Semua Bab How to Catch a Mate: Bab 31 - Bab 36

Haden.It was nearly dawn when we returned.The forest surrounding the Den sat still, too still, like it had overheard everything and decided to hold its breath. Mist clung to the ground, curling around tree trunks and scattering like ghosts as Curt eased the truck through the gates. The scent of dew-covered moss drifted in through the cracked windows, but it did nothing to settle the weight sitting low in my chest.Curt parked outside the main compound. The engine died with a soft tick, and silence bled into the cab.Neither of us moved.I stared straight ahead, hands still on my thighs, eyes locked on nothing.Beside me, Curt shifted in his seat, then said quietly, “You think it’s the Elders?”I didn’t answer at first.Because I had thought it.Not our Elders. Not the ones sitting in the war room back at the Valley, worrying about border lines and treaty revisions.But somewhere, in some corner of this fractured world, there were Elders old enough to remember what real bloo

AshlynTwo months.That’s how long it had been since the lynx body turned up in human territory. Since the last real lead dried up and Since the case turned cold while everyone pretended it wasn’t.There were just too many other cases, not enough traction on this one. I was hoping someone might lead me to a direction, then I hoped one of the bodies might have a clue but none of them said a word. Days bled into weeks of nothing but camera logs that didn't show me anything major. There were meetings that started with urgency and ended in silence. The precinct was just too goddamn busy to let one case tie them down and nobody wanted to admit it.I stopped asking for updates. I made my own.New York wasn’t giving me answers, but it gave me access. I used it. Checked every case marked “shifter” I visited every crime scene I missed thinking maybe I would find an answer there. I worked my way through every name that had been flagged suspicious, dead or alive. But still nada. it was like fi

Ashlyn The Den hadn’t changed. The concrete walls that resembled stone were the same. The scent of food, dirty socks, and wolf still the same except for the hint of lavender that now tasted sweet on my tongue. A pup ran out of one of the rooms, and almost bumped into me as another two were shifted, one with a white fur coat and the other in a grey and brown coat. I skillfully side stepped them and smiled. My nerves started to kick in at the realization that I was in fact back with the pack. It was a good thing but it came with rules and regulations and a fuck ton of don't. Not sure how I felt about that since I wasn't one for listening to someone tell me where to drink my coffee. I was a detective. We were the fucking law. I walked into the war room on the right without knocking. My boots hit the floor hard and steady. I didn’t pause at the threshold. Didn’t ask permission as I took a seat, crossed my denim pantsed legs and lifted my arm slightly over my shoulder. The