Chapter Fourteen #2
Noah disappeared into the laundry room, reappearing a second later with a pile of clothes. “This is everything from your backpacks. I went ahead and washed and dried it all.”
“Thank you.” Her voice was as stiff as her body.
“Mom?”
She shook her head. “Get ready to leave. I need to talk to Cyrus.” He glanced toward his father and frowned before taking the bundle of clothes and disappearing down the hallway.
She waited until the door closed before blasting Cyrus.
“Don’t you ever do an end-run around me like that again.
You may be his biological father and a wolf, but by God, I’m his mother.
Decisions don’t get made about my son’s welfare without me. Do you understand?”
“That wasn’t my intention.”
“Could have fooled me.”
He shoved up from his chair and stalked over to stare out the window. “These coming weeks will set the tone for the rest of his life. Believe me, no one understands better than I do that he’s your son.” He swung around. “But to deny he’s mine puts him in danger.”
“I’m not denying anything.” She rubbed her hands over her face and fought for composure. “But I must be involved in any major decisions. We both want the same thing here, Cyrus. You’re too used to being in charge and having everyone jump when you say jump.”
Zach smothered a grin, Noah chuckled, but Josiah glared at her. “Even the strongest get tired sometimes.” His earlier comment ran through her mind. Cyrus was used to handling the hard things, to putting the needs of his brothers and now her and Adam above himself.
“This isn’t all on your shoulders.” She stood and went to him. “We’re in this together.” His black gaze bore into her. Whatever he was searching for, he seemed to find it.
“I’ll try and remember that going forward.”
Her lips twitched. “In other words, be prepared for more disagreements in the future.”
The corners of his mouth tilted up a fraction of an inch. “Maybe.” He ran his hand over her hair, tucking a stray strand behind her ear. “I’ll take care of you both.” The earnestness of the vow touched her heart. She made a private promise to take care of him, too.
****
Hours later, Cyrus pulled into the lot behind the sheriff’s office, waiting as Vinnie took the spot beside him.
It had been a long, lonely trip with too much time to think and worry.
He’d spent most of it keeping an eye on the vehicle in front of him and wishing he was with Vinnie and Adam.
Their only contact had been when they’d made a pit stop at a fast food place to hit the bathrooms and grab burgers to go.
It had been a short, tense exchange. None of them were looking forward to the coming confrontation.
He climbed out of his SUV and strode over to Vinnie’s door.
It opened before he got there and she climbed out.
She was afraid and doing her best not to show it.
It wouldn’t be visible to most, but the acrid scent of her fear filled his nostrils.
Vinnie squared her shoulders and met his gaze. “Let’s get this done.”
“Remember,” he told them both. “I’m on your side.” He’d repeat the words as many times as it took for them to start truly believing.
Vinnie led the way up the paved walkway and into the long, squat modern building that housed the sheriff’s department. The dispatcher glanced up. His mouth opened and snapped closed before he grabbed his phone. They were a distance away, but Cyrus had no trouble eavesdropping.
“Sheriff, Vinnie just walked in with Adam and that tracker from Kentucky. Yes, sir.”
When Adam went to sit, Vinnie shook her head. They wouldn’t have long to wait.
Sheriff Kingman strode down the hallway, his brows lowered and his forehead furrowed. His sharp gaze ran over all of them before settling back on Vinnie. “Deputy.”
“Sheriff.” She made eye contact, not fidgeting or backing down, even though this couldn’t be easy for her.
“We’ll talk in my office.” He motioned her and Adam forward, stepping in front of Cyrus when he went to follow.
“I’ll speak with you separately once we’re done.
” Vinnie paused and gave him a nod to let him know she had this.
He decided to step back and let her handle it .
.. until he saw the fear reflected in Adam’s eyes.
“That’s not happening.” When Vinnie frowned at him, he canted his head toward their son. If the boy got upset, there was no telling what might happen, and he was the only one equipped to handle a juvenile wolf.
“You’ve got no right to be there,” the sheriff pointed out. “This is a private family matter.”
Vinnie was going to kill him for this, but the word was bound to get out sooner or later.
Someone would talk and the news would spread like wildfire around the small town.
