It was what I wanted to do, but it was easier said than done. I hadn’t gone looking for any of this. My past had come out of nowhere to slam headfirst into my life. And it was more than just Jake and Stephen. It was my entire freaking life, which had been a lie from the moment I was born. Now it turned out I was a werewolf—an incompetent one that couldn’t shift to save her life—but a werewolf all the same. And maybe even if I tried to run from all the things that kept rushing in my direction as if I were a magnet, I would still be unable to escape. Sticking my head in the sand wouldn’t help, not when, even now, my bones felt on the verge of twisting into a shape that would make every cute outfit in my closet completely useless.
“Sure, I’ll try to stay away from them,” I said to pacify Tom.
My life had turned into a whirlwind of bad, and something told me that things would get much worse before they got better.
Chapter 6
AS I WALKED OUT OF the police department, Jake and Rosalina rushed in my direction. They’d been waiting by her car and peeled away from it as soon as they saw me.
“Toni!” Rosalina wrapped me in her arms and checked me up and down. “Jake said you were hurt.”
“I’m fine now,” I said. “They healed me right up. It didn’t even take long. See.” I spread my arms out to show her I was safe and sound. I didn’t want her to worry. I could easily put myself in her shoes. If something happened to her... I didn’t want to think about it.
“How did it go in there?” Jake asked.
“I picked out the perp from a lineup. It wasn’t hard.”
Jake raised a thick eyebrow, waiting for more, but I had no idea if I should tell him anything since it might pull him into danger. Already Ulfen didn’t like him. He thought Jake was a bad influence on his son and blamed him for Stephen’s defection to New Orleans. Though, if Ulfen was really trying to hurt his son maybe he didn’t like Jake for other reasons.
Though, wouldn’t leaving Stephen alone in New Orleans, or wherever else he decided to go away with Jake, be better than trying to kill him? If that was even what was going on here. I honestly didn’t know. Stephen had been adamant about defending his father, and he wasn’t the kind to be easily deceived. At least I didn’t think so. Only God knew how deep this rabbit hole went and what kind of surprises were buried in it. I surely didn’t want to be the one excavating that lovely treasure.
Tom was right. I needed to stay away from Stephen and, by extension, Jake if I didn’t want my life to be turned on its head again. Though, with my werewolfness, life was already upside down. So maybe the guys could turn it back on its ass, like two wrongs making a right. If only.
“Anyway,” I said, ignoring Jake’s desire for more information. “I’m tired. I want to go home.”
Rosalina took my hand and started pulling me toward the car. “Then home it is.”
Suddenly, Jake gripped my other hand and started a tug-of-war with Rosalina. I glanced back and forth between them, too stunned to say anything. This hadn’t happened to me since elementary school when I brought a loaf-sized Twinkie for lunch.
Realizing the ridiculousness of the situation, Jake let me go and quickly said, “Toni, can I have a moment?”
Rosalina gave me a questioning glance, and I nodded to indicate it was all right. She rolled her eyes and got in the car to wait for me.
“What is it?” I joined Jake, stepping back onto the sidewalk.
“I know the man who attacked Stephen,” he said, surprising me. That was not what I had expected him to say.
He peered at me in a peculiar way. His nostrils widening as he sniffled. “Are you sure you’re all right?” he asked.
“Um,” I hugged myself, feeling self-conscious, “yeah, I’m perfectly all right. Why?”
“I don’t know.” He paused. “You seem... different.”
Crap! Was he smelling my wolf? I turned my head to the side and surreptitiously tried to smell myself, but I couldn’t tell any difference.
“Maybe it’s the... healing magic they used at the hospital,” I said, quick on my toes.
He considered, frowning. “Yeah, maybe.” He didn’t sound convinced, but it was better than nothing.
God, I needed a way to keep this a secret from him. I wasn’t ready for anyone to know what I was—not even Rosalina. Though with her, I didn’t really have a choice. I couldn’t lie to my business partner and roommate. That would be all kinds of wrong.
He shook his head. “Anyway, that mage, he works for Ulfen.”
“We know. Stephen never got a good look at him in the restaurant, but he recognized him as soon as Tom showed him a picture of him. He asked Stephen if he thought his father had sent the mage. Stephen wasn’t happy about that. He stormed out. Didn’t you see him leave?”
“I didn’t. I went inside to use the restroom. He must’ve left when I was in there. Shit, this is bad. Clearly, he’s not safe.”
“No. Maybe he should leave St. Louis again.”
“That’s not going to happen. He’s bent on staying.”
“Then he’s staying at his own risk.”
Jake held my gaze for a long moment, without saying anything. My skin tingled as if his eyes had the power of touch and were caressing me as they roved over me.
“Well, I should...” I took a step toward Rosalina’s car, but Jake put a hand on my waist and held me in place.
If his gaze had awakened my body, his actual touch immediately made me catch on fire. Heat rose up my neck and into my face. He moved closer still, his silver gaze like a tether that kept me immobile.
“I had
