But I knew Clover wouldn’t stop until she got what she wanted.
“Nana thinks it might be for sale. And if it falls into the wrong hands…she won’t tell me what will happen, but I can say there’s been a lot of incense burning and chanting anytime the possibility’s been brought up.” Clover gave her head another shake, and her hair shimmered like a crown.
For a woman who thinks she’s got no magic, she certainly knows how to cast a spell.
Not helpful, bear.
“You know your way around a computer,” she continued.
You know your way around a few other things too…
“I’m a hacker,” I said, ignoring my bear.
That earned a grin. “Right. If there’s shady shit happening online, you’re the man to call.”
Couldn’t argue with that. “Listen, I would love to help you?—”
“Don’t try to let me down easy, Bellamy. Are you in or not? There’s a reward for the safe return of the locket.”
“I don’t do tricks for treats. I’m running a security company that’s just handled a case with national exposure, and we have more jobs than we can possibly keep up with.”
“Right, you saved that lady from the awful Moonlight Beast. That’s how I found you. I wouldn’t be here if I wasn’t desperate.” She lowered her gaze. “I might be forty years old, but Nana will have my ass if this thing isn’t found.”
Wait. “Are you responsible for this?”
There was no way this woman would come in here and beg me to do anything if she wasn’t in deep shit. This was way more than just a necklace.
Clover pursed her lips together. Yeah, she was completely responsible for whatever mess had been created.
“I would never do anything that would hurt Nana or the clan.”
It took everything I had not to laugh in her face. If that was true, she never would have rejected me.
“I hope you find your nana’s necklace, Clover.” Saying her name out loud tore at those delicate pieces of scar tissue that had never quite gone back to the way they were before she broke my heart. “But there’s no fucking way I can help you.”
Chapter
Two
The Actual Audacity
Clover
Ugh!
The only thing that would be more satisfying than getting Nana’s locket back safe and sound would have been wringing that stubborn bear’s neck when he said no.
Did I deserve that reaction? Absolutely. Did I expect anything less? Hell no.
Okay, maybe I thought he might have felt the zap of electricity when our gazes met too…but no. The bear was stone cold and all business. I’d thoroughly ruined Bellamy Laredo.
He probably has a family and a mate waiting for him at home, my bear reminded me, pouring salt into a wound that apparently would never heal. And he’s too busy for your mayhem and foolishness.
Totally understandable, even if I didn’t like it. The part where I told him I was absolutely desperate to get this thing back wasn’t bullshit. It was time to stop being the pack fuck up. Ever since Nana had discovered the locket had disappeared, she’d been in full sorceress mode, consulting every grimoire in her arsenal for a spell powerful enough to bring that thing back. There had been salt circles, all the crystals, smoke, sound bowls, and so much chanting. How she managed to channel the ancestors and cuss me out with those very same words was a magic unto itself.
My mind raced as I backed out of my parking spot. The Sawtooth Security office was on the outskirts of the tiny, adorable town of Granger Falls. I flipped off the building before putting my car into drive. Our clan lived deeper in the forest, and I had a decent drive ahead of me. Which meant I had plenty of time to figure out a new plan before I had to tell Nana Bellamy said no.
I told her she’d have better luck if she went herself, but she pressed a piece of rose quartz into my hand and said everything would work out the way it should.
