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Ellison showered, shaved, and ca breakfast with Will Jackson had already left for a job he had with acoood at lifting and carrying

Deni looked rested, cheerful even Ellison put his ars and cubed potatoes in the frying pan and kissed her cheek

"Don’t put too much salt in mine," he said

"Don’t backseat cook" Deni shten even ht back, gave Will a brief hug, caught up his hat, and walked out the door

Running across the street to see how Maria was doing after she’d been badgered last night would be the neighborly thing to do Right? Ellison could pretend he’d co today

Andrea met him at the door, with little Kenny Morrissey, her firstborn, on her hip

"Maria? No, she’s not here," Andrea said "She left without a word very early thisshe ith you and Den"

Chapter Four

Maria Missing And Andrea stood there cal

"What do you mean, you don’t knohere she is?"

Ellison took a broad step forward, his wolf growling all the way

Aa pancake turner His eyes were Shifter white, focused on Ellison, the lion in hi to a threat to his mate, his cub, his territory

The Guardian was the last person a Shifter would ever see, the point of the Guardian’s sword sending the Shifter’s soul to the afterlife Whatever else Sean ht be--friend, mate, tracker--he was also death

Ellison stepped back, hands up, trying to show Sean that he meant no harm--to Sean’s house, mate, cub, or pancakes

"Why don’t you knohere she is?" Ellison asked Andrea

"She was gone oke up," Andrea said "Or at least when I checked on her I was up early, with Kenny, and I heard the back door close"

Which explained why Ellison hadn’t seen Maria go Or else she’d left while Ellison had been in the shower Shit