A Place to Call Home (Hollow Crest Wolf Pack Book 3) Read online

  Kannon and I desperately needed to find something here. Corey's life depended on us being able to clear his name and free him. Angry tears came to my eyes when I still found nothing after my desperate search. I couldn't walk away with nothing. I needed this for Corey, and I needed this for my pack.

  I took a deep breath, sat in the chair, and tried to think as Mr. Reaven would. He'd want the passwords in easy reach, but out of plain sight.

  "How's it going?" Kannon asked through our pack bond.

  "Still looking for the passwords," I admitted. I tried to sound confident, but self-doubt was eating me up inside.

  I rested my elbows on the desk and tried to think. The password cursor was blinking on the computer screen in front of me as if it was mocking me.

  Struck by a moment of inspiration, I ran my hands under the lip of the front desk. I found a small pocket taped underneath of it, and inside was a folded piece of paper. I felt triumphant as I unfolded it and smoothed it out on the desk. This was exactly what I needed. Mr. Reaven's login information was very carefully printed right at the top of the paper.

  I entered the password, plugged in the terabyte drive, and followed Kannon's instructions exactly. I wanted to download everything - every file, piece of trash, and website that he'd ever gone to. I wanted to see every keystroke he had used.

  While the data was downloading onto the drive, I took photos of the paper that contained a treasure trove worth of information. There were usernames, passwords, and even answers to security questions. If I were a really terrible person, I could use this to access his bank accounts, tax records, and a plethora of personal information that could be sold on the dark web. Lucky for him, I was only interested in exposing his nefarious deeds, not looking to bankrupt him.

  "Hurry," Kannon sent to me. "I'm not sure how long we can rely on the jammer operating effectively."

  I groaned, and a second later, I heard a car coming up the road. I draped my coat over the monitor because I didn't want any light to shine through the window to let the neighbors know someone was in here. My stomach dropped when I heard the car pull into the driveway instead of driving past the house. No one was supposed to be home this early; we should have at least another half hour before anyone came home.

  I heard a car door slam, and then Mrs. Reaven's voice as she loudly complained over the phone about her husband. She had left the meeting earlier in a fit of anger because he had refused to listen to her advice.

  I looked at the computer and saw that only 99% of the file had transferred so far. Could I risk stopping now? Would the data still be useful, or would I waste this entire trip if I yanked out the cord before it was done entirely? My heart was pounding out of my chest as I watched the files slowly transfer.

  After what seemed like an eternity, the computer announced everything was done uploading to my portable hard drive. I yanked out the USB cord and hit the power button on the computer to shut the entire system back down. I grabbed the coat that I had placed over the monitor and ran back towards Kannon.

  I almost crashed into him as I tore around a corner, but he grabbed ahold of me so I wouldn't fall. Kannon and I huddled in the back of the house as Mrs. Reaven opened the front door. "That's weird," I heard her say over the phone. "The alarm hasn't gone off."

  Kannon and I looked at each other with wide eyes, and he hurriedly flipped a switch on the jammer. The alarm started going off now that we were no longer blocking the signal, and I let out a breath in relief. There had only been a delay of ten seconds at most - I hoped she would think it was a glitch. Our luck held because Mrs. Reaven entered her code in to shut the alarm off and didn't comment further on it.

  Mrs. Reaven walked from the front hall into the living room off to the side, and I heard her switch on the TV. Kannon and I made a run for it to go out the back door while she was distracted and out of sight.

  We ran through the trees that bordered their house to keep hidden, and I didn't start breathing normally until we were far out of human sight and hearing.

  "That was so stressful," I said with a grimace. "I thought I was going to have heart failure a couple of times."

  "You're giving up your dreams of becoming a career criminal?" Kannon teased me.

  "Yup, I'm retiring early," I said with a laugh. A life of crime just wasn't the right fit for me.

  "Let's hurry back so we can check out what we got," Kannon suggested.

