Page 74 of Ruined Wolfsbane

Xander’s always there for everyone else, but who’s there for him?

Fuck. I’m the worst twin. I’ve been so wrapped up in myself that I haven’t been there for Xander. That’s going to change, just as soon as we get through this.

“Can you track him, Bastian?” Dad directs the question to me because I’m the best tracker in the pack—not to brag or anything. I can’t help that I’m just that awesome.

“Yeah, I can track him, but we need to do it quickly before his scent fades. We probs have an hour max before I won’t be able to pick up anything.” Patrick’s scent became faint abruptly in the parking lot, so he must’ve driven Briar away from WHU. Using a car makes Patrick’s scent harder to track, but I should still be able to follow it for a little longer.

“Okay,” Dad’s voice cracks across the speakers in determination. “I’ll meet you with some of our enforcers in the student lot in half an hour. I need to make a few calls before we’re ready to go.”

“Are you calling Molly and James?” my mom asks warily.

“Yes. I have a feeling we’ll need their skills.”

“I hope you’re wrong, Vale.” My mom sniffs like she’s trying to hold back tears. I’ve never seen my mom cry. The fact that she’s close to crying now makes me even more scared for our mate.

“Me too, Abbie. Me too. Someone needs to go back home and grab a shielding amulet for Bastian.” My dad is in his element giving orders and coordinating this rescue mission. As an alpha, he thrives on bossing people around.

Briar would probably roll her eyes at him throwing out orders like they’re confetti. My heart squeezes thinking about her. She has to be fine. Anything else isn’t a fucking option.

I can only track in my wolf form. While Wolves Hollow is primarily populated by our pack, there are enough humans here I can’t go wandering around as a giant wolf. That’s a one-way ticket to being shot, stuffed, and hung up on someone’s mantle.

I’d make an excellent decoration, though. I’m pretty sweet to look at.

Somehow our pack got a few shielding amulets from mages at some point. Wolves and mages have a mutual dislike of each other, so I’m not sure how the pack acquired them. I’m beyond grateful we did. Without it, we’d have to wait until nightfall to search for Briar. I’m not sure our sweet girl has that long.

“Any questions?” Dad barks.

“No, sir!” my brothers and I chorus automatically. We’ve been answering Dad like that for years, so the response comes without thought. Dad hates when we call him that. He says it makes him feel like a drill sergeant.

Dad lets out a long-suffering sigh. “I’ll see you in thirty minutes. We’ll find her, boys. Briar’s going to be fine. She’s gotten through harder things than this in her short life. She’s tougher than she looks.”

“I hope so,” Kai says before hanging up the call. He clenches his hands into fists and bows his head. When he looks up after a few moments, his eyes are pure amber. He looks seconds from wolfing out.

The last thing we need on this shit sundae of a day is Kai’s wolf terrifying the humans at the school. And probably trashing his office. Kai would be royally pissed if his perfectly organized office were messed up.

Being the oldest son of the alpha, Kai’s wolf is… different than the rest of our wolves. His wolf is almost like a separate entity in his mind, with its own thoughts, feelings, and desires. The rest of us have a wolf who is simply an extension of ourselves. Our wolves are another form we can take, but they don’t have separate thoughts and feelings. More like growls, yips, and barks.

An alpha’s wolf is much harder to control. It has to be stronger to keep the pack in order. This strength comes at a cost to its human counterpart. While Kai is excellent at keeping his wolf in line, extraordinarily stressful situations, like his mate going missing, can give him trouble.

“You need to go on a run, Kai. You’re no good to Briar when you’re out of control like this,” Xander tells Kai sternly, leaving no room for arguments. He’s always the responsible one when Kai and I go off the rails.

Kai doesn’t say anything, opting for a curt nod instead. He strides determinedly from the office, slamming the door as he leaves.

Worry for my brother tries to take root in my chest. I’m an expert at denial and ignoring any difficult feelings, so I push it aside. I’m sure it will manifest as nightmares tonight. That’s a problem for future me. Current me doesn’t have to deal with it.

“Ronan, Rory, can you guys get the shielding amulet for us?” Xander asks our cousins.

It was the right call because Rory immediately perks up. She bounces on her toes and races to the door. “Yeppers! We’ll be just two shakes!”

Ronan gives us a half smile and a salute before following his twin out the door.

There’s nothing else for Xander and I to do. Now, we just have to wait. Twiddling my thumbs for half an hour while my mate is with her abuser might just be the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

CHAPTER 30

MALACHI

As I pace the parking lot, my wolf thrashes in my head. He throws himself against the cage in my mind that keeps him from forcing a shift. He wants to break free, find our mate, and tear out the throats of anyone who hurts her.

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