Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 104350 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 522(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 348(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104350 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 522(@200wpm)___ 417(@250wpm)___ 348(@300wpm)
Face reddening, Sage said, “This is my territory and my flock.”
“Let me ask you a question. Do you have a single suspect?”
Sage averted his eyes. “No.”
“That’s a lie,” said Tao. “You know who it could be, but you don’t want to believe any of your flock could possibly be responsible. It’s understandable. It also gives you too many blind spots. Outsiders won’t have that problem. They’ll be able to look at the matter objectively. You’ll benefit from having them here.”
Hugh pushed away from the window. “He could be right, Sage.”
“I don’t need the help of outsiders,” Sage insisted, Alpha energy radiating from him.
Tao stood tall and strong against the dominant vibes. He didn’t fold under Trey’s and he wouldn’t fold under Sage’s, so the Alpha raven needn’t think he’d make Tao submit to his wishes. “You can guarantee Riley’s safety? Really?” Doubt was heavy in every syllable.
“I know you’re worried for her,” said Sage, “but it doesn’t give you leave to show such disrespect.”
Clearly the Alpha was mistaking Tao for someone who gave a shit about the feelings of anyone outside his pack. “This isn’t about respect, so set aside your ego’s need for it for just a minute. I’m not questioning how long your proverbial dick is. None of that is important to me. Riley’s important to me. Her safety is my priority and, considering you believe her to be one of your flock, it should be yours too.”
“She is part of my flock. You’re not the only one who cares for her. I want this person caught too. They shot my daughter. If it hadn’t been for Max, she might well be dead. Knowing someone from the flock could be the shooter . . . it’s hard.”
“So let my pack mates onto your territory tomorrow without playing any dominance games,” said Tao. “They can help. Someone seems to believe they have a valid reason for hurting both Riley and your daughter. I want to know who that is. Don’t you?”
“Yes, I do.” Sage picked up his tumbler and chugged down what looked like whiskey. “All right, your pack mates can come here. But let’s get one thing clear: they can talk to my flock and question them, but they don’t detain anyone—they don’t take over this matter.”
“They don’t want to; they just want Riley safe. I’d appreciate it if you could ask your ravens to cooperate when we come asking questions.”
“I’ll tell them.”
Satisfied, Tao turned and left the office. Riley was waiting on the burgundy leather sofa outside, ankle twirling in a gesture of impatience.
She stood with a smile. “Everything okay?”
“Fine. Come on.” Hand in hand they made their way through the building, passing various ravens along the way—all of whom looked shaken. Finding out that one of your flock mates was going around shooting fellow ravens would have a way of doing that to a person, he supposed. “How’s Lucy doing?”
“Better, thankfully. She’s awake, but she’s drowsy and weak.”
“Why don’t avian shifters like being around others when they’re injured?”
She shrugged. “I never really thought about it before. It’s instinctive. We’ll only tolerate people around us who we trust when we’re vulnerable. Ethan only tolerated your presence when he was injured because he’d rather that I was guarded.”
“Wolves like having pack mates around when they’re injured.”
“Yeah, but your breed is much more tactile than ravens.”
He inclined his head. “I guess that’s true.” Outside, Tao noticed Sawyer at the fringe of the woods, having a fairly animated conversation with a red-faced Duncan. Duncan’s body language was defensive while Sawyer appeared completely at ease. “I’ve been meaning to ask you. Why did you break up with Sawyer?”
“It wasn’t really anything to do with him as a person,” said Riley. “People thought I’d make a good Beta female, so they liked the idea of us together and hoped it was more serious than it truly was. Sawyer doesn’t want a mate, because he doesn’t want to share power when he ascends to Beta, but Hugh told me that makes him uncomfortable handing over the reins. He feels that he personally is a more effective Beta because he has his mate, Dana, supporting him, so he’d prefer it if Sawyer was mated.”
“And Hugh was hoping you would be that mate.” Tao’s wolf snarled at the idea.
“Yeah, so I ended the fling to nip all that in the bud.”
“The flock should have known better than to think you’d ever be Beta female—you wouldn’t like that position.”
He was right, but Riley asked, “What makes you think I wouldn’t have been happy as Beta female?”
He snorted. “You’re a nonconformist, Riley; enforcing rules and regulations would have gone against your nature. Besides, positions of authority don’t impress you, so your heart wouldn’t have been in it. Being a Beta is demanding work. Unless you love it, you can’t be productive at it. The role of Guardian would suit you better.” A Guardian watched over the young within a pack. “I told Taryn as much, and she agreed. She’ll probably offer you the position when you finally give her official acceptance of the offer to join the pack.” He frowned at her odd expression. “What?”