Page 56 of Claimed

“I’m sorry about Jimmy, babe. I know he was family.”

I can’t read her. She stares into space for a minute before whispering, “Wyatt’s gonna retaliate.”

“Suspected as much.”

“Jimmy’s his right-hand beta. He’ll be livid.”

“Malachi his left?” I ask.

She shrugs. “I didn’t think so, but… the fact that he was here? Maybe something changed since I was there. Maybe Mal came because I was missing. I don’t…” she trails off and looks lost in thought.

I’m picking up on something strange. “Tell me more about this Malachi.”

She doesn’t answer.

“Stace?”

She shakes it off. “He… we grew up together. He’s one of the few decent betas left. Or, I thought he was. I don’t know if that’s changed. I’m…”

She leaves that hanging. I’m sure she’s in shock about her cousin but I can tell there are things she’s not saying. I wait.

“Can I… go get some water?” she finally asks.

“I’ll get it.” I kiss her temple and get out of bed.

When I’m back, she’s cradling her elbows, staring off into space.

I pass her the glass of water. She drinks half of it and gives it back to me, looking haunted.

I’m about to ask questions, prod to find out what she’s not saying, but she speaks up, voice sounding haunted, “If I were male, I’d be dead right now, too.”

My lips part, but words don’t come. Because she might be right. If we’d found a male shifter in the woods that day, he might have died. Chances are, we’d have done questioning, but chances are even higher that the male would have fought capture.

Alphas and most betas would likely have fought to the death against another shifter in a situation like that, where one was sent in to assassinate an alpha. Betas can get pretty worked up and failure to show an alpha that’s not their alpha the right body language to save themselves would’ve made things dicey.

I see she’s shaken. I’m guessing now it’s by thewhat ifsand by the fact a member of her family was slain by a member of my pack.

I pull her close and kiss her forehead.

“I’m real sorry for your loss, Stace.”

“He was awful,” she whispers. “He hit someone and kidnapped someone else. And that was just what he didtonight.”

“Doin’ your brother’s bidding like you had to,” I put in.

She says nothing, but I feel a reaction from her that has me speaking quickly.

“Not comparing you to him, just sayin’ he’s family to you, so I’m sorry, babe. I’m sure that can make you feel conflicted. I wish I had words that could ease the pain you’re feeling. We were watching the village’s entry points with cameras but now we’ve got paws on the ground, too. We’re code orange. We’ll do our best to ask questions and give anyone from your packapproaching a chance. We don’t strike first and ask questions later. I’ve got you, okay?”

She’s crying. Softly, noiselessly, but with emotion and tears penetrating my skin. Tears penetrating from the outside in, and emotion from the inside out. I don’t like the way it feels, how this deep sorrow oozes from my mate. No, it’s more than dislike; I fucking hate it because it’s attached to ahelpless-to-fix itfeeling.

I need to make sure that whatever the issues are, regardless of what her brother attempts, that I work to find a way to iron this out with her brother instead of putting him to death. I’ve asked the guys to put the cousin’s body in the walk-in freezer in the basement of the town hall.

When we sit down to work things out with her brother, I’ll be able to give him the body as a gesture of goodwill so their pack can have whatever funeral they wish to have. Even if she says he’s not a good guy, this doesn’t mean others in her family, her pack, won’t want a funeral for him.

I purr for her, and it doesn’t take long before her body settles and her tension ebbs.

I’m not angry with Riley for killing Jimmy. I can’t be. If someone had taken Stacy and I’d found her the way Rye found his mate tonight? I can connect with how that must have felt, the rage that must have spilled out of Rye. Stacy’s cousin stole Riley’s mate, tied her up, and of course it was all really fucking poor timing because of Riley’s mindset.

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