Page 13 of Secret Wolf Baby

The five of us walked back the way Reacher had come. As we did, I couldn’t help but notice people shuffling out of the way, everyone clearing the path for Reacher as he strutted forward. I studied their faces. There seemed to be a mix of admiration and fright, the sort of look I’d expect for a guy who demanded respect through brute strength and fear as opposed to earning it through hard work and helping the community.

With every passing minute, I grew more and more certain that all the rumors about Reacher were true. This guy was bad news. The only question now was what we could do about it.

He led us into a large, gray stone building and up the stairs, humming to himself, hands in his pockets as he sauntered through the halls. He gave friendly waves to passersby, who all returned them.

“This is my office here,” he said, opening a door and ushering us in.

The instant the door was closed, his entire demeanor shifted. His genial smile turned to a frown as he made his way from the door to his chair.

“So,” I began. “What can you tell us about the town—”

“You can save the pleasantries,” Reacher said tersely. He leaned forward and propped his elbows on the desk, studying the three of us. “I know who you are.”

A shock rippled through me. Not just at his declaration that he knew who we were but at how rapidly his personality had changed. It was as if he had flicked a switch.

Guess my instincts weren’t that far off the mark after all,I thought. My eyes darted around as my mind scrambled to figure out a plausible cover story.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Will said, keeping his voice even. But I could see his alarm in the way he repositioned himself, in the subtle way his muscles tensed as he glanced around.

“I think you do,” Reacher said. “I would be a pretty piss-poor alpha if I didn’t know what the Gold Wolves looked like.”

Off to the side, I noticed Saul shifting, clearly preparing for a fight.

Reacher caught the motion as well. “It’s all good, Saul,” he said. “They did a good job. No reason for you to get ashamed they pulled the wool over your eyes.”

An uncomfortable tension crackled in the air as everyone noted the shift. Reacher grinned, fully aware that he had put us off balance. He held most of the cards, and there was nothing we had that compared. Our only play at the moment was to feign indifference and keep moving. The less we showed that he had taken us by surprise, the more power we could regain.

“I’m impressed that you put in the effort to research a retired group,” I said, sounding bored.

“You never can be too careful,” Reacher said, his eyes glinting with triumph. “And it seems as though I was right to do so. Now, what is it you boys really want?”

I scrambled, trying to come up with a convincing excuse that would mean our mission hadn’t been an entire waste. Iwasn’t going to give up that easily. He might have figured out who we were, but that didn’t mean I couldn’t turn this around.

“I think you’re mistaken,” I said, shrugging. “Yes, we’re part of the Gold Wolves. Or wewere. The three of us decided that we’d had enough of our alpha and the goody-two-shoes life, so we left. We’re looking to start over, away from the Gold Wolves.”

I’d hoped that maybe by pretending we no longer had any allegiance to the Gold Wolves, he might accept the story and let us stay, or at least let us look around a bit more. We just needed to convince him we weren’t investigating him, that we didn’t care how he acted.

Unfortunately, he didn’t seem entirely convinced.

“Now, why would the infamous Gold Wolves do that?” he asked.

“Bored,” Will grunted, catching on to what I was trying to do. “And our alpha was too much of a softy. He never did have the stomach to do the hard stuff that was necessary.”

“Is that so?” Reacher asked thoughtfully. He glanced over at Saul, then back to me. “Now, see, based on the stories, I have a hard time believing any of that.”

“You shouldn’t believe everything you hear,” I countered.

He chuckled. “In that case, why on earth should I believe you?”

I couldn’t come up with a good answer for that. “If you don’t want us here, then just kick us out. You could have done that from the start.”

“I could have,” he conceded. “But that wouldn’t have done me much good in the long run. You three would have just kept snooping around.”

“Who says we’re snooping?” Will asked.

“Spare me,” Reacher snapped. “Please don’t insult my intelligence. I know what you’re doing, and you denying it is just going to make us keep talking in circles. I don’t have the time or the patience for that, so let’s skip over that bit, shall we?”

“Fine. If you have nothing to hide, then why do you think we’re here investigating you?” I asked.

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