“I don’t think so. He knows about me and Mark, said he was going to tell Newell. And I know Mark was expecting to talk to the council today.” Fuck, he really should have told Cam all of this earlier, but his talk of bonds had sidetracked him. It was no excuse, though. And Cam was going to be pissed. “They fought about it yesterday. Mark was healed when I saw him, but—” He had to stop when a wave of anger hit him unbidden. Fucking hell. He clamped his eyes shut and struggled to control himself. If this was what bonding meant, he didn’t want any part of it.
A firm hand on the back of his neck, coupled with the scent of his alpha close by, worked like a soothing balm on his wolf, and Alec relaxed into the touch with a sigh. “Shit.” Opening his eyes, he discovered Cam kneeling in front of him, hand still on his neck.
Instead of being rightly angry with him, Cam’s expression was soft, knowing. “That’s what triggered it, then?”
“I think so. I could smell his blood, and—” He swallowed thickly, and Cam’s grip on him tightened. “—I wanted to rip Wes apart so badly, we had to leave. I couldn’t think straight.”
“I’m not surprised.” Cam stood, and Alec looked up at him. “So Wes arriving is probably not a good thing nor a coincidence.”
Alec shook his head. “No.”
“Do you think Mark’s in danger? And I mean the sort he wouldn’t heal from.”
Alec couldn’t stop the low growl those words caused, but no one said a thing. “He seems to think he’s safe as long as the council are there. Says his absence would be noticed.”
“I tend to agree with him. Newell isn’t stupid.” He met Alec’s gaze, expression hard. “But he is ruthless. I suggest you try and get Mark out of there as soon as the council finish with him, get him somewhere safe. If the council ask about it, he can tell them he felt in danger, after all, he will have just given evidence incriminating his alpha.”
Alec breathed out, trying to remain calm. “I told him to call if he feels threatened. I said we’d help him, no matter what.”
Cam smiled. “And we will.”
“Thank you.”
Slumping back into the sofa cushions, Alec paid little attention to the rest of the meeting. They discussed normal everyday work, which was as important as ever, but Alec’s mind was on Mark. What was he doing? Was he all right? His phone remained silent, but the longer it stayed like that, the less Alec thought it was a good thing.
At ten thirty, Cam wrapped up the meeting. Alec hung back as the others left. When Cam shut the door and came back into the living room, Alec squared his shoulders. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you everything this morning. With all that talk of bonds—”
“Alec.” Cam walked over to stand in front of him. “Don’t be so hard on yourself all the damn time. It’s exhausting to watch. You’re not a machine, for fuck’s sake. You’ve started the bonding process, whether you like it or not, and it’s okay if your mind isn’t as focused as it normally is. This is a huge deal, and though the timing could have been better—” Alec snorted. “—I’m so very happy for you.”
Alec let out a harsh breath and glanced up at the ceiling. “I hate losing control.”
“I know. But you’d better get used to it because it’s going to keep happening until you either bond or it fades.”
“Wonderful.”
Cam laughed and clapped him on the back. “Just be thankful we’re not near a full moon.”
Alec did the maths. Just over two weeks. Bollocks. That didn’t seem long at all. “Yeah.”
“Is there anything else you want to talk about?”
“No, I think I’ve bared enough of my soul for one day.” Leading the way to the front door, Alec paused before reaching for the handle. He met Cam’s gaze. “Thank you.”
Cam pulled him in for a hug, and Alec sank into it, the scent of alpha wrapping around him like a shield. “I am always here for you. Always.”
He left Cam’s in a much better mood than he’d arrived, and when he reached the flat where they held Felix, he was almost smiling. Seline opened the door when he knocked.
“How’s our guest today?”
She rolled her eyes. “His usual charming self.”
“Alec, what a pleasant surprise. Can’t imagine what you’re doing here.” Felix sat on the floor, back against the cage bars as he watched Alec walk towards him.
Stopping a good three feet away from the bars, Alec sat on one of the chairs presumably left there by the council members. “I hear you told the council the same story you told us.”
