Page 19 of Let's Talk One True Mate

Timber grinned. Burton only glared.

“C’mon, Chief, hear me out.”

Burton’s face remained stony. Timber hoped he was listening anyway.

“Bruin went with the team to search for Amaranth. They spent a month visiting cities with river walks, but turned up no clues. Nothing interesting happened while they were gone—everyone out at VF was canoodling; we were putting up cameras and wiring up the station and VF, plus supporting Sebastian's investigation, but there were no new mates found. As soon as Bruin and the others returned from their search, BAM, Bruin met Willow out at the Honey Depot.”

Burton looked confused momentarily. He shook his head, then said, “Are we sure she’s a One True Mate?”

Timber raised a brow, surprised at the question. “Well, considering she returned Bruin’srenquaby touching him, and then all the otherbearen renqua, yeah, I’m pretty sure she is, plus she helped Ella through a c-sectionto deliver Track and Treena,with no drugs.”

Burton looked at Timber with an expression that clearly said, ‘bullshit’.

“She considers her power to be a kind of super-charged empathy that lets her see what people are thinking, and she can help them with physical and emotional pain.”

Timber sat on the edge of his desk. “Ask Ella about it, she’ll tell you. She says Willow quite possibly saved her life and the lives of the twins.”

Burton dropped his eyes, his expression conflicted. He may have hated a long line of fire chiefs, but Timber knew he loved Track and Treena, and Ella, too. If Ella said it, then it was true, in Burton’s eyes. Burton looked defeated and Timber hated to see it.

Timber stretched and said, “I gotta get outside. Let’s take a walk.”

Canyon stood, nodding. Burton didn’t respond.

“Come on, Chief, let’s walk and talk.”

Burton got up and walked quietly out of the bunker with them. They made their way through the tunnels, until they came to a door with, ‘Dirty Deputy’ scrawled on it. Timber put his eye up to the retina scanner, opening the door, revealing concrete steps leading up. Up they went, to a landing with a door on the far side. At that door, another retinal scanner released the lock,and they all stepped into daylight in SPD’s private park, full of lush foliage and paths through thick trees.

“Crap,” Timber said, blinking in the sunlight. “I guess we’re not making it up the bluff by sunrise.”

“Just give me the short version of the rest of it—I’m tired,” Burton said, as they chose a trail and headed down it, Timber in the lead, Canyon bringing up the rear.

Timber spun around to face Burton, walking backwards. “Wait, you've been up all night?”

“Yeah, yeah. I'll sleep in my office, once you’re done.”

“No, way, Chief, I'm taking you home.”

“Just tell me what’s left—there can’t be too much more—bullet points only.”

Timber turned back around, thinking he was going to loop them back around to the tunnels. “We’ll tell you tomorrow,” he said over his shoulder. “I'll take you home now, or to VF, or wherever Eventine is.”

From behind him came a long, low, vicious growl, chilling Timber.Oh shit. He spun around and put his hands up. “Whoa, hold on there, Chief. No need to get all murdery and stuff. I’m on it—bullet points. Give me a sec...”

The trio walked on in silence, faintly hearing cars whiz by on unseen streets beyond the park boundaries, but the critters in the park had all fallen silent when the predators entered.

“Ok, got it,” Timber said, turning around to face Burton, walking backwards. “So Willow owns the Honey Depot and Bruin met her there, but just before that happened, Soren Brenwyn went there looking for Rogue. He found Willow, told her he was a wolf and took her on a date, but they didn’t even make it into the restaurant. Once our team figured out it washim, the chase was on. He got away but Bruin got the girl, and the first time she touched him, hisrenquareturned.”

Timber spotted a familiar path and pointed at it, heading that way. “Let’s go to the Clink.” The others followed.

They pushed their way through thick brush until they reached the Clink, which was nothing but a clearing with makeshift seats made from logs and stumps, surrounding a natural hole in the ground. Small piles of pinecones dotted the area. Canyon and Timber both grabbed a handful of pinecones while Burton sat down.

Timber stood at the edge of the clearing and lobbed a pinecone at the hole in the center, which was about six inches across, perfect for chucking pinecones or rocks into when they need to think or blow off steam. Someone had lined a portion of the hole with metal, so rocks that hit just right made a satisfying ‘clink’ sound.

Timber and Canyon took turns lobbing pinecones into the hole while Timber spoke.

“Later, Seb, Harlan, and Wade interviewed Boe out at Rogue’s house. You’ve been out there, right Chief?”

“Yeah.” Burton scuffed his boots in the grass. “He’s dying.”

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