Chapter Six #2
Beast. That’s the only word you can use to define him. A hundred times more intimidating than he is as a human, with pure black fur.
Slowly, everyone shifts into slightly less intimidating wolves each with a different coat of fur. Bree is white. Camilla is a mix of black, brown, and white. Sloan is grey. Marcus, dark brown and white.
I look down at my coat. Light brown, the color of my hair.
When we used to shift as kids, I was so jealous of Matt’s coat.
It looked so badass, still does to be honest. But I’ve come to accept my wolf as gorgeous too.
It might have helped that at some point, I gained a few inches on him in my wolf form.
I don’t know how that works since I’m shorter in my human form.
As if sensing my thoughts, Matt nudges me on the side and growls. I laugh. It comes out as a yip.
Then we’re off. Leaves, branches caressing my fur. The soil on my paws is soft, sometimes prickly. The smell of the forest drowns me, consumes me into the serene beauty stretching for miles. Fresh leaves. Rotten barks. A stream of water far, far away.
Freedom.
My friends are flying around me. My brother is racing with me.
When we’ve tired ourselves out, we stop in a clearing. I take a deep breath. It feels like my first one in ages. We lie on the soil for some time. Everyone in a puppy pile, something that’ll probably be a little weird in our human forms.
Occasional happy sighs, leaves floating in the breeze, the river stream, and insects are the only sounds. All my fears, urgency, and overwhelm drain out.
After what feels like hours and only a few minutes, all at once, Marcus stands. We follow his lead and take another lap of our usual running ground that rarely gets visits from the forest rangers.
I’m floating in the wind, Sloan and Matt right behind me, when I smell it.
Blood. Human. Fear.
I skid to a halt. Two wolves stop beside me.
Sloan turns her head to the right, and I nod. We walk towards the body slowly, all the relaxed vibes suddenly replaced with dread.
A body lying on the grass. Not on the path we usually follow. I look at the claw marks, now hidden by a mountain lion or some other hungry predator that left its own mark.
I leave the place to look for track marks while Marcus, Cami, and Bree join us.
I shift, and everyone follows.
“Werewolf?” Sloan asks, already knowing the answer.
I nod. “The rain washed away any tracks. They could have driven here, which seems unlikely.” I look around the treacherous path and the heavy vegetation. “But not impossible.”
“Or they could have carried him in wolf form,” Matt suggests.
“We should head back and report it to Meena. The sooner the better,” Cami says.
We nod and shift back.
When we give Meena a call, she promises she’ll send a cleaning crew right away and assign the case to one of the Bureau's agents. After promising me she’ll keep me updated, she hangs up.
By the time I get back home, it’s already one. I take a long shower and dive face-first into the bed. At least, this time, I can do it without feeling embarrassed and cursing the passage of time for affecting my ability to stay up past sundown.
I’ve never been more glad that field agents like us are only assigned cases that require significant legwork and access to human resources.
Because there’s no way in hell I can fit another murder board in my office.
***
“So, a date with a man, huh?” Serena quirks her eyebrow as we navigate through the downtown streets at the worst possible time of the day.
“I don't understand what the big deal is, really.”
“It's not a big deal, but is it serious or just an experiment?”
“I don't know if it's serious or not, but it's definitely not an experiment. I've always been kind of attracted to men. Not a lot, but some.”
“Don't mind me, I'm just surprised, I guess. So, where are you taking him?”
“Valero,” I say casually.
“Oh, so it’s serious, serious,” Serena nods.
I roll my eyes. “The restaurant owner owes me, so he gave me a reservation.”
“Hey, I’m not judging. This is a special occasion. Baby’s first date with a man. Of course, you should go to a place that’s fully booked for months.”
No, Serena. It’s because I want him relaxed enough to spill everything he knows about werewolves easily, and why he’s being weird about it.
I’m working on the theory that good food will loosen Elliot up enough to make him talkative, even though I have no evidence it will work. I’m desperate, alright? I need one win.
When we’re close to our destination, it hits me before Serena parks.
The heavy, stale air is filled with too many scents.
This time, I put my mask on before the overwhelming smells scrape against my senses like the last time.
