Page 24 of Wolf Trapped
Angela sobs loudly into Carter’s chest while he murmurs nonsensical words into her ear. Jacob was clearly important to her for her to show weakness in front of anyone. I fucking hate that damn rogue wolf even more for hurting her.
“Shit, he’s really dead.” Carter’s face crumples, and his complexion turns a little green. “Fuck. I should have brought him back instead of going after the intruder.”
I barely hear his words as a thought strikes me. She’s like me and will compartmentalize things if she has a task. I need to give her something to do to keep her mind off of this.
“Angela, double the patrols. I don’t want anyone else to have to make a choice like that.” I bark, running my hand down my face. My shoulders slump in defeat. This wolf is a danger to my pack, and now I have lost a shifter because of it.
“Yes, Alpha.” She says softly, her voice wobbling. She rolls her shoulders back, wiping the tears from her eyes. I gave her a purpose, so maybe she won’t let this gut her, but it’s hitting her hard. It is hitting all of us hard. It’s never easy to lose a family member, and that’s what I like to think we are in the Everette Pack. It’s got to be even worse for Angela.
“What happened, Carter?” I eye the shifter.
“We were patrolling at the border between ours and Greyson’s territory. I was about a hundred yards behind him when the wolf came out of nowhere and attacked him from behind. I called out a warning, but it was too late. The wolf went straight for the jugular and ran off. I chased it until it slipped into Greyson’s territory but didn’t want to cross in case he was one of his wolves.” He says, sitting down on the bench with his knees on his elbows and his head in his hands.
“Jara says she’s never seen the wolf before. She would know if it was one of Grayson’s wolves since she was meant to be their alpha.” I say thoughtfully.
“Then Grayson has a strange wolf in his territory, but the wolf had to come from somewhere. How did neither alpha see a rogue in their territory and warn us that there was danger?” Patrick speaks up for the first time.
“Neither Kyle nor Grayson like me. They want to take over our pack. They won’t be warning us of any danger.” I shake my head. It’s bullshit. They will never take my pack neither has the strength or the numbers to take me down, but if the council wages war then we are in some deep shit.
“Are you going to tell Grayson there is a possible rogue in his territory?” Angela sneers.
If I know her, she probably blames the other alphas for failing to warn us about possible threats. The thought hadn’t crossed my mind, and I would rather pull my own teeth than speak to the alpha, but I should probably warn him as I did Kyle about the humans.
“I should just let him figure it out for himself instead of calling, but if I do that and he finds out we knew the wolf was dangerous, it could bring heat we don’t need on the pack.” I pull my phone from my pocket and dial Grayson’s number.
“Hello?” He answers on the third ring.
“There’s a possible rogue in your territory. It is extremely dangerous, and it killed one of my wolves while patrolling the border. It was last seen crossing territory lines.” I say without any kind of greeting.
“Archer? Why the fuck would you warn me?” He sneers.
“It’s a part of the treaty that we warn each other of possible threats.”
“You know I wouldn’t warn you, but you warn me? How do I know this isn’t a trap?” He asks, still not convinced.
“You don’t, but just be wary. The wolf is dangerous.” I say and hang up on the bastard. I should have asked about Jara’s parents, but that asshole’s voice is like nails on a chalkboard, and I wanted to talk to him as little as possible.
“Is he being his usual asshole self?” Angela rolls her eyes.
“Paranoid that it’s a trap. I don’t know how I could trap him by warning him of a rogue in his lands.” I shrug.
“He’s such a fucking moron. Why would you warn him?” Angela shakes her head, huffing out a breath and sitting on the bench next to Carter.
“Carter, why don’t you go home? You have had a rough evening. Don’t beat yourself up. If you hadn’t gone after the wolf, we wouldn’t know where to find the wolf.” I clap him on the shoulder, and he stiffens but nods standing and leaving the room.
“Are you okay to patrol tonight, Patrick?” I eye the man. He’s staring down at Jacob with sad eyes.
“If I had gotten there sooner, I may have been able to save him.” He whispers.
“No. We aren’t doing this what-if bullshit.” Angela growls. “It’s no one’s fault but that fucking wolf.”
I love that about her. She is clearly hurting for the man she loves but is trying to place blame exactly where it belongs. She isn’t blaming anyone but the damn rogue who attacked Jacob for no good reason.
“She’s right,” I tell Patrick softly. “The only thing we can do is be vigilant and celebrate our friend’s life. We will find the wolf that did this. I have a feeling he hasn’t even begun causing chaos in our pack. He will be back, and we will be ready for him.”
“Yes, Alpha.” He nods, but he’s frowning down at Jacob.
“Angela, go get a couple more volunteers to patrol and rework the schedule for me. I’m going for a run."
