Wind huffed from my lungs, and I staggered, trying to get my feet under me.
Teeth sank into my neck, but I ripped free before Ariana could do any damage. I tried to put space between us, but she’d already jumped again, slamming into my side and forcing me against the wall.
A growl tore from my throat as I spun to face her, forcing all of my alpha dominance into my gaze.
A normal wolf would back down immediately, knowing there was nothing they could do to overcome me. But Ariana didn’t back down. Instead, she met my gaze with unwavering silver eyes and dove at my face.
I yanked my head just out of her reach.
So it was true. Ariana had gone mad.
I darted a few steps back, evading every swipe of her claws and snap of her teeth, but she didn’t relent. If I didn’t do something soon, I’d lose her for good. The shouts above were quieting, and if my pack saw another wolf attacking me, even the Silver Shifter, they might be tempted to intervene.
“Keep out of this,” I growled through the bond.
Before I could discern their answers, Ariana crashed into my chest, forcing me onto my side where she crouched on top of me and ripped at my flesh with her claws.
Pain slammed into my shoulder, and I snarled as I snapped at her face, not to hurt her, but to scare her into a retreat.
She didn’t retreat. She was too far gone.
There was only one thing I could do. I had to bring her into the pack. If I could return her mind to the present—to the human form she might not have seen in some time—then there might be hope yet.
I only had one shot.
Growling, I slammed by back paws into her chest, throwing her off. I was on my feet before she’d landed, and I dove at her neck.
To force a pack bond, I needed to mix my blood and hers. She’d be forced, if only temporarily, into the pack mind. It should be enough to pull her back to sanity.
Adrenaline coursed through my veins as I bit down on my tongue. Copper burst inside my mouth. I leapt, gripping her neck in my huge jaw, and clamped down hard enough to break the skin. The taste of a new blood flooded my mouth, but before I could pinpoint what exactly the undercurrent of that taste was, a new mind joined the pack bond.
Releasing Ariana, I shook my head and backpedaled as images flew across my mind.
Blood, death, fangs, and a dark cell.
This was Ariana’s mind. This was my mate’s life.
3
Ariana
I staggered back from the wolf, barely able to stay on my feet. I had been bitten many times, but nothing like this had ever happened. Words flashed in my mind, invading me.
Mate.
Mine.
Alpha.
Images flooded my head: images of a prophecy, a skinny silver wolf, and a huge wooden house. I whined, shaking my head. Someone was in my head, and my own memories flashed back at me like a mirror. Memories of my home in the cage, of dirt and blood and fighting.
Shit! The fight.
I would never win it like this. I fought to clear my head, lurching forward with bared teeth. The other wolf stared into my eyes, and I felt my growl turn to a whine, my head dropping as if my master had stepped on the back of my neck.
What had he done to me? This wolf had bitten me, but more than that, he must have injected me with some kind of poison.
And then the emotion swept over me, knocking me flat with the intensity—horror, desperation, and pity. My own emotions fought back against the intrusion, and I snarled at the pity he was forcing into me.
Let out your human.
I jerked my head up, startled by the thought that had crashed over me.
My human…?
The thought was as familiar as my cage, and yet, as forgotten as the life I’d lived before it. The wolf stepped forward, nudging my neck with his muzzle. He put both paws on my shoulders and stared into my eyes. With a series of jerks, he changed, right before my eyes, into a human.
“Let out your human,” he said aloud this time.
Before I could think to snap at his exposed and vulnerable belly, my own body began to spasm and bunch. Seconds later, I sat in front of him in human form.
Everything in my body felt wrong. I was no longer myself, and yet, I was more myself than I’d ever been. My thoughts began to take more human form, too. I hadn’t been in this body in…years. Now I sat before a man who was as naked as me, more bare than I’d ever been as a wolf. I threw my arms around my body, jerking back from the man who sat in front of me, his hands still on my shoulders.
I could still feel the mental intrusion, like a tongue was licking into my brain.
