I pushed away all thoughts of Rocko, otherwise I’d never have slept again, and tried to find something more pleasant to obsess over before sleep took me away. For some reason, that stranger, Henry, came to mind. He was handsome enough, and burly as all get-out. His chest had been a warm, sweatshirt-covered wall of muscle when he caught me after I started to faint. And he’d moved so fast… My cheeks warmed as I thought more about the stranger. At least he was a much more pleasant thought than a rogue sorcerer. Something about Henry, and the feeling of him standing next to me in that sea of coyotes and wolves, helped me relax against the mattress and pillows. It hadn’t been much of a welcome to a new city, but it wasn’t the worst introduction I’d ever had.
Chapter 8
Henry
Henry waited until morning to update his alpha, Evershaw, and Evershaw’s mate, Deirdre. He’d returned to the witch’s house close to dawn, after grumbling with Sasha over a few drinks, and avoided the watchful eyes of his sidekick, Mercy. She was Evershaw’s adopted daughter and the pack mascot, even though she was a strong wolf in her own right. She just had an aura about her like everyone’s kid sister, no matter how old she got. She’d been asleep in the front room as he crept across the porch, with the witch’s cat asleep in her lap, and Henry had been careful not to wake her so he could avoid the twenty questions that would have resulted.
Cricket, the cat, barely glanced at Henry as the wolf walked by. The cat had enough attitude that it ruled the roost even in a pack full of werewolves, and it wasn’t just because Deirdre protected it. There was something about house cats in general… He’d never met one that was so self-assured and in command it could hold its own against a wolf. Henry didn’t mind sharing his breakfast with the beast just to keep the peace, and tossed some bacon bits in Cricket’s direction before searching for Evershaw and Deirdre.
The witch worked in her garden while Evershaw yawned and drank his coffee and complained about the fresh air and early hour. It was Deirdre who noticed Henry and said good morning, ignoring her mate as Evershaw grumped and muttered.
Henry didn’t take the alpha’s lack of manners to heart, since he’d worked for Miles Evershaw for almost a decade. Having Deirdre around had softened a lot about the alpha, but it hadn’t improved his opinion of mornings. Henry sat on a bench near the garden as he finished his coffee. “There was a disturbance last night while I was out patrolling.”
At least Evershaw sat up when he heard that. Henry filled them both in on what happened, and tried not to laugh at their reactions—Evershaw started scowling at the first mention of the coyotes and wolves, while Deirdre waited to frown until she heard about the witch the animals cornered. Henry hid his smile behind the coffee cup. “So there might be two new problems, although I don’t know enough about witches to tell whether she’s trouble or not.”
“I thought we’d dealt with the coyotes,” Deirdre said, glancing over at her mate. Her dark hair, pulled back in a ponytail, started to escape and curl around her face as she brushed sweat off her forehead. She went back to digging and clipping leaves and tying branches to a trellis. “It’s the wolves that worry me.”
“How about you worry about the witch?” Evershaw said, folding his arms over his chest.
“How about you mind your attitude?” she shot back, giving him a dark look. “It’s too early to deal with your bullshit and you didn’t make enough coffee. I won’t know if the witch is a problem until I meet her, and besides, it sounds like she was being chased by the animals. Which should be more alarming for you, since animals chasing witches could have implications for me.”
Evershaw grunted. “Fine. Did you recognize any of the coyotes or wolves, Henry?”
He shrugged. “I didn’t notice anything in particular, but it was dark. Might require a call to that new coyote alpha to sort it out. I thought she had everything under control.”
“Probably a poor assumption,” Evershaw said under his breath. The alpha arched an eyebrow. “Given their track record and all.”
Henry figured alphas dealt with alphas, so the new coyote leader was someone Evershaw could face. Which just left