Page 12 of The Secret Mate Society

"You mentioned howling," I said, trying to keep my voice steady."Could you describe it more specifically?Was it just one creature or multiple?"

Marcus's eyes narrowed, as if he was relieved someone was finally taking him seriously."One voice.One big voice.Not like a pack.And it..."He hesitated, glancing between Jake and me."This'll sound crazy, but it almost sounded...deliberate.Like it wanted me to hear it."

A chill ran down my spine.I knew that sound.I was doing my damnedest not to let my mind run away with the details, but it was eerily similar.Everything about this cattle attack reminded me of my father and all those memories I’d been attempting to suppress for nearly a decade.

"Like it was sending a message," I murmured before I could stop myself.

Marcus's eyes widened."Exactly like that!Like it was...I don't know...announcing itself."He leaned forward, voice dropping to a whisper."You believe me, don't you, son?"

I felt Jake's eyes on me, studying my reaction.I cleared my throat, trying to maintain professional distance.

"I believe something unusual is happening here, Mr.Greer.And we're going to find out what it is."

Jake stepped in smoothly."Can we see where you heard the howling from?Your porch, was it?"

Marcus nodded and led us out of the barn.The sunlight momentarily blinded me as we emerged, and I blinked rapidly, adjusting to the brightness.The farmhouse was modest—white clapboard with peeling paint, a wraparound porch that had seen better days.The kind of place that had been in a family for generations.

As we crossed the yard, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket.I checked it discreetly.A text from Jake.

Keep it professional.

I frowned at Jake's text, quickly pocketing my phone as we reached the porch.What was that supposed to mean?I'd been nothing but professional since we arrived.

"Right here," Marcus said, gesturing to the weathered porch railing."I was standing right here when I heard it.The dogs were in their pen over yonder, practically climbing the fence to get away from whatever was out there."

I glanced toward the dog pen near the side of the house.Two large farm dogs—a German Shepherd mix and what looked like a Catahoula—paced nervously behind the chain-link, their eyes constantly scanning the tree line.

"They still seem agitated," I observed.“Like something’s coming back for them…”

Marcus nodded grimly."Haven't settled since last night.Animals know, you see.They sense things we can't."

Jake leaned against the porch column, his muscular frame casting a long shadow across the worn boards."And you're certain you didn't see anything?No movement in the trees?No eyes reflecting light?"

"Pitch black," Marcus replied."But I felt it watching.Felt it like..."He tapped his chest."Like a weight right here."

Jake nodded, reaching into his pocket and producing a business card.“Here’s my number Mr.Greer.Give us a call if you see or hear this creature again.I mean it.Anytime.I’ll be here as fast as I can.”

“Thank you, son,” the farmer nodded.“It’s good to know someone’s on my side in all this mess.”

“We’ll be in touch,” Jake nodded, grabbing me as he stepped off the porch.“Thank you for your time.”

As soon as we were out of earshot, Jake turned to me.“You and I need to have a little chat,” he said, his expression one of excitement and not censure like I’d expected.“There’s more going on here than meets the eye.”

My heart thumped wildly in my chest.Jake knew something.

For the first time in ten years, I didn’t feel alone.

Chapter6

Ethan

Jake had given me an address of a small coffee shop where I was supposed to meet him later that day.After he’d rushed me off Mr.Greer’s farm, I couldn’t help but agree.My heart was still pounding.Everything the old farmer told us reminded me of the day my father was attacked.Not to mention quite a few of the details matched plenty of clippings and eyewitness accounts in my forbidden box back home.Jake knew something, I just wasn’t sure how much.But I was going to find out.

I spent most of the morning and early afternoon practically vibrating.It took everything I had not to run back to my apartment and tear open the forbidden box stuffed into the back corner of my closet.I wanted to go through it all, to cross reference the details I’d learned from the old farmer with everything I’d collected over the years.There was something going on, something too familiar to be a mere coincidence.Still, I hoped more than anything that my hunch was wrong.Because if I was right, that meant my father’s murderer had moved to Portland.Could it be that my past was following me?Literally haunting my every move even as I tried to build a normal life for myself?My therapist would say I was jumping to conclusions.I hoped, more than anything, that was true.

After spending the whole day avoiding home, I started across town before the dinner rush, heading for the small coffee shop where I was supposed to meet Jake.The shop was tucked away on a quiet corner, far from the usual tourist spots.Quaint wooden tables and mismatched chairs dotted the interior, giving it a homey feel that didn't match the storm brewing inside me.Jake was already there when I arrived, hunched over a steaming mug in the farthest corner.His broad shoulders tensed as the bell above the door announced my arrival.

"Ethan," he called, raising a hand.The late afternoon sun slanted through the windows, catching the flecks of silver in his brown hair.He looked older somehow, more weathered than he had just hours ago.