Hunting the Hunter (Second in Lone Wolf series)

Chapter Seventeen

　

It was the sunlight shining through the curtains and warming her face that woke Ella from her peaceful sleep. Ella had never been a deep sleeper, she had never been someone who could rest easily, but last night she had.

Brendon’s love making had left her feeling relaxed and… safe.

Yes, Ella felt safe with Brendon.

She reached out to snuggle closer to him and found nothing other than cold mattress and sheets.

Her eyes snapped open and fell instantly on the empty pillow beside her.

“Brendon?” she called out quietly and only silence responded.

Ella flared her nostrils hoping to find his scent in the next room but it was too faint for him to be around. As was Maggie’s. They were gone.

Ella felt an ache deep in her chest. A red, raw ache that had her laying her hand over her heart.

Gone. She was alone.

Panic began to claw at her. He was just gone. No rules for her to follow. No hint on when he would be back. Just gone.

Ella rose from the bed, wrapped the sheet tight around herself and walked out onto the balcony, desperately breathing deep and hoping against hope that she would catch Brendon’s scent on the breeze. She didn’t.

Ella could still taste his blood in her mouth, still feel the power of it, the warmth and the heat of it, flowing in her own veins. Her body still hummed with the pleasure that he had shown her once before falling asleep and then twice more when he had awaken her in the night.

Each time Ella had asked him to let her stay with him and each time he had kissed her brow gently and told her that they would talk about it in the morning.

Morning was now here and Brendon was not.

Ella hadn’t realized she could still feel hurt. She hadn’t realized her heart would still respond to betrayal after all the pain she had been through in her life but she felt this.

Brendon had lied to her. She had trusted him and he had misled her. Used her body to get his own pleasure and then run off as if it had meant nothing to him.

Her hurt began to transform to anger. How dare he do this to her? How dare he use her body after all she had been through? She had thought he cared. Thought he wouldn’t hurt her or let her down.

Ella had been wrong and Brendon would pay.

Life mate or not she was going to kill him for being just like all the rest. And this time the passion he managed to awaken inside of her would not stop her from doing what she knew had to be done.

Brendon must be taught a lesson.

Ella walked back into the room and pulled on her clothes. After pulling all her hair back on her head and securing it in place, she went into the room that Brendon had secured for Maggie.

There on the small side table beside the door she saw an envelope with her name written across it.

Ella snatched up the letter, thankful that during her long days cooped up with Warren she had taken the time to learn to read. What could Brendon have possibly written? Rules for her to follow? A threat if she dared break them? Would he do that?

Ella hadn’t truly wanted to believe that he would but, then again, she also hadn’t thought he would abandon her after what they’d shared the night before and he had done that…..