The Chase: Book 2 in The Hunt Series

by Alainna MacPherson

  Caleb raised a hand then, his eyes closed in concentration. Expecting to see more sparks or lightening, I was confused when nothing else happened, until the hunters turned their weapons onto them. They all grew frustrated and started to examine their guns. Seeing the opportunity, Gearden and Bri attacked the nearest wolves, renewing the fighting frenzy. Turning, I pin Vic with a steely look, one that said, he no longer had the upper hand.

  His wide panicked eyes told me he saw it too. Still, he kept a tight hold on the girl. I crept forward, unhearing and uncaring of whatever he was saying. He started to stagger backwards, dragging the child with him. When he tried to turn, I let out a deep snarl, sending him back to face me.

  Finally, I was close enough to see him say, “I’ll slit her throat. Don’t come any closer!” Spittle flew from his lips as he spoke, and I relished in his panic.

  At that moment, the girl cried out, and for a second, I thought he really had done it, but then he hollered and flung the knife from his hand, shoving the girl away. Surprised, I jerked back and saw the knife was glowing red. Swinging around to the trees, Dad smiled at me and then pointed. Crap, Vic was on the run. Not only that, I could see he was starting to change.

  A rumble in my throat told me my wolf was more than happy to play along.

  Like a ball out of a cannon, I was off, and the chase was on.

  In the back of my mind I could hear Gearden trying to reach me. Turning my head, I quickly found him, in the midst of a fight with two other wolves. There was no time wait and I was too far gone, my human mind taking a serious backseat as Luna kept Vic in her sights. Leaving the compound, he burst into the line of trees on the other side, uncaring of the low branches snagging at his gray fur. In the daylight, it wasn’t hard to find him when I entered a few seconds behind. I wasn’t gaining any on him, but something told me I wasn’t at my full speed either. If I remembered correctly, I had run faster than this on my first shift, when Rowen was in danger.

  We ran for what seemed like forever before we came to a busy street. I didn’t let that stop me, though. He leapt in front of a large box truck that barely had time to stop and crossed the street to the woods on the other side. Zooming by the same truck, I didn’t take time to look for any other oncoming cars, I could lose him.

  As he jumped over a small creek, his leg slipped awkwardly. His gait was the same, but I could tell it hurt him because his head began to hang in exertion. Luna rumbled in satisfaction and kicked up her speed. Yes, this was what I was talking about. I gained on him in just a few seconds, coming up behind him to nip at his foot. Though my jaws didn’t do damage, it caused enough of a distraction to make him stumble, giving me the opportunity I needed to pounce on him.

  It was sloppy, and had us both rolling in the dirt, but at least he couldn’t run anymore. We gained our feet and faced off. His exertion was evident by the way he occasionally panted between lifting his lips to show his teeth.

  He charged first, rearing up on his hind legs, towering over me as he fell over my back. Before he could land on top of me though, I quickly sidestepped and clamped my teeth around his left foot, biting down hard and then letting go to dance away as he swung back. As he righted himself, he favored it a little, but I could tell it was just a flesh wound. Judging by the look in his eye, he realized that he’d underestimated me.

  I could feel a prideful grin spread my canine lips. Bowing low, I readied to attack but something came shooting out from a bush and rammed me in the side, sending me flying. When I landed, I tumbled and rolled and hit a large tree. At impact I felt my ribs squish together and my spine vibrate. I don’t believe I broke anything, but I certainly could have sprained something. Shaking it off, I tried to stand, knowing I was a sitting duck the longer I laid there. I stumbled though and I knew that wasn’t a good thing. Maybe instead of breaking things, I got a minor concussion. Looking back at Vic, I saw it was another wolf who’d hit me, and he was standing by Vic’s side now.

  Beta.

  Ugh, Luna didn’t have to tell me that much. The power emanating from him was nearly just as strong as Vic’s. He was a big one too. If possible, he seemed even bigger than Vic, though, that could just be the concussion.

