Page 66 of Wolf's Forbidden Curse

“Soon.”

“But not right now?”

“No. Not right now.”

I closed the gap between us and covered his mouth with mine, drawing him down into me and holding on tight, just in case there was a chance I could still convince him to stay.

CHAPTER 29

RORY

Ichecked my phone on the journey across town. Matt had sent me an update. He and Nic had hacked into some radio feed for the police department investigating what happened the night before.

There was good news but also bad news.

The good news was that Missy and her partner in crime were arrested and taken into custody almost immediately. There was so much evidence tying them both to the crime, not to mention the gun and the car in their possession were both stolen. It was unclear exactly which charges the local police would get to stick, but they were going to be put away for many years, which was all that I really cared about.

The bad news was that whoever was supposed to meet Missy at the school must’ve been tipped off that something was wrong because they never showed. Neither Cornelius nor the cops were able to learn anything else about the buyer, and this seemed to have everyone back at the house on edge. Cornelius’s sister wasn’t even there yet, and already things were starting to spell out dread. I picked up my pace and ran the rest of the way home, arriving just as Cornelius walked out of the front door.

“Rory!” He said, alarmed. “I didn’t expect to see you. Nic thought you skipped town, and Matt said you never answered any of his calls or messages.”

“I’ve been busy.” I looked around. So far, all was pretty quiet. “Is your sister here yet?”

“No. But she called half an hour ago and said she wasn’t far.” He cleared his throat. “I just stepped out for some air. Things have been a little… tense.”

“I can only imagine. Are you all prepping for a battle or what?”

“They are. I’m not.”

“Hmm.” I put my hands in my pockets, trying my best to remain calm. At this point, nothing good would come out of getting into it with Cornelius.

“You know, I wouldn’t have blamed you for leaving,” he said. “In fact, I’m glad Nic got to you when she did so that you had the choice to get the hell out of here. Calling my sister—it was just something I had to do, but I truly never wanted to put any of you in a tough spot.”

“Could’ve fooled me.”

“You’re mad. I get that. But there’s still time to leave if you want to. I’ve chosen to put my trust in my sister, but I’m not asking you to do the same.”

“Good. Because I don’t trust her. I don’t trust any of them.”

“Then why did you come back?”

I looked at him with an icy stare. “Why do you think?” Before he could answer, I shouldered past him and went inside. Nic and Matt were in the kitchen, and both of them started when I entered. Nic sighed with relief when she saw it was just me coming in.

“Oh, it’s just you.”

“Happy to see you as well,” I joked.

“When I didn’t hear from you,” Matt said, a confused expression dancing across his face. “I just assumed you took Nic’s advice and left.”

“Where’s Daphne?”

“She’s safe. I would rather not say anything more than that—in case someone is in earshot. Has he told you anything else about his conversation with her? How can he be so sure that she’s going to come alone?”

Matt and Nic shared a look.

“We’re just as in the dark as you are,” she said after a few seconds. “But that doesn’t mean we’re walking into this empty-handed. I hid weapons all over the house, and we know our escape route if it comes to that.”

I nodded and took a seat at the kitchen table. “Alright then—what’s the game plan if things go south?”

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