by M H Soars
“Tell me something I don’t know. The question is are you going to help me or not?”
“Getting into that deranged alpha’s territory will be dangerous. I’m a dead fox if I’m caught. What are you willing to pay?”
“Name me your price.”
“It depends on what the job is. Is it an information only type of mission or am I rescuing the girl?”
I’m so tempted to tell Nina if she has the chance to free Red, to take it. But that won’t do us any good. Valerius can get her back at any time by claiming she’s a Shadow Creek wolf.
“I want to know everything about Valerius’s territory, how many wolves he has in his pack, who his allies are, and, most importantly, how to get in and out of his domain without him finding out.”
“Why do you want that information if you don’t plan on rescuing your girlfriend?”
“Who says Red is my—never mind. Can you do it or not?”
“Yes, it will be tricky, but I can. It’s going to cost you big time, though.”
“Money is not a problem.”
“I don’t want any money. I want that sweet Ducati of yours. It was a gift from your dad, wasn’t it?”
Curling my hands into fists, I bite my tongue so hard the coppery taste of blood fills my mouth. “Why do you want that? I can pay you twice as much what that bike costs.”
She curls her lips into a wicked grin. “I know, but it wouldn’t be as much fun as taking that beloved gift from you. There are just some things money can’t buy, and I crave priceless treasures.”
Chapter 7
Red
The scarred wolf takes a step forward, growling as he shows his impressive canines. I’m paralyzed for a few seconds as adrenaline mixes with fear, enough to give the other wolf a sense of superiority. He thinks I’m easy prey because I wasn’t able to best him the last time we faced off.
It’s with great effort I manage to snap out of it, bracing for the imminent attack. Lowering my body closer to the ground, I step forward, growling as the hairs on my back stand on end. This is the wolf who almost killed my friends. I won’t let him get the upper hand again.
His other companions are all watching me with aggressive stances, but they stay back. If I hadn’t met the Shadow Creek’s alpha already, I would have pegged this wolf to be the one.
He attacks in the next second, and I manage to leap out of his path just in time. But he’s too fast for me, not giving me the chance to retaliate before he attacks again. This time, his paw connects with my side, sending me careening to the ground. I see stars for a moment, a dizzy feeling washing over me. The other wolves begin to howl, as if they’re cheering their companion on. Fuckers.
I get back on my paws before Scar—that’s what I’m calling the enemy wolf now—pins me to the ground and ends this fight. He’s stronger and more vicious than I am, but he’s not smarter. I can win this. I have to win this. Sam, Dante, and Tristan can’t help me this time. I also don’t want to summon the great wolf apparition in front of the enemy. Instinct is telling me it’s not information I want them to have.
Baring my teeth, I launch at Scar, making the mistake of not protecting my face. I feel a sting when his teeth graze the skin, but it’s not enough to deter me. I’m consumed with bloodlust. I find my mark, clamping my jaw shut on my opponent’s shoulder. Sinking my teeth deep, I try to not gag when his blood fills my mouth. He begins to thrash and buckle, attempting to displace my hold on him. As much as I would like to hang on until I inflict enough damage, I can’t risk falling and leaving myself exposed for an attack. So I leap off while I have the upper hand.
His entire side is drenched in dark red, but Scar doesn’t seem affected by his wound. He simply shakes his head, preparing to attack once more. Jumping on me, he uses his larger body to push me to the ground. Damn it. So much for my advantage. My hind legs fold despite all the effort I put into staying upright.
My body freezes as a bolt of blinding pain rushes through my limbs. I let out a whine without meaning to do so. But the strangest thing is that Scar is not the reason for it. He’s no longer on top of me, but on the ground a little farther way, shaking as if he, too, is in excruciating pain.
What the hell?
