Page 31 of Crossed Fates

Makayla considered me for a minute, making me start to wonder if she planned to bolt as soon as I left.Those cuffs are looking better and better, baby.

“I’ll be here when you get back,” she finally replied, as though she had to think about it.

I didn’t know if I believed her, but I didn’t have the energy to push it. Instead, I simply gave her a curt nod and left to find my father.

Makayla

I sighedin absolute bliss as the first sip of hot coffee slid down my throat. It felt like an eternity since I’d indulged in one of my few true vices.

After another sip and a happy moan, I carried the mug into Alaric’s living room and went back to snooping. There was a sprinkling of photos and mementos on the walls and the fireplace mantel, but I didn’t find anything where he looked older than a teenager.

He clearly didn’t come home often, and I had noticed his subtle surprise at entering and finding the cabin prepared for his arrival. It only added to the perception of his disassociation with his pack. But they obviously cared about him because someone had prepared his cabin for his arrival. My pack would have done the same thing for me, except I didn’t own a cabin back home.

The thought of home reminded me that I hadn’t checked in with Nathan or the shifter council since I decided to investigate Valaria Crimson’s death. My index finger brushed over the enchanted ruby, and I considered using it to head back right now, despite my promise to be here when Alaric returned.

Hmm, had it really been a promise, though?I wondered.Would he even care if I disappeared?

His muttered curse before he’d left pretty much summed up my own feelings about this electricity between us. I’d never before experienced the pull I felt with him. It drew me to him like a magnet, something that seriously annoyed me.

Never mind my hussy wolf, who wanted to just roll over and beg him for a thorough lay. Her reaction to Alaric worried me a little. She’d never been so keen on a man. Attracted, sure. But with Alaric, she actually fought for control as though she wanted to break free and give in to the desire between us. It was too soon. Too fast.Too much.

Go ahead and pout,I told her.It’s. Not. Happening.

Hmm, maybe I should leave. It would certainly be easier if I skipped town—or the universe, if I wanted to be technical—and forgot all about Alaric and his ridiculously good looks, his alpha vibes that ruined a girl’s panties, and his mouth that was made for sin.

Jackass,I thought as I squeezed my thighs together.

However, I had to weigh the mate bullshit against my mission. I couldn’t leave those girls. And I’d become invested in finding out what the hell the silver poisoning had to do with the trafficking cases.

They need me.

Alaric needs me.

For now.

The last drop of my beverage disappeared, and I stared morosely at my empty cup. I wanted more, but I hadn’t been to bed in… a day? Maybe two?

Although, the likelihood—even without the coffee—that I would fall asleep seemed slim.

I wandered to a window and surveyed the familiar landscape. Everything here was the same and yet different.How different?

My wolf whined, and I thought about how long it had been since I’d shifted. Probably a week or so. The city wasn’t the best place to let my inner animal loose. And whenever I went home, which wasn’t often, my wolf had the freedom to run and play as much as she wanted. Which explained the similar sense of belonging I’d felt upon arriving.

While our Silver Lake resided in another realm, this place still felt like home. And my wolf wanted the freedom I typically gave her when surrounded by trees and our pack.

We could both use a good run, huh?Maybe I could burn off some of the raw hunger eating at me and have some fucking control over myself the next time I saw Alaric.

Leaving my clothes in the guest room, I left the cabin and immediately shifted before trotting to the nearest copse of trees. I decided to explore for a while, see what differences there were in the two realities of Silver Lake, before going for a swim.

I loved the city, but sometimes I really missed the lake. It was home.

Alaric

“I don’t thinkit’s a coincidence that you found your mate the same week as your brother’s death,” my father said quietly from his seat beside the fire in his den.

It had taken me nearly two hours to find him here.

After leaving Makayla at my house, I’d wandered on foot back to Tyler’s home, expecting my parents to still be there. But they’d left shortly after the pack coroner had arrived to handle my brother’s remains.