Wolf Claim (Wolves of Willow Bend Book 3) (9 page)

The room held no scent of illness at all, yet there was a cloying scent that irritated her nostrils. A perfume maybe? She didn’t recognize it.

“Do either of you know what that sickly sweet scent is?”

Brett supplied the answer. “Eddie had a girlfriend, a human. It’s probably her perfume, but we’ll check.” If it turned out to be something they needed to know, it was always good to verify.

Leaving her bag by the door, she walked around the bed, studying the young man. He looked to be a few years younger than her, which made sense if he was in college. If her nose hadn’t already confirmed his death, she would have thought him asleep. Nothing in his features suggested pain or a fight or anything.

He’d simply died without struggle.

Bile burned in the back of her throat and she swallowed. Death should never be that quiet in someone so young. “And you’re certain he’d not been ill at all?” She had to know. “How long ago did your healer pass? Perhaps he had been seeing him.”

“Hatch died four days ago.” Brett and Owen stood like sentinels. She had to wonder if either man even realized how closely their postures mirrored one another. “Eddie hasn’t been home in more than a week.”

“So he could have been seeing him?” If Hatch were like Emma, the Healer would have notes she could reference and to perhaps answer her question.

“Possible.” Brett conceded the point, but his disbelief remained. “His parents would have known if he were. They live two doors down from Hatch.”

Gillian filed that piece of knowledge away. Her next step was to examine the body. Closing her eyes, she focused on all the exercises Emma had drummed into her through the years. Every Healer, she’d told her time and time again, faced a moment when they forgot themselves. Healers, she’d warned, could never bring back the dead, but some would always try.
Don’t be the some, Gillian. Understand your limitations and battle for all you are worth. When it is time, walk away.
 

Eddie was already dead. She couldn’t save him, but perhaps she could learn what had killed him and use that to save others. Eyes open, she reached out to press her gloved hand to his chest, just above his heart.

The lack of life left her gift quiet. But her wolf roused, and she felt the animal stretch inside her. She blinked once. Her wolf studied the fallen man alongside her. Together, they absorbed what they could about his posture, his seeming sense of peacefulness. The lie of it all.

Nothing pulled at her healing gift.

Nothing.

“This isn’t illness,” she said, withdrawing her hand. “I need to see your healer’s body. Perhaps it’s unrelated, but sickness didn’t kill your wolf.”

Brett accepted her answer with steely determination. “What did?”

“I don’t know. I can perform an autopsy, if you have the facilities, and I can consult with Emma, if you have no objections.”

The Alpha nodded. “We’ll make the arrangements. Come,” he beckoned to her. “We shall let his family see him, if you feel there is no danger. His mother needs to say goodbye.”

“Of course, but don’t let her touch him. Not till we’re certain.” She was the outsider here. Back home, she and Emma would stay with the family. Owen retrieved her bag and she headed for him and the exit, then paused. Pivoting, she faced the bedroom again. Something she’d noticed tweaked her.

“Gillian?” Owen said her name softly.

“One sec.” She held up a finger and scanned the bedroom again. She started with Eddie’s dresser. The plain wooden set looked handcrafted, simple yet effective. Some discarded clothes sat atop it and a backpack. A table and a chair were tucked into a corner by the window. It looked like a place where he’d sat and read—a not unexpected habit in a wolf going to school.

The bed took up most of the space. Two bottles of water sat on the nightstand next to a remote control, a phone, and a bottle of aspirin.

Aspirin.
 

Frowning, she strode over to the bottle and picked it up. The lid hadn’t been sealed completely. The cloying scent she’d noticed when she walked in was even stronger on the bottle. Maybe the pain reliever belonged to Eddie’s human girlfriend? That would make sense.

Aspirin did absolutely nothing for wolves, not with their metabolism. The pain reliever compounded with chemicals for processing would be as effective as a Tic Tac on anything painful enough to make a wolf need help in managing it.

Thumbing the safety lock, she popped the lid off and poured the pills into her hand. They were orange and black, not the expected white, and the smell—the sickening sweetness made her eyes water. “When you find Eddie’s girlfriend, Brett, ask her where Eddie purchased these drugs.”
Narcotics
. Not any she recognized, but she wasn’t an expert.

“Oh, trust me. I will.” A deadly promise if she’d ever heard one.