  I was eager to see what Mr. Reaven had been doing. There had to be information on here that we could use to expose him for who he truly was. It was time that the rest of the world saw the side of Mr. Reaven that I had been exposed to. I wanted to peel away the polite veneer and show everyone the monster that lurked underneath. We may or may not find something to clear Corey's name, but I knew that Mr. Reaven was far from an honest businessman.

  Chapter 16

  Lori

  When Kannon and I jogged up to the firehouse, we had an unpleasant surprise waiting for us. The sheriff's car was parked right in front of the building.

  "Let's just leave," I told Kannon with the pack bond as my heart thudded. Was the sheriff here for us? Did Mr. Reaven have camera's in the house we hadn't known about? Or was he here for Corey? The lamia had made sure he was cleared of suspicion, right?

  Kannon nodded, but it was too late, the sheriff had already spotted us.

  Sheriff Weinburg opened the car door and stepped out. Kannon and I plodded towards him. I knew I wasn't going to be able to avoid whatever he was here for, but that didn't mean I was going to rush towards it.

  The sheriff greeted us with a big smile on his face. "What are you kids up to?" he asked as he hiked up his pants by his belt.

  "We were out running," I said stiffly.

  "Running from what?" the sheriff asked as his eyes sharpened.

  "We run cross country, and we'll be starting track in the spring," I said defensively. "We need to run year-round to keep in shape."

  The sheriff grunted and appeared to lose interest in that line of questioning. "Neither of your names is on the paperwork for the building," he said in an irritated tone. "Where are the rest of your friends?"

  Kannon shrugged.

  "We just got home, Sheriff," I said sweetly.

  "You kids are never far from your phones," he complained. "Call them."

  "What's this about, Sheriff?" I asked as Kannon pulled out his phone.

  Before Kannon could even call Grayson, his SUV turned down the road and headed for us.

  "Finally," the sheriff grumbled.

  Grayson parked right behind the sheriff and didn't bother to pull into the firehouse. He got out of the vehicle casually, but I could see tension thrumming through his body.

  "Sheriff," Grayson greeted him with a nod. "What brings you here today?"

  "Turns out that the city didn’t properly clear the sale of the firehouse," he said happily.

  "That's ridiculous," Grayson said flatly. "We had everything signed off by the city officials."

  "Perhaps, but the city council didn’t approve it. It was put to an official vote earlier this evening."

  Kannon and I looked at each other. Was that the reason Mr. Reaven was at a city council meeting tonight? We'd been robbing him as he plotted to take away our home.

  Grayson sighed. "I'll have my lawyer take a look at the paperwork in the morning."

  The sheriff rocked back on his heels. "You could," he said pointedly. "Or you could pack up your belongings and leave now."

  "Now?" I blurted out. "You expect us just to abandon our home?"

  The sheriff tried his best to look sympathetic, but I could see the glee in his eyes. "If we get the lawyers involved, then there will be all kinds of fines, and you'll have to pay to have the firehouse restored to its original condition. It turns out that this building here is a historical monument."

  I rolled my eyes. "It might be a historical building, but it's not a monument."

  The sheriff looked at me with confusion and then flushed
in anger once he realized I was mocking his ignorance. "You all can clear out tonight, or you can face thousands of dollars in fines and years of fighting in court. Your choice."

  "If we leave now, what's to stop you from levying the fines anyway?" Grayson asked. "You obviously have no problem reneging on signed agreements, so I'm wary of trusting anything that's merely stated verbally."

  It took a moment for the sheriff to process what Grayson had said and translate it to terms he could understand, but once he realized Grayson was insulting his integrity, he puffed up. "Are you sure your building is completely up to code and safe to live in?" he threatened. "We can have a building inspector here first thing in the morning."

  "Aren't you supposed to give someone at least thirty days' notice before you evict them?" I asked. "How would we even pack up all of our stuff tonight?"

