Chapter 26 Wolf
Wolf
Sheriff Tate stepped inside only after Saint verified the hallway was clear and Trigger secured the door behind him. The sheriff gave each Ranger a heavy, assessing look—Trigger standing alert, Havoc braced like a wall, Saint clutching his tablet—and finally, his eyes landed on Nora.
His expression softened, even if only barely.
“You alright, Miss Carver?”
Nora nodded, but I could feel the tremor in her breath as she stood close—so close her shoulder brushed my arm. I didn’t move away.
Sheriff Tate exhaled hard. “I figured something was wrong when the motion alerts hit my phone. But I didn’t expect this.”
Trigger stepped forward, jaw set. “We caught movement. Human. Watching the building.”
Saint held up the tablet. “He positioned himself with a clear line of sight to Nora’s window.”
Sheriff Tate muttered a curse under his breath. “Yeah. That tracks with what I found.”
He reached into his coat and withdrew a sealed evidence bag.
Inside was a metal button.
Old.
Worn.
Handled enough times that the edges had smoothed out.
The second I saw the faint carved symbol on the back—a thin vertical line intersected by a hooked curve—my stomach turned to ice.
Nora looked up at me sharply. “Wolf…?”
I lifted the bag to the hallway light.
Trigger leaned in. “He left another one?”
Sheriff Tate nodded. “Found it wedged into the back staircase door. Like he wanted to make sure someone found it.”
Havoc growled. “A signature.”
Saint quietly added, “A message.”
Nora’s voice trembled. “What kind of message?”
I held her gaze, steady. “That symbol isn’t random. I’ve seen it before. It marks fixation. Tracking. Sometimes… ownership.”
Her breath hitched. But instead of shrinking, she straightened.
“He’s marking me,” she said softly. “Isn’t he?”
The guys went silent.
And that silence was the answer.
I stepped closer, letting my presence settle around her. “He’s marking proximity. Encroachment. That doesn’t mean he’s getting inside. Not while we’re here.”
Sheriff Tate crossed his arms. “My gut says this isn’t his first game. Men like this don’t escalate out of nowhere—they escalate because they think they’re winning.”
Trigger’s jaw clenched. “He’s not winning.”
Saint adjusted his glasses. “We need more info. Sheriff, what else do you have?”
Tate hesitated. Just a beat. Then he pulled another item from his coat.
A printed photograph.
Black and white. Grainy. From a security camera.
He held it out.
Nora sucked in a breath.
A silhouette.
Tall.
The same build from the alley.
Standing across the street from the tavern.
Head tilted up—
looking directly toward her apartment windows.
My blood simmered. “When was this taken?”
“About an hour before your alert. He’s circling.” Tate’s face hardened. “And he’s getting bold.”
Nora wrapped her arms around herself, the smallest gesture—but I saw it. Felt it.
I stepped closer, brushing my fingers lightly along her elbow. “You’re not alone. Not for one second.”
Her eyes lifted to mine—vulnerable, but fierce underneath. “I know.”
Sheriff Tate cleared his throat. “At sunrise, all of you. My office. We need to coordinate this before he slips through the cracks.”
Trigger nodded. “We’ll be there.”
Havoc added, “Locked and loaded.”
Saint tapped the tablet. “I’ll run analytics. Enhance footage. See if anything was missed.”
Sheriff Tate gave a final heavy look at Nora. “Get some rest if you can. Things are about to get… involved.”
He left with a grim nod, and the door sealed behind him.
The hallway fell into thick silence.
Trigger exhaled. “Sunrise is in four hours.”
Saint murmured, “I’ll pull an all-nighter.”
Havoc cracked his knuckles. “We fortify. No more blind spots.”
They dispersed with military precision.
But I didn’t move.
Neither did Nora.
She swallowed hard. “Wolf… what happens now?”
I reached out, sliding my hand gently to her back, guiding her a fraction closer. “Now we get you somewhere safer.”
She looked up, eyes shining with courage and fear tangled together. “Where’s that?”
I held her gaze.
Unwavering.
Certain.
“With me.”
Her breath caught.
But she didn’t look away.
“Okay,” she whispered.
And everything in me—every instinct, every protective bone—locked into place.
Havoc smirked as he walked by. “Knew this was coming.”
Trigger muttered, “Man’s not even pretending anymore.”
Saint didn’t comment, but the corner of his mouth twitched.
Nora didn’t blush this time.
She stepped into my space—trusting me with all of it.
“Show me,” she whispered.
And I did.
I led her back toward the room we now shared—not out of convenience, but necessity, protection, and something deeper neither of us was ready to name yet.
Not out loud.
But the truth was simple:
I wasn’t letting anything touch her.
Not tonight.
Not ever.