Grace of a Wolf by Lenaleia

Chapter 33: Grace: So Easy

Leaving pack lands is laughably easy with Andrew by my side, and I can’t help but wonder if he’s laughing at me in his head for overreacting to his blacked-out getup.

There’s no one around to care, much less notice us.

The dented blue Toyota looks like freedom on four wheels. It’s just one of the many cars parked here, but it’s my gateway to a new life.

"Do you have the keys?" I ask, standing by the locked passenger door.

Andrew dangles them from his finger. "What, you think I’d walk us out here without them?"

He slides into the driver’s seat, and I fold myself into the passenger side. The seats are clean and well-maintained, and it smells like French fries inside.

"There’s a blanket in the back seat, if you want it."

A blanket in this weather? But I realize why he offers when he cranks the AC as high as it goes. Once it kicks in, I’m going to turn into a human ice cube.

When Andrew turns the key in the ignition, my heart stops, wondering if someone’s going to come running and ask why we’re in the car.

But no one comes.

I’m still tired from Rafe waking me up earlier, but napping isn’t an option. Gripping my seat belt, I stare out the window with wide eyes, intent on watching every minute.

I’m in the car because it’s the easiest way out of the Blue Mountain Pack’s territory, but there’s still no guarantee Andrew isn’t going to deliver me straight into the hands of Ellie’s father. There’s a point when the rural road leading to pack lands joins with the highway; if he goes left, he’s taking me to Forest Springs.

Right? Sterling City.

Andrew’s profile gives nothing away. The moonlight catches on the angles of his face, shadows pooling beneath his cheekbones. After the past few days, he looks suddenly very young to me. Much younger than Caine or the Lycan Beta, and with only a fraction of their confidence.

His fingers tap an uneven rhythm against the steering wheel. Is that nervousness? Guilt? Or just a habit?

Paranoia blooms in the silence of our ride, not even broken by the radio. I guess Andrew prefers to drive in silence.

The closer we get to the highway, the tighter the grip on my seatbelt. My breath catches in my throat. I’ve prepared myself for the worst—to fling myself from the moving car if necessary.

passed,

turn signal clicks.

Sterling City.

rush. My shoulders drop an inch as we

glances over. "You

I see the boy I grew up with, not the wolf who’d snarled at me in the

believe we’ve

you, everyone’s busy. The Alpha succession

Even if someone’s looking for us, it won’t be easy to

falls between us

are you

eyes on the road. "You really

wouldn’t ask

a long exhale that seems to deflate him. "Because what they did to you was

for the lie.

I didn’t

have to. It was

mouth twists. "It wasn’t about liking or not liking

what was it

shoulders rise and fall. "Does it matter

how

hums beneath us. A semi-truck passes in the opposite direction, its headlights briefly illuminating the car’s interior in harsh white light. I catch the conflict on Andrew’s face

because Rafe asked me to," he finally says. "In the

"What? Why would he—"

He says it casually, like commenting on the weather, but his grip on the steering wheel tightens. "Back when you first

still water, ripples of implication spreading outward. I struggle to reorganize my memories around this new information, trying

"You’re lying."

escapes him. "It wasn’t a big deal. Just a stupid crush. But Rafe..." His voice hardens. "Rafe

when I entered, the careful

could have

have been the point? You only