Page 25 of Lightning Strikes

Chapter 9

Mac

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It took until three in the morning to get Angela settled enough to sleep. Luckily for her, she doesn’t work again until this weekend… Unfortunately for me, I’m at work, barely able to keep my eyes open as I suck down another cup of stale, cold coffee from the break room. The meeting was bogus, just going over the drugs around the town and how to be swift in capturing the dealers and runners.

Instead of patrolling, my fucking job, I’m filing. Answering phones. And being Morrow’s bitch. He’s been sending me death glares for the better half of the morning, and I want nothing more than to shift and eat him. He’s hated me for about a decade now… Since I was a rookie cop, I didn’t care about allegiances to all of my superiors. I cared about the law, followed it to the letter.

I still do, but now I’m more relaxed, calmer about letting humans go for speedingsix over the speed limit.I don’t accept bribes or blackmail humans. I just use my senses and figure out if they’re lying or not. Emergencies and accidents happen. Breakups, break-ins, and families in the hospital. I let them go with a warning and have escorted others if it’s an emergency. I don’t give a shit about the quotas for tickets.

And I sure as fuck don’t use my body or anyone else’s as a currency.

Unlike Chief Morrow… I was barely six months into my new job. I was on a lunch break in town, my partner had dropped me off at a sandwich shop on Main when I saw Morrow shoving someone into an alley. I stepped out and stalked them, hid in the shadows and used my senses to listen to what was going on.

That piece of shit was blackmailing a man to get onto his knees for him and he would forget about the man texting and driving while speeding in a school zone. I recorded it and immediately called my partner to take me to the precinct to talk to the chief.

Two days later, Chief Leroy was in a fatal accident, and captain Morrow was moved into the chief position. My recording missing, or destroyed, and he’s been watching me closely ever since.

Calling me out, setting me up, and apparently even sic’ing his daughter on me. I suppose it could be worse. He could have followed me home to the pack lands, he could have tried to kill me… Apparently he cares more about the power he ‘yields’ and thinks he’s put me in my place.

I know better. I see through it.

Usually, I fight back and call him out when I’m pulled from my duties to play assistant. But today? I’m exhausted. My parents are going to be calling packs in areas they believe to be in secluded communities and try to get us a meeting for next week at the earliest. Angela is going to figure out what to do with her clinic, either keeping it in her name and hiring managers, or selling it and washing her hands of her ‘baby’.

Angela… Fuck, she was so upset last night. Swung from enraged, to sullen, crying, to gasping for air while I held her back from decapitating the pregnant wolf that destroyed her home and vehicle. She would regret it, no matter what Carolina had done. I know her. Even if she thinks her healing magic can be monstrous, she’s an angel. Always has been, and always will be.

Adam promised to clean up her cabin and pay for all of the repairs and he would deal with Carolina.

Yeah, like we trust anything that comes out of his mouth. Cheating piece of shit.

I caught him several times over the years that he and Ang were together. His excuses were believable, and I warned Angela regardless… She would talk to him about it and then they were fine.

For. Years. He would be in compromising positions with women. Human or shifter, it didn’t matter. Regardless of our small community, we still had visiting packs come through and stay with us while passing through or making alliances…

Apparently he would have those meetings from his bedroom between his sheets. He would have gotten away with everything if Carolina didn’t get pregnant.

She was from a different pack and stayed in Prescott all on her own. That should have been the red flag, but Adam is so fucking smooth, so enigmatic that he talked his way out of all of it.

I know that Angela could scent women around his bedroom and around the alpha house. She believed his lies and just moved on. She loved him, fuck… She loved him. He tore her heart into pieces and I blame myself. I pushed them together and I stood back and watched as he pampered her, made her feel like a queen… All the while he was also courting other women and didn’t give a shit about her.

After losing her? Then he cared. He saw what he was losing and how they will never be able to repair the friendship they had cultivated for almost two decades. With him being a few years older than her, he never paid any attention to her until she turned eighteen… Then he didn’t make his move on her until she opened up her practice about ten years ago… Another five years to be official. She didn’t trust him, for good reason.

It was me that finally convinced her to give him a chance. It was a whirlwind romance after that. As soon as she said ‘yes’, they were never out of each other’s sights unless she was working or he had ‘meetings’.

“Daniels. My office, now.” I cock a brow at the piece of shit standing in the doorway. I sigh as I toss my empty cup into the trash and follow him to his office.

“What’s going on, sir?”

He ignores me as he opens his door and points at the chair in front of his desk. I grumble under my breath as I collapse into the old metal chair, staring forward, glancing through the plastic blinds that overlooks our rear parking lot.

He sits down at his desk directly in front of me and smiles smugly at me. “Seems we have a bit of a problem, Daniels… Laura is home from the hospital and told me personally to report that you slept with her without her consent and she wants to press charges. That’s the cause of her… mental break.”

I laugh. I slam my eyes shut, head falling back, and laugh until I’m coughing. “Oh, Morrow. You pathetic fucker. You think anyone in this building will believe her? What if I call the Orlando PD and ask for some reference statements on her character,sir?I can also request her medical records. That crazy bitch doesn’t even know who the fuck we are… So tell me… How did she come to the conclusion to tell you anything of the sort, know who I am, and come up with a blatant lie such as that?” I smirk at him and watch his face pales.

He sputters and gapes at me, I wink at him. “How’s yourdaughterreally doing, sir?” His face colors as he flushes with rage and I sit back with my arms crossed over my chest. “That’s what I thought. I’m sick of your shit, Morrow. The department will know the truth before I leave this forsaken town, and I will drive away with a smile on my face. Do you really think that recording I turned in was the only one?” I cluck my tongue at him and take off my hat so that I can run my fingers through my unruly hair. “It’s not. I have several… And the coroner’s report on what really happened to Chief Sanders… So. Either you will pack up and get the fuck out, or I’ll ruin your life.”

I’m bluffing, but he doesn’t know that. No matter how much I offered the people in this town for information, they are either too afraid of Morrow, or in leagues with the psychopath. I stare him down until he chokes on his breath and stands up on shaking legs.

“I’ll… I’ll leave.” He shoves open his drawers and tosses everything into a duffel bag he had under his desk and I continue glaring at him until he’s packed up.

“Type up your resignation letter and pass it over to the captains. Tell them you have personal health issues and are moving to Phoenix for better care. You will sell your house and take your psycho daughter with you wherever you go. Make sure that Captain Leroy is the next chief and we won’t have any more problems.” I wave as I step out of the office with a smile plastered on my face. I step back into the break room and stare out at the busy streets. I know he won’t make this easy… He’s not going to leave town until he handles me, or tries to… It would be a good idea to stay somewhere in town so I don’t lead anyone into pack lands, and it’ll be worth it.

We haven’t had any entertainment in a long time. Or at least I haven’t. Laura is taken care of for the time being… Morrow will be a handful, especially with how many people he has under him all over this town. Unfortunately for them… They’re human. And I’m not.

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