Page 40 of Shifter for Brains

Should I be worried? Merritt always refused to share anything about this huge case with me.

Merritt: There’s a part I want you to see. Don’t freak out.

Yep, that worried me instantly.

“—Sorry you’re forced to waste your time on this,”Hodge said in the video.“Crime takes over so easily in a city this large, especially for a new department. And the innocent suffer. Your average Joe, Stan, Lucas, or Milton. What if something terrible happened while you’re busying chasing your own tails?”

…

Chase: WTV////

That was supposed to be ‘WTF’ and question marks. I tried again.

Chase: That’s a threat. Arrest his ass!

Merritt: If it were enough to count as a threat, he’d never have said it on camera.

Chase: What the hell’s going on?

Merritt: They met when he dropped by the office. That’s all he was able to get from his last visit. Just stay sharp and let us handle Hodge.

Chase: Merritt, come on.

Merritt: Don’t worry. We’re close.

They sure as hell better be. I hated being away from the action and feeling powerless. Was this the second psycho I’d brought into Lucas’s path? Of course Hodge took an interest. The person working on Lucas’s case was the bosses’ little brother, the brother of the guy gunning for him.

Dammit. I had to trust Merritt to handle everything. I did trust him. He’d always been the dependable one, the guy who followed through.

It wasmewho couldn’t be trusted.

Just an hour ago I’d held Lucas’s hand. The guy needed support and the gesture hadn’t felt dangerous at the time. Now… well, it didn’t really matter how it felt. It was a distraction.

I didn’t have the best track record when resisting distractions or temptations. But this time had to be different. BecauseLucaswas involved.

Two slams stirred me from my reflection. Car doors closed and footsteps headed up the driveway. Lucas’s dad and Temple were back.

Good. Time for us to disappear.

13.Here Foxy Foxy

Lucas

The safe house in the suburbs looked… small. Unassuming, a place to hide in plain sight. Who’d guess this modest property on Crescent Street held defenses or people to protect me? Surely something of great power was inside—a short man flung the door open when we approached.

“Hey, come on in! This is—well, the circumstances aren’t great, so please excuse my excitement. You’re my first guest!”

Chase coughed.

“You don’t count.” He smiled at me and thrust his hand out. “I’m Aaron Honeywell, nice to meet you.”

He talked excitedly, chestnut hair framing his open face. Several inches shorter than me, he didn’t seem super imposing or strong… Why wasn’t Chase on this supposed guest list of his? What was their relationship? Had he spent the night before?

“You’re in good hands here,” Aaron assured like he read a few of my thoughts. “One shifter will be here at all times and the house has been heavily warded against unwelcome guests.”

Aaron showed me around on a quick tour which ended at a small guest room on the second floor. “Here’s your room. If you need anything at all, me or Chase are here to help.”

While peeking in at the cozy space, Chase spoke up. “It’s not much, but—”