Page 35 of Taming the White Wolf
Warmth spread through her, driving back the chill permeating her bones. “Thanks.”
His dark brows were lowered, his frown fierce. “You lost your breakfast.” It sounded like an accusation.
“I didn’t exactly plan it.”
Hands on his hips, he glared at her. “There’s one breakfast left. If I reheat it, will you try to eat something?”
She pressed her hand to her extremely empty and sore stomach. “I’m not sure.”
“The toast? Maybe some of the egg? You need protein.”
“I’ll try.” Because he was right, she needed it to heal.
“And you’ll take another pill.”
The worry lurking in his eyes had her swallowing back her snarky retort. “I will.” The situation was crazy, but it was nice to have someone who gave a damn.
Steadier, she returned to the kitchen with him hovering beside her every step of the way. Once she was seated, he shoved the remaining breakfast into the microwave and leaned against the counter to wait for it to heat. “Back to Cardelli. What happened after you confronted him?”
Guess her respite was over. She had a sip of coffee and made a face—toothpaste and coffee were not a good mix. The microwave beeped. He removed the container and brought it back to the table. Ignoring the eggs and bacon, she nibbled on a piece of toast. If it stayed down, she’d try the rest. No point in tempting fate.
“When I told him I’d thought he was someone else, he laughed and introduced himself. There was something not right about him. Honestly, he gave me the creeps. I started to leave. That’s when he said he’d been following me, had seen me at the club, the Green Door.”
“Bastard.” Was it possible for white eyes to darken? Because Devlin’s had.
“He was enjoying making me uncomfortable. Then he asked if I wanted to know why he was following me. I threatened to call over a nearby cop and then walked away. That’s when he mentioned you.”
Devlin set his fork down and pushed away the remainder of his food. “He mentioned me specifically?”
“His exact words were, ‘Don’t you want to know about Devlin?’”
“What else?” He leaned forward, his gaze narrowing, his intensity palpable.
She wanted to get this over with so she never had to think of it again. “He said you weren’t what you seemed. He was enjoying himself, getting some sort of perverse pleasure out of stringing me along. I kept walking.” Her throat went dry. “He called out, asked if you’d told me about the wolves.”
She’d lived through it, but it was difficult to comprehend what she’d survived. “A werewolf tried to kill me. If not for you, I’d be dead.” The scent of the spilled blood mixed with the rotting wood of the building was something she’d never forget. “Oh, God. What if someone finds the body?” It had been a worry at the time, but she hadn’t given it a single thought since. “The cops could be looking for you, for us.” That was almost as scary as wolves being after her. There was no way to explain what had happened. Not any that would be believed.
“Don’t worry about it.”
Was he for real? “That’s all you’ve got to say? Don’t worry about it?” Popping up from her chair, she began to pace, her thoughts chaotic. “Okay, we need to go back, after dark. It’s too risky during the day, too big a chance of being seen. Maybe we can pry up some floorboards and hide him. What am I saying?” Appalled, she stopped and pulled on the ends of her hair. She was a law-abiding citizen. “We have to report this, but we can’t.” Not unless they wanted to be tangled in a mess of legal proceedings. It had been self-defense but there was no way to prove it.Yes, Your Honor, a werewolf was after me so Devlin, who is also a werewolf, killed him.Self-defense or not, that would get them locked up. “Maybe an anonymous tip.” Was that even possible in this age of technology?
Her chest constricted. Breathing became impossible. She bent at the waist, her arms hugging her.Get a grip.This was no time to panic.
Devlin approached cautiously, his hands held out in front of him, as ifshewere some wild creature who needed calming. She bit her lip to hold back hysterical laughter.
“Listen to me. There is no body to find.”
She raised her head, confused. “What are you saying? Of course there’s a body. I saw it. We left it lying there last night.” She was shouting by the final word. She sucked air into her lungs. “Sorry. Sorry.”
He gently wrapped his arm around her and guided her back to her chair. “Werewolves aren’t like humans. The same metabolism that gives us a longer lifespan and regenerative and healing abilities keeps functioning after death, efficiently destroying our bodies. All that’s left of Cardelli by now are his clothes and dust.”
The vivid picture popped into her brain. There would be a stack of clothes in one place. A pile of dust in another.
“Werewolf bodies disintegrate?” Human bodies eventually broke down, but it took time, and even then there were bones. The idea of one simply crumbling within a day of death until nothing remained bothered her. “If you died while you were alone, no one would ever know unless they recognized your clothes.” That struck her as incredibly lonely.
There were too many holes in her knowledge. So much she didn’t understand. “Tell me about werewolves. Tell me about you.”
…
