Page 21 of Wolf Claimed
“She’s innocent,” Tiernan cut Rafe off. “She wouldn’t kill anyone. Except maybe in self-defense, or to save another, but not out of spite.”
“There are other motives,” Rafe said, then took a deep breath. “But I agree with you. She’s not a killer. Someone used her knife, which means another shifter likely found it and recognized her scent on it.”
“Why would a shifter want to frame her?” Tiernan asked.
“To mislead the agents, to cause trouble for the program. Hard to say,” Rafe said, as they filed out of the conference room.
“Suggestions, Heir?” Maddox asked. “How do we help her? I don’t trust humans to be fair, even with their own laws in play.”
“For now, we follow their rules. We start by listening to the interrogation. See what we can learn.”
There was no discussion about Gallagher’s warning not to interfere. Alyssa was part of their team, which was starting to feel like a pack. That was something Maddox would have to think about later. He already had a pack, one that had given him orders, but he would not abandon Alyssa, no matter the cost.
* * *
TIERNAN
Tiernan followedAgent Gallagher to the interrogation room. His wolf bit and clawed at him the entire time, making him want to give in to his wolf. At least the beast could tear Alyssa away from the DSA, protect her better than him.
“Please, Tiernan. Don’t do anything rash. Wait for Rafe,” she said over her shoulder as the DSA agents shoved her into the interrogation room and slammed the metal door shut.
Cut off. Physically barred from his mate. A long, deep growl escaped Tiernan, causing the two agents guarding the door to place their hands on their holstered guns. They’d shoot if he attempted to force his way in, which is why he had to keep his wolf under control. Losing control could get him killed, which didn’t scare him, but it would endanger her, and he wouldn’t risk that.
Through the thick metal door, Tiernan could hear Gallagher shouting at Alyssa in the interrogation room. The words were muffled, despite his shifter hearing. Gallagher fell silent, likely waiting for her to respond.
Nothing. Pure silence. Not even her breathing.
She was dead.
No, she couldn’t be dead. It was his wolf playing with his mind, trying to break his hold, his focus.
A heavy hand clamped down on his shoulder. “Come with me,” Maddox said.
“I’m not leaving her.”
“We’re just going down the hall to the security office. One of the humans tapped into the live feed. Everyone’s watching the interrogation from there.”
As hard as it was, Tiernan pulled away from the interrogation room and followed Maddox.
The shifter wasn’t exaggerating. All the shifters and human trainees had crammed into the security office with a row of monitors on one side and dangling wires and support brackets for additional monitors on the back wall. The room hadn’t been completed yet. Even with the extra space, it was a tight fit.
“That damn room is supposed to be for training purposes, not to be used against one of us!” Tiernan said.
“She’s not one of us,” Kingsley said with a grin. “She’s a human. And a killer.”
Rafe tackled him before he could lunge at Kingsley. “Control yourself and your wolf!”
The moment Tiernan heard Alyssa’s voice over the audio, all thought turned to her. His eyes shot to the four monitors on the wall, displaying a wide-angle view of the interrogation room. The agents had handcuffed Alyssa’s legs to a metal chair which was bolted to the floor in the center of the ten-by-ten windowless room. Gallagher and another DSA agent circled her, trying to intimidate her.
Two males alone with Alyssa. . . while she was chained and at their mercy.
Tiernan and his wolf didn’t like this. At. All.
Tiernan’s bones started to shift until Maddox slammed him against a wall. “Not here, not now. If you care about her, you’ll control your wolf.”
“They won’t do anything to her, not with all of us watching,” Nash, one of the humans, said.
“They know we’re watching?”
