Chapter 10 #4
“If you find the witch,” Terran’s voice dropped to a low growl, “I’d like an introduction.”
“If I find him,” I said, my tone mirroring his threatening edge, “I doubt there will be enough left of him for an introduction.” It wouldn’t be me causing the brunt of it unless I was forced to because he refused to remove the curse.
If Amelia’s coven got involved, violence would be inevitable.
They’d want to retaliate. At that moment, I wasn’t feeling generous enough to prevent it.
Jonah was the only person I knew who’d used an auditory charm as a weapon. He’d moved to the top of my list as a person of interest.
“Terran, I know your pack values discretion, and I’d appreciate if you gave this situation that courtesy,” I requested.
Discretion was not adequate to describe how secretive werewolves tended to be.
“I can’t give you more information than this.
I promise, the wolfsbane isn’t for anything related to the weres.
It is dire that I get some. Do you have any? ”
He inched closer, his eyes intense as they assessed me. A flush flitted over the bridge of his nose and cheeks, and I suspected being near me reminded him of his earlier response.
Terran took several measured steps back and nodded. “I believe you.”
Werewolves claimed they could scent a lie. I suspected it was a fantastical embellishment. Their heightened senses let them detect physiological changes in people when they weren’t truthful. Whichever it was, people were wary of lying to them.
“I don’t have any. Any that my pack comes in contact with is destroyed. Take my number,” he instructed me. “I’ll send you the location where you can find some. It’s about an hour away. I’ll request a favor for their wolves to let you pass.”
“So there is some in Indiana?”
He nodded and made a face. “The pack there are aware of all who have it and all the locations where it grows in the wild. They keep a close eye on things. I prefer a direct approach to handling anyone who possesses or seeks it, but they prefer to make examples of them.” He shrugged.
“No worries,” he added, “you’ll leave unharmed. I give you my word.”
“Thank you.” Relief settled in me. “I’ll try to set up a meeting with Knight and Hollows. I’ll be upfront with you, it’s highly unlikely to happen. If I get the wolfsbane, I’ll owe you a debt.”
“You don’t. We’re good.” He started toward his car, glancing at me over his shoulder with a peculiar expression as if he’d had another reminder of the earlier awkwardness.
Was it that hard for him? Or was it his lack of control that was the real problem?
If I could get more favors from him, I’d let him bury his toasty face in my neck anytime.
Having an Alpha who owed me favors was an advantage I’d happily accept.
It didn’t seem like a big deal. He needed comfort and oddly found it in me.
But it hadn’t been just comfort—it was more.
I wanted desperately to let Terran’s strange behavior go without investigation, but curiosity nagged at me.
For a brief moment, the Alpha had lost any semblance of control of his wolf and found it with me.
That couldn’t be normal. Could that ability be something else that had slipped from my locked magic?
Hearing me calling his name, he turned, revealing another thing that was just too. His expressions were too intense. The pained scowl revealed that we shared the same curiosity about what had happened.
He slowly walked toward me. “Based on my intel, you don’t have any magic and aren’t considered a true witch.” His piercing, scrutinizing look made me feel like prey.
The trust between us was tenuous. He didn’t consider me an immediate threat, but if things changed, the pack would handle me like they did any other danger. They wouldn’t care about consequences from the vampire houses.
His wariness was understandable. Control had been wrenched from him, and for a fleeting moment, I was the one who helped him regain control. Me having some control over his wolf, no matter how brief, had to be unsettling for him.
“I’m immune to wards.” I offered the sliver of information to bolster the fragile trust between us.
“Is that all?”
“That’s all that I know of.” It wasn’t entirely a lie. I hoped it passed his lie detector. His hunter eyes flared before settling.
“Are you trying to discover more about yourself?” he asked.
I nodded, but when I didn’t elaborate, he sighed. “Do you know what a pack’s Omega is?”
“Yes, they’re the only one in your pack without the anger issues,” I quipped in a half-tease. I wasn’t wrong. They were notorious for their lack of patience and poor temperament.
He dismissed my comment with a tiny smile that lifted the corners of his lips before fading.
“They bring calm to us. More specifically, to me. I only respond to a pack Omega. I can help others shift into their animal form or even force them out of it and calm them when needed, but only an Omega can truly do that for me. For a moment, you felt like one. Overwhelmingly calm and in control of my wolf. Witches don’t have that ability.
” A shadow crossed his face. “At least, I hope none of them do.”
Tension thickened between us.
“There’s no chance you’re a wolf?” He asked the rhetorical question seemingly out of sheer desperation.
“Both of my parents were witches.”
His eyes narrowed at the inflection in my voice. I no longer believed that wholeheartedly. In just a few days, my life had become a chaotic tangle of unanswered questions and uncertainties.
“If there was a chance that I was a wolf, wouldn’t I have shifted by now?”
He nodded. “But there are rare occasions when a shifter can’t attain their form without help.” He extended his hand to me, his brow rising in a request for me to take it.
It took a moment for me to place my hand in his.
Terran’s features tightened and his pupils constricted until they were pins.
I didn’t think his body could get warmer.
It was like sitting too close to a campfire.
Closing his eyes briefly, they snapped open displaying his odd glowing eyes.
He quickly took several steps back and shook his head.
Terran definitely didn’t have the urge to cuddle with me again. Frowning, he muttered, “Odd.”
“You felt it again?”
“No. I didn’t feel anything.” Instead of relief, his concern had heightened. It made me eager to distance myself from him in the event he considered me a problem.
“We’re probably making more of it than necessary. I need to go get the wolfsbane.” I thanked him again for the help and rushed to get in my car, giving him a dainty finger wave to keep the perception that I wasn’t a danger to him or his pack.
I had a moment of concern that our discussion had inadvertently jeopardized my chances of receiving his help. It lifted when I received a text confirming that it was safe to retrieve the wolfsbane. My relief was immense. Amelia was going to survive.