Harley nodded. “We believe it’s better to cut the cancer out of the situation than have a full-on war during which lots of people get hurt and even die.”
Everyone looked up as Zander entered, frowning.
“Everything okay?” Jesse asked him.
Zander sighed. “Something weird is going on.”
Jesse got to his feet. “Weird how?”
“There’s a van parked near the dirt road leading here. A reporter’s sitting in there, looking torn about whether or not to get out.”
“A reporter?” repeated Harley. “You mean Gabrielle Rowan?”
“Yeah,” said Zander. “Marcus is keeping an eye on her.”
Dubious, Harley asked, “You’re sure it’s Gabrielle Rowan?”
“I’ve seen her on TV a couple of times.” Zander turned to Nick. “Want me to chase her off?”
Shaya’s brows drew together. “Why would the reporter even dare to come here? She has to know she’s not in the least bit welcome.”
“I’m curious enough about that to want to talk to her,” said Nick. “Escort her through.”
Zander arched a brow. “If she resists?”
“Escort her through,” Nick repeated.
“All right.” Zander left the room.
Nick turned to Shaya. “We’ll talk to her outside; I don’t want her in here.”
“Neither do I,” said Shaya, following him outside. Harley, Jesse, Eli, Bracken, and the Beta pair went with them.
Standing on the porch, Harley spoke to Jesse. “What do you think she wants?”
He blew out a breath. “No idea.”
It wasn’t long before Harley was able to see Zander guiding a reluctant Gabrielle down the path. Her cat let loose a long, drawn-out growl and swiped her claws. When Gabrielle noticed them watching her, she lifted her chin and adopted a confident stride. Fair play to her for not showing any weakness. Eventually she came to a stop in the parking lot, looking for all the world like she’d been happily invited there.
“My enforcer tells me you were lingering outside our territory,” said Nick, his tone unwelcoming. “Why?”
“I can understand why you don’t like me much, but you’ll want to hear what I have to say,” Gabrielle told him. “Trust me on that.”
“Trust you?” echoed Jesse with a snort. He didn’t trust this female as far as he could throw her.
Gabrielle shot him a tired look. “Just hear me out.”
“Go on,” urged Nick, looking deceptively uninterested.
Gabrielle glanced at the door of the main lodge, confused. “You want to talk out here?”
“There are pups inside. I don’t have people around them who I believe could be a risk to their safety.”
“Fair enough.” Gabrielle cleared her throat. “I had a call from a she-wolf who claims to have read my article about Harley. She also claims to know you all very well.” The fox looked at Harley. “She doesn’t like you much. In fact, she was happy to share a lot about you—she didn’t even ask for anything in return.”
“What did she say?” Harley didn’t realize she was edging closer to the reporter until Jesse’s arm shot out, acting as a protective barrier.
“That you came here for sanctuary because extremists rigged your car with a bomb and some of your relatives are now hunting them.”
“Motherfucker,” Jesse bit out.
Gabrielle continued speaking to Harley. “She also said that, from the little you’ve spoken of Clive to the pack, you don’t appear to have any regard for him or to know if he heads The Movement. I must admit, I found that rather disappointing. She also stated that you’ll soon own the club you were performing at. I don’t know her name; she didn’t say.”
“Kim,” guessed Bracken, expression glum.
“It might not be her,” Shaya told the enforcer but didn’t appear convinced.
“She sounded young,” said Gabrielle. “And very bitter.”
Bracken nodded. “Kim.”
Harley felt bad for him. His sister had fed his pack’s business to a reporter, betraying all of them—including him. When he turned to Harley, his face apologetic, she clipped, “Don’t you dare apologize. You are not to blame for anything another person does or doesn’t do.”
“If it was made public that you’ll soon own that club, the extremists would probably wreck it out of spite,” he pointed out.
“I know,” she said. “But you are not to blame, so you have no need to apologize.”
Eli patted Bracken’s back. “She’s right.”
“Why come to us with this?” Nick asked Gabrielle, his eyes narrowed in suspicion.
Gabrielle tugged at her blouse. “I said I wouldn’t write anymore articles about Harley. I won’t. But I thought you might be interested to know that someone close to you has betrayed you, especially since she’ll probably go to another reporter if I don’t write an article.” She swallowed. “I didn’t have to come to you with news.”
“So you want something in return,” Jesse guessed.
“Only what I’ve always wanted: an exclusive from Harley.” Gabrielle turned to her. “Even if you don’t know whether or not your father is connected to The Movement, you can still tell me about him.”
Jesse growled. “You’re not getting a story from Harley.”