Rille (Tribes, Book 2)

Chapter 17

Preston had never particularly liked rabid wolves, but now he harbored a personal vendetta against them. As if wreaking havoc in the human's world wasn't enough, they had to tarnish the reputation of all shifters and turn his own wife against him.

A grin split Preston's lips at the thought of her, all spunky and fiery and...

Preston shook his head. He couldn't get distracted. Especially, he couldn't follow that train of thought until it crashed and burned. Brielle barely tolerated his presence. She wouldn't allow more. Not yet. And she was injured. He should let her heal properly.

Which meant it was probably for the best that he had left her at home, with Shaw to watch over her.

There were things to be done elsewhere.

The car was too conspicuous, so Preston had left it behind. Instead, he took the train to his destination. It also served as a backup plan, in case his target had enough wits about himself to try and escape.

The train pulled into the station as the clock struck noon.

Preston disembarked, fully expecting to see chaos erupting around him. That wasn't what he found at all. Instead, everything and everyone moved along normally. All except a large, black-haired man leaning against the side of the depot.

That man gave a smirk and raised two fingers to greet Preston.

Surprised and somewhat alarmed, Preston picked his way through the crowd. "Does anyone know you're off-res?"

"No one ever knows where I am."

Blade Trueblood—alpha of the Bloodmoon Tribe and a long-time friend of Preston's—rarely sneaked out of the Bloodmoon Reservation. For everyone's safety. The government was scared of him, his tribe practically worshiped him, and everyone else was collateral damage in between. He shouldn't be off-res or out in the open, not with his reputation, but there he stood.

Preston couldn't change it, so he asked about it instead. "Why are you here?"

Blade had never been one to mince words. Now was no exception. "The rabid wolf is Bloodmoon."

This new revelation knocked Preston down a notch or two, confidence-wise. Bloodmoon wolves were notoriously vicious. A rabid Bloodmoon? Preston could hardly imagine.

"So you're tracking him down, too?" Preston knew the protocol. Tribes took care of their own, one way or another.

Blade shrugged a shoulder. "Yes and no."

"Don't dance around the subject. What aren't you saying?"

"I came to help, but I only have until dusk."

So, they had to work efficiently and quickly. "If you can track him, I can take him out. I just need a location."

Blade eyed Preston's gear, as if sizing up his ability. And then he nodded. "My truck's out front."

"Let's go."

They had met as children, Preston and Blade and the Crescent alpha, Conner. Growing up side-by-side, meeting once every decade for the Armistice, they had learned that each was more similar to the others than they originally thought. And thus a blood bond had been formed between the three.

Last time that Preston had seen Blade, they had been delivering Conner's mate to the Crescent Reservation. The truck that awaited them was the same that he had used then.

Preston threw his gun into the truck bed, then climbed into the cab.

Blade slammed his door and started the engine. "You smell faintly like a human. A woman?"