The Finding (15 page)

Cassie clenched
her hands, wishing she knew how to read lips. Even by straining her
ultra acute hearing, she couldn’t make out the words over the
background noises. What were they talking about? Mrs. Mitchell
laughed and the man smiled at her, then looked in Cassie’s
direction. She ducked back. Had he noticed her spying? Not willing
to take the chance he’d seek her out, she scurried to the back of
the store and ducked into the employees’ rest area.

Once there, she
sat at the table and held her head in her hands, grateful no one
else was about. Good heavens didn’t she have enough to worry about
right now without this? Who was that man and why did he make her so
uncomfortable? Was he the same person Mr. Bartlett had been
referring to? And if he was, what was the reason behind his
interest? And why was he talking to Mrs. Mitchell?

While it could
be the man just wanted to ask her out on a date, she doubted it.
There was a certain aura that had come off him. Earlier, she’d
dubbed it arrogance, but on reflection perhaps it was danger.
Whatever the case, he made her nervous and stirred the beast inside
her.

Could he be
another werewolf? Cassie gnawed on her lip nervously then shook her
head. It had been three years since the incident and there was no
indication the wolves knew where she was, or that they were even
looking for her. She was simply being paranoid where they were
concerned. The only werewolf around was the hated creature inside
her. Still... A shiver ran through her, despite the relative warmth
of the room.

Rubbing her
hands over her arms, she considered the other possibility; that the
mystery man had something to do with Kellen’s gambling. She hadn’t
had a chance to talk to Kellen about it yet; the first night when
he’d made her dinner, it just hadn’t seemed appropriate and since
then they kept missing each other. A nasty voice inside her head
insisted Kellen was purposely avoiding her.

She sighed
heavily. Quite likely the voice was right. All the signs pointed to
the fact that Kellen was in debt again, likely for a significant
amount this time, and the people he owed were getting impatient.
Maybe they thought she’d bail him out, or by harassing her it would
force Kellen to pay up. An inelegant snort escaped her. Kellen had
little in savings; it would be a long wait before he made any sort
of dent in the total, whatever it might be.

The man in the
check-out line certainly matched her image of a thug sent to
collect a debt. Tall and muscular, though too intelligent looking
for a run of the mill goon. And too good looking too, she added as
an afterthought. His nose wasn't broken, there were no visible
scars, and he had all his teeth—she'd seen them when he smiled at
Mrs. Mitchell. Cassie frowned. Well, maybe he didn't look like a
thug after all. But he did have an air of danger about him. Not in
a violent way though; it was actually sort of...sexy. Like he could
be dangerous if he lost control...

Just thinking
about the man caused the wolf inside to stir again. Reluctantly,
she acknowledged that the man affected her too. His hazel eyes had
been fringed by long lashes and his dark blond hair was thick with
just a slight wave. Her palms tingled as she wondered if it would
feel as soft as looked. She bit back a smile as she recalled that a
slight dimple had appeared on his cheek when he'd been laughing
with Mrs. Mitchell. A thug with a dimple? She shook her head,
chastising herself. Mooning over a man with probable criminal
connections was not a good idea.

Taking a deep
breath, she brought her mind back to the business at hand. She had
two possibilities—werewolves or thugs—and neither one was overly
palatable, though she felt the thugs might be less of a threat. At
least she could go to the authorities about them.

Checking her
watch, she decided to ask Mr. Bartlett to let her leave early. If
she went home now, she’d be able to talk to Kellen before he left
for...well...wherever it was he went during the day. She’d put off
discovering what sort of a mess he was in long enough; now it was
time to get to the bottom of things.

She grabbed her
purse from the small locker assigned to her. The bus would be
leaving soon, so if she hurried...

*****

Bryan had
rolled his eyes when the young woman ducked back behind a cereal
display. How she’d thought that could possibly hide her presence,
he had no idea. Her scent gave her away just as easily as her
physical presence. She was definitely a werewolf—that had been easy
to determine—but there was a subtle essence that was uniquely
her... He briefly closed his eyes and inhaled; exotic and spicy,
with floral undertones.

