Thirty minutes later, the shifter alpha still hadn't shown.

"I'll call my contacts," Daimhn said impatiently. "See what's taking him so long." Glaring at the shifter bodyguards, she had a brief, angry conversation on the phone before turning to the rest of the Senate. "Apparently, his second in command can't find him. Useless shifters."

One of her bodyguards growled, but the vampire queen caught his eye, cutting him off abruptly. I exchanged a grin with Peter, only to notice Eloise's intense gaze. I really hoped she wasn't having a premonition of my death.

"Are you serious?" James demanded. "What is he thinking lately?"

"That he's guilty, and he doesn't want to face the music," Breslin said, getting to his feet. "I am Ms. Delaney's legal representation, and as the accused is obviously in hiding-"

"n.o.body said that he's in hiding," Layla said.

Breslin nodded. "Then he must not take his Senate duties very seriously."

"It's true," Willow said. "We can't wait around all night in case he turns up. It's late. Let's get this over and done with."

"This isn't a courtroom," James began.

A short, sharp bark of laughter erupted from Peter. "That's exactly what this is."

"Not officially then," James retorted. "There's no accused and no need for legal representation."

"There's no law against having a solicitor handy in times of need. And we're aware that we are not attending court. If we were, a barrister would be speaking in my stead." Breslin smiled. "As I'm sure you're aware."

James's face flushed as though Breslin's words had hidden a dig. "Fine. Why are we here?"

I made to stand, but Breslin stayed me with his hand. "Ms. Delaney and a number of her tenants were roused from their beds before working hours by the shifters. Mac, the current alpha, produced a piece of paper that looked legitimate. It was stamped by the Senate and gave him authority to search the premises for a shifter that he is in search of."

"We know," Daimhn barked. "We gave him the go-ahead."

"I didn't," Willow said. "This matter was never brought to my attention."

"Nor mine," Callista said, looking furious. "Is there a reason for this?"

"Time constraints," James said. "Carry on."

I clenched my fists at his easy dismissal of the others' concerns.

"In the process of this search, a large amount of valuables were destroyed."

"Accidents happen," Daimhn said. "How much of value could this young tainted one even possess?"

"I trade in ancient relics these days," I said sharply. "Mac purposely destroyed a lot of value and a lot of heritage and culture, by the way. All in search of someone who hasn't done any harm and who obviously isn't staying with me-if she had been, Mac would have sniffed her out one of the million or so times he's turned up at my place."

"He's in search of an untethered shifter," a male voice from behind us announced in an indistinguishable accent. "A danger to not only this country, but the world."

"Says who?" I scoffed as I faced the stranger I couldn't truly see.

"Says a paragon," he said haughtily, his gaze set on mine. "I would be careful how you address such a one."

A cold fist gripped my heart. A paragon? Shepherd had warned me that a paragon was in Ireland a year ago, and Phoenix had his concerns at the time, but when Phoenix left, I was sure it was because the paragon had moved on, too. A paragon, a power above each country's controlling organisation, shouldn't have been worried about Esther-unless she was about to start a chain of events. Even I might be at risk, given that half the country already thought I was a danger because of my heritage. Mixtures involving human, angel, and vampire gave everyone the heebie-jeebies.

I forced myself to turn away from the man as Breslin continued. "Not only was this search in dangerous territory of being illegal, further damage was done to other properties owned by Ms. Delaney. An office building was covered in graffiti of a decidedly misogynistic slant, and the contents of an apothecary shop were completely destroyed. Most dangerously, might I add. We could have been dealing with a serious toxic cloud. These acts of destruction by the shifters in the name of the Senate cannot be allowed to continue."

"There's no way to prove that anyone was acting on behalf of the Senate," Daimhn said dismissively.

"Except for the fact the shifters provided doc.u.mentation given to them by the Senate," Breslin said.

"That's true," Callista said. "And any damage done to those particular premises will be repaid by the Senate, with our apologies." Her eyes glinted with fresh fury.

"But you cannot prove that the shifters were the perpetrators of the other attacks," Layla said.

