Shades of the Wolf

“Don’t you know?” she asked crossly, turning away so she wouldn’t have to look at him.

“You asked me not to read your mind.”

“Oh. Right.” Crossing into the kitchen, she made herself a cup of coffee. “Thank you. And also thanks for the protection-circle thing or whatever you said. It worked. I didn’t have a single ghost last night.”

The fragrant smell of coffee made her mouth water. She poured herself a cup, adding a spoonful of powdered creamer and a packet of sweetener.

When she turned, she caught him eyeing her mug with a wistful expression.

“I miss that,” he rumbled. “Among other things.”

Heat flashed through her, so intense she nearly staggered. Not good, especially if Tyler could intuitively guess how she felt.

Deciding to let that comment go, she scowled at him. “Why are you here?”

One dark eyebrow arched. Sexy, again. “You didn’t really think I’d retreat into the ether and wait for you to summon me, did you? We’re working together on this.”

She shrugged, pretending not to care. “Fine. I’m going to do some research on the internet first. I need to find any news stories about missing girls. I also want to do a search for Dena Rogers.”

“Plus, I can tell you where she works and lives,” he offered. “We might even go there.”

“Of course.” Rummaging in the refrigerator, she grabbed the roll of bagels, sprayed each side with vegetable oil, popped them in the toaster and, when they were done, spread a generous dollop of peanut butter on each one.

Tyler watched, his hazel eyes glittering, as she retrieved her breakfast and sat down to eat it.

“What?” she finally asked. “Have you never seen anyone cook breakfast before?”

“Cook?” he snorted. “I don’t call that cooking.”

She rolled her eyes in response. Since her mouth was full, she didn’t deign to reply. Protein and carbs, and tasty too. When she’d finished, she got up, rinsed the plate off and placed it in the dishwasher. Taking a deep sip of her coffee, she padded to the room she used as an office and booted up her ancient desktop. She sensed Tyler right behind her, her awareness of him a prickling along her spine.

“You don’t have a laptop?” Tyler asked, the astonished tone in his voice making it clear he thought she lived in the Dark Ages. The mischievous look in his eyes filled her with unwanted longing. To cover, she shook her head.

“Ghosts don’t get to be picky,” she pointed out, sitting back in her chair while she waited for the computer to finish booting up. If she didn’t look at him, maybe she could manage to avoid all these unwanted feelings. “And yes, I had a laptop. David took it with him to Afghanistan. It never made it back, so I’m guessing someone from his unit kept it.”

Finishing her coffee, she got up to make another cup, walking right past his still surprisingly solid form, her heart pounding, without him commenting.

When she returned, she checked on her computer, which appeared to be ready, and clicked on the icon for Google Chrome.

“Doesn’t that drive you crazy?” he asked. “Computers aren’t that expensive anymore. I’d think it’d be worth it to spring for a new one.”

“Maybe.” Concentrating on the screen, she searched for the local newspaper. “But not today.” Once she had the paper up, she searched the archives, using keywords missing and lost and even runaway.

“I’ll be—”

Suddenly, he materialized right next to her, practically on top of her, making her jump and bump her knee on the bottom of her desk. “What?” he asked. “Let me see.”

“Don’t. Do. That.” Rubbing at her knee, she glared at him, though he didn’t even notice as he was busy reading the on-screen text.

“There are more missing women,” he breathed. “Four, including Dena. And they’re all from different towns in Ulster County.”

Immediately, she began reading too. “Your sister’s the only one from Leaning Tree.” Hitting the print icon, she eyed him. “But it doesn’t appear the police are even considering them to be linked in any way.”

“That’s where you come in.” He stretched, causing the material of his shirt to expand over his muscular arms. Suddenly, she realized he’d changed and no longer wore the camo. Instead he had on civilian clothes, a tight black T-shirt and faded, well-worn jeans, though he still wore his combat boots.

For a ghost, he looked virile as hell. Tantalizing. Captivating.

No. This had to stop. Time to shut this ridiculous and unwanted attraction down. She no longer thought about sex, or at least she tried not to. Her mate was gone and she didn’t want anyone else. Ever.

