One True Mate 1: Shifter's Sacrifice Read Online Free Page B

opposition. He faced the Deputy Chief and spit it out. “The males need a rut... a real one. We have to make it happen for them or we're going to be in deep shit soon.”
    Trevor's eyes shot to Mac. Out of all the things Mac could have said, that was the last thing Trevor would ever have imagined was going to come out of his mouth.
    A rut. With no female shifters left, how would they ever manage that?

Chapter 4
     
    Ella climbed carefully down the attic stairs, finally done, checking the time.
    7:09.
    Mrs. White had told her to drop off the items before the store opened, which happened in less than an hour.
    “Darn.”
    She grabbed a jacket from the hallway closet and headed out, the heavy box full of what little she could find of value, including the angel/wolf pendant, in her arms.
    She could have made the trip from her aunt’s house in the older but still-nice subdivision to downtown Serenity with her eyes closed, that’s how often she had walked it. She noticed as soon as she stepped off her front porch that the empty house three blocks to the right of her had a moving van in front of it. Someone was finally moving in. The real estate sign had come down months ago, but the house had stayed empty.
    Ella had always loved that house. It was twice the size of hers, with a ton of history. The entire back of it was built with a lovely sandstone that always drew her eye, every time she passed. She’d often wondered at the history of the house, but never had the time to look into it. Until now. Now she had more time than she knew what to do with.
    As Ella passed the truck, she kept her eyes on the ground, not wanting to deal with anyone.
    A loud bang ricocheted off the inside of the truck and Ella looked up, startled. A refrigerator of a man appeared at the back of the truck, wiping his brow, sweating even in the crisp, late-autumn air.
    The man saw her and raised a hand, his eyes traveling up and down her body in a way that made Ella shiver.
    She focused on her box and moved on, even as she could feel he wanted her to stop and talk.
    She ignored the feeling and stepped off a curb, looked both ways, and jaywalked across the street, then followed the sidewalk two miles straight into town, the traffic and businesses both increasing in density as she walked.
    She found the tiny red-brick building with the sign proclaiming, You Need It , over the incredibly cute red and white door. She tested the door and, finding it unlocked, pushed inside, her eyes flying to the counter, hoping Mrs. White would be the one working.
    She was. Ella blew out a breath and headed over, dropping the box heavily on the glass display case that served as a counter.
    "Dear," Mrs. White said. "You made it. I was starting to wonder if you found anything at all."
    Ella stared at the woman, unable to respond. Mrs. White was probably in her eighties, with a heavily lined face and a kind smile. She always dressed up, wearing costume jewelry and elaborate outfits. But today, she'd done the unthinkable, in Ella's mind.
    Her hat was fine. An orange felt hat with a velvet bow. Her jacket was fine. Wool maybe. But the thing draped over her shoulders made Ella's heart beat faster and her palms sweat.
    Mrs. White, not noticing Ella’s discomfort, smiled at her and opened the box, taking out an item at a time. "Oh, this is nice. I can give you a hundred up front for this. All this jewelry here, it's not worth much separately, but as a lot, maybe, let's say, fifty dollars. This set won't sell here, but you can try Lucy’s consignment shop, two doors down." Her voice dropped as she dug farther into the box and her breath hitched. "Whatever is this?" she said, and Ella, even in her state, could hear the wonderment there.
    Ella's eyes traced the fur and tail and eyes and teeth of the thing Mrs. White had draped over her shoulders. Old? Or new? Because that made a difference. Ella thought old.
    From the corner of her eye, Ella could see Mrs. White examining the pendant