Page 14 of Primal (The Prey Drive #1)

Chapter 13

Noa

R ennick is here.

He’s here and he’s here to see me.

When Amara and Lowri pulled up in front of my driveaway in the High Priestess’s red Toyota and relayed this information, my heart stuttered before slamming into a harder, faster rhythm. For about ten seconds, my wolf surged forward, pressing against the walls of her glass cage with a frantic kind of desperation, as if she might finally break free of the confines she’s suffered under. The knowledge alone that he came for her, for us , was enough to fill her with naive and misplaced hope.

But the rush didn’t last long.

It faded almost as quickly as it came, leaving behind something cold and hollow in its place. A slow, creeping unease rolled into my stomach. At first, it was just a whisper, an aching pit, but the longer I stood there listening to Lowri, learning what and who was waiting for me in the clearing, the more it strengthened.

And along with it, so did my intuition.

I don’t know why he’s come, but I know with absolute certainty the pack Alpha isn’t here for a casual visit. There’s a nagging sensation at the back of my mind, demanding that I pay attention to it, but I can’t. Not right now. Not when each of my nerves are set ablaze with an unrecognizable dread.

On daze-like autopilot, we left Edie and Eldrith with Ivey and Siggy. The lighthearted mask I wore while telling my Nightingale I had something to take care of wassome of my best acting work, but Siggy saw right through it. Like I’ve said, the omega is wise beyond her years. I may have lied and told her everything was fine, but I was telling the damn truth when I promised her I would be back in no time. Nothing short of divine intervention would make me break that vow to her.

Seren had been adamant she was coming with me, even when I insisted I would be okay with Amara and Lowri keeping me company. My best friend had all but laughed in my face, acting as if what I’d said was the most absurd thing she’s ever heard. In her defense, if the roles were reversed, I wouldn’t let her go alone either. Not a chance in hell.

During the ten-minute drive, the unease doesn’t fade. If anything, the closer we get to the clearing, to him , the more suffocating it becomes, tightening around my chest. My fingers clutch the steering wheel harder than necessary, and I force myself to focus on the road ahead, but my mind keeps circling back to the same dreadful conclusion.

This isn’t going to end well for me.

Beside me, Seren shifts, her sharp powder blue eyes flicking sideways, her empath abilities allowing her to pick up on every tangled thread of anxiety churning inside me. She doesn’t say anything at first, just reaches across the console and takes my free hand, squeezinghard, grounding me before I spiral too deep.

“I’m fine.” Like a reflex, the words shoot out of me before I even realize I’m thinking them.

“You always are,” she murmurs, her voice void of its usual teasing edge. The weight in her tone matches the thick tension choking the air inside my Jeep. With her unpolluted shifter senses, she’s probably choking on the emotions seeping out of my pores. “I know your intuition is telling you to expect the worst, but whatever happens, I’m right here, Noa.”

It’s a small thing, but it’s enough to loosen the pressure in my chest just a little. I squeeze her hand in return before exhaling and refocusing as the tree line begins to thin.

Up ahead, the clearing comes into view, and my pulse stumbles despite every effort to keep myself steady.Two matching black luxury SUVssit in the open space, gleaming in the overcast late autumn daylight. A handful of men I don’t recognize are scattered around them, standing alert, their postures screamingpack enforcers.They aren’t the only ones keeping watch, though.Nearly a dozen Craddock she-wolves are here too, blending into the scenery on the outskirts like silent sentinels. I now understand why Lowri felt comfortable enough to fetch me herself. Her girls have things well in hand here.

I put the car in park and take it all in.

While I don’t recognize the Fallamhain enforcers, there’re a few faces I know here today.

The first and only time I met Canaan Roarke, his calm and reassuring demeanor put me at ease almost instantly. My wolf’s distaste for the opposite sex leaves me untrusting of men in general, but with Fallamhain’s second, I found myself relaxed in his presence. But the hulking man I met five days ago does not match the one who currently looms near the first Escalade. Something in my chest tightens further. His expression is stormy, his usually composed features shadowed with something unreadable, but it’s Rhosyn’s face that makes my stomach twist. She looks utterlywrecked , her green eyes dull, her entire body radiating despair.

I don’t know why she looks like that, and I don’t want to know.

And then I see her.

I had been warned, just like with the rest of them, that she would be here. But knowing andseeingare two entirely different things. The moment my eyes land on her, the weight of what’s coming settles deep in my bones, heavier than before.

Talis McNamara.

Leaning against one of the sleek black cars, her arms are crossed, there’s an infuriatingly smug smirk stretching across her lips. She lookspleased,like she’s just won some grand prize, and everything inside me goes still. The pit in my stomach turns from gnawing dread to full-fledged certainty.

