Masked

CHAPTER 14 | family secrets

Bitter memories and past demons mobbed Daniel's mind, ones he thought long forgotten and buried. But now they boiled to the surface and threatened to overwhelm him. How had he not seen this? The clues were there. How had they all missed it? Morgan and Abraham especially. This would be just as devastating to them and remind them of the past they left behind. A past none of them wished to return to.

He shook himself out of his nightmare. He had work to do. He needed to tighten security around the perimeter to safeguard his pack.

By the time he reached the house, he had already organized additional patrols and security measures with Ray. He was taking no chances. Mentally calculating how many of his pack lived outside the village in the nearby towns and cities, he telepathically linked to Adam and Vic to put the families on high alert. For now, he would need to keep this information limited—he had no doubt that once Werewolves knew who, and what, was actively targeting them, they would stampede back to their packs.

He called out for Simon to follow him as he reached his beta's office, and continued on without waiting for a reply.

Simon stayed silent as they walked into Daniel's office and shut the door.

Daniel took a seat behind his desk and indicated for Simon to do the same, shaking his head at Simon's fidgeting. His beta hated to be kept in the dark.

Daniel put the phone on speaker and dialed. He had to suppress a smile when Simon's thoughts strayed toward him.

Luna, it's to do with Parker. What does he think she's done this time?

He smirked. He was well aware of the betting pool his beta had instigated.

Morgan answered the phone and Simon shifted forward in his chair. His brows furrowed as he glanced at Daniel.

He bypassed any pleasantries. "Morgan, I need you to check your email. Now."

"I'm not at my desk. I'll head over there now and phone you back in five."

Daniel, not a patient man, spent the next four and a half minutes pacing the office, still not explaining anything to Simon. He answered the call before the first ring ended.

"Did you get it?"

Morgan's voice was strained. "Where was this taken?"

"San Diego, about a month ago. He's been identified as one of the pushers."

"Are you sure?"

"One witness so far." Daniel's phone beeped. He glanced at Parker's message and stiffened. "Make that three."

"Scheiβe!"

Simon's eyes narrowed, and he leaned forward to listen intently. Alpha Morgan only regressed into his native German under extreme stress.

Daniel pinched the bridge of his nose and briefly closed his eyes. "You do know what that means?"

"Of course, I verdammt well do," Morgan said. "Have the others been informed?"

"I have only just found out. We need to convene a meeting, the sooner, the better."

"Has Parker gotten any closer yet?"

"She's still working on it. The money has been traced to Europe—it seems to be bouncing around there." Daniel rubbed his jaw and frowned. "That alone should have tipped me off."

Morgan was silent for a few moments. "We can't go jumping to conclusions. It's been a long time. He may have gone rogue."

"I don't think we will be that lucky." Daniel paused. "I want to send Murphy to Europe. We need to know for sure."

A surprised yelp erupted from Simon as he fell off the edge of his chair and landed on the floor. He jumped up and stared at Daniel. As in O'Neill? Murphy O'Neill?

Daniel rolled his eyes. Why everyone only talked about Murphy in hushed tones was never clear to him. To be fair, his open defiance of the Alliance was legendary. While he did not like Murphy's blatant disregard for the chain of command, he fully understood where his pain came from. As such, he gave Murphy a lot more leeway than anyone else. The fact that he felt partly to blame for how things turned out twenty years ago may have had something to do with it.

Morgan let out a long exhale. "I agree he's the best candidate, but we both know he won't listen to the council, or do anything to help us."

Simon straightened up his chair. "But that grumpy black-eyed devil will listen to Daniel."

Daniel tapped his fingers on the desk and considered other options. There were none. Murphy had the skills needed and spoke the languages. What's more, he was from an alpha line and could hold his own a lot more than many of the alphas Daniel knew. "I know Murphy. This is bigger than the vendetta he has against the council. He will go. I just have to work out which FBI strings to pull to get him off whatever case he's currently on."

Simon rubbed the back of his neck and frowned. "But why is he going to Europe? Who do you think is behind Wildfire?"

"Daniel," Morgan said, interrupting the question. "Abraham's on the other line. I'll give him a heads up, then phone you back. In light of who's behind this, we need to talk about the danger to Parker. I would feel more comfortable if Clara and I were there to explain it to her."

Morgan hung up, and Daniel looked up to see that Simon's curiosity was on high alert. He felt his friend telepathically reaching out to his fellow betas.

He cleared his throat and waited for Simon to refocus his attention on their current problem.

"Um...sorry," Simon said. "Just making sure that my team is carrying out your last orders."

Daniel raised an eyebrow. "Good try. You wanted to see if they knew any more than you do."

Simon grinned sheepishly. "You can't blame a wolf for trying. So, what's going on? Who do you think is behind this?"

Daniel debated how to tell his friend. The uneasy feeling that had grown unchecked was now at fever pitch. "When are your parents due back?"

"By the end of the month. Why?"

"I want you to get hold of them and tell them to stay put. I'll speak to Alpha Tamas to make sure that if they need to go off pack land, they will be escorted."

Simon's eyes grew wide and he froze. "What are you not telling me?"

He hesitated. "Your Uncle Matheo is on American soil. That means his pack and Alpha Lauzon are as well."

Simon's breath caught, and his eyes flashed with fear that metastasized into the same waves of anger and pain that Daniel experienced. It would be the same for everyone old enough to understand.

Even his mind had initially rejected the thought of who was behind the death of their people. It wasn't possible. But that face could only mean one thing. One name. A name that hadn't been spoken in years.

One name.

One terrifying name.

Unum Sandulf.

One Pure Wolf.

She.Was. Back.