Chapter 16
ROY
I opened the door but didn’t let the wolf enter. I was only in a towel, but I didn’t give a shit.
I took him in. Jeans, white button-up, sport coat. His hair was dark and threaded with gray. His eyes were sharp and keen, as if he’d seen a lot and done a hell of a lot more, some of it not good. Some of it probably scarred your soul.
I knew because I saw the same thing every time I looked in the mirror.
“Mark Ruhl. DEA. Rob Wolf shared where to find you.”
I relaxed a bit and opened the door wide enough to let him in. He was the law enforcement member of the Denver pack. Rob had mentioned him. If my alpha sent him, I sure as hell wasn’t refusing him entry.
“DEA?” I asked when I stepped back.
“Yeah.” He scanned the room and sniffed, no doubt picking up Brooke’s scent. “In an odd coincidence I was actually on a case against Sam Lazano before you ever got involved.”
“Who?”
Mark thumbed over his shoulder. “The meeting down the hall yesterday.”
My eyes widened. “Brooke’s mixed up in something being investigated by the DEA?”
Shit, I hadn’t pictured that.
“Yeah. I’m here to get her story.” He sniffed again, and I had to suppress the growl that crawled up my throat.
I flicked a gaze over my shoulder to make sure Brooke was still in the bathroom and lowered my voice to a mutter. “You an enforcer?”
He nodded.
It was a guess on my part, but it was easy to see in his bearing. That meant not only was he working for law enforcement for humans, he also meted out punishments from the Shifter Council. In order to earn that role, he had to be honorable, by the books, and ruthless.
That meant he might be investigating my murderous behavior on behalf of the Shifter Council, as well. And if they found me guilty of leaving a string of dead bodies across Denver, two of which were shared in the media, he’d be the guy with a silver bullet in his gun meant to end me.
Well, that was fine. I had nothing to hide. No regrets.
“Wait here,” I told him.
He nodded, and I went into the bedroom to grab my jeans off the floor. I tugged them on, watching him through the open doorway. I didn’t give a shit if he saw my balls. Shifters weren’t modest.
When I was doing up the zipper, Brooke came out of the bathroom in black leggings and a Broncos hoodie. She eyed me cautiously, her gaze flicking out into the main room.
“There’s a DEA guy here who wants to talk to us about what’s happening.”
Her eyes widened, and she looked worried, her shoulders curling in. I held out my hand, so she knew it was safe, and she came to me. Took it.
Fuck, that was a little bit of trust that meant so much.