Page 44 of Loved By the Wolf

My fingers started moving again, wriggling the knot and trying to undo it.

“It’s futile trying to escape,” Pac now said, a cynical smile on his face. “There’s no way to find you. We’ve dug multiple dens in various locations, and if they don’t get lost and attacked by my men first, the surprises I’ve laid along the way will take care of them.”

“Dens?” My brain registered that he had mentioned Brandon’s wolf earlier, but Brandon didn’t have a pet. He’d always said he could never have one. And each time I brought it up, Brandon would always look away from me.

“Yes, dens. Just like the one I lived in for years growing up. My parents only let me and my siblings out when they thought the place was safe. Why didn’t we move, you ask? It was too easy for my parents to get food because of the farms nearby. They were too stupid to think about what would happen if they were caught.” His voice dropped an octave, and I trembled, rushing now to loosen the knot.

“What happened?” Maybe if I kept him talking, I’d figure out how to get out of here. None of this was making sense, but I didn’t care, as long as he was distracted.

“They got themselves killed,” Pac said bluntly. “Left me and my siblings all alone. We had only left the den a few times, and I didn’t know where we were or what was around us. I was the youngest, and my two older siblings were not smart either, because they continued what my parents started, hunting the farms and eventually getting themselves shot too. Only I was smart enough to leave. I learned and evolved. That’s what humans say all the time, right? That only the strongest survive?”

A look of sadness seemed to come over him as his eyes dimmed back to a dark brown color. “That was until Cory found me. He was weak, but he saved me.”

“Who’s Cory?” I asked.

He looked up at me as if to gauge if I was worthy of his answer, studying me with so much intensity that I started squirming in my seat. A glint came to his eye, and the edge of his lips quirked up as I shuddered. “Cory Chen is the patriarch of Brandon’s family. You don’t know about him?”

I kept my head still, not wanting to give Pac the satisfaction of a response.

He cocked his head. “Stubborn one, aren’t you? You’ll be fun to break. Cory Chen was a Taiwanese American shifter who was Alia’s grandfather. Alia you must know, right?”

Brandon’s mom knows this man?What was the connection?

When I still didn’t reply, he waved his hand at me. “Brandon must have really done a number on you. He didn’t tell you anything about his family?”

“Of course, he did!”

“Then, who’s Alia?”

“His mom.”

“Very good. You must also know that she was a smart lady. I have high respect for Alia. She took care of me when Cory passed away, did you know that? I was like a brother to all the McCullough kids. I was the oldest of them all and Dredge’s best friend for a while.”

I was in a sea of confusion. How could someone so vile be related to Brandon? And why were his eyes glowing? His teeth had gotten longer too. None of this was computing in my head. It all boggled my mind.

A loud clang sounded from outside, followed by a scream and intense fighting. Pac immediately jumped out of his seat and ran to the door, closing it behind him. Not wanting to be left behind, I tried with all my might to loosen the rope around my wrists, but it was not budging.

That’s when I heard howling. Dread flushed through me, and I screamed when there came a sudden bang against the door, shaking the room. Snarling, and what sounded like furniture crashing to the floor on the other side of the door, made me jump. Shaking, I scooted as far away from the door as I could, sweat pouring down my face. I couldn’t help crying now. This was all too much. All I had wanted was to start my life over again, to forget Brandon, but I was in deeper water than I’d ever been before.

There came another bang against the door, and this time a crack formed in the middle. More howling followed, and it now sounded like a whole army of wolves was outside my room. The next hit against the door broke a hole in the middle of it, sending shrapnel flying in my direction. I cringed and tried to scoot away, but I fell over sideways, hitting my head on the ground.

Whimpering and growling sounded outside the door. It was then followed by a sudden silence—like the pause in the middle of a storm. I tensed, fully expecting the fight to continue at any second. Instead, when I looked back at the door, I saw a pair of golden eyes staring back at me. Eyes that were bigger than a human’s eyes and surrounded by fur. I screamed.

The door suddenly flew open, and in ran Brandon, covered in blood.Is it his blood? Oh my goodness, is he going to die?My thoughts circled in my head over and over, but no words would come out.

I stilled as he crouched in front of me. I told myself he was really here, but I only half believed it. He slowly untied me, freeing me from the chair. I concentrated on his face, trying to see what he was thinking as he pulled me upright.How is he here? What was all that growling and howling outside before?

His voice broke the spell. “Becca.”

My name was filled with sadness, and I ventured a look down his body, realizing a lot of the bloodwashis. I started crying even more. He pulled me into his arms, and I found myself crushed against Brandon’s chest. I tried to push away so as not to hurt him more, but his arms were like steel bands, holding me in place.

The sound of nails hitting the floor came from behind him, and we both turned to see where it was coming from. That’s when I saw four wolves coming in, all limping or bleeding. They were bigger than any wolf I had ever seen, and as a group, they had a menacing air about them.

I couldn’t help it. I screamed again, trying to pull Brandon farther back into the room.

Brandon simply tightened his arms around me and said, “Don’t worry. It’s family.”

But before I could register his words, I fainted.

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