I swallowed roughly. We had to find her; there was just no other option.

Torin, who had clearly been waiting for me to respond to his declaration, shook his head and spun on the spot, storming out. In the wake of their departing alpha, Jos and Hench got to their feet to fulfill his orders. Thankfully, neither Mika nor Gerad fought back, the pair seemingly too broken to care about heading to the prison cells below.

I just hoped they had information to help guide the others in their search. Gerad said he had been conducting his own investigation—there had to be something he could tell them.

Hench closed the door behind them, leaving me alone in the room. I had so many questions still unanswered, but it felt like gears were finally turning. All I had to do was figure out where to put my time and attention.

My planning was interrupted as the door opened, and I looked up, half-expecting to find Torin back in my space again. Only it wasn’t.

An unfamiliar woman closed the door quickly, her gaze darting around as if ensuring we were alone before she focused on me.

“Uh, hello?” I said, getting to my feet. “Can I help you with something?”

She hurried closer, and I took a moment to pay attention to her. She was tall and statuesque, with perfect brown skin, deep, rich emerald eyes, and long, straight black hair.

Not black like Simone’s; it was closer to mine, with deep auburn undertones.

She was stunning. Model perfect. And there was no way she was a Torma local because I’d never forget a face like hers.

“Alpha Wolfe,” she said respectfully, half-bowing her head. “My—”

“Whoa, okay, I’m going to stop you right there.”

Her head shot up, the insanely long eyelashes framing her rich green eyes, caught my attention as she blinked at me.

“I’m Mera Callahan,” I told her. “Not Alpha Wolfe. Or any Wolfe.”

Torin would have done well to change his pretentious and frankly laughable family name, but of course he wouldn’t. Ego and all that.

She smiled, flashing near perfect white teeth that contrasted with the rich brown of her skin and hair. “My apologies. I’ve only been in the pack for a month or so, and in that time, you were always referred to as ‘the alpha-mate Wolfe.’”

My teeth clanked together, but I managed not to growl in this poor woman’s face. “Sorry we haven’t met up until now,” I said, reaching out a hand to shake hers. “I’ve been distracted with a personal matter, but I love seeing new blood in the pack.”

She grasped on to my hand with a firm grip, and there was a nice moment between us before she stepped away. “My name is Samantha Rowland, Sam, actually, and I’m sorry to track you down like this, but I saw you in town today. I work part-time shifts in Henry’s café, and there was talk of you asking about odd happenings around Torma recently.” She paused dramatically, and I barely managed not to shake the information from her. Thankfully, she continued without need for violence. “I think I found something you should look at.”

Holy fucking fuck. Was this my first genuine lead? My wolf bounced in my chest, and it was probably due to the jolt of intrigue and hope that blossomed inside us. The gossip of the main street was finally working in our favor.

“Can you show me now?” I asked, leaning closer as I worked to keep the excitement from my voice. Best not to scare her off yet.

She nodded, a flicker of curiosity in her face, but she didn’t ask me why I was so interested in weird shit around Torma. Probably figured it was an alpha thing.

“Of course,” she said. “My full-time job is as one of the new teachers in the pack school. This oddity is in a basement room, in the lower levels, and… honestly, you should see for yourself.”

Hell fucking yes, I should.

“Let’s go, new friend Sam,” I said, linking my arm through hers so I could get us out of this room fast. “While they’re all distracted.”

Distracted tracking down the most important person in my world, which gave me a chance to continue poking at the mystery of my missing two months. It was essential that I figured it out because I had an uneasy feeling, deep in my gut, that all of it was connected.

Me, Simone, my lost memories, and the new Torma I’d woken up to.

Sam and I made it out of the pack house without running into any other shifters. She was quiet at my side, but it wasn’t an awkward silence. Instead, it almost felt comforting. Like she was secretly supporting me without even realizing it.

When we got into her small white sedan, parked at the back of the lot, she wasted no time pulling onto the road toward the school. It was only a few miles away, but that was enough time to practice my rusty small talk. “How are you finding Torma?” I asked as she drove sedately. “Is everyone treating you well?”

She had both hands on the steering wheel, and it was clear she wasn’t a massive risk-taker because she never removed her eyes from the road to chat. “It’s been wonderful. I petitioned long ago to join Torma, starting from when my mate first rejected me, but it was always a no. And since my pack wouldn’t release me to any alpha weaker than theirs, it left me with very few options. For years, I lived in the same pack as my true mate, watching as he created a life with another. It was torture.”

For a second, I wondered if I’d misheard her. “Your true mate rejected you?”

She cleared her throat. “Yeah, a long time ago. I’m okay now, but it was pretty rough.”

“Yeah, I understand completely,” I breathed.

This caught her attention, and for a brief moment, she actually looked away from the road to meet my eyes. “You understand completely? But how? You’re mated to the alpha and everyone loves and respects you.”

The corners of her eyes pulled into sad lines, and I had the brief idea that she thought I was mocking her. With a shake of my head, I placed my hand on her arm. “When our bond was first realized, Torin rejected me. Quite brutally, actually.”

Sam blinked at me, seemingly as confused as I’d been about her words. “But… But you’re together now?”

I shook my head. “Kinda, not really. I can’t forgive and forget, and with my missing memories, let’s just say… There’s something rotten in Torma and I am not going to rest until I figure out what it is.”

She cleared her throat as she turned her focus back to the road. “I had no idea. The few times I’ve seen you around, you looked so confident and put-together. I figured you were one of those shifters living the fairytale pack life.”