"Actually, there is evidence at the scene of the apothecary shop," Breslin said apologetically, holding out his hands. "In their eagerness, they appeared to mark their territory. It wouldn't be hard to run tests to determine which species was responsible. In fact, we're happy to even absorb these costs ourselves. It so happens I have an acquaintance who-"

"Fine," James said grumpily. "We'll take care of that, too. But the graffiti-"

"Ah." Breslin smiled. "Coincidentally, we are currently in the process of installing CCTV at all of Ms. Delaney's premises. The world is such a dangerous place, after all. We began with the office building, as it happens, so the cameras there picked up the entire night's events prior to our discovery of the graffiti. I haven't had time to peruse the footage myself, but my niece is a journalist with a major tabloid. She's been gracious enough to offer to go through the recordings herself and compare it with footage that the media has picked up over the last year. She informs me that it won't take long to compare, and she's confident she'll be able to pinpoint exactly who the attacker was and who they work for. Of course-" He gave another apologetic smile. "In exchange for her hard work, she has requested a scoop." He held out his hands and shrugged. "Can any of you tell me what that means exactly? I'm not familiar with the lingo of the young."

I bit down on my laughter and returned Peter's nudges. Breslin had just gathered the entire Senate into his net without even raising his voice. I needed him to tag along more often, for sure.

James turned a little purple. "Fine," he said through clenched teeth. "We'll pay for all damages incurred."

"You're not serious," Daimhn said.

"We can't afford another media explosion," he said. "Mac will have a lot of explaining to do, but we need this to stay under wraps."

I turned in my seat to give the stranger a triumphant look, but he was already gone.

"We're done here," Layla said. "The matter is resolved."

"What about Esther?" I asked. "Mac can't be allowed to hunt her down."

"It's not just Mac who's looking for her," Callista said. "She's a danger to all of us."

"How can you, of all people, say that?" I asked. "Your own sister trusted Esther with her life. Esther's not dangerous. She's injured."

"An injured animal can be the most dangerous," Daimhn said. "Tell her to join a pack, for her own sake."

"If she returns to the pack, Mac will make her take Aiden's punishment," I said, horrified.

The vampire queen shrugged. "We all have sacrifices to make." She left the table, but as she pa.s.sed us, she gave Breslin a long, hard look. "If you're ever in need of employment, I'm always interested in a mind like yours."

Breslin gave her a polite smile. "I'm afraid I only have room for one client."

Daimhn shot a glare my way. "And that's her, I suppose."

"She's stuck with me," Breslin said.

The vampire queen moved on, followed by Layla and James. Callista and Willow hesitated near us after the others left.

"I truly had no idea that Mac's actions had escalated so," Callista said.

I avoided looking into her eyes or getting too close to her. I nudged Peter when his jaw dropped open. He tried to shake off the siren's unintended lure, but I expected him to be afflicted for hours. Breslin was looking very interested in his shoes, but Callista seemed not to notice how uncomfortable the rest of us were. The siren's personal s.p.a.ce was way too inviting for the average person.

"You must be careful," Willow said. "Mac has proven himself to be quite hotheaded, but other factors are at play."

"You mean the paragon," I said.

"Regis? You know why he's here?" Callista asked.

"I didn't know his name, but I was warned about him a year ago," I said. "I thought he had left."

"So did we," Willow said. "Yet he kept returning, for no obvious reason, and now he sees us when we're at our worst. That makes me worry."

I didn't have to think too hard to realise she was worried about me. "I haven't done anything to risk his attention on me." I winced. "Except this meeting."

"It's enough that he's aware of you," Callista said. "I must leave. I have a meet-and-greet tonight." She air-kissed me before leaving.

Willow sighed. "It's exhausting being around her. But that was a good move you made tonight." She looked at Breslin with interest. "And quite a bluff."

He smiled. "I have no idea what you're referring to."

"Where's Mac?" Peter asked, after recovering a little once Callista had left the room.

"I don't know," Willow said. "That's troubling in itself, although it likely points out his guilt some. I do hope he doesn't get his hands on that poor girl."

"Any idea what exactly will happen to Esther?" I asked.

She shook her head. "The shifters are intensely private about their traditions. All I know is that Mac has been claiming ancient rites and customs in a bid to get what he wants." She held up her hands. "I know the country expects us to make a new world here, but we can't completely ignore the history and culture of an entire species, either. We're in a difficult position, and Mac has been slowly taking advantage of that since Phoenix left."

