Torin flinched as Sasha wiped at the wounds on his back, trying his best not to react to her.

“I don’t understand why you’re doing this,” he growled, turning his head away from her. “I thought you’d be out of here by now.”

“I don’t understand why I’m doing it either,” she murmured, pressing the cold cloth firmly against his skin. “Call it killing you with kindness.”

Torin closed his eyes and shivered, putting it down to the coolness of the cloth as opposed to anything else. A hiss escaped his lips as she put a light covering of antiseptic cream on his wounds, even though he hadn’t wanted to display any kind of weakness.

“So, are you going to tell me what’s going on?” Sasha asked, as she sat down opposite him beside the fire.

Torin held up one hand, asking her to wait. “Just let me get dressed and find something to eat,” he muttered, more confused than ever over Sasha. “Then I’ll answer any question you’ve got.”

Hurrying out of the room, Torin climbed the stairs to his bedroom and pulled on whatever clothes he could find. He made do with just a t-shirt and jogging bottoms, glancing at himself in the mirror for a moment.

Man, he looked rough. Terrible, in fact.

Then again, it wasn’t every day that the reality of his brother being a cold-blooded killer hit him head on. Not to mention the betrayal he had faced down from his second-in-command.

Sighing to himself, Torin muttered darkly to himself, threw open the bedroom door and marched back down the stairs, fully expecting Sasha to be gone.

Instead, she was sitting exactly where he’d left her, although she’d made them both some coffee it seemed. Torin frowned, running a hand through his hair. He didn’t understand what she was doing here still. He’d terrified her. She’d been shaking, scared and in fear for her life, and now here she was, looking at him with compassion, those dark eyes of hers holding his gaze.

“I need to know what happened,” Sasha said, quietly, as he sat down. “I can see what you’re thinking, but the truth is that I have to know what I saw. I can’t go home without knowing.”

Torin grunted, picking up the coffee mug with one hand. “It’s not important, Sasha.”

“It is,” she replied, firmly. “You see, there was something about the murders that never made sense until now. I think you might be able to tell me whether I’m on the right track or not.”

“Why would you want to hear from me?” Torin asked, gruffly. “I kidnapped you, remember?”

“I’m aware of that,” Sasha murmured, with a wry smile. “After all, I was the one kicking and screaming to get away not that long ago.”

Torin looked at her, sitting there so calmly, and something in him shifted. Was it admiration? Respect? Whatever it was, it grew within him, making his lips curve into a half smile.

“You’ve got strength, Sasha,” he said, heavily. “You should be calling the police right now and instead, you’re sitting here looking after me.”

Sasha lifted one shoulder. “You looked after me too, Torin.”

“I kidnapped you.”

She gave him a half smile. “Let’s forget that part. There’s been something going on with you for a few days now and I want to know what it is….and then you can tell me what that wolf thing was all about.”

The calmness in her expression surprised him. Any other human who saw him shift would, most likely, run screaming from him. But not Sasha. There was that cool, collected look on her face that told him he wasn’t going to get anywhere trying to dodge her questions. He hated that her smile had his resistance to her softening, aware that his desire for her had never really gone away, no matter how hard he’d tried to deny it.

“I went to Thomas’ house.”

Her eyes widened at once. “And?”

He sighed, his shoulders slumping. “I – I’m sorry, Sasha.”

She gave him a small smile, her eyes never leaving his. “What did you see?”

The words came to his lips but he held them back. He didn’t want to say them aloud, as though doing so would scream the truth for everyone to hear.

“Torin,” she said, softly. “What did you see?”

“The truth,” he replied, his lips moving almost unwillingly. “I saw the truth, Sasha.” Passing a hand over his eyes, he sat back with a groan, only to scowl and move forward as his damaged skin hit the chair. “I should never have kidnapped you. I was angry and upset. I convinced myself that I knew Thomas – he was my brother after all! I told myself that this was all a set-up, that you were after him just to make yourself look good. He was just in the wrong place at the wrong time, a scapegoat that you’d chosen to shoot.” Pain ricocheted through his body, his heart shattering into pieces. “My brother,” he continued, hoarsely. “My brother was a murderer.”

Much to his shame, tears pricked at his eyes, the grief and pain becoming too much. He’d been so fucking sure, refusing to believe that Thomas could have been the depraved monster that the media made him out to be.

Lifting his tormented eyes to Sasha, he saw her looking back at him with a strange expression on her face. It was as though she was able to forgive him for what he’d done because she recognized the pain he was going through.

“I can never, ever expect you to forgive me,” he said, humbly. “Sasha, I should never have taken you. I didn’t want to believe what you said about Thomas. I was looking for someone to blame.”

