Blown Away (Rogues Shifter Series Book 4) (9 page)

“Please call me Sinc, Sharon.” Her voice was cold.

“Sinc, yes of course.” The depth of pain in the woman’s eyes cut through my heart. Her aura was a muddy mess, another obvious sign of her distress.

“You knew where I was, didn’t you?” Sinc had decided to get the worst part over with as quickly as possible, even as we all stood quietly
, watching,

Sharon let out a resigned sigh, probably expecting this question. “Yes. You live in Crescent City.”

“But you didn’t come to see me. It’s been ten years.” Sinc’s voice held no emotion; she could have been talking to the mail carrier. But those of us who knew her well, knew how close to the edge she stood.

“We weren’t permitted. You know what Quentin’s decision was regarding you.” Sharon’s voice shook with emotions locked away for far too long. “Your father would have been removed as Beta.”

“I have a hard time believing that. If you missed me, as you say, you could have come to Crescent City to see me or you could have called. You chose not to. Quentin would never have forced Jake to step down. He's been loyal for fifty years.”

Sinc was no longer a scared and vulnerable teen. Her anger was an icy weapon that she directed toward her mother, a woman who’d been put between a rock and a hard place and had chosen to back her mate and not her daughter. I found it hard to judge her too harshly, but I couldn't put myself in Sinc's shoes.

Sharon looked at the rest of us, who were all watching the drama unfold, then back at her daughter. “Sinclair, Sinc, perhaps we could discuss this privately. I’m taking Garrett and Jackie and those directly involved in the investigation to meet Quentin. We could have lunch tomorrow, if you’d like.”

Garrett stepped over and placed a hand on Sinc’s shoulder to show his support. “Sinc is taking a leading role in the investigation and will be coming to the meeting.”

Sharon looked shocked as Sinc continued. “I’ll be collecting evidence still left at the scenes of the kidnappings and then running all the tests in my own lab, so we’ll get the results quickly. I don’t think I’ll have time for lunch tomorrow. Perhaps another time, Sharon.”

Ouch. Couldn’t
really blame Sinc, but Sharon looked hurt and then worried. “You know Quentin. He may not respond well to you speaking for the group.”

“She won’t be speaking for the group, Sharon. I’ll introduce everyone and then we’ll all be discussing the situation together, the way a team usually fun
ctions.” Garrett was trying to get a feel for how Quentin ran things.

“That isn’t how a pack functions
, Garrett, and Quentin is very definitely the one who speaks for
our
group.” She pulled herself up and stood stiffly.

“W
e have no desire to interfere with your procedures. We just want to help you find those boys.”

“Of course, forgive me. Would you like to go now, or would you like to freshen up?” Her demeanor was strictly professional.

Garrett looked around at the excited faces. “I think we’d like to meet your alpha now, if he’s ready for us.”

“Of course, please follow me. It’s just a short walk.” We left William, Heinrich and Kyle to set up our travel laboratory and then our two interview rooms since we’d been advised by Liam to interview the entire pack regarding the boy’s disappearances. Three teens missing from the same pack sm
elled of an inside accomplice. The two fae sisters stayed behind to assist and keep an eye out for trouble. The rest of us followed Sharon out the door, excited to meet Quentin.

As we walked through the property, various family groups moved closer so they could get a good look at us. I smiled and said hello when I saw a friendly face, but most of them looked wary. Two of the werewolf bodyguards walked in front, followed by Garrett and Sharon who chatted together pleasantly. I walked beside Liam, with Sasha, Ethan and Sinc silently bringing up the rear along with the last wolf guard
. Once in awhile one of the wolves would greet Sinc, always calling her Sinclair of course, and she’d smile or wave and then keep walking.  I noticed that some of the females were checking out our males, and I caught Sasha winking back at a couple of them. I gave him a
look
and he shrugged with a sexy smile.

Liam sent to me,
“I think this will be another one of those meetings where you’ll have to watch your temper. I know how well you do around testosterone-driven discussions.”

