Page 74 of The Weakest Wolf

“But then she said the animals needed to pay, which doesn’t make sense.” He shakes his head. “Maybe I just heard wrong.”

I think of Bowen and the rest of the Stone pack, and I wonder if he didn’t mishear at all. “Eden left then?”

“Must have. I didn’t see her again.”

“And Sierra?”

I don’t know why I’m asking about Sierra, when I should be asking what direction Eden took.

When Derek’s expression turns guilty, I lean against the counter. “You spoke to her.”

“A bit.”

“And what did you say?”

“I just asked if I could help her.” He clears his throat. “I mean, if she was trying to get away from the cult, maybe she needed help.”

And I can guess what the price of that help would’ve cost Sierra if she’d taken him up on the offer. Is there no one in this fucking town that does nothing for free?

Says the guy who wouldn’t give her a fucking t-shirt for nothing.

I swallow my guilt since there’s no use thinking about Sierra now. I’ve walked away. The best thing I can do is stay away and focus all my energy on the reason that brought me here. Finding Eden.

“What did she say to your offer of help?” I ask.

“She said that she didn’t need it. That she knew how to deal with animals.”

I frown. “What does that mean?”

He shrugs. “Beats me. Look, are you going to buy something? I’ve got things to do around here.”

I take in his abandoned magazine. “Right. I’ll leave you to it.”

Since he has helped, I grab some gum and a candy bar I know I won’t eat. “Just these,” I say as I toss both on the counter.

After I’ve paid, I’m reaching for the handle to leave when Derek’s voice stops me. “There was one thing, though.”

I peer over my shoulder. “And what thing is that?”

“Just a look in her eyes when she was talking about the animals.”

I wait for him to continue.

He raises a hand to his throat. “She was playing with a necklace. A heart-shaped one. The kind you can stick a picture in. And her eyes…” his voice trails off.

“What about her eyes?”

“Whatever animal she meant, she hated them. I’ve never seen someone with that much hate in their eyes. Made me feel a little sorry for the animals,” he says as he bends to retrieve his magazine.

“Why is that?”

He raises an eyebrow. “You heard the saying about hell has no fury like a woman scorned?”

I nod.

“Well, that was what it looked like to me. She looked ready to kill someone.”

As he buries his head back in his magazine, the thought circles my head. It stays there as I return to my car before I head for the nearest motel.

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