Page 57 of Wild Wolf

"How about you tell me about your wolfpack?”

His face wrinkled. "How about you get fucked?”

"Do you consider yourself to be a werewolf?"

“No!” He replied with a twisted face. “Don't be stupid. I don't transform under the full moon. It's just a thing. A group where I fit in.”

"Who else is in your group?" I asked again.

"I'm not telling you anything."

"Seth? Rowan?” They were names from Taryn’s list.

Recognition flashed in his eyes. "Where are you getting this information?”

"Can you tell me where you were the night of the murders?”

Anger tensed his face again. "I'm not telling you anything. This conversation is over.”

Rafe slammed the door in our faces and flipped the deadbolt.

JD and I shared a look, then plunged down the switchback staircase. The umbrella kept us dry as we hustled through the complex and back to the street.

"That guy sure was uptight," JD said.

"He fits the profile to an extent."

Seth lived in the same complex but in a different building. We hurried through the rain, found his unit, and put a heavy fist against the door. After a moment, footsteps shuffled across the living room, and the peephole flickered. "I'm not talking to you," he said, his voice muffled by the door.

Rafe must have given him a call and warned him.

"We just want to talk. You could help us solve a crime.”

"Fuck off.”

I shared a disappointed look with Jack, then we hustled back to the Porsche and drove to the Shoals. It was another hive complex just off campus.

Rowan wouldn't talk to us either.

It wasn't surprising, but it did make me consider the possibility that all three were working together somehow.

The sheriff called. “That panther has been spotted at Echo Point. Get over there right now.”

“Be there in a minute.”

We raced back to the Porsche and zipped across the island to the beach. By the time we got there, several patrol cars were on the scene, along with Animal Control and recovery personnel from the zoo.

JD and I dawned ponchos, hopped out, and joined the sheriff. “Where’s the cat?”

Daniels pointed to the trail that led to the beach. The same trail where Ophelia had been attacked. “Groundskeeper saw it. Said it darted down the trail. Whatever you do, don’t shoot the damn thing unless it’s the last resort.”

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Deputies tried to flank the panther, coming up from either side of the beach.

JD and I went with the zoo recovery team and advanced with caution down the trail that led to the shore. We didn't get too far before we found the beast. The panther had climbed up into a tree and was lounging on a branch, riding out the rain. Just a bigger version of a cat stuck in a tree.

The Animal Response Team had tranquilizer guns.