Six

SIX

Hunter sees the cuffs right away.

A frown clouds his face.

"What is going on?" he asks.

"She let a rogue go," Val explains.

"What?" Hunter cries.

"She let a rogue go," Val says again.

"I don't believe it," Hunter says.

"I saw it with my own eyes," Val says. She nudges me. "Tell him, Rylie."

Her voice is sharp.

I can feel my face redden.

I don't say anything.

I just bow my head.

Look down at my feet.

I don't want to look at the alpha.

I don't want to see the disappointment in his eyes.

"What do you have to say for yourself?" Hunter asks me.

His voice is hard.

"I'm sorry," I say.

"Sorry?" Hunter asks. "That's it? You failed your mission! Let your pack down!"

The disappointment is too much to bear.

A lie appears in my mind.

It is flimsy but it's all I've got.

Lying to my alpha is not something I relish in doing.

But otherwise, he will punish me.

I am desperate.

"I mistook him as one of our own," I say.

"What?" Hunter says.

"It was dark," I say.