  As if they did this a lot, they charge me simultaneously. I wasn’t ready for two, and definitely not for their combined strength. I had the upper hand with Vic because I was faster, but two against one did not bode well for me. Vic went for my throat as the Beta went for my belly, going for my vulnerable spots. I took the best defense I could think of and rolled, making it harder for them to gain purchase. Vic managed to get my scruff, much like he had before, only this time I felt it go deeper, into my muscle, feeling my shoulder go numb before he lost his grip during my tumbling on the dirt. Beta only managed to snag a tooth at my side, but it was enough to rip as I pulled away. Jumping to my feet, I bounded a couple yards away.

  I felt the burning pain, but the image of Jerry’s daughter being held by Vic with a blade to her throat reminded me why I was doing this. It also sent a hum through my body. Fueled by the rage and the pain I felt, Luna took the last bit of my humanity and pushed it back.

  My vision was no longer in multicolor, it was now in all blacks and blues. My chest swelled and my body grew. For a second I thought I was shifting back to human but that couldn’t be, because it was hard to get a thought through without Luna twisting it into instinct and basal feelings. I knew, then, that I’d shifted into something else, the monster that appeared when Grayson arrived and Gearden attacked. The one that was neither wolf, nor human.

  I towered over the two wolves now and smelled the telltale scent of fear from Vic. His Beta, on the other hand, didn’t waste any time before he launched himself at me, springing up to snap his jaws on my forearm when I raised it up to protect my face. I flung him off though, like he was hardly a threat. My skin thicker than it was in wolf form and he’d hardly left a scratch. Glancing down at them, I grinned. I wasn’t naïve, I knew that smile was probably the creepiest anyone has ever seen, which was what I was going for. At least, Luna, was going for. The wolves backed up in retreat. I could smell the urine that escaped one of them as they back pedaled. But I didn’t let them go. They were a plague on the Lycan society, abused their wolves, threatening children. What’s worse, the thin bodies of the other wolves back at the compound told me they were probably starving them, as well. They couldn’t be given the chance to infect another pack.

  With a roar that tickled the back of my ears, I vaulted forward, pinning Vic. Before he had the chance to struggle, my impossibly large jaws tore into his expose belly.

  Without looking, I sensed his beta trying to escape. With Vic’s lifeblood pouring out, I looked up and snapped my arm out, as if to reach for him. The ball of energy bursting from my palm shot out and hit him in the center of his back, knocking him forward into the dirt. Whatever I’d shot him with, made him shift back. As I prowled over to him, gore dripping from my snout, he attempted to crawl away. I stared down at him and warred with Luna over what to do with him. Vic was one thing, but his beta was another.

  “No.”

  “He mustn’t be able to lead this pack. He helped the alpha mistreat his people. His pack.”

  I understood the unspeakable crime she felt it was, but still, I didn’t allow myself to succumb to the need for justice. “The Cearer will deal with him.”

  The need to argue, to fight me, on this, was strong but I didn’t back down. Soon, she relented. Disgruntled, she settled for clamping a clawed hand on his arm and dragging him back to the outskirts of the road we crossed earlier and reached out with my mind.

  “Gearden?”

  His reply was instant, “Maeleigh? Are you alright? Where are you?”

  Relief flooded me, both his and mine. “I’m okay. I…um…can you come get me? With the car?”

  “Tell me where you are.”

  I waited there, in full out beast form, still holding the Westboro’s arm. To be honest, the effort and concentration it
took to remain in that state was a little exhausting now that the adrenaline had started to fade away. I was calm. Luna was calm. But we both knew the second we eased our grip the bastard would take advantage and try to run. Cars passed by as I watched from behind the cover of the trees. When the van Jolleen had rode in started a slow approach, I tapped into my link with Gearden. “I can see you.”

  “Okay. We’re slowing down now.” And it did, causing other cars to pass them.

  Finally, they came right up to my position. “Stop.” The van rocked when Jolleen hit the brakes. Through the trees and the sun-glared windshield, I could make out her concerned features behind the wheel.

  Gearden jumped out, leaving the door open. Someone else opened the large sliding door. Ro.