“Ha, ha.
I’ll control myself if you will, Liam. Your human side likes to make an unexpected appearance.”

He grinned.
“We’ll watch their auras to discern the truth of what they say. Speaking of which, have you noticed that your aura has changed slightly? I don’t know if it’s a permanent change or if it’s temporary.”

“Changed how?”

“The green is slightly richer, like green velvet.”

“My grandmother mentioned it too.
I think it’s probably only temporary. I could use a few more nights of sleep.”
I never seemed to get enough these days. He nodded as we walked up to the door of a lovely three story home professionally landscaped to look like something from a magazine. There was no sign of a family actually living there. No bike in the driveway, no throw-away newspaper on the porch, not even a stray rose petal on the ground. Everything was pristine and perfect, and so somehow sterile.

Sharon knocked on the door and it was opened immediately by a very large were who smiled fondly at her and then turned to Garrett, his intelligent eyes taking him in and then moving over the rest of the group, assessing each one. This was obviously the Beta, Jake, Sinc’s father, Quentin’s second in command. When his gaze locked on Sinc I could see him tense slightly and then move on until the entire group had been filed into categories: dangerous or irrelevant. Somehow I thought that I was put in the latter group, being female.
Huh
. Already I was pissed. I saw Liam grin out of the corner of my eye. I had no doubt that he was right up on the top of the dangerous group, at least if Jake had any knowledge of the fae and their abilities.

He stood aside and allowed us all to enter, then said, “I’m Jake.” He
indicated a room to his right. “Please wait here and make yourselves comfortable. I’ll let Quentin know that you’ve arrived.”

Garrett smiled and said, “Thank you, Jake.” Sinc didn’t look at her father, but instead moved d
irectly into the room to gaze out the window at the woods beyond the side yard.  Sharon left quickly with her mate as the rest of us entered the richly furnished room, sitting in various comfortable chairs and couches while we looked at each other with curiosity.

Jake hadn’t said anything at all to his daughter. He hadn’t seen her in over ten years. I for on
e thought that was pretty messed up, so I walked over to stand next to her. She smiled a quarter smile and when I put my hand on her shoulder she actually twisted around to give me a hug. We stayed like that for a few seconds and then broke apart.

She looked around the cozy room with a wistful expression. “I used to play in this house with Quentin’s sons when I was young. It has the coolest attic with all kinds of trunks and wardrobes and fun stuff to mess around with. And they have a pool out back where I learned to swim. When we played hide and seek it would take over an hour to find us. I used to love coming here…”

“We used to love having you here.” A young man stood in the doorway. He definitely wasn’t the Alpha, but he seemed at home in this lavish house. He was 6’ tall, with broad shoulders, thick dark blonde hair worn long to brush against his collar and piercing dark blue eyes. “How are you Sinclair?” He was taking her in from head to toe in a curious way, but it didn’t seem to make her uncomfortable.

“I’m well, Gabriel. How are you and your brother, Karl?”  We were surprised that she didn’t correct
him and ask to be called Sinc. Instead, she seemed to lose her tightly guarded expression, probably still remembering those happy childhood times she’d shared with him. Sinc introduced all of us to Gabriel, Quentin’s eldest son and heir. I pulled on the lines and felt thick rings of power spinning around him. He was definitely Alpha material.

“We’re both well. Karl is out of town but he’ll be at the meeting tomorrow night. He’s very excited to see
you again. Perhaps the three of us could spend some time together while you’re here. I’d love to catch up.” Sinc hesitated and then nodded her head, surprising us all. She probably thought she’d get some inside information cozying up with the alpha’s sons.

Gabriel turned to the rest of us. “It’s nice to meet all of you. We’re hoping that you’ll be able to help us with this difficult situation. I’ll take you to my father.” He led us to a conference room, where several men stood around speaking quietly. It wasn’t hard to figure out which one was the Alpha as he moved away from the others to stare at Garrett and then the rest of us. He was very tall, 6’5”, with thick black hair tied at his neck, dark eyes and perfect skin the color of coffee with a touch of cream. His handsome features were native American
in origin and his smile was warm, yet his curious eyes were scanning us the way Jake’s had when we’d first arrived.