Grinding my jaw, I push my thoughts toward him, trying to connect with him. I remember my first lesson about the telepathic ability of wolves, how communication only happens when we drop our mental shields. I have no idea if this will work. His mind is blocked, but it’s a weak barrier that disintegrates with a mere push from me. I didn’t intend to invade his head like that, not expecting his mental shield to simply give away. Once inside his mind, all I hear is static, similar to the first time I encountered him, and, for whatever reason, he let me hear his thoughts. The only difference today is there isn’t a repetitive command to maim and not kill.
Lifting my snout, I stare over Scar’s crumpled form when I notice the silence that has taken over the group of wolves surrounding us. Their aggressive stance has changed into one of submission as they part to create a path for a dark grey wolf to come through.
Valerius.
I wait for my wolf to acknowledge his power as my alpha, for the compulsion to yield to him to hit, but it doesn’t come. If I weren’t crippled by pain, I’d howl to the wind in celebration. I’m not a Shadow Creek wolf despite Valerius’s words. I may have their wolf strain, but I belong to the Crimson Hollow pack.
Valerius glances in Scar’s direction before switching his attention to me. Just as swiftly as the pain had come, it disappears. With shaking legs, I get onto my paws, growling at the enemy alpha.
I feel an invasive nudge against my barriers, something akin to claws scratching at a blackboard. Not letting him in right away, I instead watch the increased annoyance grow in Valerius’s eyes. He peels his lips back with a snarl.
My wolf makes a sound that resembles a chuckle—if wolves were capable of that—then I open the communication channel, using the technique Dante taught me. I’ll only allow Valerius to see what I want.
“You dare block me from your mind? How did you do that?” he demands.
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” I spit back the same reply he gave me earlier, which earns me another growl from him.
“I should kill you right now for your insubordination.”
“But you won’t because you need me.”
I’m aware I’m playing a dangerous game here, considering the fact that whatever Valerius did to Scar also affected me somehow. But my ability to block Valerius out of my mind rattled the alpha, and I can’t miss this opportunity to see how far I can push him.
Valerius seems to grow larger as he stands up straighter. I realize he’s emanating all his alpha power. He wants me to lose my defiant stance. If I hold my ground, he’ll know I’m not under his influence. Worse, he’ll be humiliated in front of his pack. He might follow through with his threat and kill me. But if I pretend to submit to his influence, it might benefit me in the long run. I don’t know how long I’ll be here after all. If I’m stuck, I might as well earn the alpha’s trust to try to unveil the plans he has for my true pack.
So I lower my nose, letting out a whine for good measure.
“That’s more like it,” he says to me, but to the pack, he howls.
The other wolves imitate him, but I don’t join the fray. I have no idea what’s that all about. Scar remains on the ground, unmoving except for the slight tremor of his body. Our gazes connect, and I risk speaking to him one more time.
The static is still there, but I also catch a thread of actual thought. Not knowing if he can hear me, I ask. “Are you okay?”
Scar closes his eyes before shaking his head slightly. Maybe he had heard me. I want to keep probing, but Valerius turns to me again.
“Congratulations, Amelia. You passed your test. You’re now officially a Shadow Creek wolf.”
Chapter 8
Tristan
Valerius will try to kill me. I have no doubt about that. That’s one
more reason why I should be the one heading to his territory to claim Red as my mate. I don’t know who will be more enraged—him or her. I bet she’ll be furious to be claimed as if she were livestock. She’s a firecracker, and it’s no wonder we butted heads in the beginning. I don’t need Dante’s gift to know we’ll continue to do so many times over in the future. Despite that, I miss her so damn much. The emotions are so strong it’s impossible to grasp she just came into my life. Now, I can’t imagine living without her. My greatest fear is that the Shadow Creek motherfucker has hurt her.
A growl emanates from my throat, savage and wild. If Valerius or any of his wolves touched an inch of her hair, there will be hell to pay. I want to head to Shadow Creek right away, but I can’t be a hot head now. I need back up, or I’m dead meat. Going to enemy territory on my own is suicide.
