“Who the hell was that?” she finally asked. “And where did he go?”
Silas’s shoulders hunched forward as his thoughts shifted to Alex. So close. He’d been so close. “I should have fired sooner.”
“Sure. Why follow protocol?” Meredith asked sarcastically. “Are you going to tell me who it was and why you practically bludgeoned me to shoot at him?”
“Yes,” he said darkly. “But first, do you need a doctor?”
She removed the shirt from her head. The wound had already stopped bleeding. “No. I’m good. It’s just a scrape.” She got to her feet.
“Are you sure? You could have a concussion.”
With a shake of her head, she waved him off. “I’m fine. Tell me who that was.”
“I’ll burn the ghoul’s body,” he said. “You sprinkle the holy water. I’ll explain on the way back to the station.” Thankfully, she didn’t argue.
As she headed for the border of the crime scene, he supposed he owed her an explanation. If she was going to be his partner, she needed to know about the risks. And Alex was one deadly risk.
Chapter Two
“Why does having a partner bother you so much?” Laina took a huge bite of her Valentine’s burger. He’d asked her to lunch to catch up but was enjoying the opportunity to vent about Meredith. A glob of sauce dripped from the corner of her mouth and landed on the table with a splat.
“Hungry, sister?” Silas asked, snorting at the way she practically inhaled the half pound of meat. He handed her a napkin. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen you eat like this.”
“It’s weird, isn’t it? I’ve been craving meat constantly, these days. Must be the stress of knowing Alex is on the loose again.”
“Hopefully not for long. I’m working on it. Last night was the closest I’ve ever been to bringing him down. If it wasn’t for the new partner getting in the way, I might have had a chance.”
“What’s her name again?”
“Meredith Turner.”
“Why does that name sound familiar?”
Silas shrugged. “I had to tell her about Alex after I shot at him last night. You should have seen her face. She went home early. Maybe I’ve scared her off, and this partner thing won’t be an issue.”
“But why do you feel it’s an issue in the first place? What’s wrong with having a partner?”
Someone had put pepper in the saltshaker. Silas unscrewed the top and started carefully scooping out the black grains. “I like to work alone. You can’t trust anyone these days. Everyone has hidden agendas. She shows up out of nowhere, and I’m supposed to trust her with the biggest case of my life, a case that affects my family and my pack? The only person I trust is me. I’m meticulous. I have a stellar memory. My hunches are ninety-eight percent accurate. A partner throws all of that off. It’s like last night. If I hadn’t wasted time trying to protect her, I might’ve sunk a silver bullet between Alex’s eyes.”
Laina leaned back against her seat. “Well, I think it’s a good idea.”
“What? Why?”
“Because you’ve been alone in this too long. You work all the time. We never see you anymore. And frankly, Silas, everyone needs someone. You’re not an island, even when it comes to detective work. You’ll burn out if you don’t accept help.”
“I’ve been doing this for years.” He scooped more tainted salt onto his plate.
“Look at you! You took it upon yourself to clean pepper out of the saltshaker.”
He spread his hands in disbelief. “It’s rude.”
“You didn’t do it.”
“Yeah, but I noticed.”
“It wasn’t your responsibility.”
“Of course it was. I saw it. Honestly, Laina. What is this all about?”
