Season of the Witch (Claws Clause 2)

He had no damn choice. That wasn’t the only thing Diaz was right about. As the strongest shifter in the Zoo, the strongest predator in the Bumptown and a still unmated male, Colt was the best choice to stand up for the local Paras.

In a way, they were like his second pack. The motley crew of weaker shifters who made up the Zoo, the Dayborns who lived on Sunset Boulevard, the ghosts like Dodge who haunted along Cemetery Row… as the closest thing to an Alpha that the Bumptown had, Colt could help the police department, keep himself occupied, and work off some of his urge to lead without having to challenge Maddox—or, Alpha help him, his father—for control of his home pack.

“Okay,” he allowed. “You made a good point. I’ll do what I can to help.”

Colt thought his acceptance would satisfy the cop. The strangest thing happened, though. As if his shields cracked, or the scent-reducer finally failed, a hint of unease drifted from Diaz over to Colt. The rangy detective tensed enough to be noticeable.

Colt had the sudden suspicion that he’d been set up.

There was something the cop hadn’t told him. He’d put money on it.

Diaz cleared his throat. “That’s great. Appreciate it, Wolfe. So, uh… I guess I should tell you about the officer you’re gonna be working with on this. He’s a good guy, it’s just...”

The tang of salt hit Colt next as the cop’s words trailed off. Diaz was... sweating?

Okay.

Colt was definitely set up.

He frowned. “Do I know him? Who is he?”

“Before you say anything, I just want to put it out there that you already agreed. This officer was handpicked by the warden, and the chief of police already signed off on this. It’s out of my hands.”

That didn’t bode well. After three years of visiting Maddox in the Cage, Colt got to know a good amount of the Grayson PD force. Each officer had to spend at least one year early on in their career working at the Cage to remind them that “Protect and Serve” referred to Paras, too. Some were alright—he got along pretty well with Bennett, one of the round-the-clock guys—but there were a couple who were outright dicks.

So long as it wasn’t—

“Corporal Wright will be your partner in this.”

“You mean Adam Wright? Fuck no.”

“Wolfe—”

“I said fuck no. I take it back. Find the corpse on your own.” Colt grabbed the edge of his door, prepared to slam it shut. “As far as I’m concerned, this is a Vamp-Ant problem. No way am I partnering with that asshole. You can leave me out of it.”

Anyone but Wright. For the good of the Bumptown and the paranormal community, Colt would’ve sucked it up and worked with any cop but Wright.

The Ant always went out of his way to give Colt hell every time he checked in at the Cage this past year, and that was before he tried to steal Evangeline away from Maddox.

He would never forgive Wright for that dick move. Between the Wolfe brothers, they agreed that Wright deserved an ass-kicking for what he did, going after a married—and mated—woman. For some reason, though, Evangeline felt sorry for her old friend. Maddox couldn’t retaliate, not if he didn’t want to upset his mate.

Colt, on the other hand, still owed Wright for all the snide comments and shitty remarks he’d heard from Wright while Maddox was still inside. Pretty boy? Your kind? With a temper like his, Colt didn’t have it in him to forgive and forget. If he didn’t lash out straight away, that was only because he was holding back.

If he purposely agreed to work with Adam Wright, odds were better that he’d forget he was hunting a Nightwalker and take all of his aggression out on the arrogant Ant.

“Look. Between me and you, I get it. I told my sergeant that maybe Wright’s not the best choice for this task force. He doesn’t like Paras and he doesn’t hide that fact. Thing is, he’s not the only one on the force that thinks like that. The best I can do is find him a partner that won’t put up with his shit. Because you’re wrong, Wolfe. This isn’t just a Vamp-Ant problem. Not anymore.”

“What are you saying, Detective?”

Diaz didn’t even bother to conceal his anger. “The Nightwalker got a Para last night.”

“You’re fucking with me.”

“I’m not.”

“Fuck.”

“I know. They’re keeping it under wraps for now… it