“Get out!” I screamed, grabbing my skull with both hands.
The man reeled backwards, grabbing his own head.
“Whoa, Ariana,” he said, his voice gentle but firm. “I’m Maximus, and I’m not going to hurt you. You don’t have to fight me. I’ve mixed my blood with yours, which has bonded you to my pack. We can’t help feeling any intense emotion from you.”
I jumped to my feet, scrambling back. I could feel my wolf inside, too, snarling to get out. She wanted to leap at the man’s back as he turned and retrieved his clothes. He slipped into his pants, zipping them before turning to me. He held out a dress shirt, and his mind commanded me to step forward and take it.
The feeling of being compelled was unbearable, and he winced as I snatched the shirt and retreated. I turned away as he had, pulling my clumsy arms through the sleeves. It didn’t fit me like fur, but it was better than the exposed feeling of bare skin, where every air current tickled almost painfully. Hugging the shirt around me, I stared at this Maximus. I could feel him, his worry and urgency, his trepidation about…me.
My wolf snarled to get free, but his command held her in check. I could tell she was stronger than me, but his mind was even stronger than her. I appreciated the sharp clarity of my mind after the years of fog and monotony where the only thought was survival and the only emotion was fear.
Trying to ignore the swirl of thoughts and feelings being imposed on me, I turned to Maximus and asked him the only pressing question.
“Are you my new master?” My voice was squeaky and weak with disuse, the words feeling foreign on my tongue.
“No,” he said quickly. “I’m your alpha right now, which is why I can communicate clearly with you in wolf form.”
“What’s the difference?” I asked, tugging at the bottom of his shirt, which barely concealed my upper thighs. I wanted more coverage. I wanted my fur coat back.
A wave of anguish washed over me, and I almost cried out before realizing it came from him. It was gone as quickly as it came, but I watched him warily.
“I don’t own you,” Maximus said. “We’re going to get you out of here. You are your own master now, Ariana.”
I could feel the strength in his words, the conviction. I let go of the edge of my shirt and straightened my shoulders. This pack bond thing wasn’t all bad. I could tell he meant what he said, that he really was getting me out. I tried to push it further, to see his intentions for me.
He gave me a haughty smile. “It doesn’t work that way.”
Startled, I retreated a step. “How does it work?”
“You can feel strong emotion from us, and I can communicate with you when I need to. But we can’t read minds. Even I can’t do that, though right now your emotions are very… open.”
I crossed my arms over my chest, trying to hold in whatever he was seeing. I knew better than to show weakness to an opponent and let him exploit it.
“I’m going to bring my second-in-command down,” Maximus said, his voice softening. “I know you don’t trust me, and you have no reason to. But I’m not going to take advantage of you, Ariana. Not now, and not ever.”
A moment later, an East Indian woman dropped into the pit beside us. Her long hair was held back in a low knot, and her brown eyes pooled with concern. The moment she was near, the intensity of her emotion made me step back. She held out a hand. “I’m
Shira—the pack’s second. We’re going to take you home now, okay?”
Her tone was one used to calm a wild animal, which was slightly insulting and embarrassingly soothing. I nodded.
“Let’s get her out of here,” Maximus said. There were three exits to the pits. One led to the stands and was used only by my former master and the special guests he brought down to gawk at his prize killers.
Killers like me.
The fighters used the remaining doors on either ends of the pit. One led back to the cages and a bowl full of food. I didn’t know where the other door led. I’d never lost a fight.
Maximus started towards that door, Shira close behind. Instinctually, I fell in behind them. But two steps later, my mind balked.
Shira gasped audibly, the heel of her hand pressing against her temple. She and Maximus both turned to me.
“You’re going to have to teach her to put up some shields,” Shira muttered to him. “If not for her sake, then for ours.”
“I know that,” Maximus snapped. His gaze held only patience for me, though.
