Santa Soldier Bear - Meg Ripley Page 0,17
of the ordinary.”
Amar gave another nod, and if he was upset with Roman for his nighttime activities, he gave no indication. “Right. Raul, you installed security cameras for us not too long ago. Were you able to find anything?”
The wolf shifter stood up, his cell in his hand. He used it as a controller to project several images up onto the television. “I’ve been through all the footage as thoroughly as I can, and I used a few software programs to enhance the images. Unfortunately, as you see here, whoever did this was very careful to disguise themselves.”
Roman ripped his gaze away from Melody to study the screen. A robed figure, shown in several different still shots, came up the walkway and deposited the car seat on the porch. Whoever it was had taken great pains not only to swathe themself in thick clothing that completely disguised their figure. With the head covered as well, Roman could hardly tell if he was looking at a man or woman. “That doesn’t help much.”
Raul shook his head. “No, it really doesn’t. I’ve got some pretty sophisticated facial recognition software, but I can’t exactly use it if there’s no face.”
“What about the city cameras? Can you trace this person by tapping into those?” Amar was firing questions just as quickly as they could be answered. Roman could see why he’d been chosen as Alpha of this group, though it hadn’t surprised him in the first place. He’d always acted as a natural leader out in the field.
“I tried,” Raul admitted. “Our cameras indicated this person approached from the west and left that way, too. I used the time stamp and direction to patch into the appropriate city cameras. They’re a little glitchy, so some of the information I have is mere inference, but there’s a good possibility this person came from one of three clans.” He switched the image on the screen to a map with three green dots indicating the clans' locations.
“It’s so strange,” Melody mused. “Why would someone leave a child on our doorstep?”
Amar leaned forward, bracing his elbows on the table. “I think we can take a safe gamble that whoever did this is a shifter, and they must know this is our headquarters. As the Force has gained more and more recognition, it’s not surprising, nor is it something worth completely repressing. At least we know that someone—whoever this person is—likely came to us for help. I only wish I knew more. Emersyn, do you have any medical findings on the baby?”
Sitting next to Melody, Emersyn shook her head. “Nothing pertinent. As far as I can tell, she’s a shifter. I haven’t seen any signs yet as to what species. She seems to be in perfectly good health, other than she might’ve missed an early morning meal. Melody has already taken charge of getting her cleaned up and fed, and at this point, she’s no different than any other baby.”
“Yes, thank you for stepping in, Melody,” Amar added. “It’s very much appreciated.”
“I’m more than happy to do it,” Melody admitted as she contemplated Ruby once again. Her eyes were so soft, her smile so genuine. “I feel bad for her because this obviously isn’t the perfect situation, but she’s a complete angel.”
As Melody lifted a hand to brush back Ruby’s soft, blonde hair, Roman felt another pang of regret ripple through his chest. She’d told him how she loved children, and it was obvious now that he saw her in action with a little one. He could see this wasn’t just something Melody said because she thought it was expected of her as a woman. She adored that child in her arms, even though she had no ties to it. She would do anything for Ruby.
It broke his heart. Melody was his mate, and he knew that. It made him entertain ideas like finding a way for the two of them to be together, no matter where they lived. But a child? The idea thickened his throat. He couldn’t do that. He couldn’t be a father, not after what’d happened.
“I’ve scanned The Shift thoroughly, but I haven’t found any posts or even hints about a missing child,” Raul was saying as Roman returned his attention to the meeting.
“The Shift?” Roman asked.
“It’s a news app with a social media aspect I created for shifters only,” Raul explained. “With the help of the geniuses over at Taylor Communications, anyway. Shifters can only activate it if they have an access code generated