Page 63 of Wolf Forsaken

I leaned into him, letting myself have this moment. I refused to think it could be both our first and last kiss, but the possibility was there. We weren’t trained for what we were going to face, and any number of things could go wrong.

“There’s more where that came from,” he murmured, pulling away and cupping my cheek. “Be safe.”

“I will.”

He left me breathless, watching as he walked out with Cole and the others.

It was showtime.

Chapter Twenty

Ivy

We rode in Bone’s truck in silence, two ATVs loaded in the back. Bone turned off the highway, and we were on our way into the EAP's territory. It was mid-morning, and most people were probably at work or staying clear of Dante. We saw no one at the four houses we passed.

Pulling to a stop at the end of the road, we unloaded the ATVs and rode through the forest, hoping to avoid any patrols that would stop us or slow us down. Either Dante didn’t think we’d come through the forest, or he really didn’t have that many on his side. I hoped it was the latter.

Eli slowed down as we approached where the treehouse was and then came to a complete stop and sniffed the air. “Something’s wrong.”

It smelled like burned wood, and my stomach dropped. We continued at a slower pace, Bone and Rover right behind us.

The large tree the treehouse had been built around was still standing, but the entire top half of it was burned, the remnants of the treehouse scattered around the base of the tree.

“It’s okay.” Eli didn’t sound too convincing as we circled back and parked the ATVs behind a large crop of bushes. “It was just a treehouse.”

“How did he know?” I jumped off and made sure my bow and arrows were easily accessible. “Maybe he’s always known it was there.”

“He probably smelled us when he tried to find us.” Eli left the key in the ignition and gave me a sad smile. “We can build a new, better one now.”

“Yeah, but…” I turned to Rover and Bone because now was not the time to worry about the treehouse. “So, new plan. We’ll have to hide behind trees. I guess that’s better than nothing.”

“You ready?” Bone took out the phone Sara had given him and pulled up Cole’s Instagram.

“As ready as I’m going to be.” I took the phone from him and pushed the button to start the live feed. Bone had already published a post that Sara had set up that tagged all the wolves we knew were involved with Dante.

I only had to wait a few minutes for people to join the live feed.

“Hi. I’m here today to tell you the story of a jealous little boy who couldn’t make it to the top without lying and deceiving those he was supposed to protect.” I watched as the number of watchers increased. “You’re probably wondering what the hell is going on. Is this pre-recorded? Am I seeing a ghost?”

Dante’s Instagram handle joined the feed, and I grinned. I showed enough of what was behind me for him to recognize the location, which was infinitely easier now with the treehouse destroyed.

“I’m not a ghost. I’m alive and well. In fact, I’m right here in the forest. I see our guest of honor has arrived! Dante, care to tell them what you did?”

I wished I could see his face. I just hoped he was angry enough to come after me and not hurt the hostages.

The comments went nuts, and I couldn’t keep up with them. “It’s time for me to take my place as alpha.”

I turned off the phone and handed it back to Bone, who was grinning from ear to ear. “That probably really pissed him off.”

“What if he doesn’t show?” I looked around for a good place to hide. The plan had been to fire at him from inside the safety of the treehouse with Bone, Rover, and Eli hiding around the area as backup.

“He will. He wanted you dead because you could take him. Now that you’ve called him out on his lies and challenged him, he won’t be able to stop himself.” Eli gave me a quick kiss and pointed to a large tree. “You’re going to have to be extra careful now that you won’t have the coverage of the treehouse.”

“Text just came through from Silas. They have eyes on him and two others leaving the den and heading this way.”

It worked. It actually fucking worked.

Nerves took over me, and I shook my hands in front of me. “What if I can’t hit him or he shoots me?”

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