Page 11 of Midnight Whispers (Forbidden Entanglements #1)

Chapter Eleven

C ass let Iven lead. The victim, Quincy Barr, seemed at ease with him in a way he wasn’t with Cass. Cass didn’t take offense. He probably would have too, if he were in the victim’s shoes. And the lack of trust helped confirm Cass’s suspicions about their perpetrator. They would start looking for the murderer with the pack.

“I met Gregory in a creative writing class.” The victim smiled as he wiped his eyes with a tissue. His other arm was in a sling.

He had a bandage on the right side of his forehead. Clothing covered his other cuts and bruises. His wounds were severe. His healing ability wasn’t as fast as it normally would be, probably because he’d had multiple injuries all at once. He’d had surgery to repair the internal damage. That he was sitting up and able to talk was a miracle.

The kid was smart, though. He seemed to have come to some correct conclusion about Cass because he wasn’t as strung tight as he had been when they’d first come in.

They sat in the victim’s living room. Or rather, the victim’s mother’s living room. The mother wasn’t a pushover. She sat beside her son with her arm around his shoulders, glaring at Cass as if he were a part of the problem.

Cass tried to keep his expression as neutral as possible. He didn’t want to set the woman off. He knew a protective mama wolf when he saw one. She might not care that he didn’t intend to hurt anyone, especially a man who’d already been through hell and back.

“We’re Fated mates, Gregory and I.” The victim shook his head. “Gregory was…everything to me.”

“I’m so sorry for your loss. We’re doing everything we can to put Gregory’s killer behind bars. But we need your help.”

Quincy met Cass’s gaze. “I’m sorry I didn’t answer your questions the last time you were here.”

Cass smiled, trying to appear as non-threatening as possible. “I understand.”

Quincy nodded. “You’re a Fortune Falls pack member. Just like the wolf who hurt Gregory and me.”

“What can you tell us about him?”

“Gregory called him Leo.”

Cass stiffened. The only Leo he knew was the alpha’s beta. If that was who hurt Quincy and killed Gregory, then he was following the alpha’s orders. But Cass had to be sure. “Did he use a last name?”

“No, but Gregory called him beta.”

“Leo Krieger.” Cass mumbled. His heart sank as his worst fear was realized. Through the rest of the conversation, he thought about what having a murderous alpha meant for his pack.

Iven gave him a subtle nod and continued asking questions. “Can you describe him?”

“He had dark hair. Long-ish. He was tall. Bigger than Gregory even. Wore a leather coat.”

Iven met Cass’s gaze. Cass nodded, letting Iven know he was sure about who it was.

Iven let Cass lead the question after that. “You’re from the Timeston pack, correct?”

“Yes.” The mother was the one who answered. She shook her head as if thinking something that disgusted her. “Our property borders the county line. We chose Timeston because the alpha, Kinnison Ransome, is strong.”

Ransome was a lot of other things, too. A little crazy, but in a calculated way. He also had a record. Cass had arrested him twice for making hooch on the Fortune Falls side of the county line. It wasn’t the worst law he could have broken, and he might break other ones. If he did, Cass didn’t know about it. Kinnison Ransome had an edge so sharp that people stayed out of his way.

Cass had to wonder if the Fortune Falls pack would get backlash for the murder from the Timeston Pack. Ransome was the type to make an example of them, and he’d do it through violence. Could Alpha Miller handle Ransome? Cass had his doubts.

“Did you plan on joining the Fortune Falls pack after meeting Gregory May?”

Quincy shook his head. “Gregory talked to your alpha about moving to our pack. He wanted his blessing.”

Cass tried not to let his emotion show in his expression but knew he failed. For the first time in his career, he couldn’t hold back.

He could see questions forming in Quincy’s mother’s eyes. Before she could ask, he stood. He didn’t want to talk about pack issues with an outsider. Other than Iven, who had to know the truth about what had happened.

The mom’s parting words were, “I hope you catch the bastard who did this to my son and his mate.”

Cass hoped they did, too. He also hoped the Fortune Falls pack would survive.

He had one last question for her. “Why didn’t you report Quincy missing, ma’am?”

The mother drew her eyebrows together. “I reported it. He and Gregory. They were thick as thieves the last few months, so Gregory was always here.”

“Did you report it to Fortune Falls or Timeston, ma’am?”

“Fortune Falls.”

“Thank you, ma’am.” They headed out.

It wasn’t until they were in the car that Iven said, “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

“Leo Kreiger is pack beta.” Iven understood pack dynamics from Cass talking about it from time to time.

“If Krieger is Alpha Miller’s right hand man, then the alpha is involved somehow.”

“Krieger doesn’t do anything without Miller’s say so.” Cass sighed and shook his head.

“So, Miller put a hit on them and Krieger executed it?”

“Not a hit. I don’t think the alpha wanted them dead. I think he thought he was taking Quincy away from the Timeston pack. He wanted to force them to stay with the Fortune Falls Pack.”

“When Gregory came to him, saying he was leaving, Miller arranged a kidnapping.” Iven filled in the blanks. They were good at bouncing ideas off each other during a case.

“Yeah. There were rooms in the basement. Maybe the alpha wanted to keep them locked away until they agreed.”

“Do you think he intended to let them go? Quincy didn’t seem like the type of guy who would agree not to say anything.”

“His mother would have gone to the ends of the earth looking for him.” Cass liked how protective Quincy’s mother was. Quincy had a hard road ahead. He’d need his mother’s help to get through it.

