They walked into the kitchen and Logan handed him her cat bowl. “Stick some biscuits in there and she’ll be your best friend.”
Aaron took it with a frown but got the biscuits out of the cupboard and filled her bowl. True to form, Smudge jumped down from Logan’s shoulder and rubbed against Aaron’s legs.
“Come on, then,” Aaron said, straightening. “Grab a couple of beers and let’s sit down.” He picked both envelopes up off the counter. “I’m dying to see who made the cut.”
“You say that like they had a choice in the matter,” Logan said, opening the fridge. “You remember what it was like, right?”
A shadow passed over Aaron’s face, and Logan wanted to bite his tongue off. “Yeah, I remember what it’s like. And I know some of the people in our files probably don’t want to be there. But there’s not much we can do about that. I’m just trying to make the best of things.”
Aaron’s younger brother had been one of those who didn’t want it.
And now he was gone, along with many others. Not for the first time, Logan wondered if Aaron knew the truth about what happened to him. The urge to tell him was almost too much to contain, but Logan swallowed it down like he had for the past three years. He loved Aaron like a brother, but he couldn’t tell him that.
He just couldn’t.
“You go first,” he said, handing Aaron a beer.
They sat there poring over the list of people who’d tested positive for shifter compatibility, sorting them into piles of what areas they’d be good for and then into order of importance. It felt a little cold and calculating, but McKillan would want a detailed report of who they’d approached for which area of work and why. They couldn’t afford to be anything but clinical.
When they’d finished with Aaron’s lot, they turned to Logan’s envelope.
He hesitated as he picked it up, almost afraid to open it.
“Hurry up,” Aaron muttered, kicking his foot. “I haven’t got all night.”
Inside were seven sheets of paper. Each one held a picture of the candidate, and below it, their test scores.
Logan flipped through them, nervous energy racing through his veins. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end, his skin felt too tight, his wolf so close to the surface he let out a low rumbling growl when the last page had Cole’s photo on it.
Fuck.
Aaron whistled when he saw the name. “Paul’s going to be over the fucking moon.” Tapping Cole’s picture, he added, “Poor bastard.”
“I’m not putting him with Paul.” Now it was a real possibility, the thought of handing Cole over to a wanker like Paul made Logan irrationally angry.
“Logan,” Aaron said quietly, “look at his skillset. He’s exactly what Paul’s looking for. You have to suggest it. Everyone will expect it, and if you don’t, they’re going to want to know why.” He paused, then met Logan’s gaze. “I’d like to know why.”
What could he say?
That he liked him?
That instinct told him joining their pack was the last thing Cole Moreton wanted.
He sighed and slumped back into the sofa cushions, Cole’s picture in his lap. “You know they’ll want him to take the bite.”
“They might let him—” Aaron stopped at Logan’s raised eyebrows. “Yeah, you’re right. He could always say no.”
“And we both know how that would be received.” He faced Aaron. “Cole said he’d heard rumours about our pack.”
Aaron frowned. “What sort of rumours?”
“Pretty sure the same ones that we hear.” Logan had always thought McKillan was tough but fair. But they’d all heard the rumblings from Paul’s side of the pack. All the humans that were under Simon always took the bite. Even if they declined at first, a few weeks or months later they always seemed to have a change of heart. Didn’t take a genius to realise at least some were pressured into it. And that wasn’t the way Logan had been brought up. If someone didn’t want to become a shifter, you didn’t force them. You left the offer open-ended forifthey ever changed their minds. The tests were there to see the potential, to avoid death or complications. They weren’t a precursor to being changed.
That’s what Logan had been taught anyway.
Simon had to know what was going on, and by extension, so must McKillan. He wasn’t stupid. Either he approved of Simon’s methods or he didn’t care enough about humans to step in and do something about it.
Either way, Logan had lost some of the respect he had for his alpha, and though no one would ever say so publicly, he wasn’t the only one.
