Page 110 of Big Bad Wolf

Wyatt let out a low chuckle. “I like you. After you talk to our Alpha, me and you can have some fun.”

Ruby shuddered. “What does he think I can do?”

“You can see things.”

“So?”

Wyatt smirked. “The County pack is trying to fuck with us.”

“How?” Keep talking, Ruby, keep stalling.

“Knox wants to make us a deal, and we need to know if we can trust him. My guess is no. The County is filled with lying bastards but…”—he shrugged—“I’m not in charge.”

“What kind of deal?”

“He wants us to… How did he put it? Combine our assets.” Wyatt chuckled like the whole thing was a joke. “After fucking centuries of being enemies, the Alpha of the County pack wants us to become business partners.”

“Why?” Ruby was still trying to stall but now she was also genuinely interested in what Knox was up to.

“He wants to merge the packs so we can buy the land.”

“That sounds like a good idea.”

“That’s because you’re a human. We can’t bury generations of hatred just like that.”

Ruby scoffed. “Humans have plenty of our own hatred. I still think it sounds like a good idea.” Especially after seeing how the wolves lived, how precarious their lives were on borrowed land.

“But it doesn’t matter. I can’t see anything about that,” she said. “I swear. I only ever had one vision, one dream. That won’t help you at all.”

“That’s not what we’ve heard.”

She was not about to inform him that it was her twin sister he’d heard about. And she was running out of time. She could see Wyatt’s patience wearing thin. He stepped toward her, his grip tightening on her arm. He was done with their little chat.

“Wyatt,” she said with a slow smile, closing the gap between them even further. She let her gaze rove over him, pretending she liked what she saw. “I’m sure we can work something out.”

His blonde brows rose like he was suddenly interested in what she had to say.

“Oh yeah?” He smirked. “Like what?”

She yanked hard, catching Wyatt by surprise. His hand slipped from her arm. His growl joined the growls of the wolves in the shadows.

“I really wish you’d stop making this so hard,” he said.

Ruby turned and ran.

But wolves are faster than humans could ever be. One of the creatures pounced before she could think. Her scream tore through the quiet evening as the werewolf knocked her to the ground.

Chapter Forty-Five

Rafe froze.

Ruby.

Another scream.

And then, on the soft breeze of a November’s night came the scent of blood. His Mate’s blood. Rafe was shifting faster than he could think, howling like his own heart had been ripped from his chest. He raced to the back of the house, a lone wolf once again. Theo was gone, already on the road back to his cabin. It was up to him to save Ruby. It was up to him to succeed where he had once failed.

He turned the corner of the house into the backyard and his world crashed down around him. Ruby was on her back in the grass. A huge brown and white wolf growled as he tried to drag her toward the woods. Rafe nearly choked on the smell of her blood. It stained the grass around her, and his reality flipped, circling back to the most horrific moment of his life. Scarlet dead. Murdered by wolves. Except this was worse. So much worse. Because it was Ruby that lay in the grass. It may as well have been his own life that spilled out into the night.