“I heard about that,” he said flatly, as if the idea of cage fights didn’t bother him.
“They’re looking at recent deaths in the past year—anything that falls out of the norm of old age.”
His brows furrowed. “Why?”
“In case there’s something they can do to help.”
Blue stepped forward. “That might mean making Relics available to everyone and not just those who can afford them. Or ensuring packs have basic medical supplies. Possibly offering advice on territorial disputes, but that’s not one I can promise anything on. They want to look over the data first and then decide where to extend their resources. I’m sure your leader does the best he can, but we both know how some groups are favored over others.”
Ferro’s mouth twisted, and his eyebrows arched in a manner that suggested he agreed with her statement.
“I’m sorry to hear about your son,” I began. “Twenty-one is just a baby.”
Ferro rubbed the side of his nose, and I wondered if he might break down crying. But he didn’t. He held it together as best a grieving father could.
Losing a kid at any age must be tough, so I tried to be as sensitive as possible. “What can you tell us about him?”
Ferro heaved a sigh. “Rain was my firstborn. Strong like me but kind like his mother. He had the right temperament.”
“For what?” I asked, uncertain of the implied meaning.
“Rain was an alpha bear. He could have led this group or started his own.”
“Can I ask about his death? I know it’s hard, but it might help.”
“Bike accident five miles up the road.” He glanced toward the front of the cabin.
“But you don’t believe that,” Blue suggested. “Parents have a sixth sense. What’s yours telling you?”
Ferro folded his arms, his dark eyebrows drawing together. “Rain’s been riding a bike since he could walk. If it wasn’t a dirt bike around the property, it was on the back of my ride. Well, the front. He always wanted to steer,” Ferro said with a wistful smile. “It was perfect riding weather that day. They found him in the middle of the road.”
I let the scenario play out in my head of what could have happened. I’d grown up around bikers and heard all the accident stories, so I knew what some of the most obvious dangers were. “Maybe he made a quick stop because of an animal or car.”
“No skid marks. His tires were fine. No head-on impact to the bike. If he was swerving, he would have gone off the road. But he was dead center, still wearing his helmet. He was scraped up, and Frank said he died of internal injuries.”
“But then why didn’t he shift?” Blue said under her breath, talking to herself. Then she snapped her attention up. “Did he have any suspicious wounds or puncture marks that didn’t look like they were from the accident?”
Ferro slowly shook his head. “Frank said he didn’t find any. I would have looked, but I couldn’t.”
The pain on Ferro’s face was as palpable as the bulging vein on his forehead. I pitied the guy and suddenly found myself relating his pain to what my father must have gone through years ago.
Yet I had to ask the obvious, given Rain’s age. “Was he drinking?”
Ferro’s lip curled. “Rain didn’t drink in the daytime. He didn’t drink much at all, but he knew better than to drink and drive.”
Blue lowered her voice and drew closer to him. “Do you think Frank felt threatened by your son?”
“I don’t know. My boy was young with ideas of his own about how to run a sleuth. I heard a few of his friends cut ties when they found out he was seeing a wolf.”
I jerked my head back. “Was it serious?”
Ferro shook his head, dismissing the notion. “Young boys need to sow their wild oats. I don’t know who he fucked or what their names were—I just heard about the wolf thing a few weeks before he died. Rain was talking about leaving.”
I swatted another mosquito that was feasting on my thigh. “Do you think maybe her pack found out and chased your son on the road, causing the accident? Maybe she had a jealous mate.”
Ferro’s dark eyes locked on mine. “I thought I put this to rest, but you’re putting ideas in my head. Everyone in this territory knew Rain. Everyone. He rode that bike all over the place. Hell, he even did wheelies at speeds that scared the fuck out ofme. Rain got along with wolves, lions, eagles—you name it. It wasn’t in his nature to be deceptive and take a mated woman. If you want to know if my Packmaster or some overprotective father came after him, I don’t know.” Ferro rubbed his face. “I don’t know.”
I pulled out a fake business card from my back pocket. It had a temporary email and number we’d set up for this case. “If you think of anything else, call me. It goes to voicemail, but just leave a message and we can talk or meet somewhere.”
