Page 27 of Tangled Fates

Even in wolf form, a smirk crawled across my face before I leapt off the cliffside edge.

Let’s get to work.

WEEEEEEEE HOO!

9

LEVI

I cupped my hands and called out after him as he took off behind Hudson. “Dean! It’s no use!”

“Someone’s gotta try!” he yelled back.

I threw my hands into the air. “What are you gonna do? Catch him on foot while Demon Dog is already out and about?!”

Dean skidded to a grinding halt. “You’re right. I need my wolf form.”

I dashed up to his side and placed my hand on his shoulder. “Just let him go blow off some steam. You know he needs it.”

“He shouldn’t be alone. There’s no telling what he’ll get into.”

I nodded. “And with the pack vulnerable the way it is right now, especially with Raven gone. Someone needs to keep a watchful eye on them.”

His face grew serious. “For all we know, this is what those mangy bears wanted.”

“Bingo.”

He heaved a heavy sigh. “Fine. But when they come back, I want to know. This has gone on long enough, and we owe it to Colin and this pack to keep our shit in line.”

I snickered. “You don’t have to tell me twice. I’m tired of the emotions being flung around this place. Wolves are emotional enough as it is. We don’t need anything else muddling the problems we’ve already got.”

It was the truth, too. All of us were hotheads when it came to their emotions, and it was already weighing heavily on me. The pack was vulnerable. We were still reeling from the loss of one of the greatest Alphas our pack had ever seen. And now, we had to educate his ignorant daughter while she kept running off like she knew shit about everything? Hudson and she were perfect for one another, as far as I was concerned.

Because he was the king of storming off.

“Where do you want to start?” Dean asked as he stood at my side.

I raked my hands through my hair. “We can’t give away what’s going on. The pack’s been through enough. There are plenty that are still grieving the last battle and the loved ones that perished protecting us, so I don’t want them knowing that the Inner Circle is fractured right now.”

He grinned. “Spoken like a true Alpha.”

“Blasphemy,” I hissed. “I’ve never wanted to be Alpha, nor was I born to be one. But I love this pack, and I love my family, and they deserve better than what they’re getting.”

“A-fucking men.”

“So,” I said as I slid my hands down my face to clear my mind, “we keep Raven’s disappearance to ourselves. If anyone asks, she’s just grieving like everyone else.”

“I couldn’t have come up with a better plan.”

“And until she comes back? We rule the roost.”

Dean’s voice cracked, and that caught my attention. “She’ll come ba-back. Right?”

I looked over at him before settling my hand on his shoulder. “I really hope so, for all of our sakes.”

“Did you catch that letter from her father on the bed upstairs?”

I scoffed as I walked toward the entrance to our little slice of paradise. “Who cares, honestly. If she doesn’t want to talk about it, I’m not about to make her. There are more important things we need to deal with right now. I’m done fighting her, Dean. We’ve already wasted enough time as it is. If she wants to open up about some letter, she will. But I’ve got better things to do with my time than pine over some girl that doesn’t even want to open her mouth to talk.”

---