Sharon’s Wolves(42)

“We don’t have weeks or months,” Melinda pointed out. “We have days.”

“I see.” Jackson rubbed his temples. “What do you suppose my role is in all this?”

Sharon lifted herself from her seat and came around to the back of the couch to step between Cooper and Jackson. She set her hands on Jackson’s chest and leaned into him.

Cooper watched as Jackson settled his hands on her lower back, his fingers resting over her ass.

“We don’t necessarily have roles. We’re a team. We just do what our gut says and hope we’re right.”

“And if we’re not?” Jackson asked.

“Then one of those black auras will put itself in our path and redirect.”

Cooper was impressed by how calm Sharon was under pressure. He was a damn lucky man. Stubborn perhaps, but lucky.

Melinda cleared her throat. “I think we’re missing something. There’s more.”

“I second that,” Mimi muttered.

“What else is happening in remote sections of this area? Besides logging and fracking?” Melinda asked.

“Hikers are starting to venture out as the paths get cleared,” Sharon offered.

Laurie spoke next. “Amanda mentioned there’s a biology research team from the junior college studying the effects of global warming on the species native to the local mountains.”

“Where are they located?” Cooper asked.

“Not sure, but I can find out.”

Mimi shook her head. “I don’t like this.”

Joyce leaned toward her mother. “How is it different from all the other times? I know I wasn’t here when Rebecca and Melinda mated, and hardly even Laurie, so I’m new to this, but hasn’t it always been the same thing?”

Melinda sighed. “Mimi’s right. Something’s different. The unrest is hovering in the air.”

Jackson tightened his grip on Sharon and turned to face the group. “I was just at the logging site above your family’s ski lodge last week, and I didn’t notice anything out of the ordinary. What are you thinking? Another earthquake? Bigger perhaps? Maybe the spirits want us to get folks off the mountain.”

Cooper wasn’t buying it. That was too easy. But there was one way to find out. “We need to head to the logging site and wherever the biology research group is based. See if we get any sense of unrest or spirit visitors in the area.”

“Good idea,” Laurie said. “Let’s split up this afternoon and visit a few locations. Melinda and I can figure out where the biologists are and spy on that situation, see if anything seems off.”

Melinda shook her head. “I don’t think it will work that way. We can try, but I don’t think the spirits will necessarily make themselves present for anyone except Cooper, Jackson, and Sharon. This is their show to direct.”

“Perhaps. But it can’t hurt to try,” Laurie said.

Cooper redirected. “Listen, I think we need to focus on what we know. We have to stop the fracking. That means we need folks to understand the implications and demand the drilling stop.”

“That doesn’t sound like an easy fix,” Sharon pointed out.

“It’s not, but—” he snapped his fingers, “—we aren’t alone in this. Sharon and I saw two men standing inside the tree line last night watching the same scene unfold as us.”

“Hiding?” Melinda asked. “Humans?”

Cooper nodded. “Yep.”

“Did you know them?” She looked at Sharon, who had lived in the area her entire life. Cooper realized even though he hadn’t recognized the men, he didn’t know ten people in town yet.

Sharon shook her head. “Never seen them before. I can tell you they were taller than average. Dark hair, one short cropped. One in need of a cut. It touched his shoulders. Huge. I would remember if I’d ever seen them before.”

Melinda chewed her bottom lip for a second. “Maybe there’s hope then, others who are willing to stand up for what’s right.”

“What about protesters?” Jackson asked. “If we got enough people interested and concerned about the possibility of a bigger quake, maybe we could get the government to shut them down. I mean, it doesn’t matter if a quake is what we’re looking at or not.” He looked toward Cooper. “You said yourself the epicenter is under the fracking site. That should be enough to convince people to call for an injunction.”

Cooper’s mom nodded. “I can call the women I work with and rally them to spread the word.” His mother ran a support group that many women in the Native American shifter community attended to help foster higher tolerance of other races. After twenty-seven years in exile caused by bigotry, Joyce was an expert.