Page 22 of Moon Destiny
I clapped him on the shoulder, grateful to have such a reliable and skilled tracker in the pack. “I know you will. I trust you.”
* * *
The urgent, frayed nervousness I’d felt in the foyer returned as I rushed Brooke to my SUV. The thought of rogue wolves near my home was infuriating. The thought of them harming Brooke made my beast strain against the mental bonds I normally had no problem keeping in place. Over the years, I’d heard countless wolves describe how it felt to find their fated mate. It had sounded dramatic to the point of absurdity. Surely, I’d thought, the claims of deep connection and insatiable desire were exaggerated.
Now I knew they weren’t.
I was perilously close to losing control. Hopefully Brooke was still too new to being a werewolf to notice.
“Are you all right?” she asked as I flew down the driveway.
I made a deliberate effort to unclench my hands from the steering wheel. “I should be asking you that.” She could have been killed. My fault, of course. I’d dumped her on Dylan and then fled the house like a coward rather than tell her the truth about what we were to each other. And in doing so, I’d put her in danger.
“I’m okay,” she said. “Worried about Dylan.”
“He’s fine. This isn’t the first time he’s been shot.” As soon as I said it, I realized how not reassuring that was. I cleared my throat. “I wouldn’t have left if I thought he was in danger.”
“No, I know that,” she said, and her words had the ring of truth. “Where are we going?”
“Early dinner.” I checked the rear view mirror as we sped away from the house. The likelihood of pursuit was next to nothing, but I wasn’t taking any chances.
She looked at me like I’d just announced we were leaving the solar system. “You’re taking me to dinner?”
“In Goldendale, yes. It’s full of humans, especially now that it’s summer and the tourists have descended. The rogues will never strike around so many people.”
She chewed her lower lip for a second. “But didn’t you say the rogues want to go public?”
“Not like that.” I merged onto the two-lane highway that connected Bosford to Goldendale. My beast settled down as we traveled farther from the house, and I relaxed into the leather seat. “Rourke is a fool, but he’s not stupid enough to commit murder in broad daylight under the nose of human authorities.”
“Rourke…” She paused, her nose scrunched up like she was trying to think of a word. “Villadsen?”
It was an effort to focus on the road, especially now that I knew how adorable she looked when she was trying to remember something. “Yes,” I said, willing the blood in my body to stop rushing places I most definitely did not need it right now. “You read the book I gave you.”
She huffed. “I didn’t have anything else to do last night.”
“And what did you learn, aside from the fact that Rourke Villadsen is the leader of the rogues?”
“Is this the official quiz or more like a review session?”
A smile tugged at my lips, but I kept it in check. “You’ve been thrust into a completely different world. I’m here to answer any questions you have about it.”
She waited a moment, as if trying to gauge my sincerity. Then she gave a little sigh. “There are twelve packs. Yours is the Pacific Pack.”
“Yes.” And the best one. It was possible I was biased, but I didn’t think so.
“Each pack has an alpha, and every alpha sits on the Council of Alphas. Leadership on the Council rotates every year.” She gave me a curious look. “Are you in charge now?”
I shook my head. “My term was four years ago.” And the rotation went by geography, which meant I had to suffer through six more months of the South Central Pack’s alpha helming the Council. If “archaic” was a person, it would look a lot like Hiram Grant.
“Hm. And what about the…mage? Magic-born—?”
“Mageborn,” I corrected. “That’s the Northeast Pack.”
“The book said they use magic.”
“Yes. According to legend, they’re descended from a sorcerer.” I glanced at her. “No one can prove that, but the mageborn align themselves with the sorcerers, so I assume there’s at least some truth to the story. Carrick—he’s the alpha of the Northeast Pack—doesn’t change his shoes without asking whether Delano Rayne has an opinion about it.” I flipped on my turn signal and exited the highway. “Delano is the—”
“Leader of the sorcerers and CEO of Rayne Corporation,” she said. Almost to herself, she added, “I’d like to look that up when I get a chance.”
