Chapter Five
Flustered Moments, Fresh Theories, and Favorable Outcomes
Elliot
How can this be happening? It doesn’t make any sense. I thought this was over. A lucky break that didn’t come easily. But it did, and I was ready to move on. I was supposed to find Raymond, kill him, and try to find a way to live a good life.
No one was ever supposed to know about our little operation.
Then there was this entire team that didn’t just know about all of them but was actively looking for me.
And now, there’s another murderer? If I were spiritual, I’d have believed this was a sign I’m never supposed to get out. Never be happy.
Nicholas watches me pace in the kitchen. He doesn’t say anything. What could he say? Haven’t I made him go through enough? He was already lying to everyone he loved. He killed to protect me. And now he was just supposed to sit there and watch more people get killed?
Then I had the audacity to completely lose it in front of him. Who does that? What grown-up adult runs to their best friend crying as soon as a murderer shows up copying their act? That has to be the biggest tragedy about this entire situation.
“Do you want to finish dinner?” Nicholas asks tentatively.
I stop and turn to him. “While a murderer kills pretending to be me?”
Nicholas shrugs. “I don’t think they’re killing right now.” When I narrow my eyes, he continues, “Listen, as far as anyone knows, it was never you. And it’s going to remain that way. I’m on the case, and I’m going to direct the Bureau's investigations towards the new murderer. We will find them.”
He’s right. Unlike last time, when they were looking for the Vigilante Wolf Hunter, they have an edge this time.
They know the killer they’re copying. Or at least one of the agents does.
Together, Nicholas, Sam, and I can find this person…
And what? Kill them too? That’s a bridge we’ll cross when we come to it. Right now, we have a mission.
I nod. We can do this. This doesn’t even need to be a problem. Well, other than the fact that Vigilante Wolf Hunter needs to come back, hopefully without making any fresh kills.
“Let’s eat,” I say.
Nicholas blows out a breath. I must have really freaked him out. That’s enough emoting for a couple of years. Time to get to work. After the food, of course.
As soon as we sit down, Nicholas goes unusually still, then the doorbell rings.
“Sam?” I ask him.
He sighs. “Yup.”
I put my untouched plate back down and rush to the door. Sam looks like he sprinted all the way here.
“What was so important that you used the emergency code?” He shoves his way inside and greets Mickey, who’s excited to meet his new friend again. Sam was just as much of a natural with him as with every human Mickey meets.
He walks over to the armchair and flops down.
Mickey leaves him to spend some time with his one true love, his bed.
“Oh, good, Nick’s here too. I have sooo many questions for you about your super-secret agency of badass agents.
Wait, don’t distract me. Why did you want me to come over?
I mean, you guys are hot and all, but I don’t think my man Nick has the temperament to bring in a third.
And it’ll be gross. I’m flattered, though. ”
“Why would you even think that?” Nicholas blanches.
I park my ass next to Nicholas. I’ve long since developed an immunity to Sam’s random musings. “It’s a fully clothed discussion. I know it’s hard, but try to focus.”
Nicholas’s head snaps to Sam. “Wait, did you say secret agency?” He shoots me a questioning look.
Before I can say anything, Sam interrupts. “I’m so relieved you didn’t call me because you couldn’t keep a secret between the two of you for a single day. That would have forced me to rush-order my Ellick merch. Ooooh, salad. Don’t mind if I do.” He picks up my plate.
Nicholas looks confused.
I shake my head. I knew Sam wasn’t going to let that go. Unfortunately, we have more important things to worry about, like making sure Nicholas doesn't believe I broke his trust. “I didn’t tell him anything. He figured a lot of it out on his own.”
Sam nods, then we wait while he chews the inhumanly large bite he’d just taken of my salad.
“I’m surprised I hadn’t figured it out already.
But once I started looking at the right places, it was hard to miss.
My research left a lot of blanks, though.
Would you like to fill them?” Sam wiggles his eyebrow.
“Stop flirting with him,” I blurt.
Nicholas’s frown immediately turns into a gleeful smile.
Sam laughs. “So possessive, jeez.”
The distraction doesn’t keep Nicholas off track for long. Giving his abandoned plate a remorseful look, he focuses on Sam. “Okay, how much were you able to figure out?”
Sam slowly chews the vegetables I almost sacrificed my fingerprints to chop.
“Our victims didn’t show up on any of the criminal agency databases, but you were actively looking for us.
