War of Hearts(38)

Her parents had loved her.

She clung to that. Always.

But it differed from romantic love. Thea wasn’t much for romance. She curled a lip at the thought. Nah. It wasn’t something she’d ever encountered or ever expected to even if she lived forever.

The sudden thought of eternity made her shudder, like always.

“She barely took her last breath when I challenged the wolf who killed her,” Conall continued. “I became alpha to the relief of the clan, but I was challenged many times. Remaining undefeated for so long finally settled things. There hasnae been a challenge to the leadership in four years.”

“You killed them all?”

“A wolf can give in during the challenge by showing his belly. It’s an act of submission. They leave the fight in dishonor, but they leave alive. I only had to kill a few. And only one of them left a parting gift.”

Her eyes flew to him and he turned to her, revealing the deep scar that scored his skin from the tip of his eyebrow to the corner of his mouth. He ran a thumb down the scar. “He used a silver blade before the shift.” He returned his attention to the road.

Thea curled her lip in disgust. “Cheating bastard.”

Conall gave a snort of laughter. “Aye. But I was stronger than him.”

“You won. Obviously.”

“Aye, but not just because I was stronger.” His expression was hard, fierce. “I won because I care more. All he wanted was power and money. I want to protect my pack. The pack is everything to me. Family is everything to me. I’ll never stop protecting what’s important to me, even if I have to die doing it.”

Thea stared at him, transfixed for a moment.

If his vow didn’t mean handing her over to the worst piece of scum who ever lived, Thea would admire the heck out of the wolf for his passionate dedication.

“And word reached the supernatural community of my ability to track.” Conall shot her a pointed, challenging look. “Few people want to piss off a wolf who can find you wherever you hide.”

“Hence why I’m stuck with you.” She shot him a dirty look and leaned her elbow on the door. Resting her chin in her palm, Thea watched the cars and the German countryside pass by. “Are the Highlands as beautiful as they look in pictures?”

Conall was silent so long, she turned to see if he’d heard her question.

He glanced at her, something warm in his eyes, a little curl to the corner of his mouth that caused an inexplicable feeling of nervousness in her stomach. “Lass, my Loch Torridon holds a beauty unlike anything you’ve ever seen.”

Another flutter of nerves unsettled her as she realized she wanted to see it. She wanted to visit the place that could crack Conall MacLennan’s ice-cold facade and put that too-attractive boyish wonder in his eyes.

Remembering she would see it when he handed her over to Ashforth killed the stupid fluttering, and she yanked her eyes from his to stare out the window. “I wonder if there’ll be a window in my Scottish prison cell. I’d so hate to miss out on the scenery.”

The car filled with immediate tension she didn’t understand until Conall bit out in irritated dryness, “You’re a wee bit optimistic, Thea Quinn.”

She frowned. “How so?”

His eyes hardened. “You killed his wife. I doubt you’ll live long enough to see a prison cell once I hand you over.”

Years-old grief sliced into her gut. God, he was an idiot. She laughed bitterly and turned away, suppressing the urge to tell him that death would be a blessing over what Ashforth intended for her.

Silence fell between them again and this time Thea let it. She decided she couldn’t even feign friendship with an asshole who couldn’t see Ashforth for what he really was. The guy was holding his sister captive in exchange for Thea’s blood, for God’s sake! Did that not clue Conall in, even a little?

Werewolves.

More brawn than brain.

The thick tension that had fallen between them felt suffocating in its silence, but Thea was too pissed to engage him in any further conversation.

She guessed they were around thirty minutes outside Dresden when she felt a warning tingle on the back of her neck. Her heart began to race, and that familiar feeling of dread settled in her gut.

Oh shit.

She glanced in her wing mirror, eyes dancing over the cars behind them. A black sedan that weaved in and out of the fast lane in the distance caught her attention.

“Wolf Boy.”

“If you expect me to answer to that, you’ve got another thing coming.”

“Fine. Wolf Dude, we’re being followed.”

Conall shot her a look of surprise. “What makes you say that?”

“Call it a hunch.” The sedan was getting closer. “Black sedan. Czech license plate.”

He glared into the rearview mirror. “You’re sure?”

“You know how you have that creepy smelling talent?”

Conall’s low growl almost made Thea laugh.

“Well, I have a talent for sensing when I’m in deep shit.” She turned around to stare out the back window and saw the black sedan getting closer. “And I’m sensing a huge pile of manure heading my way.”

“How the fuck did they find us?” He hit the gas pedal and swung out into the fast lane to overtake.