The Vow (Black Arrowhead #1) - Dannika Dark Page 0,70
around to see what had captured their attention. A silver car was heading toward us down the private road, dust kicking up behind it.
A cacophony of shouts and footfalls sounded from within the house as the pack became aware that visitors were on the property. I hid behind a wooden beam, uncertain what was unfolding before me. Kaota appeared and descended the steps, but instead of going out to greet the visitors, he stopped, his arms folded and a stony look on his face.
Two men exited the vehicle. One of them was a husky man with an anemic complexion and thinning hair the color of wheat. He squinted at the sunlight and dabbed a white handkerchief across his broad forehead.
The driver smoothed out his bushy mountain-man beard. His brown boots kicked around gravel as he approached Kaota at a leisurely pace. “I’m here to see Shikoba,” he said, his accent hinting that he’d lived around these parts for a long time.
Kaota’s voice fell flat. “He’s in mourning. What’s your business on our land, Robert?”
The bearded man took off his mirrored sunglasses and tucked them into his shirt pocket. “Jack and I came out here to have a conversation. Word is you’ve got a problem with your tribe.”
“We’ve got no problems.”
“And the dead boy?”
“That’s your problem,” Kaota bit out. “You’re the big man on the Council. What are you going to do to protect our rights?”
Robert scratched his head. “Word out there ain’t good, Kaota. People are sayin’ your tribe had something to do with the murders. I’d hate to find out there’s a cover-up happening right beneath my nose.”
Kaota stepped forward. “Did Koi’s death look like a suicide? Did the girl rise up from the dead and tear open his jugular?”
Stroking his beard, Robert said, “No, but someone slit that girl’s throat and stabbed her in the abdomen. Now, I’m not making any accusations, but it looks like maybe Koi and the girl were secret lovers, and one of your people found out and decided to teach them both a lesson.”
“And what of your people?” Kaota fired back. “Are they incapable of murder?”
Robert widened his stance. “Look, we’re only here to discuss what everyone else is talking about. If Koi did shift to protect her, we would have found his clothes on the scene. But we didn’t.”
“And what does that prove?”
“It leads us to believe one of two things. Either Koi stalked and attacked her, and they fought to the death, or Koi met up with her, and someone in your tribe caught them together. An outside Shifter committing the crime wouldn’t have stolen his clothes if he wanted to pin it on Koi. From his perspective, stealing the clothes would make it seem like someone else was there, and Koi had to shift to protect her. Make sense? Killers want to cover their tracks, not leave breadcrumbs.”
“And you think we’re stupid?”
Robert sighed and shook his head. “Comments like that make me wonder. They found a knife by the body but no clothes. All I can do is look at the facts and see who had motive. If someone in your tribe was the culprit, then his motive ain’t gonna be to pin it on the tribe. He probably acted on impulse. Who knows, maybe I’ve got it all wrong. Maybe the killer was attacking the girl, and Koi’s wolf was close enough that he heard the screams. The thing is, I’ve worked out all the logical scenarios, and the one that doesn’t make sense is one of the local Shifters having something to do with it. Not given the evidence we have, which is more than a missing pile of clothes. I can promise you that.”
I gripped the beam while peering around the side. A gust of wind lifted my hair and caught Jack’s attention.
The pasty man narrowed his eyes. “Who’s she?”
My stomach knotted when Jack kept staring. Part of me wanted to ask for an escort out of town, but I didn’t know either of those guys, and I had a feeling my best interests weren’t their top priority at the moment. With Lakota’s truck gone, I remained quiet.
“What do you want?” Kaota pressed.
Robert flicked a glance my way but kept his attention on Kaota. “We can’t make arrests just yet, but it doesn’t look good. I think you have a bad apple in your bunch, and Koi was in the wrong place at the wrong time with the wrong woman. If you know who’s responsible, I’m asking