The Pines will be there, Liam answered.
This is a trap. We shouldn’t go, someone barked.
We caught the owner of the yellow Hummer-Everest’s murderer, Liam said.
I stiffened and emitted a barely audible whimper.
Liam shifted his gaze to my uncle, who stiffened next to me. And we’ve identified him as Morgan’s son. She knows we have him. That’s one of the reasons she’s coming. To retrieve him. Whether he lives or dies depends entirely on how she behaves.
I nosed out from behind August. He might walk away with his life? He killed Everest. Is this becoming a thing? Murderers get to kill without retribution?
He’s worth more to us alive than dead, Liam said. Besides, Everest was dead either way. Morgan’s son just spared me from exacting justice myself.
Jeb’s strangled moan made goose bumps flourish beneath my fur.
I’m sorry, Jeb, Liam said, I understand this is still not easy for you to hear.
Whining, Jeb folded his ears and scrambled backward and away from the pack. I started to go after him when Liam called out my name.
Ness, this meeting isn’t over.
His voice held so much authority it had me lowering my head and turning around. It was as though my body and mind were two separate entities-where my mind wanted to go after my distraught uncle, my body obeyed my Alpha’s command.
The Creek Alpha insisted that you come earlier with me.
Me? Why?
Apparently she’s heard a lot about you.
I waited for snickers to erupt from the males whose gazes were all trained on me now. No one snickered.
So be ready at seven, Liam said.
Then he proceeded to give us orders about the night ahead, urging us not to ingest any drink or food offered at the inn in case they were doused with the missing Sillin.
I thought we recovered it all, someone said.
Almost all. But this doesn’t mean the Creeks don’t have their own stock, Liam barked.
He doled out more precautions, but his voice faded into white noise as I pondered why Morgan, the great and feared Alpha of the Creeks, had asked to meet me beforehand.
Was she looking for an ally in my pack?
I went in to work the next day with a mix of excitement and dread bubbling deep in the pit of my stomach. August exacerbated the dread part of my mood. His concern was so heavy that I asked him if I could leave early. Before I could drive away, he asked if I wanted him to come at seven too. When I turned down his offer-because I feared Morgan wouldn’t appreciate me bringing a bodyguard-his eyes darkened like the evergreens on a moonless night.
I hadn’t meant to hurt his feelings and almost backpedaled, but he’d be there shortly after me. Besides, I wasn’t frightened. Well, not overly frightened.
Especially after Sarah dropped by, chattering nonstop about the meeting. She swung three dresses onto my bed. Even though I insisted on wearing something of mine, she told me this was a soirée. A soirée apparently called for fancy attire.
“I’m not looking to seduce any Creeks,” I muttered to Sarah as I reluctantly tried dress number two.
“One of the first things Julian taught me was that the way you present yourself, the way you hold yourself, the way you speak affects the perception people will have of you. By walking in looking like a thousand dollars-I think that one was actually two-you’ll stand out, because everyone, be they wolf or human, has a vested interest in beauty and riches.”
She fingered the black tulle of the midi skirt while I blanched. I’d never asked how much the red dress I’d worn to her brother’s wedding cost, nor the little white number that still hung in my closet.
I smoothed down the stiff bustier top that shoved my breasts together. Considering mine were way smaller than Sarah’s, I asked, “Can you even fit into this thing?”
“Nope. Internet order I was too lazy to return. It’s yours.”
For a second, I pondered reselling it, but it would probably hurt Sarah’s feelings. Plus it was really nice and black, so probably easy to wear to other occasions.
I finally turned away from the floor-length mirror glued to the back of my bedroom door. “You’re like a fairy godmother. Except instead of little wings and a gray bun, you have sharp claws that can shred a man’s throat, and a sharper attitude that can shred his ego.”
She slashed through the air, manicured nails curving.
My lips quirked into a smile that tumbled off when a car honked.
Sarah lurched off the bed and peered out my window. “Liam’s here. Are you gonna be okay?”
“Yeah,” I lied, going into my bathroom and fishing my mascara from the glass in which I kept my toothbrush and eyeliner. Even though my hands trembled, I managed to apply a thin coat of makeup to my lashes without incident. I left the rest of my face bare. The dress was loud enough. I fluffed out my hair which had dried a bit wavy and fit my feet into my black heels.
“Let’s pray tonight doesn’t turn into something out of a slasher film,” Sarah said, running her hand along her hair, which she’d had professionally flattened. It made her look like a different person-less wild and more refined.
I gasped. “Why would you say that?”
“I was just kidding.”
“Well, it wasn’t funny,” I muttered.
Sarah did something very un-Sarah-like. She gave me a hug. “She has no reason to murder us. She probably came to beg for her son’s life. And maybe offer us an alliance.” She squeezed me tight, her flowery perfume prickling my nostrils like rose thorns. “Or maybe she wants to marry you off to her son.”
I pulled away. “What?”
Sarah shrugged. “I was just speculating.”
“Well don’t speculate about something so… so awful.”
“You’re mated. Just use that excuse if she tries to marry you off.”
As I wrenched my bedroom door open, I caught my reflection in the mirror. My face was as wraith-like as Isobel’s had been back at the hospital.
Liam honked again.
“Better go before he comes upstairs and hauls your ass into his big car.”
My heartbeats snagged behind my compressed ribs. “I’m not ready,” I whispered, panicked.
She strode up to me and tucked a piece of hair behind my ear. “I’ll come early.” When I still hadn’t moved, she said, “Everything’ll be fine.”