Page 141 of The Wolves of Forest Grove

“What’s taking so long?” Vivian demanded, pacing the length of the living room in the main cabin. “If they aren’t ready to go soon, then I’ll just go myself.”

She seemed like she might shift back at any second, but after the long search and taking her anger out on a few trees at the edge of camp, I had to trust that she wouldn’t.

At least she would be able to hold off to get herself back outside if she did.

Not that I was all that worried about broken lamps or furniture right now, but I didn’t need any more shit on my plate than was already piled there.

“They need to get a full group, Viv,” I rationed. “We can’t leave camp unprotected, and the shifters who were out with us all morning need to rest. We’re pulling our guys back from helping Sal. Half will stay here to bolster patrol and half will go with you on another search.”

She groaned, pushing her fingers into her short blonde hair and yanking on it from the roots so hard I thought she may actually rip it all out, but I stopped her.

Stepping it to place my hands on her arms and gently tug her arms back down.

“They’ll be back any minute,” I promised.

“Just be patient. I can’t have you going out after her alone. ”

“I’ll go with her,” Seth offered from where he was lying on the couch with Layla kneeling on the floor near his head. “My ankle is almost fully healed already. I can run on it.”

Vivian’s upper lip curled and her hands clenched at her side. Just the sound of his voice was setting her off. “If you had been watching her back like you were supposed to, this wouldn’t be fucking happening!”

“Viv!” Layla snapped harshly, her bright eyes darkening at her best friend. “That’s not fair, and you know it.”

“It’s okay, La La,” Seth tried to interrupt, but Layla wasn’t having it.

She stood in a huff, her face pinching. I didn’t have to be a mind reader to see that she was having a difficult time walking the thin line between wanting to be there for her best friend and wanting to stand up for her boyfriend.

In the end, though, Layla would always side with whatever she deemed to be the ‘right’ thing. She was good like that.

“No, it’s not,” she told Seth before turning her attention back to a still-fuming Vivian. “There were eight of them, Viv. Eight against two. Are you telling me you would’ve held up any better than Seth?”

Her jaw ground in response, and I winced, thinking she was going to crack a tooth.

“I hate that this happened. I hate that she’s gone, too, but don’t put this all on him, Viv. It isn’t fucking fair, and you know it.”

She inhaled sharply and seemed to make a decision. “I’ll go with you for the next search.” She spun to glare at Seth. “And you will go back to your cabin and take a goddamned nap so you can heal properly.”

Seth opened his mouth like he meant to argue the point, but Layla’s brows rose in challenge, and he shut his mouth before uttering a word.

Layla could be scary like that. I didn’t blame him for not wanting to cross her. She gave a cold shoulder like no other.

Vivian’s lower lip trembled and Layla’s rigid facade crumbled as she sighed and closed the gap between them, pulling Vivian into a violent hug that she didn’t return at first. But as her tears began to fall, her arms lifted to wrap around Layla and her fists clenched into the dark fabric of her long black dress.

“It’s okay,” Layla cooed, rubbing her palm up and down Viv’s back.

I went to join them and Layla pulled me in so I had an arm around her and one around Viv.

We held Vivian until her sobs quieted, and I had to choke back tears of my own at my friend’s anguish.

Layla sniffled as she pulled away just as the guys entered the cabin. They froze in the entryway, clearly wondering if they should turn around and go back the way they came to give us some more privacy. I shook my head to tell them it was okay to come in, and Jared cleared his throat.

Their bare chests glistened with sweat from the run to get the guys back from Sal’s, and Clay wrapped a hand around the back of his neck, tipping it into a loud crack. With all the running they’d done already today, I wouldn’t doubt they would both be sore as shit by morning.

“They’re packing up,” Jared told us. “Should be back in the next twenty or so.”

Vivian stiffened. “Twenty minutes?”

She didn’t seem fucking happy, scrubbing a hand over her face.

Sam entered behind the guys a second later, her dark hair slicked back from her face in a severe ponytail that made her face look even more gaunt than it had when she’d arrived.

“Where have you been?” I blurted, unable to help myself. The suspicion clear in the inflection of my voice. I couldn’t remember seeing her this morning when all that shit went down. Or last night for that matter.

