Chapter Seven

I knew that Chris was bored, but I hadn't left the house in a week and it was exciting for me seeing all these American shops I'd never heard of. Chris pretty much just followed me around the mall, explaining the dollars to pounds exchange rate, and then carrying the bags. When I noticed he was ridiculously bored, I promised one more shop but that ended up becoming six, before we stopped for lunch.

Chris took my numerous bags back to the car, as I waited for him in a nice Italian restaurant. I nibbled on olives and breads with oil, as I browsed the menu. As I ordered a glass of wine I noticed someone outside the restaurant watching me. I paused, seeing the large stature and the ridiculously muscled arms and knew instantly it was Vic.

"Save the table for me for a moment" I said the waitress, probably a little more curtly than I needed. As I stood up, my gaze flew back to the window. Vic was gone. I blinked, shocked how anyone could move that fast, before frowning. Why was he following me? He was a murderer – a child criminal at that – had he was following me. He'd invited me to Yellowstone, alone with him, and now he was following me when I went shopping.

Fear twisted my gut, but in knowledge that Chris would be back in a moment, I rushed outside. I glanced around at the other shoppers, trying to find Vic in the crowd but couldn't. I inhaled deeply, searching for his distinct scent. When we first met I had noted how distinctive his scent had been – a mix of forest and pine with an edge of spice. I couldn't pick up the scent at all, even as I walked over to the place he had been standing, but there was no trace of him. No trace of that scent that I wouldn't be able to miss.

I was obviously wrong, someone who had looked like Vic had glanced into the restaurant – vaguely looked in my direction – and I'd freaked out. I'd been mistaken. Vic wasn't around here and he wasn't following me. I was obviously worried because Vic was a killer. But, Brett had promised me that it was an isolated incident and there was no chance of it happening again. And I trusted Brett.

I went back into the restaurant and a few minutes later Chris joined me. "Hey" I grinned at him, as he slipped into the chair opposite me. His blonde hair was swept backwards and his blue eyes glistened at me as he smiled. Chris was goofy – reminding me of the class clown that would never get in trouble for his cheekiness because everyone loved him.

Chris kept me laughing all the way through lunch, but I still felt uncomfortable. I couldn't get over the fact that I thought I saw Vic spying on me. Thinking of the man, I knew that I needed to ask some questions about him. "Tell me about Victoro" I blurted, as Chris as I finished eating lunch.

My new brother-in-law paused for a few minutes before nodding. "Brett told you about him being a prisoner right?"

"Yeah and he told me he murdered your uncle. But I wanted to know about him? Do you think he's dangerous? Brett says no...but he's a murderer...so I just don't know what to think".

"He's not dangerous but he's a lying son of a bitch" Chris snorted unattractively. I raised an eyebrow in intrigue, pushing for him to go on. "Last year a girl was found dead on the border of our territory. Some hiker that got lost coming out of Yellowstone and drifted our way. Some creep obviously found her injured and upset and he...well I won't give you the details, but he is one sick son-of-a-bitch whoever he was".

"How do you know it was a guy who killed her?" I frowned.

"Did some sick shit to her before he killed her" he explained vaguely, I got the fact that he meant rape and I cringed in disgust. "Anyway, Vic was the one who found the girl. Said he chased the guy off but he got away. Then he starts telling people it was me!"

"You?" I screwed up my face. Chris was the last person I would pin as a killer.

"I know right. Fucking crazy! But he kept telling everyone, including my father when he was Alpha, that it was me who murdered this girl. Lying bastard. I wasn't even in Montana at the time. But he's sure it was me. I mean yeah I liked women, but I ain't a sicko".

"You think that Vic was actually the killer?"

"Nah, doubt it. I know they always say it's the last person you suspect, but it ain't him. Guy killed my uncle because he was a scared kid, that's it. He's not the kind to hurt anyone. You ever go to Yellowstone with him you'll see what I mean".

"You think it's safe to go to Yellowstone with him?"

