Sharp Change(37)

Hoping to buy some time, Sophia decided to ask the obvious question. “What happened to her?”

Tori seemed to gauge the sincerity of her question before she answered. “It was quite tragic, the story of my Nichola.”

Outwardly calm, Sophia screamed out for Chase in her mind, knowing he waited for her in the car and might not hear her in his human form. She hoped that even though the call would be faint, he’d still be able to sense something was wrong.

“She fell in love with a wolf. Oh, don’t look at me like you don’t know what I’m referring to. Your sister is married to one of them.” Tori spat the words as if they were burning her tongue in distaste.

“I’m sorry. I just don’t understand what you’re talking about,” she said, hoping the woman would elaborate on her bizarre tale.

“Well of course you wouldn’t, I haven’t told you the whole story yet. As I was saying, she fell in love with one of those wolf shifters. I tried to explain to her how dangerous those animals could be, but she refused to listen to me. She was obsessed with becoming one of them so she could be her lover’s mate. She turned to the wolf she fell in love with for help.” Her eyes grew distant. “Her entire life lay before her, and she wanted to waste it on that…that animal! The shifter bit her, but her body couldn’t handle the change and it killed her.”

“I’m…I’m so sorry for your loss.” She hoped Tori would put the gun down if she showed her some sympathy.

“Yes, well, it was a long time ago. Do you know the worst part? The animal, the sick bastard that killed her, went on to meet one of his own kind, mated her, and had a family, while I’ve been mourning the loss of my Nichola all these decades!” She yelled, her rage bubbling over.

“Oh my God.” Sophia sat completely still, unwilling to push the obviously disturbed woman over the edge and have her pull the trigger in her craze. “How…how long ago did this happen?”

“Forty years ago.” Tori’s enraged features made it seem like it had just happened.

“But, how old was she?” Sophia tried putting two and two together, only she was coming up with more than four.

“She was barely sixteen and still just a baby in my eyes.” The woman’s temper seemed to be cooling.

Sophia’s mind raced. She processed the information. “But…she couldn’t have been your daughter. You told me you’re sixty years old.”

Tori’s green eyes glowed with rage. “She wasn’t my daughter, she was my baby sister.”

Shocked speechless once again, Sophia was quiet on the outside while inwardly screaming out to Chase.

Tori lowered the gun. It pointed at the middle of Sophia’s chest.

“Those two young men in the pictures, they were her best friends before that wolf killed her. I’m sure you remember becoming acquainted with them recently.” Tori stood, continued to point the gun in Sophia’s direction and walked around her desk. Sophia wondered how she never noticed Tori’s insanity before.

Tori stopped in front of Sophia and motioned with the gun hand for her to stand. “Sadly, they weren’t as successful as they anticipated in retrieving those samples from you for me. Now that I have you here, you’re going to hand them over so I can finally put an end to the shape-shifting gene. Get up.”

Sophia stood and continued to fold her arms over her belly.

Tori cocked her head toward the door. “Let’s go down to that lab of yours and get those samples before I lose my patience.”

Sophia turned to walk to the lab, and the pointy steel was pushed into her back.





Chase was restless. His wolf was hounding him again. Pushing to take over and shift out of his skin. His hands gripped the steering wheel. He looked around the deserted parking lot.

Sophia was meeting with a facility director. After her meeting she was supposed to destroy the samples in storage and meet him back in the car. He glanced around and realized there were no other cars in the lot. Other than his SUV, the parking area was empty. Unease settled over him.

It was the end of the day, the sun was setting, and it was too goddamned quiet. He concentrated on calming his distressed animal until he recalled the last time that had happened. He decided not to wait around for Sophia.

Opening the door to walk into the facility, the urge to run and ensure her safety overwhelmed him. There was no guard at the entrance, which made his discomfort level rise. He followed Sophia’s scent down the hall.

He heard her soft voice. She was speaking to someone and heading toward her lab. Cautiously alert, he moved with the grace of the predator he was.