Chapter 160

A young shifter soldier brought the Alpha Heir a set of casual clothes, and Sideburns stepped aside to pull on his attire quickly while barking at me, “Put down the knife before you hurt yourself, girl.”

I bet giving orders was the only way he knew how to talk to people.

Two wolves were about to lunge to disarm me, but Canary blocked the aggressive wolves.

“Catnip,” he said, flashing me a charming smile. “That small knife is a toothpick against a shifter, so you might as well return it. It was a gift from a nice lady.”

I glanced down at it. It was a decorated knife with rubies on the hilt. I could sell it for good money if I had to.

“I’m not returning it,” I said. “Finders, keepers. Call it and see if it answers you.”

Canary arched an eyebrow.

I surveyed the growling shifters around me. It was time to pretend to be meek, withdraw, and bargain.

“I wasn’t running away.” I swept a hand around. “Where could I run? It’s dozens of big grown men and wolves against one lone girl.”

 The wolves growled as if I’d insulted them.

“I just wanted to wash my face, and you all got your hackles up.” I smiled at Canary. He had tried to use his bright smile to stun me, and I didn’t mind returning the favor. He stared at my face, momentarily lost for words. “I’ll go with you if I get to keep this dagger that a nice lady gave you. I can be a nice lady too. And you said yourself that it’s a toothpick, so you needn’t worry about me carrying a toothpick in my pocket. Besides, in a camp full of big, bad males, I’ll feel a bit safer sleeping with a sharp toothpick under my pillow.”

“No one in my camp will harm you.” Sideburns pushed through the wolves’ formation and faced me again. “Come. We have wasted enough time.”

He said it as if the delay was my fault. Wasn’t he a charmer? But it wasn’t smart to give him a piece of my mind now, especially in front of his men. I still had some sense of self-preservation.

“Let’s have Cadmus take a look at Catnip first,” Canary said, gesturing at the bandage around my thigh.

This Cadmus must be a healer.

Sideburns frowned, yet a flash of concern flitted by his eyes. “She kicked hard and ran fast, so I thought— Yeah, have Cadmus inspect her.” He gave me another once-over. “Find the girl a set of new clothes.” His gaze lingered on my bare thighs longer than appropriate before he remembered his manners and self-control. He jerked his gaze up and turned away from me, trying his best not to look at this dirty, forbidden fruit. “After that, we’ll leave right away. We’ll camp at the neutral zone in a human city tonight.”

“What human city?” I asked. I didn’t mean to expose my ignorance or vulnerability, but it couldn’t be helped. I needed to know where I was. I needed to know more of the world. Any information would help me decide my next course of action.