Ithan stiffened, teeth flashing. Pure wolf. But the male opened the door wider, stepping aside. Tharion kept a healthy distance away as he entered. How many sunball games had Tharion watched where this male had scored the winning shot? How many times had he yelled at his TV, ordering Ithan to throw that fucking ball? It was weird to see him face-to-face. To go toe-to-toe with him.
Tharion plopped onto the ridiculously comfortable white couch, sinking deep into the cushions. “It occurred to me after I left last night that you didn’t say much about Danika.”
Ithan leaned against the counter. “What do you mean?”
Tharion smirked. “You might be a jock, but you’re not dumb. I mean about what I told Bryce last night.”
“Why would Danika tell me anything about knowing a rebel?”
“You were pretty damn close with her.”
“She was my Alpha.”
“You weren’t part of the Pack of Devils.”
“No, but I would have been.”
Tharion toed off his shoes and propped his bare feet on the coffee table. Sports news blared on the TV. “Weren’t you all set to go pro?”
Ithan’s face tightened. “That’s none of your business.”
“Right. I’m just Captain Whatever.” Tharion gave him a salute. “But if you knew about any involvement Danika had, if there was a place Danika might have told Sofie was safe for hiding here in the city that sounds like it might be where the weary souls find relief, or even if your brother—”
“Don’t talk about my brother.” Ithan’s snarl rattled the glasses in the kitchen cabinets.
Tharion held up his hands. “Noted. So you don’t know anything.”
“We didn’t talk about the rebellion, or the war, or anything of the sort.” A muscle ticked in Ithan’s jaw. “I don’t appreciate being dragged into this. Or having Bryce dragged into it, either. You’re endangering her simply by mentioning it. Hunting for a missing kid is one thing, but the shit with Ophion is deadly.”
Tharion gave the male a winning smile. “I have my orders, and I’m bound to obey them.”
“You’re an idiot if you don’t see the risk in spreading this intel about your queen searching for Emile.”
“Maybe, but what she’ll do to me if I disobey will be a Hel of a lot worse than what Sabine and Amelie did to you.” Another grin. “And I won’t have pretty Bryce to kiss my wounds after.”
Ithan snarled again. Did the wolf have any idea what he revealed with that snarl alone? He’d been such a smart sunball player, never broadcasting his moves. Seemed like he’d lost the skill.
But Tharion went on, “Danika did a lot of shady shit before she died. Bryce knows that. You’re not protecting her by refusing to talk.” Tharion eased to his feet, then stalked for the fridge, keenly aware of the wolf’s every breath.
He’d opened the door to rummage for snacks when Ithan said, “She was a history major.”
Tharion arched a brow. “Yeah?”
Ithan shrugged. “She once told me she was doing research on something that would likely land her in a heap of trouble. But when I asked her later what she’d gotten on the paper, she said she’d changed subjects. I always thought it was weird.”
Tharion shut the fridge door and lounged against it. “Why?”
“Because Danika was relentless. If she was interested in something, she didn’t stop. I didn’t really believe that she’d have changed the subject of her paper without good reason.”
“You think a college student found something top secret that led her to Ophion?”
“Danika wasn’t ever only a college student.”
“The same way you weren’t ever just a college sunball player, huh?”
Ithan ignored the barb. “You asked me about Danika. Aside from everything that went down with the synth, that’s the only thing I can think of. Sorry if it’s not what you hoped for.”
Tharion just looked at the male leaning against the counter. Alone.
Maybe he was a sappy bastard, but Tharion pointed toward the TV. “I missed the sunball game against Korinth last night and want to see the highlights. Mind if I watch with you while we wait for the others?”
Ithan frowned, but Tharion put a hand on his heart. “No secret spying stuff, I swear.” He sighed. “I could use a few minutes of peace.”
Ithan weighed the words, Tharion’s expression, with a keen-eyed sharpness that the wolf had used on his opponents. Perhaps the sunball player wasn’t dead after all.
But Ithan only said, “There’s leftover pizza if you’re hungry.”
15
Ruhn met his sister outside the Fae Archives right as the lunchtime crowds spilled into the warren of streets in Five Roses.
Amid the throng, few of the milling Fae noticed them, too focused on getting food or scrolling through their phones. Still, Bryce slid on a sunball cap and a pair of sunglasses as she stepped onto the blisteringly hot street that even the trees and greenery of FiRo couldn’t entirely cool.
“I’m not wearing that getup,” Ruhn said. Certainly not in Fae territory. “People are going to figure out who you are pretty damn fast.”
“I can’t take any more of the gawking.”
“Comes with the territory.”
Bryce grumbled something Ruhn chose not to hear. “So Tharion’s back at the house?” he asked as they headed toward her apartment.
“Yep. Already grilling Ithan.” Which was why she’d asked him to come as backup. A fact that gave him no small amount of satisfaction.
They crossed a busy intersection teeming with Fae and shifters, the occasional draki making their way past. Ruhn said, “I take it you didn’t invite me to walk you home for some muscle in the mean streets of Crescent City.” He wryly nodded to the angels and witches soaring overhead, the little otter in his yellow vest scooting by, the family of some sort of equine shifters trotting between the cars.
She glared at him over her sunglasses. “I wanted to discuss something with you—and I don’t trust the phone. Or messages.”
Ruhn blew out a breath. “I know the shit with Cormac is absurd—”
“It’s not about Cormac. It’s about Danika.”
“Danika?”
“I saw Fury this morning. She told me Danika was a bloodhound. Do you know what that is?”
“Yes,” Ruhn said, surprise shooting through him. “You’re simply … telling me this?”
His sister waved a dismissive hand. “Danika kept a lot of things from me. And I don’t see the point in keeping secrets anymore.”
“It’s okay to be pissed at her, you know.”
“Spare me the self-help lecture, okay?”
“Fair enough.” He rubbed his jaw. “I guess this explains how Danika knew we were siblings before anyone else.” He’d never forget running into Bryce and Danika at that frat party—his first time seeing his sister in years. And how Danika had stared at him. Then looked at Bryce, brows high. He’d known in that moment that Danika had guessed what no one else had, even as Bryce introduced him as her cousin. He’d chalked it up to her uncanny observation skills.