The hours between their interrupted lunch and finally making it to Hudson River proper began to weigh on Gillian. Owen paid close attention to her energy and frustration levels. Yes, she’d slept in the truck on their drive, but he wanted her in bed as soon as he could manage it. The thought gave him pause. A long day of politics, death, and aggravation hadn’t done a damn thing to diminish his hunger for her.

“Come on in.” Brett led the way into his home. The sprawling Georgian manse was not what he’d expected of the urbane Alpha. On the other hand, the hamlet of Story Point sat on a peninsula protected on three sides by the river with only one direct access point. Owen had seen at least four Hunters monitoring the main route.

As he had on their way to Eddie’s, Brett rode with them. He hadn’t been willing to leave Eddie’s place until he’d had time to spend with the dead wolf’s parents. He’d also gotten his people moving on dealing with the body and finding the wolf’s girlfriend. Despite his heavy-handedness and pseudo-claim on Gillian during their first meeting, Owen found himself liking the Alpha. He had a few of Mason’s familiar traits including a low tolerance for bullshit and an easy-going manner that disguised a will of iron.

“You go ahead and make yourself comfortable.” Brett smiled at Gillian. “Pick any room you like. You can even share mine, if you’re so inclined.”

Owen met the other wolf’s amused gaze. From decent wolf to fucking bastard in two sentences. Brett Dalton knew exactly what he was doing, too.

“Thank you, but what I really want is a shower, so point me that way. Afterward, I need to see the healer’s body and any others you have. Did you preserve their homes by chance?”

“All in good time. Go on, little wolf. We’ll get some food brought in, too.” The push of the wolf’s command had her heading for the stairs, but she paused with one foot on the bottom step.

Half-turned, she looked past the Alpha toward him and Owen’s ire eased a notch. “Go ahead,” he told her. No one else was in the Alpha’s home and, if anything, he believed Brett’s oath. The Alpha would kill anyone who tried to lay a hand on Gillian, if Owen didn’t get there first. With her safely ensconced in a shower, he and Brett could have a real talk.

She gave him a small smile before disappearing around the curve in the staircase leading upstairs. Owen waited until he heard a bedroom door click open, and closed, refusing to consider her taking Brett up on his offer.

His smile dissolved as he turned to face the Alpha.

“In the kitchen.” The man motioned.

“Gladly.” He stalked after the other man and folded his arms. “Don’t invite her into your bed again.”

Amusement creased the lines around his eyes. “I’m not a poacher. I didn’t detect your scent.” He pulled a beer out of the fridge and slid it across the island.

Catching the offering, Owen narrowed his eyes. “Just leave her alone.”

Still smiling, Brett popped the cap on the bottle and leaned against the counter. “No.” His cell phone rang before Owen could respond, but what the fuck was he going to tell him? Gillian was an eligible, gorgeous wolf with a sweet disposition and a talented gift.

She is not fucking staying in Hudson River.
He tipped the beer up to take a long pull and listened to the Hunter filling his Alpha in.

“We tracked down Eddie’s girlfriend, but she won’t be any help.”

Brett’s easy smile faded. “She’s dead, isn’t she?”

“Yeah, sometime late last night based on the smell. We’re leaving it to the human authorities and scrubbing her from Eddie’s place.”

“Do it. Call Jenkins and let him know.”

“Already done, boss. Figured you’d want him to snag the case if he can.”

“Good. I’m taking the Healer to Hatcher’s. She’s probably going to want to see Leo’s place, too.”

Hatcher was the Hudson River Healer who died. Leo must be another victim.
Eddie. Hatcher. Leo.
Owen frowned.

“Hang on, Marco,” Brett said and glanced at Owen. “What?”

“Have all the victims been males? The deaths you told Mason about?”

From the phone, another wolf with Marco answered, “The last ten, yeah. The first two weren’t.”

Twelve deaths in under two years. “What about the first two, Reed?”

“An elderly, a widowed female and a teen, younger than Eddie. Also female,” answered Reed.

Brett’s gaze narrowed. “Andrea died in car accident.”

“Well, yeah,” Reed continued, apparently haven taken Marco’s phone. “She was in her car, and she had a wreck. Even Hatcher wasn’t sure why she didn’t survive it, but her parents were pretty busted up about it. I don’t think Melanie is ever going to recover.”