Garrett took a moment of his own to survey the others, then everyone w
as introduced and shook hands. Quentin smiled, gesturing for us to sit as he took his seat at the head of the table. Garrett sat on Quentin’s right, then me, Sinc and Ethan. Sasha and Liam stood behind us as Jake and another wolf named Joseph stood behind Quentin and Gabriel. Gabriel sat to Quentin’s left along with Craig. It didn’t surprise any of us that there were no female weres at the meeting. I watched Jake looking at Sasha, Garrett’s second, as if he was disappointed. Sasha leaned against the wall and smiled back in his usual relaxed way. Gabriel’s attention was only on Sinc.

Quentin spoke first. “Garrett, it’s a pleasure to meet you and your mate, Jackie,
and your team. Welcome to Los Altos.”

“Thank you for your hospitality. We’d like to hear whatever information you have regarding the disappearances and then we can begin our work.”

“Please excuse me if I take a moment to greet Sinclair.” He looked at her with a quiet intensity.“ I hear that you’ve made a name for yourself as an investigator.”

“I’m in charge of our team’s forensic and computer science division. I’m also being trained as a fighter.” Her gaze was confrontational.

He smirked. “Yes I’m sure that you’re good with a gun, Sinclair.” Wolves had little respect for people who used guns to win battles.

Garrett spoke up. “Sinc protect
ed us all against a pack of wolves when a blood witch conjured a knock out spell. She’s quite courageous and an indispensable member of the team.”  My heart warmed when I felt Sinc relax slightly after Garrett’s supportive words. Standing behind Quentin, I noticed Jake arch an eyebrow in surprise, but then quickly revert back to his neutral expression.

Quentin’s expression was cold as he stared
at Sinc. “I'm pleased to know you've reached your full potential, such as it is.” Before we could react, Quentin continued in a more businesslike manner. “We need to discuss your fee.” Garrett’s eyebrows rose. “It’s high.”

“I understood from your email that the fee was acceptable. It was explained that the work we’ll be doing is detailed and time consuming.” Garrett didn’t look worried, having been warned by Sinc that this might happen.

“I was under the impression that you were bringing in
professionals
to handle the investigation.” Quentin sat back in his leather chair, looking relaxed and confident. “I understand the fae are here for security reasons and that your mate has excellent tracking skills, but I don’t feel that your young team of shifters are worth what you’re asking.”

“They’re all experienced, but this is beside the point, Quentin. You agreed to the terms.” His voice was calm and his manner was relaxed, but I could feel him pulling in a small amount of power
from the lines as a precaution.

“I’ll pay you seventy-five
percent of what you asked, which is still an exorbitant amount. That’s really all the pack can afford. These men have families to support.” From what I’d seen as we walked to the meeting, there was no sign of financial struggle. Everyone drove late model SUVs or new pick-up trucks. The few wolves that had watched us walk by were all nicely dressed and the homes we’d passed were quite large.

Sinc leaned in and whispered in my ear and I forwarded it to Garrett
. “The pack is very well off financially. Sinc checked it out before we came.”

Liam sent to Garrett and me.
“He’s lying.”

Garrett smiled as Quentin glared at Sinc. “The fee is non-negotiable. I was honest about who I was bringing and you accepted our terms. We’d like to help you find these teenagers, but if you aren’t happy with my team for whatever reason, then we’ll leave within the hour. We’ll still have to bill you for our time and whatever expenses we've incurred up to this poin
t. Also, since the Western Pack Council are involved, we'll have to email them a report." They were the governing body for werewolf packs in the western U.S. and Garrett's cousin Aaron was on the board. Garrett smiled pleasantly and waited for Quentin’s response.

“Maybe we could try…” Craig had started to speak, but was cut
off by a lethal glare from his alpha. He looked down immediately.