The first order of business is to pay Sheriff Arantes a visit. She’s not a supernatural, but she has ties to the community. It was one of the reasons she was elected for the job. The only drawback is that she has to follow directives from Mayor Montgomery due to her position. However, not even the mayor will be able to prevent the sheriff from intervening this time. According to Mom, anyway. I hope she’s right.
I’m about to slide into my SUV when Lyria finds me. My spine goes taut as I brace for another argument with the former beta. Her stern expression tells me she means business. Once upon a time, I used to appreciate that determined, unwavering trait of Lyria’s personality. Now it only grates on my nerves. I can’t believe I entertained the idea—however briefly—of engaging in a relationship with the enforcer.
“Tristan, may I have a word with you?”
I let out a loud sigh. “Lyria, I don’t have time for whatever complaint you have now.”
“Where are you going in such a hurry? You don’t even want to speak to Seth, your best friend?”
I don’t miss the emphasis she puts in her final remark. Checking on Seth should be a priority—to find out everything about his ambush—but I don’t think he’ll be able to tell me more than he already did.
“I’ll talk to him later. I have an urgent matter to attend to.” I make a motion to enter my car, but Lyria holds the door.
“Come on, Tristan. I know I’m no longer the beta, but I’m one of your best enforcers. I deserve to know what’s going on. What do you plan to do about the Shadow Creek pack?”
I watch Lyria closely while I debate telling her at least something. She was the former beta. Keeping her at arm’s length might only fuel the distrust already running among some members. My faith in her has diminished profoundly thanks to her actions, but since it has been decided I must claim Red as my mate, I might as well tell Lyria that.
“You wanted to know earlier why Valerius would send his enforcers to take Red. He did because the rogue who attacked Red belonged to the Shadow Creek pack.”
Lyria’s eyes turn rounder as she processes the news. Then her eyebrows furrow, her gaze flashing annoyance. “You lied to us. Worse, you broke the rules.”
“I know, but I had no choice.” And here goes nothing. “I imprinted on Red the moment I laid eyes on her. There was no way I could leave her in the forest to die or send her to Shadow Creek.”
The enforcer takes a step back, clutching her chest as if my confession physically hurt her. “Red is your mate?”
“Yes.”
Blinking fast, Lyria lets out a humorless laugh. “That explains a lot.”
“Valerius doesn’t know, so it’s a matter of time before he attacks us thinking he’s in the right.”
Staring into the distance, Lyria doesn’t speak for several beats. “What about Rochelle and the hunters? We still don’t know what happened to her.”
My hand grips the door handle tighter. “I know. I’m headed to speak with Sheriff Arantes to let her know about everything that happened in the last few weeks.”
“Then I’ll come with you.” Lyria takes a step toward the car.
“No. I’m going alone.”
“Tristan, that’s not fair. Sure, I had my differences with Red, but Rochelle was one of my closest friends. Don’t keep me out of it.”
“I’m not trying to keep you out of anything, Lyria. But I need you here. Gather the wolves. You have my permission to tell them what I told you.”
Lyria’s eyebrows rise until they almost meet her hairline. “You want me to tell them Red is your mate?”
I get her surprise. Such news should be delivered by me. But I don’t have the time. Despite her dislike of Red, I trust her to deliver the news tactfully. Lyria knows what’s at stake. She won’t betray me or undermine the safety of the pack.
“Yes. I can imagine there’s much unrest among the wolves. I need you to reassure everyone. We can’t have instability within the pack when Valerius is getting ready to decimate us.”
Her sharp gaze becomes hard as she squares her shoulders. “Don’t worry, Tristan. You can count on me.”
The conversation with Lyria went better than I expected. I was surprised she didn’t throw a temper tantrum when she learned Red was my mate, even though she knows there’s nothing to be done when a wolf imprints. We can’t fight it, and it can’t be undone. I do feel bad about my deception, but wolves don’t deal well with change, and there’s never been a case where three wolves imprinted on the same female. If the pack were to find out now, so soon after the death of my father, who knows what would happen.
