12| SAFFRON.

I jump out of the Ute, the door slamming shut behind me with a resounding thud.

My fingers drum irritably against the bottom of my packet of cigarettes, a familiar ritual that always calms my nerves.

And right now, my nerves feel like they are shot with restlessness.

I whack the bottom of my packet against the palm of my hand while I look out into the crowd that continues to form around Blaze.

He's taken it upon himself to courageously explain everything that has taken place in our absence.

Like, the death of our Alpha.

The finding of our mate, with the shocking discovery that she is our enemy and somehow, destined to be our saving grace.

All rolled up into one curvacious being with a sharp tongue that stings like a silver whip, laced with spikes and wolfsbane.

Not to mention that our mate's mother was the witch that damned us all to hell.

How we fought spellbound wolves and still have one gagged and tied up in the cargo of the Ute for Lily to punish herself.

Oh, and not forg