Wolf Girl (Wolf Girl, #1)(18)

“Hello, son.” He looked at Sawyer and then at me, eyes widening a little. “You look just like your mother,” he breathed.

Whoa. I’d forgotten he knew her. I just gulped, clutching the silver stake in my fist.

“What do they want?” Sawyer asked. “How many are there?” He rocked on his heels as if ready to go into battle.

The alpha continued to look at me quizzically. “There are only two and they want a private word with our newest student, Demi.”

A stone sank in my gut. “Uh … what?” I gulped, blinking rapidly and wondering if I heard him correctly.

Sawyer frowned, looking at me. “How do they know you?”

My heart was beating so loudly in my ears that I barely heard his question. Why the fuck did they want to talk to me? The case was closed. I dropped the rape case and they dropped their murder case. What happened to me was private and I would only share it with people when I saw fit. This was not something I wanted to share with Sawyer or his father right now.

“I dunno,” I lied.

Seeming happy with my answer, Sawyer turned to his father. “You can tell them to fuck off. They aren’t going near her.”

My eyebrows hit my hairline at the same time his father’s did.

“Sawyer, you’re training to be my replacement, remember?” His voice was stern. “You can’t tell diplomats from other cities to fuck off.”

Sawyer nodded. “You’re right, Father. I’ll tell them myself.” Then he strode off down the hallway.

I stood there shocked as his father and the two dozen guards trailed after him. When I made a move to follow, Eugene’s hand snaked out and gently grabbed my wrist. “Best to stay out of that one.”

Eugene and the rest of Sawyer’s guards went after him as I stood there with a silver stake in my hand, completely and totally confused.

Why would the vampires take an interest in me after so long? How did they even know I was here?

I mean, there was the matter of the three dead vampire bodies…

The vampire coven leader had said that it looked like a wolf had attacked them. When my parents threatened to go to the Council of Supernatural Creatures about the rape, they let it go. I should be happy that some savior had crashed into that room when I blacked out and killed three of my four attackers … but all I could think about was the fourth.

Vicon Drake lived on to tell the tale, and would inherit the royal crown when he came of age.

Meanwhile, I was left behind to live with my demons, demons he put inside of me.





I couldn’t think all through lunch. I didn’t want to see Sage, or Sawyer, or anyone, so I used my handy tablet and had food delivered to the library, where I was hiding out. After munching on chicken fingers, truffle fries, and chocolate cake, I went to the rest of my classes, lacking my previous enthusiasm.

Why would the vampires say they wanted to talk to me? How the hell did they know I was here? I mean, they knew my name, so I guess if they kept tabs on the admissions department here they would see that Demi Calloway had enrolled … but why care? Five years had gone by since I’d had to speak to the vampire council about the incident and my coming here wouldn’t have changed any of that…

Right?

I’d nearly eaten a hole in my stomach with anxiety by the time the gala rolled around. I’d stayed out all day, avoiding seeing Sage or Sawyer until I absolutely had to. And now that the gala was an hour away, I made my way into the dorm to find a gift box on my doorstep. With a grin, I picked it up and looked at the dry-erase note board that hung on my front door. Sage had scrawled a note.



Knock when you get home. – Sage



I sighed, not wanting her to ask questions about the vampire thing. Hopefully news hadn’t spread that they came looking for me. Somehow the alpha and Sawyer didn’t strike me as the gossiping type, but still, his guards might…

Reaching out, I knocked on her door and she yanked it open. “Where the hell have you been?” she questioned.

Before I could answer, her eyes flew to the gift in my arms. “Is that from my cousin?”

I jumped at the topic change. “I think so. Wanna help me open it?”

She nodded and then followed me into my room. “So I got this new eyeshadow palette that I think would look bomb tonight with that gown you bought. Want me to do your make-up?”

I nodded. “Sure, that would be great.”

She frowned as I set the gift on the coffee table.

“Hey, you okay? Was it the vampire thing? I mean, that shook us all up. I haven’t heard the war sirens in … forever. It was kind of scary.”

Okay … she didn’t seem like she knew they were here for me, that was more of a general statement.

I nodded. “Yeah, kinda crazy.”

She reached out and slung an arm around my shoulders. “Don’t worry, they know we change alphas every twenty or so years. They are just fucking with Sawyer. Keeping him on his game.”

Yeah, that wasn’t it at all, but I played along.

She pulled her arm from my shoulders and plucked the note from the top of the box, reading aloud.

“Can you really even call yourself a photographer without a fancy camera? Sawyer.”

Camera?

He didn’t…?