3. Fenris

Chapter 3

Fenris

H ints of gray tinge over the horizon, indicating dawn is on its way as my paws pad along the lonely highway on the outskirts of Oak Hollow. There are never any cars out here, the roadway almost as forbidden as the town itself, as if everyone knows inherently to avoid the passageway, even though it’s not technically hidden on any map. The Apex pack uses it, but beyond that, it’s not widely touched.

I’m surprised to see the mustard-toned hatchback abandoned on the side of the road, a half mile from the town’s entrance, just where Aurora claimed it would be. A part of me expected her to be lying about it, although I’m not sure why. Of course we would check on her story.

I’m not particularly happy with this duty, but I assume Victor wants to keep an eye on the little prey, and he doesn’t trust that Zane will necessarily hand over incriminating evidence if he finds it.

What am I going to find in here? Is she working with other Alphas? Looking to stage a coup?

I'm not sure what I'm expecting, but suspicion of strangers has always run deep in me. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that people are never what they seem. If you show a hint of weakness, outsiders will go for the jugular, that’s a fact.

Somehow, this prey shifter had found Oak Hollow’s weakness, and now I have to find hers.

Maintaining my wolf form, I nudge open the door with my snout easily, these tasks inherent now, after so many years of working in both forms. It’s practically second nature.

Jumping into the front seat, I wrinkle my nose, the distinct smell of long driving reaching my delicate senses. A harmless talisman hangs from the rearview, the sight of it puzzling me. It’s a token of protection from a witch, a curio, barely more than a plaything, given to human tourists at carnivals in passing. What is Aurora doing with it?

Does it mean something, or is it a silly keepsake?

My gaze flips toward the backseat, the rear jammed full of her belongings. My furry brow raises at the sight of her worldly possessions crammed into the small space.

I leap into the back, pawing open one of the duffle bags, yanking it fully open with my teeth. I’m determined to find out more about this woman. She is in Oak Hollow for a reason, to spy, to learn about us for someone.

But the more I search, the less I learn, and my frustration mounts. By the time I’m finished tearing apart her car, I’m no wiser than I’d been at the start. All I have is a mess of clothes and personal possessions, and no answers.

Annoyed, I sprint back to the estate, the sun rising over the town, but in waves. I falter to stare at it, blinking. Ringlets of light shoot around the rays in sprays of orange and red, causing me to blink in confusion. For a long moment, I stare at the curious display uncomprehendingly.

What is it with light around us lately?

The few souls I pass at this hour of the morning bow respectfully, clearing the path, and I make it toward the wrought-iron gates, shifting back into my human form as I enter the front door. Grabbing a pair of track pants and a t-shirt from the front closet where we keep a supply for this very reason, I jog up to the guest suite and burst inside without knocking.

Aurora screams, whirling around from the balcony doors.

“Trying to escape, Little Prey?” I demand, stalking toward her. She immediately balks and steps back, clearly afraid of me.

Victor’s warning shoots through my head.

“Tone it down a notch. Let’s win her over, make her our friend, but we’ll keep her out of pack business. She’ll be more likely to tell us what she knows if she doesn’t see us as the enemy.”

She shakes her blonde mane vehemently, the tresses shimmering around her slender shoulders. My eyes trail over the gleam of her skin, and I notice again how innocent she seems. Her eyes are so wide and green, she reminds me of those storybook characters my mother would read to me as a child when I was too sick to get out of bed. My chest constricts with the memory, and I cast it aside before it can overtake me.

All the more reason not to trust Aurora. It’s no wonder they had sent her. She was meant to throw us off our game with her intoxicating beauty.

I wonder if Mother would have liked her.

The unbidden thought pierces me.

“Of course not!” she breathes, stepping back from the doors, her hands up. “I wouldn’t try to leave here.”

I force a taut smile I don’t feel. “Good. That would be beyond stupid,” I inform her. “I just came from your car.”

She balks at my announcement. “Did you see? I ran out of gas, just like I told you.”

I nod. “Yep. I saw.”

My eyes bore holes into her, and I will her to say more. Nervously, she looks down, wringing her hands. The floor feels shaky beneath my feet, but when I look down, I notice nothing.

