killed her, I was going to eviscerate them. Probably in terrible ways.
I started walking, tucking my knife away and shoving my hands in my pockets to keep them from shaking any worse. I went back to that hotel using my phone’s map and went to the front desk.
“I need a room. I do have a credit card, and I don’t know for how long I’ll need it. Family emergency,” I told the woman at the front counter. I pulled out my wallet and held out the credit card while she took in my words and probably my appearance. The bruises on my face. I’d forgotten about them. I was suddenly self-conscious. Now the words family emergency had a strange and more concerning meaning. The woman probably thought I was having trouble at home.
She took my card silently and glanced at her desk phone.
“Don’t call the cops. I’m fine.”
“You have strange eyes,” she said softly, glancing over at me again. “Contacts?”
“Yup.” The best lie was something easy to agree with and believable. The human woman had given me the best lie, even though it made me feel morally bankrupt. “My man didn’t like me going out, with the werewolf drama, and decided to let me know. I’ll get it sorted. The cops already know. I’m just looking for a place to stay until everything cools down.”
“Of course. You’re all set up. You’ll be on the third floor.” She handed the card back to me and I tucked it away. “Here’s your room key for room 304, and if you need anything, please let me know.”
“If I get any visitors that don’t have official uniforms or badges on, don’t let them know I’m here,” I told her softly.
“Of course, ma’am.”
I walked away, heading for the door again. I could bring my Nissan to the hotel parking lot now.
It took nearly an hour, but I managed the streets of Dallas and parked. I went straight to the twenty-four hour coffee place and grabbed one for myself, then headed up to my room with my single suitcase and gym bag, the guns were in the gym bag just in case I needed them. It was better than leaving them out in my hatchback.
When I got into my room, I knew I needed to look over my injuries and take a shower, which I got started on immediately, leaving my cell phone on the bathroom counter. Hasan had tried to call five more times since I had left my car, and I was still unsure about answering. He was wearing on my patience, though. Lani called once, and so did the number I used to call Harrison. None of them could have known I was already kicking the damn hornet’s nest in the city, so they must have called either with information or to try and talk me out of it again.
I sat down on the queen bed in the middle of the bland hotel room and went back to my research. So far, I knew that Heath Everson was on a few boards of directors and that seemed to be all he had or did. He was always the guy on the side, never the one in the middle. The pack itself had a variety of businesses and holdings all over the Dallas-Fort Worth area and outside it.
It didn’t make a lot of sense to me, but I was thankful for the laws governing werewolves in the United States. A lot of their information was public, even though it was unsafe for their kind. It made it easier for me to learn about them.
The impression I got? Heath didn’t want the spotlight—strange for an Alpha. From my understanding, Alphas liked to be in the middle. They owned things, ran businesses, and were good in charge. Heath was never that guy in any of the businesses I saw his name attached to. He seemed…quiet.
Always the bridesmaid but never the bride, huh, Heath? I feel you. When I finally had the chance to be the bride, I got into a car accident and became the family pet.
I snorted, but I still dropped the phone as the memories assaulted me. All the things that had changed in my life since that accident. EMT to werecat. Engaged to single and alone.
My hands were shaking as I covered my face, the tears coming. What was I even doing? I was jumping into the middle of a werewolf civil war for a girl I barely knew. My shoulders and chest