“I could grab them,” Letty offers, but I don’t dignify her offer with a response.
Griffin
The wolf has no idea I’m in the room. Evan knows she has no clue I’m here, and I think that’s why he left her with me instead of sending someone else to retrieve the phones. The room is kept rather dark, enabling all the computer monitors to be easily seen. It works to my advantage now. I watch her for a few moments to see if there is anything I can learn from her, but she just leans her head back and lets out a long sigh.
Finally, I step forward, allowing my shoe to scrape along the short nap carpet so she can’t help but notice me.
“Shit!” she curses and sits upright in her chair. Her heart is thundering in her chest, and her eyes are wide. I’ve startled her just as I intended. I don’t bother speaking, I don’t have anything to say to her yet. I’m hoping to rattle her with just my presence alone. “I didn’t see you there,” the wolf remarks with a frown.
I take a few slow, measured steps. She tracks my movements while I mostly ignore her, showing her how little of a threat she poses to me. It’s arrogant and I don’t often bother with this kind of posturing on purpose, but intimidation tactics aren’t without merit.
“Evan went to get…” She shakes her head, deciding not to finish her sentence, realizing it would be useless to give me the information. I already know where Evan is. After a few more moments of uncomfortable silence, she clears her throat as if she’s preparing to speak or trying to dilute the quiet that’s fallen over the room.
I watch her eyes dart to the barely open door, and adrenaline spikes in her veins. She’s probably contemplating running for the exit. She would never make it, but I would let her think she could, if only for a moment.
There’s a part of me that wants to punish the wolf for a great many things, and all of them have to do with Quinn. However, if I went around killing everyone who pissed me off, there wouldn’t be many people left, and that also feels like a lot of work. Work I find I no longer want to make the time for, not when my time could be used in much more creative ways, such as learning every inch of my singer’s body.
Changing my direction, I head toward the screens displaying Quinn and now Alice. They’re having an animated discussion, but judging by the way Quinn is smiling ruefully and shaking her head, I have a sinking suspicion it may have something to do with me and my big mouth.
I run my fingertip over her figure on the screen. “Tell me, wolf, is it her humanity that sets you off, or something else?” I finally turn my head and acknowledge Letty.
“W-What do you mean?” she stutters.
I lean my hip against the desk and cross my arms over my chest while staring down at her. Letty isn’t unattractive. Her light blonde hair is shorn short, but she wouldn’t be mistaken for a male. Most supernaturals are blessed with unblemished skin, so her face is clear of makeup. It doesn’t mean what’s on the inside isn’t ugly though. Some of the most beautiful women I’ve ever seen have been nothing but a rotten, dreadful mess on the inside, and that goes for males too. Us beasts are made to lure in our prey by whatever means necessary.
“I have no tolerance for bullshit,” I warn. “You wanted to put Ms. Shaw in her place before ever having met her.” I raise my brow in a challenge, daring her to argue.
The wolf’s lips thin. “I just didn’t want her getting the wrong idea about us being at her beck and call. This isn’t her world, it’s ours.” Letty is showing the first signs that she isn’t just a yes-man,allowing a bitter note to fill her voice.
“You thought leaving her at the gate and having her walk was going to teach her that lesson?” My tone is incredulous.
Her face flushes as she stares down at the desk, refusing to provide an answer. Not that there’s much she could say to defend her decision or her behavior anyway, it was petty.
I hear Evan’s heavy gait long before he makes it to the room. Letty doesn’t look up at his arrival.
He has several phones clutched in one hand, and when he steps into the room, I don’t retreat to give the wolf any space. I like making her uncomfortable. Evan spills the phones onto the desk and some blink to life, all asking for some form of password or only showing the date and time.
“Did you get anything off these?” Evan inquires.
Letty shakes her head in denial. “I didn’t even try.”
Evan lets out a heavy huff that could be construed as a sigh. “I’m gonna be straight with you, Letty. I’m not okay with the way shit went down this morning. It stinks, and I have a pretty keen nose for bullshit.”
“I don’t understand.” She looks up at him, her gaze darting all over his face. I’m fairly sure I see a whole lot more than admiration in her gaze.
“I can’t figure out why you took the kids out to the hangar and waited to notify us. The entire school was out looking for them! Then you conveniently forgot to hand in these phones that might have some critical information on them. You know better than that. I trained you better than that.” He makes sure she can hear his disappointment, though he doesn’t divulge any of the information he got from the kids, like the drugs or how she actively encouraged them to lie.
“Evan, I…” She shakes her head quickly. “I just wanted to know what they were doing, and I thought I could get it out of them. Hearing you say it that way, out loud, makes it seem like you don’t trust me.”
“Are you saying I should? You think you’ve been behaving above board?” I watch Letty’s fist ball up on her thigh at Evan’s words.
“I would do anything to protect you—this school.” She blinks several times, almost as if her slip surprised her.
“I’m putting you on suspension for not following orders. I was very specific when I said I wanted it called in as soon as the kids were found.”
“Suspension? For how long?” She furrows her brows.
“Three days.” Evan crosses his arms over his chest. That will be more than enough time for us to sort out how, and if, Letty is involved with the drugs. But watching her with Evan, I think most of her actions are stemming from jealousy and wanting to impress him rather than her being deeply embedded in the sippin’.
