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Liam steps inside and Everett follows, as if he’s stalking prey.
I close the front door on the Betas who are still waiting outside the gates, and then I follow the men into the lounge.
Liam turns to us, one arm resting on the now cleared out bar.
“I don’t know about you two, but I’d like to deal with this problem as amicably as possible,” he tells us, which makes him sound nothing more than reasonable. Not at all like a man who plotted to steal another pack’s Omega.
“Well, that might be easier said than done,” I tell him, a hint of warning in my voice.
Everett doesn’t trust himself to speak. I can see that when I look at him.
I’m in charge here, and I’m not going to let this man take what’s ours.
Liam gives me a look I can’t quite read. “I’m not here looking for trouble. My pack were in the area last night and one of our own was attacked on land that apparently belongs to yours. While that puts us in the wrong, trespassing and such, Alyssa didn’t know and she nothing to provoke this attack. Had your wolf warned her off, she would have gone back and told the others they had to leave. There was no need to kill her.”
“That’s just it,” I tell him. “Oscar didn’t kill anyone. I don’t know what happened out there, but he didn’t touch that girl.”
I watch his face carefully, surprised when an expression of relief emerges.
“You don’t know how glad it would make me to go back with proof that your shifter is innocent,” he says. “How do you know he didn’t kill her?”
“What proof do you have that links anything to us?” I ask, turning it around because my proof isn’t demonstratable. Oscar’s teeth were clean. He didn’t ingest any blood. I can’t prove either of those things in a way that would satisfy this Alpha enough to make him leave.
He laughs lightly. “My pack found him lying beside their dead sister. He was covered in her blood. It wasn’t a difficult conclusion to reach.”
“He didn’t bite her,” I tell him. “There was no blood on his teeth or in his mouth. His fingers were clean too. So, how exactly is he supposed to have killed her?”
“Sorry if it seems rude, but we only have your word for that.”
“Magic could be used to reveal the true culprit of the crime,” I tell him, thinking it over carefully once the suggestion is made. I don’t know the spell, but I’ve heard it can be done. Rachel might be able to help with it. She’s been way more advanced than me for a long time.
A spell to reveal the truth would unmask their deception. It would put them at our mercy, turning the tables for a reversal of fortunes that works in our favor.
“You’re part witch,” Liam says. “It’s an interesting prospect, I’ll give you that much, but it’s not one we could accept. We don’t believe in pack witches, and you couldn’t be trusted to cast such a spell when it puts you at an advantage.”
“Then we bring in someone who can be trusted,” I suggest, knowing it would mean contacting the Council of Witches. I watch his expression carefully. If he’s an honest person, he won’t flinch at the idea of getting the supernatural authorities involved.
He nods slowly after a few seconds of thought. “If we’re all in agreement here, I’ll contact the Witches Council. We can each bring in an independent witch to test the spell she casts, but that seems like the fairest way to make sure we get this right. I’m sure we all want to get to the bottom of it so we can move on.”
He sounds sincere. I can only hope his pack acted without his knowledge. If that’s what this is, the spell will show him who he can’t trust, and it won’t have a damned thing to do with us.
That’s our best-case scenario here.
“Agreed,” I tell him, glancing at Everett. He nods, but he’s still too agitated to talk.
“I’ll give them a call, right now,” Liam says, taking out his phone.
He moves to the end of the bar as he looks through his contacts list.
The call barely takes two minutes once he gets through.
I listen, and he’s not saying anything he didn’t already say to us.
Maybe he really is genuine. It would be a shock, but a nice one, for a change.
He hangs up and puts the phone in his pocket as he walks back toward us.
“We’re all set. This time tomorrow, right here,” he says. “You’ll get a message from them separately to confirm. I’ll head back home, and don’t you worry one little bit. I’ve already told the unhappy campers to move along. They know this is your territory now and they won’t be trespassing anymore.”