So, you work for someone off the radar. They must focus exclusively on werewolves to have looked closely enough at these cases to find the pattern. ”
Nicholas’s eyes go wide as Sam continues speaking.
“So, maybe a secret werewolf agency. I don’t know how large it is, but from the traces I've found, it must be international and have an entire justice system of its own. But you couldn’t punish any of our victims and almost failed at catching us.
I’d say you aren’t the most competent?” He takes another bite.
How is he this hungry at twelve at night?
“We’d have eventually arrested everyone you killed. The caseload has been a bit large lately. We’re doing our best,” Nicholas argues.
I sigh. “It’s not the time to discuss the Werewolf Regulation Bureau’s perpetual understaffing problem.” My gaze meets Sam’s. “Someone is copying our method to kill werewolves. They found a body last week.”
Sam’s hand stills midway to his mouth. “Say what now?”
“As I already told Elliot, the Bureau is working on it, and I’m spending all my time finding the killer. I’ll catch him,” Nicholas says.
“Oh my god, I just got this man to learn to accept help. Don’t ask me to teach you too. Daddy’s tired.” Sam puts the plate down, all business now. “Tell me everything.”
Nicholas leans back and folds his arms across his chest. “It’s confidential information.”
I give him a side-eye. “Seriously?”
Nicholas sighs again, hopefully realizing that he’s acting like a petulant child. Looking like one too. “We know the victim had recently killed his colleague on a hiking trail. Police found her body last week—”
“—and ruled it as natural death. Yeah, we know the drill. So, you guys were looking into him too?” I ask.
“Yes, actually. That’s how they found him so quickly. Two Bureau agents were over to interrogate him, but it was already too late.”
Looks like the Bureau has definitely upped its game. “And they couldn’t find any trace of the killer?”
Nicholas picks up his plate. “Nope. The killer was long gone. We didn’t find anything.”
Sam smirks. “He learned from the best.”
I smirk back, and Nicholas chews on his salad. “Yeah, I don’t know how I feel about that.”
I pat his thigh. “Don’t worry, Harper. I didn’t mind providing the assist. You guys clearly needed it.”
Nicholas covers my hand with his and leaves it there, the dork. “So, who else knew about your little operation?”
“No one,” I say confidently, then turn to Sam for confirmation.
“Yeah, it was just us. More people, more problems.”
Nicholas pulls his hand back, and I take a breath I didn’t know I was holding. “Are you sure? No temporary contractor? No supplier? No secret confessions to a priest?”
I snort. “Yeah, I don’t think even god has the heart to bless this mess.”
“Why? We were basically helping him dole out the punishments,” Sam argues.
I consider it. “With the gay thing, then the murder thing, religion is a bit too complicated for me. I’d stick to no confessions for now.” I nod.
“And none of us are complaining,” Nicholas says. “So, no leaks from your side. That leaves—”
“—your super cool sounding secret agency of sexy werewolf agents.” Sam nods contemplatively.
Nicholas nods appreciatively. “Exactly the words I was going to use.”
I snatch back my salad from Sam, leaving the spoon in his hand. “So, you have another killer in the Bureau. They need to rethink their compensation packages. The employees are not happy.” I get up and walk over to the kitchen to get a fresh spoon and prepare a plate of leftovers for Sam.
“Super cool secret agency with frustrated werewolf agents?” I hear Sam say.
I give a sleeping Mickey a pat on the way back. He lifts his head in acknowledgment, then goes back to sweet slumber. I slump back on the couch and give Sam his dinner, which he accepts with a big smile.
“Let’s hold off on the judgment until we have more information.
Besides, there’s another section of people we haven’t considered yet.
” Nicholas takes a big bite of his salad, then pauses dramatically.
Maybe I should rethink my stance on religion.
I need someone to complain about the dramatics of people in my life, even though it’s criminally attractive on Nicholas.
We stare at him while he chews soundly. I take it back. It’s just annoying. “You’ve never done anything but shovel food straight into your stomach. Who else knew about the murders? Tell us already.”
Nicholas’s face breaks into a smile. “So impatient.” He shuffles my hair. My gaze narrows in on the dimple on his right cheek. He hasn’t shaved today, so his beard is just the right length to prick my hands if I move them over his cheeks.
Throat clearing from behind me brings me back to the world. “I can leave if you guys want? But I thought, I don’t know, maybe we can try to figure out who’s trying to get us locked up for life before eye fucking each other?”
I lean back on the couch. “Yeah, I’m never eye fucking you.”
Nicholas nods. “No offense, buddy. But me neither.”