Page 53 of Wolf Sacrificed

She trailed her finger up and down my arm as she gave me what I assumed was meant to be a seductive grin. It just made her look creepy. “Where are you going, Sawyer?”

I swallowed hard and fought the urge to wrench my hand away from her. She had no reason to be touching me like that. Only one woman should be, and she wasn’t here.

I grabbed some napkins and dabbed at the sauce before it stained the table. I indicated the busy kitchen, where more men filed in to get their dinner.

“It’s my dad,” I said. “He usually calls to check in about this time. I wanted to be someplace a little bit quieter to take it.”

It was a lie. I almost never knew when my dad would call or show up in my room. But fate was on my side because my phone illuminated, and his name displayed across it as it vibrated on the table.

Fiona pouted but thankfully let go of my hand.

I snatched my phone and my plate as I backed away. “We’ll talk soon.”

Unfortunately, we would have to.

I didn’t give her a chance to respond before I tossed my plate so hard into the sink that I was surprised it didn’t break and then hustled out of the room.

I jogged down the hall and hit the answer button. “Hello.”

My dad had to be outside, where it was either raining or super windy, and there was a lot of static on the other end.

“A few of them got away,” he said.

I glanced up at the ceiling and said a silent prayer. “From the Denning pack?”

He said something, but I couldn’t hear him on the other end.

I took the steps up to my room two at a time. “Dad, you keep cutting in and out. I can’t hear you.”

A car door slammed shut. At least, that was what I thought it was, and then it went quiet.

“A few of Charles Denning’s men got away,” he said. “I’ve got a few of the guys moving on to pursue them. But they’re not as good as your brother was at tracking people down.”

I shuddered. Mikey had been like a predator searching for its next victim.

I strode down the hall for my bedroom, briefly glancing at Lincoln’s as I passed. I missed the days when he was right across the hall. We’d never been apart for this long before.

I pushed that thought away. “You’re not going after them, then?”

I could almost hear his indecision over the phone.

“I hadn’t planned to be away for longer than a day,” he said. “You know we have more new recruits coming in tomorrow, and I had planned to meet with their alpha to make sure that he submits to me like he ought to.”

I opened my bedroom door and then shut it behind me, leaning against the wood as I let my eyes shut. “I’d be happy to meet with them in your stead, Dad. I am the next alpha. It would be a good experience for me.”

He went quiet for a moment like he was considering it. While he did things to prepare me, there were still a lot of things he didn’t want to relinquish control of.

“I know,” he said. “It’s just that I explicitly told them that I would talk with them. There are a few things that we need to iron out still for the joining of our packs.”

I slid down the door and sat on the floor, putting my forehead into my palm. An idea hit me then. “I can go after them and meet up with the team. I could leave tonight. Within the hour. I can take a team or go up by myself like Mikey did.”

I held my breath as I waited for his answer. I could almost hear the gears ticking away in his head before he finally responded.

“I was hoping you would get to spend more time with Fiona,” he said. “I expect you to mate with her soon. You know your week is almost up.”

Not really. It had been like two days, which meant I had five left, and I was already dreading them. I still hadn’t come up with a way around her.

I hoped my dad wanted to get to the Denning pack more than he wanted me to get to know Fiona.

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