Betrayed: Days of the Rogue (8 page)

Eve winced at the emotional pain he
must be feeling and even took half a step towards him, feeling the
need to offer him comfort, when a thought struck her. She wasn’t
experiencing his pain as she would from most people. Strong
emotions were so hard to block out. Instead, it was his posture she
was reading.

For a moment she stood there
puzzling over the fact. That made two men—Rafe and this
stranger—who she couldn’t sense. How weird was that? Maybe the gift
didn’t work when it came to hunks? She snorted at the idea but
curiosity had her crossing the street. If she were closer to the
man and actually tried to read him—not out of a morbid need to know
his private feelings—perhaps she’d be able to determine what made
him different from the rest of the population.

She was only a few car lengths away
when he suddenly straightened and looked directly at her. The angle
of the sun seemed to illuminate his eyes showcasing the strange
silver rimmed by blue. The effect was so startling, so intense,
that her steps actually faltered and a shiver of awareness coursed
through her. As she stood there transfixed, he abruptly rose to his
feet and walked off at a brisk pace.

Eve opened her mouth to call after
him but, not knowing his name, that wasn’t possible. She hesitated,
briefly weighing the pros and cons of her actions before deciding
to follow him. Whoever he was, she wanted answers; exactly how
she’d get those answers without revealing she was Fae she didn’t
know, but she’d figure that out once she managed to corner him.

Grassy Hills wasn’t a large place.
A typical prairie settlement, businesses lined the highway that
went through the centre of town and several side streets led to
small residential areas. Still, it was large enough that she could
lose him and so Eve quickened her pace, cursing softly when he
rounded a corner. By the time she got there, he was gone.

“Damn!” The expletive slipped from
her lips. A woman passing by with a small child in tow gave her a
dirty look. “Sorry,” Eve apologized distractedly while trying to
decide her next move. He couldn’t have gone far.

She walked down the side street,
noting the empty sidewalks and peering into the alley that ran
behind the stores. There was no sign of the man anywhere. Hands on
her hips she frowned. Now where could he have gone?

Damien watched as Eve walked back
to her car, obviously having given up on finding him. He stepped
out of the shadowed doorway he’d hidden in, narrowing his eyes as
he considered the close encounter. A part of him had wanted her to
find him, to have a chance to talk to her and hear her voice.

And it had been a perfect
opportunity to get to know her. Why hadn’t he grabbed it? Was it
because he wanted to maintain the illusion for a few days longer?
After all, as long as he kept his distance, he could pretend,
right?

He inhaled deeply, the faint
remnants of her scent lingering in the air. So like Beth…and yet
not.

When she’d walked into the café
this morning he’d had difficulty not staring at her. Close up, her
resemblance to Beth hadn’t been as strong, though it was still
enough to stir his memories. He’d felt his inner beast awaken, too.
His wolf had immediately been alert and keen eyed, scenting the
air, attempting to activate the long-dead blood bond. Tendrils of
thought had hovered in the air, waiting, hoping for a response, for
some hint of recognition. Of course it hadn’t come and the eager
expectation of the animal had subsided into a dejected heap.
Almost, almost, he’d felt sorry for the creature but there was too
much history between the wolf and him. Instead, he’d ignored the
animal and concentrated on his own reaction.

The woman’s presence had caused a
myriad of emotions to play through his human self; pleasure at
seeing her again, regret that she wasn’t his Beth. It wasn’t the
woman’s fault that she so closely resembled his dead mate, but the
disappointment had been too much to bear and he’d left abruptly
despite his intention to speak with her.

He shook his head, berating himself
for his behaviour. There was no room for attachments, no room for
dreams in his life. He knew what he had to do. Next time he’d have
to act, take whatever opportunity presented itself and do what he
must.

A noise from the alley behind him
had him twirling around, ready for an attack. He let out a faint
huff of laughter when he saw a stray cat peering out at him from
behind a garbage can. The creature was thin and wary with tattered
ears and a scarred nose.