  Bursting through the trees, they weren’t prepared for what they’d find on the other side. It didn’t hurt my feelings that they both jerked back at the sight of my monster like appearance. Huffing, I tried to speak. “Beta.”

  I think they understood me, because they both stared down at my prisoner and nodded. Ro dug into his back pocket and fished out a couple white zip ties and went to work. When I finally released the arm I’d been holding for the last twenty-five minutes, my fingers reminded me that while I was busy cutting off the circulation of my captive, I was also depriving my fingers. They started to tingle and ache. As I shook them out, I felt my body start to relax. Gearden watched as I started to shift back into my human self.

  Naked, and once again in my shell pink skin, I took a step to Gearden, so ready to call this thing over and done with, only to have my legs collapse under me. All the adrenaline, all that energy, and all that power that I tapped into during all of this, had my body failing on the simple act of walking. Thank Goddess Gearden was there to catch me. He didn’t hesitate to lift me into his arms, pressing me to his chest as he quickly walked back to the van to sit me down behind Jolleen. Turning, he helped Ro load up the other man, dragging him in to lay on the floor of the car. With my last bit of energy, I glanced down to see his hands and feet bound, still naked. From behind me, someone passed me my clothes. While Jolleen pulled back into traffic, Ro climbed over the seats to sit in the third row. Taking my chin between his fingers, Gearden turned my head to face him. “Where’s the alpha. Where’s Vic?”

  Not ready for any judgement but knowing I had to tell him, I met his gaze dead on. “Dead. I killed him.”

  In a lame attempt, I tried to pull my shirt over my head, only to have my jelly arms flop to my lap. Gearden was there though, taking the shirt from me to pull over my head. He skillfully tugged my pants up my legs and over my waist, then buckled my seatbelt. I was too tired to think how he know how to do this so well, maybe later.

  We didn’t go home though. Rather, Jolleen drove us back to the compound where I found two separate groups of people sitting on either side of the compound. One was smaller, though, a mere six or seven people. The other had roughly thirty. Children were brought out from wherever they were hiding through all of this. During the ten-minute drive, my hand stopped tingling and I was able to lift my arms again, albeit not very high. With the support of Gearden and Bri, who, apparently was the one to hand me my clothes, we slowly made our way out. Under Danny’s watchful eye, was Derrek, kneeling naked in the center. When I eyed him, the full extent of his betrayal written all over my face, he didn’t meet my gaze, not even lifting his head. He avoided my eyes and turned his head to hide his face.

  Some movement caught my attention near the other side of the woods, where Gearden and our group had come from. Adam and Grayson were dragging something to a dark mound there. Squinting, I tried to make out what it was. Before Gearden could redirect my focus, it dawned on me: the hunters. Dead hunters, I corrected.

  Pointing to my right, Gearden indicated Sally, who was back in her clothes as well. She smiled reassuringly at me, which I appreciated, but just couldn’t manage to send her one in return. Not just from the lack of energy but from the simple fact that the reality of what had happened here started to sink in. Not just here, but back in the woods as well. With Vic and—

  “Don’t.” Gearden told me cautiously. “You did what was necessary.”

  “Did I? I could have taken him like I did the other guy. I killed that man. Another lycan. A—”

  “A sadist. He wouldn’t have stopped, not with his craving for power.”

  No argument there, I looked back at Sally. She signed, “LIAM WANTS YOU TO HEAR THIS.”

  Nodding, I looked for Liam, spotting him between both groups as he started to speak. Quickly, I jerked back to watch Sally.

  “Your alpha is dead.” A ripple of commotion went through both groups of people. On one side, the one with all the children, there was mostly relief. From the other, there was just disdain and surprise.

  “My pack has killed him and taken your beta into custody. The Cearer will be called to investigate.”

  Now, the strong scent of anxiety mixed with fear swept throughout the two groups. I imagined the Cearer as a sort of boogeyman story that people told to keep troublemakers in line.

  Surprise had Sally stalling. Then she told me someone from the smaller group was speaking. “By who?”