“I’m not going out that way,” I said. “That’s the loser’s door. I use the winner’s door.” My words sounded cold even to my ears, but damn it if he couldn’t see past them, see the fear bubbling in my stomach. That was the door of the dead. The only living things that used that door were the pit crew dragging out the bodies. The pit crew were only a step above the fighters—those who owed the master but were not shapeshifters.
Shit. The pack could see that, too. Maximus was flashing it back to me, showing me what I showed him. I wanted them out of my head. My thoughts were the only thing I had that was truly my own. Even my body belonged to my master.
“We can use the other door,” Maximus said quietly.
I caught a flicker of surprise from Shira, but she followed behind when he strode toward the tunnel leading to the cages. I fell in behind them, uncertainty coursing through me as we approached. I hadn’t been to the cages as a human since I was a kid, since… The memory of my parents caught me by surprise and I stumbled. Maximus glanced over his shoulder at me, his jaw tight.
Hold it together, Ari, I told myself.
Seen from human eyes, the cages looked pathetically small. Just big enough for a dog to sleep in the dirt. Empty food and water bowls.
I swallowed, sick with anger and humiliation. This was a terrible idea. I shouldn’t have taken them back this way.
“There are more,” Maximus said, pulling up short.
“Of course there are more,” I said. “People require entertainment like dogs require food.”
I winced as I said the line that my master had said to me so many times.
Maximus’s shoulders squared. “We’re not dogs. We are wolves.”
I didn’t argue, though it made no difference to the master—or to me. I’d fought dogs, and the trick to winning was the same. Take out their front legs instead of going right for the throat.
“I’ll have someone get the key to these and release the captives,” Maximus said. “Let’s get you out of here.”
We passed the remaining cages and exited the building, stepping into a balmy night. Trees along the edge of the parking lot tossed in a gust of wind. I closed my eyes and inhaled, taking in the scent of fresh air that so rarely made it down to the cages under the stands.
My eyes snapped open. I hated fresh air. It was the scent of new arrivals being brought through this door and shoved into cages, usually screaming and pleading for mercy.
Shira grimaced at me. I couldn’t help what she was seeing. Maybe she should learn to stay out of my head.
“It’s the first thing I’ll teach you,” she said as we approached the car.
Maximus climbed in the driver’s seat, and I didn’t hesitate to open the back door and slide onto the leather seat. The only thing on my mind was getting the hell out of here as fast as possible. I could worry about where we were going later. It couldn’t be worse than this.
“We’re taking you to our home,” Maximums said. “We prefer to live close. It helps with communication.”
He spoke as we pulled out of the parking lot and headed north, out of the city. They lived an hour outside the city, he said, on a mountain. The pack owned the whole mountain, and he lead the pack. He said we were safe from the warlock, but I wasn’t so sure. He wouldn’t let me go so easily. I was bound to him—my parents had pledged service to him. He owned us. The idea of being free, of owning myself, was impossible to comprehend. But I knew one thing for sure. I wasn’t going back without a fight. And so far, fighting me had not worked out so well for my opponents.
As promised, we pulled into Maximus’s werewolf community an hour after leaving the city. Also as promised, Shira and Maximus went over the basics of how to keep them out of my head during the drive. I had pictured brick walls coming up around me, and relief showed in both of the wolves.
By the time they told me we were entering their territory, I was mentally and physically exhausted. The car climbed the low mountain, winding back and forth through a series of switchbacks. Through the trees to my right, I could just make out high bluffs shining white in the moonlight. Above them, scattered over the top of the mountain, were a handful of little houses and one big house at the top. A few minutes later, we pulled up in front of the large wooden lodge.
“Let’s get you settled in for the night,” Maximus said, getting out of the car and stretching. The moonlight glimmered off his strong back, the muscles knotting under his bare skin.
“It is late,” Shira said, yawning. “And I’m sure we’ve all had enough excitement for one day.”