Chapter 2

Now that Anabel had settled the matter, she felt better. Straightening her shoulders, she knew she was strong enough to resist Tyler Rogers’s ghostly allure.

“Let’s go talk to the police,” he said, flickering in and out, his form alternating between solid and ethereal. She figured this was probably due to the enthusiasm vibrating in his husky voice.

Maybe she’d do better if she treated him like a brother. At least that way, his nearness would no longer be so overwhelming.

“You know, for a ghost, you sure look concrete sometimes,” she commented, clicking her computer to sleep before getting up from her chair.

“Thanks,” he said, flashing that devastating smile that sent a bolt of heat straight to her stomach—and elsewhere.

Brother, she reminded herself. “Come on.” Snatching up her car keys, she headed for the garage. “And whatever you do, don’t speak to me while I’m talking to the police. Everyone around here already thinks I’m crazy. If I start answering you back, it’ll just make it worse.”

She didn’t look to see if he followed as she opened the garage door and got in her car. The little red Fiat had been a gift from David the first year they were married. She loved everything about it, from the tan leather-trimmed seats to the upgraded radio.

“This?” Tyler said, the disbelief in his voice making her smile. “You expect me to ride in this? There’s not enough room.”

“You’ll manage,” she replied. “If not, then I guess you can wait here.” As she slid behind the wheel, he materialized in the passenger seat, legs folded almost up to his chest. She nearly laughed out loud.

Instead she masked her amusement with irritation. “Quit doing that too,” she ordered. “When you’re with me, you don’t need to act so ghostly.”

“Ghostly?” His rich laugh struck a chord low in her belly. “I am a ghost. That’s what we do. But for your sake, I promise to try and pretend I’m human.”

She shuddered at the word. “You never were just human, I can tell. Before you died, you were Pack. Like me.”

Regarding her curiously as she backed out of her driveway, he finally nodded. “How did you know? I’m told the dead no longer have the aura.”

Anabel couldn’t keep from snorting out loud. “Maybe not to each other. But you do to me. I can see it just as clearly as the aura from any living shifter.”

And then she turned up the radio to discourage further discussion.

The winding, tree-lined roads were beautiful in summer and in autumn. Right now, with the leaves beginning to turn, she felt as if she lived in a postcard. She knew other people who’d lived here all of their lives as she had became so used to the natural beauty that they rarely even noticed it. Not Anabel. She appreciated and marveled at her surroundings every day.

As she drove to downtown Leaning Tree, she tried to think how to best approach this. Turning the radio down slightly, she glanced at him. “Any ideas on what I should say? I mean, I can’t just walk into the police station and demand information on the search for the missing girls. That would make them really suspicious.”

“I see what you mean,” he replied, frowning. “You’d become an immediate suspect, especially since you believe everyone considers you off your rocker anyway.”

His words stung. “Hey,” she protested. “It’s fine for me to say stuff like that. Not so much for you.”

Again the deep-throated laugh. “Of course,” he said, shaking his head in mock chagrin. “I should have understood.”

Shocked, she realized he was teasing her. No one had joked with her in any way since David died. Probably because everyone at first felt bad for her and then later, after her breakdown, most folks acted afraid of her.

This used to hurt and baffle her, before she’d given in and decided to embrace her own semiscary weirdness. She’d started dressing in black after David was killed anyway. With a little embellishment using Stevie Nicks for inspiration, she’d taken black to a whole new level. And the funny thing was, she loved wearing one of her flowing outfits and seeing the way everyone eyed her. She thought she looked pretty. Who cared if everyone else disagreed?

Another sideways look at her ghostly companion, steeling herself against his masculine beauty, confirmed her suspicion.

“For someone who’s worried about his sister, you’re a bit of a jokester, aren’t you?”

Just like that, his half smile vanished, replaced by a steely expression. Instantly, she regretted her comment.

“Are you always so serious?” he asked, faint mockery in his voice.

She decided to answer honestly. “Yes. Especially when dealing with something like this. I don’t find serial killers or women being held prisoner amusing.”

“Neither do I,” he shot back. “But I have found making a joke or two can help relieve some of the pressure.”

Since she didn’t have a response for that, she kept quiet.

“I do have a question.” Clearing his throat, he eyed her. “Exactly how powerful are you?”

