Head Hunter (City Shifters the Pack #3) - Layla Nash Page 0,39
He looked far too entertained with whatever happened between the older man and Deirdre. “And then Evershaw made things worse a month or so ago when Silas was missing, before he got all fucked up. Evershaw asked Smith for help even though Deirdre told him not to, and Deirdre found out, so she’s... irritated about it.”
“I can imagine that would make for an uncomfortable encounter,” I said. “But I’m still not sure what it is we’re going to talk about at the restaurant? Is this about Silas or Ms. Bridger or something else?”
“Perhaps all of it,” Smith said. “And more. I may be able to assist with one aspect, at least. A... colleague of mine is a homicide detective. She may be willing to take an anonymous statement or otherwise investigate without getting your name involved in things, Ms. Lawson. With Mr. Dodge protecting you as she builds her case, you’ll be as safe as if the culprits were already... dealt with.”
Somehow, when he said ‘dealt with,’ I didn’t think he meant jail. I smiled at him and carefully withdrew my hand from Dodge’s grasp. “His job is to deliver me to Evershaw. I’m sure he has better things to do than worry about whether Ms. Bridger is trying to have me killed.”
Dodge tensed but let me go. Smith glanced between us and a hint of a smile slid across his face. “Of course, I’m sure you’re right. Someone in Miles’s pack would do the honors in the meantime. I would not trust anything Bridger says, Ms. Lawson, regardless of how friendly she might sound. If you’re amenable, I will speak with Detective O’Brien and have her contact Miles for a time to meet later.”
“Won’t me meeting with a homicide detective tip them off that I saw something? Wouldn’t that convince them to kill me sooner?”
Smith’s smile widened just slightly. “We have our ways of dealing with being observed, Ms. Lawson, never fear. But it is good for you to consider all variables. It is a trait that will stand you in good stead.”
“Professional hazard, I suppose.” I took a deep breath and drank more water to buy myself time to think. “So, Mr. Smith. What else is Ms. Bridger up to in the city? I would like a clearer picture of what I’m dealing with.”
He glanced at Dodge briefly, then made his way back around his desk. “None of it is particularly easy to hear, Ms. Lawson.”
I gripped the armrests and took a deep breath. “I need to know. I’m ready.”
Dodge shook his head but didn’t try to stop Smith when he started through the criminal résumé of a woman I’d thought of as a mentor only a day earlier. It turned my stomach to hear what she’d done and who she supported, but it was all data I needed to really understand the scope of how fucked I really was.
Chapter 16
Dodge
Dodge grew more agitated the more Smith shared with Persephone. Dodge didn’t want her to know about all the shitty things that went on in the city. It wasn’t something for her to worry about. He would deal with it all so she didn’t have to see the ugliness and hate and violence that had made up such a large part of his life.
Although every time his thoughts strayed toward why he would be the one to protect her, Dodge crammed the feelings down and tried to revise his instincts. Someone else in the pack could protect her. It was up to the pack. She wasn’t Dodge’s sole responsibility.
Even if his wolf seriously disagreed.
Dodge hadn’t expected Smith to share quite so much about the fae and witches and other supernatural creatures running around the city, nor for him to ask Persephone’s assistance in tending to some kind of forest that Smith went riding through on occasion. Something about the way he described the forest and riding through it raised the hairs on the back of Dodge’s neck, and his wolf growled in warning. The old man glanced at him more than once and finally seemed to get the message, though Persephone remained rapt and leaning forward in her chair.
Smith smiled placidly and folded his hands on his middle. “But I’ve taken too much of your time. We can perhaps discuss a commission and specialty input to my habitat at a later date.”
“Of course,” the architect said. She still looked mesmerized, gazing at Smith as though he was the center of the fucking universe.