Page 19 of Wolf Sacrificed

He held her for a moment and then pulled away. “Don’t worry. I will.”

He waved and then backed away.

Sloane licked her lips and looked at me with worried eyes. “Do you want to tell me what that was really about?”

I reached for her hand, intertwining our fingers. “Come on. Let’s get back to the room and shower.”

She opened her mouth like she might argue, but she snapped it shut and gave my hand a tug. I let her lead me through the kitchen and down the hallway to the room that she’d taken.

I followed her inside and locked the door behind us.

She crossed toward the window, put her hands on the sill, and peered outside. “Brandon and Mark doubt me?”

Oh no, was that what she thought?

I hurried to her and wrapped my arms around her, resting my chin on her shoulder. “No, absolutely not. Your brother is one of your biggest champions.”

I knew that for a fact, and I was glad that my voice conveyed that because I wanted her to believe that too.

I kissed her cheek. “He’s just worried for you. He saw the other alphas watching you.”

She melted against me, letting her head fall back onto my shoulder. “Our family has been through so much the past few months.”

I kissed her temple. “I know it’s never easy. The pain of losing a parent or sibling never fully goes away.”

She sighed. “I was hoping you would tell me it got easier.”

“It does get easier, sort of. I promise. But there’s a space in your heart that never really is whole again. I don’t know if that makes sense or not.”

She closed her eyes, and her head wobbled on my shoulder as she nodded. “It does.”

I smoothed my hand up and down her arm, but before I could say anything, the familiar hum of Sawyer pulling on our thread and connecting surrounded me.

Sloane stood straighter and pulled away so she could turn. The moment Sawyer materialized, she flung herself at him, holding my hand and pulling me along with her. The three of us embraced, sandwiching Sloane between me and my brother.

Sawyer gave Sloane a quick kiss on the lips and then put his hand on my shoulder. “I wish I could tell you I was here because I had all the time in the world. But I don’t.”

Sloane put her hand on his cheek. “What’s wrong? What’s happened?”

Sawyer stepped back. “Dad’s not coming here right now. He thinks that your pack is going to dissolve because people won’t bow to you.” His attention drifted to Sloane.

“Sawyer,” I snarled.

Sloane didn’t need to hear that. She was already having her own doubts. He didn’t need to add fuel to the fire.

The damage was done, though. Her face fell, and she looked like she might be on the verge of tears.

He opened and closed his mouth a few times. “My dad doesn’t know you, though. Not really. He doesn’t understand how strong you are. You’ll pull everyone together. I know it.”

She clapped her hand on her thigh, went to the bed, and flopped back on it so she stared up at the ceiling. “Thanks for the vote of confidence.”

Sawyer closed his eyes and mumbled under his breath as I glared at him. When he opened them, he met my gaze.

“There might be another chance to prove yourself,” he said. “There’s a pack about five hours from here. It’s small, less than thirty people. My dad has put a target on them. If you could win them over before he has a chance to get there, I think it would help you a lot.”

The bed creaked as she shot up. “When is your dad going to be there?”

Sawyer shook his head. “I’m not sure. We’re still regrouping from the fight. But soon. Like really soon. I’ll make plans to reach out to you immediately once I get the details.”

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