Mate's Touch

Looking into another person’s eyes usually revealed…well, something. There was always emotion behind the eyes, some hint as to what the person felt or thought, a motivation, a truth, or a lie. Yet, looking into the eyes of a corpse only revealed that life was too damn short and you needed to grab everything out of it you could while you still drew breath. For one Mister—Lainie Everest glanced down at her notes—Roger O’Brien that chance was over, and whatever he had failed to grab out of life was now lost forever. And now I’m stuck trying to figure out why.

“What can you tell me?” The portly Sheriff Chet Einstein stood beside her, his sheriff’s hat clasped in both hands in front of him, the afternoon breeze making a mess of his gray hair as he stared at the prone body on the ground. Deputy Johnson stood opposite Lainie, his hands in his pockets as he waited for her answer, letting her take the lead. She appreciated the opportunity, even though it made her nervous as hell.

Lainie squatted beside the corpse, her forearms resting on her thighs, her gaze still fixed on the lifeless man. “Roger O’Brien, age forty-two, been in Bull Creek less than two weeks, although I haven’t really seen him around or talking to anyone. The only reason I know how long he’s been here is because I noticed when his cabin came to life. He’s never even made it to one of our weekly bonfires, and you know how big of a deal those are.” She glanced up at her boss, her lips twisted into a grimace. “This is Bull Creek, though. People sometimes stick to themselves. Hell, there’s a few residents at the edges of the community I’ve never even seen.” Glancing at her notes again, she said, “According to his license, he seems to have arrived here from Pensacola, reason unknown obviously, but he never bothered to change his address, so I’m not sure if he’s just visiting or planning to take up residence. Of course, like I said, it’s only been two weeks. It’s possible he’s on an extended vacation. From all appearances, he was shot while out taking a walk, two in the chest, no defensive wounds so I can assume no struggle. He may not have even seen it coming.” She pushed herself into a standing position as she took a deep breath. “I can ask my brother if he knows anything about him. Dimitri usually makes it his business to at least talk once to new folk, making sure they know the rules of our little township.”

Chet nodded. “Whatever the man was running from seems to have caught up with him.”

“What makes you think he was running from something and that this wasn’t just a robbery or something?” Deputy Johnson asked, his brows pinched in puzzlement.

Chet shrugged. “Because this is Bull Creek.” He glanced over at his deputy. “And no one here has much to steal and everything to hide.”

Both, Johnson and Lainie, nodded in agreement. “I’ll do a full background check on him when I get back to the office,” Lainie said, tapping her notepad with her palm.

“No, Johnson can do that,” Sheriff Einstein said. “You go talk to your brother. Find out what he knows about our victim.” He then glanced around the area, making sure no one was within hearing range, before turning back to Lainie. “Any chance to know whether this man was anything besides human? Might help us know a little more about why he was killed.”

Lainie glanced at Johnson, who just shrugged, and then gave a quick scan around them before kneeling back down, leaning forward, and inhaling deeply of Roger O’Brien. Sitting back on her heels, she shook her head. “Human. I doubt this has anything to do with our paranormal community.”

“You’re right; it doesn’t.”

They all turned as a tall man, dark hair and golden eyes, strode over to them. Lainie’s panther purred at the sight of the newcomer, and at first glance, Lainie had to agree with her animal’s assessment.

“And you are?” Chet asked as Lainie stood, concern about the man overhearing her comment about the community knitting her brow.

The man flashed an ID and badge at them, Lainie noticing his powerful hands and strong fingers as he did. She also saw the way his shoulders squared off and the cute little dimple on his chin. Just as her eyes started to scroll down the rest of him, she stopped herself, biting the inside of her cheek. “Rance Culpepper,” the man said. “Detective for the Pensacola District Attorney’s Office.” He then pointed to the dead man. “I’ve been trying to track this man down for over a month now. He’s a witness in a gang shooting back in Pensacola. Key witness, unfortunately.”

“Seems the gang had better resources than your office,” Chet said, as he slipped his hat back on his head, shoving his hair out of his eyes first. “I hope your case didn’t hinge on his testimony.”

