The Tracker's Mate: Sunderverse (Mate Tracker Book 1) by Ingrid Seymour (book recommendations website TXT) 📕

fact, he hated promises. He’d told me so repeatedly in the past, and I’d never been able to extract a vow from him, no matter how small.

He hesitated for a long moment, but at last, he inclined his head, solemnly. “I promise.”

“Good.” I swallowed thickly, a funny feeling in the pit of my stomach. Was this promise what I really wanted from him? God, I’d thought I’d gotten over this man, but maybe I was just full of crap. I pushed those thoughts aside and got to business.

“Now, first things first,” I said. “I’ll need something of Stephen’s. You know how it works.” When I needed to find a known mark and had an item that belonged to them, I didn’t need to brew a potion, which would save time. An excellent prospect since the sooner I could finish this, the sooner I could get back to normal.

Jake sighed in frustration. “I’ve been trying to get my hands on such an item since I got back into town, but I haven’t been able to.”

I frowned. “Wait, I thought you two were close friends.”

“Yes, but his place burned to the ground, and his office was ransacked like yours. They took every personal item that could be used for tracking, so I got nothing.”

“Then we need to talk to his father,” I said. “Ulfen must have something of his son. Or a girlfriend... How about a girlfriend?”

“Stephen wasn’t seeing anyone and Ulfen... um... he’s not cooperating.”

“What do you mean? I thought he hired you.”

“I lied. Actually, he blames me for some of Stephen’s behavior. He’s warned me not to bother him again unless I want his pack to tear me to pieces.”

Rosalina left her chair and slowly walked backward into the kitchen. Every few seconds, she stuck her head out to listen, then finally came back out with a bag of microwave popcorn. She retook her seat, opened the popcorn, and started eating as if she were at the movie theater.

Jake and I gave her a sideways glance, then refocused.

“What behavior?” I asked, then shook my hands in front of me. “Never mind, I don’t need to know about that. All I need is for you to bring me something that belongs to Stephen, so I can get to work.”

“Haven’t you been listening? I told you I don’t have anything.”

I flipped my hands, palms up, and gave him an annoyed glare. “Then how the hell do you expect me to track him?”

“You can talk to Ulfen, tell him you’re willing to help.”

I sputtered a laugh. “That’s your plan?”

He nodded, giving me a look that seemed to say “there’s nothing wrong with my plan.”

“If you truly were close friends with Stephen, he would have told you that his father hates me.”

Rosalina made a sound of agreement in the back of her throat. She was too busy stuffing popcorn into her mouth and licking her fingers to do much else.

“Stephen did tell me what happened. I know Ulfen hates you for the same reasons he hates me. He thinks you were pulling Stephen away from his duties. But when you offer to track Stephen, he’ll put all that aside.”

Rosalina raised her hand as if she were in school. We glanced in her direction.

“You don’t have to raise your hand,” I said. “What is it?”

“This is something I’ve been wondering. Ulfen Erickson is loaded, hasn’t he already paid someone to track his son?”

Jake nodded. “In fact, he has. Several trackers, but they’ve all failed. Ulfen’s people have been all over the city chasing their useless leads. Fiore is good. She must have someone running interference, botching the tracking spells. I don’t know.”

“So what makes you think I’ll succeed?” I asked, confused.

He huffed. “You’re a much better tracker than any of those bozos. Besides, you know Stephen. You had a close relationship with him. You know that can play a role.”

It was true. Once you connected with someone at a certain level, it was easier to find them. That was why I had never tried to track Jake, even though he’d left one lonely T-shirt behind. I found it under the bed when I vacated the apartment. It was the only thing he didn’t pack, and it had been an oversight. Clearly, he hadn’t wanted me to find him, and I’d, at least, had enough pride not to go chasing after him—even if I did sob my eyeballs out.

I stood and began pacing in front of the love seat, a hand pressed to my forehead. “I don’t know, Jake. Ulfen will probably kick me out, too.”

“You have to give it a try. I feel that you’re Stephen’s last hope.”

“Sheesh!” Rosalina exclaimed. “Don’t tell her that. It’s already bad enough.”

Jake’s jaw tensed, and he gave my friend one of those intense looks that could make guys twice his size cower under a table. Rosalina pushed to the edge of her chair and met his mean glare with one of her own. She wasn’t easily intimidated—even by a werewolf.

“Jake,” I warned. “This is her place, and you need to respect that.”

I almost felt Jake reeling his anger in as if it were a huge, thrashing shark that had smelled blood. He didn’t like anyone telling him what to do and what not to do. It was the alpha in him. It had always been a problem. He inhaled sharply and gave Rosalina an apologetic nod.

I brought us back to the matter at hand. “So we go see Ulfen tomorrow and—”

“Tomorrow?” Jake rose to his feet, gaping at me as if I’d lost my mind. “We can’t wait. We only have four more days to find Stephen.”

“What?! Why didn’t you mention this before.”

“I did.” Jake regarded me with a deep frown, looking confused.

Oh, shit! He must have said it when I was deaf. I glared at Rosalina. Why didn’t she mention this before? She gave me a forced grin and a tiny shrug.

I pretended to smooth one of my eyebrows while I hid my face behind my hand. “Um,