“We have more than enough. We’re grateful for you, Alpha.” He rounded the desk and clapped my shoulder.
I would’ve told him that he didn’t need to be grateful. As his alpha and leader of this pack, that was my job, my birthright.
“I’ll get on the line with Chance.”
Raffa met with a few of our other packmates to talk about work while I stepped out of the small building at the center of the town our pack had built years ago.
I pulled my phone from my back pocket and immediately texted Chance.
Me: We have a problem. Montgomery is MIA
Chance: How long?
Me: Few weeks, according to Raffa.
Chance: You need me to hunt.
It wasn’t a question. Chance was intelligent enough to read between the lines. Yet, I hesitated when it came to giving the direct order. Reese. There wasn’t anyone else who knew about her existence that I trusted to keep watch over her. Christophe knew, but his strongest asset was service from behind a computer screen.
I thought about going to Micah again and having him watch over Reese, but this was beyond the capacity that I would allow my human cousins to get involved in. After that video, I was sure the Alliance was keeping an eye on my comings and goings in some capacity. My going back to Texas at this point could place her in even more danger.
I clasped my cell phone so firmly that the first crack on the screen appeared. Pushing out a breath, I reminded myself to calm the hell down.
Me: How is she?
I ignored Chance’s previous comment for the time being.
Chance: Same as last time. She works and walks her dog.
Me: She hasn’t been back to the nursing home?
Chance had informed me that he’d followed her one Friday night to Creekview. He said she came out sooner than expected, and he watched as a security guard took her badge. After finding this out, I had Christophe hack into the staff and volunteer list at the home. Reese’s name wasn’t on it.
I knew Dr. Pines or whoever he was working with had to be behind that. Reese wouldn’t have quit volunteering there without a strong reason. Especially not with the suspicions she had of what was happening to the residents.
Though I knew it probably killed her not to be able to volunteer there any longer, it was for the best. The farther away she was from Pines and his bullshit, the better. At least, until I could figure out what he was up to and who he was working with.
Chance:No. Will you return to Texas?
Hell yeah, I was taking my ass back to Texas to claim what was mine. But I couldn’t do it right away.
Me:Soon. We’ll need you in California by tomorrow.
Chance:I’ll be there.
CHAPTER11
Reese
My phone pinged with a text notification, waking me up out of a, thankfully, dreamless sleep. It was Saturday midafternoon. I groped at my nightstand, reaching for the phone.
Charlotte Rowe:Not sure if you saw this, but my second article on nursing homes came out this week. I quoted you, and since it came out, I heard back from the state health department. They’re going to look into what could be potentially an elder abuse case.
I sat up in bed and clicked on the link Charlotte attached to the text. It opened up the article she’d written since I called her that night I got kicked out of Creekview. This article was longer than the original piece I’d read by her a couple of months back. It went into detail about some of the strange disappearances of a few residents. She left out the name of the nursing home, but there was a direct quote from me, which I’d wanted.
After Pines kicked me out of Creekview, I wanted to go on record saying I believed something untoward was happening to the residents. Anyone familiar with the facility would be able to identify the home mentioned in the article.
“Reese Carson was abruptly dismissed from volunteering and forced to cut off all contact with residents when she began asking questions,” I read aloud.
