Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

Aidan

I watched as Kiarra made her way back to the pack house.

I hated it—every second.

Jack had advised against this, and now that I was forced to send her back in there alone, I knew he was right.

She looked good. Damn good, actually, and there was no reason for me to be worried.

Nothing obvious, anyway.

Staying this close to the Apex border wasn’t a hot idea. I knew I was risking a lot, but the thought of Kiarra being away from me felt unnatural.

I couldn’t help myself.

~“Alpha! There’s a situation; we need to talk!”~

It was Angela, she was panicked.

~“What’s up?”~

“I can’t find Kiarra! She’s disappeared again, literally!”

I couldn’t help it, I laughed—“No need to worry, she’s on her way back now.”~

Part of me wanted to ensure that I was close, but I didn’t want to get Angela paranoid or, worse, have her second-guessing herself.

That’s how mistakes happened.

~“I’ll look out for her then, but there’s something else.”~

A little bit of anxiety started to brew in my stomach. Had Kiarra kept something from me?

~“I’ve had some time alone the last couple of days~,” Angela began. I noticed her voice was a little shaky.

~“There’s been something off about the pack members here. I know you already don’t trust them, but it's not that.”~

~“What is it?”~

The suspense was killing me.

~“They’re too nice, Aidan. I couldn’t put my finger on it, but I felt deep inside they were hiding something.”~

I was instantly relieved to have Angela there. She was aware and always watched her surroundings. It comforted me.

I knew Kiarra couldn’t see that part of the Kendricks.

~“What did you find?”~

I instantly regretted asking the question.

Angela hesitated.

“Come on, Ange, I need to know. You’re my eyes and ears.”

As per Angela's style, she went from zero to sixty, and information was suddenly firing out of her mouth like a machine gun.

~“I found a dungeon, like a prison. I don’t know. It’s far from medieval, so maybe that’s the wrong word. Anyway, I went down these steps. They’re stone. The place has been there a while too, ’cause the walls had this mold—”~

~“Okay! I need you to breathe for me, Ange. Tell me slowly, what did you find?”~

“Wolves, Aidan. They’re strung up like meat for the slaughter. Bloody, beaten. Some of them must have been dead. I couldn’t tell. I didn’t want to get that close.”

My heart stopped in my chest.

I expected shitty news, but not this.

~“Does Kiarra know?”~

~“No! No way! That would have terrified her. She’s been under a hell of a lot of pressure since we’ve been here.”~

~“She said everything was good.”~ I returned skeptically.

What else didn’t I know?

~“Well, it is, but at every turn, they have her working, learning the ropes, I think they’re calling it. It’s like they think she’s never leaving. I don’t like it.”~

~“Okay, good call. Let’s keep it that way.”~

~“What?”~

I could tell she was confused.

~“Listen, if we’re going to accuse a pack like Apex of crimes like torture, we need more proof and more bodies.”~

It was true my pack wasn’t small by a long shot. Every single wolf would gladly give their life for their kind.

The problem was that I didn’t know who was working with whom.

That car accident with the rogues still hung heavily in the back of my mind.

~“Aidan? There’s one more thing.”~

I wasn’t sure it could get any worse. I was wrong.

~“These aren’t rogue prisoners that are locked up.”~

~“What? What do you mean?”~

~“They’re pack members, Aidan. They’re doing this to their own!”~

Her voice cracked. She, too, was terrified.

~“That makes no sense, Ange. Are you sure?”~

~“This is proving a point. They have the power to make you mate with whom they deem appropriate. This purest bullshit.”~

~“And if you say no?”~

~“You’re dead.”~

~“What about the sister? Where do you stand on her?”~

~“I don’t. She’s a bitch through and through. I heard her arguing with the Kendricks. It wasn’t pretty.”~

I was stuck between a rock and a hard place. If I sent Angela in full force, she would have no backup. Like it or not, I would need to explain what I was thinking to Jack.

I couldn’t sacrifice Angela’s life in the name of Kiarra’s, not this way.

On the other hand, if I left it alone, I was betraying my kind and wagering on the life of my mate.

I knew Kiarra was dead set on exploring her roots, and for her sake, I wished with all my heart that those roots weren’t as inherently evil as they seemed to be.

The purest ideas weren’t new. They had been a severe source of conflict between the packs.

There was a fine line between torture and exiling wolves who didn’t comply.

My stomach felt sick. What if they had planned this for Kiarra?

Would they do that? Make her choose death and being with me, or life and a mate, who they decide?

~“What do we do, Alpha?”~ Angela asked, the fear starting to drip from her voice.

~“I’m going to pull some help, but can you stay low for now? Try to pretend you didn’t see the prisons?”~

~“How long till you can get us—”~

The mind link got cut off. That meant only one thing.

Angela had been caught.