The scents of humans rose from inside the cardboard. Alvin kept his trophies in a cardboard box. One would have expected him to at least put them in a safe or some sort of lock box. Instead, they were hidden in plain sight, the ghosts of young women trapped in a box right next to tangled Christmas lights.
If I could trace these back to their owners, maybe talk to their families, then I could get what I needed to convince the pack to turn against Alvin. If my packmates listened to the stories of those who missed these women, then they would understand what they were allowing to happen when they let Alvin be a monster.
I couldn’t dig through the box too much or I would get my scent all over the dresses. The scents inside the box had already faded quite a bit. Too much more handling, and I would lose the last lead I had.
Instead of handling the box’s contents, I reached for my phone. With my thumbnail between my teeth, I did a quick search to find the dresses. When I figured out which year the dresses had been manufactured and sold, then I searched missing persons lists for those years. No one would think that a town in New York had a lot of missing people, but the list went on and on. My stomach sank with sorrow for those who’d never been found.
How many of these people had fallen to Alvin? To vampires? How many had been murdered by people who should have kept them safe?
My thoughts turned dark. I tried to shake myself out of it, but the recent events weighed on me. I told myself that there was nothing I could do for these people, but I wished I could help them all the same. My heart should have been heavily guarded by now.
It seemed I was a fool.
I couldn’t dwell on my misplaced hopes. There was work to be done. I shook myself and reached for my phone. If anyone could give me the answers I needed, it would be my friends at Bad Moon Café.
Ryder
Bri lingered in the doorway,her lip caught between her teeth the same way she was caught between her indecision. I had no idea which choices tugged at her or why, only that she seemed far too hesitant. When she stepped inside and closed the door behind her, I noticed that her gaze was distant.
When she inhaled and lifted her chin, I saw determination in those same eyes. Bri never took long to make a decision, and when she made one, she held firm to it. She marched into the kitchen, grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and tossed it to me.
I was slow to catch it. The gold-tinted food had taken its toll on me. I needed to eat, but nothing else tasted the same anymore. If I stayed here, then Beryl would get another chance to tempt me with her, ah, illegally imported foods.
“It’s time to go,” I told Bri as I turned towards the door.
She caught my sleeve and kept me from leaving. Frustrated, I tilted my head and glanced back at her. The expression on her face was expectant, like she was waiting for me to realize something.
My shoulders slumped. “Not now, Bri.”
The corner of her mouth lifted. “Sit. Talk to me.”
I narrowed my eyes at her and wondered what kind of game she was playing. As she commanded, I sat. I cracked open the water bottle and chugged it in one sitting because it tasted like nothing anyway. My stomach sloshed with the water both women had given me.
This wasn’t like a typical hangover. I didn’t need to rehydrate. I needed food…that lusciously glimmering fruit and tempting wine. I wanted to feel the sticky sweetness dribbling down my chin once again. If only the world would tilt beneath my feet and drop me into a pile of pillows where I could forget the madness of my life.
With a growl, I shook off the hunger gripping me. It didn’t work. I was able to shove it to the back of my mind so I could focus on Bri, but that was about it.
I ran a hand along my stubble. “How did you find me at the local Alpha’s place?”
“I ran into the same witch you met. She said you’d be here and that I would come face to face with you if I went to that exact address when I made it to town.” Bri smiled sadly. “I didn’t…I wished I’d stopped to think about what I was doing. It never occurred to me that the house might be dangerous.”
I grunted. She was right. Even though she was a dragon shifter and might be able to protect herself against a few wolves, I didn’t trust this pack. They’d used poison once before. There was nothing stopping them from using it again.
Bri watched me intently, like she could see right through me. We’d been close at one point in time. We’d even dated for a short while. Bri knew me inside and out. If anyone could read me, it would have been her. Yet, I wasn’t so sure anymore.
We weren’t the same people we’d been.
“How’s Morgan holding up?” I asked.
She sighed and slouched in her seat. She wouldn’t look directly at me. I wondered if her thoughts were on Morgan or if I’d reminded her of what I’d done.
“Morgan is…distraught. He’s angry and looking for answers.” Bri finally looked me in the eye. Her gaze sent a shock through my body that I didn’t expect. “He deserves answers, at the very least, but you took off without telling a damn soul what happened.”
“Had I stayed, Morgan wouldn’t have waited for answers. He would have acted without thinking. I couldn’t let my brother do something he would regret.”
Bri swallowed. Her nose wrinkled for an instant, like she was fighting against herself. Then, she exhaled and rolled her shoulders back. “I don’t think that situation has changed. If anything, Morgan is angrier than ever. He isn’t going to be nice when he finds you. I left Thunder Pass before Morgan, but he might be on his way.”
“Then why am I sitting here? We should get going.” I moved to stand, but Bri made no such effort.