Page 28 of Taken By the Wolf Daddy

My heart pounded in my chest as I stood before Mike’s front door, my knuckles rapping urgently against the wood. The minutes that had ticked away since Marie didn’t answer my calls and every second seemed like an eternity, each passing second a weight on my chest, a heavy reminder of my powerlessness. What the hell was going on here? What had I missed?

Mike swung the door open, his face a storm of emotions–anger, worry, and frustration. His gaze bore into mine as he spoke in a voice laced with concern, “Jesse, have you seen Marie? She left a while ago, and I haven’t been able to reach her. She’s not answering her phone.”

Okay, that wasn’t what I was expecting. I thought he might yell at me, but instead, poor Mike had more to worry about. Fear gnawed at the edges of my consciousness, and I swallowed hard, struggling to keep my voice steady. “No, Mike, I haven’t seen her since last night. She was at my place, and then she left to come home. But I haven’t seen her since.”

Mike’s brows furrowed, and he ran a hand through his hair in agitation. “She’s been acting strange lately, Jesse. We had a heated argument earlier, and I’m worried she might do something impulsive.”

The words hung in the air like an ominous cloud, and my concern deepened. The thought of Marie, out there alone and in distress, sent a chill down my spine. I knew I had to do something, and I had to do it fast.

“Mike, we need to find her,” I said urgently. “She might be in trouble. Ophelia is out there, and…”

“Ophelia?” Shit, he didn’t know who Ophelia was.

“My ex. The rogue wolf. She has had a crazy life since I last saw her, which was decades ago. I think she’s behind the killings.”

“And you think she might go after Marie?” Mike clutched his hands to his chest in worry.

“She has seen Marie in my home, looking after Belle.” We were teetering way too close to the edge of what I didn’t want to talk about, but I was trying my hardest to be as honest as I could be. “And she’s jealous. Ophelia has told me that she’s here to get back with me, and she thinks Marie is standing in the way. But she knows I don’t want her back. I don’t want her anywhere near me and my life again. I also don’t know why she’s really here. She seems to be on a killing spree.”

All the color drained from Mike’s cheeks. “Nothing can happen to Marie,” he whispered. “Not ever, but especially not when we just argued.”

Oh God, I couldn’t even begin to imagine what that was like. I felt horrible for Mike. This was just another reason we needed to act fast. “Let’s search the woods. Maybe she went for a walk to clear her head and got lost. There might be nothing wrong at all.”

Mike nodded, his expression filled with a mix of determination and guilt. “Yeah, let’s leave right away. Find her now.”

We wasted no time. With Mike leading the way, we headed into the forest surrounding the hamlet, calling out Marie’s name as we went deeper into the woods. Anxiety clawed at me with every step, my thoughts consumed by the possibilities of what could have happened to her. Time blurred as we conducted our frantic search, branches snapping beneath our feet, and the forest swallowing our calls. I couldn’t help but think about the dangers lurking in these woods, mostly Ophelia. She was the biggest danger surrounding all of us, and that was frightening in ways I couldn’t even begin to fathom.

In the end, I knew I needed to find the nearest phone. “I’m going to try and call her,” I told Mike seriously. “Just in case she’s ready to pick up her calls now.”

Mike frowned, and I could tell he would be half-annoyed if Marie picked up the phone to me after she had been ignoring him, but I was sure that the biggest emotion he would feel was relief to finally know where his daughter was.

Ring, ring…

I paced up and down, anxiously trying to keep myself calm as I waited. I didn’t want Mike to see me freaking out because that might tip him over the edge.

Ring, ring…

But the more that time passed, the more nervous my heartbeat became. The less I could catch my breath, it was terrifying.

Ring, ring…

Then, suddenly, the ringing ceased, and someone answered the line, but it wasn’t Marie’s welcome voice that greeted me. It was Ophelia’s chilling, mocking laughter that cut through the air like a knife. Oh no.

“Jesse, darling, it’s been so long,” she purred, her voice dripping with malevolence. “I’ve missed you.”

My stomach churned with a mixture of anger, dread, and fear as I demanded, “Where’s Marie, Ophelia? What have you done with her?” My voice was laced with desperation, my worst fears materializing before me. The realization that Marie might be in danger because of my own inability to keep her safe gnawed at me.

Mike’s face was etched with worry as he heard me. This was the worst-case scenario and I hated the fact that it was all my own fault. My stomach churned with a mixture of anger, dread, and fear. My stomach hurt as I tried to process this and work out what was happening.

Her laughter only intensified, a maddening melody of cruelty. “Oh, don’t worry about your precious Marie. She’s right here with me, safe and sound... for now.”

My mind raced, and my grip on the phone tightened. I couldn’t allow Ophelia to toy with me, not when Marie’s life was at stake. “Let her go, Ophelia. This has gone far enough. Marie has nothing to do with this. If it’s me you want, then take me instead. You aren’t in control of this. Not here, not in Wolf Mountain.”

She scoffed, her tone turning defensive. “I’ve been in control the whole time, Jesse. Everyone I killed–they deserved it, one way or another, and Marie does too.”

I clenched my jaw, struggling to keep my composure. Ophelia’s words were like poison, seeping into my thoughts and igniting a searing anger. “Tell me where you are. We can work this out together. It doesn’t need to be like this.”

Ophelia’s response was erratic, her voice acting like she was teetering on the edge of sanity. “I can’t take it anymore, Jesse. The voices… They won’t stop. They tell me to do terrible things, and I can’t control it.”

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