If the wolves had anything to say back it would take them a minute to change forms, so the trick was to ask them yes or no questions.
The werewolves looked at each other for a moment, then simultaneously shook their heads.
“Is there any other way we can help you?” I asked.
The wolves shook their heads again.
I shifted my weight as I tried to get a read on their body language. “But you both are feeling comfortable again?”
The female wolf wagged her tail back and forth, then approached me to rest her giant head on my outstretched hands.
I took the invitation and rubbed behind her ears—which made her wag her tail some more—before she backed up.
The male wolf gave me a friendly “Awoo!” before he started down the street, his friend hurrying after him.
“Aww,” Grove said. “That was downright adorable. Makes you want to snuggle with them, right?”
“Not particularly,” Tetiana said. “I don’t like to cuddle things with teeth like theirs. But they are charmingly cute when they wish to be.”
Grove pirouetted swinging his arms at his side. “When we get back to the Cloisters tonight, we should ask Binx to change into her cougar form. Her fur is so soft!”
Tetiana trailed after him, pointing us back to downtown where we were due to patrol for another hour. “Perhaps, but if you say that to her face she’ll claw you.”
I moved to follow after them, but did a quick scan of the area, pausing when I caught sight of someone standing across the street next to the brick building with quaint red trim that was Tutu’s Crypta & Custodia.
I had pretty decent night vision as a vampire slayer—one of the perks—so when the person turned around I recognized the long purple hair that marked Gisila, a dragon shifter who was temporarily visiting Magiford.
“Hold up,” I called to my squadmates in a hushed voice.
“Hmm?” Tetiana turned back to me. She followed my gaze and instantly lost her casual air. “Grove.”
Grove had his radio out in a second. “This is Team Blood calling in from Goldstein Street. We’ve got some company down here that we’re going to check out. If my eyes don’t deceive me I believe it’s Lady Gisila.” His voice was loud—loud enough that Gisila would hear him across the street and know we’d reported her presence to our department.
I’d like to say we were always this on it with investigations, but Orrin—the fae I’d been asking Tetiana and Grove about—had been a plague on the squad for most of September, releasing various monsters on Goldstein Street.
The department was fairly certain he’d been targeting Tutu’s since it was the only supernatural building on the street, and I personally suspected he’d been working under the direction of his boss—Gisila—but I didn’t have any proof.
I looked both ways before crossing the empty street—while downtown was busy, all the businesses here had been closed for hours. “Good evening, Ma’am.”
Gisila smiled, flashing a bright smile that felt just a touch aggressive to me. “Ahh, if it isn’t the task force out patrolling this fine evening.”
“Is there something wrong, Lady Gisila?” Tetiana asked as she glanced from Gisila to Tutu’s.
“No, not at all. I’m out here at the request of my sister.” Gisila motioned to the sign that spelled out in golden letters Tutu’s Crypta & Custodia. “Tutu is my sister.”
“Did Tutu ask you to check on the building?” I asked. “Was some kind of alarm triggered?”
“No,” Gisila said. “Nothing of the sort. There was just some…concern.”
“Oh, because of Orrin?” Grove asked. “Don’t worry about it—he’s secured. The force has Tutu’s contact info, so we can call her back for you and reassure her!”
I eyed Grove—his comment might seem innocent, but he was a fae—the trickiest of supernaturals—so he had to have known his words were practically a threat that we’d check in with Tutu to see if Gisila’s story checked out.
Does he also think she could be involved? I’d shared my suspicions with Sarge and Captain Reese, but neither seemed sold on the idea that Gisila had been involved with Orrin’s monster-releasing-activities.
Gisila shook her head, making her silky curtain of purple hair bounce over her shoulders. “Oh, no, Tutu is very certain of her businesses’ safeguards. It is merely that since it was my assistant who terrorized Goldstein Street, I feel that I owe it to my sister to check upon her business since I remain within the city.”