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But will you tell her that you’re responsible for sending one of her children to an early grave?Somehow I very much doubted that.
I gave her a bland smile and couldn’t resist threading my arm through Finn’s arm as we walked away. Giving a clear signal that we were now united. This woman belonged to a fanatical group intent on bringing the Donnelly leadership of the St. Louis Shadow Wolves to a grisly end. They also seemed interested in hurting or even deposing my grandmother, willing to let me live as Beacon if bonded to a Shifter oftheirchoosing. No doubt because I was very publicly the Sheridan black sheep in Muriel’s eyes.
But I’d be damned if I would ever letanyoneuse me as a pawn. I wasusedto being the family outcast. For better or worse, these three Shadow Wolves now had my loyalty. I may not have chosen this fate, despite Kayleigh seeming so eager for me to give them a chance beyond our ill-fated one-night stand. But we were now inextricably united, and St. Louis wasourcity to save.
And as far as I was concerned, my sister’s killers were now just dead people walking...
Ava
That grief and rage-fueled certainty lasted approximately half the distance to the doorway where Shea and Connor waited with several guardians flanking them. It took that long for all increasingly louder whispers and mutters to break through my self-righteous fog.
“Look at her hanging on that one’s arm while the other two wait by the door. Who stood to gain the most from tonight’s murders, I ask you?”
“Ofcourseshe had nothing to do with her sister’s murder. That one’snothinglike her grandmother.”
“WellIhave it on very good authority she’s been fucking all three of those wolves for years. And now suddenly the only ones standing between them and power are violently assassinated? How convenient.”
“Bloody ridiculous rumor if you ask me. She was banished because she told the Dragon Ladyno. Why would she have her own sister murdered to rule St. Louis when her grandmother wanted her to be Beacon of D freaking C?”
“Look at all that blood on her clothes. What was that Lady Macbeth said?Out damned spot!Not enough magical bleach in the world for that...”
Finn must have heard the rumors swirling around us, because he pulled me closer and scowled in every direction. Sending most of the gossips scurrying back as far as they could get. A little surprising from the man who’d snarled an accusation every bit as vile just a few months ago.
As if he’d heard my thoughts—which was impossible—he muttered, “Bunch of fucking vultures believing every damn thing they hear.”
I twisted my lips sardonically and shot him a side-eyed glance. “Yes, it’s so frustrating whenfucking vulturesjust assume things about me based upon my grandmother. Who I most definitely didn’t ask to be related to, thank you very much.”
That had Finn flinching and taking a steadying breath. Something that had uneasiness shooting through me. Was it possibleIactually had the power to hurthimwith my words? Somehow that seemed even harder to believe than that he might be feeling protective over me.Thatpossibility could no doubt be tied to the fact we were now magically bound as leaders of this Pack. Surely nothing more.
Much as part of me might still, even after what he’d said, desperately wish otherwise.
By that point, we had nearly reached the doorway where his brothers waited. Finn shot me an inscrutable look and muttered, “I fucked up, Ava. I know that. Can we talk about the shit I said to you New Year’s Day?”
My breath caught as we closed the last few steps. I considered his words, despite stubborn pride that had me wanting to say something hurtful. The wise part of me pointed out that might make for a verylongnext few decades tied to his frustrating ass. So I bit back the angry words and murmured, “Later. Once we’ve secured justice—and peace—for our Pack.”
They might not have been the words he wanted to hear, but neither were they the rejection he might have feared. He nodded in acknowledgment and returned to casting dirty looks at the gossips.
Shea and Connor pressed their bodies close to ours once we drew near enough, and they motioned for our guardians to stay back. My brow arched. “Can you please cast a Radiant Seal?” Shea asked, and then it made perfect sense. They’d learned something crucial—and sensitive—from their consultation with the human authorities.
I nodded and tapped into my bond with the triplets, quickly casting a barrier around us so only we four could hear our next words. Inexplicably, ice coated my stomach and goosebumps pricked my flesh. I’d never claimed to be psychic, but prescience was attacking me all the same.
Finn felt it, too, because his arm slipped from mine and wrapped around my waist instead. Offering physical support ahead of whatever revelation was about to come.
Connor reached out a hand to touch my shoulder, and Shea did the same with my other. Something that had me feeling one part trepidation and the other part impatient. “Mother Moon, wolf boys. Just spit it out already!”
Not even Connor cracked a smile. He glanced at Shea and nodded, letting his older brother speak, “Are you familiar with Miriam Rosen?”
My brow arched even higher. “Samuel Rosen’s daughter? I’d heard through my mother’s grapevine that she’d moved to St. Louis. Is she one of the investigators assigned to the case?”
Shea nodded slowly. “Evidently. She and another officer, David Cunningham.”
I let out a deep breath. “Well that’s good. They’re both solid investigators who aren’t known for taking bribes, from what I’ve heard. Although it’s rare for the humans to hire someone with such strong Shifter ties for a positionoutsidetheir paranormal SWAT units.”
“I’d assume in her case it’s because her father publicly disavowed her when she failed to show any magical affinity.”
“Most likely. So what earth-shattering secret did Detective Rosen reveal to you out there?”
Connor couldn’t hold back a snort of laughter.