“Not if I can find his phone.” The man stuffed his ID back in his jacket before jabbing his hands onto his hips. This time, Lainie couldn’t stop herself from following the motion and blushed when she noticed where her gaze landed.

“His phone?” Lainie asked, jerking her gaze upward, while inwardly scolding her panther for its urges. Now you want to get frisky? At a crime scene?

Rance nodded. If he noticed where Lainie’s gaze went, he didn’t show it. “Apparently, he has a video of the shooting. If I can find that, we can save the case. You didn’t happen to find a phone on him, did you?”

Lainie nodded. “It’s been bagged as evidence.”

“Great. I need it.” He looked around as if he could see it lying about carelessly.

“Um, no. When we get back and go through everything, if there’s a video on it, I’ll let you know.” Lainie squared off against the agent, ignoring the purring of her panther. “This is a murder investigation. The phone belongs to us. It’s our case.”

“Your case is connected to mine, which happened first. I need that phone.” Rance’s chest puffed out—a chest Lainie found herself wanting to pounce on—and his golden eyes narrowed as he stared at her.

“And you’ll get it when we determine it’s not connected to our case. Roger’s murder happened here, in our jurisdiction, and this is my case. You’re not getting shit until I say you can have it.”

“Well, I’ll just go over your head to your boss.” He took a step toward her, trying to be intimidating.

Chet cleared his throat, and Lainie and Rance both turned to look at him. “I’m her boss, so consider your request noted. However, as she said, she’ll get the phone to you when she’s done with it. This man was murdered in our backyard, and I’ll be damned if some agent from a big city is going to swoosh in here and take over until we have a chance to discover who killed the man.”

Lainie shot Rance a smug smile, but he had already turned toward Chet, dismissing her as someone inferior, no doubt.

“But our case goes to trial in just over a week.” Rance moved closer to Chet, no longer attempting to be the big bad agent. Lainie shook her head. Chauvinistic ass.

“Then you better hope my deputy solves the case fast.” He then turned to Lainie. “Keep me posted. I’m heading back to the office.” He stepped around the dead body and toward the sheriff’s car. “C’mon Johnson; you’re driving.”

Rance, his hands still on his hips, just stared as the two men walked away, his shoulders tense with his agitation even through his finely pressed jacket. He turned his gaze to the ground and shook his head.

Lainie did her best not to reveal her victory smile when he turned around. Yup, he’s definitely not happy. “So, if you want to leave me your card, I’ll make sure to reach out when you can have the phone.”

“No way.”

She shrugged. “You heard my boss. The phone’s ours until I’m through with it.”

“I heard him, but I’m not going anywhere. My case hinges on you closing your case, apparently, so I’m staying right here with you until it’s closed.”

“I don’t need a babysitter or a ride-along.”

“Doesn’t matter. I’m staying by your side, so what’s next?”

You have got to be kidding me. “Look, Detective Culpepper, this will go a lot faster without you interfering, so go back to your hotel, drink some cheap booze from the mini-fridge, and enjoy the hot tub. Or, better yet, go back to Pensacola, and I’ll Fed-Ex the phone to you when I’m through. I can even send you the video in an email. However, what I can’t do is allow you to be a pain in my ass while I try to solve this case. Now, go away.” She hung her notepad in the pouch on her belt and started to walk away. She only took a couple of steps before she paused and pulled a business card from her shirt pocket. Handing it to the detective, she said, “You can leave me a message where to contact you once I’m done.”

The detective took the offered card, annoyance covering his face.

Lainie then turned her back on Detective Rance Culpepper and his arrogance, as well as the purring of her panther. Both of which were more than getting on her nerves right then.

Ten minutes later, she knocked on her brother’s cabin door, still struggling to put Rance out of her mind. She didn’t need the distraction, not on her case, not in her day, and definitely not in her life. She also didn’t need her panther getting all hot and bothered over some out-of-towner. She left Draven Falls to avoid an arranged mating. Relationships just left you heartbroken and damaged. She had done well following Agatha Rochester’s advice and getting the distractions out of her life. She sighed as she heard the doorknob turning. And Rance could very well be a distraction.

