The Vow (Black Arrowhead #1) - Dannika Dark Page 0,69

seen Lakota?”

“No.”

He smiled so wide it made me uneasy. “Funny. I could have sworn he would be in here.”

“That’s presumptuous.”

“He can’t sleep under our roof, and he knows better than to run the grounds during a burial. So…” Tak peered around me.

I opened the door and stepped back. “Look for yourself. He’s not here, unless I somehow managed to stuff the Big Bad Wolf into that basket.”

Tak scratched his jaw and studied the picnic basket by the door. “White men tell horrifying stories to their children. What do you call them?” He snapped his fingers. “Ah yes. Fairy tales. Did you ever hear the one about those wicked children who ate a woman’s house and then shoved her in the oven?”

I folded my arms. “Was there something you wanted?”

“I’m heading out and thought Lakota might want to come along.”

“What about all the brouhaha going on with the locals?”

Tak strode over to the table and pilfered a piece of jerky. He stood so tall that his head nearly touched the ceiling. “We had a few scouts check out the roads this morning. Looks like the Council stepped in and made them leave before the state police came to check it out. Not my concern anymore.”

I glanced outside. “What time is it?”

“Almost two.”

I waited for him to laugh and tell me it was a joke, but he didn’t. Did I really sleep the entire morning? Covering my face with one hand, I sat in the chair.

“You’re free to go,” he added, licking his thumb.

“Is everyone back from the burial?”

He widened his stance and scratched his neck. “I just woke up from a shift. Some are resting, I think. I can smell food cooking in the kitchen. The mood is lighter today. The elders say the sunshine is a good omen.”

I drank a sip of water from a bottle. “Except for the fact that a murderer is still out there.”

“Yes, but it’s no longer your concern.”

“It might be.”

He gnawed on his jerky. “How so?”

“It occurred to me that if the cops return to the crime scene, they’re going to wonder about all the fresh blood and my clothes. A lot of people saw me in those pants. They’re memorable.”

Tak strode toward the door. “You needn’t worry about that. I went back this morning before dawn, and your clothes were gone. So was the blood. Whichever rogue pack those wolves belonged to must have tidied things up. I’ll see if I can find something your size.”

“I don’t want to take anything else from your tribe. Your belt will do.”

He arched an eyebrow. Tak slowly unbuckled his belt and slid it out of his pant loops. After he flung it on the table, he headed out.

I steered my gaze around the empty room and let it linger on the bed, visions of last night’s lovemaking appearing like a phantom dream. Funny how lifeless and hollow the cabin seemed without Lakota’s larger-than-life personality. The last thing I remembered was falling asleep in his arms. By the looks of it, he’d cleaned up and erased all evidence of him having been here.

It was foolish to think we would wake up in each other’s arms, but a sliver of me desired it. My feelings for Lakota were changing, and it caught me off guard. People just didn’t fall in love that quickly. It had to be the sex talking, and I needed to get my head together and distance myself from this place.

Tak’s belt fit around my waist loosely, but at least with the long shirt it looked like an ensemble I could get away with wearing in the summertime.

My hopes of closing a deal with Shikoba were dashed. The man had just buried one of his packmates, and the last thing he needed was some stranger badgering him.

I made the bed, tidied up the cabin, and collected my purse before heading out. Instead of entering the main house, I circled around the side toward the front. The gravel hurt my feet, and the two men sitting on the front porch sipped their cold beers and watched with mild interest. When I reached my Jeep and opened the door, I noticed the keys weren’t there.

“Shit.” I set my purse on the seat and headed for the house. “Do you know where my keys are?”

One of them jerked his thumb at the door.

Before I could knock, both men abruptly set their bottles down and rose to their feet. There was nothing casual about it, and it made me turn