So intent had she been on focusing on thinking of him like a brother, the question didn’t immediately register. She blinked, frowning, as she met his gaze. “I’m sorry—what?”

“How much power do you have?”

“That’s what I thought you said. I don’t understand what you mean. If you’re talking about firepower, yes, I do own a gun. I’ve even taken classes to learn how to handle it. For my own protection, of course.”

Now he frowned. “I’m not talking about a weapon, though that may come in handy, and I think you know it. I’m asking about your powers. You know, your magic. How strong is it?”

“Magic?” Then she remembered she was talking to a ghost. “Tyler, the only magic I possess is the ability to see and hear spirits. Most times it’s more like a curse than magic.”

His gaze slid over her, the assessing look in his eyes saying he wasn’t sure if she was serious. And then he grimaced and shook his head. “I understand. Good one. You’ve proved your point. I shouldn’t have accused you of being too serious.”

“But—”

He waved away her protests. “You almost had me fooled for a moment. You must be a very powerful witch indeed, if you’re trying to hide it.”

More oddness. A powerful witch, huh? Maybe he thought she dressed like this because she had magic. Or something. Who knew? Every second she spent with him kept getting weirder and weirder. “I’m just a regular person who happens to see ghosts.” And had already had one mental breakdown. She fervently hoped this wasn’t another. “I thought you ghostly beings knew everything.”

One dark eyebrow arched, his face showing an uncanny awareness of how uneasy she was becoming.

“What makes you think that? If we knew everything, I’d know exactly where to find my sister.” He turned away, staring out at the road ahead of them. “And I wouldn’t need you.”

Good point. Somewhat relieved, she decided to keep on trying to help. “Let’s head to the police station. I’ll figure out something to say that won’t get me thrown in jail.” She hoped.

* * *

Tyler rode in the passenger seat of her car as if he were alive, just because he wanted to study this Anabel Lee a bit more closely. When he’d received Dena’s frantic pleas for help, he’d searched for the most powerful witch he could find. He’d been drawn to the energy radiated from Anabel, just like all the other ghosts, apparently. He’d immediately realized he’d made the right choice when she not only looked at him, but could hear him when he spoke.

One thing that had taken him by surprise was her beauty. Tall and graceful, slender and shapely, and her delicate features left him momentarily speechless. Her midnight hair tumbled carelessly down her back, adding to her attraction. But her copper eyes fringed in long, sooty lashes had done him in. He’d never seen anything like her. Exquisite, enchanting and sexy as hell. The instant he’d met her, he’d felt the impact of her femininity like a sucker punch to the gut.

Which pissed him off royally. After all, he’d come back as a ghost to save his sister, not fight an overwhelming attraction to a witch. Which, despite Anabel’s claims to the contrary, she most definitely was.

He didn’t understand why she insisted on lying about her magical ability. Maybe if he told her they were most likely dealing with not only a serial-killer psychopath, but a powerful warlock, she’d come clean. Because everyone knew to fight magic with magic, didn’t they?

Or maybe, maybe she just didn’t know.

The instant that idea occurred to him, he discounted it. How could she radiate power and not understand who and what she was?

For now, he decided to let that topic rest.

“So,” she asked, shooting him a sidelong glance that told him she felt nervous, “in the afterlife, do you still shift into a wolf?”

“Of course,” he answered, playing along. “We are what we are. Dying doesn’t change that.” He thought for a moment and then completed his statement. “At least, until we’re reborn into a new body.”

“Of course.” And she laughed, as if he’d made a joke. “Reincarnation too? Why not.”

Not sure what to think about this, he decided not to pursue this topic either. Things were confusing enough, what with warlocks and serial killers and ghosts. What choice did he have but to let it go? For all he knew, powerful witches thought differently from everyone else.

And, he reminded himself, Anabel Lee had to be a witch with very strong powers. She had to be, if they were to have a prayer in defeating the man who’d captured and enslaved his sister. If it turned out she wasn’t, then he’d chosen wrong and Dena would die.

Contenting himself with looking out the window, though Leaning Tree looked exactly as he remembered, he was struck anew by the rustic beauty. Right now the green leaves flirted with shades of yellow, red and orange. In a few weeks, they’d blaze with color, as soon as the first crispness started to creep into the air. Autumn had always been his favorite time of year.

