Free Trent: Her Warlock Protector Book 7 by Hazel Hunter Page A

but it stung that she couldn’t share her greatest fears. Maybe normal women had that issue too. Elaine guessed she’d never know. Grabbing up her purse, she hurried back into the house and wrote a quick note before rushing over to campus. She could get her car and be at the farm within the hour. She’d still be late, but maybe turning into a wolf could be considered extenuating circumstances.
    Sorry I was late. I turned into a giant dog and then had the best sex of my life.
    That’d go over well.

    • • • • •

    When she hopped out of her truck, the first thing she noticed was the smell. The tang of copper was thick and heavy in the air, so dense that even a normal human would have noticed it. Blood. A lot of it. The second thing her sensitive nose was able to discern was the familiar scent, the musk and sweat of Rainstone.
    He’d bled.
    Running full out, she rushed into the stables and into the set of a horror film. There were sheriff’s deputies everywhere and animal control too, their insignia embroidered on their khaki suits. Most of the horses had been moved out of the stable, but what was left made her bend over and retch. May, an old spotted Appaloosa, was lying on the main floor of the barn. It looked like she’d managed to kick her way out of her stall but hadn’t gotten any farther. Her throat was torn and the white of her fur stained crimson with the blood that had crusted there. Her eyes had glazed over and flies were already hovering on them.
    “My god, what happened?”
    Floyd was the first one to come to her. He separated himself from the farm owner and gave her a hug.
    “There was a wild animal attack.”
    She blinked. That didn’t make sense. They were in Birmingham. It wasn’t like there were bears around or wolves–– except there were .  
    Taking a deep breath, she forced her senses to dig deeper than just the scent of blood. That coppery stench was so pervasive that it was gagging her throat. Underneath the arterial spray, though, was something distinct, something her brain would have picked up immediately if she wasn’t reeling with the blood.
    Wolf .
    A large male wolf had been here.
    Elaine clung tighter to Floyd, desperate to use his solid frame to steady her. What she was feeling just couldn’t be true. It didn’t make a damn lick of sense.
    “Is there anyone else hurt but May?”
    He pushed her back a bit and squeezed her shoulder, his concerned eyes boring into her own.  
    “They’re looking for the wolf. We’ve had the cops here for hours, and the animal control team is already scouting the surrounding area. Everyone’s doing everything they can.”
    Her breath stilled. “That’s not what I asked. I know they have to be trying, but I wanted to know if we lost any other horses?” Floyd looked down at his boots, and he was clearly hesitating before answering. It was all the confirmation she needed. “Not Rainstone, please!”
    “I’m sor–”
    She didn’t even let him finish, just broke away from him and ran to Rainstone’s stall. Unlike May, he hadn’t been able to make even an attempt at an escape. Maybe the wolf had caught him asleep or maybe it had cut off his access to the stall door. Either way, the blood was everywhere, dripping down the walls. His body had been covered by a horse blanket, but she could still see where some of his intestines were strewn across the hay.
    Elaine retched again, this time only bile.
    Trembling, she sat down hard, just outside the stall. Floyd brought her a blanket. It was ninety degrees outside in the fading summer, and she couldn’t stop shaking. A strong arm wrapped around her shoulders and it took a while for her to realize that he was rocking back and forth with her.  
    “Elaine, is there anything I can do?”
    “I…who found them?”
    “I did. I came in at five to clean the stalls like usual and prep for the massive leather throw out. I called the cops as soon as I saw everything.”
    “Did you see the