I raised an eyebrow. “Transplants?”
“That’s what he called them. I guess I didn’t think too hard about it because it’s the kind of thing that happens a lot in Alaska, you know? People get wanderlust and they come up here thinking they can go off the grid or live in the wilderness or whatever. I’ve heard of whole families relocating here to get a fresh start.” She shrugged. “So yeah, it was a ton of people, but it just meant more help for Dad, as far as I was concerned.”
“Right.” I took a sip of my cocoa and stared into the fire. “And it was probably a huge part of why the boats are doing so well now. Not like he’s going to turn down an opportunity to expand if he thinks it’s viable.”
“Exactly. But one day I was running numbers and I kept having to go back and double check. I thought there must have been a mistake—these guys weren’t getting paid nearly enough. And usually that’s the kind of thing that will start a riot around here, so I called my dad in a panic and told him we were accidentally shorting some of the fishermen.” Her frown deepened slightly. “That was when he told me about the arrangement they made and how he was paying them partially in a percentage of their catch.”
“Has he ever done that before?” I already knew the answer, but I wanted to hear it from her.
Lian shook her head vehemently. “God, no. He would’ve laughed anyone who asked right back out the door. I tried to get him to tell me what was going on at the time. He just said this was a special case, not to worry about it, and to get back to work.” She chuckled. “I mean, you know Dad. Work is his life. I just did what he asked.”
“Was this around when the violence began?” I leaned over to pour more hot cocoa from a massive thermos on the coffee table. The chocolate-scented steam made me think of the couple of holidays I flew back here after I lost Grandma and spent it in the very same place against the quiet backdrop of snow. Those days had never felt more like a dream.
Lian took a deep breath. I could see her sifting through her memories almost like they were physical objects, grains of sand pouring through her fingers. “I think so,” she finally said, although the words were reluctant. “I want to say there had been stories about a crime wave on the news before, but this was when it all started exploding. People in Anchorage were kind of shocked. There are a lot of disappearances up here, but not necessarily outright murder.”
“And where were the vamps while this was all happening?” I was slowly working my way toward what was, for me, the real heart of the issue. If Lian or her family had had dealings with Orion in the past, she didn’t tell me. Would I have done something if I’d known about him sooner?
“I wish I could tell you.” She ran her fingers through her hair. “But I didn’t put two and two together for a pretty long time. Not until our guys started going missing. And even then, who’s to say it had to be vamps? Alaska’s like a three-ring supernatural circus. It could’ve been anything that was just passing through.”
She set her cup on the coffee table, stood up, stretched, and went to poke at the fire. A cloud of sparks kicked up behind the screen.
“Has anyone ever mention anyone named Orion?” That was, at long last, the million-dollar question, and it hung in the air for a minute. Lian glanced over her shoulder at me, trying to read my face.
“Orion?” She spoke the clanmaster’s name like she was trying out a foreign word. “No, I don’t think so.” She looked me in the eye. “Who is he?”
“Good freaking question,” I muttered. “We ran into each other a couple times. He’d like me to assume he’s the one in charge around here.” My fingers drummed along the side of the mug. “Pretty sure he’s murdered at least two people, so…maybe he’s not bluffing.”
Lian bristled visibly. “Don’t tell me he confessed.”
I shook my head, also choosing not to tell her about the humanoid hand I’d seen disappearing below the icy surface of the inlet. “Not in so many words. I think something is brewing in Anchorage.”
“Yeah. That’s what I’ve been afraid of.” We both fell silent for a little while. The grandfather clock in the foyer chimed the hour of six in the evening.
I was the one to speak up first. “How many employees have you lost?”
“Six.” Lian answered so readily I knew she had counted over and over. “Only a couple were ever found, though.” Her lips pressed into a grim line. “They were dead, of course.”
“And was this before or after you found out they were shifters?”
“Most before,” she said. “One of them disappeared after and still hasn’t turned up. My guess is that they’ll probably be recovered after the snow finally melts.”
Her theory resonated with my instinct. Orion had definitely seemed to be taking advantage of the unusually cold, brutal weather. Snow and ice could keep a lot of dirty secrets—for a time.
“Did anything change after you caught them shifting?” The absolute last thing I wanted was for the Zhaos to end up in the middle of whatever messed-up bullshit this turned out to be. I felt a great need to protect them at all costs. If that meant throwing myself straight into the fire of yet another turf war, I’d do it happily.
To my relief, Lian said no. “The guy was surprised,” she said with a laugh. “But it was at least as much because he turned back stark naked as anything else.” Her nose scrunched. “Those dudes are hairy, V. How long is it going to take to forget I’ve seen that?”
“Too long.” I smirked. “Way too long. You don’t think they’d consider you a liability or anything, since you’re technically a witness?”
“Who am I going to tell?” She arched her eyebrows. “Dad already knows; he has to. The only way he’d pay in fish is if he was paying a literal bear. It’s not like they’re trying to sneak around behind his back. Besides, Alaska’s like the land of open secrets. Nobody cares what you are as long as you don’t bother them with it.”
“That’s true, I suppose.” The forty-ninth state was nothing if not a haven for outcasts and weirdos of all types. Why shouldn’t that rule apply to monsters as well as men? “Still, keep your eyes open, okay? Call me if you hear or see anything suspicious. I will hit the ground running.”
“I know you will.” Lian smiled. “Because you’re the best. And because I’m paying for your room.” She hesitated. “You know, you could stay here if you wanted. I just didn’t know if you wanted to explain to my parents why you happen to be in town.”
“Yeah…no thanks.” I sucked in a deep breath, imagining the awkwardness of that conversation. Lian told me you were hiring bear shifters to work on the fishing boats. Well, they’re being murdered by a sexy vampire and two of his friends, so I’m here to sort that out. No big deal. “Maybe after this is all over, I’ll come visit them. Gives me some time to come up with a plausible excuse.”
“Good call.” Lian looked visibly relieved. She sighed. “I had hoped I might be blowing things out of proportion when I first called you. But the more we talk, and the more questions you ask… That’s not really the case, is it?”