Dreaming of the Wolf (Heart of the Wolf #8)(90)

“Your partners in the law firm are wolves,” Jake said. Having smelled several in the reception area, he assumed the law firm was made up of werewolves. But it was also a way of letting Sherry know that if she couldn’t deal with this on a strictly professional basis, he’d look elsewhere for help.

She smiled coyly, immediately getting his drift. “For our friendship, Jake, I won’t charge anything for my services.” She focused again on Alicia. “So exactly how did you get yourself into this mess?” She held a hand up, stopping Alicia before she could say a word. “Tell me from the beginning what happened.”

Chapter 20

Mario swore at Danny as he paced around his condo in Breckenridge. “What the hell do you mean Rudy’s in police custody? And didn’t I tell you to… hell, disappear?”

“The police were keeping a tight lid on Rudy’s arrest. Hell, I dropped by Alicia’s apartment to see why Rudy wasn’t answering his cell phone while he was waiting there to see if she returned. Not only were the police there, but Alicia was coming out of her apartment with three other men after the police left. One was wearing a uniform, but they all took off in two vehicles.”

“And you followed them.”

“Hell, yeah. From a safe distance. They drove to Silver Town, then out through the country and pulled off on a private paved road. I couldn’t see it, but I imagine a house is tucked back into the woods.”

“Why didn’t Rudy use his phone privilege to call you so you’d tell me and we could get him a lawyer?”

“I checked with the police, and some sergeant informed me that Rudy had gotten his phone call.”

Mario stared at Danny. “You didn’t get a call.”

“No, sir.”

“Hell. I want him out of there before he says something he shouldn’t. Did Celinas say he’d gotten in touch with Rudy?”

“No. I called the lawyer right away. He hadn’t had any word, so he went down to the jailhouse, and they said Rudy already had a lawyer.”

“Who?”

“Some guy named Alistair Gray. He’s a lawyer in the area, and he convinced Rudy he’d save his hide.”

“Tell Celinas I want him down there changing Rudy’s mind. Now.”

“All right. And sir?”

Mario frowned at him.

“I got word Miss Greiston is being questioned by the Denver police. Seems she was at Ferdinand’s condo when we killed him.”

Mario stared at him, then shook his head. “Damn it, Danny. I told you Jimmy said Ferdinand had taken her before we terminated him. She must have been hiding somewhere in the place. So what did she see?”

“According to our source, she wouldn’t speak to them without a lawyer present.”

Mario rubbed his chin, then stalked over to the window and stared out. “Was she still with the men she’d been with earlier at her place?”

“Yeah. They’re sticking pretty close to her. Plus they had another SUV full of bodyguards protecting her.”

“Hell.”

“You want me to find where she’s staying? It’s probably in Silver Town. Celinas checked with the art gallery and learned Jake Silver is the artsy-fartsy lover boy.”

“He’s a dead man,” Mario grumbled under his breath.

“He’s got a home that’s even more isolated than the house I followed them to. I could put some men on it and—”

“No. Just give me the location, and I’ll check it out.” Hell, the artist would not be able to stand up to a wolf. Mario would kill him and take Alicia for his own. And then he’d hide her away from the police, from humans—his trophy mate. She was a werewolf now. And as much trouble as her mother had given him, and then Alicia, she would pay for it.

Danny was another story. Mario hated to eliminate his last cousin, but once the police learned the gun Danny had hidden in his house had killed both Missy and Tony, they were sure to link Danny to him. He just had to think of a way to get rid of Danny so that no one would ever learn of it.

***

“We’ll only do this with the promise Alicia Greiston will not have any threat of prosecution,” Sherry Slate told Detective Sanderson while Jake listened in at Massaro’s condo. Peter and Tom stayed with Alicia in the hallway until the detective had agreed to the lawyer’s terms. “She saw nothing, heard voices, but that was all. She doesn’t know who the men were who murdered Ferdinand Massaro. Although, like you, she suspects Mario Constantino had him killed.”

“All right,” the detective grudgingly said.

“Remember what I said about her delicate condition,” Sherry repeated. “I don’t want to have to go to your superiors if you make this difficult for her. She was the victim in all this.”

Sanderson nodded once, his blue eyes hard. Jake could tell the detective didn’t like being dictated to by a lawyer, particularly because she was a woman, Jake suspected.

After half an hour of questioning, Alicia appeared worn out. But she looked relieved, too, when Jake bundled her up in the car and headed on the long drive back to Silver Town. All he could think of was lighting a fire in the fireplace at his home, making her a cup of hot chocolate with whipped cream on top, and cuddling with her in front of the fire until he could coax her into bed. He wanted to make love to her, like he always did, but he wanted to comfort her if that’s what she needed more for the time being than the lovemaking. They had a lifetime of that ahead of them.