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    The crime scene was worse than I had imagined.

    Pine Grove Park had been transformed from a peacefulmunity gathering ce into something that looked like a battlefield. Yellow police tape fluttered in the afternoon breeze, creating a perimeter around an area that reeked of death and stench.

    "The bodies have been removed for autopsy," Chief Morrison exined as he led our group toward the centre of the scene, "but we''ve left everything else exactly as we found it."

    The ground was still stained with dark patches that could only be blood, far too much blood for seven human beings. Chunks of torn fabric were scattered across the grass, along with what appeared to be pieces of... I forced myself not to think too hard about what those pieces might be.

    But it was the smell that truly disturbed me. Underneath the metallic scent of blood and the beginning stages of dposition, there was something else. Something that smelled like darkness itself.

    And for some weird reason, the smell felt familiar. Or was it my pregnancy-sensitive nose acting up again? Because when I looked at the others, their noses were not wrinkled in disgust like mine.

    I closed my eyes and let Nymeris''s presence flow through me, allowing my two-tailed wolf to examine the scene.

    "What do you see?" Kyren asked quietly, moving to stand beside me.

    "Rage," I said, opening my eyes but maintaining my link to Nymeris. "Whoever did this was consumed with fury. The person didn''t do all of these out of passion or hunger; this was a deliberate act.

    I walked carefully around the perimeter of the killing ground, following traces that only I could see. "The attacks were organised, too. Each victim was isted from the group before being killed. This wasn''t a feeding frenzy or a loss of control, and it was done by one creature."

    "Can you identify what type of creature was responsible?" one of the Hollow Kin elders asked.

    I paused, concentrating harder. The signature of the creature was there, but it was... odd. "There''s definitely supernatural involvement, but it''s not clean. It''s like..." I struggled to find the right words. "Like someone took werewolf essence and mixed it with something else. Something that doesn''t belong with our kind, and no, it''s not Lycan either."

    "Meaning?" Ramsey stepped closer.

    "Meaning whoever did this either isn''t a natural-born werewolf, or they''ve been altered somehow. The signature is wrong. I can''t even pick up a specific scent."

    "Could it be a rogue wolf? Someone who''s lost their connection to their pack and humanity?" Chief Morrison asked, clearly trying to understand what he was hearing.

    "No," I said firmly. "Rogue wolves leave different traces. This is something else entirely."

    As I continued my examination, I became aware of Delia moving closer to our group. She had been trailing behind us since we left the police station, ostensibly taking notes and photographs for her "research," but I''d noticed the way she watched each of us when she thought we weren''t looking.

    Now she was positioning herself near Kyren, who was consulting with the other Hollow Kin members about something. They were whispering amongst themselves.

    "The precision of these kills is remarkable," Delia said. "Almost like the killer was following a specific protocol or ritual."

    Kyren nced at her with mild interest. "You have experience with supernatural killing patterns?"

    "I''ve studied historical ounts extensively," Delia replied, moving a step closer to him. "Ancient texts, folklore, even some modern case studies that never made it into official records."

    "Impressive dedication for a human academic," Kyren observed.

    Delia smiled. "I''ve always been fascinated by... powerful beings. The way they move, the way they think, the way they assert dominance."

    She was practically purring the words, and I watched in fascination as she somehow managed to position herself even closer to Kyren without seeming to move deliberately. Her bodynguage was unmistakably flirtatious; she leaned toward him, touched her hair, and let her eyes linger on his face and form.

    "Not to mention, I''ve had an encounter with werewolves before."

    It was Kyrren''s turn to be surprised. "You''ve met werewolves before?" he asked.

    "Yeah," she nodded. "Seven years ago, a group of boys raped me and after they were done…"

    "Raped you?" Kyren arched his brow. "You were raped?"

    "Yeah," she nodded. "I don''t look like I was?" she asked.

    "No!" Kyren shook his head. "It''s just so strange, these human crimes. Rape is a terrible thing that takes the victims years to recover from. I don''t think I''ve ever seen a rape victim present themselves the way you are, and I hope you don''t take it the wrong way."

