Chapter Five

Materializing at the agreed upon destination at precisely six fifteen, we must have appeared as quite the eclectic group of supernaturals—sure to raise a few eyebrows among the wolves we’d be meeting. The usual suspects included my shifter team, Garrett and his nest of three and our fae trio, which included Liam, Brina and Kaera. The Los Altos weres didn’t trust the fae, but bringing the fae sisters would put them more at ease, since according to Sinc they tended to believe all females were much less powerful than their male counterparts. Guess we shouldn’t tell them that the sisters were two of Cascade’s best warriors and could probably take out three werewolves a minute and not even break a sweat.

As we walked up to the door of the house we’d be sharing, Sinc’s tension blurred her red aura. Sharon, her mother, was standing in the doorway with a welcoming expression. Her eyes darted across our group until they came to rest on her daughter. Sharon couldn't disguise her shock when she saw the lovely adult shifter moving toward her and not the confused fifteen-year-old she’d last seen on the day she kicked Sinc out of their home and their pack.

As Garrett and I came face to face with Sharon, her smile grew wider. “Welcome to the Los Altos Pack Territory. I hope you’ll find this house to your liking, Mr. Cuvier.”

Garrett returned the smile and took her hand. “I’m sure it’s lovely Mrs. Blakefield, and please call me Garrett. This is my mate, Jackie.”

“Sharon.” She responded as she shook his hand, then mine. She was tall, probably five ten, with long wavy brown hair and large hazel eyes. She’d adopted Sinc so I didn’t expect them to look alike, but there was something about the reserved way she spoke that reminded me of Sinc in one of her more serious moods.

After she'd ushered us inside, Garrett introduced the rest of our team and she introduced the three weres who were flanking her. She told us that Craig, the tallest of the three, was one of the parents of the missing teens. We offered him our assurances that we would do our best for him and his family. The other two wolves were strictly there as Sharon’s bodyguards since neither group was taking any chances with security.

We watched when Sharon gave Sinc a hug, which Sinc returned unenthusiastically. They pulled apart and simply stared at each other for a moment. Sharon spoke first, her voice catching on her daughter’s name, “S…Sinclair, I’m so glad you’re here. Your father and I have missed you very much.” She reached out to touch her daughter’s face but Sinc backed away, never taking her gaze from Sharon’s. “You’re quite lovely,” her mother added.

“Please call me Sinc, Sharon.” My friend’s voice was frigid.

“Sinc, yes of course.” The depth of pain in the woman’s eyes pricked 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 haven’t come to see me. Not once in ten years.” Sinc’s voice held no emotion, but those of us who knew Sinc well, understood how close to the edge she balanced.

“We weren’t permitted to visit. You know what Quentin’s decision was regarding your—”

“What? My affliction?”

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. Or emailed. You chose not to. Quentin would never have forced Jake to step down. He's been loyal to Quentin 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 set down between a rock and a hard place and had chosen to back her mate and her alpha, and not her daughter. I found it hard to judge her too harshly, but I couldn't put myself in either of their shoes. I wasn’t a mother and my own had died when I was a very small child.

Sharon scanned the rest of us, all busy watching the drama unfold, then back to 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 left at the scenes of the kidnappings, 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, then worried. “You know Quentin. He may not respond well to you speaking for the group.”

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

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

“We 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 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 smelled of an inside accomplice. The fae sisters stayed behind to assist and keep an eye out for trouble. The rest of us followed Sharon, 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 a while, one of the weres would greet Sinc, always calling her Sinclair of course, and she’d smile or wave and then keep walking. I noticed 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 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 throwaway newspaper on the porch, not even a stray rose petal on the ground. Everything was pristine and perfect and somehow sterile.

Sharon knocked and a very large wolf opened the door. He smiled fondly at his mate, then turned toward Garrett, his intelligent eyes taking him in. His gaze moved over the rest of the group, assessing each one. This was obviously the beta, Jake, Sinc’s father and Quentin’s second in command. When his gaze locked on Sinc he tensed slightly, but he continued his survey, moving on until the entire group had been filed into categories: dangerous or irrelevant. Somehow I thought I’d been placed in the latter group, being female. Huh. Already I was pissed. Liam grinned, picking up on my anger. If Jake had any knowledge of the fae and their abilities, Liam would be placed at the very top of the most dangerous group.

