“Would you be mad? They’re offering me a lot of money.”
“How much?”
“I can’t tell you how many zeros. They said if you matched their offer to stay in our contract, they’ll triple the amount.”
My hands were shaking. “I understand if you want to take their deal, and I’ll be honest—I can’t match their offer. But I have a list of back orders I promised these customers. All I need is one box, and we can go our separate ways.”
“They don’t want me to give you anything else.”
“Who?” I said sharply. “I’m not mad at you, Asia. If this were another legitimate offer, it wouldn’t matter. But I want to know who’s trying to take my business away. What’s their email address? Maybe I can speak to them and sort this all out.”
“No, I can’t do that.”
She sounded torn, and I felt bad for the position she found herself in. Asia and I only had a business relationship, so she had no loyalty to me. Money was important to Shifters. It meant security and taking care of loved ones in the centuries to come. For her, the other offer was easy money. She could just sit back and collect. No work, no negotiations, no contracts, no pressure.
She gave a flustered sigh. “They said if I gave you any information that could lead back to them, they’d withdraw the offer. I’m not allowed to describe the delivery guy or his car, detail the amount of the advance, or anything. I had to sign an NDA to accept the money, which means I can’t talk about it. And they said not to forward their email address.”
“How long do you have to make up your mind?”
“Tomorrow night. They’re sending a contract this afternoon for me to look at. This is so confusing! You didn’t tell me I would have to make all these choices.”
I touched my forehead when I felt a migraine coming on. “It’s not your fault, Asia. If you need the money and it looks like a good deal, you have to do what’s best for you. But if you want to do something that’s not about money—something you can be proud of—then please keep me in mind. I can’t offer you as much as they can, but the reward will be the impact you have on the community. Please let me know when you make your decision. I’m going to hold off on preorders. If you take their offer, I’ll have to tell these people that I can’t keep my promise.”
“I feel so bad,” she mumbled. “I could do a lot with that money. Maybe buy my own house and start a family away from these cuckoo birds. I’m only stuck here because I can’t afford to leave. I’m so sorry, Hope. I think I’m going to take their offer. If anything changes, I’ll call you. Maybe I can do it for a little while and then we can talk again when I have money saved up. I know you’re at work, so I’ll let you go. Please don’t be mad at me.”
I hung up, my hands trembling so much that I almost dropped the phone.
My customer lifted her bag. “Your energy just went from crystal blue to black. Do you want me to take away some of that anger? No charge.”
“I’m sorry you had to hear that. I hope you enjoy your purchase and come back again,” I said robotically.
She flashed a sympathetic smile. “Whatever it is—it’ll pass. These things always do. Here’s my card in case you change your mind. My name’s Frannie. You can’t forget a name that sounds like fanny, now can you?” She chuckled warmly. “Thank you kindly for the gorgeous stones. I’ll be back on the fifteenth to check on that skirt!”
After she left, I looked around and saw the store was empty. Sensing my anger, my wolf paced beneath my skin, but this wasn’t the time or place to let my primal side take over. I was the only one who could resolve this issue, and that meant confronting the one person who had access to that kind of money—someone with motive.
Dutch.
* * *
Tak sankthe last ball into the corner pocket and blew the chalk off the tip of his cue stick as if it were the barrel of a smoking gun.
“Nice shot,” Moreland said, his baritone voice so pleasant that he might have had a singing career in another life. “What’s your name again?”
“Tak.”
The two of them had met a few games ago. It was nice to play with someone who didn’t ask a lot of questions and just focused on the game.
“I guess I owe you a beer, Tak.”
“I’m a soda man, but I appreciate the offer.”
Moreland laughed and propped his cue on the rack. “You’re a better man than I. Alcohol has the power to make men weak. Just look around,” he said, gesturing toward a drunk lying on the floor and singing along with the music. “That one must have had the Devil’s Eye.” Moreland led him to a booth, and they took a seat. “What tribe are you from?”
“Iwa.”
He nodded and lit up a slim cigar. “I figured you weren’t from a pack.”
Tak rubbed his chin. “What gave it away—my gorgeous face?”
