Page 21 of Secrets at Dawn
Griffin was too exposed to the wolves on the roof. What-ifs entered Toby’s mind, and he pictured Mark Sibly’s and his friends’ assault rifles in his mind’s eye. What happened to his dad couldn’t happen to Griffin, too.
Toby threw up a dome of his own, surrounding Griffin and the sheriff.
Griffin sucked in a breath. The sheriff cursed.
His gaze met Griffin’s, and he growled. “Take it down.”
Griffin folded his arms over his chest and scowled. “You first.”
It seemed they were in a standoff.
Toby turned and pointed to the roof of the Fortune Falls Treasures Gift Shop. He didn’t say a word but kept his arms raised and his finger at the roof, knowing the dickwads couldn’t see him. All they saw was a dark half-circle.
Griffin’s scowl remained, but he was curious enough to follow the direction Toby was pointing in. He didn’t comment, but he did nod.
“You know what’s going on, don’t you?” It was the sheriff who spoke.
Toby nodded. He knew exactly what was happening. No one had been dumb enough to blackmail him before, but he’d been the target of hate his whole life. Wolves didn’t like it when one of their own had magic, but they especially didn’t like Toby’s magic. They didn’t like what he could do, and they didn’t like how strong his wolf was.
He didn’t know if he could trust the sheriff, so he didn’t elaborate.
“What’s in this envelope?” The sheriff asked next.
Toby lost just a little of the tension in his muscles when the sheriff didn’t demand more information.
“I honestly don’t know. We need to be careful when opening it. Griffin can’t be close to it.” Toby feared there might be morethan just a note with threatening words. Or the dickwads spilling Toby’s secret about his ability.
The sheriff nodded. His gaze went to the roof. “Who’s up there?”
“I don’t know that either.” That was the truth. “I smell them. A wolf. Just one. From Fortune Falls. But they’re on drugs. Meth maybe. Or heroine. One of those two.”
The muscle in the sheriff’s jaw ticked as he met Griffin’s gaze. “Shit. It’s the pack. Again.”
“You recognize the scent?” That made Toby realize he might have just put himself in the middle of pack politics. It meant there wasn’t an easy slide out from under the problem. Not for a wolf like Toby, whom they could just keep on blackmailing. He’d get drawn in, one dirty deed at a time. That was how wolf shifter packs were.
Toby met Griffin’s gaze. “I’m trying to keep you safe.”
“Ditto, baby.” Griffin finally smiled, which made Toby feel a little better about their mating situation. And it very much was a situation. Toby had no idea how to protect Griffin. His instinct was to back off. People died because of him.
“I can protect you, but I need to know what’s really going on here.” Was it a war within the Fortune Falls pack or between them and another one? And who was Kinnison Ransome?
Did Griffin have the answers? The sheriff? Or by asking them, was he dragging them into the middle of what was still only his problem?
Until he had the answers to that question, he wasn’t willing to put Griffin at risk.
Griffin raised his eyebrows. “Ditto, baby.”
Was that all he knew how to say?
But it meant Griffin could defend himself. Or he thought he could.
“If you take down your dome, then I’ll take down mine,” Toby said.
“We bring the domes down at the same time, and then you get inside the bakery, lock the door, while my dad and I investigate the roof.” Griffin smirked, probably because he knew Toby wouldn’t do it.
Toby growled. “Stubborn warlock.”
Griffin chuckled as if he weren’t the target of a threat. Like their argument was normal.