I balked at the thought of going into their house, but Maximus smiled and fed me a picture of a bed. I edged a step closer. Then he gave me more images—a spacious living room with the sun streaming through the window, a leather couch and a bookshelf, feet up on the coffee table and coffee steaming beside me…or him? I was still confused about how the bond worked, if I was seeing the past or the future. When I didn’t rush into the house, he tempted me further with the image of a plate full of spaghetti. That did it.
I could at least eat here, and rest. Then, I’d figure out what they wanted.
Inside, Shira led me upstairs and showed me the bathroom and a bedroom. “You can wear my clothes until you get a few of your own,” she said, opening her bureau for me. “Come downstairs when you’re ready to eat.”
I was ready to eat now, but the thought of the shower was enticing, and I was more than ready to get my body covered. I took a quick shower and pulled on the yoga pants and long-sleeved tee I’d chosen.
When I stepped out of the bathroom, the smell of food drew me straight downstairs and into the kitchen. Maximus turned from the stove, a plate in each hand. He’d pulled on a plain white T-shirt with his dress pants, and for the first time, I noticed how handsome he was. His strong jawline and chiseled cheekbones were subtly highlighted by the dark shadow of stubble across his cheeks and chin. Bright hazel eyes met mine, a smile playing over his lips.
Damn it. Was he picking up on my admiration?
“I’ll eat with you,” he said, delivering the plates of spaghetti to the table. He sat opposite me and passed me a bowl of parmesan. I dug in without hesitation, famished after the fight and the long day without food that preceded it.
“Shira showed you the bedroom where you can sleep?” he asked.
I nodded, eating quickly without speaking. Sometimes, they gave us only enough food to whet our appetites before pulling it away, taunting us with the bowl that sat just out of reach.
“You’re going to be safe here,” Maximus said. “I can tell you’re tired, so just eat and then you can sleep in the guest room. We’ll talk more in the morning.”
I was grateful for his understanding, even if he’d poked around in my mind to get there. After eating, I retreated to the room they’d left me and fell into an exhausted sleep immediately.
I woke after a few hours. I wasn’t used to s
leeping a whole night at a time. A lot of business took place at night with vampires coming and going, new residents arriving in the cages, and other commotion. Now that I’d slept, my mind was clearer. I slipped from the big bed and listened. My wolf urged me to get out, to run. And she was right. I didn’t know what these people wanted, but I knew for damn sure that their kindness wouldn’t come without a price. Everyone wanted something. That was the way the world worked. If I wanted to eat, I had to fight. If I wanted to live, I had to win.
I tiptoed from the room, stopping in the hallway to listen. I could hear soft snores from down the hall. My heart pounding, I slipped silently down the stairs. All the while, I waited for an alarm or a guard to stop me. But none did. It was almost as if I were free to come and go as I pleased.
What if it could really be that simple?
I shook my head and started towards the woods, needing to put some distance between myself and these wolves with mysterious motives. What did they want from me? Was that what Maximus meant to tell me today when we talked?
As I stepped into the woods, a sense of familiarity washed over me. I’d played in the woods as a child, before the old warlock had died and passed us on to his son. He’d let me roam the woods and creeks like a wild animal, though I knew I must always return home. He’d been kind to us, but we never forgot that we belonged to him.
My wolf was even more comfortable in the woods than my human side. She strained to get out, but I was hesitant. I wasn’t sure that I could control her, that I could choose this form at will. I had been forced into it by Maximus’s command as alpha. But already the bonds were weakening. I could feel the tie with the pack loosening as I moved further away, deeper into the forest.
At last, I found a tangle of briars and vines where I could crawl under and rest. I’d never had a pack, and I didn’t need one now. I’d survived more than they ever would, and I’d done it on my own. Out here, the trees provided protection and privacy. There were plenty of animals to hunt. My wolf would take care of me. She knew how to survive. And no one would demand payment for favors.
Her Wolf: A Why Choose Urban Fantasy Romance (Silver Shifter Book 1) Page 2