  The smirk went back on the sheriff's face the moment he knew he had won. "Take what you can tonight, hand over the keys, and I'll give you an escort back tomorrow to collect the rest of your belongings."

  "Fine," Grayson said quietly.

  Sheriff Weinburg was flush with triumph as he strutted back to his car, but he didn't pull away. He had a cup of coffee and a bag of donuts with him, so it looked like he was settling in to watch us.

  "Is this even slightly legal?" I asked the guys with the pack bond.

  "I doubt it," Grayson responded. "But when has it ever been the sheriff's goal to uphold the law? He and some of the others want us out of town, so they're concocting bullshit to do it."

  "Lori and Kannon," Grayson said out loud. "I need you to start packing as fast as you can. I'll call Wyatt so he can arrange for some storage space at the university, and I'll load up the car as you pack."

  "I'm sure the university will be delighted to have us completely moved in there with nowhere else to go," I said bitterly.

  Grayson's jaw tightened, and I knew I wasn't the only one thinking that this was very suspicious timing. "It wouldn't surprise me if there were something wrong with the paperwork for the firehouse," he admitted. "The lamia were the ones who negotiated the sale for us."

  "And they probably put some fail-safe in there that could ruin the deal," I added to finish his thought.

  The sheriff kept his car parked right outside and kept watch over our progress. Kannon and I packed up our personal belongings quickly, as half of our things were already at the university suite. All of the furniture that we had in the bedrooms, living room, and kitchen were all left by the fire company when they left for their new building. We didn't own much.

  Kannon and I finished the kitchen and went out to the garage. I was surprised how many tools the guys had managed to either return or sell. I knew that Wyatt and Grayson had been looking at liquidating our assets, but I hadn't realized how far they had gotten. The large tool chests were gone, but there were still smaller bits and pieces to pack up. The large and costly car lifts that the guys had installed were going to be a loss.

  It was several hours of work before we had determined that we had packed everything that was either expensive or personal to us. The rest of what was left was unlikely to be stolen, and none of us would be heartbroken if it were.

  I looked back at the firehouse as we drove away in our packed SUV for the very last time with mixed feelings. The firehouse hadn't ever been truly a home, but it was a place that we called our own. Leaving it behind felt like we were giving up our freedom and all our hopes and dreams. As Grayson turned the corner and the firehouse disappeared, I turned to face forward. We were about to start a new chapter of our lives, and I had a feeling that things were only going to get worse.

  Chapter 17

  Lori

  It was late that night when we finally trudged back to our suite at the university. Grayson went right to our fridge and started tossing the guys water bottles, but he walked over to me to hand me mine. I smiled at him in thanks before plopping down on the sofa. The other guys all followed my lead, and Grayson turned the television onto the channel that ran house remodeling shows all day.

  “Pretend we’re all watching the television,” Grayson ordered with the bond. “We need to talk without anyone else listening.”

  “Is this the part where we make a plan to get the fuck out of here?” Corey asked. “Because I think it’s about that time.”

  My ears perked up, and I leaned forward when Grayson nodded. “I need to make sure you’re all aware of the risks we face when we run.”

  “Death at the worst,” Wyatt interrupted. “Imprisonment if they catch us, and torture if they decide to keep us alive.”

  Grayson sighed. “Even if we manage to get away, we can’t take anything with us. We’ll be leaving here with nothing but the clothes on our backs.”

  “I have some experience with that,” I told him drily.

  “Do we all agree that this is our best course of action?” Grayson asked as he met all of our eyes.

  “The sooner, the better,” Corey growled. “Now that Dr. Green has us corralled here, he’s not going to keep taking no for an answer about the experiment he wants to do on Lori. We need to get her to safety now.”

  I flushed, but the rest of the guys all murmured agreements with Corey.

  “This can’t be just about me,” I insisted. “We need to make the decision that’s best for all of us.”

  “Believe me,” Wyatt told me with restrained anger. “If you weren’t here, Dr. Green wouldn’t be showing half the restraint that he currently is.”

