AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Colt lashed out a hand, gripping Wright by his upper arm. “Come on.”
Wright tried to shake him off, must’ve realized that Colt’s grip was too strong, then gave in so that he could give the appearance that being yanked away from Maddox’s house was his idea.
‘Where are we going?”
“Somewhere to talk.”
Somewhere where Maddox wouldn’t tear the Ant’s throat out for endangering his mate.
The first thing Colt said once he was sure there was enough distance between them and the house was, “Evangeline is okay. Shaken up, yeah, but she’s a strong woman. She’s okay.”
Wright let out a soft exhale of relief. “Thank fucking god.”
“Maddox, on the other hand—”
“Don’t care about your brother,” Wright said dismissively. “He’s not in danger.”
“Danger?” echoed Colt. “What kind of danger are you talking about?” He glared down suspiciously at the stocky cop. “Did you expect something like this to happen?”
“I expected them to come after me.”
“Is that what you wanted? Are you fucking nuts? You’re a human.”
“Yeah, and so’s Eva. I just hoped that they would think she wouldn’t be worth it since her”—and he spit out the word—“mate was too big a threat. That’s why he’s not in any danger. Cowards prey on the weak—or the ones they think are weak. You want to hit where it hurts.”
Colt didn’t understand. “Hang on. Is that why they tried to get their fangs in Evangeline? Because of Maddox? I thought it was because of you.”
Tell Corporal Wright I said hi.
Wright’s hazel eyes darkened. The sour fear coloring his spicy scent faded as the heat of anger replaced it. “Both. He’s next in line to be Alpha. Everyone knows it. He’s got a rep. As for me… let’s just say the vamps don’t appreciate how much I’ve been on their ass lately looking for the ones responsible for the murders.”
Colt cocked his head, curious and, yeah, a little bit furious himself. “So you’ve pissed them off enough that they’ve tied you to the task force. That right? Are you telling me that you’ve actually gotten some leads? And you shut me out on it? What the fuck, Wright?”
“Not me.” Another exhale, though this one was the farthest from relieved. “I’ve been making myself a target, hoping to draw them out. All I know is that it’s some kind of organized clan who’s moved into town.”
That was the same intel that the pack had. Four different bodies—six, counting the human body left on the edge of the Bumptown and the witch Diaz told him about—and it seemed like there was a different scent every time. Either there was a rush of Nightwalker killers coming out or they were working together.
That still didn’t explain Evangeline’s attack. At least, not to his satisfaction.
“Then how did you know to expect retaliation for trying to force them out?” Colt demanded.
Wright’s shoulders slumped, the adrenaline crash leaving him both drained and defeated. “Look, Wolfe, you weren’t the first choice for this job. Neither was I. The other cops… they couldn’t hack it, but they made some headway when it came to finding the killer vampires.”
“What do you mean?”
“The bastards have been toying with us for longer than the public knows. At first, the victims were half-drained. Then, you know. Paras can’t control themselves. The bodies started pili
ng up. They sent a team out to investigate.
“We learned quickly that Nightwalkers are vicious. Cruel. Smart, too. They didn’t go for the squad. Like I said, hit ‘em where it hurts. Bowers lost his girlfriend, the mother of his kid. Fahey had to bury his husband.”
“Shit.”
“Yup. That’s when the warden offered me up. I had two things going for me: I worked in the Cage and my superiors thought I didn't have anyone left to hurt me after I lost my mom.” Grief flashed across his face before he shook it off, rage twisting his features instead. “But they found out about Eva anyway.”
And if Bradley hadn’t been nearby, what would have happened to Maddox’s mate? Colt’s vocal cords tightened as he fought the need to shift, to run, to track down the bastard corpses who tried to take his brother’s mate away from him again.
His voice came out low and obviously angry as he said wryly, “Because everyone has someone they can’t afford to lose, right? How did you even know that they went after her?”