It wasn’t until I saw her with my own two eyes that I put it together. Talis is the reason I feel this way.

Rennick showing up here is one thing, but bringing her—his betrothed, his chosen mate—makes it something else entirely.

The realization makes my breath catch, my wolf shifting uneasily beneath my skin, whining in confusion even as my instincts scream.But it’s too late now because in the middle of the clearing, standing tall and unmoving, is him.

Rennick.

The man who has all but consumed my thoughts these past five days, and he looks just as devastating as I remember.

Awhite, waffle-knit Henleystretches across his broad shoulders and clings to every defined muscle. The soft fabric does nothing to hide the strength underneath. Hisworn, faded jeanshang low on his narrow hips, effortless in a way that shouldn’t make my heartbeat trip the way it does. His dark hair is exactly as I remember—longer on top, tousled in that effortless, infuriating way, while the sides are clipped short, neat. And that beard—short, well-kept, the same deep brown as his hair—only sharpens the angles of his face, making him look even more unfairly handsome. The four silver scars that start at the end of his right eyebrow and slice backward into his hairline, past his ear, only add to his dominant allure.

But it’s hisgunmetal eyes that undo me the most because they’re already on me and even through the windshield,I can feel them. The intensity cuts through the glass, making me turn into a piece of unmovable stone in my driver’s seat.

It’s Seren’s unbashful low whistle that effectively cuts through my Rennick-induced trance. “Damn,” she whispers. “If he wasn’t yours and I hadn’t sworn off men for life, I would be humping that man’s leg like a Pound Puppy.”

“Seren.”

“What?” She shrugs, completely undeterred. “I’m just saying, I get why you claimed his fine Alpha ass within minutes of knowing him. Now that I’ve seen him myself, I actually think he’s lucky he made it through that first encounter without you sinking your teeth in his neck like a needy, feral gremlin.”

“ Seren ,” I repeat, this time with enough edge to snap my best friend out of her blatant lust fest for my ma—Rennick.

“Yes, Noa?”

“Read the room.”

Her little, upturned nose wrinkles. “Right.” She at least has the decency to look ashamed of herself.

With a slow and steady exhale, a last-ditch effort to summon up a modicum of composure, I turn off the engine and step out of the car. The cool, late afternoon air does little to soothe the heat crawling up my spine.

Seren follows without hesitation, moving in step with me as the Craddock Pack Alpha and her witch lover join us, standing like silent guards at my back. Lowri and Amara may be nothing alike in appearance, but together, theyradiate an unshakable presence—one of power, one of protection.

Amara, with her blunt-cut midnight hair and equally dark eyes, reminds me of a raven personified. Sharp and refined, she exudes the quiet power of someone who could strip you bare with a glance. She has angular features and a cool, calculated presence. The black cashmere shawl that is an ever-present fashion staple for the witch is draped around her narrow shoulders and chest, and for reasons I can’t explain, the garment only adds to her intensity. Lowri, with her flamelike hair, stands several inches taller than her partner and isa force in her own right. For countless reasons, these two women not only have my respect, but also my loyalty. Not to mention my trust.

Neither of them says a word, but they don’t have to. Their presence alone is a silent show of support. The last thing I’m expecting from this impromptu meeting is a physical altercation, but I know both of these women are prepared for anything and I’ll be safe with them at my side.

All four of us walk as one.

We cross the clearing with measured steps, my heartbeat thudding painfully in my ears as we approach wherehestands. Rennick doesn’t move, doesn’t flinch, his stance statuesque as he watches me with thosegray eyes that have haunted me for days— years , if my resurfacing memories are correct.

The man I met five days ago, though cautious, had looked at me with such open curiosity and interest that I’d feltnaked beneath his gaze more than once. But now, as I look back at him, goosebumps rise along my heated skin from the sheer coldness in his expression. There is no warmth, norecognition,no trace of the man who once studied me like I was something worth understanding.

Rennick is glacial.

Sensing this change in him, my wolf, trapped within the confines of her cage, is drowning in grief, a sorrow I haven’t felt this deeply since my mother died. She’s already mourning something that hasn’t yet been taken from us, as if she knows the loss is inevitable.

Ten feet away, my companions stop, lingering just far enough back to let me face theFallamhain Alphaalone.

Feeling like I’m walking straight to my execution, I drop my chin, focusing on the way my boots crunch through the dry grass beneath me. Each step feels harder than the last, dread pressing down on my shoulders like a weight I can’t shake.

A foot away from him, I count to ten, steadying myself before slowly lifting my head to meet hisarctic, unreadable gaze head-on.

The moment our eyes lock, my stomach plummets.

I watch as thecolor drains from his face, his expression shifting in a way that makes my breath catch because for one fleeting second, his facade slips, and I see the truth before he slams his mask back into place.