Wolf Whisperer. Karen Whiddon
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before she could respond, “Why do you think? Of course that’s why they attacked us. Why else?”
Restless, she began to pace back and forth in front of him. “I’m not sure. They shot me. And you. They didn’t capture me. It didn’t make sense.”
“That’s because you fought them off.”
“Maybe. But still, it doesn’t make sense.”
“You know, you might be right.” He grimaced. “But I’m thinking they didn’t expect you to fight. Most of your people do not.”
“I have never understood that. Even your people think we’re all pushovers. That’s why your boss was so shocked when he called.” The instant she heard herself say the words, she wanted to recall them. But then, she knew she could only put him off so long.
“My boss? That’s who you were talking to? What did he want?”
“I’m guessing to see if you were dead or alive. I think he knew about the attack. I really think the Protectors are behind this.”
“No way.” He rubbed his mouth. “We don’t operate that way.” Then, eyes narrowed, he studied her. “What did you tell him?”
She took a deep breath, then gave him the truth. “I said you were gone. That you’d left.”
Swearing, he looked as if he’d like to hit something. Instead, he held out his hand. “Give me my phone.”
She didn’t move. “No. Listen to me. It’s vitally important that they believe you’ve gone.”
“That’s bull. I would have called in.” He held out his hand. “My phone. Now.”
“I can’t do that,” she told him. “I destroyed it.”
As he stared at her, fury blazing from his eyes, a muscle worked in his jaw.
“Listen to me,” she continued. “Hear me out. I don’t think you can trust your employers.”
He snorted. “Of course you don’t. Look, I realize you’re upset. You just were attacked, you lost your house, had to save a stranger’s life and, on top of that, your sister’s gone missing.”
“And someone tried to kill you,” she pointed out. “Let’s not forget that.”
“I haven’t.” Crossing his arms, he looked away. “But I can promise you those weren’t Protectors. They were vampires, for hound’s sake.”
“And one shifter.”
“True, but he had to be a renegade. Maybe even a Feral. What shifters work with vamps? Not Protectors.”
“I don’t know. That’s your territory. Are you saying Protectors never work with vampires?”
He thought for a moment. “Not usually.”
Hearing the hesitation, she pounced. “But it has happened?”
Reluctantly, he nodded. “Very rarely.”
She pressed her point. “I think they set you up. But you being here worked against them. They wanted to grab me and failed.”
His closed-off expression told her he wasn’t buying it. “And what about me? Why would they do such a thing to one of their own?”
“Means to an end. They were willing to sacrifice you.”
He didn’t want to believe her, she could tell. Yet something in what she said must have resonated with him since he didn’t discount it right away.
“Can you prove this?” he asked finally.
“No. But I can’t disprove it, either. Until we can do one or the other, I’d say we go with the assumption that they did.”
Immediately, he shook his head. “I’m sorry, but I’m not buying it.”
“Then give me another alternative,” she cried. “Something besides a senseless, random attack. They were armed with silver bullets. They had a purpose.”
“Yes. To capture you. But it wasn’t us. For the last time, the Protectors don’t work that way.” He stared at her for so long she fought the urge to fidget.
“I don’t agree.”
“Fine,” he finally said. “Let’s just agree to disagree until we have more information. Where do we go from here? What’s the plan?”
She couldn’t help but notice the way he said “we” rather than “you.”
“I want my sister back. I’m going to find out a way to rescue her.” Taking a deep breath, she looked at him. “And, if you help me find her, I’ll do my best to help you get reunited with your children.”
Still watching her closely, he didn’t appear convinced. “How do you propose to do that?”
“I’m going after them.”
“Just the two of us? I don’t think that’s a good idea.”
“Why not?” she asked, using the same calm, measured tone she used to sooth a spooked dog. “You’re a trained Protector and I’m a Tearlach. It’ll be enough. We’ll be fine.”
“You know, that’s why I was sent to you. To offer you the help of the Protectors.”
“Their help comes with too many strings.” Again she leaned in close, aware he still didn’t know all that being a Tearlach entailed. “I want you to come with me. Singular. Not them. I don’t trust them.”
He lifted a brow. “Why the hell not? At the risk of beating a dead horse, you have no proof that they took your sister—in fact, since I was sent here to talk to you, that really argues against that idea. If we were in the habit of simply grabbing what we wanted, I would have captured you myself.”
To that, she snorted. “As if you could.”
His slight smile told her he was letting that one go. “You’ve got to do better than that. If we’re going to be partners, we’ve got to be honest with each other. Why don’t you trust the Protectors?”
Taking a deep breath, she told him the truth. “Because they killed my father.” Though she tried to rein it in, bitterness colored her voice. “The Protectors are responsible for tearing my family apart.”
Silence fell while he processed her words, his expression grim. “Though I’m sure you have your reasons for believing this, your father was working with us, not against us. We were allies when he was killed.”
“I don’t believe you. I need proof.”
“Why?” he asked. “From what I’ve seen of you, you seem to operate on hunches and supposition. Kidnapping someone really isn’t the sort of thing we do.”
“Maybe not now. But I know differently. Think about what your organization was less than a year ago. Protectors were nothing more than paid assassins. They exterminated anyone who didn’t conform to a predetermined set of narrow rules. They were corrupt through and through. So don’t tell me it’s not possible.”
He bowed his head. “True. But those individuals and their followers are all gone. They’ve been punished. Things are different now.” Taking a deep breath, he watched her, no doubt waiting for her to speak. When she did not, he continued as if she had.
“You speak of us with such rancor.” Watching her the way a wolf keeps an eye on a sunning snake, he grimaced. “Since you feel that way, why did you save me? I’m a Protector. My loyalty is with them.”
“Still? Surely after this, you must have doubts.”
“Why would I?” He spread his hands. “You’ve given me no proof, no evidence. You were attacked and we both were shot. That’s all we know.”
He