Page 10 of Stolen Oath
I couldn't help but feel the stab of jealousy as it washed over me at the way Dimitri was looking at Char. Open and unguarded. I know it was irrational, plus I had no right to feel that way anyway, but I couldn't help myself. Char was my best friend, my only friend in this whole mess, and the thought of her falling in love with the alpha made my blood run cold. Damian's face mirrored how I felt.
Unfortunately, we had more pressing matters to attend, too. We needed answers and we needed them fast if we wanted to survive whatever was coming our way. Urgency was building in my chest and I knew as well as I knew my own name that shit was about to hit the fan and I'd be in the middle of it…again.
Another thought pushed its way through all the others clouding my mind.
“Is that what you wanted to talk to me about in private this morning?” I asked Dimitri and I knew I was right when his shoulders stiffened making him look taller than he already was. “You heard about these witches resurfacing, didn’t you?” The accusation was loud and clear in my tone.
The alpha said nothing, but he kept his steady storm blue gaze on me unblinking.
“You should be happy he didn’t start discussing witches in the middle of the store.” Typical Char, she always found a way to justify behavior for those she cared about. My bestie had no clue that the wolf did discuss witches in that very store a minute or two before she came to work. “Good for you to want to get her out for lunch. If I didn’t know her better I would’ve thought she was a mole in her past life. She’s scared of people and likes to hide in a hole.”
“I am not!” The rebuttal was automatic and it annoyed me enough that I bit the inside of my cheek. Char had a way of reducing me to a toddler at times.
“On the bright side,” oblivious to my anger, she waved a hand in my face. “at least you didn’t get a surprise visit by one of your long-lost sisters without being aware of their existence.”
Something nudged the back of my mind and I frowned at my feet. A second later it socked me hard enough I almost fell off the bed I was sitting on as my head snapped up and I looked at Dimitri wide-eyed.
“Damn it!” A string of profanities poured from my lips, juicy enough to make a sailor proud. Char appeared proud too judging by the impressed expression she wore. “She was a witch, wasn’t she?” The question was for the alpha who seemed to come to the same conclusion as me.
“The candle…” Dimitri trailed off.
“I knew there was something off with her but she tricked me anyway.” A new wave of anger churned in my gut. “I got too worked up thinking she held the poor guy with her by using potions or spells, it didn’t cross my mind that she was testing me.”
The triumphant look on swan lake’s face danced in my mind’s eye mocking me.
“What time did you notice the hyenas following you?” The alpha asked my best friend.
“It’s fifteen minutes to the store and I was half way there when I felt them creeping up from a distance.” Forehead puckered in confusion, Char’s gaze darted from me to Dimitri and back. “It took me another ten to fifteen when I tried to circle and double back in hopes I would lose them. Why?”
“She would’ve had enough time to make a call and move the hyenas into a position to stake out your house after she left.” Dimitri swore under his breath.
“I’d hate to be that person but care to enlighten the rest of us?” Damian drawled but I couldn’t even be annoyed at his tone.
I was too busy freaking out.
Dimitri, with a heavy sigh told them what happened that morning when he came to the store. About the woman, about the candle, even about me hitting my elbow because I was trying to run away from him while telling him to go away. Any other day I would’ve laughed about how put out by that fact he was. It became obvious Dimitri Bell was not accustomed to women trying to get away from him.
“We can find her.” My exclamation got their attention. “She paid with a credit card”
“Unless it was a fake one.” Char mumbled while gnawing on her lower lip. “Still, it’s a good lead.” She looked around and frowned. “I’ll need a computer to check the account number she used to pay.”
“I’ll be right back.” Damian perked up at the mention of technology. “I might not be able to help much with other things, but computers I can do.”
CHAPTER6
The daylight was gradually darkening, the bright rays that used to peek through the parted curtains of the hotel room turning into a reddish orange glow of a sunset. Shadows stretched over the polished floors, since thanks to Dimitri, we were hiding in luxury; unlike our dingy motel the first time Char and I got attacked. No smelly, stained covers on single beds for the alpha.
Speaking of which, the sorceress extraordinaire was hunched over the thin laptop Damian brought in from his car a couple of hours ago. Searching for the information on the woman who purchased the candle that morning proved to be more difficult than expected. The Druid and my friend had their heads close together as they conversed about things which sounded alien to me.
I, on the other hand, did my best to ignore Dimitri and his proximity to me by inspecting the thread on the oriental rug. Very mature, I know.
Suddenly, a triumphant sound escaped Char's lips, startling all of us. She spun towards me, her hand over her mouth and her eyes glowing with excitement. "I found her! The woman who bought the candle!" She exclaimed, practically bouncing up and down in her seat.
Damian was frowning at the laptop, his eyes darting over the text I couldn't see from where I was sitting cross-legged on the bed. Dimitri didn't believe in personal space so he leaned in over me to take a look at the screen, his arms resting on my shoulders as he used his damn shifter vision to read from that far. I tried not to shrink away at the contact, but it was hard. I could feel the heat of his body on my back, his scent filling my nostrils.
It was fogging my mind.
"The name of the woman who bought the candle is Isadora De La Cruz," Char said as she typed away on the keyboard with the Druid keeping a close eye on her every move. "And get this - she's been arrested before for practicing witchcraft by the human police when she set a house on fire! In Louisiana."
