Page 45 of Wolf Heart

“Walk faster and we’ll be out of the stink zone sooner.” Dex marches past me and I rush to catch up to him.

The sun fades low on the horizon and I don’t see a cabin or shelter anywhere around.

“How much further to the camp?” I ask. “The lost ones will be waking any moment.”

He stops so suddenly that I crash into his back. I’m knocked backward on my ass, but he doesn’t move.

“What is it?” I push myself up, my skin breaking out in goosebumps.

“Climb,” he commands and I balk at him.

“There’s no time.” He pushes me to a fat maple tree with thick branches stretching up to the sky.

When I slide down, the bark slicing open my palms, he growls.

“Use the grooves.” He points to etchings on the tree leading all the way up.

Slowly, I make my way up to the closest branch, my arms shaking.

Dex climbs up past me to the branch above and lowers his hand for me. I take it and he pulls me up. We continue for several more feet before there’s a platform of wood I didn’t see from the ground beneath us.

“Welcome to our camp.” He wipes the sweat off his brow and smiles.

“You all live here?” I turn in a circle. There’s nothing here but this plank of wood nailed to the tree’s inner branches.

“Nah.” Dex smiles and sits down, unpacking a blanket and tossing it to me. “This is just one of our camps. Out here it helps to have lots of safe places to sleep if you know what I mean.”

I nod and he hands me a bottle of water.

My muscles are cramping and I chug the water down.

“Here.” He tosses me the blanket. “It’s going to get cold tonight.”

“What about you?” I tilt my chin to him.

He gives me a lopsided grin that has my heart skipping a beat. “Don’t worry about me. I’ll snuggle up next to you if I get too cold.”

“That so?” I huff 'cause I need to keep my wits about me. My wolf won’t let me bond with anyone else, but Michael.

When he places his finger to his lips, I still.

A shadow creeps around the base of the tree.

“Is it the lost ones?” I mouth the words.

He shakes his head. “Wolves can’t climb trees.”

Dex doesn’t move, but waits until a low whistle sounds, then he relaxes. “It’s Raven and Aspen.”

I’m so relieved that I unclench the blanket I’m holding.

Both of them are bloody and sweaty, but they’re alive. I fight the urge to run to them and hug them both.

“We brought some food. Stole it off one of the wolves.” Aspen hands me and Dex some jerky.

Raven watches me eat it; his gaze unwavering. I shift my legs underneath me remembering the heat of him when we were alone in the cabin when his body heat pinned me to the door before I could leave.

“This is your last chance," Raven says, his eyes narrowing.

“Last chance?” I shake my head. “For what?”

“For you to tell us what’s really going on.” His lips pull into a snarl. “Tell us the truth, we can smell a lie a mile away.”

“About what?” My heart pounds and I want to hide under the blanket.

“You’re not telling us the truth about your wolf being.” He grips my shoulders, shaking small tremors through me. “Why are the lost ones tracking you.”

“What?” I shrug him off, but my gut tightens in knots. “I don’t know what you're talking about.”

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