Chapter 261

Jayden and I rushed to Gray’s restaurant in his car. As he parked behind the restaurant, we heard Amy sob through the open kitchen door.

“Stay back and let me go in first,” Jayden ordered. I knew it was for the best, so I obeyed.

But soon after going inside, Jayden motioned for me to follow. I stepped through the doorway and couldn’t believe what I saw.

Mr. Gray’s kitchen had been trashed. The floor was covered with broken plates and glasses mixed with silverware, canned goods, and smashed vegetables.

The microwave had been knocked to the floor, the door hanging crookedly, and the prep table was lying on its side.

Where was Amy?

I spotted her crouched near the dishwasher and went to her. “Amy, what happened?”

“There were two of them, Daisy,” she sobbed. “Two red wolves were here, and they tried to hurt me. But Dad stepped in and tried to fight them off.”

She sobbed hysterically again. “Dad is hurt. Help him.”

I didn’t see any blood or wounds on Amy, so I stood and looked for Mr. Gray.

Jayden had found him beneath the turned-over prep table. There was blood on the floor around him, and he had savage bites on his arms and one on his neck.

I pulled out my phone and called for help. Mr. Gray needed an ambulance, and the police needed to know someone had violated one of our most sacred laws.

No werewolf is permitted to use his wolf form to attack or intimidate others. I needed to know more about what happened before the police arrived, and Victor should be notified.

Jayden was giving Mr. Gray first aid, so I returned to Amy. I sat next to her and pulled her into my arms.

“Tell me what happened?” I asked gently.

“Two wolves entered the back of the restaurant,” she sobbed. “They wrecked the kitchen and were growling and snarling at me. Dad protected me, and they attacked him.”

I texted Victor and told him what happened. He told me to stay there. He would be there in a few minutes.

“What did they look like, Amy?” I asked. “What did the wolves look like?”

“They were big enough to be Alphas and had reddish coats,” she replied.

Two red wolves! Now, I was confused. But Amy needed me. I’d think it through later.

“Whoever is doing this has won,” Amy said through her tears. “I don’t wanna know what happened to Deidre if this is going to happen to us. They were trying to kill Dad because he was protecting me.”

Victor arrived before the police and ambulance. He had Findlay and a new assistant with him.

“Call EMS and tell them to hurry. The victims are friends of mine,” he ordered Findlay. He turned to his other assistant. “Jasper, help my fiancée take her friend upstairs.”

Victor came to my side, knelt beside Amy, and took her hand. “I will make sure your father is given the best medical care. And I will see to it that his attackers are severely punished.”

Amy nodded, and he helped her to her feet. Jasper took Amy’s one side while I took the other while we made our way out of the wrecked kitchen and upstairs to the apartment.

Amy hesitated while pulling out her key. “What if they are in there waiting for me?”

“Give me your key, and I’ll check,” Jasper said.

Jasper was a young Alpha male in his late twenties. He had a nice smile, but he was built well enough to be intimidating.

There were no signs of intruders in the Gray’s apartment. Jasper waved us inside, and I made Amy a cup of chamomile tea while she sat at the kitchen table.

“Will they let me know if Dad will be okay?” Amy asked as she put a spoonful of honey in her tea.

Jasper sent a quick text. “I told Findlay to keep us posted on your father’s condition. Once he’s at the hospital and stable, I’ll take you there to be with him.”

“Okay,” Amy agreed. The promise of going to the hospital with Mr. Gray calmed her.

But then Victor and a police officer entered the apartment.

Amy shot to her feet. Her face was pale, and her eyes were wide. “Is he dead?”

“No, the paramedics think he’s going to be okay,” Victor assured her. “This policeman wants to ask you about who did it.”

Amy nodded and sank into a chair. The cop sat across the table from her.

“Miss Gray, please tell me everything you remember about what happened?” the cop asked.

Amy shivered as she started to remember. “We were getting ready for the dinner rush when the back door opened.

“But nobody came in,” Amy said. “I thought it was our sous chef coming to work early until I heard the growling.”

I hurried to sit next to her when Amy shivered again. She gave me a weak smile and continued her story.

The reddish wolf with a few gray hairs around its ears entered the kitchen first. “It used Alpha voice to immobilize us, but it didn’t work as well on me as it did Dad.”

“That’s because you’re half Alpha,” Victor said. “It wouldn’t have the same effect on you as it did Mr. Gray.”

Victor was trying to keep Amy calm, but I knew that these wolves who were breaking our most important laws were making him angry.

“Anyhow, I was so scared when I saw there were two of them, growling and snapping their teeth. I screamed and tried to run for help. But one wolf charged me and knocked me to the floor.”

“That’s when Dad fought back,” Amy sobbed. “He tried to fight them both. It gave me the chance to call Daisy for help. But they hurt Dad, and I started to scream.”

“They would have killed us both if someone else hadn’t come to the back door.”

“Who was it?” I asked.

“I don’t know,” Amy replied. “I couldn’t see them, but the wolves seemed to hear whoever was there. They whined and ran out the door.”

Victor’s phone vibrated. “Amy, your dad is at the emergency room. Jasper will take you there and stay with you. If you want to come home later, he will come here also. I don’t want you to be alone for a while.”

“Can I call Justin and have him stay with me too?” Amy asked.

“Yes, tell him to stay with you until we get these wolves behind bars,” Victor told her. “Do you have any other questions for Miss Gray?” Victor asked the cop.

“Not now.” The cop stood. “If I think of anything, I’ll be in touch.” He left the apartment.

Before Amy left with Jasper, she called Justin, and he promised to meet her at the hospital.

Victor and I locked up the apartment before we went back down to the restaurant. We poked around in the mess, looking for clues to the wolves' identities.

I could smell their lingering scent and imagined Amy’s story playing out in my mind. It must have been terrifying.

After making sure the restaurant was locked and the closed sign was on the door, we walked around the outside of the building.

A few feet from the back door, I found a gold button with diamond chips embedded in it.

I showed Victor the button. “Why would a rich, Alpha customer use the back door?”

“This button could be a clue,” Victor said. “Let’s give it to Jayden tomorrow.”

“I’ve seen the design on the button before,” I said. “I can’t remember the designer's name, but this button came from a really expensive garment.”

Victor put the button in his pocket. “Let’s go back to my place. I don’t want you alone either.”

I agreed, and we walked down the block to where Victor’s car was parked.

The ride home was quiet. We were both lost in our own thoughts. I was worried about Amy and Mr. Gray. Maybe they should go away for a while when he gets out of the hospital.

Victor pulled into his garage and closed the door with the remote.

“I’m glad you parked your car in here,” he said. “You must be very careful from now on and always take Jayden or Jasper with you when I’m at work.”

After what happened tonight, I wasn’t going to argue.

“Will you check on Amy and Mr. Gray before we go to bed?” I asked as we climbed the stairs to the apartment.

“Sure,” he replied before suddenly pushing ahead of me.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

Victor put a finger to his lips. “Don’t you smell them?” He pointed at his open apartment door. “The wolves who attacked Mr. Gray are here.”