Felix flicked his claws out and tapped them on the wooden floor. “It’s not a story, it’s the truth.”
“For your sake, I hope it is.” He ignored Felix’s glower. “Did they believe you?”
“You know what they’re like, they give absolutely nothing away. I have no idea if they thought every word was the truth or that I was spouting a load of bollocks.” He shrugged. “Guess we’ll have to wait and see.”
“Guess we will.” Alec turned to go talk to Seline and Kirk, but Felix stopped him.
“Hey.”
“What?”
“Have they said what’s going to happen to me?” For once, he seemed genuinely worried. As well he should be. Alec struggled to find any sympathy for him.
But he could answer him. “No. Not that I’m aware of.”
Felix let his head fall back against the bars, eyes closing, and Alec left him to his brooding.
He stayed there for a while longer, checking in with his unit and making sure everyone knew their duty rotas while they were still on guard. By the time Alec left, it was almost lunchtime and he was starving. Back at his flat he made himself a sandwich and settled back on the sofa to eat it, trying to keep his mind blank. So much had happened in the last twenty-four hours, he needed a little time away from thinking about it all to process.
As usual, things never went according to plan, and three bites into his lunch he was disturbed by a knock on the door. “This better be good,” he muttered, setting the plate down and getting up to answer it.
Cam’s scent wafted in as he opened the door, and Alec stiffened. A personal visit instead of a text or phone call? He half joked, “Did somebody die?” As soon as he said the words, he pictured Mark, and all amusement left him. “Fuck, they didn’t, did they?”
“Not as far as I know.” He looked pointedly at Alec’s hand on the door frame. “Are you going to let me in?”
“Sorry.” Alec stepped out of the way and followed Cam into the living room.
Noticing his half-eaten lunch, Cam sighed and took a seat on one of the chairs. “You better eat that while I explain.”
“That doesn’t sound promising.” Doing as he was told, Alec sat and picked up his sandwich again, waiting for Cam to talk.
“I just spoke with Curtis.”
Alec quickly swallowed his mouthful. “From the council?”
“Yes. They want to talk to you as soon as possible. And they suggested I might like to sit in on it too.” He sat back in the chair with a groan. “They didn’t say as much, but I can tell something’s happened. I don’t think it’s to do with Felix because everything seemed fine when they left him last night. So that leaves P-pack.”
Appetite gone, Alec set the remains of his sandwich down, the little he’d eaten sitting like lead in his stomach. “It’s got to be Mark.” He was up pacing before he registered moving, pulling his phone out as he went. The first time he tried Mark’s number, it rang four times, then went to voicemail. The second time, it didn’t even ring before he got Mark’s answering message. “He’s not taking my calls.”
“Shit.” Cam stood, picked up Alec’s plate, and took it into the kitchen. “If you’re done eating, let’s go get some answers.”
Alec was right behind him. “If anything happens to him—”
Whirling round, Cam gripped his shoulders. “I know. But it won’t be your fault. You need to remember that. And let’s not get ahead of ourselves. You never know, it might be totally unr
elated.”
Yeah, with the way things were going lately, Alec doubted that. They left his flat and Cam led him down the stairs. The alphas had taken over one of the spare flats on the second floor, and that’s where they headed.
Cam knocked on the door and seconds later it was opened by Alpha John Calick—tall, built, with short black hair and blue eyes. Alec had met him briefly when they first arrived.
Calick inclined his head. “Alpha Harley, Alec. Come in, we’re ready for you.”
Alec let Cam go in first. Calick took them through to the living room, where two of the other alphas waited. They sat on the sofa, relaxed back against the cushions. Alec wasn’t sure what set up he’d expected, but it wasn’t that. They gestured to a kitchen chair placed about three feet in front of them. “Take a seat, Alec.” Ahh, that was more like it. Alec bowed his head and did as instructed. “Alpha Harley, you may sit over there.”
Cam took the indicated seat, a far more comfortable-looking one than Alec’s.
Noticeable by his absence was Curtis. Alec listened intently but couldn’t hear anyone else moving around.
