Proof of Life (The Potentate of Atlanta #4) - Hailey Edwards Page 0,14
her chest. “Who else could it be?”
“They’ve been targeting Hadley hard,” Ford growled. “I don’t expect this to prove otherwise.”
The coven had hoped to add her to their collection so that a witchborn fae could wear her skin and seize control of Atlanta. That was the tune their elder sang when they fought on the outskirts of town just last week, but the notes rang false in his ears then and now. Had she truly been their primary target, they would have struck her down when they first arrived in the city.
Before Linus knew what happened, she would have been gone, and Midas never would have known her. The brutal attack on local shifters had united them, both Midas and Hadley, pack and OPA, against a common enemy. It was the one good thing to come from this tragedy. But grateful as he was for Hadley, none of it would have happened if the elder had been telling them the whole truth.
“Any word on Chef Daaé’s last-known whereabouts?”
“The assistant on duty yesterday said he left the chef in the kitchen prepping for your date.” Ford ruffled his hair. “Daaé’s clan says the same, that he left for work on time but hasn’t come home.”
“I’ll touch base with Hadley,” Midas exhaled. “Let her know what we’ve learned.”
“Remind her it’s a two-way street.” Ford pointed a finger at him. “Information flows both ways.”
The OPA was more connected than the pack. They had contacts within every major faction in the city. But he didn’t have to ask. If Hadley gleaned information critical to the pack’s safety, she would tell him.
“Until we know for certain which of you was targeted,” Ford continued, “we can’t afford to assume your mate is the one wearing the bull’s-eye.”
“Knoxville is in town,” Ares said quietly. “They’re not the most stable pack.”
Despite Claudia’s belief she was being sized up as a potential mate for him, his mother’s sole purpose for inviting the Knoxville pack for a visit was to evaluate the mental state of its new alpha and its dominants.
The pack was under new management as of nine months ago. Claudia had finally seen the writing on the wall, challenged her father, and put him down before he finished running the pack into an early grave.
“I doubt they’re involved.” Midas doubted they were that organized either. “They have nothing to gain by my death.”
“Tisdale made it plain if they didn’t clean house,” Ford said, “she would send a maid to do it for them.”
The maid would have been Midas, as second, and he would have challenged Claudia’s father, killed him, and then forced the pack to choose a new alpha who was strong enough to hold the pack and weed out the bad seeds.
“Midas.” Ares spelled it out for him. “She killed her old man to prevent anyone else from doing it.”
“That’s grudge material right there,” Ford agreed. “All I’m saying is we need to keep eyes on her.”
“Do it.” Midas stared through the glass front entryway. “She’s with Hadley.” He turned. “Do it now.”
“An eye for an eye is popular among gwyllgi,” Ares allowed. “I’ll go. I need to stay active to stay awake.”
“Thanks.” Midas tried to hide his relief. “Let me know when you’re in position?”
“Sure thing.” She hesitated. “I’ll just grab more coffee from the break room before I go.”
“You’ve been yawning since you met me upstairs.” Midas studied her. “Why are you so tired?”
“We’re babysitting Liz’s nephew.” She rubbed her red-rimmed eyes. “He’s four months old.”
Ford’s eyebrows climbed into his hairline. “How did you manage that?”
“Liz’s sister is having gallbladder surgery, and her husband is staying at the hospital with her. They needed someone to watch Baby Alex for a few days, and we volunteered for the practice.” She smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. They were too heavy. “He’s adorable, oh so adorable, but he’s also not thrilled both his parents are MIA. He never sleeps. Never. I swear. It’s unnatural. He’s always awake, and he cries unless you’re carrying him. I really, really, really hope our kid isn’t like this one.”
“He’ll settle down in a day or so,” Ford assured her. “Little ones get ornery when their routines change.”
“A day or so?” Ares deflated. “Jay is coming to pick him up tomorrow.”
“In that case,” Ford said on a laugh, “I hope you’ve got twenty-four more hours of sleeplessness in you.”
Whimpering, Ares trudged off on her quest to load up on caffeine.
“I’ll find a spare body to go with her,” Ford offered. “She’ll