My Wolf’s Bane(46)

“Nothing.” He jerked his head toward the front door. “We should get going.”

I pulled my sweater off the back of the couch, tied it around my waist, and led the way to the front door. On the way to his house, he was quiet. Too quiet. For someone so talkative earlier, it seemed odd. Why would he encourage me to come if he wasn’t going to talk to me?

I really needed to stop obsessing on him. We would all go out together, have fun, then go home and I’d get to the woods as fast as possible to work off my frustration.

When we arrived in Santa Monica, we went straight to the boardwalk and got ice cream, then took off our shoes and walked on the beach. It was pleasant and relaxing, even though Zack had almost nothing to say. Why the switch?

After a while, we got bored of the shops and piled into the Jeep.

“Bigger Burgers is up the street here.” Zack pointed ahead to his right.

Oh, yeah, that sounded good. I turned to face Trevor and Maya in the back seat, swallowing the excess saliva, so I could talk without showering them. “You guys hungry?”

“For Bigger Burgers? Always.” Maya grinned. “Those are so good.”

The restaurant didn’t have a drive-thru, which was extremely disappointing to me, since going inside took more time. Further, everything was made fresh, so I’d have to wait even longer. We went inside and the boys claimed a booth in the far corner. As expected, Trevor and Maya sat next to each other on one side, leaving Zack and me to sit together. At least this time the guys went in first, which allowed the girls the possibility of escape. Not that I was going anywhere. I wanted that burger.

A busboy stopped to see what we wanted to drink.

“We’re ready to order,” I said.

“We are?” Maya asked, her brows flying up.

Trevor blinked.

“Sorry.” I dropped my gaze to the table, heat rushing into my cheeks. “I’m hungry.”

Maya giggled. “I guess so.”

On my left, Zack zeroed in on me. “We just got here. We don’t even have menus yet.”

“Right.” I nodded, hoping our server would get to that soon.

After a few minutes, a young man delivered our drinks. An eternity later, a woman arrived, wearing an apron and holding a pen and small tablet.

I hadn’t seen the menu, but since it was a burger place, I didn’t need to. I already knew what I wanted. Holding myself back, so I didn’t seem like a starving lunatic, I waited until Maya gave her order. My foot swung back and forth under the table. Finally, it was my turn. “Double cheeseburger with everything and fries.”

I fidgeted, feeling Zack’s eyes riveted on me as he gave his order. Why was he staring? Being hungry wasn’t a crime.

Maya tended to her phone after a series of beeps. “Oh, my God,” she mumbled, furiously texting as more messages came in faster than she could reply. Minutes later, Maya closed her phone.

“Get this.” Her eyes enlarged and her tone grew solemn. “Daniel was attacked by a wolf last night and dragged into the woods. Police couldn’t find a body and no one’s seen him since.”

Silence settled around the table like a thick fog.

My stomach knotted. Just because Daniel was a monumental tool didn’t mean I wanted anything bad to happen to him. “How do they know it was a wolf?”

She gestured to her cell. “That was Janine who spoke to a friend who overheard her dad talking — who’s a cop. It’s true. Jeff made a report at the station.”

“That’s… hideous.” I gaped at Maya, not knowing what else to say.

“I never heard of wolves in the area. Coyotes maybe, but not wolves,” Trevor said. “Can anyone else backup Jeff’s story?”

“Not that I know of,” Maya said. “Apparently, it was only the two of them. Jeff said they were camping.”

“And drinking, no doubt.” Trevor’s mouth set in a hard line.

“Maybe Daniel wanted some alone time,” I said. “And Jeff was too drunk to remember where Daniel went, so he made up a story to save his own ass. Or maybe something else happened and Jeff is covering it up by blaming it on an animal.” I didn’t think it was a wolf to blame. Certainly not my wolf. He’d never attack a human or he would’ve already hurt me.

“What did the police say?” Zack asked.

“Jeff called them right away. By the time they got there, Daniel was long gone. They searched the woods and couldn’t find a body or any evidence of foul play. For now, they’re assuming it’s a prank and waiting to see if Daniel shows up.”

“His parents must be going nuts,” I said, thinking of Mr. and Mrs. Austin and what pain they must be going through with their son missing.