Page 62 of Alpha Rising (Secrets of the Northland Shifters)

Angel laced his fingers together and stared at the floor. “I hate to even think it, but are we sure Dad never shared his identity with Uncle Joe?”

“Why would he?” Toby asked.

Angel shrugged. “They were friends. Dad trusted him.” Then he made eye contact with me. “We trust Sarah with the knowledge.”

“Except Sarah found out accidentally,” I reminded them, and while my carelessness had initially been reason for concern, it wasn’t a mistake I regretted.

“Maybe Joe found out by accident too,” Angel suggested.

“But Joe has no connection to Hook-em-Horns, or to Lady Luck,” I said, “and he’s grieved Dad as much as any of us.” Though…I had to admit, Joe’s negative reaction to our investigation into Lady Luck hadn’t sat right with me.

“Any other theories?” Sam asked.

I hesitated before saying, “Sarah wondered if it might be an inside job.”

“Like one of our employees?” Angel asked, and his tone was as incredulous as I’d been when she suggested it.

“It’s possible one of them had an accidental sighting like Sarah had,” Melanie said.

“We haven’t had any turnover with our employees inyears,” Sam said. “I’d think someone would quit on the spot, without giving notice, if they witnessed one of us shift.”

“Not everyone reacts like Mom,” I said, alluding to Sarah again.

“Yeah, but quitting and getting the hell outta here would be the more common reaction. Sarah is the exception to the rule,” Sam said.

I suppressed a smile. She certainly was exceptional. Just recalling the ferociousness she’d exhibited last night had my jeans growing uncomfortably tight.

“So where does this leave us?” Toby asked.

“Nowhere,” I admitted, my spontaneous arousal quickly fading with the uneasy truth. We had plenty of theories, but no clear path. “We’ll have to wait for the enemy to make their next move, and hope they make a mistake. We aren’t giving in to their demands. We aren’t selling our land.”

At least, not so long as I was alive to make the call.

20

SARAH

If I thought Reese had been overprotective before, apparently lodging my own threats against the world hadn’t improved matters. But I couldn’t help it. I missed my mother. My sister. Mylife. I missed the world being predictable, without conflict or threat.

It wasn’t fair that I’d had to give up my safety, security, family, and home because of some criminal.

It wasn’t fair that Reese couldn’t just worry about normal things like a few reservation cancelations and a sister who missed curfew. No.Hehad to worry whether the person who murdered his father was now hunting their entire family.

Then, to top it all off, he had to worry about me. Someone who’d never factored into his life just two months ago.

So I was pissed, and while Reese kept an eye on me, he also knew not to get too close. When I said I had claws, I’d meant it. I was in no mood, and everyone around me could see it; these days, there were no more invitations to join anyone at the beach.

Which brought us to Friday night. It was late and pouring rain. The only reason I hadn’t gone to bed yet was that I was still working on the menu for an upcoming banquet to celebrate the high school’s successful tennis season.

The phone rang on my desk, and I picked it up. “Evergreen Resort and Retreat Center. How can I help you?”

“Sarah?” whimpered a female voice.

It sounded familiar, and I immediately thought of my sister. I leaned forward, dropping my voice to a whisper. “Maggie?”

“Sarah, it’s Lauren.”

“Oh.” My heart plummeted, and I cursed myself for getting excited. In my mind, my sister's face and blond curls slowly morphed into that of a younger woman with long, shiny black hair.

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