“Ready?” Logan asks before the ding of the elevator signals we’ve reached our floor.
Taking a deep breath, centering myself, I say, “Yeah, let’s do this.”
His nod and smirk in response is reassuring. Just like the old days. I can do it for Thea. Though I’ll be glad to never wear this suit again if I can help it. Our plan is to have Logan take the lead initially until it’s a good point for me to jump in. He scheduled this meeting with the two remaining alphas of our suspect, Mark Henderson’s ex-pack. They think it’s a meeting about a white-collar investigation we’re doing but Logan will quickly dispel that once we get started.
These two alphas run a small firm, Twisted Ember Co. We’re quickly shown to a conference room and told they will be in shortly. Logan glances at me and touches his tie pointedly. I reach up and straighten it again. Gods, I can’t wait to get this leash off of me.
Just then Xavier and Callum walk in, both wearing pristine suits. Xavier is in a deep gray suit that complements his dark brown skin. His expression appears guarded, but that can be chalked up to what they believe the nature of the meeting. Callum has a black suit and white dress shirt, contrasting against his tan skin. His expression on the other hand…guarded is too soft of a word. I check in with Logan to see if he noticed. He gives a barely perceptible nod. Callum is going to be a problem. He’ll get defensive if we don’t approach this right. We aren’t here to accuse them of anything. We need information and more importantly, corroboration that Mark Henderson is our guy.
Logan and I both stand to greet them as he makes introductions. “Nice to meet you both in person, I’m Agent Costello and this is Carter.” Smart. He couldn’t introduce me as an agent since I’m no longer one, but implied it but using my last name so they wouldn’t ask questions.
We all shake hands and quickly get down to business. Callum looks like he’s about to speak before Logan cuts him off.
What are you doing? That’s not the way to go with this guy.
His immediate annoyance is clear as Logan begins, “I want to apologize I arranged our meeting under a false pretense.” They side-eye each other, much like I would do with Micah if we were in their positions. Logan continues, “We aren’t here to discuss a white-collar issue. It’s actually something more personal for the two of you—Mark Henderson.”
That name got an immediate reaction from them both. Xavier’s eyebrows raise in surprise while Callum’s expression darkened, brows furrowed.
“Is this about our lawsuit against him?” Xavier asks. Callum whips his head in his direction, likely upset he said anything. We knew they filed a suit against him but it’s been in mediation, so no further details were available.
“No, I don’t believe so; however, we don’t know the details of that suit so I can’t say for certain,” Logan addresses Xavier, purposely ignoring Callum. Still addressing Xavier, he asks, “Does the name Thea Fera sound familiar to either of you?”
This time it’s Callum who is surprised. His expression is much more open. It’s clear he didn’t expect her name to be brought up at all. “Ye—” Xavier begins before Callum shuts him down.
“Why are you bringing her up? We have nothing to do with her.”
“We are not here to accuse either of you of any wrongdoing. We simply would like to discuss your former pack mate and the connection he may have to Ms. Fera,” Logan says calmly.Callum relaxes minutely. Before he can respond, Logan carries on, “Did either of you know that Ms. Fera has had a stalker since August of last year?”
Xavier sucks in a breath and Callum’s mouth opens slightly in surprise. I’m sure they are putting the pieces together now.
“I’ll take that as a no,” Logan adds. “Did you know that her alpha, Connor Lambert, was murdered in November of last year?”
You could hear a pin drop with the silence enveloping the room. Logan nods at their lack of response. “I see, as you may have guessed, we are investigating Mark Henderson as a suspect in these crimes. That is why we are here. Public records show he did not leave your pack officially until around the time Connor was killed. We would appreciate your cooperation in providing any information on Henderson. We would also like to talk with your pack’s beta, Julian Himmel, if possible.”
Their body language changes drastically in reaction to Logan mentioning the beta. It reminds me of an alpha protecting their omega. They both look guarded now. Logan checks in and I tap my fingers against the table. I’ll have to jump in soon. If they’re protective of the beta then talking to an official like Logan won’t get us as far as we’d planned.
They appear to check in with each other, I’d expect nothing less between pack mates. A conclusion must have been met as Callum says, “We will tell you what we can but Julian doesn’t need to be involved. Agreed?”
Julian was and still is bonded to Mark. We’ll need to talk to him. “We can agree to that for now,” Logan responds. “Can you tell us if Mark knew Ms. Fera?”
Xavier makes a derisive snort. “He was obsessed with her.” I lean forward, my fists clenching under the table. I knew he was the guy, but getting someone else to confirm it is both validating and infuriating.
“Can you expand on that?” Logan asks, luckily remaining professional.
“They worked for the same company. He said he caught her scent one day and was convinced she was his scent match and our pack’s omega. All of us went to his office under the guise to see him, but he manufactured ways for us to be in proximity to her so we could scent her. The three of us never thought anything other than her scent was pleasant but she was definitely not a scent match,” Xavier explains.
Callum sighs. “He wouldn’t accept that and arranged these moments multiple times. Xav and I went three times. Poor Julian indulged him at least twice that. It was only for a month, probably less; however, it did start in August last year.”
This may have started before she got the first delivery at work. I’m grinding my teeth to keep myself in check. The idea these men were purposely around her trying to scent her withouther knowing is not sitting right at all. Logan glances at me. I must not be hiding it as well as I thought.
“Did you know anything about the packages and letters she received? Did Markevertalk about sending her things?” Logan asks.
“Not that we know of,” Xavier responds. We hear what he’s not saying—Julian might know.
Switching gears, Logan asks, “When exactly did Mark cut ties with your pack and what reason did he give you?”
Callum, who’s been the more guarded alpha of the two, cracks his knuckles in frustration. He leans forward. “He left mid-November, I think it was the tenth. He said he couldn’t be in a pack that didn’t support him and his relationship with his omega.”
