Chapter 12
Gunnolf
W e finally have a solid lead, even if it came at the expense of a devastating blow for Val. And it did. She traced the data breach and the most recent bombing to Lucas Frye.
One of the very first SableTech employees from back when she first built her empire. I’ve never seen Val retreat into herself as she did when she found out who was behind her betrayal.
Still, now that we have information on Lucas, his immediate family, his friends, and every single member of his extended familial line. We know every debt he has, every overdue bill, and he’s got a secret property downtown that no one else in his family knows about. What are the odds we will find him there?
I’d say they are pretty good. I can’t lie. I’m out for blood. Anyone who tries to hurt my mate doesn’t deserve to live.
“Are you going to behave, or must I leave you behind?” Kato’s voice rattles through my skull and pulls me from my thoughts.
“What do you mean?”
“I mean, we need this guy alive. We need him to talk, and if I can’t trust you to let that happen, then there’s no way in hell I’m going to let you come along and compromise us being able to get the head bad guy. I swear to Goddess, I will fire you so fast you won’t be able to blink before you’re out on your ass. Understood?”
My jaw tightens, and I can’t stop the scowl from forming on my face, but I bite my tongue. He’s right. Marcus Crowe is the one behind all of this, and once Lucas talks, I don’t care if he or Marcus dies.
My wolf howls in agreement. Taking a deep breath, I raise my eyes to meet Kato’s, “I understand.”
His gaze lingers on mine for a moment. Searching for understanding. Searching for truth. He must be satisfied with what he’s found because, after a moment, he smiles and claps a hand on my shoulder, “Good, because I like working with you, man. And you’re my friend.”
Instinctually, I smile back, “I like working with you, too.” We’ve been a team since we both were in the service. There’s no way in hell I want to break up that team just yet.
“You boys have your moment? Are we good to go?” Callie asks, smirking, as she nods her head toward the door.
“Were good,” Kato says straightening and leading the way out to the vans. The uniformed officers are already waiting in the parking garage for us, wearing their tactical gear and smelling of fear and excitement. It’s go time.
Lucas’s secret condo is on a quiet street on the city’s outskirts. The building is nondescript, with tanned brick and a manicured yard that doesn’t draw negative or positive attention. It’s the kind of place that you would drive past without a second glance.
Perfect for someone trying to fly below the radar.
Lucas has money. After every violation of SableTech, large deposits were made into Lucas’s account, which allowed him to pay off some of his father’s mounting gambling debts and his family home. He hasn’t been frivolous.
He wouldn’t have bought this place unless it had some sort of significance to him.
As we pile out of the vans, we move silently. The team spreads out like a well-oiled machine. Hati is on my left, Bruce is on my right, and Callie positions herself, with her sniper rifle, on top of the building across the street from the back entry point to shoot any ‘runners’ or surprise intruders. Kato leads the charge, as always.
A man with a freshly balding spot on the top of his head greets us at the front door of the building, trembling as he steps aside to let us in. Lucas’s unit is on the third floor, and we move up the stairwells swiftly, sweat forming on my brow.
My heart’s pounding, adrenaline spiking, as Kato knocks soundly on the door to Lucas’s unit. Three heavy knocks that shake the walls around the door.
“Lucas Frye, this is SPIU; we have a warrant; open up.”
Silence.
Until a shuffling is heard behind the door. I can sense the panic from here. Lucas is a wolf-shifter himself. Will he try to take us on? Will he try to escape? Will he turn himself in willingly?
Kato nods in my direction, and my heart pounds, adrenaline spiking as we move into formation. Bruce steps forward, and the door bursts open with a crash, splintering under the force of Bruce’s boot.
With guns drawn, we move in, swiftly but methodically examining each room, not leaving a corner unexamined. It isn’t until we reach the bathroom that Hati rushes forward, his long legs closing the distance in seconds. He reaches out and whips Lucas back from the window.
“I don’t think so,” He chuckles, throwing Lucas to the floor in the hallway.
Lucas growls, his eyes flashing as he attempts to pick himself up, “Down! Hands where I can see them!” I bark, gun trained on Lucas.
