Page 25 of Wolf Crowned

“What?” Of all the things my mind hadn’t gone there. “Shallow graves?” I repeated, trying to make sure I’d heard him right. That didn’t make sense. We’d taken care of our own who had perished in the fighting and even given proper burials to Alpha Dane’s men whose bodies had been left behind.

He swallowed and then nodded. “I’m afraid so. The bodies don’t appear to have been there long, but they do match the descriptions of several people who have been reported missing.”

I pointed to the ground. “From around here?” Something wasn’t adding up.

He shook his head. “No. From all over. Some are as far away as California.”

Mom blinked like she was snapping out of her funk. “Adam, you know we aren’t responsible for this.”

He squeezed her knee. “I know, Kathleen. That’s why I came to warn you so you weren’t blindsided when they show up.” He took another sip of coffee. “Which will be sooner than later.”

I shot to my feet. “It’s Alpha Dane.” Of course it was. Who else could it be?

I paced back and forth in front of the couch as I chewed on my thumbnail. He’d planted bodies right off our property, and we hadn’t noticed. How? Were the men slacking? I needed to know. We could be in danger.

I sat back on the couch and rubbed my palms on my thighs. “How far from the property was the grave?”

Sherriff Adam gave me a grim look. “About five miles.”

So far enough away our scouts wouldn’t have noticed.

Mark shook his head. “Damn.”

He must have been thinking the same thing as me.

Mom blinked back tears. “That man is a monster who is hell-bent on destroying us.”

I gritted my teeth. “We aren’t going to let him, Mom.“

Sheriff Adam stood up and kneeled in front of her. “He’s not going to hurt anyone else here if I have anything to say about it.”

I chewed on my bottom lip. There were a few things bothering me about this. “Sheriff Adam, do you know who the victims were?”

Were they wolves or just random humans? Alpha Dane would have to be insane to drag humans into the mix.

Sheriff patted my mom‘s hands before standing. “I have names, but not many other details.”

I tucked a lock of hair behind my ear. “Do you think I could see that list? I just want to know if there are wolves or humans who might have got mixed up in this mess.”

Sheriff Adam exhaled through his nose. He lifted his steaming coffee mug up but didn’t take a drink. “I can send you the details.”

The floorboards creaked as I paced again. “I appreciate everything that you were doing for us, sheriff. Truly.”

He shook his head and took his hat off again, holding it by his side. “I just wish that there was more that I could do. Eric was a good friend of mine. Y’all are like family here. I want to help more. I just need you to give me some more guidance.“

I dragged my hand through my hair. “Sheriff, I don’t want to see you or any of your deputies hurt.”

We’d had this conversation before. Maybe I should let him help. What’s the worst that could happen? I squeezed my eyes shut. The sheriff or one of his men could be killed.

Mark cleared his throat. “Alpha Dane has already made it perfectly clear that he is willing to go to great lengths to get what he wants. Letting the sheriff and his deputies help might not be a bad idea.”

The sheriff put his hat back on his head and took a long swig of coffee. “I’ve already told you my job is dangerous. I know what I’m signing up for. I don’t want to see anyone get hurt, your family included. And this menace has shown he is capable of monstrous things.”

I pursed my lips as I weighed my options. It was bad enough our family was hurt, but innocent bystanders, I wouldn’t stand for that.

I rolled the back my head back and forth over my shoulders. “Keep having your deputies watch for people coming through town that don’t belong. Maybe some of the cameras in town caught some men dumping bodies or at least driving. They would need bigger vehicles for that, right?”

He inclined his head. “I already have Betty looking at all the footage to see if we can find people heading out this way. If I find something, you and the FBI agents will be the first to hear about it.”

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