Page 60 of A Wolf's Heart

“Oh, uh, that’s fine. I wanted to ask you something.”

“Anything. I did try to find Clark’s information, but I don’t have access to the gamma files.”

“That’s okay, don’t get yourself in trouble looking. Did you know about them eating hearts?” I lowered my voice, but I knew they could still hear—what would it matter? Weylin had already told me.

Emma paused before answering. “Yes. I mean, I know of it. I’ve never participated, and from what I know, they haven’t in a long time.”

“What do you know about it?” I asked, the detective in me coming out. I didn’t want to divulge my knowledge, in case it would prevent her from saying more to me than what I already knew.

“Well, it’s an old practice, like stone-age old. I learned about it in class when covering ancestral history. I don’t know if you have any abilities or powers beyond that of a normal shifter.”

“Such as…” I was almost nervous to remind her I wasn’t exactly sure what was normal for a shifter.

“Well, persuasion, for one. It’s a clan trait and normally runs in immediate families only. They can project or convince you to do or think something. However, you can only use it on someone with a lower rank than you. So, you wouldn’t have to worry about someone like Clark persuading Rainor to do something. Oh, and Rainor’s claws are naturally coated in aconite, When he attacks with them, whatever wound he creates on another individual takes longer than natural for a shifter to heal, thus resulting in scars.”

My breath hitched. “Weylin?”

“Yes. I didn’t see it, but I heard about it. That’s when Kage started stricter rules with Rainor. That’s when the lockdown rooms were built.”

“What do you mean, lockdown rooms?”

“It’s a room they stick Rainor in anytime the beast is getting out of control. There are two at the office and two within the condo building. I’ve seen Kage and Weylin both wrestle with the beast and shove him in there.”

“For how long?” I asked.

“I don’t ask questions, but the longest I’ve seen was three days. He’s always a mess when he comes out.”

Everyone suppressed Rainor’s wolf. I got that he had some emotional self-regulation problems, but supressing one’s wolf couldn’t be the right solution. “Kage is an ass,” I said, maybe a little more loudly than I had been talking. “It seems anything that doesn’t go his way gets shoved into a neat little box.”

Speaking of…

“I owe you an apology,” I said.

“What? Why?” Emma seemed genuinely confused.

“I know you’re Kage’s luna, technically his mate, right? I sort of…well…went into heat and kissed him,” I finally spat out. “And he finger fucked me, but I swear it was the heat. He feels absolutely nothing for me.”

Emma laughed. It was light and sweet and caused me to smile. She was much more relaxed on the phone than in person, and I was liking it. “That’s why he hasn’t been home.”

“I’m so sorry. I can kick him out of the house and send him back.”

“Please don’t. As we speak, I’m soaking in a hot bubble bath with a glass of wine. Lila, I have never felt so relaxed in my own home as I do when he’s not in it.”

That made me sad. “Has he hurt you?” I asked, knowing it was time to stop beating around the bush.

“No! Of course not. I mean, he’s rude and a bit short with me, but he’s never hurt me. If anything, Kage has saved me.”

“Are we talking about the same Kage here? Kage Cridhe—tall, dark, grumpy alphahole.”

Emma laughed again. “Alphahole?”

“Yeah, it’s a term used in the romance books I read, combination ofalphaandasshole. I’ll send you a reading list.”

“Yeah, sounds like the same wolf.”

I could hear the water sloshing as she moved, and I was slightly jealous. I needed a soaker tub, not my late-seventies shallow tub, where the water never covered my breasts and knees at the same time. I had yet to have a shower, my wolf not allowing me to wash away Weylin’s scent.

“I’m going to tell you something, but you have to promise me you won’t tell a soul. The implications could be dire.”

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