Page 13 of Butterfly Assassin
Aaron didn’t like it one bit. Their relationship with humans was pretty good in general. The laws put in place seemed to do their job most of the time. For those that broke the law, they had the alpha council and Krillick Hall. Not wanting to sound like he’d been watching too much TV, Aaron bit his lip but then said it anyway. “So there’s a shifter serial killer out there. And none of the packs are talking.”
Harry grimaced, and Aaron followed suit. It sounded worse when he said it out loud.
“We were so near to where the body was found.” Harry fidgeted in his seat. “We might have seen them. Fuck, they might have been at the bloody fight.” He glanced up at Aaron with wide eyes. “We could be witnesses, A. Should we tell someone? Sam or—” He swallowed and gestured to the TV. “—maybe the SCTF?”
The thought of owning up to what they’d been doing made Aaron feel sick. But people were dying. “I wasn’t paying much attention to the crowd Friday night. And the smell…” He wrinkled his nose. “Were there any other shifters there besides you?”
“A couple, maybe.”
“Did you recognise any of them?”
Harry gave him a pointed look. “No. We tend to avoid each other like the plague. None of us should be there, so the less we know about each other the better. The stench of alcohol and cigarette smoke helps mask pack scents.”
Aaron nodded. It did. And he could see why they wouldn’t want to acknowledge each other. “In that case, is there any point in coming forward? We have nothing relevant to add to the investigation.”
“I know, but…” Harry shrugged again and bit his lip.
Aaron got it. He felt the same need to come clean to their alpha. Keeping secrets in a pack was never a good thing, but since they no longer had a beta, it had been easier to fool themselves into thinking they weren’t hurting anyone. But people were dying, and despite what he believed, they might well have information that could help the police.
“What if someone else comes forward? One of the other shifters who was there on Friday? They must’ve seen the news. Even if they didn’t notice me there, they would you.”
Aaron bristled. That hadn’t actually occurred to him.
Stupid.
They might avoid each other, but there was no avoiding him—they probably made bets on his fights. He would if he was them.
“Even if we get into trouble—”
“Which we will.”
Harry glared at him for interrupting. “Even then. It’ll be far worse if Sam has to hear it first from another alpha or the police.”
Shit. Aaron ran a hand through his hair. “We’re gonna have to tell him.”
Slumping in his seat, Harry sighed and reached for his phone. “Yeah.” Aaron watched as he typed out a message.
“Who’re you texting? Isaac?”
Harry nodded. “I think he’s our best option.”
“Me too.” When they lost their beta, Aaron had hoped they might get moved into Isaac’s unit, but they hadn’t. Isaac was the kind of beta everyone wanted: fair, loyal, willing to listen. And he always protected his unit.
“I’ve told him we need to see Sam urgently, in regard to the recent killings.”
Aaron raised his eyebrows. “Fuck’s sake, he’ll think we did it.”
“I want him to take us seriously.”
Aaron snorted despite the gravity of the situation. “I suspect that’ll do it.”
A few seconds later, Harry’s phone buzzed with an incoming text, startling them both.
“What’s it say?” Aaron leaned forward across the table.
“Meeting with him and Sam in twenty minutes.”
They stared at one another.