“You’re up against it too, aren’t
you, cat?” At the sound of his voice, the cat bristled as if
expecting him to attack. It stared at him, then glanced around
before slipping away into the shadows. “Yeah, we’re two of kind,”
he murmured. “Never let your guard down, never trust anyone.”

Taking his cue from the cat, he
studied his surroundings intently. He was off the main street now
but that didn’t necessarily mean there weren’t Trackers around;
they knew ways to hide their presence. And after over a year and
half on the run, his luck was due to run out. Had someone been
plotting his movements and realized he’d end up here? It was
possible.

He thought about the werewolf he’d
scented earlier. This was supposed to be an unclaimed territory.
Had they planted someone in the area in the hopes of luring him
into a trap? Cross and double-cross, wasn’t that how Lycan Link
worked?

A growl rumbled in his throat as
his wolf considered the idea.
Lycan Link is the source of our
sorrow. If we hadn’t worked for them, our mate would still be
alive
.

He gave his head a shake. His wolf
hadn’t spoken in weeks. It almost felt…odd…to hear another voice in
his head. Was the animal correct? Would things have worked out
differently if he’d never worked for Lycan Link? Or was he being
paranoid, jumping to conclusions that had no basis in reality?
There were times when his whole life seemed surreal, as if he were
watching a movie playing out before him. Months and months of being
alone were chipping away at his sanity, yet there was no other
option. The path he’d chosen was set.

Giving the persistent ache in his
right leg a rub, he headed out of town.

Chapter 5

Rafe paced in front of the cabin
he’d rented to Eve. He gave no notice to the way the sun shimmered
on the calm surface of the nearby lake or how the fresh spring
grass was dotted with a few early violets. The chirping of birds in
the nearby trees and the delicate buds that housed as yet unfurled
leaves held no interest to him either.

The woman wasn’t there, after he’d
expressly told her to stay inside until the wolf issue had been
dealt with. He’d been in the shower when she’d called this morning,
having spent the night patrolling the countryside looking for
further signs of the rogue. Annette had sent him a short list of
possible lone wolves in the area, with the promise of a more
complete one when she got to work on Monday.

None were deemed particularly
dangerous so he’d set out to try and make contact. Of course, after
hours of searching all he’d found was an empty den. If the creature
wasn’t consistently living rough, it gave some hope that it wasn’t
too far gone. He’d been thinking that he could safely grab a few
hours of rest before checking on his tenant when he’d noticed the
missed call. Unfortunately, Eve hadn’t left a message and when he
tried to return the call she hadn’t answered.

A wave of worry had washed over
him—likely ill-founded and needless—but there just the same. Why
had she phoned, and why hadn’t she answered when he’d returned her
call? Had he made an error in judgement? Was the rogue more
dangerous than the reports indicated?

He’d flashed back to his last case;
the partially rehabilitated rogue unexpectedly shifting and
attacking him and his assistant. The girl’s terrified cries, his
own shift to defend her; the pain as the wolf had ripped at his
flesh before he’d subdued it.

Fear that history was repeating
itself—that the rogue had been breaking into the cabin while Eve
placed a tearful distress call—had immediately come to his sleep
deprived mind.

Without thinking, he’d shifted
forms and raced cross-country to her cabin, pounding on her door
and calling her name. When she failed to respond, he’d checked the
windows for signs of a break-in, and then had done a frantic search
of the immediate area. The only scent was Eve’s and—once he forced
himself to calm down—he realized her car was missing. Relief that
she was all right was quickly followed by exasperation that she’d
left the cabin and gone somewhere despite his warnings.

It took a lot to upset him. In
fact, those he worked with often marvelled at his patience in the
face of provocation, but Eve was pushing those limits. He took a
deep breath and forced himself to relax and think logically. His
level of concern had been excessive—he acknowledged that fact
readily—but truthfully, she’d scared the shit out of him and he
wanted to make sure she didn’t pull a similar stunt again.

Calm down, stay controlled. Anger
is a pointless emotion. How often had he said those words to one of
his clients? Funny how he’d never realized how annoying those
instructions were!

