Chapter 26
Nathan
I sat on a high tree limb, as high as I dared climb with my weight. Every instinct in me was on high alert. This plan needed to work.
My gaze flicked to Rissa, sitting by a makeshift fire pit in the middle of our pack land. To anyone else, she looked relaxed, but I could see the tension in the way she held her shoulders. She was pretending for the others, but she knew the risk.
Beside her, Krystal shifted in her seat. "Did you see that new shop that opened on Main Street?" Krystal asked with a smile that didn't reach her eyes.
"Oh yeah, the gift boutique?" Rissa replied. "I've been meaning to check it out."
Their laughter rang out, forced but convincing. To an outsider, it would seem like any other casual gathering. But we all knew better.
I clenched my jaw, my wolf pacing restlessly beneath my skin. The rogue had to show himself tonight.
I inhaled deeply, trying to catch a scent on the breeze. Nothing yet. Just the earthy aroma of the forest and the smoke from the firepit.
Rissa glanced up then mostly in my direction. I was pretty well-camouflaged, thanks to Aurelia. She’d really come in handy in a pinch.
Worry flickered in her eyes before she turned back to the conversation. She was putting on a brave face but, she was just as on edge as me.
My fingers dug into my biceps as I willed the rogue to make his move. To slip up and give us the opening we needed. The seconds ticked by, each one more tense than the last.
"Another round?" Krystal held out a bottle of what looked like whiskey but was really just apple juice. Rissa let Krystal fill her glass and began to act a little bit more drunk with every passing minute.
I shifted my weight, waiting, watching. The forest held its breath with me, the anticipation thick in the air. Come on, I silently urged the rogue. Take the bait. Let's end this once and for all.
The stillness stretched on, broken only by the crackle of the fire and the forced laughter from the group. I couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. The woods were too quiet, the night too still.
"It's too quiet," Krystal muttered, echoing my thoughts. Her fingers tapped restlessly against her thigh.
My wolf stirred at her words, sensing the wrongness in the air.
She was right. This part of the forest should've been alive with the sounds of nature, the rustle of leaves, the hum of insects, the distant howls of our kind. But instead, an eerie silence blanketed everything. Maybe the small animals knew the enforcers, Gavin and I, were placed strategically in the trees. We’d done our best to mask our scents with an herb mixture Aurelia had given us.
This was as far as we were willing to get away from the women.
I clenched my fists, straining my senses to their limits. I had to be missing something. Some clue, some sign that the rogue was out there, watching, waiting.
"Anything?" Gavin's voice crackled through my earpiece, a hint of impatience creeping into his tone.
I shook my head slightly, knowing he couldn't see me. "Nothing yet," I replied as quietly as I could. "But something doesn't feel right. It's like the whole forest is holding its breath."
Kendrick, Marcus, and Caleb were poised and ready, hidden from view but prepared to move at a moment's notice. All they needed was my signal.
Every muscle in my body was coiled tight, ready to spring into action. I could shift as I jumped from the tree and be by Rissa’s and Krystal’s side in a moment.
Rissa laughed at something Krystal said, the sound a little too bright, a little too forced. She was doing her best to keep up appearances and make this seem like any other night.
A sudden snap echoed through the trees, sharp and distinct. I stiffened, my head whipping around toward the sound. A few trees away, Caleb straightened, his posture alert.
Marcus shot me a questioning look from his post down the path, silently asking for directions. I held up a hand, signaling for him to wait. The sound didn't repeat. It could have been an animal moving through the underbrush. Or it could have been something else entirely.
I strained my ears, listening for any other signs of disturbance, but the night remained still. Too still. The hair on the back of my neck prickled with unease.
Rissa stretched languidly, her voice drifting across the yard. "I don't know about you, but I could really use some chocolate right now."
Her tone was casual, almost bored, but I knew better. It was a signal, a way to communicate without tipping our hand. She was letting me know that she sensed the wrongness in the air and that something was about to happen.
I forced myself to take a deep breath, trying to calm my racing heartbeat. We had to stay focused, stay alert. The rogue was cunning, and he wouldn't hesitate to exploit any weakness.
My mind raced with possibilities, contingency plans forming and discarded in rapid succession.
If the rogue attacked now, we'd have to act fast. Kendrick and Marcus would need to flank him from the sides while Caleb and I engaged him directly.
Rissa and the others would need to get to the pack house, to safety.
But even as I strategized, a sinking feeling settled in my gut. The rogue had been one step ahead of us at every turn, always seeming to know our next move before we made it. Leaving no clues behind.
What if this was another trap, another misdirection? What if he was toying with us, luring us into a false sense of security before striking when we least expected it?
I shook my head, trying to banish the doubts. We couldn't afford to second-guess ourselves, not now. We had to trust in our plan, in each other.
The night stretched on, the minutes ticking by with agonizing slowness. The tension in the air was palpable, a living thing that coiled around us, squeezing tighter with each passing moment.
And still, nothing happened. No more sounds, no signs of movement. Just the oppressive silence of the forest, the weight of our own expectations.
Frustration built inside me, the urge to act, do something, anything. But I forced myself to stay still, to keep scanning the trees.
Gavin's voice crackled through my earpiece, low and terse. "Anything?"
I exhaled slowly, trying to keep my own frustration in check. "Nothing," I muttered back. "No sign of him."
We had been so sure that the rogue would take the bait, that he wouldn't be able to resist the temptation of an easy target.
But maybe we had underestimated him. Maybe he was smarter than we gave him credit for.
Or maybe he was just biding his time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
An hour later, Gavin's voice crackled through my earpiece, quiet but firm. "It's been too long. He's not coming.”
I exhaled sharply, rubbing the back of my neck as frustration and disappointment warred within me. This had been our best shot, our chance to finally put an end to the rogue's reign of terror. And we had come up empty.
I jumped out of the tree, which signaled the others to come out of hiding.
Rissa stood, brushing dirt off her jeans. "So what now?"
Krystal folded her arms, her brow furrowed. "Maybe he knows we set a trap."
My stomach tightened at the thought. "Or maybe he's watching."
A shiver ran through Rissa at my words. "If he was watching, wouldn't he have come for us anyway?"
I shook my head. "Not necessarily. He's been smart so far. If he suspects this is a setup, he won't risk it."
Silence stretched between us, heavy with the weight of our failure. We had put everything on the line, had risked our lives to draw the rogue out. And it had all been for nothing.
"Let’s go in," Gavin said, his tone grim. "We'll figure out another angle."
But I couldn't give up. I wouldn't. For the sake of my pack, for the sake of my daughter, I had to keep fighting. No matter how long it took, no matter what the cost. I would find a way to end this. To keep my people safe.