He freezes, glancing around between us all. His mouth opens and closes like a fish out of water, but no words come. He looks so much older than I expected, his face far gaunter and more haunted now than in the photos we saw of him.
Sweat beads on his forehead. “Don’t—don’t shoot!” he stammers, his voice cracking.
Kato moves in swiftly, securing his hands in cuffs behind his back. “You’re coming with us, Frye.”
“No—wait! You don’t understand!” His voice struggles, panic clear in his voice, but it’s too late.
“Don’t understand?” I chuckle darkly. “You sound like a guilty man to me.”
Kato lifts him into the air and sets him on unsteady legs as he reads him his rights. My wolf bares his teeth. My claws start to slip through my flesh. I force them back in, shoving my hands into fists. I’ve got to get out of here.
Outside, I gulp in the fresh air as I fight to tame my wolf instincts to shred Lucas to bits and sink my teeth into Lucas’ throat. We need him. We need him to talk.
The ride back to HQ is tense. I can smell the stink of fear coming from Lucas in the marked police car ahead of us. Did he think he’d never get caught? How organized is this movement?
I keep my eyes on the road, trying to block out the rush of anger in my veins. This bastard worked at SableTech, fed information to Marcus Crowe, and almost got Val killed. He betrayed her, and for what?
My teeth grind together, and my gums ache from the pressure. The thought of Val not leaving the building in time to survive floods me with fresh animalistic anger. What would I have done if Marcus had succeeded in killing her?
And before that, the psychological torture she endured. The untraceable threats that turned her phone into a tool of fear. All that time she spent alone, scared, and looking over her shoulder when I didn’t even know about the threats.
I have so much to make up to her.
I was supposed to protect her.
I was supposed to make sure that she was safe.
I won’t fail her again. Even if I have to destroy this town to get my hands on Marcus Crowe and punish him for what he’s done, I will.
Frye is dragged into the interrogation room and secured to the metal table. His hands are still bound. The fluorescent light buzzes overhead. I watch as he winces with each flicker of the light. He looks even worse under these harsh lights.
I take my place behind the two-way mirror, Kato and Callie beside me. Hati and Bruce enter the room, their faces set in grim determination.
Hati, the intelligence-gathering genius, and Bruce, the massive bear of a man who intimidates even the most hardened criminals. Even I know I shouldn’t be in that room. I don’t have the self-control right now not to rip Lucas apart.
“We’ve got you dead to rights,” Hati says casually over his shoulder. A sort of friendliness is present in his tone that is more chilling than anything else. “You want to make this easier on yourself? Start talking.”
Frye swallows hard, shaking his head, “I don’t know what you want me to discuss. I don’t know anything. I swear I’m just — “
“Save it,” Bruce snaps, cutting him off. His voice booming through the small interrogation room. “Do you want to dig yourself into a deeper hole than you are already in? You’re a smart guy, aren’t you?”
“He’s supposed to be,” Hati adds, chuckling.
Frye goes quiet as he looks between Hati and Bruce, his shoulders slumping with defeat. Even still, I can see the wheels turning in his head as he tries to figure out an angle to get himself out of this situation.
Nothing he can say will get him out of this. We’ve got all the evidence we need to lock him up for a long time. But we need more information on Crowe and don’t need Frye to know how badly we need him.
Hati smirks, noticing the same thing I do, and he shrugs. I can practically hear his thoughts. “If he wants to play hardball, fine. We’ve broken tougher men than him.”
We have, and we will break this one, too.
“You’re in a lot of trouble, my friend. We’ve got evidence linking you to the security breaches at SableTech, the bombings, and the attempted murder of your boss, Val Hayes, and we know that you’ve been in contact with Marcus Crowe. Now is your chance to tell your side of the story?”
Frye looks up, his heart spiked at the mention of Val. His eyes are bloodshot and wild. “I... I don’t know what you’re talking about,” he lies, his voice shaky.
Bruce lets out a low, humorless chuckle. “You’re gonna play it that way? We’ve got enough to put you away for life. But maybe, just maybe, we can cut you a deal—if you cooperate.”
Frye says nothing.
