Read Online Forbidden by Cathy Clamp - Free Book Online Page A

about the accident. How about you come along with us over to the police station for a few minutes?”
    Claire flinched at his touch, then looked at Alek with concern in her eyes and scent—as though he was her savior. He fought back the urge to growl, confused by the strength of his reaction. It made no sense. “Um, can this wait for a few minutes, guys? We were just on our way over to see Marilyn. See the blood on her bandage? She might have popped a stitch.”
    Both men stared at Alek, neither looking at Claire, until Van said, “Oh, this will just take a few minutes, Alek. No need to worry. If the bleeding gets any worse, we can have Marilyn drop by my office.” He raised a finger, like something just occurred to him, but his scent didn’t match. “By the way, I was heading over to see you because Fred at the post office said you got a registered letter today … from the Siberian pack leader.”
    Siberia? Siberia! It had been nearly a year since he had written to that pack, asking them to check if his sister had been transferred there after the plague. The urgency to see what they had to say warred with his need to stay by Claire’s side. He felt his muscles twitching, not sure which way to turn. “There’s a letter? Really?” When Lenny nodded firmly, he had no choice. “Claire, I’m really sorry, but I’ve got to get that letter. I’ve been waiting for it for over a year.”
    She looked a little confused, then shrugged. “Um, sure. If you need to go, that’s fine. I guess I’ll be at the police station, answering questions.”
    He felt the tension in his shoulders ease a bit. He wasn’t sure what he would have done if she said no, please don’t. He wasn’t sure why it mattered. “Great. I’ll just pick up the letter and meet you over there.” She’ll be fine . She’ll be fine. Yet he found himself taking off at a dead run down Second Street toward the post office. The farther he got from Claire, the more he started thinking about the letter. This could be it! It was the one place where Sonya might be that nobody would have found her until now. The Siberian pack was very reclusive; they lived far from civilization, which is why they had been spared most of the effects of the snake attack and plague. He remembered that Sonya had spoken fluent Russian as a child, better than the rest of them, and she’d usually resorted to that language when she was scared. In the aftermath of the attacks, anyone finding her alone might presume she was Russian. She might have been sent to that pack.
    In the years since the plague, Alek had written to every pack he’d heard of, anywhere in the world. There had been no sign of Sonya. But the Russian pack had never responded to his inquiries. How many letters had he sent? A dozen? Twenty? He’d lost count. Please! Let them have taken her in!
    The old brass bell above the post office door jingled as he entered. Fred Birch was sitting on a stool behind the counter, wearing the same red plaid shirt, with scissors tucked in the pocket, and the same tattered wool hat as always, pulled low over bushy eyebrows. No blue postal uniform for him. The pipe in his hand filled the air with cherry tobacco smoke. “Hey, Alek. You here for your letter?”
    â€œAbsolutely! I can’t believe it finally got here.”
    Fred started rummaging around under the counter. “The postmark on it is nearly a year old. Hard to believe it took so long to get here.” He pulled out an oversized envelope, covered in tape, stickers, and official-looking stamps. “Ah, here it is.” A few seconds was all it took to scan the bar code and enter it into the computer.
    Alek’s fingers were actually trembling as he signed the screen and accepted the envelope. Scents rose from the heavy dark manila covering, mostly mildew and chemicals, with lingering faint male wolf musk.