That particular
scent was one he couldn’t forget. It had plagued him for the past
three years, ever since he’d caught the faintest whiff of it in the
motel room in Kansas. The girl was definitely Cassandra
Greyson.

She’d peered at
him for a moment before moving deeper into the store, her scent
fading as it blended with those of the various foods for sale. He’d
snorted, wondering if she thought she was hiding her trail. If she
did, she was sadly mistaken. An experienced hunter such as himself
wouldn’t be easily led astray by the tempting aromas of meats and
baked goods.

Bryan shifted
his gaze to the magazine racks and the large man lurking there. Now
that
was an inexperienced hunter. The man had been staring
at Cassandra Greyson for the last half hour while trying to look
inconspicuous by supposedly reading a magazine. The problem was the
fellow hadn't turned a page the whole time, nor had he taken his
eyes off the young woman. Who was he and why was he watching
her?

The man had
made no move to follow Cassandra when she left her work station. If
he had, Bryan would have followed. Instead, the fellow had made a
brief phone call and then picked up his magazine again, apparently
planning on waiting until she reappeared.

Deciding the
man wasn't planning on making any moves towards Cassandra in the
near future, Bryan nodded as the older woman beside him continued
to chatter away. He’d approached the senior citizen after paying
for the groceries he didn't need, but that were part of his cover.
As he'd bagged the items, he’s struck up a conversation with
Cassandra’s elderly customer offering to carry her parcels to her
car. While she declined, it proved to be the perfect way to make
her acquaintance, just as he’d suspected.

“You’re just
like Sandy—that’s the girl who was working the checkout a minute
ago. She wanted someone to help me as well, but I said no to her
too. Such a sweetheart, she lives just a few blocks from me in the
cutest little house. Her boyfriend, Kellen, shares it...”

He'd been
checking on the magazine-man again when her statement caught his
full attention The news that Cassandra—or Sandy as the woman called
her—was involved with someone didn’t sit well with him or his inner
wolf. It was unreasonable to think the girl would have remained
unattached all these years, but that didn’t mean he had to like it.
Such a living arrangement was...inconvenient to his present
purpose.

Bryan tried to
put a logical spin on his feelings; he had a right to be annoyed.
If she was living with someone, it would make it all the more
difficult to bring her into the pack. She’d be reluctant to leave
the man behind and bringing a new wolf plus her human companion
into Canada... He shuddered to think of the complications.

They were at
the store’s exit now and Bryan let the older woman leave first. She
was still talking about this Kellen person...

“—works here
too, though it’s a night shift, so I’ve only seen him a few times.
He’s a good looking fellow, but...” She shook her head, then leaned
closer whispering in a conspiratorial manner. “I’d never say it to
Sandy—I don’t believe in poking my nose into other people’s
business—but sometimes I wonder about her relationship with him.
I’m sure he’s a fine young man, but I’m thinking he’s not the one
for her, They don’t see much of each other, what with working
opposite shifts, and she has this look about her—not exactly
unhappy—but as if she’s restless inside, like something important
is missing in her life.”

Bryan made
suitable noises and continued to walk beside the woman as she made
her way across the parking lot. So Cassandra—Sandy—seemed restless.
He felt the corners of his mouth curve upward at the news. If her
wolf was restless, it probably was feeling the strain of not being
part of a pack. Well, he was here to offer a solution.

Mrs. Mitchell
bid him farewell and climbed into her vehicle. He continued on his
way as if searching for his own car, but once the woman drove out
of sight, he circled back. The man by the magazines was still in
the grocery store, and Bryan had no plans of leaving Cassandra
unguarded until he knew the man's intentions.

His hand was
just reaching for the door when the wind shifted and her scent
drifted by. What...? Bryan turned in a circle, scanning his
surroundings. Cars, shoppers, grocery carts.... There! He saw a
slim dark haired woman getting on a bus! Instinct told him it was
definitely Cassandra Greyson.

As the bus
pulled away, he started to run across the parking lot, intent on
following her, but then drew himself to a stop. No. He’d have to
shift into wolf form in order to keep up and somehow he suspected
the citizens of Las Vegas wouldn’t be used to seeing a wolf running
down the street, chasing a bus.

