Page 14 of Wolf Heart

CHAPTER5

RAVEN

Istare at the girl who is way too skinny for my taste and wonder what the fuck Aspen and Dex are thinking about involving a female in our group.

Her request to find her mother hangs in the air between us.

“Why should we?” I ask, interested in how much it’s going to take for her to break. She’s already shaking and her eyes are red-rimmed from tears or the bonfire still blazing back behind the barrier.

“Raven,” Aspen says in a biting tone. “Let up, will ya? She’s just been rejected by her fated mate.”

At his words, the girl’s eyes blink rapidly, but she squares her shoulders like she’s willing herself not to cry. Her blue hair is striking against her alabaster skin, and I wonder if she’s dyed it that color on purpose. Not that I care.

Too many women have flaunted themselves to gain access to a more powerful Alpha. My own mother among them and I’ve had four different men claim to be my father, but I’m just a fucking bastard.

I've seen women spread their legs to whoever asks without loyalty. Just like my fated mate, Amii. My jaw tightens as I push the memory of her from my mind and my wolf whimpers.

“Are you going to help me or not?” she asks, her chin trembles and she presses her lips together in a thin line.

I sniff the air, trying to make out what she is. Her scent is sweet and light compared to the black smoke. There is a hint of something else, something stronger, something different. Something I haven’t smelled before. Exotic. Underneath it all is the faint trace of wolf.

Yet, she doesn’t act like an Omega. I shake my head, unable to discern what she is. Those females cower too much and too soon. And while I can tell she’s barely holding it together she’s not falling apart. Good. Then she’ll put up a fight and be a challenge to break. My wolf growls in agreement.

“Why should we?” I ask, crossing my arms.

Dex looks at me like I’ve lost my mind that I’m not actually entertaining this idea. But he and Aspen are the ones who brought out this female.

Does he really think she could be the one we can sacrifice to the witches to regain our honor? A wolf who is not a wolf, a girl who has not shifted past her due.

When Merida had told us this riddle, I wanted to gut her where she stood. Except, with her magic, we couldn’t touch her. We’ve had to live like outcasts until we can rid ourselves of this curse.

And all because Dex had to get it on with the witch’s triplet daughters. One for each of us, he’d said. The girls were promised to a powerful mage. Needless to say, the mage didn’t like tainted goods and we’ve been up a shit creek ever since.

This is why this latest obsession of Dex has me wanting to haul her over my shoulder and toss her at the feet of her Alpha to make her stay with her pack.

It’s fucking dangerous out here for just the three of us, not to mention a scrap of a girl.

She licks her lips, her gaze darting to the three of us like she’s just realized we could be the big bad wolves in those stupid stories. “I-I’ll pay you.”

“How?” I laugh. There’s no purse or even pockets in her outfit. Her shirt is white and soft cotton, so thin I can see the curve of her breasts under the cloth. Her pants are dark gray cotton, fitting loosely around her hips and short, hitting her shins.

“I’ll… I’ll… do whatever you want.” Her eyes widen and her cheeks color as she realizes what she just said. Stepping back, she bumps into a tree trunk.

The girl is so desperate to find her mother, she’d offer her body?

I snarl at her. “Go back home to your pack.”

A beat passes and then she growls back. “There’s a reward for finding my mother.”

I purse my mouth. “So you’re a runaway.”

“I’m looking for my mother!” she shouts, her cheeks turning red.

“You might as well be a runaway,” I say, turning my back on her and walking away.

I can feel her stare boring into me.

Could she be the one we've been hunting for all these years?

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