Chapter 28 No Hard Feelings?
Wynn
This is awkward.
“Would anyone like some refreshments?” Cierra’s voice is stiff, her fists tightly clenching the top of the armchair her wife sits in.
The detective opens his mouth.
“We don’t have any refreshments,” Cierra objects before he can form a request. Guess it was a rhetorical question. Or she just doesn’t like him. Probably that one.
“Let’s just move this along, shall we?” Harper voices wearily.
“Are you giving me orders in my own home?” Adelaide’s tone makes the hair on my arms stand on end. She’s sitting in the armchair like it’s her throne, making no secret of her hostility towards the detective in the chair next to her.
“The sooner we sort this out, the sooner this Alpha leaves your den,” he points out. His voice sounds strained but he’s doing a much better job of controlling his instincts this time and not bristling at being in the living room of two hostile Alphas.
A pretty big accomplishment, given how tightly wound Cierra and Adelaide are. Not only are they territorial Alphas, they’ve been hiding Dodger in this very home, protecting him from harm. Their instincts must be going haywire.
"Let’s all take a deep breath and just talk this out,” I suggest. “Nobody is an enemy here."
"Yeah, we’re all friends.” Marlow points at Harper. “The good detective hasn’t even arrested me yet.”
“Still time for that," Harper mutters.
No, nobody is arresting the demon on my watch. It’s my turn to go territorial and I place a hand on Marlow’s thigh as I stare down the detective. "What would you arrest him for? Killing the man sitting right there?"
When I indicate Dodger and all eyes swing to him, he’s watching Harper with an odd look on his face. He jumps at being caught staring, cheeks flushing crimson. He ducks his head, staring resolutely down at his lap.
"Why don’t you start at the beginning?" Harper invites him gently.
Dodger clears his throat and looks at the detective for a single second. Then he focuses on Adelaide and Cierra and seems to ignore the other wolf entirely, deciding it’s easier to share this story with the wolves he already knows. Guess the detective makes him nervous. Honestly, I get that.
“Uh, sure. Strange things have happened my whole life. Seeing people who weren’t there, seeing monsters.
It turns out I’m a necromancer. I call to beings from beyond this world and see things others can’t.
” For some reason, he goes red again and glances at the detective.
Then he shakes his head and keeps going.
“When I came to Brighton, I was supposed to meet with someone who could teach me.” His face darkens, a bitter laugh escaping his throat.
“But he was more interested in using me. He wouldn’t let me go.
And getting help wasn’t possible since…” Dodger shoots a nervous glance at the detective. “Since he’s the police chief.”
A muscle in the detective’s jaw twitches while he tightly grips the armrest of his chair hard enough that the leather audibly protests but otherwise he contains his reaction and manages not to object.
“I was desperate and decided to fake my death,” he continues.
“So, uh, I set it all up and opened a passage.” He looks at Marlow, his face twisted with guilt.
“Nobody was supposed to take the blame. I wanted it to look like I summoned something I couldn’t handle, an accident caused by a baby necromancer biting off more than he can chew. "
Marlow stumbled on the crime scene he invented before the cops, and they reached a different conclusion instead.
Dodger keeps looking at Marlow with the most pitiful expression.
Marlow kicks his leg out in Dodger’s direction.
“Hey, it’s cool. Accidents happen. You picked a neat place to hide.
I particularly enjoy—” A growl fills the air.
“—the scenery? You know, the trees, bushes, and assorted benches? Some really great benches in Concordia.”
He was going to say something about me until Adelaide growled.
We’re on the opposite end of the couch from Dodger, both of us twisted toward the necromancer, and Marlow has an arm around me while I’m leaning against his side.
When I glance at my cousin, she’s trying to burn a hole through Marlow’s forehead with the force of her stare, apparently not liking how cozy we are.
I wave my hand in her direction, roll my eyes, and she finally knocks it off.
“And how did you end up with the Iron Pack?” the detective questions Dodger.
“A city of witches seemed like the best place to find other necromancers.”
Huh. Necromancy is considered a form of witchcraft, but I can’t say I’ve ever come across any covens catering to Dodger’s talents or even met one necromancer, not until now. Maybe Concordia isn’t as accepting as I thought.
"I couldn’t find anything useful for my powers, but I found the Iron Pack.” Dodger looks at the Alphas fondly. “With the giant wall and werewolves patrolling the territory, I liked it here. It felt safe. I asked them for shelter.”
Makes sense. I've seen Adelaide and Cierra make grown men cry before. In terms of protection, it's hard to get more muscle than them. The more surprising part is whatever led them to agree. They aren’t the most nurturing or compassionate wolves, especially to a stranger.
Now all eyes turn to Adelaide. "Dodger needed a place to hide and we have no allies with his particular skills. It seemed like a beneficial alliance for everyone. He was running from someone in Brighton and then a wanted murderer from Brighton showed up. I knew he must be after Dodger."
Well, she was right about that. Marlow was after Dodger, just not to hurt the man. He thought he was tracking the killer.
"Handing over Maddox quickly was the best option. It showed we were cooperating and was supposed to get rid of the extra attention." She scowls. "Then you escaped."
"And suddenly I was poking around in your business," the detective concludes. "Did you miss how the man Marlow was accused of killing shared the same name as the guy you were harboring?"
"She didn't know," the man in question speaks up. Guess he’s gotten over his nerves because he stares down the detective defiantly. "It never occurred to me to tell her my real name. Yeah, it’s on the license I left for the cops to find, but I’ve gone by Dodger since I was a kid.
