Brink Of Passion (Alpine Woods Shifters) (22 page)

“But isn’t Ryan older than you?”

“Yes, but I’m more dominant. As is Tyler and Colin, for that matter. Ryan was out of the running as soon as Tyler was born. When I was born, I knocked Tyler out. And although Colin is dominant, he’s not as strong as Tyler or me.”

“So the last Premier was your father?”

“No, Leah and Amy’s father was last Premier, but he didn’t have any sons. Even if he did, unless they were stronger than the rest of us, the mantle would have passed to me.”

Laurie rubbed her head, still not quite understanding the intricacies. Questions swarmed through her mind.

“What if someone else in the pack is more dominant than any of you?”

“That’s why it’s more of a royalty system. Dominance is only one factor. Unless he was a member of The Family, he wouldn’t be considered an option for Premier.”

“So, no matter what, the next Premier will be our child or Ryan’s?”

“Or Colin’s or Tyler’s. The selection pool goes back two generations. If we had any second cousins when I was chosen, they would have been considered as well.”

“Wait. What about Leah and Amy?”

Max shook his head before she’d even finished. “The line passes down through the males. Females get taken out of the running.”

That hardly seemed right. But, she supposed she could understand the Premier needing to be male. Unlike human kings and queens, a Premier needed to be strong enough to fight. Sure, she could hold her own in a fight, and considered herself a strong woman, but all three of her brothers would best her in a true battle of strengths.

“But if they have male children?”

“I never claimed it was a fair system. It’s just the way things have always been.”

Laurie stared at the button on Max’s shirt. Traditions were good, but not when they impinged on others’ basic rights. If Laurie was indeed
queen
, that meant she had the power to change things, didn’t it? She’d work on fixing things from the inside.

First, she had to make sure Max was around long enough to see the change. Another wave of fear swarmed her. She rode it out and waited for it to abate. No matter what, she’d keep him safe. Which meant figuring out who wanted him dead.

So who had motive?

“If you die, who becomes Premier?” If she understood his diatribe correctly, it would be Tyler, the least welcoming of the group.

Max didn’t answer. Turning her head, she saw a hard edge to his expression.

“It’s not a member of The Family.”

“Max, I know they’re your cousins, but you have to at least suspect—”

“No, I don’t.” His tone was sharp, cutting off any argument to the contrary.

Laurie bit her tongue to hold back the string of condemnation. Unreasonable. They weren’t discussing who stole the silver, where a desire to believe in the bonds of family could be considered noble and loyal. They were talking about his life. Everyone was guilty until proven innocent. And Tyler was at the top of her suspect list.

Max sighed, drawing her attention.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to snap. But I know they’re not behind this.”

“Why are you so certain?” Did he have information she didn’t? Know some secret? Because from everything she’d seen, it had to be someone close to him. Someone who knew where he was at any given time.

“If someone attacked Jason, would you suspect Ethan or Danny?”

The denial was instantaneous and deep. But Alpine Woods didn’t have the same structure the leap had. Her brothers were stronger as a team and ran the pack like a democracy.

Still, he’d made his point. She understood his reluctance to point fingers at his cousins.

Lucky for him, she had no such qualms.

Chapter 14

Two days later, Laurie clutched her pea coat around her and watched Tyler through her wide rimmed sunglasses. What was he doing? She crept closer as he looked at a magazine stand on the corner ahead of her. So far, he had walked in a four-block square around the apartment complex. Twice. Was he waiting for something to happen? Meeting an accomplice, perhaps?

Of course. He couldn’t do everything by himself. It would look suspicious later if he had no alibis for any of the accidents. But who? Someone in the leap or someone else in The Family? Tyler crossed the street and she followed as the light blinked red.

Shit! Laurie ducked into a flower booth on the corner as Tyler turned in her direction. Her heartbeat kicked frantically against her ribs. She breathed deep, trying to calm her nerves. She’d lost focus and gotten too close.

Had he seen her? She peered between two buckets of colored roses. He stood a few yards away gazing at the store where she hid.

