Page 4 of Red Hood, Bad Wolf

That remained to be seen. They moved deeper into the forest, following the twisted trail. Rowan was hyperaware of Alder's presence—the heat radiating from his body, the easy way he navigated the undergrowth. His power called to hers and it was disconcerting.

The trail led them through increasingly dense vegetation. Thorns caught at Rowan's cloak. Without warning, Alder's hand shot out, catching her arm before she stepped into a hidden dip.

"Careful," he murmured. His touch sent electricity racing up her arm.

"Thanks." She didn't pull away immediately. Neither did he.

Finally, Alder cleared his throat and released her. "There's a lot of old trails through here. Places my grandmother used to gather herbs for the pack."

"Used to?"

"She still does, sometimes. But she's getting older." Something dark flickered across his face. "After my parents... she's all the family I have left."

Rowan's heart squeezed unexpectedly. She knew about being alone.

The trail took a sharp turn, leading them into a small clearing. Alder suddenly went rigid. "Wait."

But Rowan had already seen it—a bloodied sneaker half-hidden under fallen leaves. Her tracking spell flared around it, indicating it was fresh.

Alder approached it carefully, scenting the air. "Same blood as the fabric. Human. Female. Young." His jaw tightened. "There was fear here."

Rowan knelt beside the sneaker, letting her magic probe deeper. "The pattern's strange. Like the blood was..." She hesitated.

"What?"

"Applied after. This wasn't where the injury happened." She met his gaze. "Someone's staging these scenes."

Alder's power flared, making the air heavy. "No one in my pack would—"

"I wasn't accusing." Not yet. Rowan stood, finding herself closer to him than she'd intended. "But someone is playing games. And they know these woods well enough to lay a trail."

He studied her face, surprise flickering in those green eyes. "You really mean that. You're not just looking to blame my pack."

"I go where the evidence leads." She held his gaze. "The last time I trusted an Alpha's word over what I was seeing, people died because I wanted to believe him." The admission cost her, but something in her needed him to understand.

Alder's expression softened fractionally. "Southampton."

"Yes." Rowan's hand drifted to her side, where the scars still ached sometimes. "The Alpha swore his beta wasn't feral. I believed him because I wanted to think the best. Because he seemed so certain." Her bitter laugh held no humor. "Turned out he was certain because he was helping hide the bodies."

She expected Alder to bristle at the comparison. Instead, he surprised her.

"My mother wasn't feral." His voice was rough with old pain. "The Red Hoods who came didn't even test her. Just took the word of—" He cut himself off. "They executed her. No trial, no chance to prove her innocence."

"That's not how we operate now," Rowan said softly. "We always try to save those we can."

"Did you try with the wolf a few days ago?"

She stiffened. "You knew about that?"

"Word travels."

"It's not always hopeless. Sometimes they can be brought back, if caught early enough."

Movement in the trees interrupted them. Serenity, Alder's beta, emerged with two other wolves.

"Alpha." Serenity's gaze flickered between them, noting their proximity. "Sorry to interrupt, but Mae's been trying to reach you. Says it's important."

"Mae?" Rowan asked.

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