Crystal Lake Pack: The Complete Series: A Reverse Harem Shifter Romance

by Candace Wondrak

  “What did you do to him?” Arthur whispered.

  I averted my eyes, staring at the floor. If he made any moves toward me, Arthur would handle him. “He didn’t want to come, so I made him.” Kind of sounded mean, didn’t it? Okay, maybe his you bitch wasn’t as far-off as I wanted it to be.

  An expression that was the utter opposite of modesty crossed his face. The look of a proud parent. “You really are my daughter,” Arthur said, a smile growing. It was a smile I would not match, because I did not appreciate being called his daughter.

  The whole reason I was in this mess was because I was his daughter.

  Coughing, the proud look vanished. “Go find him some clothes. I’ll keep him company, try to calm him down.” As he spoke, Zak shouted a few key swearwords that would make my mom blush.

  I had the feeling Zak was going to make this difficult. Call it intuition.

  Chapter Seventeen – Addie

  After getting Zak some clothes—Forest’s clothes, which honestly the shifter didn’t deserve to touch—Arthur and Zak remained in the basement for hours, neither one coming up. I tried to eavesdrop, but since I wasn’t a full shifter yet, I couldn’t hear a single thing as I stood in the hall. And judging from the confused expressions on my mates’ faces, Arthur must’ve done a spell to stop anyone from overhearing, because none of them could listen in, either.

  I stood in the hall, a few feet from the door to the basement, my arms crossed over my chest. Maze hung near me, like he was afraid to leave me alone, lest I get any other ideas about popping into someone else’s head. As if hopping into anyone else’s mind was on my bucket list. No, thank you. I was done with it, and I wanted to leave it firmly behind me.

  Maze’s face was freshly shaven, and to distract myself from what was going on in the basement, I stared at the dimples in his cheeks. Even when he wasn’t smiling, even when he was just talking, those darned dimples were there, taunting me. Teasing me. Making me want to throw all caution to the wind and do more than I’d let him do in the shower. I could definitely use another orgasm…

  “How is he? Do you think he’ll help us?” Maze’s facetious voice was, for once, serious as he whispered, and it snapped me out of my orgasm thoughts. Probably for the best, anyway. Orgasms were all fun and games, but there was a time for them. Here was not it. “He’s stable, yeah?”

  Right. Back to Zak.

  Hmm. How should I go about saying it? He put the d-i-c and k in the word dick? Maybe that was a tad extreme, a bit rough given what he’d been through, but I was not feeling so sympathetic after being called a bitch. The events of late, surviving Clay’s torture, it had changed me.

  Zak called me a bitch, and I’d be glad to fill the bitch shoes.

  “I think he’s going to give Landon a run for his money,” I muttered. “Attitude-wise, at least. As for whether or not he’ll help us, I don’t know. He doesn’t want to. I think his mindset is pretty much just screw the world. He’s…really mean.”

  Really mean. Like I was in third grade or something, unable to come up with a better explanation. I immediately wanted to smack myself. Acting anything resembling cool in front of my mates was impossible, apparently. I’d be uncool until the end of time.

  “Mean, huh?” Maze shook his head. “But he is down there with your father—I mean, Arthur. If anyone can put some sense into him, it’s him. He’s…got a way about him that’s just…well, intimidating.”

  Arthur? Intimidating? Arthur was the most clean-cut, accountant-type man I’d ever met. He wasn’t overly muscled or super tall. Based on his looks alone, he was the very opposite of intimidating. But then I supposed maybe Maze and the others viewed Arthur differently. He was my father, and I was their mate. Their relationship was different.

  When it came to sheer power…then, yeah. Arthur was a bit intimidating. But to actually force Zak to do something he was against—even if it was possible with magic, it wasn’t ethical. There were some lines I didn’t want to cross, because if we did, we’d only sink down to Clay’s level.

  Then again, without Zak’s help, it was quite possible we might not even be able to defeat Clay.

  Up the creek without a paddle had a new meaning, suddenly.

