Page 31 of Wolf's Gambit

“His belt buckle was Dad’s. Which meant that he got it from the wolf that killed our parents, or he killed them. He’s stopped aging, but I don’t know how old he is. I need to know more, but I know you’re not going back there. You aren’t his.”

“His? What? No! How do you know he’s guilty? Shouldn’t you ask? Make inquiries?” Flapping my hands wildly as I spoke, my thought process was fried. “What do you mean, his?”

It was Kris’s turn to shake his head. “You were pretty out of it, but he can calm you down. Or rile you up. Your emotions were extreme, your reactions were…exaggerated.”

“You think he’s…my mate?” I sat down with a thump. Stunned.

“No,” Kris corrected. “Maybe,” he conceded with a shrug. “No. But he’s a powerful alpha and can control you.”

“He’s not my alpha,” I snapped.

“Exactly my point,” Kris snapped back. “Which is why he should have no power over you.”

“I’m not a coward. I’m not afraid of him.”

It was my brother’s turn to roll his eyes. “Who said you were?” With a deep sigh, I watched as he rubbed his forehead. “You hate living in that pack. You resent hiding who you are. What you are. A better hunter and fighter. This is the best opportunity I can give you to go.”

With my eyes closed, I listened to him. The man who’d raised me, who knew how much I had to fight to fit into a pack that didn’t want me. A pack that would always look at me as an outsider. “It’s not an opportunity,” I whispered as I felt the tears slip free. “It’s a punishment.”

“Kezia, no.” Kris rose and moved closer to me, hunching down beside me in the grass. “It’s what you wanted.”

“It’s nothing if I’m alone.” Looking up at him, I saw his despair. “Come with me. They only barely tolerate you more than me, and only because you’ve had to prove to them you’re worthy of them.” I felt my anger rising. “You owe them nothing.”

Kris shook his head as he turned away from me. “It’s not that simple.”

“Of course it is!” I cried out. “Leave them. Let’s both run, and together we can find out more about Cannon and his pack and find the bastards who killed our parents.” I grabbed his hand as he stood and turned away from me. “Kris, you took me there when I was a pup. We needed them then. They protected us when we were weak. I’m not weak anymore. We don’t need them now.”

“Cassandra is my mate.”

It felt like someone had doused me in freezing cold water. “What?” my voice was barely a whisper. “That’s…that’s…no.”

My brother gave a long sigh. “Yeah, she is.”

“Does she know?”

“No. Suspects, I think. But on her first heat, she’ll know.”

“How?” I mean, it wasn’t unheard of, but it was improbable all the same. “How will she know?”

“Because I spend nearly every day in her space. Her wolf knows me. Her scent is my scent. When she goes into heat, the woman will know as much as the wolf.”

“You think she’s spoiled,” I blurted. “You think she’s pampered.”

The slight smile on his face was alien. “I do.”

“Kris, this is Cass! She annoys you.”

He gave me a long-suffering look. “Well, my sister taught her best friend a lot of bad habits.”

“I don’t believe this.” Standing, I paced. “That’s why you take all Bale’s shit. He knows.”

“He does.”

“Why the fuck didn’t you tell me?”

“Maybe because I thought you may overreact. I can’t imagine what I was thinking,” he added dryly.

Glaring at him, I continued to pace. “I hate your stupid, secretive ways.”

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