Total pages in book: 77
Estimated words: 75578 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 378(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 75578 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 378(@200wpm)___ 302(@250wpm)___ 252(@300wpm)
“Then sit in that chair and wait for instructions.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
The men release me, and I climb jerkily to my feet and sink into the chair opposite the Sheriff’s desk.
It’s been sixteen hours since Rayne left the football stadium. We’ve been up all night searching for her. Two of the sheriff’s deputies and I shifted to try to follow her scent, but it disappeared up the hill from the football stadium, indicating Rayne got into someone’s car.
They traced her phone and found it by the side of the highway that leads down the hill to Phoenix.
Rayne’s mom weeps in the corner. My dad’s been trying to get her to eat all day, but she’s been too upset.
I don’t think I’ve eaten, either. I can’t remember.
After I spotted Leslie in the stands at the game, I went frantic. I abandoned the end of the game to race in the direction Rayne had headed. When I didn’t find her, I got in the Jeep and drove up and down. I called all her friends. Then I found our parents to let them know what happened, and they called in the Sheriff and Alpha Green. Now the entire town is on alert for Rayne, but we have no clues.
“What haven’t you told us?” Alpha Green asks again.
“I told you. We had a fight. She was upset with me for getting her elected as Homecoming Queen. She said she would call her mom for a ride, but she didn’t. When I saw Leslie in the stands, I went looking for her but couldn’t find her.”
“There’s something else.”
I can’t think. I don’t know what he wants to hear from me, but I would admit anything if it helps get Rayne back. I don’t give a shit what anyone thinks about me. I don’t care if it gets me kicked out of the pack.
“I took her virginity.”
“For fuck’s sake, Wilde!” My dad growls.
Alpha Green holds his hand up to silence my dad, his gaze still firmly on my face. “Something else. You were afraid for her from the start. Why? Do you suspect self-harm?”
I sputter. “Self-harm? No! Someone has her. A Venador, maybe.” I reference the sinister group of wealthy humans who enjoy hunting shifters for sport. Word is, they’ve been targeting shifter teens through online chats.
But then my brain clicks back into full gear, and I know what he’s picked up on. What I haven’t yet said. “Okay. Okay. I’ll tell you.” I swallow. I hate to reveal Rayne’s secret, but it has to be done. She’s in danger. “Rayne’s been selling photos and videos of her feet to save money for college. She sold this guy her shoes, and I had a bad feeling about it.”
The sheriff surges to his feet. “And you just now think to tell us this? She’s been missing for sixteen hours, Wilde.”
I draw back my fist to punch the desk but Alpha Green gives the command, “No,” and my arm slackens.
“Where does she sell them? What sites? Are there emails? Messages? I need everything.” the sheriff says.
“Patreon and OnlyFans.” I nod. “It’s all on her laptop.”
My dad pulls out his keys. “In her bedroom?”
“Yes. On the shelf above the bed.”
“I’ll be right back.”
“Okay, I’ll get Kylie or Jackson King on the phone,” Alpha Green says, referring to a pair of shifters from Tucson whose billion-dollar company specializes in cyber security.
“The shoes she mailed–where did they go? Do you remember the name or address?”
“Yeah. The name was just initials– F. L.--and the address was a post office box in Chandler.”
“Put out an Amber Alert on Rayne for the entire Phoenix, Tucson, Flagstaff area,” Sheriff Gleason barks at Russ, his deputy.
Russ nods and leaves.
Alpha Green is talking to someone on the phone, but my brain is too addled to follow the conversation.
I stand. “I’m going to Chandler.”
“Hold up, son,” Sheriff Gleason says. “Wait until we have more information.”
“I want to be there when you get the information.”
“What if she’s in the opposite direction?”
I know my brain isn’t functioning, but I trust my wolf. He wants me there. Now. I shake my head. “She’s there. Call me when you get the info.”
The sheriff shakes his head as I stalk out, but I don’t care. I’m already running for the Jeep, grateful to finally have something to do.
I drive to Chandler and just start winding through the streets. I’m not stupid enough to think I’ll spot her on the street, but I’m hoping my wolf might feel her. That I’ll get a nudge in one direction or another. I end up in a shitty part of town, along the freeway.
I pull over and get out of the Jeep. Drag the surrounding scents in through my nostrils. It smells like misery. Carbon dioxide and concrete.
I start walking up the frontage road, begging my wolf to guide me, but he’s as frantic as I am. Together, we’re barely functioning.