We pulled up to the house, and I took a breath. I didn’t want to be here, but I knew I had to be. I had to face everything that was done. Even if it hadn’t happened yet, I knew, given the chance, they would do it again. Brandon was a foolish man that was easily swayed. And Shannon would kill just to get what she wanted, and that just happened to be my mate.
A pathetic mate at that. Nix’s voice whispered in my mind and I snorted. Ronnie looked over at me with a lifted brow. “Nix just said something funny.” I took another deep breath.“You have to see this through.” Ronnie’s voice was quiet. “I know.” I take one more minute before I step out of the car. Before I could do much more, my mom was jumping into my arms. “I missed you so much, baby.”“I missed you too, mom.” I pulled away and smiled. “Let me at least get fully out of the car.”MI pushed the door open, and a feeling of dread settled in my stomach. What happened if this didn’t work? What would I do?You can always reject him. Nix tossed out.I scoffed as I dragged my stuff in. “Yeah, like rejecting an alpha would go over well.”“Rejecting an alpha? Who would be that stupid?” Alpha Vince’s voice had a shiver going down my spine. I thought I would have more than one second before I had to face him, but how was I to know he was waiting by the door?“Some wolves prefer a lower rank mate, or freedom compared to the duties and responsibilities that come with mating an Alpha. Specifically Alpha’s that follow some of the older laws.” Lynn cut in, saving me but painting a target on her back.“You mean weak and stupid she-wolves?” His scoff had me rolling my eyes before I could stop it, but thankfully I had my face settled before I turned the corner into the li
I slowly turned away from Shannon, dropping her arm. I let my mouth drop open to keep my ruse going and to show my shock. “Why would he think I’m his mate?” I found Brandon, who was arrogantly staring at me with hunger in his eyes. I wanted to grimace, but I swallowed the need. “We haven’t even talked before.”“Shannon admitted to wearing your clothes around Brandon.” Vince smirked like that was the missing piece of information that would make me jump at the chance of being Brandon’s mate. But I just lifted my brow. “So?” I let it hang there. The simple word that held my disbelief.“Soooo. It means that it was your scent I liked, that my wolf was attracted to.” Brandon stepped toward me and went to grab my hand, but I pulled away.“Or…it was our combined scent that you liked.” I lied through my teeth. I felt a pang in my chest and I felt the pain radiating from my wolf. I sent a pulse of love to Megan. This was her mate, after all. It’s okay. Megan’s words were strong, but tinged wi
I held up my hands in mock surrender. “I told you it might have been a mixture of Shannon’s scent and my own mixing.” I shrugged my shoulder and turned back to the stairs. I gave a small wave. “I’m going to head up to my room now, unless there is anything else?” I looked over my shoulder and waited. But my mother waved me off. I made my escape with my suitcases, with Lynn trailing behind me. I stopped in the spare bedroom and opened the door. Lynn looked at me. “Me?”“Yeah. This is you.” I pointed to the far side of the room. “That’s the bathroom. But yeah, this is your room while you’re here.”“Thank you.” Lynn dropped her suitcase and stared at me expectantly.“What?” I stared at her with a confused look, but she still stared at me.“Take me to your room.” Lynn lifted her arm, gesturing me to continue, but I was still confused.“Why?” Now we were both frozen, staring at each other. “Because when I’m here, my job is to protect you.” Lynn slowly answered as she stared at me. “Rememb
“Oh, that’s good. Are you close to Amy?” Morgan turned to face me. But Lynn was already shaking her head.“No. I asked to come to this pack without realizing that Oakenfang was the pack her mother moved to.” Lynn’s eyes would meet mine, or my mother’s, for that matter. She was staring fully at Morgan.“Really?” Morgan tilted his head. “Then why did you seem so close to her when you two walked in?”Lynn smiled. “Beta, if you would have looked outside when we pulled up, I stood away from Alpha Amy and Beta Ronnie. I followed her inside since this was her home, and you were giving me a place to sleep while I explored the pack for my mate.” Lynn cut her eyes to me and there was thinly veiled hatred in them. “Alpha Amy has been as polite to me as I have been to her, but I wouldn’t say we are friends.” She looked back at Morgan. “I follow the protocol my Alpha c
I left them all in the kitchen and retreated to my room. I closed the door and settled myself and Nix, finally shifting back to my normal face.I’m sorry I lost control in there. Nix sounded softer, almost embarrassed.“It’s okay.” I smiled as I flopped onto my bed. “They deserved it.” I chuckled softly as I thought of their surprised faces as they hit the ground.What you both just did will put them on the toes. They won’t think they can easily manoeuvre around you anymore because your wolf has manifested itself. Megan’s voice was confident as she chastised us. She knew that this would make our lives a little harder. You both should have held it together back there.I thought about it. “You’re right.” I admitted, and Nix nodded with me. “We should have behaved back there. It would have been easier to move in the shadows without them knowing I could shift. But we still have