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

Garrett smiled. “Thank you, Jake.” Sinc didn’t look at her father, but instead moved directly 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, finding places to sit on various comfortable chairs and couches. 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 one, thought that was pretty messed up, so I walked over to stand next to Sinc. She smiled a quarter smile and I put my hand on her shoulder. She twisted around to give me a hug and we stayed like that for a few seconds before we 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 male stood in the doorway. He wasn’t the alpha, but he seemed at home in this lavish house. He was tall, with broad shoulders, thick dark blonde hair worn long enough to brush 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 she didn’t correct him and ask to be called Sinc. Instead, she lost her tightly guarded expression, maybe still remembering those happy childhood times she’d shared with this handsome young male. Sinc introduced all of us to Gabriel, Quentin’s eldest son and heir. I pulled on the lines. Thick rings of power spun 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, 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 you’ll be able to help us with this difficult situation.” Those were the same words Sharon had spoken. “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 the rest of us. He was very tall, with thick black hair tied in a tail at the back of his neck, dark eyes, and perfect skin the color of coffee with a touch of cream. His handsome features were Native American and his smile was warm. He was scanning us the way Jake had when we’d first arrived.

Garrett took a moment of his own to survey the others, then everyone was 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. Jake was looking at Sasha, Garrett’s second, as if he was disappointed, but 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. 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 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. “I’m sure you’re quite good with a gun, Sinclair.” Some weres had little respect for people who used guns to win battles.

Garrett spoke up. “Sinc protected us against a pack of weres when a blood witch conjured a knock out spell. She’s courageous.” 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. “So. You say she is courageous. I heard those werewolves were barely able to put up a fight.” Ethan narrowed his eyes at Quentin’s tone. “Perhaps my information was incorrect.” 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 this might happen.

“I was under the impression 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 of course your mate has excellent tracking skills, but I don’t feel 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.” Garrett’s voice was calm and his manner was relaxed, but he was pulling in a small amount of power from the lines as a precaution.

“I’ll pay you seventy-five percent of what you’ve asked, which is still an exorbitant amount. That’s really all the pack can afford. These wolves 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 pickup trucks. The few wolves that had watched us walk by were 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, 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 point, and since the Western Pack Council is 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 calmly 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.

Quentin was fuming, but he managed to pull it in with some effort. He smiled tightly. “I suppose I’ll have to accept your terms as they stand, but if you don’t do the job you’ve been hired to do, I will expect a full refund. We won't be taken advantage of.” His voice and expression were frosty and slightly intimidating. What he’d said could be taken as a threat, not of violence, yet, but a threat nonetheless.

Garrett would need to nip this in the bud, and I had every expectation that he'd succeed in his usual classy way. Still looking cool as a cucumber, he narrowed his eyes in thought. “I can guarantee you’ll be satisfied as long as we’re given the freedom to conduct the investigation as we see fit. And if you would re-read the contract you signed you would see that partial refunds are only given out at my discretion. We’ve already received your retainer and as per our contract, the balance of our fee is to be wired to our bank in Crescent City by Friday. If there's a dispute regarding our work I'm sure the WPC can settle it.”

He sent to me, Liam and Sasha, “Something’s up…can you feel it? He doesn't really want us to investigate, but is being forced to by the WPC.”

I didn’t move but sent back, “I agree. Liam and I are watching auras. I wish more of the pack were here so we could compare.”

Quentin’s eyes flashed amber, meaning his wolf was present and pissed off, but his voice remained calm. “There's no reason to involve the council. We’ll get down to business. I have the information here regarding the missing boys. Perhaps you’d like to look it over before the meeting tomorrow.” Gabriel pushed a folder full of papers at Garrett. It was overflowing and disorganized, requiring more than a few minutes to sort through, at least for most people. It showed a lack of respect, which Garrett wasn’t about to let slide.

“Sinc will take a look at it now while we talk.” I passed the folder down to Sinc who worked with Ethan, efficiently spreading out the pictures of the boys and all pertinent police reports and other information, collating and sorting through it quickly.

Garrett’s gaze hadn’t left Quentin’s. “I’d like to hear your take on the situation, Quentin.”

Quentin made a big show of checking his watch. “I don’t really have a lot of time…”

“We only need a few private minutes with each of you.”

“That’s not possible.”

“Surely you didn’t call us here and agree to pay our exorbitant fee as you call it, only to hinder our investigation. Four of my team will be interviewing the adult members of your pack tonight, females included, so we’ll need a complete list. Sinc, Ethan and Brina are going to need access to every site where the teen boys were last seen. The rest of my staff will be working the lab and communicating with other consultants in Crescent City if necessary.” Maya and Rob were on call if we needed their help with something off-site. Garrett would be moving between our groups and also doing a little investigating of his own.

