Page 107 of Curvy Nerdy Omega

“It doesn’t seem like the land dispute with Lopez was an issue,” I muttered, scrolling through the transcripts from the interviews. “Grimm wasn’t the pack Gideon and Liam argued about either.”

“No, it was the Steele pack,” Liam confirmed without looking up from his phone. “They’re constantly fucking up and delivering damaged supplies for Valor Construction. Despite that, Gideon wanted to give them another chance.”

Why? That seemed odd for a businessman.

Maybe Frankie could get a meeting with the Steele pack and ask.

I glanced over at Liam, feeling a little weird about that considering what I’d found in his email.

Honestly, I freaked out a little when I saw that Nicolette Valor tried to get him to go out on another date with River Steele, but Liam’s response to that pack’s alpha had shut down any potential discussion about a possible marriage between them.

It was impressive how he could sound so polite while making sure every single word was as derisive and scathing as possible.

I grabbed another roll of sushi and dunked it in the soy sauce, wondering if this question was going to cause a problem or not.

Both Cas and Liam looked up from their phones and stared at me, probably sensing my nerves through the bond. This shit was really fucking annoying sometimes, but I wouldn’t give it up for the world.

I rubbed my chest and swallowed, deciding I had to know.

Considering all Frankie’s various connections, as well as the skills she had that I could never learn, she’d be the one with the most accurate information.

“Hey Frankie…what do you know about River Steele?”

CHAPTER 39

Lucy

Liam grimaced, but neither him nor Cas tried to jump in and insist I had no reason to worry about that.

Frankie eyed me from across our desks and carefully placed ginger on top of her sushi as she considered my question. “Why exactly are you asking me about River Steele?”

“Well…” It wasn’t just that Liam went out with her a few years ago. There was more to it than that. “A few days ago Randolph Steele reached out to Nicolette Valor about having Liam go out on another date with River. I’m just wondering why they waited until Gideon died to bring it up again when it didn’t work out the first time.”

“I suppose they could be trying to capitalize on an opportunity, but it could just be a coincidence.” Frankie sat back and considered me. “Do you really want to know, or do you just want me to talk to her and find out what’s going on?”

Glancing over at Liam, I decided this world of legacies wasn’t something I could avoid anymore.

“I want to know if River might have a motive or if it’s just her father trying to get a contract with Valor,” I admitted, bouncing my leg up and down as I considered if Randolph Steele should move to the top of our list of suspects. “If she was the one who originated the idea, it might not have nothing to do with the case, but there is a possibility it has everything to do with the case.”

A flicker of anxiety went through me but it didn’t feel like mine. It was instinct to send them a wave of reassurance through the bond. I didn’t know how I did it, all I knew was that it worked because Liam smiled and went back to his phone.

Cas, on the other hand, never stopped watching me.

I watched Frankie pop the last piece of sushi in her mouth before pushing the plate back. She studied me as she chewed, clearly wondering what I remembered from the years we’d spent in the Lopez compound together.

“Steele has been a legacy pack for almost as long as Lopez has,” Frankie reminded me. “About a hundred years ago, they ran this city after making a fortune in mining iron, copper, and gold. That money allowed them to invest in industrialization and hire scientists to create different kinds of alloys until they’d cornered the market on steel.”

“I don’t know the details of their current finances or businesses, but their wealth started slowly declining about forty years ago.” Frankie tapped her fingers on her desk and studied her monitor. “At some point, Lopez surpassed them in wealth despite focusing on law and accounting firms.”

“Valor was always neck and neck with them in terms of net value until my mother took over the pack,” Liam admitted. He set his phone down and gave us his full attention. “Part of the reason I don’t like doing business with them is because they’re not only unreliable, but they’re shady as fuck. My mother and I assume their alpha is trying to hide just how bad things have gotten.”

Frankie nodded in agreement and I chewed on the inside of my cheek as I considered what that could mean.

“Do they have any ties with the Grimm pack?” I opened the folder that had all the information on what the legacy packs have been up to over the last month to see if I’d missed anything.

“No one really has ties with the Grimm pack. They offer services. That’s it.” Frankie crossed her arms over her chest and glared at the empty plate in front of her. “There’s nothing Grimm won’t sell if you have the money.”

That was an interesting possibility.

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