Chapter 16
Josh
My time was up. It had run out while I slept, while I drowned in every tiny moment I could steal with Elijah, while I hid from the inevitable.
Now the inevitable was here, and there was no running anymore.
I glanced over my shoulder at where Elijah was passed out after yet another epic night lost in each other’s embrace.
Gray tendrils fell across his face, an interesting contrast to his youthful tawny-colored complexion.
His breathing remained deep and even, and his body was still curled around where I’d been nestled against him half an hour before.
Tempting fate, I brushed the hair from his face. He took a deeper breath when my fingers touched the smooth skin of his forehead. I froze, and he let it back out again without stirring further. With a sigh, I withdrew my hand and stood up from my seat on the edge of the bed.
Why did I have to waste so much time? He’s going to be livid.
I swallowed hard and pulled the bathroom door shut.
It was tempting to lock it, so I could finish without him asking what I was doing, but he’d gotten better about not following me everywhere, and I was pretty sure locking it would cause more concern, not less.
Besides, if he came in anyway, then I’d have no choice but to explain myself.
Which I had no idea how I would do without jeopardizing everything.
He can’t know. It’ll only make things harder.
I turned on the water to help hide the sound of the trimmer.
The spray hit the porcelain tub and echoed in the small space.
Marginally confident that I wouldn’t be interrupted, I activated the device.
Yet, as I brought the shears close to my head, I hesitated.
The last time my hair had been this long, I’d been sixteen.
Two weeks after my birthday, my mother had lied about my age and enlisted me for Lycan Detective training.
They’d shaved every scrap of hair off and shipped me to an undisclosed location.
While the next six months had been brutal, they were nothing compared to what I’d endured under my mother’s tutelage.
Thanks to said previous training, I rose swiftly through the ranks of hopefuls.
In record time, I’d been top of my recruitment class and first in line to take the oaths.
The same oaths that had already killed five people.
It had actually been Director Starling, then Lycan Detective Angela Starling and the first person to survive the grueling process, who’d noticed I was too young.
She’d insisted on my file being pulled and refused to relent until she’d proven I was underage.
My mother had been furious at being thwarted, but Starling had seen the relief in my eyes.
The reprieve had been short-lived, though.
Exactly eighteen months later, I’d undergone the most agonizing experience of my life.
Not even the pain of the change could compare to the hours of torture I’d undergone, all so humans and lycans alike could trust every word I said, so I could do a job I never wanted.
I stared deep into my father’s hunter-green eyes—my eyes. The man reflected in the mirror was a far cry from the scared boy who’d only ever known pain and heartache. My time may be up, but my work was just getting started. Steam swirled around me as I once again returned the blade to my scalp.
Elijah
Per Josh’s written request, I was dressed and ready to go.
Though why he’d woken up and decided today of all days was the one he wanted to clear out his desk at the precinct was beyond me.
Far be it from me to discourage him from leaving the house.
Rather than be worried, I chose to be optimistic, to see this as a sign he was ready to face the world again.
He’d already shown he could run with other wolves.
Dr. Lyons had given him a clean bill of health and even remarked upon his progress at his latest check-up.
And our life at home was better than any fantasy I could concoct.
“That has to be the longest shower in the history of showers,” I called out when I heard the bathroom door shut. I fiddled with an empty picture frame I hadn’t gotten around to filling with images of our new life together.
At the familiar sound of boots tapping on the wooden floor, I looked up. My mouth instantly went dry, and my fingers turned numb as all my blood flowed south in a rush.
Josh waltzed down the hallway like he owned the whole damn state.
Every inch of him screamed confidence, from his form-fitting leather boots, skin-tight pants, and trademark burgundy vest all the way to his perfectly styled hair and clean-shaven face.
After weeks of seeing him in casual attire and a relaxed shag, it was more shock than my system could take.
He stopped barely a meter in front of me and flashed me a crooked grin as he straightened his perfectly pressed cuffs. “You’re leering, baby.”
“Stars, Josh.” I tried in vain to put my eyes back in their sockets and bring my heart rate under control.
