Free The Promised One (The Turning Stone Chronicles) by C. D. Hersh Page B

he’d wanted her. Not just physically, but on a deeper level. That scared him. Exhilarated him. Caused him to act like a stubborn ass.
    Why shouldn’t he keep her safe? A man should want to keep the woman he loved safe. He redirected his attention to the street and punched the gas pedal down farther than he intended. The truck lurched forward. He just admitted he loved her. How the hell?
    They rode all the way to the precinct in silence. Rhys parked, and Alexi jumped out before he could cut off the ignition. He thrust the gear into park.
    “You could have waited,” he said when he caught up to her.
    Alexi tossed him a pissed-off glare and lengthened her stride.
    Rhys matched her pace and opened the entrance door before she could. She waved him ahead of her.
    He arched a questioning eyebrow at her. So it’s like that?
    She stood her ground and waved him in again.
    “Damn,” Rhys said as he went through the door, “you’re a pain in the ass, Lexi.”
    “Takes one to know one.”
    He nearly choked as he stuffed his laughter down at her juvenile comeback. He grinned, his mood lightened. “I suppose.”
    Alexi’s mouth straightened into a thin line Rhys recognized as her attempt to stifle a smile. He loved that about her—she couldn’t stay angry at him. He held the next door open and Alexi waltzed through it.
    Captain Williams motioned Alexi and Rhys toward the two chairs opposite his desk and slid a folder across the worn top. “This drawing might be a bit of a shock, but I need your input.”
    Alexi opened the folder and gasped. Her uncle’s face stared back at her from the paper. “Baron,” she said, the word barely audible.
    Rhys pointed at the drawing. “That the mugger?”
    Captain Williams tipped his chair back and scrubbed at his forehead. “Doesn’t make sense, does it?”
    “Are we sure this is the man?” Alexi asked. “Could the victim be mistaken?”
    “Not likely. The guy claims to have a photographic memory. He insists this is the man who mugged him.”
    “Maybe it’s a mask that resembles Baron,” Rhys suggested.
    Captain Williams shook his head. “I already asked. There was no mask.”
    “He’s dead,” Rhys said. “How?”
    You don’t want to know. He’s figured out how to use the ring, mimic shifting into Baron. She needed back on the inside, and quick. “I think, since we’re going to be chasing my dead uncle, I should forget about bereavement leave.”
    “No,” Rhys and Captain Williams said in unison.
    “I can’t risk your emotions getting in the way of an investigation,” the captain said. “You just lost your uncle and now his double is out there mugging people. How would you handle it if you came upon Baron mid-crime? Could you shoot your uncle? That could screw with your mind. Make you deal with some heavy psychological stuff, Jordan. I’m not putting you in that situation.”
    “But—”
    “No buts. Take her home, Temple. I got what I needed.”
    Rhys gently grasped Alexi’s arm and helped her stand. “Let’s go, Lexi.”
    “Wait,” the captain said. “I forgot to ask. When you ID’d Baron you asked about a ring. Can you describe it?”
    Alexi held her left hand out. “Like this.”
    “That matches the description the victim gave,” Captain Williams said.
    Alexi’s blood pounded in her ears. That confirmed her suspicions. “He was wearing Baron’s ring?”
    “Or one just like it.”
    One just like it? Could there be two people mimic shifting? She hadn’t considered the possibility someone other than Baron’s killer could have mugged this latest victim.
    Panic threatened to overtake her. In order to find either criminal, she had to shape shift. No way around it, and if Rhys found out, she could lose everything.

Chapter 12
    “I’m sorry to call you so late, but we’ve got a problem.”
    “Alexi?” Sylvia’s sleep-filled voice sounded muffled and a bit irritated. “What time is it?”
    “Two a.m.”
    “Do you always keep these