Crap, crap, crap. She needed to be more careful if she wanted to remain undetected. Okay, so she’d never done anything like this before, but how hard could it be to spy on someone? TV shows never made it seem that difficult. Not that television was a good indicator of real life. Even so-called “reality” television was faker than plastic fruit.

But she was a predator. Tracking should be second nature, even if she was on two feet instead of four.

After what felt like hours, but was more likely a handful of seconds, Tyler turned away and continued walking. Laurie watched from her hiding place until he was almost lost in the crowd. Height, at least, was one thing in her favor. She could get lost in the crowd easier than he could.

She sped up when he disappeared around a corner. Someone shoved her. She pushed back, hurrying forward. She couldn’t lose her target.

Laurie turned the corner and froze. This street was less busy than the last, providing fewer hiding spots. But cover was the least of her concerns.

Her gaze shot left and right, scanning the street. It passed over the few strangers walking past. Damn it! She was sure he’d turned down here. Where could he have gone?

Laurie hurried forward, glancing into store windows as she passed.

Nothing.

As if he’d vanished into thin air, he was simply gone. Now what?

“Looking for someone?”

Laurie jumped as the words stirred the tendrils of hair curling around her ear. She spun around and met the unsmiling gaze of one of the grumpiest men she’d ever met.

“Oh. Hi, Tyler.” Her voice sounded high and pitchy. Crap, crap, crap.

He simply stared at her with his cold eyes.

“O-kay.” She searched for something to say. “Funny running into you here.” There. That sounded casual and not at all suspicious, right?

“Not really surprising, considering you’ve been following me.”

Her laugh sounded fake and brittle. “What? Following you?”

“Laurie,” he spoke as if to a child. “We’ve had someone following you since the poisoning, so even if I hadn’t spotted you a half hour ago, he would have informed me.”

Following? Her? She turned and searched the street but nothing stuck out.

“Moreover, you’re not very good at this.”

She turned back and narrowed her eyes at Tyler.

“Unlike you, our guard knows what he’s doing. You’d have never known if I hadn’t told you. Probably can’t even find him now.”

Laurie pouted. No way would she admit that she couldn’t.

“Mind telling me why you’re following me?”

“Why are you following me?” she shot back. Why was he always so…formal?

“Protecting Max. You are his weakness.”

Pride stung, she bristled.

“So you’re protecting me?”

“No. I’m protecting him. Your turn?”

She snorted. Yeah. Like that was going to happen. She wasn’t answering any of his questions. But he blocked her path when she tried to sweep past.

“We can do this the easy way, or the hard way,” he stated without an ounce of emotion. No anger. No fear. Nothing.

Laurie stiffened, drawing her head up and trying to look taller and more intimidating. Not that it helped much. Tyler still towered over her. But if he was after Max, she wouldn’t let him win. And if she was Max’s weakness, she wouldn’t go down without a fight.

“What exactly is the hard way?” Protecting her and threatening her in the same conversation didn’t jive.

“You don’t want to know.”

A part of her wanted to test him. Curiosity burned inside her. Maybe she did want to know. But the wiser part of her advised caution.

“Someone is after Max,” she said, letting her protective anger seep into her gaze.

“Yes, I believe we’ve established that.”

She crossed her arms at his cold tone, narrowing her eyes. Did he feel anything? Ever? “I think it’s you.” Blunt. And not intended. But the words had escaped before she could think better of them. Maybe she’d been desperate to see some emotion. Or maybe she was simply reacting to being cornered. She glanced around. There were still a few people wandering the street, and if she screamed someone would come running. He couldn’t hurt her with so many witnesses. Right?

A hint of a smile curled his lips. Laurie stared, shocked at the display. Did the tin man finally get a heart?

“Do you, now.” Not a question, but Laurie found herself answering anyway.

“I do.” The laughter coming from the main street made her bold. She wasn’t alone.

“And you came to this conclusion because…”

“If Max dies, you become Premier.” Max might have unwavering faith in his family, but she’d seen Hamlet and Mary Stuart. Knew the countless other stories throughout history of royalty killing each other off for a crown. Family meant little to those who craved power.

Instead of the calculation she expected to see on Tyler’s face, she saw surprise.