  I opened my mouth to respond, to say something to Maze in reference to Arthur being intimidating, but my mom appeared in the hall, walking with a purpose as she went past both Maze and I. She gave me a quick look before heading into the basement without so much as a knock.

  We were both speechless, until Maze muttered, “Is she even allowed to do that?”

  “She’s my mom,” I said dryly. “She’s allowed to do whatever she wants.” Except rekindle a flame with Arthur. That was one thing I would not allow. I would fight tooth and nail against it, because not only was it dangerous, it was stupid. Clearly, they still had some feelings for each other, but it had been twenty years.

  Almost twenty. Plenty of time to date other people and see other fish in the sea.

  My mom never had seen other fish, but they were out there, swimming along, waiting for her to realize it. Sarah was only thirty-six years old; she still had a long time to go, and I would be damned if I let her waste any more time on Arthur.

  Whatever spell had kept the basement muffled was there no longer, for within a moment, I heard swearing, and then my mom’s telltale, “Oh, don’t use language like that.”

  “I’ll use whatever goddamn language I want to use” was Arthur’s response as he pounded up the stairs.

  Maze and mine’s eyes met, and I knew what my mate wondered. Should we run? Take cover? Pretend not to have heard? I would’ve gone for any of those options, but some nagging little fairy in my brain told me not to, so I waited for Arthur to appear, slamming the basement door behind him. Sarah remained downstairs, probably keeping watch over Zak in Arthur’s absence.

  Arthur brought his angry stare to Maze. “Can you give my daughter and I some privacy?”

  Maze let out a confused sound before spinning and walking off without so much as an I’m sorry to me for leaving me in the hands of my father. Just because he was my father gave him no right to call me his daughter. We weren’t that close, and we never would be. The only reason he was here…

  Wait a second. Why was he here? How did he get here?

  My breath caught in the back of my throat when I came up with the only logical possibility: my mom had always known how to contact him, she just never did. All to protect herself and me.

  All of this, I knew now, had been to protect me—but what good did any of it do, other than prolong the inevitable? Clearly it was for nothing, since I ended up here, thanks to Henry and the string-pulling of a death priest. Odon had known all along where we were. Twenty years was a long time to wait for vengeance, but the saying made sense.

  Revenge was a dish best served cold, and what better way to have it ice cold than to let it sit and wait for nearly two decades?

  I did not like the knowing look in Arthur’s eyes. “What?” I asked, sounding very much like the parent-hating teenager I never was. I’d always been besties with my mom. Well, until coming here. Coming to Crystal Lake had thrown everything for a loop.

  And then—then Arthur said the most typical, annoying, irritating as all hell line a parent ever could. Especially a parent who’d never been a part of my life before a few days ago. “I’m disappointed in you, Adeline.”

  And my full name, too. Wow.

  I would have none of it. “Can I ask what for, or is this going to be another one of your secrets that you’ll tell me in another twenty years?” Two could play the game he did; I was more than raring to go.

  Arthur shook his head. “I know all of this is new to you, but don’t let your emotions, your feelings, cloud your judgement. Don’t let the wolf inside control you.”

  What in the hell was he talking about?

  “I don’t know what you’re going on about,” I said, annoyed and letting it show.

  “Don’t worry about other people listen
ing in, I’m clouding our conversation so no other shifters will hear,” he explained. “Your mother told me about Forest. You and the alpha are far too close—”

  That’s what this was about? Sarah barged in downstairs, while Arthur was busy with Zak, just to tell him about Forest and me? What. The. Hell. I knew Sarah didn’t approve, but weren’t the sneers and glares enough? Why’d she have to go and tattle?

  I cut in, “I think it’s none of your business, Arthur.” I placed emphasis on his name, hoping he’d get the picture that he had no right to tell me what I should and shouldn’t be doing.

  He sighed, though it came out more like a growl, even though he wasn’t a wolf. “I shouldn’t blame you. I should blame the alpha. Forest.” Just as I’d whispered his name with vehemence, he did to the alpha’s. The look in his eyes was murderous, plain and simple, and he spun and started walking away, as if he were going straight to Forest.

