CHASE I throw up a prayer to fate that I’m not too late when I arrive at the cabin, fueled by adrenaline and fear as I tumble out of my truck and race for the front door. Please don’t let her die. If she dies here, I may as well die too, because I won’t survive losing her. My gaze catches on the number 12 carved crudely into the post beside the front door, the numbers practically mocking me as that chant starts in my brain again. ‘Cabin 12. Come alone or she dies.’ Well asshole, I came alone, so she’d better be alive… My heart’s in my throat as I wrap my hand around the knob and push, the door swinging open to reveal the interior of the cabin. As soon as it comes into view, the click of a gun’s hammer steals my breath and my eyes collide with Vienna’s. She’s bound to a chair, just as she was in the picture, and there’s a man standing behind her, hovering over her with a filthy hand wound in her hair yanking her head back. He’s got a gun in his other hand, the barrel pressed tig

CHASEBy the time we make it back to the packhouse, Vienna is still drifting in and out of consciousness. She’s lucid enough for me to get her into the shower, and I hold her under the spray and wash every drop of blood from her skin before toweling her off, bandaging her stomach, and tucking her into bed. I fall asleep holding her, afraid that if I let her go, she’ll disappear. The warmth of her skin against mine grounds me, reminding me that this isn’t all a dream- she’s safe. We made it. And I’m never letting her go again.I fall into a deep, dreamless sleep with my girl in my arms, and when I wake to the sound of voices downstairs more than twelve hours later, she’s still crashed out. I carefully climb out of bed and slip into a pair of navy sweatpants, padding out of the room and down the hall on bare feet. Early morning sunlight filters in through the windows in the rear of the packhouse as I descend the stairs, my gaze falling upon Gray and the other alphas standing in the kitc

CHASE My entire pack is keyed up, itching to shift and waiting for me to lead the charge. Articles of clothing litter the back lawn of the packhouse as they’re stripped from bodies and flung away, the energy among the gathered crowd palpable. Tonight will be my first time leading the full moon run as our pack’s Alpha; ushering in a new era for us all now that I’ve finally stepped up to claim my place. Once my wolf came in, I was always second to run as the alpha’s son. Following my dad’s death, Rob was the one to lead the full moon run as the next highest-ranking member of our pack, and I remained second. Tonight, and every full moon after this while I’m Alpha, I’ll be the first to shift; the first to howl to invite the others to join, and the first to carve a path through the woods for the rest of the pack to follow. The only downside to being the first to shift tonight is that I’ll be long gone before Vienna gets the opportunity to do the same. Since she’s not technically part of

CHASE **************Five Years Later **************** “Hey, take it easy!” I growl out as Fallon and Gray’s twins race past me, nearly knocking the tray of burgers out of my hands. “Sorry, Uncle Chase!” their daughter calls over her shoulder, though she doesn’t slow down in her pursuit of her brother as he weaves between the people gathered on the back lawn of the packhouse, darting around them in an effort to escape her. He almost succeeds, too, until Brock and Astrid’s daughter, Sloane, jumps between her parents to block his path, her curly hair bouncing and a mischievous grin stretching her lips. “You’re it!” Avery declares triumphantly, catching up to her twin brother before he can alter his course and tagging him on the shoulder. Maddox blows out a frustrated sigh and folds his arms over his chest, scowling at Sloane for trapping him and allowing his sister to get the upper hand. “Not fair, you girls cheated.” “Catch me if you can, Madd,” Sloane coos, turning on a heel and