“Hey, what’s going on?” Dimitri stood in the doorway, wearing only a pair of jeans and holding a cup of coffee.

Lainie glanced behind him to see if he was alone, and then grinned as she spotted Adira, Dimitri’s mate sitting on the couch, covered up with a blanket. “I won’t be long. Hate to disturb the happy couple. You really should start thinking about a proper wedding, you know. That is if the two of you can keep your hands off each other long enough to endure one.” She gave Adira a finger wave. “Don’t you two have jobs or anything?”

“Is that jealousy I hear?” Dimitri asked as he leaned back on the doorframe. “And we both have the day off, thanks. Now, is there a reason you’re here or did you just want to cock-block me?”

“Is that even possible anymore?” Lainie grinned, and then grew serious. “Actually, I wanted to know if you knew anything about a Roger O’Brien. He was shot a little while ago. Some kids found his body in the woods.”

Dimitri ran a hand through his shaggy, blond hair. “Wow. Unreal. Any suspects?”

“Not yet, although some detective from Pensacola showed up claiming Roger was a witness in a murder. The jerk even tried to take over my case. Some balls he has.”

“Got that close to him, did you?” Dimitri smirked, laughing at his own joke.

She knew he teased her, but she also recalled how her panther wanted to get closer to Rance Culpepper’s cock and balls. The urge grew even when the man was out of sight, but Lainie didn’t leave Draven Falls, avoiding a mating her parents wanted, just to get stuck in a mating here. She needed to get this case solved and Rance out of her hair. “Roger O’Brien?” she repeated. “What can you tell me?”

Dimitri shrugged. “Pretty much a loner. I’m not even sure how he heard about our town. He said he needed a quiet, secluded place to lay low because some pretty bad people hunted him back home. He promised he didn’t do anything wrong, that he witnessed something terrible, and now those people wanted him dead. We went over the rules of living here, and I invited him to the Friday night bonfires. He never showed, of course. Hell, I’m not even sure he ventured out of his cabin.”

“Taking the hiding thing really far, huh?” She took a deep breath, as she glanced out at the woods around her brother’s cabin. “Seems that detective told the truth about Roger witnessing something.” She turned her gaze back to Dimitri as she nodded her head. “I think I’ll check out his cabin before heading back to the department. Thanks for your help.” She leaned into the door, waving at Adira again. “Bye, Adira. Make sure my brother treats you right.” She grinned. “Of course, if he doesn’t, you can always zap him or something. Maybe turn him into a frog?” She grinned as she patted her brother’s arm. “You’d make a good frog, I think.”

“Get out of here,” he said with a shake of his head. “And good luck with your case.”

Lainie waved as she turned and headed back to her car. She didn’t need luck with her case. She just needed that moronic detective to stay out of her way.

Rance knelt behind the giant oak, watching as Deputy Lainie Everest slid out of her patrol car. He would not allow some small-town deputy to steal his case, regardless of how his wolf panted after her back at the crime scene. Now was not the time for animal lust to distract him. Roger O’Brien was his; Roger’s phone was his. Rance needed the video on that phone to put that punk, Snake, and four of his friends behind bars for shooting up a family’s house and killing the father. Gang violence in Pensacola was out of control, contributing to almost eighty percent of the criminal activity in the county. Rance’s office was determined to do everything within its power to put as many of them behind bars as possible. Roger was to be a step in that direction. Was to be, that is, until the man turned chicken and ran. Now the only witness to the fatal shooting had been fatally shot, and some one-horse deputy was doing her best to impede Rance’s investigation. Well, she’s going to try anyway.

Rance finished tying his shoes as he kept one eye on the cabin. When the deputy left without him—correction, when she refused to allow him to accompany her—he decided to do his own investigating by following her. One of the things that made him good at his job was the wolf who dwelt inside of him, and Rance had no problem shifting and following the deputy as she did all the legwork, which is exactly what he did. As soon as she was out of sight, he stripped, tossing his clothes into a small duffel he kept in the trunk of his car, shifted, and then took off after her through the woods, the duffel bag clenched in his teeth. He followed her to her brother’s house but was unable to get close enough to hear what the two of them discussed on the front porch. Still, Rance waited until she returned to her car and then followed her here to what he assumed was Roger’s cabin, hiding in the woods while she went inside to investigate. Realizing that this was where he needed to be, he shifted back and started to get dressed.