There was complete silence in the room as Quentin and Garrett faced off. Now we would find out how much the alpha was willing to do to aid in the investigation. If he denied us full access to his pack and his territory it would look to everyone as if he wasn’t fully committed to getting the boys back. He may not agree to a private interview, he would consider it demeaning, but as long as we could speak to the others, we’d know which pack members were involved the moment they started to lie to us.

Quentin’s gaze was calculating. “I will insist on another wolf being in the room with whomever is being interviewed, and no more than two of you doing the interviewing.”

“That’s fine. My team has already set up two rooms: Jackie and Sasha will interview in one, Liam and Heinrich in the other. We’d like to begin at nine tonight, as we want to finish all the interviews before tomorrow night’s meeting. Meanwhile…” he turned to Sinc, “…do you know where you want to start your investigation?”

“I’ll begin at the schoolyard. That was the site of the most recent disappearance. I have my kit with me and I’ve already sent a text to Brina who’ll be meeting us there in fifteen minutes. If it’s all right, Ethan and I will head over right away.” She packed up the folder, now neat and well organized, and handed it to Ethan who placed it in the messenger bag he was carrying.

“Don’t you want to wait until tomorrow morning? It’s dark.” Quentin sounded curious. “I suppose we can get some temporary lighting up, but it’ll take us an hour or so.”

“There’s no need, Quentin. I have Brina.” We saw the confused looks.

Garrett explained. “She’ll light up the area with fae light. She can even adjust the brightness. Liam, Brina and Kaera are all trained warriors, but they have many other gifts at their disposal with which to aid an investigation.”

“I’d like to accompany you, Sinclair, if that’s acceptable.” Gabriel hadn’t spoken for the entire meeting, but I’d noticed him glancing at Sinc often. He turned to me. “I’ll be happy to be interviewed by you tonight, Mrs. Cuvier. Is midnight good for you? I’ll bring my mother also.”

“Please call me Jackie. I’ll see you both at our house at midnight.” He was oozing with charm and good breeding, but his fingers were rubbing together in a nervous gesture. I gave Ethan a look and he nodded. To Liam I sent, “Tell Brina to keep an eye on the alpha’s heir.”

He smiled and replied, “I’ve already told her.” My mouth turned up at the corners as I tried to hold in the laugh.

Sinc, Ethan and Gabriel left the room and those of us that remained focused our attention back on Quentin. “I’m sorry you’ve gone to such trouble, but I’d rather you hold all of your interviews here in my home.” Quentin spoke with a crisp authority. He was used to being obeyed without question, but we weren’t pack members.

“It will be less distracting if the interviews are done there and not under—not in the home of the alpha.” I smiled pleasantly at him as he twisted his mouth in annoyance.

“I have to insist, Mrs. Cuvier.”

“Jackie, please.”

“Jackie.” His stare was intense and I felt a small prickle of energy seeping down my spine, as if he were trying to glamour me, something I’d never heard of a were being able to do. Liam and Garrett could feel it too and I sensed them pull in more energy in response.

Garrett knew Quentin’s attempt to control me was pissing me off so he spoke up quickly, trying to avoid a confrontation. “We need complete control over our investigation. It’s the only way the results will be accepted by the community as being free of outside influence. This is how we work a case.” Quentin frowned. “It’s all laid out in the contract. If you’ve misplaced your copy, I can have Sinc email you a new one in a few minutes. Perhaps you’d like to look it over before the meeting tomorrow.”

As Quentin’s words came back to slap him in the face, the temperature in the room seemed to drop a few degrees. The two leaders locked gazes for a moment before Garrett spoke again. “Quentin, we have no interest in interfering in pack business. We only want to bring these boys back to their families. Please allow us to do the job we were hired to do.”

After another tense moment, Quentin stood and smiled, although not as warmly as he had earlier. “You will use your house for the interviews and Sharon will make up an interview schedule beginning at 8:00 p.m. tonight, which she’ll email to you within the half hour. She and Jake will make sure that every adult member of my pack is there at their assigned interview time.” He looked at Jake, who nodded.

“I will allow you free access to all the pack lands, as long as there is at least one wolf accompanying you. Please keep me informed of anything you find out pertinent to the case. Tomorrow night at 8:00 we will welcome you properly at our pack meeting. Thank you for helping us out with this difficult situation. I must say goodnight as we have other business to attend to.” He nodded and left abruptly, followed by Jake and Joseph. None of them were smiling.

Craig paused and spoke to Garrett, “Thank you. We appreciate what you’re doing.” He left quietly.

“This was not what I expected,” I said to no one in particular.

“No. We should flash back to the house to discuss everything in private.”