With a sigh, the Alpha nodded. “Make sure Hatcher and Leo’s places are still secure. I want a check in with everyone. Go door to door if you have to.”

“You got it boss.” The wolf on the other end disconnected the call.

“That’s a lot of male deaths without dominance challenges.” Owen didn’t have to ask if they’d been the result of such because, if they had been, Brett wouldn’t have asked for Gillian.

“Like I told Mason, they’ve been spread out, never the same cause twice.”

“Until now.” While Eddie’s girlfriend was human, she’d still died in a similar manner to Eddie—or so they thought.

“Yes.” Brett set the phone down. Neither man spoke because, until they had more information, what could they say? Nothing about the situation, however, sat well with Owen.

Still…
“How settled is your pack?”

“Be very careful about what you’re asking me.” Brett focused on him. Though his posture remained relaxed and seemingly at ease, his temper reflected in his eyes.

“Then let me ask it another way. Bringing Gillian here can ignite unsettled elements within the pack as only outsiders can.” He included himself in the second part of that equation, but so long as Brett wanted Gillian’s help, Owen wasn’t leaving. “What are the possibilities for violence?”

“It doesn’t matter.” Gillian padded barefoot into the room. She’d showered even more swiftly than he’d imagined. The fresh, clean scent of her filled his nostrils. She’d dressed in a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, her damp hair soaking the cotton on her shoulders. The idea of how warm her shower flushed skin had to be would drive him crazy for hours.

“It matters, little wolf.” Brett’s earlier testiness seemed to have left them behind. “Chase may annoy the hell out of me, but he has a point.” It took a powerful, and confident Alpha to admit potential weakness in front of his friends, much less outsiders. His interest in Gillian aside, Brett Dalton earned a measure of Owen’s respect. “Hatcher’s death left many in the pack reeling. This recent death and the rumors it will likely trigger…they could dangerous to both of you.”

“No one would hurt a healer.” Gillian came to stand next to Owen and pride filled his chest. She’d promised to stay with him, and she seemed intent on keeping her word.

“We don’t know that.” Owen wrapped an arm around her, offering comfort for the dark thoughts he planned to share. She settled into his side, leaning on him. Brett gave him a small, humorless smile and nodded once. “If their healer was part of the pattern, someone may have already hurt a healer.”

The level of violence he would unleash on the bastard responsible should that prove true was immeasurable. In this, he knew his thoughts paralleled the Alpha’s.

“Agreed, so we’re going to handle this differently. I planned to put one of my Hunters with you, but now it will be at least two. You, Chase? You focus on protecting her. Their job will also be to protect her and deal with any fallout from unhappy packmates, understood?”

In other words, he could use violence if Gillian were in direct danger, but leave the rest of the issues to their designated guards. “Acceptable terms.”

“So, if we’re agreed, I’ll get my things and we can go see Hatcher’s body?” Impatience threaded through her words. Impatience and unease. “Unless either of you wanted to shower, first?” A part of her unique charm lay in her ability to disengage from her impatience to care for others.

“I’m fine.” Owen set the beer on the counter. “You should eat.”

“Not until after.”

Decaying corpse
. Thus reminded, he agreed with her.

Brett cast a glance at her feet.

“I’m going to grab my shoes. I have a different pair in the truck and I want to wear those.”

More than willing to accommodate her, Owen swung her up into his arms. Ignoring the Alpha’s smirk, Owen stalked out of the house. Gillian frowned at him, but didn’t give voice to the question he read in her eyes. Thankfully, she didn’t outright reject his aid.

What could the other wolves do as long as he was there? Look? Flirt? Offer? The list didn’t make him feel any better, but they had more important things to worry about. As long as he never left her alone, he could stymy any other wolves’ game.

The thought combined with her slender weight in his arms settled him. At the truck, he balanced her and got the door open before depositing her on the seat.

“Oh boy.” Gillian wrinkled her nose at him. “I’m not going to break if I put my bare feet on the ground, Owen.”

“I know,” he told her. “I just wanted to carry you.”

Her mouth opened, then snapped shut again. Her pupils dilated and her nostrils flared. After quick caress of her cheek, he forced himself to withdraw. “What shoes did you want?”