A moment later, they pulled up at the police station. The one-story, redbrick building looked the same. Again, memories surfaced. He’d spent a fair amount of time here as a kid, when his father was arrested for whaling on his mother.

“Wait here,” she ordered, shooting him a stern look as she got out of her car.

“Right.” He did exactly as she said, for maybe ten seconds. And then he materialized inside the station, waiting for her by the battle-scarred counter of the front desk as she walked in.

The dirty look she gave him made him smile.

“Anabel Lee.” The frizzy-haired woman behind the counter sounded less than thrilled. “What do you want?”

To her credit, Anabel didn’t react to the overt hostility in the receptionist’s tone. “I’d like to see Captain Harper, please.”

The other woman, whose name tag read Brenda Winder, appeared unmoved, squinting at Anabel through thick glasses. “Of course you would. Why don’t you tell me what it is you need, and I’ll see if I can find someone to help you? Since I am, you know, the dispatcher. That’s what we do.” Her unkind smile had Tyler clenching his fists.

He glanced at Anabel, to see what she would do. To his surprise, she’d assumed a deferential posture. “I’d prefer to discuss it with him, thanks.”

Pursing her mouth, the other woman glared at her. “Have a seat. I’ll let him know you’re here.”

Without commenting, Anabel found a metal folding chair and lowered herself into it.

Enraged, he went to her. “What was that? Why do you let that person talk to you that way?”

Her sigh sounded more weary than exasperated. She kept her voice down, since to anyone else it would appear she was carrying on a one-sided conversation with herself. “I tried to tell you. Most of the people around this town consider me crazy, an unwelcome nuisance at best. No one in Leaning Tree wants to have anything to do with me, never mind talk to me.”

“Because of your power?”

She moved her hand in a chopping motion. “Enough about the power. I don’t have any, so stop pretending I do.”

Before he could respond, Anabel looked up. Her entire body stiffened. “Now look what you made me do,” she hissed, her porcelain skin turning tomato red.

Brenda Winder stood back behind the desk, staring at Anabel with a horrified and smug expression on her meaty face. “Talking to yourself again?” she drawled. “Crazy is as crazy does.”

Stone-faced, Anabel kept staring straight ahead and didn’t bother to reply. Finally, Brenda tired of tormenting someone who wouldn’t respond and went back to reading something on her computer.

A few minutes later, a stocky man with wide shoulders and an even wider belly stomped into the room. His bushy gray eyebrows lowered in a frown, and he eyed Anabel as if he expected her to present him with something disgusting and distasteful. “You wanted to talk to me?” he asked, sounding anything but accommodating.

“I did.” Smiling, Anabel got to her feet gracefully. “Good to see you, Captain Harper. Could we please talk in your office?”

“Out here will do just fine.”

“No.” Anabel straightened her shoulders, her smile fading and her gaze direct. “It won’t. I need a little privacy, please.”

The captain sighed, stopping just short of rolling his eyes. “Sure. Why not? Come on back. I’m sure you know the way.”

Another puzzle. Resolving to try to find out from Anabel what all this meant, Tyler glided along after them as they walked through the crowded open area buzzing with activity. They passed several uniformed officers, a few criminals or complainants, and not a single person acknowledged or greeted Anabel. She made a beeline toward a small office in the back corner.

Most of the police officers were busy, which might excuse them. Some were on the phone, others talking to people sitting in their desk chairs. Suspects? Tyler looked for handcuffs, noting two people at opposite ends of the room who wore them.

Despite that, the instant they realized who had just walked into the room, every single person stopped what he or she was doing and stared.

Tyler would have liked to believe this was due respect for her power, but some of the officers seemed disgusted. A few others exchanged glances with their coworkers, even going so far as to shake their heads or roll their eyes.

Not respect, then. Eyeing Anabel’s slender form as she marched across the room, head held high, ignoring them all, for the first time he wondered what her story might be.

Truth be told, until now he hadn’t wondered about her story. He’d gone to her simply because he’d heard she could see and hear him and she’d radiated amazingly great power. They’d come to an arrangement. He’d help her get what she wanted if she’d help him save his baby sister.