“She reminds me of Zinnie. She’s like that with Griff and Riley. She even smacked me upside the head the other day and told me I need to take better care of Riley.” Iven smiled as if it were a good memory. Maybe it was for Iven, but Cass didn’t like getting smacked on the head, not that it had happened in a while. Iven had affection for his ex-wife in a way few did after a divorce. Of course, they’d been kids when she got pregnant with Griffin. Barely out of high school was what Iven had said. Maybe the young age made them more agreeable with each other since the separation. They’d somehow learned how to be friends along the way.

“Riley seems like a good person.” Cass tried to pick his words carefully.

He hadn’t spent that much time with Riley. But it seemed as though he had a lot of things going for him. Riley was young but strong. He was also hurting and needed love.

Cass couldn’t forget that Iven didn’t want to know how sexy his son was. He’d probably punch Cass when he found out about them being mates. And he would find out. It was only a matter of time. Cass didn’t want to lie to him forever. Lying made mating with Riley feel wrong and it wasn’t. It was just complicated.

Cass’s pack dynamics weren’t safe for Riley. Their meeting with Quincy confirmed as much. He wouldn’t put Riley at risk, so they would have to keep it secret for a bit longer.

“He’s a great kid.” Iven sighed and shook his head. “I know it’s not all Vivianne’s fault. I have an equal share in raising him. The pill’s just hard to swallow.”

“Because he’s here. Finally. That’s probably why.” Maybe it wasn’t too late to do right by Riley. Cass had spent enough time with Riley to know that all he really needed was a lot of love and attention. “You’re spending time with him.”

“Not enough to make up for his childhood.”

“You can’t change the past.”

“I wish I could.”

“Just hug him a lot. That’s what he needs most.” Cass swallowed down the feeling that maybe he’d said too much. And then he tried to cover up his slip. “That’s what my gran would tell you, anyway.”

“Like hell, she would. She would smack me upside the head too, and tell me to be a good parent to Riley, like I am to Griffin.”

Gran would probably say that. “She’d also tell you to hug him.”

“My boys were raised differently. Griffin has had a lot more parenting than Riley.” Iven needed to give Riley more credit.

“It’s not like he’s an addict or a criminal. So he’s overly independent and not used to accepting help from people. That’s not the worst thing he could have become.”

“He’s only here for college.”

“Not true. He wants a fresh start. And he wants to get to know you. He wants you to be his dad. And you’re doing that.”

“Deep down, he’s pissed at me. It comes to the surface sometimes, and then he catches himself and puts on that sunny smile. It won’t be long before he lets me have it.” Iven tapped his fingers on the steering wheel.

“And you’ll take it because it’s what he needs you to do.” Cass wasn’t a parent, so he didn’t know what parenting was like. A guy in Iven’s position didn’t have anywhere to go but forward. “It’ll bring you closer together in the long run.”

“Did he tell you all about fresh starts and such the night he got into town?”

“Yeah, he did. Although I didn’t realize he was your kid. It didn’t take me long to figure it out, though.” Maybe Cass should steer the conversation away from Riley. It was safer if they didn’t talk about him.

“He’s with Zinnie today. I think she’s going to offer him a job. Maybe you can keep an eye on him when he’s there.” Iven made Riley sound like a young kid.

“He’s an adult.” Cass knew exactly how grownup Riley was. He felt like a man in Cass’s arms.

“I know. I just want him to feel like he has family around him. I want him to know he has us.” Iven was a good father when people got out of his way.

“I’ll look out for him.” Cass would do much more than look out for him. He’d keep him so close that Riley wouldn’t have to guess who he could rely on.

“Thanks.”

Cass pushed the guilt down and changed the subject. “I know where Krieger lives. We should head over there. Take the next right.”

Iven turned. “You don’t want to talk to your alpha yet?”

“He’s got the mayor’s ear. Two of the town commissioners are pack members. He could make it difficult for us since we don’t have enough evidence yet. It’s best to find Leo first. He might turn on the alpha.”

“You don’t think Miller will take responsibility?”

Krieger’s house was a couple of miles down a dirt road, but the drive was bumpy.

“Hell no. He’ll lie his way through. But maybe Leo isn’t as loyal as he wants the alpha to believe.” Cass hoped that was the case because if it weren’t, they’d have a hell of a time proving the alpha was involved with the information they had.

“I’ll work the Alice Newman angle. See if we can connect her to the alpha.” Cass and Iven made a good team.

Cass hoped they would stay that way after Iven learned about him and Riley.

Krieger lived in a camper trailer in the middle of the forest. He didn’t have neighbors for miles. A creek ran behind his house. Even before Cass got out of the car, he knew why Krieger chose the place. It was a perfect location for making moonshine.

They got out of the car.

Cass kept a hand on the hilt of his gun. He noticed Iven doing the same.

There were no cars in the driveway besides their own.

“The place feels empty.” Cass sniffed the air. “Unless he’s upwind, which is possible, he hasn’t been here for a while.”

Iven made his way to the trailer. When he stepped onto the small stairs, they wobbled. He managed to keep his feet under him, but he proceeded with a bit more caution as he knocked on the door. It was a waste of time. Cass would have smelled Krieger if he were inside the house.

Cass looked around the property. Nothing was around except for an abandoned copper still. They still lay on the ground with a dent in it.

As soon as Cass made his way back to Iven, Iven sighed in frustration as they made their way back to the car. Without probable cause they couldn’t enter Krieger’s home, even if it was a camper trailer in the middle of the forest.

“At least we have enough evidence now.” With Quincy Barr’s testimony, they had enough to make an arrest.

The problem wasn’t evidence on Krieger, though. Cass wasn’t sure how they were going to prove the alpha was involved without Krieger’s turning on him.

They needed to find Krieger and fast before the alpha ordered him to kill again.