Page 50 of Secret Wolf Baby

The Gold Wolves listened, their ears pricked, their attention locked on me as I relayed the information I had gleaned from Audrey the previous night. The more I spoke, the deeper their expressions of rage grew, their shoulders tensing more with each word.

“Anyway, that’s everything she told me,” I finished.

“So we’re dealing with a massive asshole,” Nolan said.

“I feel like that’s a vast understatement,” Trent mused.

“Not surprising, though. Seems like he learned how to handle discontents after getting kicked out of his first pack,” Chris commented.

“Yeah, I kinda wanna tear him a new one after hearing all that,” Will said, his arms folded. “Especially after meeting Audrey. No wonder she’s so timid all the time. Can’t blame her after ten years of that.”

My jaw worked, but I stayed quiet, trying not to think about the fact that I was partially responsible for her returning to that awful situation in the first place. All the more reason to go after Reacher. I needed to do right by her after all the wrongs I’d done.

“Unfortunately, that’s not going to be good enough for us to go in there,” Declan said. “Not only would Reacher just ignore her testimony and say she’s biased, the word of a former pack member isn’t going to cut it.”

“What about all the others?” I asked. “The ones who reported him and got us looking into it in the first place?”

“We need actual evidence,” Declan said.

Chris frowned, stroking his chin as he considered. “I’ve been keeping an eye on the Blood Moon pack,” he said. “Thanks to the video surveillance Will managed to put up when you guys were there.”

Will gave a bored, two-fingered salute. “Always happy to do anything tech-related,” he said.

“Anyway, I’ve been keeping an eye on the pack, and I’ve noticed some weird shipments coming in at odd hours.”

“Weird how?” I asked.

“Large, heavy, military-style boxes. The kind civilians aren’t supposed to get.” Chris pulled out a tablet, giving it a few brief taps as he walked over to Declan and held it out.

Leaning over, I watched the video feed he’d pulled up. Sure enough, a handful of shifters crossed the screen, carrying what appeared to be heavy boxes.

“I think they’re weapons,” Chris said.

“Any proof of that, or is it just a hunch?” Declan asked.

“Hunch, but a solid one. I used to do these kinds of false-shipment missions for the army before I joined the Gold Wolves. We would use crates like those.”

“Hmm.” Declan scrutinized the image, his head tilted. “Do we have any other feeds that show us a better view? Maybe one that can show us what’s inside.”

“If there were, I’d be showing that instead,” Chris said. “This is as good as we’ve got.”

Declan nodded grimly, resigned but clearly unsatisfied. “We need to find out more somehow. Whatever he’s planning, it doesn’t look good.”

Chapter 16 - Audrey

I couldn’t remember the last time I had a lazy Saturday. When I lived in Rowen, I’d always have to run errands or do chores for Dad. Having the chance to kick my feet up and relax on the couch felt almost indulgent as I flipped through the channels on the TV.

“What are you watching?” Jackson asked. I craned my neck upward to see him hovering behind the couch, looking down at me.

“Not sure yet,” I admitted. “Need something?”

Part of me expected him to tell me to go shopping or do laundry or something, the way Dad normally would. Well, the relaxation was nice while it lasted. I pushed myself to a seated position, not expecting what he said next.

“I was thinking it might be fun to go on a hunt,” he suggested. “The three of us together.”

Something about that made my stomach lurch, and my heart started pounding. It shouldn’t have. It was just a hunt, after all. But the idea of the three of us—Jackson, me, and Claire—going on a hunt together felt right.

The other, more reasonable part of me argued otherwise. I was warming up to him too much. I was dropping my guard, and that was dangerous around Jackson. It gave him more chances to hurt me. The more activities we did like this, the more I was going to fall for him and forget what he was capable of.

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