Page 21 of Corbin (Wild Wolf Pack from the world of Gallize Shifters #2)
Corbin stared out the grimy window of the cruiser where the soiled back seat assaulted his shifter senses with every disgusting body odor a person could imagine.
That didn’t piss him off anywhere close to having let his guard down around Givenchy.
She was not the sweet young girl his confused brain kept recalling.
He had been played. I’m such an idiot.
You are big idiot , Ares agreed. Woman much smarter than you.
Not up for his mouthy wolf’s criticism, Corbin sent back, Once again, your opinion holds as much value to me as a bottomless water cup.
If you listened to me sometime we would not be locked up.
Officer Thick Neck, who rode shotgun and might have played football at one time, took a mobile call. “Yes, sir.” He paused a moment, then another, “Yes, sir.” He hung up and told the driver something in cop language involving acronyms and numbers.
The driver frowned at him but nodded.
Only one day on the job and Corbin had lost the client plus gotten picked up by the police.
Not arrested, according to the officer driving, who had advised him to remain calm.
Corbin was being taken in until his superior could confirm his employment with Beckham Security.
He further explained the reason for being questioned was due to all local law enforcement had been instructed that only humans were allowed to protect Givenchy.
Then he’d closed the car door on any hope of this turning out okay.
Corbin’s identification had exposed him as a wolf shifter.
Yes, he’d caught Givenchy sneaking out the rear of the buildings, but he should have followed her.
Instead, he’d decided to confront her. Deep down, he had to admit he wanted that confrontation, but with that one wrong move, he managed to wipe out the trust he’d earned with Adrian and Jaz.
All because he couldn’t get his head turned in the right direction with this woman.
Seven years and nothing had changed.
Still the Givenchy Queen, she had only to snap her fingers to flip his life upside down. Again.
The officer riding shotgun received another phone call. “Yes, we have him in the squad car and—”
Corbin could hear noises coming from the phone receiver, but the guy talking had a thick Latin accent, which he had trouble understanding. The only thing that came through crisply was anger.
Lots of anger.
Hell. Less than twenty-four hours in public, and his life was headed down the proverbial drain.
“Yes, sir.” The officer’s grip tightened on the phone, but his tone remained respectful. “Yes, sir. Immediately.”
Then nothing. The caller had hung up on him. Thick Neck told the officer driving, “Chief wants him handed over to someone waiting at the theater, then we return to the station.”
“Why the change?” The officer driving kept splitting his attention between the road and his partner.
“Don’t ask. Hit the siren and let’s get this done.”
Corbin understood how to read between the lines, but the words he heard made no sense. Why were they taking him back to the theater?
That made no sense after going through all of this to all but arrest him. Maybe Adrian was still there. That gave him hope, which disintegrated as he recalled that these two believed he’d been stalking Givenchy.
What other law enforcement could be involved?
Oh, hell. Could it be at SCIS?
His heart rate surged.
He would not go quietly. Adrian had said not to fight law enforcement if an issue arose, and his people would come for Corbin. SCIS was entirely different in Corbin’s mind. They could shove him in an underground cell where Ares would blast out and go bat-shit crazy in a matter of hours.
Corbin would rather take a bullet to the head over a slow, maddening death.
Sweat pebbled on his neck. He looked around, searching for the best way to escape. He wouldn’t kill the human officers, but they might be banged up and unconscious by the time he broke out. That would bring Adrian’s people down on his head, but this had turned into a crisis of survival.
The driver whipped in and out of traffic at a crazy speed, and the siren cranked up. Corbin tried to cover his ears. The cuffs stopped him.
Ares howled incessantly and clawed to get out.
The noise suddenly died as quickly as it had started. The driver slowed to pull into a spot near the curb along the front of the Libertas Theater.
Corbin’s hope shot through the roof, then fizzled.
In the next parking spot, Adrian sat against the seat of his motorcycle with arms crossed and a dark expression clouding his face.
He stood up as the cruiser parked. Corbin would give Adrian the truth, including the fact that he could not complain the officers had treated him badly.
They’d seemed uncomfortable with him inside the car, but they’d been polite.
The driver stepped out and turned to open the rear door for Corbin. He hooked a hand under Corbin’s arm to aid him in stepping out, then uncuffed him.
