“It shouldn’t take that long.” Austin strolled in front of me and turned to face his pack. “As most of you know, the little girl’s mother is safe. What you don’t know is that Reno and Wheeler drove over to a man named Delgado’s house, took out several guards, broke into the house, and—”

“Saved two lives,” Wheeler added, still sitting with his back turned to Austin.

“Reno’s taking the mother and child to a safe house, so he won’t be back for a day or two. Delgado is a big fucking shark in our world. He owns Breed clubs, deals drugs, and it’s been brought to my attention that he’s also running cage fights.”

“Then we have to turn him in,” William said with a tight expression.

Austin nodded. “I agree, but as it stands, we don’t have evidence. Our star witness is running for her life, and she’s the only one who can testify what went on in that house—or wherever they originally kept her. The higher authority won’t serve a warrant without concrete evidence.”

Lexi looked up at Austin with a quizzical brow. “You said there were two.”

“The other is a young wolf who’s too traumatized at the moment to think straight. But yeah, he’s our best bet. I don’t know how much he knows about the cage fights—how much he’s seen.”

“I’ll talk to him,” Wheeler volunteered, polishing off the rest of his drink.

With two fingers, I pushed Wheeler’s shoulder to encourage him to turn around and face Austin. He held a submissive posture, afraid of the Packmaster’s judgment.

Wheeler turned just enough to face me, but no more.

Austin stuffed his hands in his pockets and gave him a brisk nod. “I’d appreciate that.” Then he gave everyone else his attention. “I spoke with Wheeler briefly in private, and while I don’t condone anyone defying my orders or keeping secrets, he’s not getting the boot. He’s still on probation, but he saved two lives, and a little girl has a mother to tuck her in tonight. I’d say our job is done.”

“So why are we here?” April asked. A worry line formed between her eyebrows—the kind a girl gets when her man is on the road and not safe in her arms.

“Things won’t be safe for a while,” Austin said in a rough voice. He cleared his throat and lowered his chin. “Delgado is a human, and he’s become a parasite in our world, hiding in dark corners and leeching off our weaknesses to expand his wealth. If we’re going to bring him down, then we’re bringing him down hard. But not at the expense of our family. One stupid move and the Council could dismantle our pack or throw us in jail. Let’s keep cool heads, and from here on out, we leave the house in groups of at least two. I don’t want anyone going out alone.”

“What about the shops?” Lexi asked.

“Work is fine, but go in pairs and no one stays in the shop alone. That’s the deal. See if you can flip the schedule so you don’t work late hours. One of the part-timers at April’s store shouldn’t have any problem earning a little extra money. That means everyone,” he said, giving the room a pointed look. “Including you, Denver. When you head out later, I want Ben going with you and staying at the bar for your full shift.”