But something else becomes clear, Tyler Robertson’s killer has struck again.
When we get out of the car, the place is bustling with crime techs and uniformed officers. A mix of panic and nervous energy hangs in the air, or maybe it’s just the horrible smell that’s making me imagine it.
A tall woman in an identical mask joins us when we’re halfway across the front yard. It just goes to show how suffocating the stench is and how much I rely on smell in my daily life that it takes me a second to recognize her as Sloan. You know, one of my best friends?
She must be the crime photographer assigned to the scene.
“Oh, cool, you’re leading this one? Looks like the work of a psychopath, and you love psychopaths,” she greets me.
Serena snorts. “He does love psychopaths,” she agrees.
Look who’s talking. I glare at Serena. “I’m not the one who skipped to the Captain’s office when she heard there was another murder.”
“I just like murder cases,” she murmurs.
Sloan smiles at her. “Aww, you’re adorable,” she says.
If anyone else in the entire world ever called Serena ‘adorable’ in any context, they’ll walk with at least one limb missing. Not in this case. Here, Serena just goes quiet. If I didn’t know any better, I’d say she was blushing. But I do know better, so I won’t say it. But she definitely is.
“Nick, text me when you’re done. I’ve been assigned ‘Nick Welfare Check’ duty today,” Sloan continues, completely unaware of Serena’s reaction.
I tilt my head. “Were you supposed to tell me that there are ‘Nick Welfare Checks’ duties being assigned?”
Sloan winks at me. “As if you can shut it down,” she challenges and walks away.
Serena’s eyes follow her.
“I can't believe you're lusting after my only straight friend,” I whisper when Sloan is a comfortable distance away. Even if Serena is a betrayer, I won’t snitch on her, not with something like this.
“I’m not,” she says quickly.
“Don’t they take your lesbian card away if you crush on straight girls after being out and proud for a decade?”
She punches my arm. “It’s not like people don’t question their sexuality later in life?”
Well, touché.
A uniformed officer with a hideous red mask on his face approaches us as we reach the crime scene. He looks at me for a second like he recognizes me. Ah, it’s the guy Meena is using to teach me the art of delegation. Dominic, the new Bureau agent assigned to the LAPD as a patrol officer.
“The body was discovered by the neighbors when they were mowing their lawn this morning. They called 911 when they saw the body from the window.”
“Do we have an ID yet?” I ask.
He nods. “Nathaniel Rambert. His driver’s license was at home. He lived alone,” Dominic says.
“I haven't seen you before,” Serena squints at him.
“Just transferred here, Ma’am. Dominic Adler,” he says.
She nods. Then we step into the house, which is a complete mess. Unfortunately, an expected and familiar mess.
Serena turns to me, her face grim. We already know we won't find anything in the house. Just like we didn’t the last time. Every surface is a mess. There are broken glasses, clothes, soil, and leaves on the floor. On the tables. On the shelves.
The only thing clean is the body. It’s pristine. No signs of blood.
“He was supposed to be at a conference. That's why his girlfriend didn’t realize he was missing.”
“Is she here?”
Dominic nods and takes us to the crying woman outside. She looks familiar somehow.
I narrow my eyes, trying to remember where I could have seen her before. She’s a tall Latinx woman with a strong build. I could tell she was a werewolf when we were still a few feet away, but it’s confirmed when I reach close enough to smell nature, green and lush, on her.
“I live a couple of blocks away. I came down as soon as I got the call,” she says between tears.
“When was the last time you talked to him?” Serena asks.
“Almost a week ago. He went to a conference. I called him a few times, but he didn't pick up. I thought he was busy. We fought before… before he left.” She breaks down into sobs.
“We'll try our best to find who did this to him,” Serena assures her.
We go back into the house after setting up an appointment for further questioning and giving her our cards in case she remembers anything.
The body is still on the chair, being prepared to be transported. It’s clearly staged with signs of prolonged torture. There are cuts on the body, and the head has swelling and bruises.
The man is of average height and fit, someone who might put up a good fight. But a human.
Sloan rushes to us. “It's Cami's sister,” she says between ragged breaths.
“Who?” I ask.
“The girlfriend. She’s Cami's sister,” she says.