Page 36 of Fated to the Lone Shifter
Not ever.
One hour later, the fire shelter drill morphs into an ember line containment exercise. Sera’s on point, flanking left while two others drag the hose line around the dummy fire. Tori’s voice buzzes through the comms, calmly walking them through emergency trauma wrap protocol.
That’s when I see it.
A faint shimmer curling in her wake, like a heat mirage that shouldn’t be there.
Then—flame.
Barely a wisp. A delicate lick of fire trailing off the heel of her boot. Just long enough to raise every hair on my arms.
No one else notices. Not yet.
I move fast, stomping the trail out with the heel of my boot, grinding it into the dirt until only scorched earth remains. My heart hammers as I straighten.
She didn’t mean to do that. I know she didn’t. But the fire… it wants out of her.
She turns back just as I lift my head. Her eyes narrow.
“Problem, trainer?” she calls, sarcasm masking something deeper.
“None you need to worry about,” I say, cool and clipped. I gesture to the hose line. “Get it moving, Knowles.”
She goes, but her eyes stay on me a heartbeat too long.
Yeah. She felt it too.
And if I noticed… how long before someone else does?
I glance sideways and catch Marcus watching me from across the line, his brow furrowed like he just saw something unusual. His gaze flicks from the scorched patch on the ground to my boot, then to Sera.
He smirks—subtle, knowing—and then turns back to his crew.
Damn it. I’ll have to keep an eye on him too.
The call comes just after noon.
I’m in the garage, hands deep in an engine rebuild I’ve been using to stay grounded, when my phone buzzes. The number’s local but unfamiliar. I wipe the grease from my palms and answer.
“Benson.”
A beat. Then, “It’s Deputy Tolan from Missoula County. We got the call for any missing persons matches?”
My spine straightens. “Yeah. Anything?”
“We ran dental and prints on your latest recovery. It’s a match—female, 24. Name’s Leah Marris. Reported missing three weeks ago by her roommate in Hamilton.”
Hamilton. Nearly two counties over.
“Shit,” I mutter.
“There’s more,” Tolan says. “We started cross-checking the other fire scene remains. Two more positive IDs came in this morning. One from Ravalli County, another from Clearwater.”
That makes three.
All missing persons from different towns. None reported in Lolo.
Which means…