“Yes, it is.” Rather than being loud or belligerent, Cyrus grew quiet and controlled.
If his brothers were around, they’d be ducking for cover, understanding that the angrier he got, the quieter he got.
He glanced toward the dispatcher, who wasn’t even pretending not to listen, and lowered his voice so only the sheriff could hear him. “Adam is my son.”
Eyes widening, Sheriff Kingman looked over at Adam and back at him. “I see. Deputy Grant, are you okay if Mr. Sin sits in on the interview?”
Frown lines appeared on her forehead, and her eyes narrowed, but she nodded. “That’s fine, Sheriff.”
Adam’s relief was palpable. The boy hung back until Cyrus was beside him. His son was conflicted about needing him there. It had been a primal response from his wolf, not a rational human one. He patted Adam on the shoulder, hoping the brief contact would ease some of his stress.
The sheriff was already seated behind his desk when they caught up with Vinnie outside the office.
She and Adam took the chairs in front of the desk.
Cyrus leaned against the wall behind them and crossed his arms over his chest, ready to intervene if necessary.
It went against his nature to sit back and do nothing, but this was Vinnie’s boss, her town, and her son.
He might be the biological father, but she was the one who’d been there with him all these years.
His job was to support and protect them.
“You’re in a heap of trouble, boy,” the sheriff began.
Cyrus straightened, not liking how the sheriff immediately attacked Adam without even inquiring about his physical or mental health. Vinnie raised her hand. “Stop right there. You will address your questions to me.”
Sheriff Kingman pointed his finger at her. “You’re in a heap of trouble, too, Deputy Grant. Don’t add to it.”
“How am I in trouble? I took vacation time to search for my son.”
“You led Deputy Wilkes on a wild goose chase in the hills.”
She tilted her head to one side. “Was Davis searching on his own? I had no idea. Our paths didn’t cross.”
Cyrus bit the inside of his mouth to keep from grinning.
Deputy Wilkes had tagged her knapsack to keep tabs on her.
He’d probably been more than a little pissed to discover the tracker buried deep in the woods and Vinnie nowhere in sight.
Not to mention the trackers that had tagged Cyrus’s vehicle had been removed.
The big question was if the sheriff had been aware of it.
Couldn’t rule out the possibility of him being behind it.
The more likely scenario was Wilkes spinning a web of lies.
“How did he even know where to look for us?” she continued. “It’s not as though we left a trail. We didn’t even know where we were going when we set out.”
The sheriff shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I’m the one asking the questions.”
“So far all I’ve heard are accusations.”
“Your job is hanging by a thread, Deputy. Cooperation is in your best interest.” Cyrus didn’t like the sheriff’s subtle threat.
Vinnie leaned back in her chair and tapped the fingers of her right hand against the arm. “We both know I’m done here, don’t we?”
Adam was getting more agitated by the second. “Mom?”
“It’s okay, buddy. We talked about this, remember?”
Cyrus had no idea what they’d discussed on the drive here. He hated working blind. Worse, he felt excluded, superfluous.
“Why did you run away?” It was the first question the sheriff should have asked after inquiring about Adam’s well-being, which he still hadn’t done.
That he’d taken so long to get there didn’t endear him to Cyrus.
“Half the town was searching for you. Lot of people went out of their way to help, put their own lives on hold to look for you. This department racked up a ton of manpower hours over this. That’s time and money that would have been better spent elsewhere.
” Talk about a lack of compassion. Cyrus’s wolf snarled inside him.
Adam rubbed his hands over his thighs, his left foot jerking up and down. “I wanted to get away by myself. That’s not a crime.”
The sheriff rested his elbows on the arms of his chair and steepled his fingers.
“No, it’s not, but it does bring into question your mother’s parenting skills.
I imagine it’s not easy being raised by a single parent.
With your grandma gone and your mom working long hours, you’re left on your own a lot.
” The false sympathy curdled Cyrus’s stomach. “Not easy for a boy without a father.”
Vinnie surged up out of her chair. “You can’t be serious. Almost twenty years I’ve worked for this department and you’re suddenly implying I’m an unfit mother.”
The man had the grace to flush, but he didn’t back down. “I have to look at the facts. You’re a deputy. You know the score as well as I do.”