He looked exactly as he had the first day I’d truly met him, and the same way he’d looked every day after as I lusted hopelessly after him.
With one exception. Instead of cold and distant, his forest-green eyes were warm and filled with affection. “I love you.”
His crooked smile morphed into a full-blown grin. “That good, huh?”
In one step, I crossed the distance between us and crushed his body against mine, sealing the connection with the searing kiss I’d been unable to give him the first time around.
“You are without a doubt the sexiest thing on two legs.” I slid my hands around his waist and immediately started venturing higher, before another memory had them stilling in their tracks. “You’re not packing, are you?”
“No. The only weapon I’m wearing is the government-issued firearm strapped to my thigh.”
“You mean this thigh?” I coasted my hand down his backside and intentionally squeezed the wrong leg.
He moaned into me, but didn’t pull away. “You keep that up, Dr. Bennett, and there won’t be enough time to swing by HoT D.” He expertly slipped my grip and was halfway to the door by the time I regained my bearings.
“Cheeky bastard. They serve coffee all day.”
His laugh drifted back to me, but he didn’t cease his journey out the front of the house.
Only a few curious stares found us as we walked through town to acquire his favorite caffeine fix.
With the clear sky and mercifully mild weather, it would have been the perfect day to wander aimlessly outside for hours, except every few minutes I caught Josh glancing at his bio-clock.
When I asked, he simply insisted that he wanted to be at the precinct by a certain time.
Which is how, at exactly 12:27 in the afternoon, we found ourselves standing in front of his old desk.
“I can’t believe you’re actually here.” Mack enthusiastically shook Josh’s hand before finally caving and embracing him in a quick hug.
Josh bore it surprisingly well, patting the young officer on the back until Mack stepped away.
“Jason mentioned you’d gotten out a bit, but why didn’t you call or stop by? ”
Josh gave him a wry smile. “Did it ever occur to you that you might be on a short list of people who actually like me?”
Officer Mack’s jaw fell for a moment, then he recovered. “Anyway, it’s great to see you again. As you can see, no one has had the brass to touch your workspace in your absence.” He gestured grandly to the desk, which looked exactly the same as it had the last time I’d seen it six months ago.
“You’re a good friend.” Officer Mack practically glowed at the praise, and for once the bitter jealousy that had plagued me before didn’t so much as surface to give a spiteful wave. Mack could preen all he liked in Josh’s attention. I knew unequivocally that Josh was mine.
I stepped back in order to toss my empty cup into the composting container and shook my head. “He’s right. I still don’t see why we had to be here at this exact moment. We could have come here anytime in the last two months or the next two, for that matter.”
Josh once again glanced down at his bio-ware, then stepped up to me. I blinked at him in confused surprise when he cupped the side of my face and placed a tender kiss on my lips. “I want you to know I love you.”
I couldn’t contain my concerned frown. “I love you too, moonbeam.”
His mouth twitched into the smallest of smiles, and he closed his eyes as if savoring the words. Meanwhile, I was more confused than ever. If Josh were aiming for a public declaration of our love, I could think of several grander ways to do so, one in particular topping the list.
With a soft sigh, he stepped away, checked his bio-watch for the millionth time, then glanced at the main entrance. “Time’s up.”
On cue, the door to the precinct burst open, and a dozen armed soldiers wearing full tactical armor poured into the room.
Several things all happened at once. Shouts filled the precinct.
Guns were drawn. A bright flash of blue filled the room and left a ringing in my ears.
Weapons clattered to the floor from the limp hands of stunned officers.
Officer Mack stepped forward and threw a hand back at Josh, yelling something about him running.
Josh looked from the violence at the door to me with a silent apology in his eyes as he set his firearm on the table, still safely in its holster.
When he returned his focus to the front, the world stopped moving in slow motion.
One of the armed men stepped forward and lowered his weapon. “Joshua Hart.”
“Commander Walsh.” Josh was the picture of calm, having ignored Mack's attempt to help him flee.
I stood there, still confused as hell about what was going on. Who were these people? What did they want from Josh? I made to step towards him, and half a dozen weapons trained on me. “Josh…”
Despite the naked worry in my voice, he never took his eyes off the Commander. “Officer Mack, you may want to restrain the potentially volatile werewolf.” He chuckled to himself. “Suppose that includes me now.”
