Proof of Life (The Potentate of Atlanta #4) - Hailey Edwards Page 0,19

squared her shoulders. “I need to move.”

That right there, the way Ford anticipated her needs and met them, made him an invaluable asset to the pack, and an excellent friend.

“I’ll call Bishop,” I volunteered. “He’ll coordinate with Swyft and your hotel to get everyone there.”

Swyft had stolen all the paranormal business in town, but the personal vehicle factor made renting a van or other large vehicle on short notice easier. Lots of soccer moms and dads, parents in general, had spun their hulking rides into moneymakers.

Bobbing her head, Claudia went to address the cluster of packmates that remained after tonight’s fiasco. I couldn’t tell if they took comfort from her words. No one would look at her. I couldn’t decide if it was a fear response to her, to the situation, or to the shadow of the former alpha that loomed over their pack, but I didn’t imagine their exhales of relief when Claudia strode off, Ford in her wake, her hands clenched into fists.

“This just got more complicated.” I leaned into Midas. “Will this blow back onto the pack?”

“No.” Midas snaked his arm around my shoulders. “Mother warned Claudia about the coven.”

Not that I was pointing fingers, but I did wonder, “Why didn’t Claudia postpone her trip?”

“Mom awards an annual scholarship, more or less, for new alphas who inherit packs in distress.” His arm tightened, forcing us closer. “She takes one under her wing for a month, gives them a room at the den—not in the den, but in the house—and there’s a considerable financial aid packet that goes along with it.”

“I had no idea.”

“No one outside the packs would have reason to know.” He smiled down at me. “Now you do.”

“Claudia was hoping to snag it,” I realized. “She’s asking for help to heal her pack the only way she knows how.”

“That’s my guess.” He hesitated. “She has made advances in the past but—”

“I don’t think she’ll bother you again.” I kissed his worried brow. “She was just yanking your chain.”

I explained to him what she told me, that she would have taken an out if he had offered, but it was too late for that now, for either of them.

Fingers drumming my arm, he glanced down at me. “You two got along well.”

“Yeah.” I saw a lot of myself in her. “I guess we did.”

“You didn’t talk about…me…did you?”

Now it was my turn to frown. “Only in the abstract sense, why?”

“No reason.” He pivoted as Gray trotted over to us. “Hey.”

“Twice in one week?” He was out of breath, and his hair slicked to his scalp. “What the hell did you do?”

“Nothing I hadn’t already done,” I assured him. “Until now, the coven has been denned up, licking their wounds.”

“A very gwyllgi turn of phrase for you,” he rumbled, laughing.

“You know how it is with old mated couples.” I smiled at him. “Finishing each other’s sentences, wearing each other’s clothes, stealing each other’s food…”

“Stealing a predator’s food?” Gray’s eyebrows climbed. “It must be love.”

“It is,” Midas assured him. “Otherwise, she would have gnawed off my hands by now.”

Laughter boomed out of Gray’s deep chest, so at odds with the grim scene around us, and it felt good.

We all coped with grief in different ways, and laughter was the least self-destructive option.

“Aubrey has the fire under control.” He wiped the amusement off his face. “He says it tastes the same. It’s slightly off from what we encountered at the battle with the coven, but it’s identical to last night’s fire.”

Part of me wished I could share the intel, use Aubrey as a source, but we had a promise to Gray to uphold. We would keep Aubrey’s identity a secret for as long as possible. It was the only way to give the teen a taste of a normal life, considering what he was and what he was capable of.

But if he ever lost control, if the citizens ever paid for it, I would learn firsthand how Linus had felt during the past year when he took personal responsibility for me and my actions.

Second chances didn’t come free, and they didn’t come cheap. Someone always, always paid for them.

“The cleaners are on their way,” he kept going. “I understand several of the individuals are gwyllgi?”

“From a visiting pack,” I confirmed. “The alpha was lucky to escape with her life.”

“We’ll update you if we learn anything else.” Gray bowed his head. “Let me know if we can help.”

“I appreciate that.”

Thinking back to how Claudia had pieced herself together in front