  I couldn’t let it happen.

  My arm shot out, grabbing Arthur’s elbow. “Now’s not the time. Why don’t you act all fatherly after the assembly has their proof and Clay is dealt with?” A reasonable solution. It would give me time to warn Forest and hopefully enough time to think up a rebuttal.

  Here I thought it was none of their business would be good enough. Apparently not.

  “You’re right, of course,” he begrudgingly said. “Until then, you should stay away from him.” He turned away from me, going back into the basement before I was even able to lift my eyebrows in response.

  As if I’d listen to him.

  I remained rooted firmly in place, crossing my arms once more, waiting for my mom to come up. When Sarah did emerge from the basement, I gave her a deep frown.

  Sarah was unimpressed with my stare, shrugging it off as she said, “You’re lucky your father has his hands full.” And then she walked away, leaving me speechless.

  The last thing I needed was more drama. Why didn’t she realize this? Not that hard of a concept.

  Fuming to myself, I stormed into the living room, plopping down on the couch in the middle of Dylan and Maze. Landon stood with Forest on the porch, talking to another shifter who, I assumed, was Reid. The beta.

  Why’d Sarah have to go and tattle? Surely, she could’ve kept her mouth shut, and everyone—minus Arthur and her—would be happy. But no, Sarah had to go and tell on me, to the father who didn’t have a leg to stand on when it came to my discipline.

  Things could never be easy, could they?

  It felt like hours before I heard loud footsteps coming up the creaking wooden stairs of the basement, and I jumped to my feet, heading to the hall, Maze and Dylan right behind me. We hung back as Arthur walked out. Right behind him, looking a bit weird in clothes I knew should be on Forest and not the king of dicks, Zak emerged.

  The shifter threw a harsh glare my way before storming past me, and he would’ve bumped into my shoulder had I not quickly stepped aside and pressed my back against Maze. Zak rounded the bottom of the stairs, heading up without so much as a second glance.

  “What…” I couldn’t even speak.

  “He’s going to shower. The least we could let him do, considering how long he was kept down there,” Arthur said, to which I was inclined to agree—only so I wouldn’t have to smell the horrid stench of body odor and other less appealing things. “He wants a meal, too—real food, cooked.”

  Sarah stood, half in the hall, half still in the kitchen, her arms crossed. “I’ll see what I can do.” She disappeared under the kitchen’s archway, and Arthur followed suit after muttering something about helping her.

  Helping her better not be code for anything else, I thought bitterly.

  God. I missed my angsty teenage phase, but I was making up for it here, with my parents suddenly together.

  I followed Arthur into the kitchen, asking, “Well? Is he going to help us?”

  Busy washing his hands, Arthur turned the faucet off and grabbed a nearby towel to dry himself. He didn’t even glance at me as he said, “Provided we let him bathe, feed him, and after the assembly, let him go. No punishments from the pack for what he did for Clay.”

  Maze let out a chuckle. “Pack isn’t going to like that.”

  “The pack,” Arthur turned to him, “doesn’t have a choice. We’re on his terms. We don’t have a bargaining chip here—and as it is, I hope he doesn’t change his mind.”

  “Why wasn’t saving him enough?” I didn’t get it. If I were locked in my own mind, unable to shift, I knew I’d hate it. I’d be extremely grateful to whoever helped get me out; I definitely wouldn’t be a stick in the mud.

  The man sighed. “Some people, Addie, don’t want to be saved. Some people have just given up, and there’s nothing you can do to change it. You’re smart enough to know not everything is black and white.”

  Personally, I wasn’t sure how my so-called father knew whether I was smart enough or not, but his words sank deep. Some people didn’t want to be saved…they’d given up fighting.

  Maybe those people just needed a reminder there were still things out there left to fight for.

