The Vow (Black Arrowhead #1) - Dannika Dark Page 0,74
a finger against his cheek. “Your buddy with the tats. I saw him running across my land on the night of the murders. Ask around. Other people have seen him wandering across territories where he doesn’t belong. We can’t say shit because of slander laws. Maybe you should ask him what I’m talking about.”
Lakota withdrew his blade and tucked it back in the sheath on his belt.
Crow flicked his ashes into the ashtray. “A pack of rogues spotted a two-faced wolf at the crime scene yesterday. They lost a couple of men, and the pack is looking for retribution from the Council. Won’t be easy since they’re not an official pack, but you better watch your ass, Tonto. You don’t run the show around here. You break our laws, and you’ve got to suffer the consequences like everybody else.”
Lakota remained quiet. He was certain the pack Crow was referring to was the one they’d tangled with the day before. Those bastards were probably spreading lies about what had really happened. Lakota and Tak had the right to defend themselves since they’d all been on unclaimed land. But Lakota didn’t acknowledge a thing. Gossip was already rampant, and admitting that he and Tak had been hanging around the crime scene would only fuel the fire.
Crow took one last drag off his cigarette and snuffed it out in the ashtray. “Better watch out who you trust, or else that girl of yours might end up being the next sacrificial lamb.” He spread his arms over the back of his seat. “Baaaa.”
Incensed, Lakota launched out of his seat and stalked out. Crow continued laughing and bleating like a goat. This town was so backward that it made Lakota want to quit the assignment. After spending years traveling from city to city and busting criminals—sometimes slave-trading rings and other times murderers—he’d saved up a lot of cash and gained experience handling any situation. But part of him was ready to settle down. He wasn’t sure how much more of it he could take before it made him a colder man.
Lakota hopped in his truck and sped off, leaving a cloud of dust behind him. As asinine as some of the locals were, Crow might be on to something. What if it was Tak? The best criminals had gregarious personalities and kept close friendships to throw off suspicion. Lakota remembered research he’d done on psychopaths and sociopaths. They shared similar traits except that psychopaths were often charming and the last people suspected of wrongdoing. What made Tak even more dangerous was that he was an alpha, and by nature, Shifters often felt compelled to submit to an alpha. It wouldn’t take much for any of those young girls to comply with his commands had he led them away.
Like the Pied Piper. Wasn’t that the name Tak used to describe himself? Lakota recalled Tak’s words: “She has to trust you before you decide to pounce.”
When Lakota finally reached Shikoba’s house, he slammed the truck door and went inside. “Where’s Tak?”
A young woman pointed at the kitchen.
Lakota entered the kitchen and saw Tak standing between the counter and the long kitchen island. He had a folded piece of flatbread in his hand.
“Hey, brother,” he said, chewing off a piece. “You want some? You’re going to need your energy.”
Lakota flattened his palms on the island, fingers splayed. “We need to talk.”
Tak’s eyebrows drew together. After finishing his bite, he pulled out a plate and set his bread on top of it. “What’s crawled up your trousers this morning?”
“Were you home all night when Koi was murdered?”
Tak swaggered to the island and mirrored Lakota’s position. “Is there something you want to ask me?”
“Can someone vouch for your whereabouts the whole night? That’s all I want to know. There’s talk in town, and your name was mentioned. Witnesses spotted you that night on someone else’s territory.”
“They must have seen a ghost.”
“What about the murder before that? You were supposed to go to the bar with me that night, and you didn’t show up.”
“I told you I was busy.”
“I asked around, Tak. No one had seen you for hours. Kaota had gone up to your room to see if you wanted to go hunting in the morning, and you weren’t there.”
“Why didn’t you mention that?”
Lakota folded his arms. “Didn’t seem worth mentioning at the time. You’re the last person I would ever suspect of doing this, but if I find out you’re involved, I’ll have no choice but to go to