The Apologetic Wolf #2
“You have nothing to be sorry for, V. I’m not mad at you.
The blame’s all mine. I should’ve known.
I was their fucking alpha. I should’ve known.
And they planned to kill you. What other choice did you have?
If anything, I…can’t—I don’t know how to begin to say sorry that two wolves I thought had your best interests at heart turned out to be the ones with their claws out.
But to think they’d be connected to the same people who are hunting you, who’ve made your life a living hell, and now Theo? I…”
The Shifter didn’t finish, just held me tighter. Sensing it was something he needed, I wrapped my arms around him and hugged the apologetic wolf back. Even with the history between us and the horrible rollercoaster our friendship had been on over the last year, I was so glad to still have him.
But mostly, I was glad he didn’t blame me.
Emotion crowded my throat. I swallowed it. I wouldn’t cry. If I did, it’d make Nigel feel like it was his fault. It wasn’t. There were bigger things at play here, and I blamed Lux and the fucked-up Organization that created him for everything that happened. No one else.
“This isn’t your fault, Nigel. Those were your friends.
Your family. Your pack. I won’t sugarcoat what they did, but I wished it were different.
I want to believe they’d been led astray about me somehow.
But still, I’m so fucking sorry it happened at all,” I bit out, grief reaching my throat and making it impossible to speak the way I wanted.
Because I’d lost a friend, too.
I hated to admit how much I missed Tiff.
How I couldn’t mourn her like Nigel could.
How I was forced to fight for my life by ending hers.
But even though she and Topher betrayed me, I still wanted to believe they didn’t know the truth; that they’d been brainwashed to believe I was a threat.
I wanted to think they did it because they had no other choice.
But we’d never know. They were dead, and nothing we said or did would ever change that.
“I’m sorry you lost people you cared about,” I whispered, hoping to express my support with a squeeze.
Pulling away, I caught sight of the anguish bleeding from my friend’s eyes—the pain, the hurt, the agony.
Tears broke away and trailed down his face before Nigel wiped them away, sniffing angrily.
It killed me to see him like that, but the alpha just shook his head, cleared his throat, and schooled his expression.
“Theo did this, not you. If he’s involved with the Organization like you say, then this is worse than I first thought.
If he’s working with them after everything they’ve done to us, it goes against every credo we wolves believe in.
” Nigel’s beaming amber eyes flicked up to meet mine, no longer drowning in grief.
The rage was finally there, bent on settling the score.
“If we can get enough evidence to prove he’s the Organization’s lap dog, then we won’t have to be the ones to take him down.
The wolf society will do that for us. So, I’ll help you.
I know for a fact that Claude and Mia were just as blindsided as I was, and they’ll want this as much as you Hunters do.
Let’s take down a fucking society alpha. ”
“Never thought there’d ever be a day where I was glad to have you on our side…” Phillip huffed a laugh, surprising us all.
Which was the closest Nigel would ever get to a compliment from Phillip.
The wolf understood as much because his eyes went wide and he scoffed, but it lacked the usual annoyance.
The upwards twitch of the werewolf’s mouth told me despite thinking Phillip was the scum of the Earth, he was tickled by the compliment.
The rest of the group came out of their hiding places in the forest, and Nigel rolled his eyes when Grams made her way over to him.
The elderly woman had recently dyed her hair a hilarious shade of pink, and you’d never guess she fought like a demon.
If anything, she came across as one of those hip grandmas from TikTok, especially with the dominatrix outfit she’d worn today.
Grams dragged the enormous man into a hug, then pinched his arm.
“You better stop pretending I don’t exist. You’re never allowed to act like we’re strangers again.
I missed this handsome face.” Cradling Nigel’s head between her hands, my grandma’s hazel eyes crinkled.
“And you owe me a few spars for being a big ol’ brat and hurting my granddaughter. ”
The Shifter’s hiss of pain was quickly followed by an all-kid grin when she chastised him.
“Okay, you’ve got me there. But I always end up hurting for days after a spar with you, woman.
You use gold-plated weapons to slow down the healing process.
” My lethal grandmother’s warning eyes landed on the Shifter, and he laughed loudly.
It was the first time in a long time since I’d seen Nigel laugh like this. The usual boyish charm beamed in his expression like no time had been lost. I’d nearly forgotten what his amusement did to my heart. My first boyfriend was still the most beautiful when he smiled, and I’d missed it.
Maybe I wasn’t the only one who needed Grams back. As I stared at the two of them, their genuine love for each other in every word and look, I realized that maybe Nigel was waiting for her to return the same way I had been.
“I can’t believe you brought gold bullets to take me down,” he admonished Grams, staring at the gun clipped to her belt.
Her lips twitched, and she offered the wolf a sneaky glance. “You’re fast. I had to bring the gun, or you’d be out of range before I could get’cha.”
Phillip and I both laughed, and Nigel sighed loud enough to make Kris and Grams also break down into a fit of giggles.
You’d never know when you looked at us that this was a group of terrifying superbeings out for revenge—because for the first time in a while, we all seemed to be having fun.