“Why do you have so much stuff in your car?” I demand. “Are you moving?”

“I…” she inhales. “Yes.”

I stare at her, waiting for her to elaborate, but she doesn’t go on, much to my annoyance. “To where? You said you were from Oklahoma City. Why did you leave?”

I can’t help the deep suspicion from creeping into my voice as I inch toward her. She cowers back, clearly intimidated by me. The floor shakes again, and I stop in my place, staring down at the ground in dismay. “Are you doing that?” I snap. “Stop it!”

“I’m not!” she protests, her voice rising an octave. “It’s not me!”

The hardwood rocks as she speaks, and I reach out to brace myself against the post of the bed, realizing that her moods are destabilizing the room.

“STOP!” I boom, but my aggravation only enhances the tremors.

The door flies open, and Victor appears at the threshold. “What the hell is going on in here?”

“She’s screwing with the room!” I accuse furiously. “She’s messing with the energy.”

“I swear, I’m not!” Aurora insists. “It’s not me!”

“Get out here,” Victor hisses at me.

Incensed, I storm out of the bedroom, shooting Aurora a glowering stare over my shoulder as I pass by my brother.

“You stay put,” Victor warns the girl.

“I’m not going anywhere!” she cries. “I swear! He just burst in here and started hurling accusations at me. I didn’t do anything!”

I roll my eyes and lean against the banister as Victor secures the door behind him before turning to me.

“Oh, cry me a river. She’s completely fucking with us. Can’t you see how unstable everything is?”

Victor is pissed. “What part of tread lightly did you not understand?” he hisses at me. “You need to win her over, not go after her head-on.”

“She’s hiding something!” I insist, dropping my arms to confront him. “She has a witch’s talisman in her car, and it’s full of her stuff, like she’s running from something—or someone. She might be working with a coven.”

“A coven?” he echoes dubiously. “Unlikely. But her moods are affecting the magic in the house.”

Victor purses his lips thoughtfully. “I’ll put a call into the Apex Alphas in Oklahoma to see if they know anything about her.”

I raise an eyebrow. “Is that wise? What if they’re the ones who sent her?”

“Or if that’s who’s she’s running from,” Zane chimes in, sliding out of the shadows in his usual stealthy manner.

I grimace. “Why do you two care so much about her feelings and well-being? This woman is an intruder! You should have listened to me in the first place and gotten rid of her!”

Victor drops a hand on my shoulder. “You said yourself how unstable everything is since she got here,” he asks bluntly. “Something has changed since Aurora arrived. The more we upset her, the worse it gets.”

My mouth parts to argue, but I can’t deny he’s right. The shaking floor, the odd weather, and melting sunlight. Everything is on the fritz.

“More the reason to get rid of her,” I insist.

“Who’s to say that won’t make it worse?” Zane asks. “When we’re not antagonizing her, things are… better, not as rocky. Let’s go at her easy.”

I throw up my hands. “Then get rid of her. Cast her out!”

“She already knows where Oak Hollow is,” Zane points out diplomatically. “She can always come right back if you’re right about her being some kind of spy.”

I feel like I’m talking in circles here. “So, what’s your solution? We do nothing? We need to know who she is!”

My head swivels toward Victor imploringly. “Well? Are you going to call on the Oklahoma Apex Alphas or not?”

He ponders the idea, but I catch the look Zane gives him, and I realize that Victor is siding with him on this, too. Fury sparks through me. I don’t like this, being ganged up on by both my brothers. Everything is on the fritz, indeed. This woman shouldn’t be here at all, her entire existence messing up our balance. I want to reiterate what I’ve said from the start. She doesn’t belong here.

“I’m going to hold off on that for now, see if she won’t tell us something first,” Victor drawls slowly.

Scoffing, I pivot and storm away, shaking my head.

“Fenris!” Victor calls after me. I don’t slow down, my hand sliding over the banister as I rush down the stairs, half-shifting as I move. “You have to lay off her!”

I don’t respond, fur flying in my wake as I leave my clothes on the marble steps of the staircase.

I need to put some space between myself and that temptress who’s already under my skin and in the walls of this estate somehow.