  Whipping my head around to see who spoke, a newfound zing of strength flooded my muscles. The lycan started to climb to his feet, taking a challenging stance in Liam’s direction. Not even thinking about it, I released my grip on Gearden’s arms and stepped over to stand between the other man and my alpha.

  Daring him to meet my gaze, I said as clear as I possibly could, “Me.”

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Maeleigh

  Squeezed between Freya and Caleb, I hitched a ride back to where the rest of the cars were parked, with Jerry’s family in the back seat. Ro and Danny found the other girl and his wife in the main house, bound and gagged. Just the thought made me shudder. It was a twenty-minute drive back, but I saw the ominous traffic going the other way from construction. I understood why, then, they arrived so late in the game at the compound. Pooling out of the van to wait for the rest of our pack, I played the discussion with the Westboro man who challenged Liam over and over in my head. As soon as I told him it was me who killed his alpha, he demanded something he called “the right to challenge alpha.” Though I could have guessed what that meant, Gearden still gave me the four-one-one.

  “He wants to fight you for the position of alpha to the Westboro pack.” I could tell he wasn’t pleased with the idea, but he couldn’t argue with the guy. According to pack law, he explained, I earned the status of alpha of the Westboro’s by killing their leader, and the arrest of their beta. I kept my mouth shut then. I had no idea what to say and didn’t want to screw anything up for anyone if I said the wrong thing.

  Jolleen was feeding water to the captive still laying on the floor of the van, except someone had thrown a blanket over his nakedness, when the others finally arrived and started to shift and dress, I spotted Zeke and Jackson, standing and unscathed. Climbing out of the van, careful not to step on the evil dude, I rushed, or tried to anyways, still a little shaky, and hugged Zeke. We’d never formally met but I felt the sorrow of a fallen pack member when he was shot down. Letting him go, I did the same to Zeke. He clasped me to him, an anchor to say, “I’m alright.”

  Pulling away, I looked them both over, trying to find the gunshot wounds. “How?”

  Without a word, they looked to the right. I turned to see Dad come out of the bushes. For a moment, I was confused, but then it made sense. Walking over, I saw his eyes go wide, unsure of what I’d do. Then, to his surprise, I hugged him tight. He returned the embrace, one hand on the back of my head, holding me to him. I’d missed this. The feeling of my strong and wise father holding me, keeping me safe. My rock. Sighing, I eventually pulled away and glanced over at the other two again, then back to Dad. “THANK YOU,” I signed.

  “YOU’RE WELCOME.” I don’t know how he did it, but he’d healed them, and that erased the hurt feelings I had f
rom whatever secret he’d kept from me. Saving he’d learned his lesson and didn’t keep anything else from me, of course.

  Gearden stepped up behind me, gave a nod to Dad and then pulled me towards his car, the others piling in behind us. The moment we crossed back into our territory, Gearden seemed to relax and broke the silence, at least with me. “Dad is going to take Zeke and Danny to pick up the body. Bring him back for the Cearer to deal with.”

  I remained quiet but nodded. Of course, they’d have to deal with the bodies. From what I’d learned from the past, they usually burned the bodies, but it must be different when it was your own kind.

  Finally, I breeched the topic everyone had on their minds.

  “What if I refuse to fight?”

  At first, he didn’t respond and just stared at the road. Until, after a few pregnant moments of silence, he sighs and tells me, “Then someone who supported the previous alpha and beta will gain control of the pack.”

  “But, I’m not a leader. I just learned how to shift!” Panic was hard to keep out of my own mind.

  “There’s only one way to get out of fighting without forfeiting it to the opponent.”

  I was all ears, so to speak. Except, he wasn’t exactly forthcoming with the information. “Well?” I demanded when he didn’t say anything.

  He rolled his shoulders, trying to loosen the tension there, I’m sure. “You can anoint someone to fight for you and for the position of alpha.”

  “Then I’ll do that.”

  “It also means they have the right to chose someone else.”

  “It’s better than me fighting him.”

  He didn’t argue, because I knew he felt the same. Neither option was a good one, but as long as it wasn’t me fighting, I think the pack had a better chance at keeping that man from taking over and going back to the same crappy way of life the pack was forced to lead.