Carlos Caddel held the fourth seat at the High Table and was more of an enigma than anyone else I had met. He was literally covered in scars, starting on his face with a previously broken nose and stitches to the cheek. Scars trailed down his arms and back, and rumors whispered by blushing she-wolves suggested there were even more beneath his pant line. These witnesses to the entire debacle were too afraid to approach him but had no problem gossiping from the sidelines.
Carlos seemed completely disinterested in the entire meeting. Even as Maverick and Arnold spoke of using my abilities for their own gain, he hadn’t batted an eyelash. His emotions reflected his relaxed demeanor, making me wonder if he had ever truly cared about anything.
“I didn’t-” I began, but stopped as I met the frozen eyes of Arnold Fox. I had killed a High Table member, the second in rank only to Maverick Billford. Arnold was wealthy and incredibly powerful. My stomach twisted painfully, and a moment later, I was bent over, hurling up my dinner. My nose burned, and my eyes watered, but I couldn’t register the pain over my frantic thoughts.
It wasn’t like I hadn’t killed before. Many rogues had died during the battle, especially when I used my ability to subdue them. This, however, confirmed what I was: a soul-eater. What good could come from such a horrible gift? Even worse was how euphoric it felt, how strong and bloated with power I was. Disgust poured from my mouth in the form of acidic vomit.
Carlos Caddel waited patiently for me to finish. I stumbled into the connecting kitchen and rinsed my mouth with water, scowling when I noticed the blank look on his face.
“Well, I’m sure you won’t deny it again,” Carlos said evenly, glancing down at the three bodies on the floor. He prodded Arnold’s corpse with his foot and nodded. “Never thought I’d see a soul-eater at work before. Really, though. Did you have to kill Arnold Fox of all people?”
“It’s not like I had a choice; he attacked me,” I snarled back, finally finding my voice. “I never meant to kill them, but they backed me into a corner.”
“Be that as it may, what do you plan to do now?” he asked, cocking his head to the side. Jet-black hair fell over his forehead, grazing a scar on the side of his neck. “Where will you hide the bodies? Or perhaps you’ll confess and tell the truth, believing you’ll be found innocent?”
I opened my mouth and closed it again, realizing he was right. I could tell the truth all I wanted, but then the world would know what I could actually do. There was no way in hell I’d be allowed to live freely after that.
“Kieran,” I whispered to myself, glancing up at Carlos. “My mate can help.”
“Can he? It seems he’s already quite busy. Searching for your lost mate must be proving difficult,” Carlos mused, tapping his chin with a finger. There was some subtle shift in his emotions; some decision had been made in his head. “Run to your mate, Luna Sophia. I’ll clean this mess for you, but take care not to tell others what happened here.”
Like any sane and rational werewolf, I scurried along. My heart raced with every twist and turn I made in the halls, convinced some of Arnold’s men had found out the truth. I barreled into Kieran in the hallway, colliding with a wall of muscle that made my bones groan. My hands were shaking as I shoved Kieran inside the suite and buried my face in his chest.
“Fuck, sweetheart. I could feel you panicking from across the hotel,” he grunted, brushing back my hair until he found my pale face. Within seconds, I was scooped into his arms and surrounded by his rich, masculine scent. His arms formed a barrier around me, making me feel protected despite everything. I could still feel the throb in my chest as I worried for Ethan. As much as I wanted to curl up and stay in his embrace, I couldn’t. There was no way in hell I trusted Carlos Caddel, and I needed to tell Kieran exactly what had happened.
His eyes darkened as I recounted the events of the last hour, ending with Carlos Caddel’s offer to help hide my mess. Kieran pulled me to my feet and placed his lips against my forehead in a swift kiss before tugging me along. I jogged to keep up with his fast pace, understanding the need to hurry. As we opened the door to the suite where I had been attacked, my mouth clicked shut.
This had to be the right room-I still had the note crumpled in my hands. The entire room was spotless. Even my vomit was gone; the carpet was clean and white.
“That’s not possible; it’s only been ten minutes,” I scoffed, unable to believe the scene before me. There was magic, and then there was this. It brought an uncomfortable question to mind. If Maverick Billford kept white wolves as slaves, did the other High Table members do the same?
“This isn’t good-we’re indebted to him now, and he’ll want repayment,” Kieran grimaced, reaching out when a wave of guilt washed over me. I let him thread his fingers through my hair and looked up as he tilted my head. His gruff voice was unusually soft, and it sent a little flutter through my chest. “None of this was your fault, sweetheart. If he were still alive, I’d hunt Arnold Fox down myself. When Carlos Caddel comes knocking, we’ll handle it. It means he’ll hold up his end of the deal, which keeps the rest of the High Table from finding out what happened.”
“You can be quite the optimist when you want to be,” I pointed out with a small smile, just enough to get a gravelly laugh from him.
“I have two roles to fill until we find Ethan-which we will,” he replied with a snort. Even though it physically hurt to be away from Ethan for this long, I trusted Kieran and knew that together we would bring him home.
We had to wake early that morning to meet with the others and plan how we would successfully get the white wolves into our territory. Sebastian looked impeccable as ever in his crisp suit, while Williams looked a bit bleary-eyed. I couldn’t blame him; not even the incredible coffee machine in our suite could wipe the cobwebs from my eyes. I was on my second iced mocha of the day and was already thinking about a third.
“Nothing I love more than early morning war plans,” Williams yawned loudly, stretching his arms wide over his head. Sebastian cast him a sour look which he dutifully ignored. “Especially with so much on the line.”
“We’re running on limited time,” Sebastian snapped, his thick eyebrows furrowing. “This war, as you so eloquently put it, cannot wait for your schedule to clear.”
“We’ve worked through some of the details so far; now it’s time to put things in motion,” Kieran told me, cutting off any further bickering that might come from Williams and Sebastian. Despite Sebastian’s put-together appearance, he certainly wasn’t a morning person either. “There are orchards below the southern border of Maverick’s territory. We have some men planting supplies there in a few hours. They’ll have to get themselves one mile away to this abandoned railroad station in the woods. Maverick’s men rarely leave the pack borders, but if they do, they always take the main road. They use vehicles for transportation and have always stayed on two legs. There are a few backroads going through the forest; they’ll be used to get the white wolves farther away. The next town over is almost an hour’s drive. Once they make it there, we’ll have them in an armored vehicle to the nearest airport.”
“You were busy last night,” I noted, staring at Kieran a little starry-eyed. I was near positive Kieran felt the flash of guilt that crossed my emotions from the mess I had caused last night.
“You needed some time off,” he replied, his lips twitching. “Besides, I’ve never been a strategist. That’s always been Ethan’s skill. I’m not nearly as good as he is, but it’s nice to know I can handle my own.”
The second part of my High Table meeting began a few hours later. The anxiety in my gut chased away any remaining exhaustion from my eyes. We were escorted to the same room as before and gathered in our own group at the center of the room. I counted the seconds, hearing the dull tick from the clock across the room. Kieran’s fingers traced small circles on my back, but I could hardly feel his touch. I was hyper-focused on the men entering the room, the four men with grave-looking faces.