“Oh man. Don’tcry.” The blonde winced as she watched me have a nervous breakdown. “I don’t do the emotionally girly thing well.”
“Then get out!” I yelled at her. But she didn’t move. Closing the door behind her, she slipped inside and sat on the bed next to me. She patted my knee twice, really hard and awkwardly.
“Okay, get it all out so we never have to see this blubbering mess again,” she said.
I laughed. I couldn’t help it. This girl was annoyingly blunt but in a comical way.
“Screw you,” I muttered, but there was no heart in it.
“Sorry, I’m into guys, but otherwise yeah, you’re not bad looking,” she retorted, which just made me laugh again.
She gave me a small smile and I was actually grateful for her light joking in this moment.
“I’m Averly.” I started with something normal. I needed normal right now.
“Maddy. Brayden’s sister and second-in-command.” She puffed up her chest.
Sister? That made so much sense now; they sure bickered like siblings. Second in command? That was a weird title. “Like the army?” I asked.
She looked impressed. “You know, it’s not unlike that. Brayden is the admiral of this sinking ship, and for some reason I’ve stayed on board until we all drown.”
I frowned. “Huh?”
She waved me off.
“Never mind. All you need to know is that Brayden is the alpha of Upper River Pack. We used to have over seventy wolves, but he lost the last fight, so it’s just the two of us. Well, three now.”
I swallowed hard, not sure if I should take her seriously or not. My brain couldn’t really process what she said.
“Alpha. Pack. Werewolf.” I laughed nervously. “This can’t be real.”
The door opened then and Brayden walked in, shirtless and covered in dry, crusted blood. “We need to keep moving, he’s at the edge of our border,” he said, totally calm.
I didn’t know what shocked me more, his amazingly sculpted chest or the blood and gashes that seemed to heal before my eyes.
“Are you okay?” Whatever weird shit was going on here, I felt bad that the dude was hurt, even if he had kidnapped me and taken me from my mother.
My mom. My brain was processing things too slowly. I’d totally forgotten about my mom. “Where’s my mom?” I growled, suddenly not feeling so nicey nice with my kidnappers.
“Safe at home,” Brayden said as he moved to the closet to grab a duffle bag. “A friend is watching over her. Her memories have been spelled so she thinks you’re camping for the next few days.” He began to shove clothes into it as I watched on in shock.
Spelled. He. Said. Spelled. An image of the “nurse” with cotton candy pink hair and a glowing hand rose in my mind.
“Okay, well, I want to go home now. I feel better.” I slipped into my shoes, afraid they were about to tell me I couldn’t leave and totally acting like this conversation about spelling people was normal. I just needed to play it cool so I could get out of here.
“You can’t,” Brayden and Maddy said in unison, and my stomach dropped.
I eyed the open door, and while Maddy moved to help Brayden pack some other items, I bolted for it.
“Dammit!” Brayden’s growl, and then footsteps, followed me out into the living room of a small cabin. I pumped my legs so fast I could barely make sense of where I was going. I tripped over the coffee table because I was running so hard, and then went down, clipping my chin on the hardwood floors.
Pain burst along my jawline, and before I knew it Brayden was sitting on top of me, pinning my arms to my sides.
Fear and panic like I’d never felt before seized me.
“Just relax, I’ll explain everything,” he said calmly.
Maddy looked down at me with her head cocked to the side. “I forgot how crazy they are when they first find out.”
