“Mrs. Raven,” the officer said as I approached. He was the same one from the crime scene, Officer Daniels. “Thank you for waiting. We have some updates on our investigation.”
“You found something?”
His expression was complicated. Part disappointed, part hopeful. “The security cameras near your shop were all wiped. Whoever did this knew what they were doing. They erased the footage before we could access it.”
My heart sank. Of course they had. Nothing about this situation could be easy.
“However,” Officer Daniels continued, “we were able to recover footage from a car that happened to be parked nearby. It had a dashcam that captured part of the incident.”
He pulled out his phone and showed me the screen. The image was grainy and blurry, clearly taken at night with poor lighting. But I could make out the shape of a woman. Blonde hair. Slim build. Running away from the direction of my shop.
I squinted at the picture, trying to make out any distinguishing features. Was that Mary? The hair color was right, but the image was too unclear to be certain.
“Additionally,” Officer Daniels said, “a neighbor was in the area when the suspect was fleeing. She got a good look at her face. Between the video footage and the witness description, we were able to create a composite sketch.”
He handed me a piece of paper. A police sketch, the kind you saw on crime shows. A woman’s face stared back at me from the page.
I studied it carefully, looking for any sign of recognition. Blonde hair. Sharp features. Cold eyes.
It wasn’t Mary.
I didn’t know this woman at all.
“Do any of you recognize her?” Officer Daniels asked, looking between me, Knox, Noah, and Sarah.
We all shook our heads. Knox took the sketch from my hands and examined it closely, his brow furrowed.
“She’s not Mary Thorne,” he said finally. “This is someone else entirely. She seems familiar, though…But she’s no one I know.”
Officer Daniels looked disappointed but nodded. “That’s what we suspected. The witness description didn’t match the information you gave us about Ms. Thorne.” He took the sketch back. “We’ll keep looking. Canvass the area again. See if anyone else recognizes her. In the meantime, we’ll leave you a copy of the drawing in case it jogs any memories.”
He handed Knox a second copy of the sketch, then shook our hands and left with his partner.
We stood there in silence for a moment, all of us processing this new information. If it wasn’t Mary behind the attacks, then who was it? And were they working with Mary, or was this something else entirely? Someone else who wanted to hurt me for reasons I couldn’t understand?
“We need to go back to Ravenshollow,” Knox said finally. His voice was gentle but firm. “I’m sorry, baby, but we need to be where we have wolves to defend us. The pack house, the territory, our people. We’re too vulnerable here.”
I wanted to argue. Wanted to stay near Mika until she woke up, until I could see her eyes open and hear her voice and know for certain she was going to be okay.
But Knox was right. We didn’t know who this woman was or what she wanted. We’d been operating under the assumption that Mary was behind everything, but now that assumption had been shattered. We were flying blind, and that made us targets.
“I’ve called four guards to come here,” Knox continued. “They’ll watch Mika and the shop around the clock. Nothing will happen to her while we’re gone. They should be here soon.”
I nodded slowly, the fight draining out of me. “Okay.”
As if on cue, the elevator doors opened and four young wolves stepped out. They were barely older than twenty, eager and alert, their eyes scanning the hallway for threats. When they spotted Knox, they straightened to attention.
I approached them, studying their faces. They looked nervous to be in front of their Luna, which was somehow both flattering and exhausting.
“My friend is in that room,” I said, pointing to Mika’s window. “She was hurt protecting my shop. I need you to guard her with your lives. Can you do that?”
The guards stood even straighter, their expressions fierce with determination.
“Yes, Luna!” one of them said. “On our honor! No one will touch her while we’re here.”
“We’ll die before we let anything happen to her,” another added.
I wanted to tell them that dying wasn’t necessary, that I just needed them to be vigilant and alert, but I appreciated the enthusiasm. These were good wolves. Loyal wolves. They would take care of Mika.
