Trouble

Chapter 2

Chapter 2

October 2018

“Danny!”

Daniel Jones looked up from his dinner, which he was eating in the small canteen in his office building instead of at home and smiled. “Benny, good to see you. What are you doing here?” He stood, extending a hand.

Benny ignored the offered handshake and wrapped his old friend in a bear hug. “I had a meeting upstairs. Lackey, errand boy stuff, which is what I get for being a junior lawyer. No one else wanted to make the drive on a Friday. What about you? I haven’t seen you in months. You look good.”

“I did the last of my practicum stuff in Miles City, had to get a study extension from Theo to do it. That was a headache. But I got it done and then I got offered a job here in Missoula. Just transferred. Next week will be my first time back with the gang in I don’t even know how long.”

“It’ll be good to have you back. Hasn’t been the same without you.”

“Do you have a minute?” Danny asked, tucking in his tie. “We should sit, catch up.”

“I’d like that,” Benny said, pulling out the other chair. They sat. They were they only ones in the space at this hour, so they could speak freely. “I take it you passed the bar?”

“Flying colors. You, too?”

Benny nodded.

“Must have made your old man proud.”

Benny forced a smile. Most people didn’t know the tension that existed in his home life and he liked to keep it that way. “At least I didn’t piss him off. But your dad, now he must have been beside himself.”

“Yeah. Couldn’t believe that the son of a tradesman had passed the state bar. I could hardly believe it either. But enough about school and dads.” He didn’t know the details, but you didn’t go into law if you didn’t know how to read people and he could see this wasn’t the best subject for Benny. “Tell me what’s been going on in Stevensville and Florence this past while.”

“Oh, well, it’s been exciting.” He leaned back in his chair. “We got a new member.”

“Juvenile?”

“Yeah, that too, but we got a transfer just before I got back from school.”

“Really? I’m surprised. You don’t see that much.”

“I’m surprised we don’t see more of it, the economy being what it is and how the packs are positioned. He came in, got a little mixed up with Heidi Brant while he was getting settled, you remember her?”

“Vaguely, about the same age as your brother, right?”

“Yeah, that’s her. Anyway, there was some mix up, cops thought this poor kid was involved with drugs or something. Ended up he led to the busting up of a drug ring.”

“Wow. Guess that’ll keep you in business, Mr. Local Lawyer.”

“I’m not in the business of defending drug dealers and I don’t work for the District Attorney’s office or the cops or anything so no, I probably won’t see anything of that case. Thank dGod.”

“I always thought criminal law was the way to go, so much more glamourous. But wills and real estate, that’s where the stable money is.”

“Always play the safe bet.”

“What happened to the guy?”

“Ended up with Kendra Walsh, who took over as the pack’s accountant by the way.”

“What? How old is she?”

“Young. Pissed a few people off. There were rumors about her and Theo for a while.”

“I’ll bet.”

“Then Kent went and got himself kidnapped by the Human Order.”

“I did hear something about that through the pack grapevine. Quite the take down you were involved in.”

“Yeah. It was different. I mean, we go out in the summer sometimes and hunt in the forest. But people aren’t deer.”

“Did you …”

“No.”

Danny nodded. “I don’t think I could either. How was Kent?”

“They did a real number on him. Put him in the hospital. Worked out for the best though.”

“Oh? How the hell does getting tortured by a terrorist organization work out for the best?”

“You can’t tell anyone. I don’t think a lot of people know.”

“Lips are sealed man, you can trust me.”

“He got mixed up with Heidi too, bad, got him hooked on coke. He wasn’t too far gone though, and the blood loss combined with the hospital stay kicked him of the habit. Still watching him, of course, but he’s got a nice girl and a solid job keeping him straight. I think he’ll stay level.”

“Wow, you weren’t kidding. Did I miss anything else?”

“Theo sent Heidi to rehab, finally.”

Danny nodded. “So, they did end up opening it. They were talking about it for years.”

“Open what?”

“A rehab center for shifters. It’s super low-key but it took a lot of time to get the property set up and get all the paperwork in order and get shifters who work in the proper fields to agree to work there. Can’t send a shifter to regular rehab because of full moons.”

