Page 32 of Moon Fated

It was one thing to risk a stealthy break-in. It was another to do so with the enemy lurking just within striking distance. “Whose house is this?” I mouthed.

Evelyn dropped her eyes, and I had my answer. I wanted to grab her by the shoulders and shake her. She was coming to Nathan’s cabin alone? I didn’t give a shit if he was still rumored to be up north, he was an alpha. Justin had nearly gone for her throat at the meeting, and out here? There would be nothing to stop him.

"Stay down," I commanded, though I knew there was no need. Evelyn understood the stakes as well as I did, her body already pressed to the ground, her athletic form blending seamlessly with the night.

My eyes never left the dark outline of the trees where the noise had come from, my ears straining for any other giveaway signs. A flicker of movement, a whisper of displaced air—anything that would give away their position. But the scouts were good, trained to move unseen, unheard.

Evelyn's nostrils flared as she closed her eyes, inhaling deeply. “She was inside, Rowan. I have to go in.”

My heart sped in my chest. No, my wolf barked. He was right. This was stupidity at its finest. But as her hazel eyes gazed up at me, I couldn’t put my paw down.

I put out my hands in a stirrup. “Give me your damn foot.”

Chapter

Seventeen

Evelyn

The window track scraped my stomach as I dropped onto Nathan’s leather couch. This place—I knew it. Nathan spoke of it once. A hidden sanctuary, he’d called it. His man cave. Deep in pack lands where an alpha could retreat.

I scoffed internally. I could only imagine what he got up to here away from prying eyes. A shiver wracked my body as I righted myself. The entire place reeked of him. My wolf shrank back, cowering within me. She remembered, too. Remembered his cold eyes and cruel touch, the way he crushed us under his thumb.

Memories flooded my head. The coppery tang of blood in my mouth as I bit my cheek to keep from screaming. Sinking to the plush rug, fighting to breathe through the panic squeezing my lungs.

My hands started to shake. What if coming here was a mistake? What if he was here? What if?—

I gasped as a hand settled on my shoulder, flinching on instinct before Rowan’s scent wrapped around me like a blanket. I leaned back into his chest without thinking and felt his twitch of surprise.

“I’m sorry.” I said the words, but couldn’t pull away. The steady beat of his heart echoed through me, drawing my pulse away from panic.

Rowan slipped his arm protectively across my chest, and I clung to it. “Don’t be.” After a few long seconds, he let go to rise and close the window, locking it and drawing the shade. "We don't have to do this," he murmured, blue eyes searching mine with concern. "Say the word, and we leave. Right now."

I pressed my lips together and shook my head. Callista’s scent was here. Hard to find because of so much Nathan, but it was stronger here than in the woods.

I blinked as my eyes adjusted, trying to reconcile the decrepit outside with the lavish furnishings within. Expensive leather couches, gleaming hardwood floors, tasteful artwork on the walls. It was like stepping into an alternate reality.

Rowan ground his teeth.

“We have to check the rooms.”

Rowan’s face hardened. He turned to face me. “Fine. But we do this my way now, Strawberry.”

Warmth spread through my middle at the sound of that name on his lips. It was silly. I’d mocked Bruce endlessly at work when I found out he’d been calling some girl muffin. But the way it sounded from him…well. I might’ve felt a tad less judgy.

Rowan slipped the straps of my bag off my back and slung it over his shoulder, and I could see the resolve in his eyes. He’d given all he could, and if I pushed him on this, he would break. “Your way,” I whispered, and his eyes melted like mountain pools.

Rowan pulled me close, folding me into him like a hen with her chick. We moved from room to room with Rowan keeping me in his vision at all times as he cleared closets and bathrooms. We found no trace of Callista. No clothing. No toothbrushes.

Her scent permeated the air in the kitchen but then vanished. A dead end.

Helpless rage built in my chest, bubbling up my throat. I slammed my fist into the kitchen doorframe. "He has her, Rowan! That bastard has my best friend, and it's all my fault!"

Strong arms wrapped around me from behind, pulling me against a broad chest. "We'll find her. I swear it." Rowan's voice rumbled through me. "But how in the hell could you think this was your fault?"

A broken sob escaped me. "You don't understand. The things he did..." I shuddered violently. "I should have stopped him. Should have been stronger?—"

Rowan spun me to face him, eyes blazing. "You listen to me, Evelyn Berry. Nathan's actions are on him and him alone. You survived. You escaped. That was miraculous, do you hear me?”

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