    "How do I present myself?" Delia asked, her tone had be strained.

    "Tell us about these werewolves that you met?" Ramsey intervened quickly,ing to stand in front of Kyren. "Can you describe them?"

    Delia took a deep, shaky breath. "I was properly covered on the night I was raped. I grew up poor, so I bought clothes that were twice my size, allowing me to grow into them. By 19 years, I hadn''t even kissed a boy, but what can I expect from a man… You truly are all the same."

    She started crying.

    Kyren had an exasperated look on his face. "I think you''ve misunderstood, ma''am. I didn''t say those words to fault you, but it''s the truth. If I had known that you had this kind of history, I wouldn''t have requested you. You should heal and…"

    "Kyren…" Ramsey touched his arm. "That''s enough. You''re making it worse."

    At that point, tears were rolling down Delia''s cheek, and I could feel the men scratching their heads awkwardly, but I could tell the fake tears from the real ones, and I knew she was faking it. Whoever this Delia was, she was quite the actress.

    "Miss Pier, I apologise on his behalf," Ramsey said quietly. "He''s still finding his feet navigating social waters."

    Delia wiped her tears dramatically, giving Ramsey a strained smile. "It''s fine. Everyone tends to judge me like that when we first meet."

    "You tell everyone you meet that you were raped?" Nanny blurted out. I could hear the irritation in her voice.

    Like me, she wasn''t buying Delia''s act.

    "Everyone, that''s enough," Ramsey intervened again and turned to Delia, whose gaze rested on Nanny, and despite my best efforts to make her look at me, she ignored mepletely.

    Was I overthinking things? Wasn''t she purposely ignoring me?

    "Miss Delia, we cannot understand what you went through seven years ago, and it''s okay to express yourself in whatever way you want."

    "So you don''t have a problem with how I am dressed?" she asked, running her hands through her body and moving her hips in a sultry way.

    Ramsey''s eyes didn''t leave her face. "It''s your life and your body. You can do whatever pleases you."

    "I wasn''t even talking about how you dressed. I didn''t notice that," Kyren chimed in again.

    Ramsey turned to him, giving him a death re. He sighed and turned back to Delia. "Can you tell us about the werewolves you met? How did you know what they were?"

    "At that time, I had no idea what they were, but they saved me from the boys. They fought for me, too. They were seven in number. Big and had red eyes, kind of. They were also ck like midnight ck."

    "Midnight ck?" Kyren asked,ing to stand next to Ramsey. "And they didn''t try to harm you?"

    She shook her head. "They just attacked the boys and left afterwards. They weren''t werewolves?" she asked.

    "Any other thing you could remember?" Ramsey asked again, ignoring her question.

    "It''s been a long time, but I still remember everything vividly. Nothing else happened, but I was scared shitless after that. I got a schrship from the parents of the boys who vited me. They funded everything until I was done. It was a smallpensation or maybe shamelessness on my own part, but it was an opportunity to make something out of myself."

    I exchanged a nce with Nanny, who was watching the interaction with distaste.

    "Anyways," she shed a smile at Ramsey. "I didn''t get your name."

    "Call me Ramsey," Ramsey said tersely.

    "Ramsey," she said the name slowly. "I was hoping I could get your perspective on the attack patterns."

    Ramsey arched his brow. "What would you like to know?"

    "Well," Delia said, "I''m particrly interested in how an Alpha could read these markings. The way the bodies were positioned suggests a very specific message was being sent."

    Ramsey frowned. "You know I am an Alpha?" he asked.

    "Isn''t it obvious?" Deliaughed. "You have amanding presence. Aren''t you one?"

    Ramsey exchanged a nce with Kyren. "I didn''t read the markings, she did," Ramsey pointed at me.

    Delia turned, nced at me and turned back to Ramsey. "Oh, interesting. As I was saying, the ways the bodies were positioned, ording to my own theory, feel like they''re trying to pass a message."