He gestured at her, hopelessly. “You were the one in the line of fire. When I took you, I didn’t really know what I was doing. I wanted you to pay for taking Thomas’s life, but then I couldn’t bring myself to do anything to you –” His gaze slid over towards the dog who was lying, contentedly, in front of the fire. “The more I wanted to hurt you, the more I knew I couldn’t,” he finished, looking away from her. “You do whatever you have to, Sasha. I deserve whatever you send my way.”

There was a long pause. Torin felt a heavy burden settle on his shoulders as he waited for Sasha’s judgement to fall. By kidnapping Sasha, he’d wrapped himself in inevitable consequences that would mean his pack and his business were in danger. With Thomas gone, he was in charge of his father’s whisky business in its entirety and now, given that he was most likely going to go to jail, the whole thing was in danger.

“Oh, Torin,” Sasha sighed, settling back in her chair and looking over at him. “I’m so sorry.”

Torin blinked furiously, lifting his head up to look at her. That was the last thing he’d expected to hear.

“I’m sorry for what you’ve gone through,” she continued, shaking her head. “I can’t even begin to imagine what you’ve been battling with on your own.”

“You – you understand?” he asked, flabbergasted. “Sasha, I had plans to hurt you – badly.”

“But you didn’t,” she said, calmly. “And you saved me from James. I’m not saying that what you did was okay, but that I can understand what was driving you to get revenge.” She gave him a sad smile, her eyes fixing on his. “I won’t be doing anything, Torin. I’ll be going back home to enjoy the rest of my holiday and then, when it’s time, I’ll go back to work.”

He stared at her. “That’s it?”

She shrugged. “That’s it.” Tilting her head, she looked at him with an intensity he hadn’t expected. “You know, Torin, you’re like two different people. The man who was screaming in my face, hauling me back into the house when I tried to escape, and this man who is being open and vulnerable, his heart breaking practically in front of me.”

Heat climbed into his face. “I have to be open with you,” he mumbled, running one hand through his hair. “You need to know why I did what I did.” A strange desire ran straight through him, the desire to ask her to stay with him a bit longer, so that he could prove he wasn’t the monster she’d seen. Pushing it away, he closed his mouth tightly, reaching for his coffee mug.

“So,” she said, softly. “Can you explain that wolf thing to me?”

Torin caught the way she shivered, realizing that she wasn’t as brave as she was putting on.

“Did it scare you?”

She gave a choked laugh, folding her arms over her chest in an almost protective gesture. “Scare me?” She looked at him again, her smile fading. “Yeah, you could say that. I was terrified, actually.”

“Well, you really don’t have worry about it,” he said, softly. “We’re shifters.”

Her eyes widened. “We?”

“My pack,” he explained, wondering whether she was really going to just accept what he was saying. “Everyone who works at the whisky factory is in my pack.”

He saw her lips twist, her brow furrow as she thought about what he’d said.

“So, everyone who works there can do what you do?” she asked, sounding confused. “Really? Everyone?”

“Everyone, yes,” he confirmed, with a half-smile. “There are more of us than you think, although this is a heavily guarded secret.” His rueful look made her smile. “I should never have shifted in front of you but I had no choice.”

There was a prolonged silence. Torin watched her body language, seeing her tense and then, as she watched him, slowly begin to relax.

“I suppose that makes sense,” she said, slowly, looking as though she didn’t really want to say the next part. “One thing we could never work out was why there were animal teeth marks on the victims.”

Torin felt his blood run cold.

“I suppose that makes sense now,” she continued, looking away from him as a shudder ran through her body. “I guess I won’t be able to explain this to anyone, though.”

Torin swallowed, hard, trying to get rid of the image that his brain had conjured up on hearing Sasha’s words. His brother was even more of a monster than he’d thought.

“Do you mind if I stay until tomorrow, Torin?” she asked, startling him from his dark thoughts.

“Stay?” he repeated, wondering if the woman had gone crazy. “I thought you’d want to get on back home.”

“Oh, I do,” she replied, so calm that he’d never have guessed she’d just learned something as huge as what he’d just told her. “It’s just that it’s getting late and I’m really, really tired.” She tilted her head again, her gaze piercing him. “And I think I need to get to know this side of you a little better, Torin. And I need to know about Thomas, to see if there’s anything we’ve missed.”

Oh, so that’s her angle, Torin thought to himself, shifting in his seat. She didn’t really want to know about him, she was just looking to see if there was anything she’d missed about Thomas. Right back into work mode again. Seriously, this woman was stronger than he’d ever thought.

“Sure,” he said, shrugging. “I’ll make up a fresh bed for you.”

“No need,” Sasha replied, with a bright smile. “I’m fine where I was. Just don’t lock the door this time.”

Her face flamed with color as she realized what she’d said and desire burst through Torin with such force that his body suddenly burned with fire.

“I won’t,” he muttered, getting up carefully and picking up his coffee mug to go and wash it. “You don’t need to worry about that.”