I’m so consumed with my thoughts I barely notice the drive into town. As I park in front of the sheriff’s office, I’m relieved to see her car there. What I don’t expect is to find the pandemonium inside. There are several distraught people—mostly humans—yelling and demanding a solution from whoever is taking their statement. The bench in front of the reception is occupied, while the folks standing are pacing or having loud conversations with one another. The theme seems to be the same, loss of livestock due to gruesome attacks, sightings of strange things at night. One person even claimed to see a wolf running across the town square a few days ago.
The place is so packed I have to elbow my way through to the front of the counter. A gruff, bearded man turns my way, glowering. “Hey, wait your turn, pal.”
I don’t even attempt to temper down the wolf, leveling the human with an animalist glare. It works, and the man mumbles something incoherent under his breath, moving away from me. The officer manning the reception is Santiago Kane, a powerful druid who is more than a thousand years old, but who still appears as if he just graduated high school.
“What’s going on here?” I ask.
Unbothered by the chaos, the druid glances in my direction. “It seems Crimson Hollow is experiencing one of those days where everything spooky decides to happen all at once.”
“I need to speak with Sheriff Arantes.”
“She’s busy right now. Xander Rodriguez has been locked in her office for over an hour.”
I peer over the druid’s shoulder toward the sheriff’s office. The blinds have been shut, so there’s no way to tell what’s going on inside. If the alpha of the Thunderborn sleuth is here, it means something terrible must have happened. They rarely like to come down the mountain. No wonder we didn’t hear back from him about the hunters.
The door to the office bursts open, and out comes a furious bear shifter. People in his way clear out quickly, picking up on his wild nature that he’s not trying to hide. A big guy with wild curly hair that reaches his shoulders, he’d be terrifying even if he were taming the beast.
Xander locks his eyes on mine. When he’s near enough, he says under his breath, “Tristan, I’d like a word with you.”
Shifting, I see the office where Sheriff Arantes is now standing in front of her door with hands on her hips. The usually collected woman looks troubled.
“I need to speak with the sheriff,” I say.
“Forget her. Look at this place. It’s a zoo. She won’t be able to help you. Just like she said she can’t help me.”
“Fu
ck.”
“Go with Xander,” Santiago says. “Officially, the sheriff’s office can’t do anything. Mayor Montgomery issued an order that we’re only supposed to work on human-related cases.”
Surprised at his blasé use of “human,” I quickly take in the three people standing next to us. They must have heard Santiago, but none of them even blinked. Noticing my stare, Santiago continues. “They can’t hear what I’m saying. Druid trick.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Xander says with unveiled contempt, which Santiago ignores.
“Unofficially, a few of us are meeting at my son’s place in an hour.”
The druid turns to the man in front of him. Just like that, I know whatever spell he cast is gone.
“Let’s get the hell out of here before I bite someone’s head off.” Xander moves toward the exit, not caring who he’s pushing out of his way.
Once outside, I follow him across the street and away from the busy entrance to the sheriff’s precinct. It seems half the town is experiencing some type emergency. Because this is Crimson Hollow, they don’t call. People like to vent their issues face to face.
“What brought you down here? You hate people,” I say.
“I do, but I didn’t know what else to do. Three members of my sleuth have been slaughtered.”
For the first time since I got to know the bear shifter, I see fear shining in his brown eyes.
“How?”
My immediate thought puts the blame on the hunters who attacked Red and kidnapped Rochelle.
“I don’t know.” Xander stares sightlessly at a point far into the distance. “Some kind of beast tore through them, ate their intestines while they were still alive.”
“How do you know they were still alive when it happened?”
Xander whips his face to mine while blasting me with his pissed-off bear energy. Shit, he’s really on edge.
“Because I found one still clinging to his life.”