Bryan shifted
the bag of useless groceries in his arms and glared in the
direction of the departing vehicle cursing himself for making such
a rookie mistake. Damn but he never should have taken his eyes off
the girl! Now he’d have to start searching for her all over again.
He growled wishing he had her last name at least. Then he could
have just used the phone book to find out where she lived, but all
he knew at this point was that she was known as Sandy.

All right, he’d
just have to do things the hard way. First he’d find a map that
outlined the city bus routes and then he’d follow it along until he
caught her scent again. She had to get off the damned bus at some
point and then he’d have her.

As he headed
back towards the small strip mall that contained the grocery store,
he saw the large man from the magazine rack was leaning against a
white van, once again making a phone call. Bryan wished he was
close enough to hear what was being said. Instead, he moved until
he could at least see the license plate and committed it to memory.
He'd have Daniel trace it for him once he got back to the motel,
but first he had to track down Cassandra.

Compressing his
lips, he grumbled discontentedly thinking of how long it might take
to pick up her scent again. Waves of heat rose from the sidewalk
and he felt sweat trickling down the indent of his spine. Damn,
they would have to be having an unseasonal heat wave just when he
arrived in the city. He’d have heat stroke before he found her. The
cool forests of Northern Canada had never been so appealing.

Chapter 7

Aldrich looked
over the information that Nate Graham had sent him. The Nevada
situation was salvageable, but only if they were able to get their
edge back. Things had been allowed to slide under the less than
competent leadership of Eddie Perini.

Flicking
through the pages, Aldrich shook his head in disbelief. He’d made a
serious error in judgement when he’d permitted the man to play
Shylock. Perini wasn’t ruthless enough; his clients didn’t respect
him. The point returns weren’t nearly as high as they should be.
Eddie needed to apply pressure, instil some fear. Fear kept people
in line, not idle threats.

He threw the
report down in disgust. There was no excuse for this except poor
management on Eddie’s part. Narrowing his eyes, Aldrich considered
the possibilities.

At first, he
wondered if he should just fold the company and take his losses,
but... No. That smacked too much of giving in; it gave people the
wrong impression. Even if he dispatched Eddie, the failure of the
business would still be a fact. Should word ever get out, it could
negatively impact on his effectiveness in other areas of business.
Failure clung to one’s name and reputation like gum to a shoe.

No, he had to
pull Dollar Niche out of the fire first. Once it was suitably
profitable again, then he could rid himself of it. In the grand
scheme of things the company was a minor concern, a leftover from
the days when his goals hadn’t been quite so lofty. But he needed
to exit the scene with his head held high.

Aldrich gave a
decisive nod. Having chosen a course of action, there was no point
in waiting. He picked up the phone and dialled.

As it rang, he
drummed his fingers impatiently on the desk, waiting for an answer.
Some might view his plan as a severe step, but it was necessary in
order to re-establish the fact that Dollar Niche was not a company
to be toyed with.

If memory
served him correctly, Eddie was a squeamish sort. The man’s
reaction to this new business plan might even prove to be mildly
amusing. Idly, Aldrich thought Eddie’s career choice was definitely
at odds with his personality; the man would have done better if
he’d followed the elder Perini’s career path and become a part time
preacher. Bilking people out of their hard earned money with
promises of salvation didn’t involve any ‘rough stuff.’

Finally, the
phone was answered, but a clattering noise met Aldrich’s ear as if
whoever was picking it up wasn’t really paying attention and had
fumbled the receiver. The sounds of a sports announcer drifted over
the line and then, after some delay, an actual voice spoke.

“Eddie Perini.
What can I do for you?” The man’s casual answer let Aldrich know
Eddie hadn’t checked who was calling before answering. He sighed;
still the same old Eddie, he thought to himself, always thinking
life was a lark. They’d grown up in the same neighbourhood; giving
Eddie the job of managing the company had been an uncharacteristic
spur of the moment decision based on that long ago friendship.
Well, he’d known it before and this just reinforced the fact that
sentimentality had no place in business.