Page 30 of Dragon Daddy Protector

The diner and our location in the shadows may have been a stereotype, but Matthew didn’t fit my idea of an FBI agent with his small frame, thick glasses, and quiet demeanor. Honestly, he looked more like an underground hacker than Jax.

The deep baritone of his voice stood out then. “Your call came as a surprise,” Matthew said, studying us both with an intensity that made me feel he already knew everything about me. “I’ve been tracking Tomas for some time now.”

I exchanged a surprised glance with Lucas. He hadn’t mentioned that on the call.

“What exactly do you do for the FBI?” While Hensley’s name had been listed among Sebastian’s trusted contacts, we didn’t exactly know him. I wanted to proceed with caution more than anything else. I refused to put Mariah in harm’s way any more than she already was. I’d only be giving this man what he needed to know.

“I’m part of a special department—one that’s dedicated exclusively to shifter affairs. My unit keeps track of criminal activity, and Tomas Hawthorne's been on our radar for quite some time.”

“How did you know my father?” Lucas interjected.

Matthew kept his hands wrapped around his coffee mug. “He’s the one who tipped us off to Hawthorne’s crime ring in the first place. We’ve been working for years to bring the man down, but we haven’t been able to make anything stick. The man must have one hell of a team protecting his cybersecurity.”

That would have been Jax. His work for his father would make this man’s whole career if he’d found a way to break through Jax’s system. They’d love nothing more than to get their hands on him, I was sure, and I quickly steered the conversation elsewhere.

“Then, you know what monster we’re dealing with," I said. "Just so you know, our father was recently killed, and Tomas is the one to blame.”

Matthew startled. “Killed? I hadn’t heard.”

“We didn’t want to involve the cops until we knew what we were dealing with.” I paused, letting the weight of my gaze fall on him, gauging how he took it.

He angled his head, studying me, and after a pregnant pause, he finally leaned back in the booth. “I understand why one might do that.”

Heavy silence settled over the table while the three of us sized each other up. My instincts told me we could trust this man—Sebastian had—but I still wanted to be careful. I refused to let anyone know just how far Tomas had gone in his attempt to create shifters. Refused to let Mariah become the government’s experiment.

Something shifted in Matthew's expression. With a quiet resolve that echoed my own, he said, “Sebastian was a good man. I didn't know him too well, and our dealings weren’t that frequent, but I respected him. The fact that Hawthorne played a hand in it…” He broke off, shaking his head. “What happened?”

I gave him the abbreviated version, that Tomas had kidnapped a member of our clan, and Sebastian and I made a rescue attempt.

By the time I was done, his hands were clenched into fists. “You have my word. I'll do everything in my power to ensure he pays for his crimes.”

“Thank you.” Relief surged. With Matthew on our side, our chance of avenging Sebastian and ending Tomas’s reign of terror was certainly higher than before. “He’s been a thorn in our sides for far too long. I won’t let him threaten my family any longer.”

Matthew nodded. “Then, you’ll cooperate with me to bring Tomas down?”

He was studying me again with an intensity that made me realize he was figuring me out as well, trying to determine just how far I was willing to go for justice, or in my case, vengeance.

I didn’t flinch. “He needs to be stopped. Permanently.”

“Permanently?” Matthew looked askance. “I don't disagree, he's dangerous and must be stopped, but imprisoning him would be sufficient, don't you think?”

“Imprisonment won't keep him caged forever,” I said, my voice tight with barely restrained anger. “He's resourceful, cunning, and he has powerful allies. It's only a matter of time before he’d find a way to escape.”

“While I understand your feelings,” Matthew said, holding a hand up, “killing him would make us no better. There’s a better way.”

“What do you mean?” Lucas pressed, leaning forward. He likely sensed how agitated I was becoming, and for good reason. Tomas Hawthorne would be a threat to my family as long as he still breathed. The only way to guarantee the safety of my family and my clan was to put him in the ground forever.

My nostrils flared as I tried to rein in my dragon. He demanded vengeance as well.

“You know of the shifter prisons?” Matthew said. Lucas and I nodded. We’d heard of them growing up, but I thought much of it was rumor. He looked between the two of us. “They’re no ordinary prisons. The shifters held there are collared.”

Collared. I jerked back involuntarily at the idea.

“The collars activate if they attempt to shift, shocking them and preventing it. There is no breaking it and no removing it without government authorization. I can think of no better punishment for an alpha such as Tomas to be stripped of the very thing that makes him who he is. Can you?”

I resisted shuddering at the idea of being denied the ability to shift. But I still didn’t agree. The only punishment that’d satisfy me was seeing Tomas dead.

Instead of responding to his question, I moved on to negotiating how we could work together. I couldn’t promise that if the opportunity presented itself, I wouldn’t kill Tomas myself. In fact, my hands burned even now with desire. My dragon paced restlessly within me, struggling even harder with the idea of sparing Tomas’s life.

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