Page 12 of Frank's Felon
“Not yet. Maybe in time. Hayden and Callen have their work cut out for them down there. Which is why I need you and Mason here. I won’t leave the pack vulnerable. You’re in charge while I’m gone.”
“Understood.”
“And there’s something more. Watch out for Tess.”
“You trust me?”
Damien glared at him. “This has nothing to do with my wolf or our history. Someone’s been in town asking about a shifter with green eyes. There are only two shifters in the area with green eyes. Tess and Mila. Either way, it’s not good.”
Frank’s back straightened. He could think of one other shifter with green eyes. Bright green eyes that a shifter could lose himself in. “Who’s been asking?”
“I think it’s the WSSO. Abe down at Henry’s Beer Hut said the picture had the WSSO logo on it. I’ve considered taking Tess with me to this meeting with the DSA, but she’s been helping Kai with the younger kids at school and quite frankly, I don’t know what I’ll be walking into. She’s safer here.”
“Then you better catch up to her. She was loading a truck to head into town for a shipment of books.”
“Hell.” Damien shifted and ran in the direction of where they kept the truck.
Frank headed toward his house. He knew Damien would catch Tess in plenty of time. She had been heading back to the school for another load of books. The very notion of someone asking around for a green-eyed shifter made Frank nervous and angry. He took the protection of his pack very seriously, as much as Damien. Who was being targeted and why?
Mila was too new to the area. As far as he knew she hadn’t even been to Devil’s Peak yet, and it’s highly unlikely Hayden would trust one of Drake’s pack to escort her into town. That left Delilah and Tess. The WSSO had come after Tess several times already, but the timing of Delilah’s sudden appearance in the area and someone looking for a green-eyed female shifter was too coincidental.
Before he realized it, Frank had caught up to Damien and Tess at the truck. They were arguing over her staying away from town.
“I can’t live my life in hiding, Damien,” Tess said, hands on hips. “In fact, I refuse to do so. I’m going to town to get those books.”
“The books can wait. The bookstore doesn’t open until ten am, anyway. If you insist on going, I’ll go with you.”
“Liam’s guards will be here at sunrise to escort you.”
“They can wait.”
“But the DSA may not. You can’t risk starting off on a bad note.”
“I’ll get the books,” Frank said, though Damien didn’t look any happier. Probably because he didn’t want Tess going into town. Period. “But I prefer to go alone, Tess. I need some time to pick up a few books for myself.”
“I won’t rush you.”
Damien’s hard stare told Frank he suspected Frank would be searching for the WSSO operative in town. “Sweetness, Frank has pack business to take care of in town tomorrow. Let him get the books and other supplies. Besides, I’ll be able to focus better while I’m gone if I know you’re here with the pack, where it’s safe.”
Tess still didn’t look pleased, but she nodded. She always put Damien ahead of herself, as he did with her. Frank peeled away before the duo started getting intimate. They weren’t exactly the most discreet of shifters when it came to sex, and unlike Hayden who appreciated a good show, seeing Tess and Damien together would only make Frank think of Delilah. His wolf growled suddenly, and Frank concurred. Had he known she was in as much danger from the WSSO as she was from Drake’s pack, he never would have let her head back to town. He would have followed her, discreetly.
“Hey, Frank,” Jace shouted over to him. The guard was heading his way. He had some fresh scratches on him, and he was stark naked. He had shifted while on patrol.
“What’s wrong?”
“Ethan ventured over the border without realizing it. Got attacked by a group of five white wolves.”
“Is he alive?”
“Pryce is looking at him now. Bunch of bite marks, but Pryce didn’t look worried. I guess Ethan was pinned at some point. He’s kind of shaken. Can’t say I blame him. He’s got one set of deep claw marks down his back. A lot deeper and longer than necessary for a border skirmish. Anyway, Mac got there before me. He’s got a few bites as well, but he stayed behind to assist Iggy who’s covering my zone as well as Ethan’s.”
“I’ll go with you,” Frank said, cursing the white wolves. Ethan was new and still learning the boundaries, no different than any of Drake’s guards learning the boundaries. New guards made mistakes. Crossing over the border by a few hundred feet had never been a problem in the past, even at the height of tensions between the packs. Whatever Hayden and Callen were doing down there sure as hell wasn’t working. Frank would have to send a messenger down to Hayden, though sending a single shifter could be risky if he ran into what was clearly a group of rogue wolves.
Frank had the impression that this group had attacked Delilah further into Drake’s territory, but now they had shown up in sector 3 on the border. He’d have to find one of Drake’s older patrols, one he knew personally from patrolling opposite sides of the border, maybe get a message to Hayden through them. Frank had a sinking feeling this group of five wasn’t a sanctioned patrol, but a gang. Hayden and Callen had better watch their backs down there, as had everyone on the border.
Fuck. Now Frank was going to have to double-up on patrols which meant using some of the newer trainees. And Delilah. . .Hell, she could be in worse shit that she realized if she returned. Unless he got to her first.
Chapter Three
