Good sex. The best kind of sex.
“I’m sorry,” he said.
“For which part?” she asked. “Not believing me? Or the fact that you were too embarrassed to be seen with a weak person like me?”
“Amelia, I, the club, it all matters. We’d been combing through that forest, and there was no sign of this person. There were just the hunters, and they hadn’t caused any trouble either. You have to understand.”
“I don’t have to understand anything,” she said. “I have never gone out ofmy way to seek attention from anyone. What I felt for you, what we had, that was real, but I’m not good enough for you. I’ve heard that message loud and freaking clear.”
Shelifted herself off the bench, reaching for the crutch Jules had given to her.
“Amelia!”
“No,” she said. “You don’t get to do anything. You don’t get to Amelia me, talk to me, or say anything to me. The pain you caused me, breaking my leg, that isnothing compared to what you did to me.” She pressed her palm to her chest. “I fell in love with you, Wolfe. Yeah, stupid me. Stupid, pathetic Amelia, whose own parents wanted nothing to do with her, fell in love with you. The VP of the Poison Wolves MC. But don’t worry, Wolfe, you put me firmly in my place, and I’ll make sure that I stay here. I won’t ever darken your doorstep like this again.”
She was so angry, so humiliated.
Walking away from him, hobbling on a crutch, was not the way she wanted to go. She’d never been well coordinated, and there was proof of that now. It wasn’t like she could go too far.
Alpha nor Jules wouldn’t let her. She was stuck here, close to the guy who’d broken her heart. What was even worse, she still fucking loved him.
****
Alpha watched as the body burned.
He’d known of rare cases where wolves would attempt to attack a human, to force a mating, or even to try to build themselves up a pack.
Wolves needed to be close to their own kind. There were rare and fewcircumstances that meant some wolves could go rogue and not need any of them, but that was, again, rare.
He couldn’t even recall a single case where it had worked. There was always a risk.
Whatever had attacked Milton was a wolf, but what Alpha didn’t know was if it was intentional, accidental, or purely a mistake.
Had Milton survived the attack? Was he supposed to have survived?
These were all questions he needed answers to.
He didn’t hold it against Amelia that she had no choice but to kill him to survive. He was a little surprised she had, but once again, she proved Val right.
Speaking of Val, Alphalooked up to see the bar owner on the opposite side of the fire.
He’d gone deep into the forest, where no one dared venture.
“I heard what happened,”Val said. “Was Jules able to detect what happened?”
“She saw multiple bite wounds. What we couldn’t know for sure is if it was pure hunger.”
“Come on, Alpha, you and I both know that if it was hunger, his flesh would have been torn off his skin. This humanwouldn’t have survived. Bite marks mean one thing and one thing only.”
Alpha nodded. “Someone is attempting to turn humans into wolves.”
He and Val had … handled a case similar to it, many moons ago. Even before he set up the Poison Wolves MC.Alpha ran a hand down his face. “This isn’t good.”
“No, this is worse than that. We have no leads. No clues. Nothing. Could it be related to the humans?” Val asked.
“The hunters? I doubt it. They were merely looking for deer. Nothing else.”
Alpha watched the fire and felt something twist in his gut. Something was going to happen. His senses were heightened. His wolf was there, knowing this wasn’t over.