Flutter by Amanda Hocking Page B

Canadian. He pushed a
strand of his thick hair off his forehead and chewed his lip. His
eyes roamed around us, unsure of where to let them settle, and he
glanced up at the moon.
    “They’re in Sweden, hunting,” Leif continued, as if
we had asked. “Dodge was convinced that we’d scared you away, so
they left.”
    “But you weren’t?” Ezra asked, and his stance grew
more rigid. Leif shrugged in response and lowered his eyes to the
ground. “Is that why you stayed behind? To see if we came
back?”
    “Maybe,” Leif said, then quickly added, “But not like
you think.”
    “You don’t know what I think,” Ezra said evenly.
    Leif shifted and looked at the moon again. Rubbing
his arm, he looked like he wanted to say something but couldn’t
find the words.
    “You’re after Peter, aren’t you?” Leif asked, and I
stiffened. “I’m not out to get him. He killed my brother, but it
was self-defense. Krist had a temper and…
    “ Peter had no
business being here,” Leif went on. “He was ‘trying out’ for the
pack, but that’s not how it works. Gunnar put him through all these
tests, and Krist was one of them. But Peter started winning…” He
looked apologetic, his eyes wide and sincere. “It wasn’t fair what
they did to him. What they’re still doing to him.”
    “Still?” The fear in Ezra’s voice made me wince.
    My head swam with images, and Ezra had seen far worse
than I had. He knew what true torture could be for a vampire.
    “He’s alive. He’s okay.” Leif’s voice cracked on the
last word.
    “What are they doing? Where is he?” Ezra demanded in
a low growl, and Leif shrunk back. Any pretense that Ezra had of
submitting to the lycans was over.
    I didn’t think scaring Leif worked to our benefit, so
I put a hand on Ezra’s arm. Reluctantly, he responded and took a
step back. Leif nodded his appreciation and stood up taller.
    “I don’t know exactly,” Leif said. “They’ve been
hunting him.”
    “He’s in Sweden?” I raised an eyebrow.
    “No, he’s still here,” Leif shook his head. “The pack
is in Sweden.”
    “I don’t understand. Why is he still here? If they’re
gone, why didn’t he just come home?” I asked, and Leif and Ezra
exchanged a look. “What? Why won’t Peter leave?” I looked at Ezra
since Leif didn’t answer.
    “Us,” Ezra said thickly. “The pack will track him if
he leaves and follow him back to us.”
    “If they’re so good at tracking, then why haven’t
they killed him yet?” I asked, ignoring the implications.
    If they could follow him across the Atlantic, then
they could find one vampire in their own territory. Why would they
leave him alive, especially after all this time?
    “They like to play with their food,” Ezra said, and
Leif looked at the ground. “They want him to wait in fear,
wondering when they’re going to strike, jumping at every noise.
Eventually, he’ll either go mad or come home, which is a prize
itself.”
    “What are you talking about?” I asked as nausea
welled up inside me.
    “Why don’t you explain it to her?” Ezra growled at
Leif.
    “It’s not my idea.” Leif looked ashamed. “I’m here,
telling you this, at risk to myself.”
    “You didn’t do anything to stop it, did you?” Ezra
took several steps toward him. This time, Leif didn’t back down.
“You wouldn’t have said anything to us if you hadn’t seen us.”
    “I couldn’t stop it! I can’t go up
against them.” Leif shook his head. “This is my pack. Peter’s just a stupid,
arrogant…”
    Leif rubbed his neck, and Ezra sighed, repressing his
urge to fight him. Regardless of what Leif had or hadn’t done, he
was the only one trying to help now. If we were going to find
Peter, he’d be our best bet.
    “I still don’t understand what you want with keeping
Peter alive,” I said.
    “Peter has a death wish, otherwise he wouldn’t be
here,” Leif explained. “Killing him would give him satisfaction,
and they want him to