Now he stood there, hands on his hips, staring at the front door of the cabin, wondering what the deputy discovered inside without him. Rance hated waiting, especially since it was his case to begin with. He needed to know what was happening inside Roger’s cabin and being stuck on the outside was driving him crazy. Perhaps if he hadn’t been such an ass back at the crime scene, he’d be in there right now, assisting the deputy instead of blocked from the investigation.

He blew out a breath between his lips, allowing the frustration to drain from his shoulders. He needed more than just to get inside that cabin, and he knew it; he needed to get beside that deputy. Ever since he came upon her at the crime scene, his wolf chomped at the bit to be near her again, and Rance had to admit, the idea of taking her long, dark hair in his hand and yanking her toward him for a passionate kiss lingered at the forefront of his mind. Her passion for her job and the sass with which she had put him in his place only added to the cause of the bulge in his jeans and the panting of his wolf. He wanted her, and there would be no calming his wolf until he possessed her, even though he knew from their brief encounter she was not a woman to be owned. Deputy Lainie Everest would give as much as she received.

Rance was just about to step out into the open to confront the deputy when he noticed some movement off to the west of the cabin. Pausing in his steps, he made sure he was tucked behind the oak where he stood and squinted his eyes in a desperate attempt to get a better look at whoever skulked around in the woods besides him.

A stocky man with short-cropped, dark hair and dark skin crouched among the trees, taking his time moving from one spot to the next. He had about four days’ worth of stubble on his face, and his clothes looked as if they could use a washing, his jeans grungy and frayed at the ends, while his T-shirt seemed to have just as much dirt on it as the man’s face. Rance was about to make some crack about the denizens of the small community of Bull Creek when he noticed the tattoo of a snake wrapped around a falcon’s torso on the man’s neck. Rance’s back stiffened as he felt his heart thud faster in his chest. Why is someone from the Serpents still here? It didn’t make sense since Roger was dead.

The phone. Damn it; they’re looking for the phone. Rance kept his gaze on the man as he drew nearer the cabin and the deputy inside. Rance’s wolf struggled to shift and intervene, but Rance kept the transformation from happening, needing more answers. Did the idiots really forget to search Roger’s body when they killed him? The deputy said she had the phone in evidence, so that had to be it, but wouldn’t the gang member know that? So, what is that punk up to? Unless, of course, Roger made a copy of the video. Rance stood straight, his hand reaching for the gun at his waist, realizing the gang member was there to make sure no other copies of that video existed.

The wolf inside of him growled, and Rance agreed with the animal. The time for hiding was over.

He stepped out into the east side of the property, making sure to stay as low to the ground as he could. He unholstered his gun, gripping it firmly in his right hand, the hard metal cold and rigid. He needed to get between the gang member and the deputy before the Serpent could get the jump on her. Swiveling his head, Rance made sure no one else accompanied the gang member. He didn’t need anyone sneaking up behind him, either. As far as he could tell, it was just the one man.

Glancing around the place, Rance decided on a different tactic. Changing course, he eased around to the back of the cabin and the rear door. If he could sneak in without the deputy shooting him, they could set a trap for the Serpent member and then perhaps find some answers. He kept looking over his shoulder, making sure he was still ahead of the other man. By the time he reached the back of the cabin, Rance knew he only had a few moments to get in and gain the deputy’s attention.

Reaching the door, he tried opening it, but as he feared, it was locked. Damn it! With a deep breath, he knocked as loud as he dared, hoping the deputy would hear him. His wolf urged him to break the door down, but that was more noise than they needed. He waited a few more seconds and then knocked again, his ear pressed against the wooden door, his shifter hearing on high alert.