My brow furrowed as I looked from Josh to the approaching armed men. “Josh.”
He glanced at me just as Mack wrapped shaking hands around my arm. “You'll be okay, baby.”
Alarm bells went off inside my head. He’d pointedly not said that he would be okay. “Josh, what's going on?”
The soldier, who was obviously in charge, stepped forward. “Lycan Detective Joshua Hart, you are under arrest for crimes against the Klamath Pack, criminal negligence, and the unsanctioned deaths of fifty-three lycanthropes.”
My brain finally caught up with what was happening.
“What? No!” I lurched forward only to meet resistance.
“He's not responsible for those. He was being manipulated.
You can't arrest him as an unwilling accessory!” My protests went unheard.
Mack tightened his grip, and Josh remained stoically impassive.
I pulled harder against Mack's flimsy hold. “You can't do this.”
“Remus, if you could please assist Officer Mack in restraining Dr. Bennett.” The force of Josh's request rolled over me. Then a familiar face stepped forward from the rest, eyes wide.
“Soldier, you will hold your position!”
Remus completely ignored his commanding officer and continued to cross the room until his hands joined Mack's on my arms, firm and immovable.
“Don't do this,” I pleaded simultaneously with the soldiers and Josh.
Josh gave me a sad look as the remaining team surged forward. They grabbed him roughly, slamming him into the desk to cuff him. I fought against the superior hold of a stronger lycan.
“Hey! That's police brutality. He has rights.” Mack's shout went ignored, and he kept his hold on me.
Two soldiers dragged Josh upright while the soldier in charge addressed Mack. “We aren't the police, and people facing war crimes don't have rights.”
War crimes?
“No!” I howled as they dragged him away. “Josh, please don't let them do this. You can stop them. I know you can.” I pulled harder, but Remus wasn't budging. “Fight, damn you. Fight!”
“You'll be okay, baby.” The repeated reassurance sent my heart plummeting to my stomach.
I fought harder as he disappeared through the door, the sickening realization of what was happening settling into my core. “No! They can't do this. Let me go! I'll stop them myself.” Each second that passed was another second they got farther away. “Please! You have to let me go.”
Remus's grip shifted, but didn’t alleviate. “No can do, boss. He gave an order.”
My head snapped around to stare at him. His mouth hung open, shock written all over the parts of his face visible behind the tactical gear.
“What's he talking about, Red?” The tremor in Mack’s voice matched the shaking in his hands.
Remus released me, and I stumbled forward, easily breaking Mack’s feeble hold, and made a beeline for the door.
“It's too late. They're long gone now. The portal was right out front, and they would have closed it the moment he crossed the barrier.” Remus’s succinct analysis added another stone to the weight in my stomach.
I pulled at my hair and fought the urge to rip at my chest. The bond was still intact, so Josh was definitely still alive, but it was so thin it felt like it could snap at any moment.
“What the hell just happened?” Mack demanded to know, his voice slightly steadier, though he still sounded shaken.
“Joshua Hart is being arrested for war crimes, specifically attempted genocide,” Remus supplied with all the monotone of a professional soldier.
“The fuck?” Mack’s exclamation matched how I felt perfectly. “And why did you...? What was that?”
I walked back and looked Remus in the eye. Despite his apathetic dissemination of the situation, he still seemed confused. “When was the last time you were with your pack?”
Remus shook his head. “I don't know. Few months ago? Maybe longer.”
“Makes sense.”
“Did you know that could happen?” Bewilderment shone in Remus’s blue eyes.
“Yes. It's not really something that gets talked about, though.”
“What are you two talking about? What’s not something that gets talked about?” Mack piped up. “What happened?”
I glanced at the exceptionally flustered Mack. “Something very rare. Josh just pulled Remus's allegiance from another pack.”
“How can he do that?”
“Because Josh is an Alpha.”
Remus sat heavily in the nearest chair and flopped his head back. “Fuck. My family is going to be pissed.”