Finn couldn’t help but respect DA Rivera. He may be struggling with all of the wolfy business, but whatever history he had with Sheppard was apparently enough for him to take the man at his word about the phone call’s merit. He told Sheppard to send it to him without even asking to listen, first. Which wasgood, because Finn wasn’t in any kind of headspace to listen to that.
He wouldn’t be for a while, probably.
Things were still tense between Sheppard and the DA, though, and oddly enough, it seemed like the glances that passed between them were more hurt-laden than anything else.
On their way out, DA Rivera told Jaime that no matter how they decided to handle Bishop’s death, they clearly couldn’t put him on trial for killing Vera anymore, but that he would more than likely have to testify at Jeffrey Dugan’s trial when the time came.
Jaime nodded. Seeing as Bishop’s trial had taken over six months to start from the time of his arrest, that was a future problem.
Right now, Finn desperately wanted to bring Jaime home. Whether that was back to his cabin, or to Finn’s house, he didn’t care. He just wanted a hot shower that they both fit into, and a bed, where he’d remind them both that they were alive—that they were together.
Then, maybe dinner at Andi’s.
That would have to wait a little longer, however, because as they all walked out of the office together before going their separate ways, the group halted at who was standing before them.
Alpha Cain, head of the Salt Creek pack, stood in their parking lot, flanked by two partially shifted wolves on either side.
Finn had never met him before, but he’d seen pictures. He looked to be in his late fifties, maybe early sixties, with salt and pepper hair and light brown eyes, catching almost yellow in the afternoon light. He wasn’t the largest man among the five of them that were facing off, but Finn could sense the overwhelming alpha presence, the command in his gaze.
He looked long and hard at Silas, before skipping over Jaime and Sam, sandwiched between them, to settle on Finn, and then Sheppard. His lip curled in contempt, before addressing DA Rivera. “So, they’ve told you. Good. That will make this conversation easier.”
Finn thought it was a good thing that Sheppard had shown DA Rivera the full wolf shift after all, hoping it took away some of the shock of seeing the five partially shifted men before them now.
A low, rumbling growl, one Finn had never heard before, came from Silas. “What are you doing here, Cain?”
The four wolves flanking him snarled at the lack of respectful address, and Finn, Silas, and Sheppard all stepped forward at once, standing in front of the three humans with them.
They were outnumbered, but they had trained together, fought together as a pack before. If they were able to get the boys back inside, they might stand a chance of fending off the Salt Creek guards until Monroe PD could be called?—
Alpha Cain held up a hand. “I’m not here for a confrontation, Nephew. Stand down.”
Silas shook under the weight of the ignored command, but did not ease his protective stance in front of Sam. And this time, Sam wasn’t trying to elbow his way around the larger man, seeming content to sidle closer to Jaime, angling his body protectively.
Silas asked him again, “What are you doing here?”
The alpha shook his head. “The mess that Jeffrey Dugan and Jackson Bishop caused was unfortunate. I came to say that they were not acting on my orders, and that I will not be protecting Jeffrey Dugan from being held accountable. Bishop’s death was also unfortunate, but it’s probably for the best that it was at your mutt’s hands and not mine, for his insubordination.”
Silas winced. “How do you know that he’s dead?”
Alpha Cain gave him a look that said he wasn’t fooled by the deflection. “I can smell his blood all over your Second.”
Finn blinked at the address.
“Why should we believe that you had nothing to do with Vera’s murder and the attack on Finn and Jaime?” DA Rivera looked a bit less frazzled now, having collected himself from the shock of their arrival.
Cain ignored the DA’s question, but gave him an appraising look. “Prosecute Jeffrey Dugan and let that be the end of it, District Attorney Rivera. I would hate for the career that you’ve worked so hard for to be jeopardized over a few files you shouldn’t be digging around in, anyway.”
DA Rivera paled, and Sheppard’s hackles rose, a low growl rumbling from him.
Cain turned his nasty smirk back on Silas. “And the same goes for you, Nephew. Let’s set the past aside. I would hate for something bad to happen if you go poking your nose where it doesn’t belong.”
Sam did step forward, then. Not to bat Silas out of the way, but to stand in front of him. “Is that a threat?”
The alpha’s gaze fell to Sam, like he’d just noticed him for the first time. His lips tipped up in a knowing smile that made Finn’s skin crawl. “I would also hate for your growing pack to be held accountable for your meddling.”
Silas’s answering snarl was vicious and terrifying, and he wrapped an arm around Sam’s shoulders, pulling him back into him. “Get out of here, and do not threaten me or mine again, Cain.”
They stared at each other for another long minute, before the alpha cocked his head at his guard and they turned to leave, heading for two large SUVs with blacked out windows.
