Chapter 8

Ryker slammed his clenched fist onto the table, making nearly half the people in the room jump.

A deep, slow growl rolled from his chest, pulling everyone into the force of his dominance.

“Aria Vale belongs to the Blackthorn Pack. She will be placed under our care, and we will make sure any bad habits she learned while living as a rogue are corrected. She will become a useful member of our society.”

Excuse the fuck out of me? Was this asshole seriously being real?

“Yeah, I’m going to say no to that generous offer, but thanks.”

The moment I answered so casually, the entire room became so quiet that I could hear a faucet dripping in a bathroom at least four rooms away.

Ryker slowly stood up, and I wasn’t the only one who stopped breathing.

“I’m the true alpha of the strongest quintet in America,” he said quietly, but the deadly warning in his voice was impossible to miss. “We are a goddess-blessed pack of scent matches, and you are the fifth member of our quintet.”

My breathing became faster as I fully understood what I had walked into. It was much worse than I had imagined. Ryker wasn’t the only scent match I had to deal with. There were three more waiting for me. Scent matches were the strongest bond any shifter could ever have.

True fucking mates. Praise the goddess.

But having four alpha males bonded to one omega was exactly what had happened to my mother, and it had gotten her killed before she even reached forty.

“We’re also missing the last member of our own quintet,” Darius called out, still sounding cheerful. “We’re not all alphas, because you guys always have to overachieve, but we’ve got two betas and one omega.”

Quintets were the highest level of the common five-member bonded packs inside shifter cities. A quintet connected by scent bonds was considered incredibly rare and valuable.

The fact that Darius’s pack already had an omega who was still alive was actually encouraging. Ryker, however, was the worst possible choice for me. Not only was he my scent match, driving my wolf completely crazy, but he was also scent matched to several other alphas.

Other than my mom’s old quintet, I had never heard of another pack with so many alphas. The Blackthorn Pack was nothing but death waiting for me.

One alpha growled at Darius from farther down the table.

“Most of the alphas sitting at this table are powerful and belong to an incomplete quintet or pack. That’s exactly why we’re members of the council.”

Ryker pointed directly at Darius.

“Sit the fuck down, Soren.”

Even though the room was filled with the strongest alphas in Shadow Crest, most of them clearly feared Ryker and showed him respect. Darius, however, acted like they had known each other forever.

He raised his middle finger at Ryker while muttering, “Cranky bastard.”

Even so, he listened and sat back down.

“Does anyone object to allowing Aria to stay alive and become part of the Shadow Crest shifter community?” Kael asked, bringing everyone's attention back to the meeting.

Serena raised her hand, along with four other council members, but most of the room seemed willing to let me keep living.

An older blond alpha sitting beside Darius spoke next.

“We have so few true omegas that executing her would be a terrible loss. I’m interested to see how her presence changes the balance of pack dynamics.”

Kael smiled, showing his perfect teeth.

“Excellent. That settles the first issue. The second issue will be more difficult, but I believe we can all agree that Aria cannot be allowed to move around without protection. I promised her that none of the shifters in our city would hurt her, and I intend to keep that promise.”

Ryker had stayed standing after his earlier outburst, but he didn’t interrupt. Even so, I could still feel the dominance of his wolf spreading throughout the room.

Kael looked down at me with an apologetic expression.

“The Blackthorn Pack is the strongest pack in our city. You would be safest with them. Do you have a good reason for refusing Alpha Ryker’s offer?”

Yes. I had an incredibly good reason.

But I would never tell them because I wasn’t sure everyone knew that a pack made up of several alphas could destroy an omega the same way my mother’s pack had destroyed her.

Instead, I answered, “I’m used to having my freedom, and Alpha Ryker obviously enjoys control and dominance. If I joined his pack, we’d probably end up fighting.”

“But we’re a scent match,” he said loudly, wearing a frown that was still much more attractive than Serena’s.

Kael jerked in surprise, almost as if someone had shocked him with a Blackthorn Technologies Taser.

“Scent match? Why didn’t you tell us that earlier?”

I didn’t understand what they thought had caused Ryker’s behavior before. Was I really not the only woman he had ever acted like this around? Just thinking about that made me angry enough to lie.

“Not from my side, you’re not. I won’t be forced into a bond no matter how many times you storm into a room showing off your power, Alpha Hurricane. I’d rather take my chances with any other pack.”

Several alphas immediately raised their hands, but Ryker’s hard glare made them lower them just as quickly.

Everyone except Darius.

He grinned and waved his hand excitedly as though he was enjoying every second of this madness.

Weirdo.

“Are you saying you reject our offer and our pack?” Ryker asked in a quiet but dangerous voice.

I was far too angry to care.

I forced out the fakest laugh I could manage.

“Wow, so you’re not just a handsome face. I don’t need or want your protection, but thanks for offering. I really hope you have the day you deserve.”

His eyes became even wilder. I was certain a shifter like him had never been rejected before.

Get used to it, asshole.

“At least she admitted you’re handsome,” Darius said with a laugh. “I never thought I’d live long enough to see someone completely unaffected by your looks and your power, Hunt.”

Ryker’s face became completely expressionless, which only made Darius laugh even harder. He winked at me.

“I like you, sweetheart. You’re going to make this city a lot more interesting.”

I wanted to laugh with him, but I was too busy trying not to throw up all over the council table.

Finding my scent match on my very first day inside a shifter city had never been part of my plans.

Seriously, what the actual fuck?

Mom had always told me scent matches were very rare and that most packs were formed through love or friendship.

Was that just another lie she had told me?

Before I embarrassed myself even more, Kael stepped in to help.

“Why don’t we give Aria a few days to settle in?” he suggested calmly. “She can stay with my pack. Our pack is already fully bonded with a stable power structure, and we’re not looking to add anyone else. I’m sure everything that has happened today has been overwhelming after spending so much time living in the human world. I’ll teach her the basics of life in Shadow Crest, and once she decides what she wants to do, I’ll inform the Blackthorn Pack and the council.”

His smile was kind, and I finally relaxed enough to stop a full panic attack from taking over.

“Does that sound acceptable to you?”

I nodded awkwardly, my head feeling strange and light.

“Yes. That sounds perfect. Thank you.”

Whether it was a few days or a few weeks, it wouldn’t change anything.

I would never agree to live with the Blackthorn Pack.

What I really needed was enough time to figure out how to escape without ever getting caught again.