17

DERRICK

It messed with my head.

Images kept rising in my mind. Every damn thing I wanted to do with her. None of it had anything to do with punishment.

The truth was worse.

Wanted her so badly it hurt.

Wanted to pull her into my arms, forget everything for a few minutes, and lose myself in the lie that maybe we could still be okay.

“Derrick?”

At the sound of Selene's voice, my head snapped up.

Ahead of us, Amira stumbled.

A sharp sound of pain escaped her lips before she hit the ground.

Everyone stopped.

Everyone watched.

Slowly, she pushed herself back to her feet.

Not a single complaint left her mouth.

Without looking at anyone, she started limping forward again.

Seeing her hurt should have satisfied me.

It should have felt like justice.

Instead, a dull ache spread through my chest.

We were close enough to the frontier line now.

“Wayfarer's Camp,” I said quietly.

The group turned toward me.

“Shift. Hunt your dinner. Get as much sleep as you can. Tomorrow the real work starts.”

Nobody argued.

Within minutes, a small clearing had been prepared.

Then everyone except Eldric, Amira, and me shifted into their wolves and disappeared into the darkness.

My own wolf pushed against my skin.

He wanted out.

Wanted to go to her.

Wanted to lie beside her and comfort her.

That alone was enough reason to stay human.

Eldric walked over to Amira and knelt beside her.

He carefully inflated the pillow for her injured knee.

Keeping out of sight, I settled near the edge of the clearing and listened.

“When Mirelle first disappeared, we asked our witch to track her,” Eldric said quietly.

“Seraphina is a powerful white witch. Even she couldn't track my twin farther than twenty feet beyond our clan borders.”

Amira sucked in a sharp breath.

Eldric immediately murmured an apology.

After a short pause, he continued.

“When Mirelle finally came back, she was in so much pain that she could barely speak. The only reason Derrick found your father was because Mirelle had a strange map in her pocket.”

My attention sharpened.

“A map?”

“Step counts from a rock formation,” Eldric explained. “Derrick recognized the formation. Without that, we never would have found the place.”

“Lucky,” Amira said flatly.

“The strange thing is that the map wasn't written in Mirelle's handwriting.”

My whole body stiffened.

Eldric had never told me that.

“You want me to admit that I made the map and sent your sister away hoping she'd find someone who cared before she died?” Amira asked lightly.

“Would that somehow give you closure?”

“Closure,” Eldric repeated. “That's an interesting word. Do you have closure now that Rowan Kingsley is dead?”

Amira let out a dry snort.

“Fine. I see your point.”

My frown deepened.

What point was he trying to make?

“Were there any other women taken with Mirelle?” Eldric asked.

“Any women besides the children at the camp?”

“No. Just me.” Amira shifted slightly. “Why?”

“And the children. Did Mirelle know they were there?”

Silence stretched between them.

“I think she did,” Amira finally said.

“I don't really remember, but I probably told her. It would've motivated her. Why?”

“So she never actually saw them?”

“No. She never got that far.”

Her voice grew quieter.

“She spent less than twelve hours at the camp. Every minute of that time was spent with me.”

A pause followed.

“Do you want to know what we talked about?”

“Yes.”

“I don't remember.”

The answer came too fast.

Something inside me tightened.

Usually, I could tell when one of my wolves lied.

With Amira, it was never that simple.

The mate bond wasn't helping me now.

But I caught it anyway.

The slight rise in her voice.

The speed of her reply.

The tiny signs most people missed.

She had lied.

The question was why.

Until now, she had answered everything Eldric asked.

Why lie about this?

“I understand,” Eldric said quietly.

“Thank you for telling me what you could.”

A brief silence followed before he spoke again.

“I know you didn't know Mirelle when she was at her best, but you were right about one thing.”

His voice softened.

“She was strong.”

A small smile touched his words.

“She was a fighter.”

Another pause.

“She was born seventeen minutes before me and spent the rest of our lives making sure I never forgot it.”

Amira looked at him.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“Because I thought you might want to know something about the woman who saved your life.”

A bitter laugh escaped her.

“Since your alpha refuses to listen to me, and I'm probably going to die on this trip along with the rest of you, I'd argue your sister didn't save my life at all.”

Eldric chuckled softly.

“We both know that's not true.”

His expression grew thoughtful.

“For a long time, I believed you had the heart of a killer.”

“You agreed not long ago that I was responsible for your sister's death.”

“The hand of a killer isn't the same thing as the heart of one.”

Enough.

I'd heard enough.

Didn't know what game Eldric was playing, but I was done listening.

Stepping out into the clearing, I moved toward them.

“Shift and hunt,” I said stiffly.

“I'll watch her.”