Page 14 of Drew

She exhaled. A few short hours and she’d be gone.

Run. Escape. Flee. It was her life’s motto and the best shot at surviving, despite her heart’s desire to stay.

Chapter Five

“You couldn’t catch her?” Callum laughed, prompting a snarl from Drew.

“She’s fast,” Drew insisted, never breaking his stride as they walked through Wildlings. Drew had raced back to the building, donned his clothing, and taken a four-wheeler out to retrieve her abandoned belongings. When he’d returned, Maddox and Callum were waiting in the break room, curious, intrigued, and a little anxious.

“That’s got to be a good sign, right?” Maddox asked, keeping stride with the pack leader. “If she were a half-breed, she likely wouldn’t be that quick, right?”

“I don’t know,” Drew muttered. He didn’t know a goddamn fucking thing when it came to his mate, and that burned his ass big time. Walking down the dark, empty hallways did nothing to improve his temper.

“Why is she running?” Callum asked.

“I don’t know.”

“Stop and think about this. What if she’s from some rival pack? What if she’s out to sabotage you?”

“We’re on good terms with all the bordering packs.”

“I don’t know. Something’s not right.”

Callum didn’t need to tell Drew that. “I just need to find her and figure out what’s going on. Maybe she is a half-breed. Maybe she doesn’t know who I am to her.”

“How is that even possible?” Maddox wondered.

“I don’t know!” Frustrated, Drew lashed out.

“Sorry,” he muttered as they entered his office. “It would explain why her scent is so odd. Her scent doesn’t match any pack I’ve ever come across, and she doesn’t seem like she’s from abroad. She doesn’t have an accent or any distinguishing features that would make it likely that she’s from outside our borders.”

“Right,” Callum mused. “Which begs the question, where the hell did she come from? And why was she on our land?”

“She was on our land because we gave her a card with all the information she needed to find Wildlings. If she were looking for a safe place to run, this would have been it. She probably didn’t think we’d be here. She was scared.” His gaze swung to Maddox. “What do you think?”

“Her scent is different. Unique.” Maddox crossed his thick arms over his chest. “I’m tempted to agree. She’s likely a half-breed, but she’s acting like she has no idea what we are. Do you think she’s alone?”

“She’s clearly a stray,” Callum blurted.

“Watch it,” Drew warned.

Callum sighed. “You know what I mean. I don’t think she came to town with anyone. At least not another shifter.”

“What if she was abandoned?”

Both Drew and Callum looked at Maddox. The thought had never occurred to him. If something happened to a wolf parent, the pack stepped in and raised any children.

When no one spoke, Maddox tossed his arms up. “I’m just putting it out there. Maybe she’s scared because she thought she was alone.”

Drew glanced at Callum, then back at Maddox. “You think that’s possible?”

“Unlikely.” Callum supplied. “But it fits the scenario.”

Drew ran his hands through his hair before gripping the back of his neck. He stomped past his desk and dropped into his chair. “I need to find her before she leaves town.”

“You think she’d do that?” Callum asked.

“She’s your mate.” Maddox frowned. “She’s got to be feeling the connection. There’s no way she’d leave.”

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