Page 8 of Enemy Wolf

I had a fleeting thought of going to Shiloh’s apartment above the bar, knocking and properly asking to do the install this time. And also maybe apologizing for how I acted. The very thought of potentially making her angry again, and first thing in the morning, made my palms sweaty, so that was a no-go. Besides, everything I brought with me was specifically for my tree-surveillance idea.

I walked the treeline directly across from the bar, figuring out the best vantage point. The trees needed to have a good view of the front door and also be densely covered enough to hide the camera lens.

There was no need to point a camera at the back side, I figured. Besides, the entrance to Shiloh’s apartment was back there, and she deserved the privacy. I wasn’t here to be a creep.

Why was I here though? If she knew I put cameras in the trees, she’d be doubly pissed.

We must protect her, my wolf insisted with a bark.

“Yeah, yeah,” I muttered before I settled on a tree and proceeded to climb.

I told myself I was continuing to follow my alphas orders, which was to set up surveillance at a vulnerable spot near our territory’s border. Making my wolf shut up about Shiloh was just an added bonus. Two birds, one stone.

Once settled between two thick branches of the tree, I started setting up. The camera would be powered by a small solar panel and also had a battery back-up if the panel were to fail for some reason. I fixed everything in place with some zip ties and duct tape with a tree bark pattern for camouflage. Once everything was secure, I tested the livestreaming function through an app I’d designed on my phone. After playing with the camera angle for a bit, I decided it was good enough and climbed down from the tree.

I walked backwards toward the bar, keeping my eyes on the tree to make sure the camera wouldn’t be visible. As I neared the building, a mix of odd scents hit my nose. I inhaled deeply, frowning. I smelled…something burnt? That definitely wasn’t there last night. Although maybe Shiloh had cooked dinner for herself after I left and had kept it in the oven too long.

But there was something else too. I lifted my face to scent the air again and got hit in the face with the familiar smell of her fear. Only this wasn’t like last night. It was far more potent and mixed with a salty quality, like sweat.

Or tears.

I turned to face the building, staring at the front door like it had all the answers. When I tried the knob, it was, of course, locked.

My wolf went nuts again, howling in despair. His paws dug and scraped so hard from underneath my skin, I felt tangible pain on my sternum and ribs.

We have wronged her. We must make it right!

“No.” I rubbed my chest in an attempt to soothe my animal. “Something else happened here.” I remembered clearly last night that Shiloh was more pissed off than scared. And she definitely wasn’t crying or sweating.

That only set my wolf off even more. His fur spiked up, hackles raised, and teeth fully on display. He wasn’t a defensive, skittish thing anymore, but in full-on attack mode. My wolf wanted to go to war for Shiloh.

We must protect our witch. Find who made her cry and lay their corpse at her feet.

“Okay, no. We need to leave.”

I headed for my bike, despite all the howling and growling rattling around my brain. Wait, shit. That growling wasn’t just in my head but coming from my throat.

My wolf and I were separate entities, but because we shared a soul, there was significant overlap between him and me. While in human form, I had control and could usually rein him in. When shifted, it was the reverse. And during the night of the full moon, the wolf was the only driver.

So it was really fucking weird that he was having this much influence over me when it came to Shiloh. His instinct to protect her was becoming my own. His desire to lay waste to anyone that would harm her made me want to beat a man to death with my bare fists. And when he called her our witch, I had the strangest urge to call her my witch.

It made no fucking sense. I didn’t even know Shiloh. She definitely didn’t know me.

And the cherry on top? She most likely hated me, so what was even the point?

Chapter 4

Shiloh

I had hoped it was all a nightmare. Just a bad dream.

My eyes weren’t even open when I felt the throbbing ache in my arm the next morning. I went to touch the raised mark and nearly cried out. It no longer felt like a burning hot brand, but it was hypersensitive to any kind of touch. My own fingers felt like broken glass dragging over an open wound.

Rolling upright, I was careful not to brush my arm against the sheets. The dragon’s harsh voice repeated in my mind. I’ll rain fire on your whole fucking territory. He’d said it so casually and with that creepy smile. I knew in my gut it wasn’t an empty threat. Dragons were dangerous and conniving on the best of days. This guy, whoever he was, was on another level, and that was straight up terrifying.

The safety of the entire territory was on my shoulders now. And to keep it safe, I had to make an extremely volatile potion, with extinct ingredients, that probably hadn’t been made in the last thousand years. Oh, and I had to make a fucking gallon of it.

I brought my hands to my face, rubbing my eyes with a groan. All I wanted to do was tell Derric. Let the werewolves handle it. This was why Howling Death was the reigning pack, to protect everyone else against the dragons and the vampires.

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