It was what, ten minutes ago that she slapped a hand over my mouth and told me no serious topics for at least a day? If I ignore her request, that’s not any better. We’ll handle shit today, and tomorrow, ask if she wants to know our theory or hold off. Then we tell her if she wants to hear it, but what reason is there to blurt it out now? It wouldn’t change anything. Jonathan only wanted to kill her because of turning us into hellhounds and creating an exposure risk. We don’t shift, no problems. If this is predominantly a shifter city, there’s not an exposure risk. We’re taking a day or two off, and cross this bridge when she’s ready.
Carina snaps her fingers in front of my face to regain my attention, and I shake my head to clear my thoughts. Doing a cursory scan of the store, she refocuses on me, not bothering to even lower her voice. “That girl said ‘others’ when you walked in, so let’s cut the bullshit, shall we? Not sure what business your lot has in Khalida, but if only for the sake of that sweet mate of yours, you keep your damn heads down while you’re here, and don’t make waves. Raiden doesn’t take kindly to outsiders coming here and causing trouble on the best of days, let alone when he’s in such a shit mood. If you’re here to stay, I can put you in contact with some people to get the ball rolling. But if you’re only passing through, I highly suggest you keep your noses clean before you draw the wrong attention.”
The counter groans under the pressure of my grip. “So it’s true; thereareothers like us? How many are we talking, here? What about Raiden, what is he?”
She shares an incredulous look with the three remaining customers before they all collectively burst into laughter. The men are clad in matching grey biker jackets, the scent of eucalyptus clinging to them so heavily it makes my nose wrinkle. As one guides the woman with them toward the exit, the other levels me with a look that all but screams, ‘just how stupid are you’? “Let me guess, wolf?” At my terse nod, he snorts. “Only the wolves are so damn self-absorbed and trapped in their pack politics that they forget the rest of the world exists.”
Leaning on the counter with a smirk, Carina gives the guy a half-assed, two-fingered salute before giving me her attention again. “You got what you need, so get fucked, wolf.” She gestures to the door. “But Sabrina? She’s welcome anytime. Not sure what it is about her, but I want to both run for the hills, and sink to my knees at her feet; for anything she’d ask.” As if her heavily laden insinuation wasn’t enough, she waggles her eyebrows. “IfI’mthis mixed up about her, the others will be worse. Only time will tell if that’s a good or bad thing, but I highly recommend you keep that mate of yours otherwise occupied and out of sight as much as possible while you’re here. There’s something... off about her that’s messing with my head.”
Frustrated, I growl, “You didn’t answer any of my questions.”
The man takes a step closer, but Carina raises a hand to stop him, using the other to brace herself as she vaults over the counter. Standing right in front of me, she stares me down without an ounce of fear despite being so much shorter. With morbid fascination, I watch as the light blue of her eyes morphs to gray, the color writhing like marbled smoke, my heart skipping a beat and sending a pulse of foreboding down my spine. When she pokes a single finger into my chest, the scent of burning fabric fills the air.
“Of course I didn’t,” she declares, driving me back a step with far more ease than someone her size should be able to. “I owe you nothing. And here I was, benevolent enough to not only extend a warning, but an invitation to help.” My back hits the door, and she reaches over to spin the knob. “There isn’t a person alive today that I answer to.”
Letting it fly open, she sends me stumbling back onto the sidewalk. “Well, except for maybe my brother, but that’s out of respect. Raiden did everyone a favor when he and his legion killed the elders to free us from their archaic bullshit.” With a grimace she adds, “Except for the wolves. You guys still buy into that nonsense, don’t you? Would fall apart without your precious hierarchy. Honestly, it’s pretty sad.”
Pulling a business card out of her back pocket, she flicks it into the air and blows a long, steady breath that carries the faint scent of smoke with it. It glides effortlessly over my head, spinning several times before gently falling on Sabrina’s lap where she’s sitting on the hood of the SUV, surrounded by all but the twins.
“Give me a call if you ever need to disappear, gorgeous.” With that, Carina slams the door in my face, leaving us with more questions than answers.
Chapter 10
Hunter
––––––––
We’ve all been trappedin one impossible situation or another since the moment we were born. Now, Sabrina finally has a golden ticket out of the hellscape that is her life, if Carina is to be believed. One phone call, and she could leave it all behind, leaveusbehind. While I wouldn’t blame her, might actually encourage her to get out before it’s too late, I’d never recover from the loss.
Sabrina may only have claimed me to save my life, but it’s hard to remember that when I’ve been in love with her since the moment she told me to fuck off, while her eyes told a different story. She was drowning, yet would rather continue to sink than bother anyone by asking for help.Thatwas the moment I knew that there was no going back for me. This fragile girl would sooner take one of her broken pieces and stab someone in the eye than accept she wasn’t enough on her own, and I’ve never respected anyone more.
Staring at Sabrina as she studies Carina’s card in her lap, I bite the inside of my cheek until tasting blood, willing the monster in my head to shut up. “Sabrina was in a similar position as you, yet managed to not only find a way out, but built a life of her own. She took every trial thrown her way and twisted them to where she came out ahead, or at least stronger.”
A wraith hiding in the shadows, he twists and writhes as if made of smoke, whispering,“She didn’t play the game, she rewrote the entire fucking rulebook, while you simply raged at your position on the board.”
Carina’s right. We cling to our hierarchy as a reason to exist, while Sabrina exists to blow it all to hell.
