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Loud and incessantpounding on my door jarred me from sleep, my heart leaping into my throat. Springing from bed, I crouched defensively as I fought off the lingering grogginess.
“Police!” That had me moving faster and I glanced through the peephole first. An officer in uniform stood there, hand poised to knock again. I yanked the door open before he could, my eyes widening at the chaos ensuing outside. Flashing lights filled the early morning darkness, cops milling around the parking lot. But it was the sheet-covered body already soaking with blood that drew my eyes.
“Oh god… what happened?” My voice was barely audible. He studied me for a second before softening a bit. Apparently that glance had reassured him I wasn’t involved in whatever had happened out there.
“We were hoping you could tell us something. Did you hear anything out here?” he asked, gesturing to the body lying in the parking lot. From the size of the person under the sheet, they weren’t small.
Then it hit me.
Gods, tell me it wasn’t Blake.
“No, nothing. Blake, the bouncer over at the bar walked me home after some asshole threatened me. But once I locked the door and crawled into bed, I was out for the count. I’m a heavy sleeper,” I admitted with a fake sheepish smile that he bought, hook, line, and sinker. He nodded, writing down a few notes as I explained. Something on his face told me something in my story hit the mark.
“And tell me about this guy.”
“He looked homeless. Worn and wrinkled clothes. Covered in dirt. He was a bit skin and bones too,” I explained. “Older, maybe early forties. His hair was a dark black, shoulder length, greasy and combed back. He said he was passing through, so he’s not a local.”
“I’ll check in with Tina,” he said with a sigh. “You might want to stay in while the coroner comes out and we clean up this mess.”
“Is it Blake?” I whispered quietly before he could turn away.
He paused and gave me a sympathetic look.
“I’m sorry ma’am,” was all he offered before walking away. Tears welled in my eyes, guilt bubbling to the surface. I’d led Blake to his death to save my own life. The wolf had clearly sat in wait for the night to wind down then brought him here as a warning. Nothing about this situation was good. If he could take down a man of Blake’s size, I was a fucking easy target. The news Dave gave me yesterday about my truck taking a long time, was even more serious now and I had no clue what to do with myself. How could I escape if I had no way to leave?! I’d brought death to this sleepy little town, and I was stuck here with a fucking serial killer who would stop at nothing to see me dead. All because I rejected his advances and gave him a little sass?
Who else would he take out to get to me?
ChapterSix
Leven
The woods were quiet as the early morning light filtered through the trees. I padded through the underbrush, scenting and watching for anything that might breach the perimeter of the Bluffs. My job as head of security was to keep my pack safe, and I took that job seriously even if nothing really happened around this area.
Most of the pack thought it was overkill, that I was too serious. They took for granted that they had someone watching their backs as they slept, keeping an eye out for threats all hours of the day. Their complacency wouldn’t bring down the pack… mine would.
The sound of footsteps running through the forest had me up and running to meet it head on, slowing only when I scented my partner Nyx. He slowed to a walk as he heard me approach, even outside of wolf form our hearing precise.
“There’s talk in town,” he said in a low tone like he thought he might have been followed.
I shifted at that. A ripple of magic went through my body before the sound of bones popping filled the air. A moment later I was standing in front of Nyx, naked and ready to continue our conversation. The tension rippling off of him had me on edge.
“About?”
“There was a murder last night in front of the motel. The town is saying it’s a murder, but I snuck close enough to see the body before they transported it. Those were claw marks and they’ll note that soon enough,” he explained.
“Shit,” I growled as I started to pace. “That’s not good for the community.”
“We didn’t have anyone leave last night, I checked the logs after circling back,” he added on before I could point it out. “It’s not one of ours.”
“Lone wolf,” I said definitively. A pack wouldn’t be stupid enough to attack like that. Fur bristled along my spine as my body reacted to the territorial, violent surge that went through me. Any lone wolf stupid enough to encroach on our territory and cause trouble was going to learn a thing or two about boundaries and respect.
“Should we head back and change, check the scanner?” Nyx asked, waiting for my lead. He gave a pointed look at my lack of clothes, and I shook my head. He didn’t care, none of us did. It was part of being in a pack, even more so for those of us who spent several nights a week shifting back and forth between our forms. But Nyx was always the one trying to either rile us up or tease us, but it never worked on me. We had more important issues right now anyway.
“Rivera is on scanners tonight, we’ll start there. I have clothes in my locker,” I relented. It was the smarter thing to do strategically but my instincts were screaming for me to go to town, hunt this bastard down, and get rid of him.
Nyx didn’t wait, turning and heading back through the forest. I followed slightly behind him; senses sharpened so I could see if this lone wolf edged closer to the Bluffs.