“And you followed me because…”

Laurie shrugged. Okay. Maybe not her most well-thought-out plan. But the need to act had burned deep inside her chest. It wasn’t as if she expected to catch him twirling his handlebar mustache or cackling over a cauldron. But Max wouldn’t even hear her suspicions. She needed proof. Either of guilt or innocence. If following him had yielded nothing, her next stop would have been breaking into his apartment.

“Does Max know what you’re doing?”

“Why does everybody always ask me that?” She was a grown woman, for Christ’s sake. She didn’t need permission to do something rash and foolish. “He’s my mate, not my keeper.”

“Maybe because you
need
a keeper.”

Laurie scowled, but saw no antagonism on his face, and his words lacked the expected ire. He seemed almost amused by her.

Laurie bit the inside of her lip. When he smiled, he lost some of the harshness in his features. Hell, he could almost pass for attractive. Almost.

“So?” His question dragged her out of her musings.

“So what?”

“What does Max think of your Harriet the Spy act?”

“Harriet the Spy? Couldn’t you at least give me Sherlock, or Sam Spade?”

He merely raised an eyebrow. Fine.

“He’s not thinking clearly on this.”

“Ah, so you did discuss it. Yet, you followed me anyway.”

“Max might be blinded by the idea of family, but I’m not.”

“So you came to take me on all by yourself, huh? Brave little wolf.” Approval colored his tone.

The compliment warmed her until she realized who gave it. She glared as he stepped closer, invading her personal space. Her feet twitched with the desire to retreat, but she held her place. No way would she give up ground to him. From the corner of her eye, she saw a man in a blue coat pass them.
He can’t hurt me here
, she chanted in her mind, fisting her hands at her side.

“I admire your spirit, if misplaced. Even if I did want to be Premier—I don’t, for the record—I would never harm Max to get it.”

“Because he’s family?”

“That, and because I have honor. I am not a snake to hide in the grass.”

Something about the force of his words made her pause. The word honor stuck out like a sore thumb. Tyler, cold though he seemed, always held himself with pride and respect.

Maybe he told the truth. But if he wasn’t the one behind the attacks, who was?

Colin. Her mind snared on the thought. Could it be possible?

After Tyler, he was the only one poised to benefit if Max died. But that would mean getting rid of Tyler, too. Unless Colin knew Tyler didn’t want the title. Could it possibly circumvent him? Which would mean he only needed to get rid of Max.

It almost hurt to think it, but nothing else made sense. She genuinely liked Colin. Of all Max’s family, he’d felt the most like home. The most like family. But with Max’s life on the line, she couldn’t let her feelings cloud her judgment.

“I can already tell I’m not going to like the direction of your thoughts.” And there was the scowl she’d grown so used to.

She opened her mouth, but paused. Tyler was Colin’s brother. Should she keep her suspicions to herself? Last time she’d shared her thoughts hadn’t gone so well. But if Tyler was determined to protect Max, maybe he’d be open to at least listen.

“Colin.”

“No,” he stated before she could finish the name. His certainty left no room for argument, but Laurie had never needed room to argue.

“If it’s not you—”

“No. I know you’re trying to help, but you’re way off base.”

“But—”

“No.”

“What if—”

“No.”

“I’m just trying—”

“No.”

“Fine.” Laurie huffed out a breath. She could just go investigate him on her own. Not that she was certain it wasn’t Tyler either. After their conversations, she was inclined to believe him. But who else could it be? What else, besides the power of Premier, could motivate someone to attack Max? He was like a beacon in the darkness. A bright light in the leap. Even if she did have rose-colored glasses on, she’d seen how great he was with everyone. How much they all loved and respected him.

She really didn’t want to believe Colin could be guilty. Unless he was a master at subterfuge, he didn’t seem the type to crave power. She’d just need to dig a little deeper. No one should mind a little investigation into their lives unless they had something to hide.

“Laurie,” Tyler growled, a warning in his voice.

“Yes?” she asked, molding her features into an innocent expression.

“I mean it. Don’t go…” Tyler’s gaze shifted over her shoulder, his eyes widening in alarm.