I pushed up onto my elbow as the officers rose, then hauled her to her feet.
She whirled around to face me, previously perfect white curls askew, her cardigan twisted. “You’ll get yours!” Her red face contorted with rage.
Peter offered me his hand. I took it—warm and large—and he helped me to my feet. Mrs. Abernathy and I stared at each other. Was she going to out me as a shifter in front of everyone?
She pressed her wrinkled lips tight together and shot me daggers but said nothing more. The police dragged her off, and Peter wrapped me in a tight hug. Though adrenaline surged through me and my whole body shook, I sank against him, relaxing slightly into his embrace.
Peter rubbed my back as some of the other officers began to sift through the broken glass and collect evidence from behind the checkout counter. After my breathing slowed a bit, I leaned back from him and explained what happened.
I told him about her being a mouse shifter, killing Geoffrey because he’d been snooping around and might have uncovered her illegal money lending business. I filled him in on how the director had caught her shifting once, months ago, but had forgotten until earlier tonight and that she’d killed him to keep him quiet when he guessed correctly that she’d killed Geoffrey. I left out the parts about her working for Ludolf—and of course her trusting me because I was a fellow shifter.
Daisy watched me the whole time from Peter’s side, her big black eyes fixed on me. Her bushy tail wagged, sweeping the marble floor and scattering tiny shards of glass from the broken doors.
When I’d finished, I blew out a gust of air. I was still rattled—still worried that when interrogated, Mrs. Abernathy might reveal my secret. Peter couldn’t find out that way. My stomach twisted with nerves—did I have the guts to tell him the whole truth?
He grinned down at me, though his eyes still welled with concern. “Nice work.” His throat bobbed. “But please, next time, don’t go alone.”
I nodded. Fair enough.
Daisy cocked her head and let out a quiet whine. I respect that you turned in a fellow shifter. It appears you do have a shred of decency.
I raised my brows and after checking that no other officers were nearby, let out a quiet “woof.” Wow, Days, a compliment? I mean, pretty backhanded, but still. I looked around. Am I dead? Is this a hallucination?
Her ears flattened, and her tail stopped wagging. Don’t let it get to your head.
29
COMPLICATED
Peter tapped his toe and looked to the side, gaze far away.
I raised a brow. “Merkle for your thoughts?”
He grinned, then looked down and sighed. “I’m just frustrated.” He blinked at me. “I mean, don’t get me wrong, you just solved two murders and that’s amazing.” His lips quirked to the side. “You’re pretty amazing.”
“Aw, make a girl blush.” I tried to keep my tone light, but still, on the inside I was trying to amp myself up to tell Peter that I was a shifter. I felt like I might be sick.
He shook his head. “But Mrs. Abernathy was running an illegal lending business, and these things are always part of a bigger network. She’s a small fish. If we could follow the trail, we’d no doubt be able to catch a big fish and make a real dent in the crime here on the island.” He huffed. “But, of course, we’ll get nowhere with her.”
I tilted my head. “What do you mean?”
He raised his brows at me like the answer was obvious. “She’s a shifter?” He splayed his palms, as if to say enough said. “They always stick together and protect their own.”
I froze. I felt as though he’d just punched me in the gut. My chest burned with anger. Here I’d just betrayed one of my own for the sake of justice—for the sake of Peter—and would likely be facing consequences, probably harsh ones, from Ludolf for doing so. He was being unfair.
“Not always.”
Peter scoffed and shot me a “get real” look. “All due respect, I’ve been an officer a long time.” He shot me a pointed look. “Always. It’s like they think they’re above the law or something.”
I ground my teeth together and thought of the way shifters were targeted and singled out. Most of the time our only hope for social services, jobs, housing, or justice was to go to Ludolf. We’d been abandoned by the rest of the kingdom, segregated, and now Peter was blaming us for sticking together? What other choice did we have most of the time? He had no idea what he was talking about.
“Or maybe they’re just under a different rule of law.”
Peter frowned. “What?”
My nostrils flared. Heat flushed through my body and I balled my hands into fists. I felt shaky, turbulent. I knew if we kept talking about this, I’d say something I’d probably regret. “Nothing,” I ground out.
Peter’s eyes searched my face, a little crease between his brows. “You okay?”
He reached up and rubbed my upper arms. I stepped back and shrugged his hands off me.
He blinked at me, shocked. I stood there, chest heaving, gritting my teeth together. If I’d still had my powers, getting this angry would probably have made me spontaneously shift.
Peter gulped. “You’re shaken up.”
Oh, now he was telling me what I was feeling?
He shook his head. “You shouldn’t have confronted Mrs. Abernathy like that. I shouldn’t have let you go alone.”
Let me?
He lowered his voice and glanced around—the other officers were out of earshot. “You could have been hurt—you don’t have powers, Jolene.”
Hot annoyance flushed up my chest and throat. Yeah, so he’d been reminding me. Only I’d survived this long without his help,
