black Ford truck. “Now this is a trip down memory lane.”
“You know this place?” Tagan asked as he exited his ride.
“Brighton and I used to live here together, back when I first met Danielle. We rented it for a couple of years right when I was getting to know you guys. Look,” he said, pointing to the old tire swing attached to the giant tree in front. “I have a picture of Daniel swinging in that, and another of she and Brighton right over there in that field.” He swung a troubled gaze to Brighton. “I didn’t know you were still renting this place.”
I’m not , he mouthed. I bought it.
His twin brother’s eyes went round as dinner saucers. “You bought it? When? And why didn’t you tell me?”
Brighton ran his hand through his hair and looked down at the corner of the porch. Maybe he should’ve told his brother about this place, but it had been nice having somewhere to hide when his bear got out of control.
“Is this where you disappear to when you leave for days on end?” Denison asked softly.
Brighton nodded once, then handed his alpha the letter he’d written. He didn’t have time to get bawled out by his brother. Everly needed help, and he was desperate for any advice they could offer. He trusted Denison and Tagan more than anyone on the planet. If anyone could help him figure this out, they could. Tagan opened the folded paper and read it silently. Denison wised up and read it over his shoulder, and when they were done, they both looked at him with the most shocked expressions he’d ever seen on either of their faces.
“You gotta girl in there?” Denison asked.
“Is she your mate?” Tagan asked low.
No , Brighton mouthed. I don’t think so. That didn’t feel right though, denying her. He shrugged, feeling utterly helpless. I don’t know.
“Well, that’s a yes,” Denison deadpanned.
Brighton narrowed his eyes and spun for the door. Bust his balls all they wanted to, but it didn’t change the fact that another shifter needed their help. And not just any shifter. She’d been claimed by Connor, who had been a member of the Ashe Crew. Everly would be a part of Tagan’s Crew if she survived whatever was happening to her. The quiet alpha who was following closely behind Brighton had a stake in her survival, too.
Tagan took one look at her pallid complexion and thin face and cursed.
Denison came in more slowly, nostrils flaring as he scented the air. “Her animal is barely there.”
The low growling sound rumbled past Everly’s lips, and she curled into herself, wrapping her arms around her waist.
“How long, Brighton?” Tagan asked.
Brighton held up six fingers.
Tagan’s eyebrows nearly touched his hairline and his sky blue eyes sparked. “Six weeks?”
Brighton shook his head and jerked his thumb toward the ceiling.
“Six months?” Denison asked.
She’s Connor’s claim , Brighton wrote on his notepad. She’s never shifted.
“That doesn’t even make sense,” Denison argued. “The shift takes place right away.”
Brighton bit his lip as he wrote, He Changed her without telling her anything. No warning, and just left afterward.
Tagan rolled his head backward and closed his eyes. “Fffuck.”
Can you help her?
Tagan read the note and shook his head. “Not if she’s seizing. I’ll be her alpha when she gets this under control, but I can feel her bear. Submissive as all get out. She won’t trust me. Not when she’s sick like this. I can try to force her out, but there’s the risk that her body will seize as soon as I attempt it. And from the looks of her, she can’t be doing that too many more times.”
“Why would Connor do this?” Denison looked green in the face as he knelt beside the bed and studied Everly. “I thought he was after Brooke.”
“Because he was a psychopath,” Tagan suggested. “And likely, Brooke distracted him away from Everly, right when she needed him to tell her what was happening. Did she say why he did
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