"I've been hearing rumours," I said. "Free shifters have been disappearing. Once Mac sets his gaze on someone, n.o.body hears from them ever again."

"You think he's murdering his opposition?" Willow asked, aghast.

I shrugged. "Or holding them close, taking their freedom. What if I found evidence of that? Would that make a difference?"

"We need to step away from things like slavery," Willow said coldly. "If the media gets hold of this, it would cause riots in the streets." She c.o.c.ked her head to the side. "Again."

"Say we kept it quiet, and instead we brought it to the Senate could you do something then?"

"We could put Mac on trial," she said excitedly. "He might lose his place on the Senate. But what of the shifters? Without Mac to control them, they might run wild."

"The vampire queen tipped me off about a new shifter who might be challenging Mac's position. Apparently, this could be causing his frantic searches." I smiled. "It would be an easy solution, all the same."

"Unless they're worse than he is about ancient rites." She tapped her chin with her pen. "If you find anything, bring it to me personally. I'll organise a proper investigation through the appropriate channels." She winked at me through her gla.s.ses. "We'll make an excellent team, Ava Delaney. Just give me a little time."

"Well," I said. "If anyone needs an advocate, it's shifters who are being forced to stay in a pack by a Senate member, right?"

By the time we left, I'd started to believe we actually had a workable plan.

Chapter Five.

I sat across from Anka at her kitchen table and tried to ignore the rank smell coming from the pot on the stove. Anka's tastes were a little beyond mine sometimes, and I couldn't tell if she was stewing dinner or a potion for the shop. Val, Margie, Peter, and Carl completed the circle. The children were all at school, and Carl, who worked at the school part-time, had taken the afternoon off so we could all talk unhindered. Peter and I caught everyone up on what had happened at the meeting.

"So," I said. "We'll all be reimbursed eventually, but Breslin is ready to throw his smarts at them if they try to slow things down."

"It doesn't make up for the loss of time," Margie said.

"No, it doesn't," Peter said, "but it's a h.e.l.l of a lot better than nothing."

"So we wait," Anka said. "And if we restock our shelves, are our products safe?"

"Breslin's organising surveillance over all of our properties, including the cul-de-sac. I know it's a little too Big Brother, but maybe we should have gone down this route a long time ago."

"That sounds pricey," Carl said.

"It's worth it for our safety." But inwardly, the cost was making me queasy. Being a landlady had turned out to be expensive. "And that's another thing. They destroyed property, but I think we're safe from bodily harm in here. I've been chatting to Breslin, and he's promised to go through everything with me later, but he's confident we're still protected from physical violence."

"Why do I feel like there's a 'but' in there somewhere?" Carl asked.

"Because there's always one," I said with a smile. "As the protection has been transferred to me, it might take a while to stick."

"What? It has to get used to you?" he joked.

"I'll find out. That's all Breslin said. The other issue is this paragon person."

"What is the purpose of a paragon?" Val asked.

"The paragons are sort of like a higher power. When the Senate fails, the issue goes higher, and the paragons seem to be the next rank up. They watch over the world, basically. I don't know much about them, to be honest. I'll find out if Breslin has information on them. This Regis person gave me a bad vibe."

"In what way?" Carl asked.

"Something about him stops me from really seeing him. And when Jess was here last year, Phoenix made it sound like she could have been in danger from Regis. Jess is considered as tainted as I am, which means I'm in danger, too. The normal, natural species are okay, but anything a bit conflicted is fair game. I think it's the paragon who's pushing this untethered nonsense, and I'm starting to think it's just an excuse to set a precedent here."

"To do what?" Val asked.

"To take care of us oddb.a.l.l.s, I suppose," I said. "So keep your head down, Val. Just in case. It could be nothing at all, but it doesn't hurt to be careful. Phoenix mentioned something to me about the paragons having the right to judge the werewolves. If that goes badly, they could try to force him to make them extinct for real this time. We don't need you getting in the crosshairs, either."

"Phoenix would never do that," Val said with confidence.

"Exactly," I said. "Which is a problem in itself. Anyone who wants to get rid of Phoenix can just target the werewolves and give him enough rope to hang himself with."

"Almost feels like the old days," Peter said, "what with all of this intrigue."