I came back to my room and my mother was spraying the pile of clothes with a bottle of what I could only assume was descenting spray. There were two garbage bags by the door and she nodded to them. “Bring those to the trash. I’ll meet you downstairs in a minute.”“What are you doing?” I pointed to the pile of the clothes.“Covering our asses until we get back with more spray and finish washing everything.” She lifted her lip and continued spraying. She ended up cursing under her breath and unscrewed the lip and upending the bottle on my clothes. “Stupid thing would take forever.” She pointed to the garbage bags, and I lifted them and ran down the stairs. I ran to the trash and dumped the bags, then ran back.“I told you I would meet you downstairs.” My mom was using a soaked top to run some of the descenting spray all over my mattress.“I know, but I wanted to lock my door before
I let her words settle, and I knew she was right. Brandon would come for me if he was rejected, so I had to keep my distance until I figured out everything else out that I needed to so that my mom and I could leave. And I had to concede that she was also right about the strawberry shampoo. It had become my signature smell since grade school. So much so that Shannon used it, even though her wolf hated it.“You’re right.” I grabbed the bag and left my room. Once my mom came outside, I locked the door and we headed to the garage. “You will help me find a smell my wolf likes?”“Of course.” She nodded as I tossed out the bag of toiletries. “Amy, I was wondering. Has there been anything weird about Nix you wanted to talk about?” I froze for a second, but shook it off.For a second, it sounded like my mother knew about Megan, but that was impossible. It had to be. “Like what?”“Well, she is ve
Bingo. I wanted to roll my eyes. He used it weekly after the big pack meetings he threw together. But I needed him to offer it up, otherwise he would see it as a red flag and focus on me. “A company?” My mother huffed another breath. Just a mom trying to deal with her insufferable daughter. “For what?”“They have perfected cleaning carpets so that unwanted scents don’t linger.” He snapped his eyes to my mother and then back to me. “I know how it feels to have an alpha wolf who is territorial. It’s not Amy’s fault Ainsley.”I smiled and turned to look at my mother. “I told you.” I pouted. “You kept saying it was too much. That Shannon was my sister and I should just get over it.”“Well, she is.” My mother pointed out, but I let out another growl.“She is an unranked wolf who used my belongings to trick the alpha’s son into dating her.&rdquo
He knows. Nix’s words were soft, her eyes fully focused on the man in front of us. What are you talking about? Megan turned back to us. He’s scum.Nix shook her head. Look at him, Megan. Truly look, and push away your hatred towards Brandon, Vince, and well, all the male population. Megan snorted but turned back.What am I looking for? Megan sighed, but focused. I stepped closer, trying to see what she was seeing.Nix was focused on Rick. Look at his skin. He is sweating, he’s pale, but his eyes are focused. His hand… She trailed off.He’s clutching at his neck. Megan tensed beside me. “What happened first, Rick?”He turned his haunted eyes back to us. “What?”Megan sighed as she crept closer. “What came first? You working with Vince? Or Abby getting branded?”“Does it matter?” He slammed back against the wall and dropped to his ass. “It changes nothing.”“It matters.” She growled. “It matters to me, and I know it will matter to Amy.” “Why?” He dropped his head into his hands. “It
I waited until Vince pulled out the needle and I jumped up, growling. I let my hackles rise and I lunged for Vince, but he danced back and slammed the door shut. His chuckle was infuriating, and I lunged, hitting the bars on purpose. I yelped and jumped back from the searing pain of silver. “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. Everything is silver in here.” Vince wagged the key in front of me. “You will just have to be a good girl to get let out.” I nearly gagged, but I lunged again, testing how hard the bars were. They bent a little, making every man jump back. I yelped again and slid against the ground, showing the burns to Vince. “Stop!” I pulled away, slowly, weakly, growling softly to show I hadn’t given up yet. Nix rolled on the ground. You are really selling this, Amy. Vince is eating this up for sure. Megan shook her head. But don’t push it too far. A wolf cornered would fight, but a weaker wolf would stay away from the silver after this. I nodded. Oh, I know. That was the l
Nix and Megan pressed against my side. What are you saying? It’s poisoned…poisoned how? Nix leaned in, trying to see it closer, but we were stuck where we were. The power that their traps were pulling from me it was transferred to this rune. The quickening. It says it right in the name. It converts your power into physical strength and speed. Like I was doing with our power, but this is for a person who doesn’t have magic. Okay…I don’t know what’s wrong still. Megan leaned against the barrier and I laughed. Do you see the line that cuts through the rune? Both of my wolves focused on the rune that was bobbing in and out of our line of sight as he ran. Yeah. Nix finally said. The part that looks infected?Yes. That’s exactly what it is. A poisoning. It breaks the limits on the rune and pushes power into the person. Normally, the person will hit a wall. The wall being that their physical body can’t go any faster or it hurt them, it will break down their bodies. Like poison.So you’re
