Chapter

When he entered the clearing from a gap in the trees on the far side, my breath caught in my throat and I felt my nails cut through the skin, drawing blood. Dressed for business in pressed black trousers and a crisp white shirt, Brandon looked so out of place in this setting that it could have been easy to forget that this was his place. To me, he'd always been the quintessential city boy, the hot shot lawyer who felt more at home in a courtroom or behind a desk, certainly not someone who lived and breathed for the forest.

As he stepped forward into the circle, I heard cold laughter ring out from one of the groups and a tall, heavy-set man with greying hair jostled with his companions as if to seemingly mock Brandon.