The bedroom door opened and Curtis walked out, phone in hand. “Sorry to keep you waiting.” He joined the others on the sofa, still busy typing something while Calick stood off to one side near the door.
Alec frowned. Was he standing guard? He chanced a look at Cam, eyebrows raised, but Cam shrugged his shoulders the barest amount. Fuck, he had no idea either. The alphas, though physically imposing, weren’t giving any outward indication of hostility. On the contrary, the atmosphere was relaxed, apart from Alec’s nerves that seemed to ramp up with each second they waited to find out what the hell was going on.
He couldn’t exactly ask them to get a move on, so he attempted to calm his nerves, clasped his hands in his lap, and waited.
A minute or so later, Curtis set his phone on the small table separating the three of them from Alec. “Mr Knight, what’s your relationship with Primrose Hill pack member, Mark Appleton?”
Alec stiffened. So it is about Mark. This time when he glanced at Cam, Cam nodded, and Alec knew what he meant. Tell the truth. They could probably smell it on him anyway. “It started out as just sex, but the bonding process has been triggered. We haven’t gone further than that or discussed it yet.”
Curtis nodded as though he already knew all of that. “Do you trust him?”
The answer was easy, Alec felt it down to his bones. “With my life.”
Sitting forward, Curtis rested his arms on his knees, his silver hair glinting in the light. He sighed, and Alec got the feeling he didn’t like what he was about to say. “Well, that gives us a problem. Alpha Wallace has just had a long chat with Mr Appleton. He’s retracted what he told you about the jacket.”
Alec’s heart stopped, then set off at a gallop. “What?”
“According to Appleton, he and a Will Farley bought the jackets together from a high street store. He claims that’s where the rogue shifter scent must have come from.”
Cam cleared his throat. “Isn’t that a little far-fetched?”
Curtis sighed. “Is it any more far-fetched than suggesting his own alpha knowingly risked his life by using him to bait members of your pack?”
Alec barely registered the words. Something was very, very wrong.
“But you have Felix’s statement too. Surely that indicates Newell’s guilt?”
“I understand Felix was already in custody when the incident occurred. He can’t say for sure where the jacket came from since he wasn’t there.”
“But—”
Curtis’s tone turned slightly cooler. “I might also remind you, Alpha Harley, that Felix Martyn is a rogue shifter, one of the last members of a pack who attacked both yours and Alpha Newell’s pack. He has nothing to lose and everything to gain by telling you what you want to hear. Alpha Steven Newell has been the leader of the Primrose Hill pack for almost ten years. With Appleton changing his story, it’s Martyn’s word against Newell’s. Who would you believe?”
Alec glanced from Cam to Curtis. Fuck, when he put it like that….
Frustration clear on his face, Cam bit back whatever he was about to say and took a deep breath. “I understand that, but I’ve also given you evidence of Alpha Newell’s erratic and dangerous behaviour. He has a grudge against one of my pack members and also me, and that’s at the root of everything that’s happened since the rogue pack attacked us.”
“Again, according to Alpha Newell, you deceived him by not disclosing information when the two of you entered into an alliance. Facts that could very well put him in a difficult position with the human authorities.”
Alec itched to speak. He wanted to tell them that Wes had attacked Mark already, they must have threatened him with something nasty to get him to change his mind.
Why the fuck didn’t he call me?
But that would be his word against Wes’s, and considering his relationship with Mark, how would that look? Worse than that, he would be accusing Mark of lying to the alpha council.
Closing his eyes for a second, he tried not to panic, but Mark was in danger. He felt it with every bone in his body, and his wolf stirred, agitated and eager to get to him. This meeting was going nowhere, and Alec needed it to end already.
Cam, with far more patience than Alec, smiled. “With all due respect, Alpha Steven Newell has hated me ever since our pack split into two after the pack wars. He has never forgiven me for having the larger pack and territory and has been looking for an opportunity to get back at me. As I already told you, we made an agreement when forming that alliance. He knew about Nathan and Jared before that. He could have backed out, but instead, he gave his word as alpha to keep our secret from the authorities, as long as we got our paperwork in order and agreed to his other terms.” He didn’t mention that those ‘other terms’ almost got Nathan killed. Alec presumed they’d already been over that.