Footsteps, slow and cautious, could be heard on the other side of the door. Leaning back, he glanced around, but nothing appeared out of the ordinary. The doorknob turned, the click loud in his ears. Turning his attention back to the cabin, he waited as the deputy eased the door open, her own gun in her hand, her brows pinched in question.

Rance gave her a weak smile, his wolf panting at the sight of her. “You have company sneaking in from the front,” Rance whispered. “I recognize the tattoo on his neck. He’s from the gang back home, the Serpents. I’d guess he’s the one who killed Roger.”

The deputy leaned out the door, glanced around making sure Rance was alone, and then gave him a curt nod as she waved him inside, her expression anything but welcoming. “We’ll deal with why you just happen to be here after we deal with your friend,” she whispered.

Rance just nodded, deciding silence the best course of action right then. He followed the deputy toward the front of the cabin, locking the back door before he did. With his attention facing front again, he couldn’t help but notice the way her khaki pants hugged her hips, cupping her ass as she walked in a way he wouldn’t mind his hands cupping it. Her dark hair barely moved along her back as she walked, her gait slow, cautious. Rance closed his eyes. Deal with the Serpent first, then admire her ass. Pep talk over, he opened his eyes again just as they stepped into the front room.

The deputy motioned for him to take the right side of the door as she stepped over to the left. He nodded as he carried out her wishes, once again admiring the way her uniform fit on her. Okay, boy, you are going to have to calm down until we deal with the matter at hand. His wolf had shown no desire for anyone in ages and just so happened to perk up at the most inopportune time. Great. Rance didn’t need this right now, although he knew the call his wolf felt would not be squelched for long.

The wood on the front porch squeaked, announcing the arrival of the Serpent. There was a pause, and Rance could imagine the man standing there waiting to see if he was heard or not. The deputy kept her eyes on the door, while Rance kept his eyes on her. The woman had fortitude and guts; he’d give her that. Of course, he couldn’t imagine his wolf panting over some weakling of a doormat. Too bad she lived all the way out in no man’s land.

The sound of the doorknob turning snapped his attention back to the task at hand as he tightened the grip on his gun. He steadied his breathing, his gaze riveted to the door. The man would see him first, the deputy on the backside of the opening door. Rance sucked in his gut, pressing as flat as he could against the wall, hoping the man would step in before noticing him.

The door eased open, and the nose of a small Glock entered the room first. Rance waited, his eyes on the barrel of the gun in case it suddenly started to turn in his direction. They wanted this man alive, needing answers, first of which would be if there were any other Serpents in the area.

The gang member eased into the cabin, one foot, a hand, then his head. He turned, his eyes going wide when he saw Rance standing there. Rance lowered his gun level with the man’s chest. “I’d stay right where you are if I was you,” he said.

The deputy stepped out from behind the door, her own gun aimed at the gang member. “I’d listen to him if I were you,” she said.

The man jerked his gaze to her, the panic settling into his breathing. Rance could see the man’s heartbeat thumping at his temple, see the sweat starting to pop up on his forehead. Rance could almost hear the thoughts flitting through the man’s head and knew he wouldn’t like the trail they followed. “There’s nowhere to go, so just put the gun down and tell us why you’re here,” Rance said, stepping slightly away from the wall but keeping his gun level to the man’s chest. “C’mon, look around you. You’re in the middle of nowhere. Who knows what wild animals are out there, just waiting for a snake snack. Let’s just put the guns down and talk.”

The man jerked his gaze back and forth between Rance and the deputy, unsure who was who and who to listen to. The deputy tightened her grip on her gun, but otherwise stood there, letting Rance handle it. Now that’s a shocker.

The man took a deep breath and then jerked around and bolted, jumping off the porch onto the grass as he attempted his escape.

“Damn it!” Rance shouted. “I hope he gets eaten by an alligator.” Then he shouted at the fleeing man. “Did you hear that? I hope you get eaten by an alligator!”

The deputy, however, was already out the door, chasing the man, screaming at him to stop.

Rance sighed, wondering why she was doing this the hard way. With a heavy sigh, he started to strip, preparing to shift.