Cyn shook her head. “Everything we’ve discovered points to shifters, not humans.”
“Which brings us back to square one. Why you three?”
“My father is dead, but he died of natural causes.” Cyn resumed pacing, her hands on her hips as she thought out loud. “My mother is still alive, but she’s a complete ditz. I don’t even think she’s dating, and he’s been dead for years. She adored my father, would have done anything for him.”
“Any pissed off customers?” Belle’s fingers were tapping rapidly across her PC.
“If I have a customer who is dissatisfied with a tattoo I either offer to fix it for free, or give him a partial refund. So far I haven’t had any complaints about that policy.”
“So no pissed off customers or past enemies. What we do have is a missing sister, a person or persons unknown targeting half breeds, a ragey bastard who’s tried to kill you three and not much else.” The Luna turned her bright green gaze on Tabby. “What about your old alpha, Tabby? Could he have something to do with this?”
“I suppose. But he should still be in Marietta.”
“His son, Micah Boyd, has been trying to contact you.” Cyn and Tabby exchanged an enigmatic glance. “And Dennis Boyd is no longer the Marietta alpha. It’s possible he’s left Marietta all together.”
Tabby looked utterly confused. “What the hell would that have to do with me?”
“I have no idea, but she did ask about past enemies.” Cyn waved her arms in the air. “Not like any of this makes any sense.”
“Is he still calling? I thought he gave up on you.” Alex plucked Tabby’s phone out of her pocket and began scrolling through her missed calls.
“I think we should spam him with Nyan cats until he stops.” Glory giggled when everyone turned to stare at her. “What? Look it up on YouTube. That shit’s annoying.” The giggles turned to wracking coughs, but at least she was smiling.
“She’s right. I ticked her off once and she made that my screensaver. I still can’t eat cherry Pop Tarts.” Cyn shuddered. “And I had no idea how many different versions of it there were.”
“The scariest was Nyan Cat 3-D.”
“Bitch. I still can’t believe you made me watch that.”
“You got even with me.” Glory winked at Cyn. “You made me play it on Guitar Hero. My fingers still haven’t recovered.”
Cyn winked back, and Julian knew they were pulling someone’s leg. “You’re just ticked because my Nyan streak was higher than yours.”
Tabby was gaping at them in disbelief. “How the hell did you get Nyan cats on GH?”
Glory sniffed. “See what you miss when you move out?”
“Ladies.” Gabe shook his head, amusement warring with disbelief. “We have a killer to catch. Worry about your star power later, okay?” He grinned. “Besides, there is no Nyan cat for GH.”
“Are you sure?” Cyn challenged Gabe.
“Yup.” Gabe’s grin turned sheepish. “I’d own it.”
Tabby glared at Cyn and Glory, who were giggling like loons. “Y’all suck.”
Julian couldn’t give two shakes of a rat’s ass about videogames just then. His focus was still on the most important thing. “There’s got to be another way to bring this guy out into the open. Using Cyn to draw him out is unacceptable.”
“Do you have a better idea, Super Bear?” Cyn crossed her arms and smirked at him. She thought she had him.
She was wrong. He turned to the one person in the room who should be out there hunting a killer, not sitting in his living room scarfing pizza. “Gabe, what were you able to find out about the shooter?”
“Not a hell of a lot. He took the shot at Marie from an empty apartment. I’m just glad the inhabitant had already left for work that day. As it is, she’s scared to death to go home.”
“Puma?”
“No, but she is a shifter and has requested sanctuary. Max has granted it. That’s all I can tell you.” Gabe pulled Sarah close again and rested his chin on the top of her head. “He left behind no fingerprints. The lab reports are starting to trickle in, but from what we can tell he didn’t leave behind a single hair. The only thing he did do was smash parts of her apartment to bits. He punched a few holes in her walls, broke some of her knickknacks. It looks like when he missed Cyn he had a tantrum and then booked.”
“What about the other crime scenes?”
“We’ll probably get more information out of the pipe bomb than anything else. I got my guys working on that, tracing where the components were bought. It’s going to take time, though. We just have to be patient.”
Julian wanted to snap at Gabe. If it were his mate would he be so patient? He turned to Rick, hoping the Wolf Alpha knew where he was about to go. “Would it be easier to hunt him up on your land?”
“If I had his scent, yes.” The Wolf Alpha sounded absolutely certain of that. “Those woods are mine. There’s no way the fucker would be able to hide there.”
“Then we split up. Tabby, Alex and Glory head up to the Poconos where Rick’s Wolves can protect them. I stay down here and try to draw the shooter out where the Pumas can take care of me.” Cyn held up her hand as Tabby opened her mouth to object. “Alex, take some of your relatives with you and leave some here. That will help Julian and Tabby feel better about all of this.”
Alex shared a look with Tabby. No matter what Tabby wanted, she’d be visiting the Poconos, in-laws in tow. “If the Foxes pick up the scent, they’ll make useful scouts.”
“And I’ll finally get to answer the age-old question.” Belle tilted her head, her expression more vapid than Julian had ever seen on anyone outside of Paris Hilton. He heard tales of the Poconos Luna. Perhaps the rumors were true. Maybe she really was Psycho Barbie. “Does a Bear shit in the woods?”
Alex returned her look with a bland one of his own. “Only if there’s a roll of toilet paper on a convenient nearby branch.”
Julian nodded sagely. “And it has to be the kind that doesn’t leave toilet paper dust on our poor furry behinds.”
“Yup. That is a total breach of Bear etiquette.”
Rick clamped his hand over Belle’s mouth before she could respond. “Do we have a plan, then?”
Glances were exchanged. After nods all around, some reluctant, some not, it was agreed. Alex would be taking Tabby and Glory into hiding while Cyn played tag with the killer. Julian damn near growled out his frustration. It had not gone the way he’d planned.
Fuck a duck.
Chapter Eighteen
Cyn opened the front door as quietly as she could, hoping Julian was taking that nap she’d ordered him to. When she didn’t see him loitering around in the front hall she sighed in relief. He’d been adamantly against her being bait, but what else were they supposed to do? It had been over a week since Marie’s death and they hadn’t found more than where the sniper had been hiding. None of the lab work had come back, and even Cyn’s new sense of smell couldn’t track the killer. She’d tried following the scent only once, but Gabe had stopped her before she’d gone too far.
At least Tabby and Glory were safely away. Alex had whisked her friends away so fast Cyn had barely had time to say good-bye. But that was all right, as long as she got to say welcome home when it was over.
She hung her coat up with a sigh, rubbing her neck wearily as she closed the closet door. She was so tense she could probably be used as a tuning fork. “The Amazing Cyn, vibrating in C minor.”
A low chuckle had her whirling around. Julian sat halfway down the stairs, a smirk on his face. “I could take care of that for you.”
Shit. He was awake. “Hey, Jules.” She tried her best to smile for him, but knew she failed when his welcoming smile dimmed.