Page 20 of Alpha's Second Chance

I pulled a new phone from the safe and handed it to Eve. All of my team kept three spare phones stored at all times, as well as a packed ‘go bag’ and extra cash. Eve gave me one last kiss and pulled on one of my sweatshirts. While Eve stepped into the kitchen to call her boss, I stripped the sheets off the bed and picked up the pillows we’d managed to fling around the room.

Eve returned within minutes. She stood in the doorway. Her bright green eyes clouded over. Her mouth was in a flat line.

“Eve.” I grabbed her shoulders. “What is it?”

“I talked to my boss,” she said, with zero inflection.

What the hell had happened to make her lovely voice a monotone? “And?” I asked.

She rubbed both hands over her face a few times before speaking. “The bastards burned my house to the ground.”

Fuck. Bull had moved fast -- faster than I’d expected. He obviously was still calling the shots. Had he been trying to harm Eve with the fire, or just send her a message?

“He was supposed to be in isolation at the jail. No communication other than his attorney,” she said. She leaned against the doorframe and dropped her eyes to the floor.

“There are probably guards on the inside.” I wanted to head down there immediately and start interrogating witnesses. And by interrogate, I meant kill. “I’ll call the fire chief. See if they have any evidence.”

“Thank you.” She lifted her eyes back up to meet mine. They were still dull, lacking the bright green sparkle I had come to look for. “I saved up for that house. I bought it a year after I got my job.” She sighed. “My boss said it’s a total loss. Sounds twisted, but I want to see it. I want to see what they did to it.”

“You’re not going alone. I’ll take you as soon as I can.” I ducked my head and pulled her close until her forehead rested against mine. “We’ll figure this out.”

She must have really been rattled to not respond to my order that she wasn’t going alone.

“I hate the thought of people picking through my charred stuff while I’m not there,” she said.

“Not much we can do to stop that.”

“I know. It’s part of the process. I’m just wondering what else he’s going to do before this is all over.”

I was wondering the same thing. Creatures like Bull often escalated their warnings, with carefully plotted messages designed to create paralyzing fear on the part of the victim.

After sharing her heat, my bear insisted on being within arm’s reach of Eve, and I wanted that too. But the need to get out and take action against Bull gnawed at me. My bear needed to let the world know Eve was mine, and I needed to make Bull pay for what he’d done to her.

Eve

Owen had not stopped pacing since he’d found out my house went up in flames. Initially, my mood had plummeted, and then my mind went blank. But as the shock faded, I was grateful that I was with Owen, instead of alone in Denver.

That was a new feeling, one I’d need to process once I had enough time.

“I’m going to check in with my team,” he announced. He disappeared for a moment and came back with a rifle and a gleaming hunting knife. “You remember how to use the rifle?”

“Yes.” To appease him, I took the ammunition from his hand and loaded the rifle, then unloaded it again to show him I knew what I was doing. I needed a shower, badly, but I figured I’d wait until I saw what he was up to.

“Good. I’ll be back in a minute,” he said.

I watched him step onto the porch as a human. He tugged his t-shirt off. Ah. He was going to shift. Before that happened, I took the time to appreciate the view.

Over the last two days, I’d had time to admire his well-carved abs, but I didn’t think I’d ever tire of looking. If Owen weren’t so agitated, I’d go out there and interrupt, just to run my hands over his sculpted shoulders and chest. He dropped his shorts next, revealing himself. To my surprise, my mouth watered. I had to stop myself from going out there and getting on my knees in front of him.

Do it. Let him know he’s yours.

I stumbled backward and rammed my hip into the countertop.

That was the first time I’d heard from my bear in years. The sentiment wasn’t spelled out in words, but the idea was clear.

I wasn’t quite ready for a declaration. Rubbing my hip, I took the knife and the rifle with me into the living area.

I loaded the rifle and laid it next to me on the coffee table. Owen didn’t want me logging into any of my accounts from his computer. He was afraid Bull’s men would be able to find my location if hackers had accessed my accounts. Unfortunately, I agreed with him, which meant I had very little to do, now that my heat was over and we weren’t actively running.

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