“You’re not.” Dahlia pulled back, honey-brown hair escaping her bun, sharp eyes cataloguing every detail. “You’re allowed to not be okay.”
Cassia arrived next, storm petrel circling overhead, her wild dark curls crackling with static electricity that made the streetlights flicker. “Who did this?” she demanded. “I’ll drown them. I’ll call down lightning so precise it?—”
“Cassia.” Narla appeared from her own shop, calm and grounded as always. “That’s not helpful right now.”
“It’s a little helpful,” Junie managed weakly. “For my spirit, if nothing else.”
Avine pushed through the gathering crowd, Theo a solid presence behind her. The Alpha’s pale eyes swept the scene with predatory assessment before landing on Junie with concern. Protection.
“The pack’s resources are at your disposal,” Theo said. “Whatever you need.”
“I need my grandmother’s book back.” The words came out sharper than she intended. “I need this not to have happened. I need?—”
She stopped.
Because Leo Castellan was walking down Main Street with the kind of focused purpose that made people step out of his way without being asked. He wore dark slacks and a charcoal Henley that probably cost more than her weekly grocery budget.
But his face wasn’t controlled. For once, that careful mask had slipped.
He looked furious.
“This fits the pattern.” He stopped in front of Wyatt, not quite ignoring Junie but not looking directly at her either. “Sable Acquisitions. The businesses on ley line intersections. They’re escalating.”
“Castellan.” Wyatt’s voice carried the weight of professional acknowledgment.
Leo’s lips pressed into a thin line. A muscle jumped beneath his stubble. “I know Moonrise Mixology rejected their offer three weeks ago.”
Junie stared at him. “How do you know that?”
He finally looked at her. Those dark amber eyes—the ones she’d been dreaming about despite her best efforts—swept over her face. Her bandaged hands. The dried tear tracks she hadn’t wiped away. His features softened, the hard mask cracking.
“I’ve been researching and tracking them since the Wolf Moon meeting.” His voice dropped. Rougher. Less clipped. “Your shop was always going to be a priority target. The ley line intersection, the rejected offer—” He stopped. “I should have warned you. Should have anticipated they’d move this fast.”
He was blaming himself. The realization cut through Junie’s fog of grief and shock. This man who controlled every variable, planned every contingency—he was standing here taking responsibility for events he couldn’t have predicted.
“You couldn’t have known,” she heard herself say. “I threw away the buyout letter. Didn’t tell anyone. If you want to blame someone for not seeing this coming?—”
“Don’t.” The word was quiet but absolute. “Don’t do that.”
Their eyes held. A current passed between them that Junie didn’t have the emotional bandwidth to examine. Glimmer’s scales shifted from crimson to that complicated amber-gold she’d started showing whenever Leo was near.
Wyatt cleared his throat. “I need to interview witnesses. Document the scene. Castellan, you said you have information on these attacks?”
“Everything I’ve compiled.” Leo didn’t look away from Junie. “I’ll send it to you within the hour.”
“Appreciated.” Wyatt turned to the gathered crowd—Junie’s friends, curious neighbors, the inevitable seagulls circling overhead to carry gossip to the rest of town. “Everyone who isn’t directly involved needs to step back. This is an active crime scene.”
The crowd dispersed reluctantly. Dahlia pressed a wrapped pastry into Junie’s hands. Cassia squeezed her shoulder hard enough to leave bruises. Narla looked at her with those knowing eyes and said, “Call if you need anything. I mean anything.”
Avine was last to leave, her embrace fierce and prolonged. “Come stay at the inn,” she murmured. “You shouldn’t be alone tonight.”
Avine pulled back, glancing at Leo with an expression Junie couldn’t read. “Let people help you. You don’t have to do everything alone.”
Then it was Junie, Wyatt, and Leo standing in front of the broken shell of her life’s work.
Wyatt disappeared inside to continue his investigation, leaving her alone with the man she’d been trying desperately not to think about.
“You don’t have to stay,” she said.