I heard a chuckle and then a soft whispered. “Slepta noir sha dineh por clotin.” Then the world went dark. Amy, stay awake. Nix called me, but I couldn’t move. Everything was heavy. I felt like I was snuggled under the best blanket in a dark room. Amy! Megan called after me, but I was snuggled deep into slumber. A few more minutes, guys. I called back to my wolves. I heard them both growl. What is the point of having magic if we fall victim to it? Nix growled, but Megan just sighed. It wasn’t an attack, like Verity said it was a gentle spell to put her to sleep. We are still awake, and if anything happens, I’m sure we can force her awake. But there is a bright side.What’s that? Nix sounded doubtful, but open to listening.Amy will be rested and fully recharged. Then we can figure out what the actual fuck happened. Like, how did Rick catch us?I felt my wolves settled near me. And I rolled to touch them. I wanted to wake up. This seemed like something important. Something was wro
Vince turned to look at Brandon. He looked at its stumpy fingers and shook his head. “Why would you bring up the brotherhood in front of the wench?”Wench? Is he trying to be a fucking pirate or something? Nix snorted and rolled her eyes. Vince is stupid.But I watched him. Something was off in the way he watched us. Ever since I ripped off his cheek. I think…I think he likes us, Megan. She snapped her head to mine and then gagged. Absolutely the fuck not. She shook her head. But Nix watched him. I think she is right, Megan. Everytime he says something, his eyes flick to us. He is looking for our reaction. She gagged again. No, you two have to be wrong. We ripped off half his face.I think…I think he likes us because of it. The thought made my stomach clench. Sick fuck. “Wench? Dad…common we all know she is going to be dead soon. So why does it matter?” Brandon snorted as he passed me, kicking out, but I jumped up and snarled. “I would watch your self Bran. She is feisty. She alr
I sat still. I knew I couldn’t run away without being caught, so I would sit, watch, and wait. I was going to hold back on any magic use until I was somewhere else. Since Rick said the forest was covered in magical traps, this was once I was out I would be safe. I just needed to get out first. Rick narrowed his eyes. “You aren’t going to come quietly, are you?” I just settled on the ground. I wasn’t stupid, but I wasn’t going to just fall in line, either. He chuckled and turned to Morgan. “Watch my son. Don’t let him get close to the wolf.” Morgan nodded, but Vince was already turning away. “Rick, come with me. You can carry me back here with our shit and the pup.” Rick’s eyes tightened again and then he nodded. He smiled. “Yeah. Poor thing has to survive another week.”He shifted and left the clearing while Morgan and Brandon glared at me. “Are you seriously still going after Amy’s mom?” Brandon sagged against a tree. “I mean, I get it. She’s hot. And the power of the women in tha
Vince yelled as he tossed me to the ground. Morgan kicked me as soon as I hit the dirt, chunks of grass and twigs flying, the swift kick to my stomach sending me into a tree. I yelped as my shoulder broke, along with a few ribs, but Vince just looked at me with surprise as a chunk of his face slowly knitted itself back together. I looked at him through hooded eyes, but I watched with satisfaction as his cheek slowly rebuilt itself. Blood poured from his left side of his face. The lip hung loose, cut adrift from the portion of his cheek. I ripped away. His teeth were visible, and the surprised look in his eyes made the slow healing a little easier to deal with. Brandon looked at his father with wide eyes. “Are you okay?” He went to move closer, but that was the moment I spat out the hunk of meat I had in my mouth, as if his blood was poison. Vince didn’t look away from me. I sat up and wretched, like I was going to vomit. His blood and bits of flesh clung to the inside of my mouth.
I heard them all shift and start after me. One after the other, I heard a growl and then charging feet. Even Rick, who knew I was going to be out here, was charging after me. Rick, fucking Rick.Why would he want me to see all of that? Megan’s words were ragged. She was waning, but Nix was pushing her body to the brink. I think he needed us to see that. Maybe this started as a couple of friends, and he thought they were joking. Or it was a what if, and then he fell in love with Shelly?Nix panted but hummed her agreement. I think it was probably in the middle. He thought they were just assholes joking around with the women they were using, and then he found his mate. But he didn’t want to let go of his friends. Until his pup came back branded. Megan finished, and Nix agreed.I feel bad for him. Her words made us stop. But Nix pushed on. This about it, you’re trying to stay loyal to your friends but faithful to you mate and you think that witchcraft is probably fake and then suddenl
Morgan shrugged. “You should have kept your pants on. You only had to keep it in your pants for a few years, and you can’t even do that.” Morgan leveled him with a look. You can blame Shannon all you want, but let’s not pretend she is the only one you’re fucking.Brandon glared at him for a minute before laughing. “True.” He sighed. “But Shannon was the only one Amy had to deal with.”Morgan level him with another look. “Again, it isn’t her fault you decided you wanted to drain Amy of her power. You could have chosen anyone else.”Brandon sighed. “True again, but she is so fucking strong.” He grabbed his dick. “And she is so fucking stuck up. I was going to enjoy draining her.” Rick laughed. Fucking laughed, but when he turned, I saw it. A flash of something in his eyes. He didn’t want to be here. What the fuck is going on here? Megan called back to us, but neither of us knew. “Shut the fuck up.” Vince called back and everyone quieted. “Verity. How fucking long now?”She sighed as s