Her face screwed up into a scowl at my tone, and she glanced at Clay as though he might stick up for her, but he only stepped away from his sister. Not even bothering to look her way.

“I was in my cabin,” she said with a shrug. “I was out late for a run last night and slept through the commotion this morning. I came to see if I could help.”

I pinched the bridge of my nose and tried to shuck off my animalistic urge to jump down her throat.

I needed to be smart. If she actually had anything at all to do with this and we let on that we suspected something, we could spook her.

She would take off before we could get the intel we needed to get our missing pack mates back.

Be smart, Allie.

“No,” I ground out. “We’re good here. Maybe see if Hazel needs a hand in the garden, though. Our meat order was destroyed in the attack. It’ll be fucking potato pie again tonight.”

“Right,” she said with a gulp. “Sure.”

She left a moment later and Vivian fell hard into the armchair opposite Seth, who was sitting up, testing his weight on his injured ankle.

“I can’t just sit here,” Vivian lamented, dropping her head into her hands. “I have to keep looking. Every minute we waste, she could be getting further away. She could be getting hurt.” Her voice broke on the last word, and I realized something I should’ve from the start.

Vivian wasn’t going to quit. She never had at anything in her entire life, and she wasn’t about to with this, either. Especially not this.

She was going to go off alone if no one would go with her or if there was a lull between search parties. She was going to get herself taken or killed. She was going to run herself into an early grave.

I could hardly blame her, but I couldn’t let that happen, not when I had the power to ensure it didn’t.

“Viv,” I said, stepping over to the armchair and bending into a crouch. I set my hands on her knees, and she dropped hers from her face to look at me.

Her dead stare pierced my soul, and I hardened myself against the ugly emotions wreaking havoc in my core. “I need you to promise me you won’t go looking for Destiny alone.”

I held her stare, even as it soured against me. “I can’t promise you that, Allie.”

I sighed, closing my eyes against what needed to be done as I drew on that well of authority deep in the chasm of my soul.

The power of the alpha flashed through my eyes as I opened them again, fused to the sound of my voice.

“If they took her for ransom, they’ll be sending someone with the terms of her release.

We need to be smart about this, Viv. We’ll keep searching, but it might take some time—”

“I won’t stop looking for her. You can’t ask me to do that.”

“I’m not,” I argued. “I’m asking you to be fucking smart about it.”

Her gaze hardened, and I knew that it didn’t matter what I said. If she felt like she needed to, she wouldn’t hesitate before going out after Des alone. She was leaving me no choice...

“You will not go after her alone,” I commanded, releasing my physical hold on her in favor of one much deeper. Using all the alpha energy I’d drawn on, I let it flow through the pack bond and bind her to my will.

“Allie.” Vivian growled, and I could feel her fighting it, like a mental game of tug-o-war she was destined to lose.

“I’m sorry, Viv. I won’t lose you, too.”

She got up and stormed past me, pushing into my shoulder as she went with a bruising force. She cursed under her breath as she shoved through Jared and Clay at the door and shifted less than a second after she was through it, sending up a howl at the afternoon sun.

“Was that necessary?” Layla asked gently and guilt piled onto my shoulders, weighing down my already heavy as fuck soul.

“You know it was,” I replied and Layla gave a sad nod, brushing her long black hair back to tuck it behind one ear.

“I’ll go see if I can try to get her to eat something before the next search party goes out.”

I stalked to the kitchen and pulled out the last bag from my jerky stash in the back of the top cupboard.

I’d gone through the whole damned pile over the last few weeks, passing it out to members of the pack on patrol who needed it most. “Here,” I said, tossing it to Layla, who caught it with ease before giving me a tight- lipped smile and leaving.

I sank onto a barstool at the counter and resisted the sudden desire to smash my forehead into the marble surface at the impossibility of it all. I groaned loudly and Seth, perhaps sensing that it was time for him to scram, stood on his good leg and hopped to the door.

“You need help getting back to your cabin, man?” Jared asked, opening the door for him.

“Nah. I’m good,” he said as he went outside and was immediately bombarded with one of Layla’s trademark screeches for walking on his own.

Clay shut the heavier wooden door behind him before both my mates came to join me in the kitchen.

Jared rubbed my back while Clay leaned over the counter opposite me, his face a stormy mask that made me wonder what was going on behind those sharp as glass eyes.