The Alpha’s Forbidden Claim

18

Austin Health and Care Clinic

Austin, Texas

I

sat in the parking lot across the street, watching the free clinic and the people filtering around it. There was more than one free clinic in Austin and the surrounding metro, but one of the folks I’d spoken with last night mentioned this one by location. It seemed as good a place as any to start, but…

Someone was following me.

I glanced in my rearview mirror, pretending to touch up the makeup I wasn’t wearing while I scoped out the black Land Rover SUV. They clearly weren’t professionals; even in a city like Austin, Land Rovers weren’t common. I hadn’t noticed anyone following me last night — I’d taken an Uber back to a nearby diner after Eli kicked me out of the Moonmate party. I got a decaf coffee before walking back to the motel. This wasn’t my first rodeo. If someone were following, I’d have noticed.

I slept in a little this morning, but I headed out for breakfast once I’d showered and dressed more comfortably for early September. A shifter tailed me to the small coffee house. Ignoring him, I ordered my dark roast with cream and a coffeecake muffin. After I’d eaten and headed back towards the motel to get my car… the same shifter was still following me. He looked nondescript enough, but I was still a wolf and could smell him.

Yet another reason I knew he wasn’t a professional.

Not at this, anyway.

And now, an hour later, the Land Rover was parked at the far end of the street. I wasn’t an i***t. I knew Eli had told the guards to keep an eye on me last night, but I hadn’t considered they’d take it outside of the party. If I’d known these lumbering assholes would make my entire day this much more difficult, I’d have thought twice about peeking into the office.

I didn’t even find anything worthwhile.

I snorted and shook my head. If they wanted to follow me inside, by all means. Maybe the Silverstreak pack would take Cyn’s disappearance more seriously — if nothing else, they’d see I didn’t care about their rich boy alpha.

As I walked across the street, I saw not one but two guards step out of the vehicle. I rolled my eyes, unsure if I was annoyed or flattered he thought I needed two guards on me.

Admittedly, I hadn’t realized that Eli and Remus were half-brothers, either. I’m not sure that knowing he was related to the Silverstreak alpha would have tempered my tongue, but… Well, I was no expert on pack politics — Obviously. I hadn’t been a member of a pack since my parents’ death — that was one of the problems of being in the foster care system.

I suppose I could have petitioned to join one when I became an adult, but I was too busy earning my way. I didn’t want to waste my time flattering some alpha boy whose ego was too big to fit inside his head, and I certainly didn’t want to be limited in where I could go or work. Having a pack didn’t serve me.

Sure, being a lone wolf was supposed to be every wolf’s worst fear, but…

It certainly worked for me.

Banishing Eli’s guards from my mind, I trotted up the front steps to let myself into the building. The guards hadn’t moved from their post, and I smiled before I gave myself a shake, putting on my professional face. Even at this hour, the free clinic was busy. I could tell at once they didn’t serve only shifters but humans, too. Which meant they probably didn’t realize they were helping shifters unless they unknowingly had one on staff.

Shifters ran free clinics for shifters but were few and far between. There was one in Travis County but outside Austin city limits. I might still check it out later, but I had my doubts. Far fewer patients meant each doctor had more bandwidth. More personalized care, even if it was free. They were more careful about what they gave to shifters because they were shifters; they knew what would work and what wouldn’t.

They’d also probably notice if their patients kept going missing, with far fewer of them. I couldn’t guarantee that, but it seemed like less favorable hunting grounds than an underfunded clinic where patients outnumbered doctors four to one.

I grimaced at the thought. All of it was uncomfortable. I couldn’t focus on the social ills at play, or I might never find my way back out of that rabbit hole. That was why I was a private detective — to right what wrongs I could. If I tried to take on the whole damn world, I’d get pulled down by the undercurrent.

Finally, it was my turn to see the intake nurse. I knew this was going to take a bit of finesse, but… Glancing over my shoulder told me I didn’t have time for finesse. There were plenty of people behind me waiting to check in after me, and I knew the nurse wouldn’t appreciate it if I wasted her time.

“Good morning,” I greeted her quietly, placing my hands on her desk. “I just have a question.”

She didn’t even look up, still scribbling something on the last patient’s intake form before swiveling around in her chair, putting it in one of many multicolored files. “Do you need to see a doctor, miss?”

“I…” I glanced around. “It’s just a question.”

“If you don’t need to see a doctor, I will have to ask you to step aside and come back later. We’re a bit busy.”

I sighed, my shoulders slumping slightly. “Okay,” I replied. “Okay, I need to see a doctor.”

“Name?”

“Iris Walker.”

“Age?”

“Twenty-three.”

“Are you currently pregnant or nursing?”

“No.”

Her list of queries went on. I described my ‘symptoms’ to her, explained any known health problems, and declined to give anyone as my emergency contact. Eventually, the invasive game of twenty questions ended, and she slid the paper to me with a pen. “Please sign and date here. This is your agreement that all the information here is correct.”

I signed and slid the paper back. She finally looked up, offering me an exhausted smile. “Please take a seat over there.” She nodded towards the crowded waiting room. “Someone will call you as soon as they’re able.”

Before I so much as moved, she called the next person forward. I hurried to find a seat, tucking myself as far into the corner as I could. A kid was coughing nearby, and another child complained of an aching stomach at the other end of the room. My skin crawled as I curled in a little more on myself.

Just don’t get sick, Iris. The last thing you need to do is to get sick.