Page 5

“Fuck.” I slammed back the rest of my whiskey.

The one thing that could draw attention to our kind was a rogue feral.

It had been centuries since humans knew of our existence.

The violence that rained down on shifters back then was enough for us to tuck tail and dive into obscurity.

Since then, we’d become the things of myth.

Werewolves, Wendigo, Dogman—all the shit humans made up as their boogeymen.

This had to be taken care of, and soon. Especially if this guy was escalating like Ollie thought.

An idea occurred to me, and I pointed at Ollie’s jacket. “Can I see that baggie one more time?”

He frowned but pulled it back out, handing it over. “What are you thinking? I can see those gears turning.”

“Hang on.”

I opened the bag, but this time, instead of a cursory sniff, I breathed deeply.

My enhanced senses scrolled through the millions of smells I had logged away in my memory.

The musk of shifter, exhaust fumes, beer, sweat.

All normal. I sniffed again, even deeper, searching for more.

I got hints of maple trees, coneflower, chlorine.

I frowned. Chlorine?

“What did you smell?” Ollie asked.

“Were any of the victims found in or around a public swimming pool or fountain?”

“Uh…” Ollie’s brow furrowed. “No. Nowhere close. The victim on the jogging trail was near a creek, but that’s it as far as bodies of water.”

I handed the bag back and pulled out a notebook. “Can you give me the addresses of all three victims? As well as the locations where the bodies were found for the first two?”

As Ollie wrote them down, I made a mental note to cross-reference their homes as well as the locations of their deaths and see if there were any pools or chlorinated fountains nearby.

If I could figure out where the feral wolf had been, maybe I could figure out a link that would help me track him down.

Best-case scenario, I could triangulate an area that would cut down on having to search the entire city block by block.

Ollie slid the notebook across the table. “What the hell did you smell on that fur?”

“Chlorine.”

“No shit? I didn’t notice that.” He shook his head in wonder. “I guess it’s true what they say.”

“What do they say?” I asked, suppressing my irritation. I knew where this was going.

“That it takes a lone wolf to find a lone wolf.”

I clenched my fist and stared back at him, unblinking. My body went taut as the words silently echoed between us.

Noticing my ire, Ollie held his hands up in surrender. “Hey, Nate, sorry. You know I don’t give a shit about that. It’s just a saying. I apologize.”

I glared at him before letting my expression soften and shrugging. “No big deal, I get it. That’s why I was called here to begin with, right? You need a lone feral caught. I can’t think of anyone more suited than me.”

I couldn’t be too angry since what Ollie said was true. Without a pack, I was more in tune with my wolf. My senses were stronger and more powerful than the average shifter’s because of it. It made me good at what I did.

I was a rare breed among our kind. I was closer to the animal side than the shifters who spent their days pretending to be human. Still, I didn’t care for it being pointed out, even by a friend.

Ollie let out a breath, obviously relieved he hadn’t truly offended me. “Do you suppose this feral was a lone wolf at one point?”

“Most likely,” I said, allowing the conversation to go back to a casual place. “Ninety-nine-point-nine percent of the time, ferals are lone wolves who have been away from a pack for far too long and lose their humanity. I’m willing to bet that’s the case here.”

I didn’t add that I might succumb to that fate one day.

As though reading my thoughts, Ollie leaned forward again. “Nate, why don’t you let me talk to JC? Maybe he could bring you into our pack? I’d vouch for you.”

“Who the fuck is JC? I thought the pack alpha was Alec Dupont.”

“Holy shit, you have been gone a while. No, Alec was a temporary alpha. JC took over a couple years back.”

I waved that off. “Whatever. One alpha’s the same as another.”

“He’s a good guy, Nate. Seriously. Let me put a good word in. You could join up. Get to know people, maybe?”

I gave him a cocky smirk. “No thanks, Ollie. You know I don’t play well with others.”

Ollie winced and shook his head. “Bro, I can’t imagine what your life is like without a pack.

I like you, always have, so why not let me help you out?

You’d get fewer dirty looks from shifters if you were in a pack.

Not everyone will believe you can keep the wild animal side of yourself at bay.

When they find out you’re a lone wolf, everyone will be waiting for the day you turn so they can rip your throat out. ”

I eyed Ollie and smiled grimly. “Is that what you’re waiting on, old friend?”

He let out an exasperated breath. “Goddamn it, dude, you know that’s not true. I know you’ve got a handle on it. I’m talking about dumbasses who don’t know any better.”

I chuckled. “If they’re dumbasses, then what do I care what they think?”

Rather than go on and allow the natural prejudices that had been ingrained in Ollie to foul up our meeting, I decided to get out before things took a turn.

The bar wasn’t as busy as it could have been, and it seemed like the sexy server’s shift was ending.

She was untying her apron and gathering some things.

Every few seconds, she turned and sent me a furtive glance.

I could smell her arousal from here. She was hot, that was for sure, but she’d already had one guy try to take advantage of her tonight. I’d be damned if I’d be the second.

“I’m heading out,” I said to Ollie. “Can you get me the files? Copies of the crime scene photos and whatnot?”

Ollie nodded, though he looked a bit crestfallen that the conversation had gone sideways. “Sure. Drop by the precinct tomorrow.”

The server vanished through an Employee’s Only door, but emerged again holding a jacket and purse. She locked eyes with me and smiled. Her gaze slid down my body, and she bit her lower lip. A slight blush crept into her cheeks.

“Do you know her?” Ollie asked.

“No,” I admitted and grinned. “I think she wishes I did. I’m going to see if she wants a ride to her place. She might be a little freaked about what happened with that douchebag earlier.”

Ollie watched in delighted envy as I walked over to the young lady at the bar.

“My name’s Nate, by the way,” I said to her.

Her blush deepened. “Uh, yeah. My name’s Monica. I wanted to thank you for what you did earlier. Do you…” She looked away. “Oh, shit,” she muttered to herself, then looked at me again. “I never do this, but would you want to come over to my place?”

“I would usually say yes, but unfortunately, not tonight. I could offer you a ride home, though? Can I at least do that for you?”

Her look of disappointment and embarrassment made me wince inwardly.

“Sure,” she said, with as much confidence as she could muster. After she mumbled a few words to the bartender, I put my arm around her shoulders and guided her to the door. As we passed the booth, Ollie shook his head in awe. He probably didn’t believe me about not taking the woman to bed.

I’d let him have his fantasy. I knew myself better, though. Lone wolf or not, I wasn’t a scumbag.