Chapter 2
Isaac
I was just settling into bed when there was a knock at the door.
Grumbling, I got up and walked to the door.
“Who the hell is bothering me at this hour?” I snapped.
As I flung open the door, I froze.
Kyle Westin.
“Sorry for the late hour disturbance, Isaac, but we have three young boys missing and are scouring the territory to find them.”
“What the hell does that have to do with me?” I barked. When he glared at me in warning, I cringed. “Sorry, Alpha,” I muttered.
“We’re just checking everywhere. It will only take a moment.”
“Well, look around. I’m certainly not harboring any little rodent refugees.”
He chuckled. “Never dreamed you would. But we do want to check the sheds and woods behind your house. This is pretty far out for these kids, so not likely, but we just want to be certain.”
“Sure. Do you need me to look?”
“No. We’ve got this covered. I just didn’t want any problems with you hearing people snooping around.”
I understood what he meant. If the Alpha himself hadn’t shown up and I heard people on my property, I probably would have shot first and asked questions later.
There was a reason I chose to live on the fringe of the Pack. If I didn’t happen to like the perks of Pack life, well the financial perks at least, I would have taken off and lived my life as a lone wolf long ago.
Kyle knew that.
We had a bit of an arrangement. I happened to be very good with covering my ass. Few in the Pack even knew I existed. I liked it that way. Some called me paranoid. Maybe they were right, but as long as they kept to themselves, I had no issues.
The one thing I excelled at was numbers. Technically, I worked for Westin Foundation. But not in a go to the office kind of capacity. Only a handful of people had any idea what I did.
My job was to ensure financial security for the Pack. It was a function everyone attributed to the Foundation and that wasn’t a lie. I was certainly not the type of guy who needed to be recognized for my work and it was safer overall that I remain anonymous.
On a daily basis, I monitored various government organizations like the Internal Revenue Service for any red flags that may arise towards Westin Pack.
That included all it’s Pack members. Next to Kyle himself, I was probably the only person in the world who truly knew every single member of the Pack.
And honestly, I’d met very few of them in person.
But I knew their financial status and every possible thing that could give the Pack a problem.
It didn’t require me to leave the house. I mostly had my grocery orders delivered and otherwise spent a peaceful existence away from society. I worked a lot, but I also enjoyed shooting, raising animals, gardening, and baking, though I’d never confess that to anyone.
I liked things tidy and I didn’t need or want anyone telling me what I had to do.
It had been years since something got past me. The Pack was financially secure and in very good standing with every human department that could cause us problems. I also happened to be very good at hiding money from them, which was why I started monitoring for any red flags to begin with.
Westin Pack was far better off than anyone knew.
I had money squirreled all over the world in various offshore accounts.
There was even a sizable nest egg sitting in Switzerland.
And because I was entirely paranoid, there was enough cash buried around my property to fund immediate needs for all of us for a year should a crisis arise that required it.
In my own way I took care of the Pack and it bought me my peace and quiet, allowing me to live the life of a lone wolf but with the full protection of the Pack. To me, it was a perfect life.
Kyle had left to check on whoever he had roaming around my little farm. I didn’t like it and it set my wolf on edge, but there was one wolf in this world that I would not cross, and he damn well knew it.
After a few minutes, he returned.
“We’re rolling out. Thanks for cooperating. I appreciate it.”
Like it was my choice.
Kyle wasn’t showing up to everyone’s house to check like this. He knew it and I knew it. He’d come here specifically to protect his little search team and make sure I toed the line.
It wasn’t like I ever caused trouble. As long as people left me be, I was happy to live my life on the fringe.
Besides, why would any little rugrats come sniffing around here? It wasn’t like I had anything to provide for them. And if I heard them, I’d likely shoot first, and maybe feel bad later.
I didn’t like kids. But I didn’t hate them enough to single them out or want to hurt them either. At least as long as they didn’t provoke me.
What kid would be dumb enough to even try?
I knew damn well there were stories about me around the Pack.
Some had grown like horror lore. I was likened to movies like Psycho, Halloween, and other tales of psychotic killers on the loose.
I didn’t care. It kept people away. Only the truly sick came looking, or the occasional teenage dare.
Lately, even those had seemed to fade away.
It was as if I didn’t even exist, and I was more than okay with that. As far as the rest of the world outside San Marco knew, I’d died more than twenty years ago. It meant no more taxes, no signs whatsoever of my existence.
My paycheck was laundered so deep that no one was ever going to sort it out.
On paper it was paid to several overseas charities, like a medical relief group in Uganda.
To authenticate that, I did have a charity actively running over there, just on a far smaller budget than would appear on paper.
And there were several others scattered around the globe as well.
None of it traced directly back to me. Because I didn’t exist. And that was exactly how I wanted it.
Maybe there was something wrong with me. I didn’t need community the way normal wolf shifters required. I didn’t need anyone but me. Never had, never would.
When I wasn’t working or tending to my farm, I was usually running through the woods in my fur. I spent a great deal of time in my wolf form. There was something so peaceful about it.
Even now as I watched Kyle and his team leave, I wanted to shift and go for a run. My natural instinct was to pee a circle around my property, but even I wasn’t dumb enough for that.
I knew damned well I was inside Kyle’s territory. It would never fully be mine because of it. He was a tolerant and fair Alpha. He put up with a lot of my shit, but marking up his territory wasn’t something he’d tolerate, or at least an understanding I was not brave enough to test.
Certain everyone was gone, I walked outside and checked everything for myself. They hadn’t really disturbed anything. The animals were a little riled up, but not too bad. There wasn’t any sign of any pups around.
Feeling confident in that, I walked back inside to try and settle in for the night once more.
Sleep wasn’t something that came to me easily. I often spent many late hours working because of it. That allowed me to tend to things with more immediate importance.
Twice a month I ventured out and off the mountain to pick up grain and hay for the animals.
There was a small feed store that I liked.
They didn’t ask any questions and I didn’t give them any reason to.
We had a simple exchange. I placed my order.
They prepared it. I picked it up. There wasn’t even a need for fake pleasantries.
On a regular basis they were the only people I had contact with, and they were humans smart enough not to ask any questions or go prying into my business.
My family had passed on or moved on long ago. I still had a sister out there somewhere. She had mated a Longhorn wolf and moved out of territory. She had a few pups I’d never met before, but she’d send a Christmas card once a year to Kyle to give to me.
I had no address of my own. I had no bills.
My home was a hundred percent off grid. I had a well and a combination of wind, solar, and water generators for energy.
My internet was the only thing truly connecting me to the outside world and it was a satellite link charged to Westin Force where no one would bat an eye towards it.
I was very good at what I did.
If someone needed to disappear, Archie over at Westin Force would reach out and ask for my assistance.
How he got my email for contact was beyond me.
I assumed Kyle gave it to him. The guy was almost as paranoid as me, so it all worked out in the end.
In some weird way he was probably my one friend in this world and I’d never even laid eyes on the guy.
I’d been offered jobs over there, but I preferred the arrangement we currently had. It worked for me. What I didn’t like was change. I loved my life just the way it was and I didn’t need a damn thing more.
If those little brats Kyle was looking for had a lick of sense in their heads, they wouldn’t dream of coming here.
My wolf didn’t fully relax until every last one of them was a good mile away on their search. I just hoped they didn’t find cause to come back this way any time soon, or ever would be preferred.