I knew Adelaide was dealing with some crisis, but she didn't share the details. If I’d known someone was accused of killing me, I would have come forward sooner. "
Harper thinks for a minute, then heaves a weary sigh. “I don't suppose you're willing to walk into the police station in Brighton and clear up the reports of your untimely demise?"
"Absolutely not!" Adelaide objects.
"Why would he go back after getting away?" Cierra grumbles.
Harper holds up a hand to stop the protests. "That's what I thought." He turns to Marlow. "And you—"
"I'm free to go with your sincerest apologies?" the demon guesses.
"Not quite that simple." Harper’s face is normally so blank but now it darkens as he thinks it over. The victim is alive and well. The man hunting for his killer now knows Marlow is innocent. But Dodger isn’t about to go back with Harper.
And if Harper reveals too much to his bosses, he’d be putting Dodger’s life in jeopardy.
"You're free." The detective sighs. "Looks like I've got a mess on my hands."
We discuss things for a bit longer and the detective has more questions for Marlow and Dodger, though for the most part things are settled.
As the three of them talk, I get a moment alone with my cousin. We stand together in the living room entryway.
"Sorry about this mess," I tell Adelaide. "The last thing I wanted was to make things more difficult for you."
She sniffs, shaking her head. "You were doing the right thing. That's obvious now."
"So were you, protecting Dodger." I feel guilty for not giving her more credit. “I’m sorry I… should have known better than to doubt you.”
"A fight is no fun if it isn't fair," she says. "Picking on those who are weaker doesn’t make you any stronger."
"That's why you helped him?" I did wonder if there was more to the story than a 'strategic alliance.'
"Our pack values strength, but as we reevaluate how we approach things, we should consider what we use our strength for. We should protect not only ourselves but those who can’t defend themselves."
I smile. "Sounds amazing."
"Oh yeah?" She raises an eyebrow. "You gonna stay and help us?”
"No, I don't think so."
Marlow and I haven't had a chance to talk about it yet. Until Dodger found us, we weren't even sure Marlow would have a future. But it's safe to say the Iron Pack isn't where either of us belong.
I thought the pack needed me around to help show them a different way forward beyond tradition and aggression, but it seems Adelaide has taken this new direction to heart.
She's found more purpose than just being the biggest and strongest or the best fighter.
I think they're gonna do just fine without me.
Eventually, the detective wraps up his conversation with Marlow and Dodger and leaves first. Adelaide and Cierra relax, which has everybody breathing a sigh of relief. This house wasn’t big enough for the three of them.
The Alphas walk Marlow and me to the front door. He clears his throat while dawdling by the door, glancing uncertainly at the women. “Look, uh. Hopefully we can put all this behind us. Sorry I put you through so much trouble, but now you know I was innocent.”
Aww, he’s trying to make peace with them. For my sake, no doubt. He really is a keeper.
Adelaide doesn’t find the words as impressive as I do. "You were a pest,” she says gravely, expression as hard as stone.
"And you tried to set me up in the interrogation room," he fires right back.
“You thought we were aiding and abetting a killer.”
“You thought I was a killer!” Marlow coughs when I nudge him. “Which I totally forgive you for, no hard feelings.”
“Some hard feelings,” Cierra mutters.
"We all did what we thought was right,” I jump in. “Let’s move on.”
Marlow and Adelaide may hate each other on principle but nobody punched anyone else or tried to arrest my mate. I can’t ask for more.
After a moment of stony silence, my cousin thrusts her hand out towards Marlow. The motion is so sudden that he flinches instinctively, raising both hands as if expecting her to take a swing at him.
“Oh! Handshake,” he realizes a second later, hastily reaching forward to clasp her hand in his own. “Sorry—sorry about that. Didn’t think it would be that easy.”
Is he blushing at his mistake? I’ve never seen Marlow blush before. My cousin is a miracle worker.
To my demon’s credit, he manages not to wince from her crushing grip as they shake hands. Adelaide pulls her hand away with the faintest twitch at the corner of her mouth—was that almost… a smirk? Cierra notices too and smirks outright, clearly entertained by the whole exchange.
“Since you’re a free man now,” Adelaide begins slowly, “and you can’t go back to Brighton quite yet… are you sticking around Concordia?”
“Yeah,” he says. “That’s a safe bet.”
“Good.” Oh, she’s definitely smirking now, an evil smirk. “That means you’ll get to meet the rest of Wynn’s family.”
Wow, it’s impressive how she made that sound like a threat.
“Of hard-to-impress deadly wolf shifters who will be sizing up your every move,” Cierra adds cheerfully, “and making sure you’re good enough for our sweet Wynn.”
Yep. Definitely a threat.
“No, I’m not worried,” Marlow tries to laugh it off, but a slight crack in his voice betrays him. “We’re true mates. If you aren’t happy with Wynn’s partner, blame fate, not me.”
“You’re destined for Wynn, not his family.” Adelaide crosses her arms. “Jury’s still out with the rest of us.”
For once, Marlow looks genuinely flustered as he turns to me for backup. This is the gift that keeps on giving. “Wynn, I’m getting the impression your family doesn’t like me.”
“I like you,” Cierra chimes in. “But this is fun.”
“I don’t like you,” Adelaide states bluntly.
Marlow sighs heavily and pinches the bridge of his nose as if trying to stave off an oncoming headache.
I can’t help but chuckle under my breath as I tug on his hand gently, pulling him toward the door before they can torture him any further. “Don’t worry,” I whisper conspiratorially as we step outside into the crisp evening air. “I’ll protect you.”