Chapter 62


    GRACE


    There are so many things about the ident that don’t add up.


    Yes, I’d argued with Lily and I’d been furious over how she’d attacked and killed my grandfather. She


    imed that he had trespassed on her pack’snds, but that’s a lie.


    My grandfather ran only a handful of paths and they were all strictly on his own grounds. He didn’t trust


    surveince or the prospect of discovery.


    In his age, wolves barely interacted with humans. They certainly wouldn’t mingle with them or do all


    these mergers, ingratiating themselves into human society all with an eye toward financial gain.


    In this, he wasn’t entirely right.


    The world is changing too quickly.


    Material ? of N?velDrama.Org.


    Wolves— all wolves— would have to adapt.


    Protecting our way of life would take knowledge and power and resources. It’s why I’d set out to


    be an attorney in the first ce.


    Lily swore that my grandfather trespassed and they were within their rights to attack him. If that is true,


    then something would’ve made him go there. I wonder to this day what that might have been.


    After he died…I was blind with rage. I admit that.


    But I’d only intended to confront Lily. To get the truth from her.


    As my grandfather taught me, I would have challenged her, wolf to wolf.


    With honor.


    He would’ve been proud of that, I think.


    Although knowing him and his focus of protecting me at all costs… he likely would have preferred I let


    his death go unavenged.


    In my case, he would have been right.


    Somehow in speeding to catch up with Lily after she took off in the sports car with her sister Jennifer,


    we had crashed.


    I don’t understand why Jennifer''s car had been rushing toward me.


    What’s even more confusing…all of the eye witness reports, the statements all target me as the one at


    fault.


    But how could that be?


    Admittedly, the ident had been traumatic and some of the details surrounding the investigation that


    followed were still murky. I’d been in shock.


    I lost a lot of blood. I was inundated with human medical professionals so shifting was out of the


    question.


    It was the same with Lily and Jennifer.


    Although I’m told Jennifer died on impact. It severed her spine making regeneration impossible.


    For the life of me I can’t understand how there was so much security or camera footage—and yet none


    on the street where we crashed. Almost every street in the city had some kind of traffic camera. And


    the people who’d been witnesses, they’d all had the exact same version of events.


    But as an attorney, I know that rarely happened either. People always had different perceptions, based


    on their physical position in rtion to a crime, their age, sex, and perspective.


    Even something as simple as running a traffic light could be interpreted in different ways, depending on


    who you asked.


    Could it have been something else entirely?


    Jennifer had been about to marry Jason Reed, the highest ranking Alpha on this entire seaboard. She


    had been in the prime of her life and there had been no reason for her to want tomit suicide by


    crashing into a car.


    “Grace, do you want to appeal the case?" Jay asks.


    He’s been staring at me this whole time and I’ve been lost in my own thoughts.


    “Somehow, I don’t think that will do me much good.” Iugh self-deprecatingly. "I just feel a little


    unreconciled. I know I’m innocent, so it’s hard for me to let it go.”


    Jason grunts.


    “Besides,” I say, closing the folder. “It’s not easy to overturn a case. I''m out now. I should be thankful for


    that and just look forward. No one ever said life would be fair, right?"


    I put away the documents.


    But when I turn back, Jay isn’t Jay.


    He’s in his true form.


    His huge dark wolf is watching me with sharp yellow eyes.


    “Well, hello,” I tell him. I ruffle his fur and scratch behind his ears. “It’s good to see you again.”


    I move toward the bed and sit on the floor instead, knowing that Jay won’te up on the mattress.


    He curls up beside me and rests his head in myp.


    His fur is so soft and his body is so warm.


    It’sforting, sitting here with Jay like this.


    It’s a tie to the life I left behind. It reminds me of home. Or my mom and grandfather and all the many


    wonderful things I took for granted growing up.


    In this moment, I vow I won’t take things for granted anymore.


    Jay makes a low rumbling sound.


    “You needed to run, didn’t you…I could tell you were angry when I came home.” I stroke along his


    nk. “After the disaster with the dumpster the other day, this apartment probably needs a bit more


    airing out.”


    His wolf head swings to mine in a decisive head shake.


    “Well okay then.”


    I wrap my arm around him. “I’m d you’re here,” I whisper.


    I mean it both for the wolf and the man.


    I wonder how long he will stay for…