The Handprint That Shattered My Bond

As my tires screeched out of the underground, a luminescent handprint seared the passenger window-palm splayed, fingertips glowing like moonlit runes

Lucian Thorne had borrowed the obsidian Rolls-Royce three nights past-a bond gift from our claiming. I punched his number.

"Where did you take the Phantom?" My voice rumbled with a half-shift growl.

His purr trickled through the line, too smooth.

"Gavin flew in from overseas. Picked him up at the airstrip."

A lie. I smelled it-like rotten deer meat under his honeyed tone.

"Of course,".

My mate was hiding something. And the Phantom's leather seats reeked of a stranger's heat.

......

I held my hand up to the print.

His roommate's hand was smaller than mine by a good inch.

The garage is packed with cars-gifts from my parents, each one shinier than the last. Lucian's a car nut, always switching between them when he's got nothing better to do. But I'd specifically told him not to take the BMW.

My friends and I had a camping trip planned, and that SUV's got enough room to haul all our gear. It's perfect for a weekend in the woods.

I stared at the smudges on the windows, annoyed. Now I'd have to get it cleaned before we left. What a hassle.

My palm hovered over the glowing print, I couldn't shake a weird feeling.

Lucian's college buddies are all six-foot-tall jocks. Do wolves even have hands that small? It looked more like a she-wolf's print.

The thought hit me like a brick: was Lucian cheating?

But then I pictured him-Lucian, the wolf I bound myself to. It didn't add up. He's a physics teacher at the local high school, knee-deep in lesson plans and grading papers for his senior class. It's crunch time before college apps, and he's at school every day except Sunday, working himself to the bone. When would he even have time to mess around? I was probably just being paranoid.

Still, I flicked on the dash cam and rewound to three days ago.

The footage showed two people: Lucian and a wolf. I let out a breath I didn't realize I'd been holding. Just his buddy. I was overreacting.

Just as I was about to shut it off, their voices crackled through the speakers.

Lucian's hand rested on the wheel. "Mark, you're a lawyer now, right? I need some advice."

My curiosity piqued, I kept listening.

Mark, buckling his seatbelt, turned to him. "Dude, just spit it out. We go way back-no need to beat around the bush."

Lucian hesitated, then spoke slowly. "One of Natalie's friends is going through a bond-breaking. If the wolf splits, can he get a cut of the mate's dowry on top of the joint assets?"

I frowned. Dowry? Who even talks like that?

"I'm a science wolf," Lucian went on, tapping the wheel nervously. "Natalie asked me about this stuff, and I'm clueless. Figured you'd know."

Mark didn't respond right away. His thick brows knitted together, and he stared at Lucian, unblinking. "Come on, wolf. Level with me. This is about you and Natalie, isn't it?"

Lucian shifted uncomfortably.

"Don't give me that 'friend' crap," Mark pressed. "I can read between the lines. You two were solid back in college. Bound two years out of school, and now there's trouble?"

He pointed at Lucian, his voice firm. "I'm your friend, wolf. If something's up, don't hide it."

Mark's tone was dead serious, his face tight with concern. "Just tell me straight, and I've got your back."