Page 20 of Stealthy as a Wolf

Easy enough…women like her shied away from the darker side of life. While I was grateful for her timely rescue, we couldn’t allow her to slow us down.

I checked the cabinet behind the mirror, which was empty except for an aspirin bottle and an old shaver. I sighed, then crouched and inspected the cupboard under the sink.

Jackpot!

A whole box of medical supplies.

I grunted as I lifted the case, the muscles of my back twinging under the weight. I straightened, rolling my shoulders to loosen the muscles along my spine, and gritted my teeth when it felt like my bones had been gnawed by scavengers. I refused to allow my injuries to slow us down.

I had just finished organizing the supplies when Matty stepped out of the shower. As he grabbed a towel and began drying off, I scanned his injuries, dismissing the malnutrition and the bruises that decorated him almost from head to foot. Some were colorful and weeks old, while others were a deep black and much more recent. What concerned me was the nasty slash across his torso. “That will need to be stitched up.”

I took out the small sewing kit, turned, then stilled when I saw the mangled mess of his neck.

His bare neck.

My own collar suddenly felt unbearably tight, the plastic kit in my hand creaking when my grip tightened. Being unable to shift was like an itch under my skin that I couldn’t reach. My tiger stretched, testing the boundaries, pushing almost painfully against the prison of my body, but there was no escape.

Every time he tried, we received a nasty shock.

“Your collar.” I took a step toward the kid, then jolted to a stop. “How?”

His lips tightened for a second, rebellion sparking in his green eyes, and I clenched my fists to keep from throttling the snot-nosed brat. “Listen here, kid. The only way for those collars to come off is with a code. The guards would’ve slit your throat before removing it.”

The kid pursed his lips, then rolled his eyes and continued to scrub his hair with the towel without answering.

My patience snapped, and I shoved him hard against the wall. “Whoever helped you must have some sort of connection with the prison system. They can’t be trusted.”

I expected the kid to shove me away or go for my throat.

I didn’t expect him to stand pliantly under my hold and just shrug. “I trust the person.”

Damn house cat!

I pressed my forearm against his throat, my beast giving a rumble of displeasure. If I weren’t wearing this cursed collar, my claws would be digging into his flesh. Without my tiger, I felt ineffectual, like half my soul was missing. “This is a serious issue. These collars are tracked. The person who helped youwillbe caught. Do you really think they will protect you when the code used to release you is traced back to them? When they have something to lose?”

“It was Maggie.” The kid shoved me away from him, my shock giving him the upper hand. Then he got right in my face. “She wouldn’t have gone to the trouble of helping me, rescuing us, only to betray us.”

But I didn’t hear anything else, rage fueling my blood, and I charged out of the bathroom with only one thought in my head—to wring the truth out of that deceitful little wolf and figure out what game she was playing.

Chapter Seven

MAGGIE

When the bathroom door opened, I automatically turned, my wolf paranoid enough to want to keep all the men in sight. To contain the threat. What I didn’t expect was Burke to charge out of the bathroom, rage darkening his face.

With me locked in his sights.

He crossed the room in a matter of seconds, and everyone moved at once.

Grady growled, his fangs flashing, and lunged toward me. Boone cursed, diving toward his brother. But what held my attention was Matty. He tore out of the bathroom just a second later, leapt off the back of the couch, his body stretched out as he soared through the air, and he tackled the tiger to the ground.

They landed hard, the floorboards reverberating under my feet, and they skidded to a stop just a foot away, knocking aside the few pieces of furniture scattered throughout the cabin. They traded vicious punches, every blow landing with a meaty thump that made me wince.

Grady and Boone reached down and pulled the men apart, hauling them to their feet, everyone panting from exertion. Grady spoke through gritted teeth. “Would someone care to explain what the fuck just happened?”

Three men glared daggers at Burke, but he didn’t seem to give a fuck, since he was too busy glaring at me. “She’s working with the prison. She removed Matthew’s collar.”

When they peered at me, a hint of doubt in their expressions, the hair on the back of my neck lifted. For the first time in their company, I no longer felt safe. Even Matty had a hint of doubt in his eyes, and that destroyed me. I lifted my chin and spoke through gritted teeth. “I’m not a part of the prison, nor have I ever worked for them.”

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