Page 48 of Shifting Hearts

TWO

The Alpha Hunter

Lucian

T he scent of blood never really fades. You think it will. That if you bury the body deep enough or rinse your hands long enough, the stink of it will stop clinging. But it doesn’t. It settles under the skin and sleeps in your lungs.

I catch the scent again just outside of Crystal Falls. It’s faint, old, nearly drowned out by pine and rain, but I recognize the tang.

Territory blood.

Alpha blood.

This wasn’t a random kill. No, this was a claim.

I pull my Harley into the trees just beyond the curve of the road, where the lake disappears into fog. Crystal Falls. The kind of town that pretends it’s asleep when it’s wide awake, watching you with narrowed eyes and sharp teeth, just like me.

I remove my helmet, shaking out my hair. The silence stretches, thick, pulsing, heavy with the promise of violence. Even this place knows I’ve come for war and that’s a good thing. Let them be afraid, they certainly should be.

I didn’t come here looking for her. The mate I threw away. I don’t let myself say her name. Hell, I don’t even let myself think it, but I feel her.

The moment I crossed the border into this cursed town, the bond I tried to bury clawed its way back into my gut. It itches under my skin. A splinter I can’t dig out. One would think the bond would fade, but its still there. A fucking unbreakable tether, taut, trembling, and alive.

It’s been nearly a decade. She should be gone or mated to someone else. Dead, maybe. That would be easier for me.

Fuck. I can’t afford this complication right now.

Someone killed an Alpha in my territory. Not just any Alpha - a challenger. And when I tore through the scene, there was one scent I didn’t recognize. One scent that shouldn’t have been there. The one that led me here to Crystal Falls.

I don’t need distractions, and I don’t want a fucking mate. I made my choice, years ago. She wasn’t wolf enough. She wasn’t strong enough, and I’m not the kind of man who gets weighed down by fate or fragile things.

At least that’s the lie I keep telling myself.

I head into town just before sundown. Main Street is full of humans pretending they’re safe. Little shops line the streets. There’s a dusty diner and an antique bookstore with a sign that hangs crooked, like it's given up trying. It’s all so quiet it grates on my nerves.

Too calm. Too clean. But the scent I have been tracking is stronger now. The rogue was here but so was she. I grit my teeth and walk faster.

The psychic’s shop appears before me like it’s always been waiting. The Veiled Eye. Black-painted windows and salt lines that need refreshing. There are old wards and new ones. Witchcraft and wolf magic are twisted together in a way that makes my spine bristle.

And behind the door, I feel her. The mate I rejected. Emilia.

My hands curl into fists at my sides. She’s not supposed to be here, not anywhere near here. I should walk away. Find the killer and finish the hunt. It’s the most important thing right now. Instead, I open the door.

A bell chimes and the scent of her hits me like a punch to the chest. It’s all lavender, smoke, and rain. My wolf roars, rattling my brain inside my skull. I clench my jaw so hard I hear the bone grind.

She doesn’t look at me right away. She doesn’t even lift her head.

She’s at a table, bent over some tarot cards, frowning like the deck personally insulted her. Her hair dark hair is longer now. Her body is fuller, her curves more prominent than I remember. Her aura burns like wildfire.

She’s just as beautiful as she was the first time I laid eyes on her. And I still hate the way I feel when I look at her. She lifts her head, and her gaze collides with my. My traitorous cock hardens in my jeans, and I have to fight back a growl.

She doesn’t flinch or smile. She simply raises one brow and says flatly, “No refunds. And I’m not reading your cards.”

I blink. Is that it? Ten years and a broken bond. A ruined fucking mating. And she greets me like I’m just another idiot walking in off the street? The wolf in me growls.

She just rolls her eyes. “Still brooding, huh? That’s cute. Did you want something, or are you here to glare me into submission?”

My control cracks and I glare at her. “You still talk too much.”

“And you still suck at hellos.” Her sass is still in tact after all these years.

Her voice is like fire and knives. Her power coils around her like a second skin. She’s not the scared little half-blood girl I walked away from. She’s stronger now, deadlier. So much fucking hotter.

Shit.

I step closer, ignoring the flare in her aura, the pulse of energy rising between us.

“I’m not here for you.”

She snorts, roiling her eyes. “No kidding. You made that crystal clear last time.”

“I’m tracking a rogue,” I continue, ignoring her jab. “Someone who crossed into my territory and murdered an Alpha. Their scent led me here.”

“And you think I had something to do with it?” She raises a brow as her aura flares in irritation. She tilts her head, mock-innocent. “How flattering.”

“Don’t play games with me, Emilia.”

Something flickers in her gaze. First hurt, then anger. Lastly nothing, her mask of indifference sliding into place.

“I don’t play anymore,” she says flatly. “I survive.”

I don’t reply and neither of us moves. The silence stretches until it’s a noose strangling me.

Finally, she speaks again, her voice low. It’s so soft I almost miss it. “I won’t ask if you’re staying.” Pain radiates from her and for a moment I almost crack. Almost.

“I’m not.”

She nods once. “Then don’t refuse me again.”

The words slam into me like a blade. “What?”

“You heard me.” Her voice tightens. “You already rejected me once. I’m not asking you to accept the bond. I’m not stupid. But if you plan to leave, don’t reject me again. I don’t know if I’d survive it again.”

My chest aches. A strange, raw twist I don’t want to examine. I would rather just keeping ignoring it like I have for the past ten years.

She doesn’t wait for an answer just crosses her arms and says, “I’ll help you find your murderer. You get your justice. I get my peace. Deal?”

I want to say no. I want to walk – no, run – away from her and this fucking place. But the rogue is here, and I need someone who knows this town, and the shadows that hide underneath it.

Against my better judgement I nod once. “Deal.”

She smiles but it doesn’t reach her eyes. And for the first time in years, I feel the weight of a promise I might regret keeping.