  Chapter Eighteen – Addie

  Arms crossed just below my chest, I leaned my back on the wall, staring at the bathroom door as I wished I had one of my jean jackets. Lately, I’d felt off without one on my shoulders, weird and naked, even though I wasn’t. With everything going on, heading to Maze’s house—my house too, technically—for a reason purely based on fashion was the last thing on anyone’s mind.

  The others thought I should just let him be, give him time, but I couldn’t. Knowing what he did for Clay, seeing the bite marks on Landon’s body—hearing Landon say the traitor wolf had enjoyed working for the death priest—I had some things to say to him. Maybe I was too nice to him before; maybe I wasn’t stern enough.

  But then I couldn’t stop thinking about what I’d seen in his head. His memories, even if they were twisted and not exactly what happened, were terrible. How could anyone live through that and come out unscathed? He was bound to be messed up.

  No, I didn’t wait for him to scold him, to yell at him for what he’d done, even if that’s what Landon wanted to do, what the rest of the pack would want. I didn’t wait so I could sympathize with him. No empathy shown, only hidden. I was here to remind him of something else, something which would hopefully set him on the right path.

  Then again, I was just a college dropout. I didn’t have any degree in psychology, no experience dealing with people who might be a bit mentally unstable. Who was I to think anything I could possibly say would help him or put him on the path of redemption? Akin to Arthur’s words, some people didn’t want redemption.

  Some people were just happy to be dicks.

  Some people hated being alive.

  “Addie, what are you doing?” A stern voice spoke from the staircase, a voice that made me all warm and hot because it called to mind what the voice had said to me as his fingers slid between my skin and my clothes. Forest stood on the top step, watching me.

  I gestured to the bathroom door. “I’m waiting for him to get out of the shower, what’s it look like?”

  “Maybe you should leave him be, give him space, instead of pouncing on him like a cat,” Forest uttered the last word as if cats were the devil incarnate.

  “I didn’t go into his mind and save him all so he could go on hating life and acting like an asshole,” I muttered, watching as Forest slowly walked up to me.

  He set a hand on my back, strong and sure, pulling me to him. I rested my head on his chest, breathing in everything that made him Forest. His woodsy, musky scent. The heat surging off his body, through his clothes, warming me, cradling me.

  His hands rubbed my back. “Some people never change. I know you want to think the best of everyone, but not everyone deserves it. What he did for Clay, what he did to those we lost…it’s something I can never forgive.”

  Hannah. He was specifically talking about Hannah.

  How could I have been s
o stupid? Of course he’d hate Zak. There was no salvaging this. Zak would never be allowed to stay in Crystal Lake, even after the death priest was taken care of.

  “I’m not asking you to feel the same,” he whispered. “But whatever you wanted to talk to him about, you should forget it. He is lucky we’re letting him bathe, lucky we’re feeding him and letting him go free after this. If I had my way, if the pack had their justice, he would die at the fangs of those who’ve lost loved ones.”

  An old-fashioned kind of justice, pure vengeance. I couldn’t blame him for it, and I understood it. Forest was right, undoubtedly. I should forget what I hoped to achieve here, forget trying to talk to Zak at all. Arthur got him to agree to go to the assembly with him—that should be more than enough.

  As I was lost in my own thoughts, Forest bent down, laying a gentle kiss atop my head before saying, “I’ll be downstairs, trying to ignore your parents. They are…”

  Though it wasn’t funny, I found myself grinning. “I know.”

  “With any luck, this will be over soon, and we can get back to business as usual.” The look Forest gave me as he pulled away, the intensity behind his bright blue stare, reminiscent of the color of the ocean, deep and limitless, made me blush. “I can’t wait to run with you, to see your wolf.” Though it was the last thing either of us wanted, he turned and left, leaving me alone.

  Right. Because I’d have to turn after this, fully shift into my wolf. My inner wolf would be thrilled. The first shift, eventually the claiming…there were still plenty of things left to do, but it all had to wait.

  No one was sure what would become of my magic once I shifted. There weren’t any others like me that I knew of, even though Clay had once told me I wasn’t the only one. There were no prior test subjects, so to speak. No experiments done and logged so I could make a calculated decision.