“I wonder what your poor mother will do when she finds out that you’ve been in bed with a madman, and when given the chance to do right, you chose to stay silent. I saw her posts on Facebook, lamenting the loss of those lives in the restaurant bombing. Will she be proud of you for your hand in the murders?”
Frye hesitates, his gaze flicking to the mirror. He knows we’re watching. “I... I can’t,” he whispers, his voice barely audible. “You don’t understand what he’ll do to me.”
Hati leans forward, lowering his voice to a dangerous whisper. “You think Crowe’s gonna protect you? Let me tell you something, Frye—he doesn’t care about you. You’re just another pawn in his game.”
The words seem to hit a nerve. Frye flinches. Silence.
Low enough that the microphones can’t pick up on what Hati is saying, but without enhanced hearing, we can see Hati say, “And what do you think Val Haye’s mate is going to do to you if you don’t make yourself useful? He’s very displeased with you as it is. The only reason he’s not in here right now is because he would have already ripped your head from your shoulders.”
With this, Luca’s resolve crumbles, “You don’t get it,” he mutters, tears welling up in his eyes. “Crowe… he’s building something. Something real. He’s going to protect us and make things right for the paranormal. I just… I wanted to be a part of something bigger. To make a difference in the world.”
Rage simmers beneath my skin as I grit my teeth, “What the hell is Crowe planning?” I mutter under my breath. I ought to storm right in there and beat the answers out of him.
Kato throws me a sharp look of warning as though he’d read my mind. I bow my head.
Hati presses on, “You wanted to be a part of something bigger? You mean like mass murder? Psychological damage on the community, including your own family members? Attacking innocent hunters whose children will now be without fathers and mothers? Who do you think they are going to blame for the loss of their loved ones?”
Frye’s jaw tightens but Hati persists.
“You my friend are starting a war between the hunters and the supernatural. You aren’t helping anyone. You’re playing right into Marcus Crowe’s personal vendetta. You’re looking at life behind bars unless you start giving us names. Who else is part of this ‘network’?”
Lucas Frye loses it, breaking down into tears, sobbing into his cuffed hands with shaking shoulders. Hati glances smugly toward the window as if to say ‘we’ve got him.’
After a moment Frye gasps for breath. “I only know a few. Marcus keeps everything compartmentalized. I worked with four others—Jaxon, Lyra, Tomás, and Karina. There’s more, at least a dozen, but I never met them.”
“You got any last names for us?”
“No, I never knew them.”
Bruce leans in, eyes flashing with triumph. “And where can we find them?”
Frye shakes his head, sobbing harder. “I don’t know! I swear! Crowe’s paranoid... we only meet in unknown secure locations. I just followed orders.”
This is the break we’ve been waiting for, but it’s only the tip of the iceberg.
“Minna,” I say, turning to her, “I need you to cross-reference those names Frye has given us. See if there’s any connection to Crowe’s known associates.”
“I’m already on it,” she says, her fingers flying over the keyboard of her laptop.
My phone buzzes in my pocket before I can check in with Kato. It’s Val.
I step out into the hallway, answering on the second ring. “Val?”
“Hey,” she says, her voice tired but relieved. “Did you get him?”
“Yeah, we got Frye. He cracked and gave us names and leads. We’re closing in on Crowe.”
There’s a pause, and I can hear her exhale, the weight of everything pressing down on her. “That’s good news. But... I’ve been getting more of those texts. The threats are getting worse, Gunnolf.”
My blood runs cold. “Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”
“I thought I could handle it,” she says, trembling.
The wolf inside me roars to life, demanding blood to protect what’s his. I grip the phone tighter, my knuckles turning white. “Are you still at my place?” Val tells him she is. “I’m coming now. Don’t go anywhere. Do you hear me, Val? Stay put.”
“Okay,” she whispers, and I can hear the fear she’s been trying to hide. “Just... be careful.”
I head back into the conference room, my heart thumping wildly, the team’s eyes on me. “We’ve got another problem. Val’s being targeted again. Minna, I need you to track those texts she just received and find out who’s behind them.”
“Go,” Kato says, “We’ll keep you up to date.”