Shattered Pack (Alpha Girl 6)

Since I couldn’t say thanks, I did the next best thing. As we walked into the Nordstrom, I waved around the shoe department. “Whatever you want, it’s on me.”

Cosette grinned. “I’ll take you up on that. I’ve been eyeing a pair of Louboutin cage sandals that are to die for.”

Good thing I still had my father’s credit card. “God. Why haven’t we gone shopping together before?”

“Because we were hunting a psychotic witch. But I knew from your stash of magazines that this would be a true pleasure.”

I cracked my knuckles. “Let’s do some damage.”

Two hours later, shoe boxes were piled around us. We were making a mess, but I didn’t care. I had a few pairs I was for sure getting, and a couple of maybes. I was trying on a pair of Kate Spade booties that I was dying over. “What do you think?”

Cosette glanced up from a pile of K Jacques. “Do they have a zip?”

“No.” They had laces with a buckle around the ankle, but no hidden zip.

“How quickly can you get out of them?”

“What?”

“If you needed to shift?”

That was a fantastic point. I’d never had to think about shifting in random scenarios. At least not until Luciana. Now, with all the problems we’d had… I tried toeing a shoe off, but it didn’t work. I had to unbuckle and then pull them off. “This is so sad.”

Cosette walked off and came back with another pair. “These. Get these.”

The boots were made of the most gorgeous chocolate leather. A zip with red accents went up the length, and they had some flex in the toe, which meant they’d be okay to run in. Not the best, but doable. “Done.”

My phone buzzed.

Micah: We’re coming to get you in ten. Check out.

I sighed. “Looks like fun is over for today. Brothers are heading this way.” I motioned to the guy helping us and handed over my card and my pile of trophies. ?

?These. And whatever she wants.” One of the other salesmen rushed over to help gather up all the boxes. It was quite the bounty.

“There! That’s the werewolf.”

I spun. The girl who’d spit out her gum earlier was standing by the rack of sale shoes, and this time she wasn’t alone. She easily had ten friends with her. And more people were heading toward us through the makeup counters. The gum girl had her phone out, recording. With my luck, she was probably streaming. This was a disaster.

Cosette’s face went ghostly pale. “I’m in so much trouble.”

I looked around, trying to find a way out. “Can Van get you out of here?”

“Not with this many people. We can’t get caught on tape again.”

She was right. The crowd was getting bigger by the second, and they all had their phones out now. “Shit. We’re going to end up on the news again.”

Cosette closed her eyes and let out a long breath. When she opened them, she looked resigned. “Can you get out if I take the fall?”

I could outrun humans—even a mob like this one—but I wasn’t leaving Cosette behind to deal with the mess. I glanced around, hoping an idea would come. Then it hit me. There was a way I could help. “Follow me.”

I took off running, feeling only a minimal sting as I left my shoes and credit card behind. I’d take care of them later. Cosette wouldn’t be here if it weren’t for me. I had to make this right.

We darted through racks of clothes. The crowd was yelling behind us. I had the urge to dump a rack of clothes to slow them down, but I didn’t want to cause any damage on purpose. It was another thing if it happened accidentally. A crash sounded behind me, and I didn’t look back.

I hit the escalator and sprinted up, trusting Cosette to follow.

“Up? Shouldn’t we be going down to the exit?”