Lenny

    The way she said it, with suchplete trust and appreciation, made me want to find some way to bend the rules for her. But I knew Ramsey would have my head if I overstepped my authority, especially with the Hollow Kin breathing down our necks.

    "When Ramsey gets back, I''ll mention it to him," I offeredmely. "Maybe he''ll be in a better mood about loosening restrictions."

    "That''s very kind of you." She smiled again, and I felt that familiar flutter in my stomach that I''d been trying to ignore for the better part of my life. "I should let you get back to work. You look like you''ve been here all night."

    I nced around at the organised chaos of my investigation, realising how I must look after my sleepless research binge. "Something like that."

    "Take care of yourself, Lenny," she said, pausing at the door. "The pack needs you healthy and sharp."

    "Cassidy—wait," I said, standing awkwardly.

    She turned to look at me.

    I scratched the back of my neck, suddenly feeling embarrassed. "If—uh, since you can''t get the clearance, maybe we could do something here instead. Like…not work stuff. Just something."

    She arched a brow in surprise. "Like what?"

    "I don''t know. A walk? A book club? Maybe dinner or something fun."

    Sheughed. "You don''t have to do that for me, Lenny. I know you''re busy now that Ramsey is not around. I just thought…Maybe I needed to see something outside of this ce. Even for a day. But it''s fine."

    I nodded. "I get it. You''ve been stuck here a long time. I will try to talk to Ramsey about letting you return home at least. I promise."

    "No worries, Lenny. You know how Ramsey is with constantly worrying. When he feels it''s the right time for the ban to be lifted, he would lift it. But thank you for trying. I really appreciate it."

    "About my offer?" I pressed, hoping she would take any of them.

    "I''ll think about it," she murmured with a lingering smile. "Have a wonderful day, Lenny."

    "You too," I murmured, watching her leave.

    The moment the door closed, I let out a breath and leaned heavily against the desk.

    "Idiot," I muttered to myself. "Bumbling idiot."

    But I couldn''t stop the grin tugging at the corner of my lips. Outside, the morning sun bathed the windows in soft orange light. Inside, I sat down and grabbed my pen, scribbling at the top of Delia''s file:

    ''Proceed with caution. But also…follow the smile."

    Cassidy Thorne had been aplication in my life since the moment I''d first seen her, buttely, thatplication was bing harder and harder to ignore.

    My phone buzzed with a text from Ramsey: Call me back. NOW.

    I sighed and picked up the phone, knowing I had much more disturbing information to share about Delia Piers.

    But first, I couldn''t help wondering if there was any possible way to help Cassidy get to that wedding.

    "What else do you need?" I answered, skipping pleasantries when he picked up the call again.

    "I need you to set up the voice analysis system," Ramsey said without preamble. "The beta testing version that Caius has been working on."

    "The one that can identify species through vocal patterns?" I asked, already moving toward myptop. "That system is still experimental, Ramsey. The uracy rate isn''t guaranteed."

    "I don''t need guarantees, I need possibilities. When we meet with this Delia woman today, I want you to monitor the conversation. See if you can capture her voice and run it through the system."

    "You think she''s supernatural?"

    "I think she''s something other than human, and her rapid educational transformation suggests she had help from our world. If she''s a werewolf, rogue, Lycan, or any other were-creature, that system might pick up the vocal markers."

    I pulled up the beta software to check its operational status. "The system can identify vocal stress patterns unique to shapeshifters, magical frequency resonances in speech, and even detect traces of supernatural energy in voice modtion. But Ramsey, if she''s been trained to hide her nature..."

    "Then we''ll know that too, because the system can detect artificial voice control techniques used by supernatural beings trying to pass as human."

    "Fair point. When do you need me monitoring?"

    "The meeting with the FBI is at two this afternoon. I''ll call you at exactly 1:45 and leave the line open. Make sure you''re recording everything from the moment she starts speaking."

    "Got it. Anything specific I should listen for?"

    "Inconsistencies in her emotional responses, signs of deception, and especially any indication that she recognises supernatural terminology when we use it. If she''s been studying our kind as she ims, she might slip up and reveal more knowledge than a human academic should have."

    "I''ll have the full analysis suite running. Voice pattern recognition, stress detection, frequency analysis, the works."

    "Perfect. I''ll call you back at 1:45 sharp."

    After ending the call, I saved my current work and decided I needed some fresh air before diving into the technical setup. The morning sunlight would help clear my head, and I had a few hours before I needed to be chained to myputer.

    I left the office and wandered down the corridor toward the main windows that overlooked the pack grounds. The building was quiet this time of morning; most people were either training or attending to their daily duties.

    That''s when I spotted Caius.

    He was leaning against one of therge windows, casually sipping wine from a crystal ss—because, of course, Caius would be drinking wine at ten in the morning—and staring intently at something outside. His usually messy hair was styled today, and he wore a button-down shirt instead of his typical rumpledb coat.

    Most of the time, I wonder if he had the wrong wolf. He was a Gamma, but a brilliant one, both in field work and in the books.

    Curious, I sidled up next to him to see what had captured his attention.

    Cassidy was outside on the mainwn, surrounded by a group of young teenagers from the pack. Whatever she was telling them had them allughing, and her face was lit up with pure joy. She gestured animatedly as she spoke, her hair catching the sunlight in a way that filled me with longing.