn’t about me. If Eli could smooth the way and help us uncover details faster, that could only mean good things for Ashley and Cyn both. Time was of the essence — for both of them.
I cleared my throat and gathered my thoughts. “First of all, I should apologize too. I could have handled that better. I shouldn’t have yelled. I’m sorry for what I said.” Eli shouldn’t have let himself in, so I wouldn’t apologize for kicking him out, but… I didn’t need to tell him off like that. I didn’t have to make a jab at his dad, either. “But… if you really do want to help, I won’t say no.”
I still couldn’t quite believe he would want to.
Eli’s face brightened. “Yeah?”
“Yeah.” I offered a tiny smile of my own.
“Great! I made a stop on my way over here. I brought burgers — then I didn’t want to seem presumptive, so I left them in my car. You want me to go get them?”
It was my turn to brighten up. My stomach growled. “Absolutely! Bacon cheeseburgers, by any chance?”
Eli laughed — he actuallylaughed— and it was a gentle, musical noise. My wolf stirred again and I forcibly ignored her, not wanting to ruin the moment. “Of course they are. I’ve never met a shifter who didn’t like one.”
I clearedoff my tiny table while Eli returned to his car. His offering didn’t include just a burger but fries and a Coke, too. I would have been happy to sit there and eat in silence, savoring every bite, but Eli had questions.
It was easy to lay out what I’d explained earlier, just giving a little more detail between mouthfuls. The serial killer story gave him pause, his dark brows pushing together. “Wait — you’re telling me that people actually think there’s a ghost trying to come back to life?”
I shrugged. “Look, life is hard when you don’t have a permanent home.”Don’t ask me how I know.“Sometimes people come up with stories to help them cope with the disappearance of a friend — and those stories usually evolve each time they get shared, just like any other story.”
Eli pursed his lips. “I guess so,” he relented. “But you found the government project in the building, not the killer?”
