Page 31 of Moon Fated

"Following me, Rowan?" Her voice cut through the silence, an accusatory lilt to her words.

I skidded to a stop in the leaves, relief flooding through me. When I could finally draw a full breath, I turned to face her. “Just out for a run.”

Evelyn took a step toward me. Her hair was tucked in her hood, her hands wrapped around the straps of her backpack. “You’re a terrible liar.”

A grin tugged at the corner of my lips despite my wolf still pacing restlessly. He was pissed. I should’ve been pissed. But standing in front of her, I knew that was never going to be a possibility. “You look good.”

Evelyn rolled her eyes. “That’s what you’re saying to me right now? Not ‘I’m sorry, Evelyn, I realize you’re a grown-ass wolf, and you don’t need a chaperone?’” She leaned against a tree, arms crossed over her chest, one brow arched in challenge.

“I realize you’re a grown-ass wolf.”

“What about the apology?”

My jaw worked. “You said I was a terrible liar.”

Evelyn pursed her lips. “You are…”

“Incredible.”

She scoffed, pushing off the tree.

“So hot you want to put down your bag and come back to my place.” I grinned as I fell into step next to her.

“In your dreams.”

“Literally.” The clock was ticking. I wasn’t going to pretend I felt less than I did.

Evelyn shot me a look and walked faster.

“So where are we headed?” I trailed her like a pup. She didn’t answer but also didn’t tell me to get the hell out of Dodge, so I figured that was best case scenario.

We moved in unison through the dark tapestry of the woods. When she slowed, I slowed. My curiosity itched at the back of my throat, but I kept my mouth shut. I was there next to her. It didn’t matter where we ended up.

The scent of damp earth and decaying leaves mingled with the faint smell of wood smoke as we neared the edge of the clearing. That’s when I saw it. A low cabin nestled against the hill. I growled low in my throat, and Evelyn held up a finger. Every instinct screamed caution, every rustle of the trees a potential threat. We were wolves in enemy territory, and the pounding of my heart matched the thrum of danger in the air.

I moved closer, pressing my shoulder against hers. What is this place? I sent to her head.

Evelyn’s eyes widened. I watched her trying to answer the same way I’d asked, then finally gave a frustrated huff and leaned in. “This is a cabin.”

I breathed a laugh. “No shit.”

Her lips twitched. “I caught Callista’s scent at the pack meeting on Justin. Then I caught it again when we were leaving the parking lot. I wondered if there was something in the woods, and there was.”

“It’s here?”

She nodded. "Window on the left looks open.”

“No, Ev?—”

She was already moving.

I bolted after her, staying glued to her flank. There were no lights on. No vehicle in the drive. That didn’t mean anything with shifters. I scanned the ground, looking for fresh footprints.

A rustle to our right froze us both, our bodies instinctively crouching low against the wet earth. The forest had been eerily silent around the house, a silence that now shattered with the subtle snap of a twig under careful weight. My wolf senses prickled with an awareness that tightened my muscles, ready for anything.

"Scouts," Evelyn breathed out, her voice barely a sound in the still night. "Kitimat."

The truth of it sank into my bones. I hadn’t been paying attention to how far we’d traveled. How had I not recognized when we’d passed over the Kitimat boundary?

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