He looked young, around Kai’s age. Maybe a little older, but not by much. Too young, either way.
Too young for the bruises still fading along his throat, for the hollow look that had lingered in his eyes even when we’d first found him.
What was going to happen to him after this?
The pack would help him, probably. They’d find him somewhere safe, somewhere he could recover. That’s what they did. I’d seen enough over the past week to know that.
But if they didn’t, the thought of him slipping out there again, of Daniel getting his hands on him, made my chest tighten.
I swallowed hard. Maybe there was something I could?—
The thought died before it even formed. I could barely even help myself, or Kai.
And that wasn’t even the biggest problem right now.
My gaze snapped back to the deer shifter’s face. What if he recognized me?
We’d barely spoken when he and the other deer shifters camped at the clearing outside my cabin. A few days… no, more than that. A little over a week ago. Had it really only been a week?
But what if he remembered? Worse, what if he remembered everything — the attack, them being herded off, and me standing there with Daniel, close enough it could’ve looked like I was part of it.
My fingers tightened around the metal rail, knuckles whitening.
If he said anything… if he told Cooper or Gino… if Levi?—
I squeezed my eyes shut for a second, my pulse loud in my ears.
Because what if that was the point?
What if this was the catch? Daniel had handed over that information too easily after I’d begged him for something, anything, to help me earn the pack’s trust.
At the time, I’d been too relieved to question it. But what if he wanted my cover blown?
It didn’t make sense. Not unless he thought it would push me harder, make me more cooperative, and give him what he wanted.
More details, more names, more information. He already knew I was holding back. I wasn’t exactly a great liar.
Still, it had been worth it. Worth it not talking about Levi or giving Daniel anything more about him. Not even saying his name out loud where it could be used. If nothing else, I’d bought myself time.
I dragged a hand down my face. God, I was tired.
My eyes drifted back to the deer shifter. My thoughts circled again.
Why risk this? Why risk exposing me?
Unless Daniel didn’t think it mattered. Unless he assumed the shifter wouldn’t remember. Or wouldn’t be able to talk.
Or—
He thought the shifter would be dead by the time we found him.
My stomach dropped.
If Daniel thought he was dead… then maybe that was the only way to keep him out of their reach.
The thought cut off abruptly as the clinic door opened.
Ethan, the pack healer, stepped in first, followed by Cooper and Gino. Levi came in last, closing the door quietly behind him. As soon as I saw him, something in my chest eased before I could stop it.