End of story. Except it wasn’t.

Even though he’d been a shape-shifter, able to change into a ferocious wolf, wizards, warlocks and witches generally creeped him out. Any shifter with a lick of sense tended to avoid magical beings, since they were powerless against them. Even the vampires were careful to avoid them.

But now one had Dena. And if Tyler wanted to save her, he had no choice but to take on a warlock. At least he had a powerful witch at his side.

Once again he eyed Anabel, who’d finally reached the captain’s office and had taken a seat, crossing her gorgeous long legs and tilting her head as she waited for the captain to work himself down into his own chair and work his enormous stomach behind his desk.

Finally, he grunted and got himself settled. “All right, Anabel. Since Lilly and all the rest of the McGraws refused to press charges against you, I’m guessing you haven’t come here to talk about any of that.”

Anabel shook her head rapidly, sending her long, dark hair whipping around her face. Tyler caught himself aching to wrap a strand of it around his finger and pull her to him.

“Of course not,” she said. “That’s history. They’ve moved forward, as have I.”

“Then what can I do for you?”

She took a deep breath, her jaw tightening. “A friend of David’s wrote me from Afghanistan. He wanted me to check on his sister. She lives here in Leaning Tree. According to him, she’s gone missing.”

Brilliant. Tyler wanted to hug her. He restrained himself, not wanting to startle her. Besides, without a corporeal body, she wouldn’t be able to feel it.

“Really?” The captain’s gaze sharpened. “What’s her name?”

“Dena Rogers,” Anabel answered. “Her brother, Tyler, is really worried.”

“Let me see what I can find out.” Using his computer, Captain Harper tapped in some information. “Ah, yes. Here we are. Two weeks ago one of her coworkers asked us to do a welfare check when Ms. Rogers didn’t show up for her shift at the junior-college cafeteria. We checked but found nothing. Her house was empty, but there were no signs she’d met with foul play or anything. My officer determined she must have left willingly.”

“I don’t think so—” Anabel began.

“Ms. Lee.” Speaking sternly, Captain Harper interrupted. “It’s entirely possible she went on vacation.”

“Not without telling her brother,” Anabel shot back, her spine straight. “That’s why he got in touch with me.”

“I see.” Steepling his fingers, the older man sighed. “Then why don’t you tell me what it is you want me to do?”

“Find out what happened to her. Her brother told me she’d been talking about several other missing girls. Has anyone in your office put together information linking them?”

To give him credit, Captain Harper’s expression remained unchanged. Except for his eyes. Those appeared about to bug out of his head. “I don’t have any idea what you’re talking about.”

“That’s sad.”

The captain narrowed his eyes but didn’t respond.

“I would appreciate it if you would look into it,” Anabel continued with a quiet dignity. “As soon as possible. It’s not enough that Tyler Rogers is over there serving our country. I don’t want him worrying needlessly about his sister.”

“I’m sure there’s no need to worry. She’ll turn up eventually. Young people frequently disappear on some crazy adventure.”

The man’s patronizing tone set Tyler’s teeth on edge. “If you won’t at least do your job—” Anabel stood, the movement graceful “—I’m going to have to investigate on my own.”

To Tyler’s disbelief, the police captain winced. “No need to do anything rash.”

“Twenty-four hours.” Anabel looked him right in the eye. “I want you to investigate the disappearance of several young women in the area around Leaning Tree over the past few months. I’d like to know what you’ve learned by this time tomorrow. If I don’t hear from you, I’ll consider that notice that you want me to take matters into my own hands.”

From the tight set of Captain Harper’s jaw, he wasn’t happy at all about her proclamation, but he nodded. “I’ll see what I can find out.”

“You do that.” With that, she turned to go.

Following her out the door, Tyler marveled at the powerful energy radiating from her. How was it possible she didn’t realize her own strength? It wasn’t. Therefore, he had to believe she simply didn’t want him to know.

She sailed through the outer room and past the startled receptionist without a word. Outside, she rushed over to her little car, opening the door and climbing inside.

Only once she was there did Tyler realize her hands were shaking too hard to fit the key in the ignition.