Answers and More Questions

RHIANNON

“Pull in here,” Madelyn points to a small abandoned diner on the side of the road.

“Here?” Isaac questions.

“Yeah, some of the rogues in that group use this as a spot to hang out. It’s abandoned, but the tables and chairs are still there.”

He looks incredulously at the old building before pulling around to park behind it.

I’m impatient as we sit in the warm car waiting for Rhodes. I can’t stop bouncing my leg.

After a few moments that feel eternal, a large wolf steps out from the tree line with a backpack hanging from his mouth.

We get out of the car and Isaac holds the door open so that the wolf can enter the diner.

As we wait for Rhodes to shift and change, the mood in the room is tense, everyone is quiet. Being in an old, abandoned diner added to the eeriness.

Rhodes came from the back where he was changing. His face is hard as he sits on one of the stools at the counter. Isaac and I are seated in a booth across from him.

He sits quietly for a minute, obviously thinking. He purses his lips and looks up at Isaac. I shrink back in my seat when he makes eye contact with me.

“Syb was hanging out with fairies. They were a couple of guys she met a few months ago. They were…kind of strange, paranoid.

“Fairies aren’t really known for hanging around outside of their kingdom, but they wanted to be around wolves.

“I can’t explain it, but they just seemed to want to keep Syb around. I never caught their names.”

He stops and takes a deep breath for a moment.

“One of the guys had a sister. I met her once, her name was Sabina. Sybil told me that she asked her to reach out to wolves she trusted. Sabina needed to protect someone…a girl.”

“Hold on,” Isaac says while pulling out his phone. He dials and puts the phone on speaker before setting it on the table.

“Hey man, what’s up?” I recognize Hunter’s voice immediately.

“Listen, I need to ask you a few questions about the people that dropped off…the girl. Was one of them a girl?” he asks, obviously not wanting to reveal to Rhodes that I might be her.

“Yes,” his voice sounds confused, but he plays along.

“Can you describe her?”

“Um…she had long red hair, kind of curly, and big brown eyes. She was a tiny little thing,” Hunter rattles on.

Rhodes nods his head in confirmation.

“Thanks, man,” Isaac sighs. ” I’ll call you later.” He hangs up before Hunter can even reply.

For a moment there is silence in the air. My heart is about to beat out of my chest. Sabina, whoever she is, brought me to Hunter. My brain is working overtime.

Rhodes may be the key to everything I’ve been trying to piece together. I feel his gaze on me—he keeps staring, watching me.

“You don’t know where we can find this Sabina, do you?” Isaac asks as he wraps his hand protectively over the back of my neck.

“No. I haven’t seen her or the guys since right before I found Sybil.”

“Quincy said the fairies were with her when she came back from Toronto?” Isaac asks gently.

“Yeah, they hung around for about three weeks. Syb connected them with a pack, then she was dead about a week later and they were gone,” he says with a sad sigh.

“I didn’t know who to contact until that alpha, Hunter, reached out. She had mentioned him before. You too. Said she trusted you both.”

“Looks like we’re heading to Toronto.” Isaac pulls his hand through his hair in frustration.

When I look up, Rhodes is watching me, his brows furrowed, clearly studying my face. When we make eye contact, he looks down, quickly.

“Do you mind if I come with?” Rhodes asks, surprising us. “I know you guys don’t know me, but Syb was one of my best friends. I would like to find those fairies and ask them a few questions.

“It’s too much of a coincidence that she dies and they take off at the same time. If she helped them and they got her killed, they need to pay for that,” his voice shakes angrily.

Isaac is quiet, I can see the wheels turning in his mind. I reach for his hand under the table and squeeze it. I trust Rhodes.

I don’t know him, but something about him seems genuine. Even with the uncomfortable staring, I want him around. Maybe he recognizes me?

“Why are you a rogue?” Isaac asks after a brief pause.

“I’m sure you heard about Alpha Wade,” he starts.

“Alaska?” Isaac questions.

“Yes. He was my alpha. When his son, the future alpha of our pack, was killed, he…went insane. No one would do anything, everyone just let him go completely off the rails.

“He was beating pack members to death for minor infractions. I tried to get our beta to report him, that we needed help, but no one would act.

“When he found out I was ‘orchestrating a mutiny,’ he publicly whipped me until he thought I was dead. When I regained consciousness, I escaped and never looked back.

“That was six years ago. I was eighteen.”

My heart squeezed in my chest. The pain was clear in his face. It’s obvious that he still holds a lot of pain from that experience.

“My luna,” Isaac squeezes my hand in his, “is human. I cared for Sybil like a sister, I’ve known her for a long time.

“I want to find out what happened to her, but I will not put Annie in danger,” Isaac's voice drips with authority.

Rhodes’ eyes grow large for a moment before he quickly recovers. “I understand…” his voice is low.

“What?” Isaac asks, he clearly hasn’t missed Isaac’s staring.

“It’s just that…your luna…s-she,” he stutters, “she’s obviously human, she smells human, but I would swear…” his voice trails.

“What?” I ask desperately.

“If I couldn’t smell you… It’s just… you look exactly like a fairy,” he whispers.

“Elaborate,” Isaac growls.

“She’s so tiny, and those big eyes,” he says quietly.

“If you’ve never met a fairy, you might not recognize their scent, but it’s distinct. She doesn’t smell like a fairy, but she really looks like one.”

We all sit quietly for a few minutes. Isaac tightens his grip on the back of my neck comfortingly.

“Okay then, let’s go,” Isaac stands. “Do you have any idea where she would go in Toronto?” I guess we’re going to discuss this later. Madelyn looks shocked as she rises to her feet.

“I went with her a few times, she had a few places she liked to go.”

The four of us sit quietly in the car. Isaac notices the aux cord I’m twirling in my hands.

“Don’t even think about it,” he says lowly, trying to fight the smile on his lips.