Hungry Like a Wolf (Claws Clause 1)

“First you have to find Evangeline. I know. While I was waiting for you to get here, I’ve been trying to figure out what to do next. I’ll do anything I can to help you.”

“If I ever find her.” Maddox exhaled. All of his adrenaline rushed out with his breath.

Suddenly the weight of his expectations, the strenuous run to Colt’s Bumptown, and, of course, the disastrous visit to the D.P.R. came crashing down on him. He grabbed one of the wooden chairs waiting to be stained, dragged it closer to him, and sank down into it.

Hanging his head, Maddox rubbed the ruined skin around his throat.

Colt froze.

Staring across the workroom over at Maddox, the sight of his brother slumped in the chair disturbed him. The pose was too eerily similar to the way Maddox reacted while he was still in the Cage. Colt immediately pushed his own troubles and the nagging pain in his stupid ankle away as he perched on the edge of the stool closest to Maddox.

It was easy to fall back into the old routine, Colt the savior trying to draw some sort of positive reaction out of Maddox.

“We talked yesterday, when they said they were letting you out as soon as the release came through. There was no if. What changed, Maddox?”

Defeated. That was the only way Colt could describe the way Maddox sounded as he told him about his disastrous trip to the D.P.R., including the lustful clerk, the strict supervisor, and the tangle of red tape that meant that no one at the agency was going to give Maddox any information about Evangeline beside the fact that she was alive, unbonded, and still used her maiden name. Maddox refused to delve too deeply into his hellish hours there, but Colt knew his brother well enough to be able to read between the lines.

“That’s bullshit. I can’t believe they can pull that and get away with it.”

“Believe it. The D.P.R. was no help at all. Seems like I didn't need to show my bonding license to go into the Cage but, without it, they won't tell me where to find Evangeline.”

“Fucking Claws Clause,” snarled Colt. “I told you you should've signed the bonding license before the marriage license.”

He had. A hundred times before the accident and probably a thousand more since Maddox had been incarcerated. But Evangeline was human and had human values and human beliefs. Maddox was so eager to do things her way to make his mate happy. His brother had no doubt that she felt the bond just as deeply as he had. And while Evangeline had said she recognized that claiming was even more final than marriage to a shifter, she had point-blank refused to be legally bonded before she was legally wed.

So Maddox brought her to the courthouse and married her. Getting the bonding license notarized in a Bumptown was an afterthought. The honeymoon was supposed to come first—but they never made it to the cabin.

“Yeah, well, hindsight’s a bitch,” admitted Maddox. “Coulda, woulda, shoulda. Now I got to find her the old-fashioned way.”

“Nose to the dirt?”

“And paw to the pedal.”

“Take my truck,” Colt offered. “You’re going to need wheels to get around, and I can use my delivery van if I have to head out of town. Unless you want me to try tracking Evangeline again. I can put any orders on hold for a couple of days, no big deal.”

Maddox was his brother, his packmate, and the man who would be his Alpha as soon as their father handed the pack over to him. He would do whatever he could to help him.

Considering it was partially his fault that Maddox was missing his mate, he would do so gladly.

Maybe then fate would finally quick taking potshots at him.

Maddox’s head jerked up.

He felt the little hairs on the back of his ruined neck stand at attention. Something… something wasn’t right. He could tell. Without the silver collar dulling his senses, he was finally picking up on it. Colt was a pro at hiding what he was thinking, what he was feeling, but Maddox was his brother.

Something definitely wasn’t right.

Like the calm before the storm, something was brewing within Colt. His brother was doing a damn good job shielding it from Maddox and his wolf, but that right there roused his suspicions more than anything else—even more than when Colt lost his head before and nearly invoked a challenge.

Colt had a lot going for him, but while he was loyal to a fault, this sudden bout of generosity wasn’t like him. Maddox knew he was taking Colt’s truck—he just expected to have to pull rank to get it. And putting orders on hold? Colt’s work was his life. He was the best brother a guy could ask for, but he wasn’t a fucking saint. Something was off and right after he finally cemented his bond with Evangeline, he was going to do whatever he had to to find out what.

When Maddox didn’t push, Colt relaxed just enough for Maddox to take note. Before he could change his mind, Colt reached into his pants pockets, pulled out his keys, and tossed them at him.

“For the truck,” Colt said.

Maddox looked at the keys in his palm. He peered up at Colt, cocked his head. “Were you serious when you said you’d help me?”

“Whatever you need, it’s yours. I’ll do whatever I can to help. I know what she means to you.” A strange expression flashed across Colt’s face. Maddox never got the chance to try to read it. Seconds later, Colt’s usual glower was back in place.