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“I’m not a cop,” I said. “I’m a hunter, that’s true. But I didn’t kill Lola. Now, are you going to ease up and let me talk or are you going to continue to threaten the only lead you have on finding your sister’s killer?”
He growled, a low guttural sound that sent my heart fluttering.Fuck. How was that sound so sexy coming from him? There were so many reasons Xander Vega was off limits but holy hell he was a fine specimen of a male. I didn’t date shifters. They were too possessive and clingy, but in another time, I might have made an exception for him.
Xander took a step back and swept his arm toward the couch. Silently, I walked to it, taking a seat on the end as close to an armrest as I could get.
He sat on the other end, his knees turned to me, his eyes locked on mine. His expression was less intense than it had been. Less murderous, I suppose. But he was still giving me a warning in his look.
“Listen, we both want the same thing here,” I said, trying to ease the tension hanging between us. “Unless you’re the one who wanted your sister dead. In which case, I will not hesitate to take you down.”
His lips turned upward in the slightest smile. “I appreciate that. And I can see why Lola liked you.”
“She was my best friend.” I had to clear my throat to keep it from getting too tight again. My tears were private and I’d cry them when I was alone. And after I shoved my knife through the heart of Lola’s killer.
“Tell me what you know,” he said.
“I came home from a hunt and found our place trashed and Lola dead.” I swallowed, taking a moment to consider how much I should tell him.
He hadn’t seen his sister in years and she had never once told me about him. I had no idea if they were close or why they weren’t in contact. He wasn’t showing visible emotion, but I could sense the shift in how he was feeling. As if he was hiding his anger and grief. It was possible he was holding back tears, just as I was.
My intuition was usually spot on, but I wasn’t sure if I trusted myself around him. I had no reason to trust him and no reason to feel safe with him. For the first time in my life, I worried that I was being blinded by attraction. Was this how men felt around attractive women? It was like I was half thinking with my hormones which wasn’t like me.
“Do you want the details or is that too much?” I asked.
“Tell me.” A vein in his forehead appeared as he tightened his jaw. He was bracing himself.
I nodded once. “They tortured her with silver. There were tiny silver pins inserted in her arms. As if they were trying to get her to talk before they took her out.”
Xander stood and walked over to the desk before turning and walking back. He paced back and forth a few times, occasionally running his hand through his jet black hair.
Finally, he stopped and looked at me. “You know more. Don’t hold back.”
“Yes, there’s more.” I hesitated, unsure of where to begin and what to include. What if someone from the pack was responsible for this? What if Xander was involved?
Xander sat back down on the couch. “Tell me everything. Don’t leave anything out.”
“Why did she leave?” I had to know who she was running from. I wasn’t about to give up the information she’d died for if she’d fled from her own brother.
“She had to,” he said. “To protect the pack.”
“Why?” I needed to know if I should proceed. Elias had said the stone was capable of starting a war. I wasn’t about to get in the middle of supernatural politics. As far as I was concerned, I was neutral. I didn’t take sides. I hunted shifters and vampires equally. No favorites.
“She had a job to do and she did it. She knew the risks. We all did. It had to be done,” he said, but it was as if he was talking to himself.
“You knew where she was this whole time?” I asked.
“No, that’s part of it, she couldn’t tell us where she went.”
“She was protecting something, wasn’t she?” I asked.
Xander’s expression changed just enough that I knew I was right. She wasn’t fleeing from her pack, she’d left to hide the stone.
I needed the information Xander had to help me figure this out. Making a decision, I pulled the shiny rock out of my pocket and presented it to Xander. “Is this why they killed her?”
Xander recoiled, physically moving away from the stone.
I closed my hand around it and slid it back in my pocket. “I’m sorry. Does it effect you?”
“No,” he said. “It’s just what it represents.”