Rubbing the feeling back into his wrists, Corbin drew a deep breath of free air as the driver climbed back in and stared straight ahead.
Stepping around the car to where Adrian waited, the thick-necked officer said, “Our captain received confirmation of this man being on the Beckham Security team.”
Adrian had always appeared even-tempered particularly in the worst of times, but his ears should be smoking from the fury blazing in his eyes. He said nothing.
The officer backed up, looking very uncomfortable. “We, uh, apologize for any misunderstanding.”
Corbin strolled over to Adrian and stopped near him. “They treated me fairly.” His words had come out tight, but that had been the best he could do under the circumstances.
Adrian nodded without taking his gaze off the policeman.
Thick Neck added, “One of our officers is delivering your motorcycle here. Should arrive in the next five minutes.”
Corbin gave a short nod, but this was Adrian’s show. He had no speaking role.
Heaving out a deep breath, Adrian said, “Next time, read everything on the identification to avoid making an unnecessary mistake.”
“I will pass that wisdom on to the Chief who gives us our marching orders.”
“Understood.”
There was Adrian, the peacemaker.
Thick Neck returned to the passenger seat, and the cruiser sped away.
Time to suck it up and face Adrian. Corbin’s first word had to be said before any explanation. “Sorry.”
Adrian cocked an eyebrow at Corbin and turned to face him. “I had a call from Beckham telling me the police said someone called you in as a stalker who had frightened Ms. Givenchy.”
“Wait a minute,” Corbin started, unwilling to accept blame for what he hadn’t done. “I never made any threatening move around her, and I informed her I was part of her security team.”
“Yep, I know.” Adrian ran fingers through his thick hair.
“I told Beckham I’d sent you to follow Ms. Givenchy to protect her since she’d refused her human guards.
” He dropped his arm. “I explained that based on what I’d observed of her manner here at the theater earlier, I had no doubt she’d overreacted and caused a problem. ”
Corbin swallowed hard. Being with Jaz and Adrian had been the first decent place in his life. They’d treated him better than he could ever expect.
But no one, absolutely no one, had ever given him a gift like Adrian’s belief in him just now. That was damn humbling. “Thank you, Adrian.”
“You’re welcome.” He angled back around. “Here comes your bike.”
Another officer rode it into the spot the cruiser had vacated and parked the bike, setting it on the stand. He dismounted, then looked at Adrian and Corbin before addressing Adrian. “Everything appears to be functioning properly. Let us know if you have any issues.”
“Thank you.” Adrian gave the bike a quick perusal.
“I appreciate the delivery.” This time, Corbin meant the words.
A second cruiser drove up, and the officer slid into the passenger side before they drove off.
Corbin gave Adrian a confused look. “Why are they treating us so nicely?”
Grinning, Adrian slapped him on the back. “Treating you nicely. Givenchy might be local royalty, but my boss is far more powerful than any of these people. I called him to report what was happening, and he said he’d handle any repercussions.”
“Damn. Don’t wake me up.” Corbin laughed with sudden relief. “I don’t want to live in the real world.”
“You’re finally with good people, Corbin. Now tell me what all happened.”
After briefing Adrian on everything, Corbin finished with, “To sneak out of that dress shop, she accessed the roof and crossed the buildings to reach a fixed fire escape. I had parked around back next to a dumpster for the retail location, one building before the one I’d seen her enter.
That put me close enough to keep an eye on the rear exit of the dress shop she’d entered.
I almost missed her climbing down that old ladder farther down until she shot across the street and entered the woods. ”
Adrian scratched his neck and looked up as dark clouds began packing in. He said, “I want to stay close to Brody and the other two of Beckham’s people while Archie is in the hospital. If any of them think to finish him off, I don’t want it on my watch.”
Cool air warning of rain brushed over Corbin’s face. He couldn’t care less about getting wet. “What do you need me to do?”
“I need you to stick to Givenchy. See if she tries to slip away again. If she’s got someone doing her dirty work, she may avoid calling them. I know it sucks to send you back to watch her, but you’re doing great.”
“Hey, I’m here to do whatever you need.” Corbin should thank Adrian for the chance to nail Givenchy in the act.