  “We need to leave before winter break,” Kannon reminded the group. “That’s the timeframe he gave.”

  “And where do we go?” Wyatt asked in frustration. “We can’t just run off into the woods and think they won’t drag us back here. We need a safe haven.”

  “I’m working on it,” Kannon interjected with a hesitant smile. “I’ve been investigating the larger packs which might be willing to take in all of us together. The smaller ones wouldn’t have the resources to support five extra wolves.”

  Kannon didn’t say it, but the real problem was that not many packs would want to take in four young male wolves. They would be more than happy to take in a lone female.

  “I’ve narrowed it down to four packs across the country,” Kannon explained. “Each one of them has been increasing their numbers by accepting both male and female new members in the last five years. Two of them have fairly close ties with the lamia, though,” he said sadly. “One of those packs was directly responsible for negotiating a treaty between the wolves and lamia, and their pack master has a seat on the council.”

  “How careful are you being as you’re doing this research?” Wyatt asked suspiciously. “It would be stupid to think they aren’t monitoring our electronic activity.”

  Kannon smiled. “If anyone’s monitoring me, it’ll look like I’m playing The Witcher for hours at a time. Believe me, I know how to avoid being caught.”

  “That leaves us with two possibilities,” Grayson said bluntly. “Who are they?”

  “One pack in Wisconsin,” Kannon said with a grimace. “I think they may be recruiting to get more manpower to run a meth ring, so we might want to avoid them.”

  “Great,” Corey said sarcastically. “I’ve always wanted to become a drug dealer. And our last option?”

  I looked at Kannon hopefully, but he looked nervous, so I knew it was going to be more bad news. “There’s a pack in Louisiana,” he told us. “But…”

  “But what?” Corey asked impatiently.

  “They have an unusual amount of cash flowing through a couple of pawn shops that don’t look like they can handle that much business,” Kannon admitted.

  “What does that mean?” I asked with a frown.

  “They could be using the pawn shops for money laundering,” Wyatt said reluctantly. “Or fencing stolen property?”

  “Probably both,” Kannon said with a sigh.

  “There has to be something else,” I said desperately.

  “It’s not
as easy to hide among the humans as it used to be,” Grayson told me. “Crime is one of the few occupations where you can make decent money while you exist outside of the system.”

  “Keep searching,” Grayson urged Kannon. “There’s always a chance you missed something.”

  “Maybe we were too quick to dismiss the packs with ties to the lamia,” Wyatt suggested. “The lamia might have different factions among them, just like the wolves do.”

  “That’s a big gamble to take,” Grayson said with a frown. “And the lamia will always back their own kind over a wolf.”

  A solemn air settled over us. Our choices were either lab rats for the lamia or career criminals. Great.

  “This was fun,” Corey said sarcastically. “But I’m going to bed.” He stood, and Wyatt followed his lead.

  “Not so fast,” Grayson told them. “We need to play nice with the lamia while we’re here. It would be helpful if we can get them to ease their restrictions around us and get them to trust us.”

  Corey snorted and gave him a dark look. “You mean that it would be nice if they loosened our leashes a little.”

  “They wouldn’t believe it if Corey suddenly started behaving,” Wyatt said wryly. “It would just make them more suspicious.”

  “Fine,” Grayson said. “But Wyatt, you should start coming with me when I train the lamia or go in the ring with them. It’ll be good for them to get used to seeing you as friendly.”

  Wyatt shrugged. “It’s not like I have anything else I need to be doing.”

  “Have you noticed the lamia being particularly focused on us using our abilities to fight the last few weeks?” Corey asked.

  Grayson shrugged. “This is a training facility for their warriors; it makes sense that Dr. Green’s observations have been centered around those skills recently.”

  “You think he’s using us to get insight as to how to fight other wolves?” Kannon asked.

  “I don’t know about that,” Wyatt said with a frown. “He seems more curious about what we’re capable of rather than how he can counter it.”