Tired of pacing, he sat on the
front step and rolled his shoulders, trying to ease some of the
tension that had accumulated there. This was why he’d taken a leave
from his job. Hours spent in a tiny office pouring over reports and
budgets and treatment plans and interventions. Too much stress
caused by too many years working with rogue wolves. He was trying
to get away from all that, and here he was dealing with the same
issues again!

As the head of the Rogue
Rehabilitation Clinic, he’d seen Lycans at their worst, knew the
havoc they could wreak. While he might work with them daily and
firmly believe many could be saved, he was under no illusions about
dealing with one outside the controlled atmosphere of his clinic.
So it wasn’t that unrealistic for him to assume the worst when Eve
had appeared to vanish.

Of course, she wouldn’t understand
any of this. Eve didn’t even know Lycans existed, let alone
dangerous rogue ones. Rafe rubbed his hand over his face. He should
have insisted that she leave. In fact, he still couldn’t figure out
why he hadn’t. Well…that wasn’t quite true. The woman intrigued him
and he hadn’t wanted her to go; that was the honest answer.

The sound of a car approaching had
him rising to his feet. It was Eve. Firming his mouth, he held back
the lecture that hovered on his lips.

She parked the car and got out,
nodding a greeting at him. “Rafe.”

“Eve.”

They stood staring at each other,
saying nothing. He kept his thumbs hooked in his belt loops, his
gaze steady, patiently waiting. She shifted from foot to foot, a
look of guilt playing over her expression. As expected, his silence
caused her to speak first.

“I…uh… was planning on returning
before you came by today.”

“I’m sure you were.”

She licked her lips and appeared to
eye him cautiously as if trying to gauge his reaction. “I had to
meet my agent in town.”

He said nothing, merely raising an
eyebrow.

“I called to see if you’d found out
anything about the wolf, but there was no answer and I couldn’t
wait any longer.” She spoke in a rush, obviously finding his
silence unsettling. “I was very careful. I checked all around the
cabin and kept the gun with me as I ran to the car.”

Hell, he thought to himself. She
was damned lucky the local police hadn’t pulled her over and
charged her for carrying a firearm without the proper papers! The
Canadian law was much more stringent than the U.S. and he’d assumed
she’d known that. Mentally shaking his head, he folded his arms and
widened his stance into a deliberately dominant pose.

He could see her swallow hard and
begin to fidget with the strap of her purse. Yep, she was
definitely feeling guilty. About to relent, he was surprised when
she suddenly did an about face, throwing her purse onto the hood of
the car and planting her hands on her hips.

“All right, Rafe, that’s enough.
You’re not in charge of me. Sure, this is your cabin, your land and
even your damned lake. Yes, you told me stay inside in case the
wolf was around, but I was
very
careful. I took every
possible precaution I could and nothing happened. So get off your
high and mighty horse and stop treating me like a disobedient
child.”

By the time she was done, a faint
tinge of pink graced her usually pale cheeks and temper sparked in
her eyes. She looked adorable, rather like a tiny white kitten
trying to act the part of a lion. His lips twitched.

“Are you laughing at me?” She
narrowed her eyes.

He didn’t confirm or deny the
accusation. “You have quite a temper on you when you get
riled.”

“Well…yeah. I guess I do.” As
quickly as it had appeared, her anger dissipated and she actually
looked regretful. “Sorry.”

He shook his head. “No need. It’s
healthier to let your feelings out rather than keeping them bottled
up inside.”

She cocked her head. “You sound
like a therapist when you talk that way.”

He shrugged. “Before I took over
the cabins I was, sort of.”

“Why did you quit?” She picked up
her purse and slung it over her shoulder then went around to the
rear of the car.

“I haven’t quit. I’m actually on a
sabbatical, trying out renting cabins as a possible second career.”
Rafe moved to help her carry her parcels and then followed her
inside.

“Oh.” Eve gestured with her chin
towards the kitchen and he set the bags on the counter. “Thanks for
carrying those, by the way.” She grabbed the milk and placed it in
the fridge and then a carton of eggs. Rafe studied her rear end as
she moved items about on the lower shelf trying to find room. For a
slim thing, she had nicely curved hips. He imagined what it would
be like to have his hands on them, to cup her butt and pull her
closer.