Turning to Alec, Curtis glanced down at his phone again. “Alpha Wallace wants to return to our headquarters tonight, we have much to discuss. I’ve spoken to Gareth at length about the attack on Sebastian Calloway. Is there anything you’d like to add that Gareth might have missed?”
Gareth had given a brief rundown of his meeting with the council, and Alec couldn’t think of anything he’d left out. They’d stopped the rogues from killing Seb, but he’d ended up in hospital. Only one of the rogue shifters survived, and that was Felix. “I realise Felix’s word doesn’t hold much weight, but he did give us information that led to the rescue of Sebastian’s sister. Without his help, we might never have found her in time.”
“That has been noted. Is it all you wish to add?”
Alec nodded.
“I have one last question for you.” His expression softened. “You and Mark Appleton have started the bonding process. Your wolf trusts him. You say you’d trust him with your life.” Oh no. “I take no pleasure putting you in this position, but I have to ask. Do you think Mr Appleton lied to your alpha or the council? Because only one of his statements can be the truth.”
“I—” Alec’s heart dropped like a stone into his stomach. There was no right answer. If he said Cam, then he implied Newell was innocent. If he said the council, then he was throwing his potential mate to the wolves. Literally. He said the only thing he could. “I don’t know.”
He expected Curtis to press him further because everyone in that room knew he had a strong feeling one way or the other. And he did. Mark had lied to the alpha council, but Alec had no idea why.
Instead of more questions, Curtis gave him the barest of nods. “As I expected. Thank you for your time, Mr Knight.” He nodded at Cam. “Alpha Harley.”
Cam stood, so Alec did the same. “Are you leaving now?”
“Yes. Alpha Wallace and the others are already on their way to collect us. You’ll hear our verdict tomorrow. Alpha Wallace will inform you of the time in due course.”
Cam saw them out and down the stairs to the front door, leavi
ng Alec alone. As soon as they were out of earshot, he had his phone out, dialling Mark’s number.
Straight to voicemail.
Which was no great surprise but still frustrating. He tried two more times before giving in and opening up a text message.
Whatever they threatened you with to make you lie, I can help. Please call me
He pressed Send and hoped like hell Mark trusted him enough to let him in.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Mark sat there stunned and watched the alphas leave the room.
What the fuck have I just done?
Sweat ran down the middle of his back, and Mark sighed in relief that no one wanted to shake his clammy hands. But they were alphas, all four of them would be able to smell him—fear probably oozed from his pores because he’d never been more terrified than he was right then.
Alpha Karin Wallace, leader of the council, paused in the doorway and Mark held his breath. When she turned and walked back over to him, her expression grave, his heart just about stopped. “I know you’re scared. I hope it’s concern over your alpha’s well-being and not because you’ve just lied to the alpha council. The consequences of the latter will not be pleasant.”
He swallowed, mouth dry, and managed a hoarse, “I know.” So many times in that meeting he’d been on the verge of telling them. They were the fucking council, surely if anyone could get to Newell, it would be them. But would they believe Mark over another alpha? And what if Newell carried out his threat and killed Harry anyway? He just couldn’t risk it.
She gave him one last searching look, then left after her companions.
The door closed with a soft click, and Mark slumped forward, head in his hands. He should have listened to Alec and not come back here. At the thought of Alec, his chest constricted, leaving him breathless. Does he know yet, what I’ve done? They’d got so close over the past couple of days. Mark might be young, but he wasn’t so naive as to not recognise what was on offer, if they wanted it. But that was before he lied to the council and put a serious dent in R-pack’s case against Newell.
Without his evidence, the jacket was more than likely useless. Just an unfortunate coincidence. Fuck, Alec would hate him. The realisation felt like a knife in his chest. He bit back the howl, but a whimper escaped instead, sounding pathetic in the empty room.
Bitten By Desire (Regent's Park Pack Book 3) Page 17