Page 119 of Marked

Cameron

Iwasn’t sure how long I stood there, staring after Nate. It may have only been a few seconds, or it could have been an hour. All I knew for sure was that I would have continued standing there, hoping and praying that the motorcycle would return, that Nate had changed his mind and would go with us, had Ollie not cleared his throat and pulled me from my stupor.

“Cameron? Ms. Torres? We need to go,” he said.

I swallowed back the tears threatening to spill, my throat feeling like it was coated in glue. With one final glance at the campground driveway, I turned to him.

“Yeah, Ollie,” I mumbled. “I know. Let’s go.”

He nodded and gave me what I thought was his attempt at a reassuring smile. “It’s all gonna be okay. Nate’s… well, honestly, this might be for the best.”

“What isthatsupposed to mean?” I snarled, yanking my suitcase off the ground.

He patted the air in a calming gesture. “Sorry. I just mean that he’s a lone wolf. They aren’t meant to be chained down in one place. That’s all.”

“He’s going to join the pack,” I said through clenched teeth.

Ollie sighed. “Maybe. Hopefully. But I need to be honest. I’ve tried for a long–”

“He’s going to join the pack,” I hissed, giving Ollie a withering look. “We talked about it, okay?”

He held up a hand placatingly. “I understand. I heard what you were saying. It’s just hard for lone wolves to give up the road. Like I said, I always told Nate I could help him come in, but he always had an excuse or simply said no outright. Part of me thinks he sort of likes it out there on his own. I don’t want you getting upset when a lone wolf does what a lone wolf does.”

I tossed my bag in the back seat of the truck and slammed the door. “Can we just fucking go? I don’t need to hear any elitist platitudes from you, Ollie.”

“Elitist?” He frowned, and I didn’t think he could have looked more confused if I’d told him my mother was an octopus. “It’s not like that. Nate’s my friend. I don’t discriminate against him because he’s a lone wolf; I just know his nature. I’ve tried for years to get him to join our pack, and he’s declined. It’s who he is.”

Maybe it was who he had been, but I had to have faith that he’d changed. Deep inside, I could feel the connection that had built between us. The fear and hesitation in my heart couldn’t be true. As much as I worried that he might not follow through, I had to have faith that he’d do what he said he would.

“Drive, Ollie,” I said as I jumped into the passenger seat.

I heard him curse, but he thankfully kept his mouth shut and got behind the steering wheel. It took a few half turns to get the truck heading back toward the entry gate. As we pulled away, I couldn’t stop myself from looking back at the small cabin whereI’d found my true self. Where I’d found what I hoped could be true love. Now, leaving it behind as rain pounded down, it looked sad.

After Ollie dropped off the key at the front desk, we pulled out, and the truck tires went from gravel to the smooth asphalt of the back road that would lead us wherever this JC guy was. I’d have to present myself like some maiden to a king. Would I have to curtsy? Kiss his fucking ring like we were living in a fairy tale? Or would he look me up and down once or twice, grunt and nod, and that would be it—boom,you’re in the pack.

Whatever it was, I’d do it. Anything to make sure I made a good enough impression to be able to beg, borrow, and steal a spot in the pack for Nate.

The rain picked up, and by the time Ollie got up to speed, it was pouring, splattering across the windshield, making it hard to see even with the wipers on high. The dreary day matched my mood.

“You want the radio on or anything?” Ollie asked. “I’ve got some bottled water in the back seat if you’re thirsty.”

“I’m fine,” I muttered, resting my head against the window.

After we’d gone a few miles, I slowly pulled myself from the funk I’d slid into since Nate drove off. It wouldn’t help anything. It was also fairly rude of me to make Ollie drive in silence. I was no passenger princess who forced people to chauffeur her around without even deigning to speak to the driver. Even the thought of it made me remember how Rick and his father took advantage of people they deemedbeneaththem. Maybe some conversation would get my mind off Nate.

“So, uh, do you know who the feral wolf is?” I asked, nodding back toward the truck bed. “Does he match any of the suspects you might have had?”

“We didn’t have many suspects, to be honest,” he said. “Notofficialsuspects, anyway. The humans in the department had afew transients they had their eyes on, but they weren’t shifters. Only a few of us on the Toronto PD are shifters, and we knew this was a feral wolf. I rummaged in this guy’s jacket pocket and found a wallet with an ID in it.”

“You did?” I perked up, shoving aside my heartache. In that moment, Cameron the broken-hearted woman took a back seat to Cameron the reporter. “Who is he?”

“ID says his name is Lenny Nash. Picture was cleaner, too. No scraggly beard or matted hair. Looks almost totally normal. I didn’t recognize him. Name doesn’t ring a bell, either.”

“What’s next?”

“When we get you settled, I’ll do some more digging. Try and figure out who the hell this guy is and why he was targeting you. Maybe there’ssomethingin his past that will give us more information. Nate… he thought the guy was being directed by someone else. Like this Lenny person was a tool.”

“A tool? To hunt me?” I asked. “Why?”

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