Blood Moon Harvest (Seasons of the Moon) by SM Reine Read Free Book Online Page B

said. “I love Seth.”
    Abel grabbed her chin, forcing her to look up at him. “You can keep telling yourself that, but it doesn’t change anything.”
    “I’m leaving with him.”
    “But you’ll be back for me,” he said.
    “No.” Her protest was weak.
    But wasn’t that true? How could she stay away from her pack?
    How could she stay away from her Alpha?
    The thought rose to the surface, totally unbidden, and she couldn’t shake it once it crossed her mind. Abel wasn’t Alpha. She was Alpha.
    “I’m sorry,” Rylie said one last time, stepping away from him. “I shouldn’t have come here. Take care of the pack.”
    And then she ran out of his room, away from Abel, away from the heat of his lips on hers.
    But she couldn’t escape the memory of his kiss.

N INE
    Lost Chapters
    Rylie was already sitting in the passenger’s seat of the Chevelle when Seth joined her. She had her knees hugged to her chest as she stared out the window.
    Yasir met him at the car, carrying a binder under one arm. “You need to let us know if you find Cain before we do,” the commander said.
    Seth nodded reluctantly. He didn’t want to call the Union in for anything he didn’t have to, but it was hard to deny their usefulness. “You’ll be the first to hear about it.”
    Yasir handed him an earpiece—the same one worn by every member of the Union. “The button on the side goes directly to me. Don’t lose it.” He hesitated, and then also handed the binder to Seth. “It took a while to requisition, but I finally got a complete copy of your father’s book from Union HQ. This is all we have. I hope it has the answers you want.”
    “Thank you.”
    They clasped each other’s forearms, and with a short nod, Yasir left to escort the rest of the pack to California.
    Seth climbed into the Chevelle, set the binder in the back seat, and started the engine.
    “Ready to go?” he asked Rylie.
    She nodded silently.
    Rylie was unusually quiet on the long drive out of town. Seth waited an hour before trying to strike up a conversation, but she only responded by shaking her head or nodding. And when he asked if she wanted to take a break, she just shrugged.
    Seth pulled into a gas station parking lot to buy a soda. He hesitated before getting out. “Is something wrong, Rylie?”
    She glanced at him. Ducked her head. “No.”
    Rylie was a horrible liar. The truth was written all over her face: she was freaking out about something, and it was killing her.
    Seth glanced down at her right hand. The moonstone glimmered on her finger.
    “Do you want anything to eat?” he asked.
    She shrugged again.
    Seth left her in the car while he bought a soda for himself and a green tea for Rylie.
    When he returned, she was still staring out the window without acknowledging him. Her arms were folded tightly across her chest and her cheeks were pink.
    Seth kept driving.
    Another two hours passed. Two long, boring hours with nothing to do but stare at the asphalt.
    The air was cool with autumn’s chill. Most of the trees were caught between summer and fall, with half of their leaves a dull shade of green, and the other half shimmering gold. The trees became more dense as they moved north, and then turned sparse again as they passed through a city. Nothing waited on the other side but plains.
    “Let’s trade,” Rylie said at the next rest stop. She hadn’t touched her tea.
    While she drove, Seth read the binder that Yasir had given him. He flipped through the pages one by one.
    He had been drilled on werewolf hunting procedure using that manual a thousand times, and Seth knew the rules by memory.
    Be careful when verifying a suspected werewolf. Double-check all of your sources.
    Look for a history of crime, mental illness, and especially domestic violence. Werewolves are unstable and struggle to integrate into society.
    Make sure that the werewolf is who you think they are before killing them.
    Don’t kill them when they don’t have four legs