Prowl (Winter Pass Wolves Book 3) by Vivian Wood, Amelie Hunt Page B

and slipped her feet into her shoes. She rose and snuck from the dormitory out into the warmth of the late spring evening air.
    She looked down at the phone in her hands, biting her lip. Very few people had access to this phone number. People she trusted, people from her life before, back when her father was still alive. Before her uncle took over the Hunters and demanded that all unwed soldiers must live in the Compound’s dormitories.
    Once upon a time, Avery’d had her own apartment. A job at the local library, even a few close friends to confide in. A whole life of her own, hard-fought and more satisfying with each step.
    No longer, though… she’d allowed herself to be drawn back into this place. So here she was…
    Pacing a safe distance from the dormitory, Avery glanced round one more time before she selected the missed call on her cell phone and dialed the number.
    Ring.
    Ring.
    Ring.
    Ring.
    Someone picked up at the other end. Avery could hear a whisper of breath, knew that someone waited…
    "Hello?" Avery whispered.
    "Avery, it's Chase. Don't hang up."
    "Son of a bitch ," Avery said, her heart leaping into her throat.
    Of all the people that can be calling, of all the ridiculously bad moments for this to be happening…
    "You can't be calling me," Avery told him flat out, keeping her voice as quiet as possible.
    "I promise you, Avery, this is an absolute last resort for me. I haven't forgotten anything you said to me," Chase swore.
    "I don't think you understand. My situation is… precarious… at best. There is nothing good that can possibly come out of this phone call."
    Understatement of the year .
    "I know, Avery," Chase said, his tone urgent. "I would never put you in that situation if it wasn't life or death, I swear. It's just—"
    There was something in his voice,. Something broken, something desperate.
    “The Hunters took my sister Brooke," Chase said. the image of his face, expression anguish, flashed in Avery's mind. Her heart flip-flopped in her chest, reminding her all too well of the weakness that Chase brought out in her.
    "What you mean took her?" Avery asked. "Took her where?"
    "Abducted her," Chase breathed. "They invaded Winter Pass Lodge, shot her with a tranquilizer dart, and stuffed her in a Humvee."
    Avery wanted to protest, wished that her heart would rebel against the idea of such a thing happening, wished she didn't believe every single word Chase was saying. Unfortunately, in light of her recent discoveries, it was all too likely.
    Her eyes drifted over to the large, windowless bunker at the far east side of the Compound. Newly constructed, top-secret, heavily guarded. None of the Hunters’ foot soldiers knew what actually happened in there, but Avery had heard the whispers. The black site , they called it.
    “Shit,” Avery said. "When did—How long has she been gone?"
    "Half a day," she said. "She vanished this morning, and it took us a while to… handle the situation here. Brooke has a new mate. Well, my buddy Paxton, actually. It doesn't matter. My point is, he's not handling it very well, and if I don't figure something out soon, I won't be able to keep him from a one-man suicide mission to take down every Hunter he can find."
    "Yeah… Well, we've definitely stepped up our game here at the Compound. He wouldn’t be getting very far," Avery said. "We're getting more and more recruits every day, more fanatical anti-werewolf agitators, filling the Hunter ranks, giving us more money and more bodies on the ground."
    There is a silence.
    "Now you know why I called." Simple and direct. Very Chase.
    "Yeah," Avery said. She hesitated, uncertain how to tell him no, that she couldn't help. It seemed an impossible thing, telling this man that Avery couldn't be swayed to help him save his own sister. Even the fact that she wanted to say that…
    Just who was she these days?
    "All I'm asking is that you meet me in person somewhere," Chase said. His voice broke on the word asking, making