Chapter 8
Henry
Henry waited until morning to update his alpha, Evershaw, and Evershaw’s mate, Deirdre. He’d returned to the witch’s house close to dawn, after grumbling with Sasha over a few drinks, and avoided the watchful eyes of his sidekick, Mercy. She was Evershaw’s adopted daughter and the pack mascot, even though she was a strong wolf in her own right. She just had an aura about her like everyone’s kid sister, no matter how old she got. She’d been asleep in the front room as he crept across the porch, with the witch’s cat asleep in her lap, and Henry had been careful not to wake her so he could avoid the twenty questions that would have resulted.
Cricket, the cat, barely glanced at Henry as the wolf walked by. The cat had enough attitude that it ruled the roost even in a pack full of werewolves, and it wasn’t just because Deirdre protected it. There was something about house cats in general… He’d never met one that was so self-assured and in command it could hold its own against a wolf. Henry didn’t mind sharing his breakfast with the beast just to keep the peace, and tossed some bacon bits in Cricket’s direction before searching for Evershaw and Deirdre.
The witch worked in her garden while Evershaw yawned and drank his coffee and complained about the fresh air and early hour. It was Deirdre who noticed Henry and said good morning, ignoring her mate as Evershaw grumped and muttered.
Henry didn’t take the alpha’s lack of manners to heart, since he’d worked for Miles Evershaw for almost a decade. Having Deirdre around had softened a lot about the alpha, but it hadn’t improved his opinion of mornings. Henry sat on a bench near the garden as he finished his coffee. “There was a disturbance last night while I was out patrolling.”
At least Evershaw sat up when he heard that. Henry filled them both in on what happened, and tried not to laugh at their reactions—Evershaw started scowling at the first mention of the coyotes and wolves, while Deirdre waited to frown until she heard about the witch the animals cornered. Henry hid his smile behind the coffee cup. “So there might be two new problems, although I don’t know enough about witches to tell whether she’s trouble or not.”
“I thought we’d dealt with the coyotes,” Deirdre said, glancing over at her mate. Her dark hair, pulled back in a ponytail, started to escape and curl around her face as she brushed sweat off her forehead. She went back to digging and clipping leaves and tying branches to a trellis. “It’s the wolves that worry me.”
“How about you worry about the witch?” Evershaw said, folding his arms over his chest.
“How about you mind your attitude?” she shot back, giving him a dark look. “It’s too early to deal with your bullshit and you didn’t make enough coffee. I won’t know if the witch is a problem until I meet her, and besides, it sounds like she was being chased by the animals. Which should be more alarming for you, since animals chasing witches could have implications for me.”
Evershaw grunted. “Fine. Did you recognize any of the coyotes or wolves, Henry?”
He shrugged. “I didn’t notice anything in particular, but it was dark. Might require a call to that new coyote alpha to sort it out. I thought she had everything under control.”
“Probably a poor assumption,” Evershaw said under his breath. The alpha arched an eyebrow. “Given their track record and all.”
Henry figured alphas dealt with alphas, so the new coyote leader was someone Evershaw could face. Which just left the witch. He was getting his thoughts in order on how to ask Deirdre what she wanted to do about the stranger when the witch shot him a sideways look. “Where’s the witch staying?”
“The bears’ shelter,” he said. “I didn’t get a chance to question her with that damn Russian bear standing over my shoulder.”
“She’s staying at the battered women’s shelter?” Deirdre straightened up from the plants and braced her hands at the small of her back. “Why?”
“Didn’t get a chance to ask. She said her car broke down and she didn’t look… rich. Maybe she didn’t have anywhere else to go.” Henry tried not to feel too badly about it, even if he didn’t like the idea of the stranger being in such duress.
Deirdre sighed and eyed her mate. “Then I suppose I’m making a trip to the shelter to figure out what’s going on. The last thing we need is another blasted coven in this city, and if she’s the first of a wave of them, then we need to nip this in the bud. I don’t want to deal with more witch drama.”
“None of us need that,” Evershaw said under his breath, though he pasted a fake smile on his face when Deirdre gave him a dirty look. “I mean, when are you going to talk to the girl?”
“Soon,” Deirdre said. She pulled off her gloves and tossed them into the basket where she’d collected the various leaves and stems and clippings. “Don’t want to give her time to disappear into the city.”
Henry stretched and tilted his head at the house. “If you give me just a minute to get changed, I can go with you.”
“That’s okay,” Deirdre said. “You should sleep. I’ll bring Mercy with me. She likes ogling the bears, even if they’re all mated already.”
“I didn’t need to hear that,” Evershaw muttered, shaking his head like he could have dislodged the thought. Mercy was like everyone’s little sister, but she was especially Miles’s. “She shouldn’t be ogling anyone, especially not those meatheads.”
“Says you,” the witch said. She winked at Henry and headed for the house. “Just because you’re not paying attention doesn’t mean it doesn’t happen. She’s a grown woman, you know. You should see the way she looks at Iskander and—”
“I’m not hearing this,” her mate said. The wolf alpha covered his ears and stormed up to the house while Deirdre chased after him, laughing and naming all the guys that Evershaw’s distant cousin and adopted daughter liked to stare at.
Henry shook his head and leaned back on the bench, basking in the morning sun. He fought jealousy every time he saw them together, joking or even arguing. He hadn’t ever been in a relationship like the one between the alpha and his mate, and part of Henry wanted to find the same thing for himself. He hadn’t felt a connection with any of the female wolves in the city, despite searching for his own mate, and part of him always wondered if the family curse followed him to a new pack.
He didn’t wait long before shoving to his feet to get on with the day. He didn’t have time to rest; there was still too much to take care of with the coyotes and the wolves from outside the city. He could find a few of the guys to help him track the perpetrators from the night before, if any of the scent remained.
Henry was halfway back to his room to prep for a long day when his cell phone rang and an unfamiliar number popped up on the screen. He hesitated before answering, but gave up as curiosity reared its ugly head. “Yeah?”
“Henry?” The semi-familiar voice, female and rough on the edges, sent him into a spiral of memories. “Henry, it’s Nola. We need to talk.”
He stopped dead in his tracks. Nola. What did she want?
