Headlights Returned… and So Did the Men Who Left Her
About twenty minutes later, headlights cut through the fog.
Mara’s shivering had stopped—never a good sign.
Her consciousness flickered like a dying flame.
The truck that pulled to a stop was familiar.
Caleb Hartman had come back.
He stepped out slowly and surveyed the scene.
A ring of wolves around Mara’s body.
Not feeding.
Not attacking.
Guarding.
Caleb’s eyes narrowed.
Then calculation replaced surprise.
“This works even better,” he said quietly, reaching for a rifle in the truck bed.
“We say we came back because we heard wolves.”
“Tragic timing.”
Noah stepped forward, horror plain on his face.
“Caleb, stop. They’re protecting her.”
Caleb chambered a round.
“Wolves don’t protect people,” he snapped. “They eat them.”
Sirens wailed in the distance—faint at first, then climbing fast.
Caleb’s jaw tightened as his timeline collapsed.
“If she lives, we’re done,” he hissed. “I’m not letting that happen.”
The first shot cracked through the air.
Iris leapt.
The bullet struck her shoulder.
She dropped hard into the snow beside Mara.
Something ancient and terrible rippled through the pack.
The protective circle shattered, then reformed with lethal intent.
Deputies burst onto the scene moments later—guns raised, voices shouting, chaos unfolding faster than reason.
Caleb lifted the rifle again.
This time, he didn’t get the chance.
Gunfire erupted.
Caleb went down.
The wolves froze—then retreated as one.
They dragged Iris into the trees before anyone could stop them.
And Mara…
Mara slipped away.
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