Chapter 3

Razl and the Bloodrunners, the half-breed hunters whose job it was to hide the existence of their race from humans, as well as to hunt down those who turned rogue, already had their hands full working to get order reestablished up in Shadow Peak. Still mired in the process of forming a new government, the Silvercrest continued to deal with the emotional and physical wounds left over from the traumatic events of five months ago. Events that had left the pack without leadership, and reeling from a betrayal that had affected everyone from the adults who’d lost their lives down to the children who had been tragically

orphaned.

Though once completely removed from the dealings in Shadow Peak, the Bloodrunners’ newly established position within the pack’s political structure put them in charge of Silvercrest security, with Razl working as the liaison between the pack and the Runners. After the recent treachery that had weakened their stability, courtesy of Razl’s father and his savage plans to take over the pack, the Silvercrest had been left in a vulnerable position. It was a frightening time, and the wolves were all too aware of the aggressive nature of some of their neighboring packs— especially the Whiteclaw wolves, who lived to the south of them. As a precaution, Razl and the Runners had been taking turns supervising the night watch, any suspicious or unusual activities being immediately reported by the scouts to the one in charge on any given night. Since

they’d begun rotating the shift, Razl had been involved in a variety of dangerous situations, and was for the first time getting a taste of what life as a Runner was like.

Without so much as the flicker of a lash, Razl glared right back, letting her know he wouldn’t be as easily cowed as the scouts. When she didn’t budge, he made his tone as non-threatening as possible, knowing

his size could be intimidating to a lot of women, and said, “I’m not going to hurt you, lady. I just want to talk.”

She leaned a little closer to the window and ran her gaze over his tall form, working from his scarred hiking boots up to his short hair, then shook her head and raised her chin a notch higher. Razl choked back a low groan, thinking why me? Why couldn’t his friend Jeremy have been stuck with this tonight?

“Look, I can be as stubborn as you are, so save us both the trouble and just roll down the damn window,” he ground out, unable to soften the gruff edge to his order this time. He was uncomfortably aware of his wolf steadily prowling closer to his surface, taking note of her in a way that caused a deeper sliver of alarm to slip down his spine.

This time, she didn’t shake her head in response to his…request. Instead, the crazy-assed woman narrowed her eyes and lifted one closed feminine hand. Then she very deliberately extended her middle finger.

What the…?

Razl stared…a little stunned, thinking there was something definitely not right about her.

Taking his hands from his pockets, he braced them on either side of her window and leaned forward, so close that his warm breath fogged on the glass as he spoke. “You can’t stay by yourself out here in the middle of nowhere, so either turn this thing on and get the hell out of here,” he said in a low, painfully controlled tone, “or start talking.”

If looks could kill, Razl had no doubt he’d be drawing his last breath just about then. But at least he got the desired results. She uncrossed her arms, the scooped neck of her long-sleeved T-shirt revealing a shocking jolt of cleavage that was damn hard not to stare at. He forced his dark gaze back up to her face just in time to see her mutter something he couldn’t quite hear, but could all too easily decipher on those sexy lips. Then she angrily reached for the window lever.

The second the window cracked open, he pulled in a deep breath, his razor-sharp senses searching…seeking. With her strange behavior, he’d half expected her to reek of alcohol or drugs, but he couldn’t pick up a trace of either. Instead, she smelled…like a puzzle. Fresh and clean and delicious, but almost painfully complicated.

Like something he needed if he wanted to figure out an answer, even though he didn’t have a clue what the question was.

And it sure as hell isn’t anything to do with me.

For a split second, Razl was almost disappointed by that particular truth. By the fact that his wolf didn’t recognize that warm, mouthwatering scent as something that belonged to them. Something they were meant to own and claim and possess. But that was nothing short of insane.

He lowered his arms and backed up a step from the bus, determined to put some distance between them. As well  as knock some sense into his wayward libido.

That scent made him want to… No. He gave his head a hard shake, ignoring a bad idea that would only lead to an even worse situation.

She was the kind of trouble he didn’t need. Or want.

And once she drove out of his life, he’d forget her as easily as he forgot every other woman who’d ever stirred his  interest. It was a given. A fact. He just had to convince her crazy little ass to get off the pack’s private property, and that would be that.

Tourmaline Smart refused to take her glare off the man standing beside her bus. What exactly had she managed to land herself in? Something wasn’t right, and while common sense demanded she get the hell out of there, her heart refused to budge, knowing this spooky mountain might prove to be her best chance at finding Sapphire. Not that her younger sister was a child in need of supervision.

“Well?” she snapped, relieved by the waspish sound of her voice, having been half afraid she might actually purr at him when she finally located her ability to speak.

“Well what?” His voice was hard, deliciously deep and roughened around the edges.