“Right. Was there seriously a need?” He was thinking back to the empty bottles in his dorm room, the nights where he couldn’t sleep without a drink, the days where he couldn’t keep his eyes open without one. He’d thought himself alone, weak.

“Oh yeah.” Danny was nodding emphatically. “You haven’t seen the stats? It’s scary, really. A lot of shifters think they’re immune to addiction. Hasn’t been this bad since the Vietnam War.”

“I didn’t realize. I guess it’s a good thing they got it set up. Must have been a logistical nightmare. And a security nightmare. How are they keeping it hidden?”

“I’m not sure. But they’d have to keep it under serious lock and key. Shifters going through withdrawal, that’s not going to be pretty. We’re talking outbursts, randomly shifting, dominance quarrels …” He shook his head. “And they only way they could fund and staff the place was by working with the werebears.”

“They have wolves and bears in that place?”

“Yeah.”

It was Benny’s turn to shake his head. He wanted to run his fingers through his hair but he’d cut it super short again when he’d come home. “Color me impressed. That’s quite the project. Well, I hope it helps.”

“So do I, but all the same I’m glad your brother didn’t have to go there.”

“You and me both,” Benny said. His father already held a low opinion of Kent, and rehab would not have helped that situation any. I don’t think anything could help at this point but if he knew about Kent’s addiction, yeah, I’d be hearing him rant about that all the damn time. As if he doesn’t complain enough already. “So, why are you here so late? And on a Friday night?”

“Junior lawyer s**t, same as you. Just some paperwork to finish putting through and then I’m good.”

“Well, I won’t keep you then. Are you living here in Missoula then?”

“Yeah. I’ll drive down for the full moon. What about you?”

“Living back at home. You should come by some time.” He pulled his wallet out as he stood and fished out a business card. “New cell number.”

“Thanks. Yeah, I’ll swing by sometime. It’ll be good to just sit and talk, reminisce about school and what not.”

“Yeah.”

“Oh, did you hear about Susan?”

“No,” Benny said, trying to pretend his heart hadn’t started beating faster at the sound of her name. “Haven’t seen or talked to her in about seven years now.”

“Oh, well, she got married a few months ago.”

Benny’s heart dropped into his stomach. “Good for her.” He forced a smile. “See ya ‘round.”

“Ya. Good seeing you again.” Danny watched his old friend leave, the smile dropping from face as the door eased shut. There had always been something odd about Benny, even when they’d been in high school together. It was more than just the money, since Benny didn’t really act too much like a rich, entitled kid, no it was something else, something about the way he avoided talking about his parents, something about the way he didn’t even want to talk about law school, not even when they were attending university together.

Whatever it was, Danny put it out of his mind and focused on finishing his dinner. He had about an hour’s worth of work to do yet today and then the weekend was his. He wasn’t behind, exactly, but he knew he had to leave early for the full moon next week and he didn’t want that to cause problems with the new boss. This job was everything he could have hoped for and he didn’t want his being a werewolf to screw it up.

He rinsed his container, tossed it back in his lunch kit, and went back up to his office. The building was mostly quiet. There were a few interns and a secretary working at some last-minute tasks and the janitor was already starting on his rounds. Even he wants to get out of here, Danny thought.

He pushed through, finishing the task in less time than anticipated, shut his work station down, packed up his stuff, and headed for his car. The beat-up two-door had gotten him through his last year of high school and all of university. Unlike Benny, he couldn’t afford both school and a new car, not even with the scholarships he’d secured. The poor thing looked like a piece of crap, if he was being honest, but his father had taught him well and he’d managed to keep the thing running without too many major hiccups.

He drove to his apartment noting that the car in the spot next to his was missing again. Whoever usually parked there hadn’t been around for a few weeks. He wasn’t sure if he should worry about discovering a dead body in one of the rooms or just let it go and assume the tenant had moved on. Not my problem I guess, I wouldn’t even know who to look for. He put it out of his mind and went up. He was exhausted, and his feet hurt.

He plugged his phone in, pausing to enter Benny’s information before the card got lost, then went to take a shower. I’m heading for bed early and then I’ll have two full days to do whatever I want. No work, no pressure, no trying to fit in with the big boys. Just me and the great outdoors.