"Not if you're scared to be bored to death" he joked. I didn't laugh, I wanted to know more about Vic and I wasn't sure why – was I intrigued or was I scared? Chris shrugged nonchalantly, "guy is one of those eco-warrior types. Spends his weekends in the park documenting species and how many babies each animal has had. I went with him once, thinking it might be kind of cool. I swear to god, I almost died of boredom watching him take pictures of birds and documents everything in the little diary he carries around".

"So he didn't kill that girl then?" I asked, pushing for an answer. I wasn't sure I would ever be comfortable around Vic until I knew for sure that he wasn't dangerous.

"Nah, he made a mistake as a kid but he ain't a psychopath or anything" he shrugged. Chris then changed the subject back to me and asked me about England and my life. He was sweet, if a little annoying, with all his flirtations and questions.

Once we finished eating we started the drive back to the ranch. The radio played annoyingly catchy pop music that Chris hummed along to. Not long into the drive, a flashing started on the dashboard and Chris swore colourfully as he pulled to the side. "Damn piece of shit car" he muttered, as he climbed out and I followed.

Soft snow was settled on the ground, making everything seem brighter and fresher even though we were on a long road in the middle of no-where. Forests surrounded the road on either side, like two elongated pillars of trees and wildlife. I glanced into the twisted, dark, vegetation and felt a shiver of uneasy. Forests were usually my favourite place, but these ones were dark and unfamiliar.

I wrapped my arms around myself, as Chris popped the hood of the car. He had a little look, made an 'ah' sound and tried to explain to me – in what I assume was English – about what had gone wrong. "I have no idea what you're taking about" I replied, "can you fix it?"

"Sure. Give me ten minutes. Would be better if you waited in the car, it's cold out here" he called back.

"Just want to stretch my legs for a few minutes" I commented, walking around to the back of the truck. Maybe I was being stupid, but I could feel eyes on me. It felt like someone was watching me and that made me uneasy – I rubbed my arms for comfort rather than warmth.

A soft gust of wind then brought a scent to my nose. A very familiar scent; forests and pine with a pinch of spice. Victoro. His scent was too sharp to ever forget. Vic was in the forests, watching us – maybe even tampered with Chris's truck to cause it to be a problem.

I peered into the forests, searching in the direction in which the scent had wafted. It took me a few minutes but then I made him out. The large object, which could have been anything from a bear to a hunky tree, shifted slightly when he realised I was staring right at him. Vic was hiding in the trees, watching me. I wasn't going crazy, he really had followed me.

I eased into the forest towards him, aware that Chris couldn't hear or see me as he was on the other side of the truck. Part of me thought that I should have been scared to confront Vic, but I wasn't – just determined to get some answers. I carefully made my way into the forest, my eyes adjusting to the darkness quickly, and came to a stop about fifty meters from where Vic was leaning against a tree trunk.

"You're following me" I accused, trying to keep my voice level and controlled. Even in the darkness I could see his eyes trained on me.

"Yes". Short, curt, to the point.

"Why?"

"The why isn't important. I'm not going to hurt you if that's what you're worried about".

"Why are you following me?" I snapped, pushing further.

"Because I want to". He spoke through gritted teeth, as if annoyed by my questioning.

"That's not a good enough answer. You're really not making me think you're any less of a creep right now. I swear to god you have one more chance to answer, or I'm going to scream for Chris and let him know you've been following me all day like some pervert".

Vic ground his teeth together, considering for a moment, before sighing. "I was watching out for you. I don't trust Chris. I saw what he did to that hiker, no doubt he told you I was lying. I wasn't lying. I saw him. I saw what he did". There was pure hatred and anger in his words.

I didn't believe that Chris was really a rapist or a killer, the guy was obviously a player and I imagined he blew through girls like most people blew through Kleenex. But, I didn't think he was dangerous. But I could see, and hear, that Vic truly believed he was dangerous. He wasn't trying to harm me, he was trying to protect me.

"I don't want you to protect me, Vic".

"You may not want it, but you need it" he shot back, "I won't have your death on my conscious, Theodora. So, you're just going to have to get used to me watching over you".

"Thea?" Chris shouted, worry in his voice obvious.

"GoTheodora. I'll be watching" Vic said ominously. I paused, staring at the largeItalian stranger for a few moments, before heading back to Chris.