by Tasha Black
She returned to the front door and knocked a final time.
“Tarker’s Hollow Police Department.”
She placed the palm of her hand on the door and prepared to call on some divination magic. She would pay the price for the spell later, but if there was any chance of a hurt child inside she needed to know.
The door to the adjoining twin popped open, interrupting her.
“Hello, officer, is everything okay?”
“I’m here for the domestic complaint. Did you call it in?”
“What do you mean?”
“A neighbor called the Tarker’s Mill Police Department tonight to alert us that there was a situation,” Grace continued politely, turning back to the door.
“Well, yes, I called the police tonight. But not because of a domestic situation.”
Grace turned to the man. He looked like a normal guy – not someone who would play games with law enforcement.
“Why did you call?”
“The Kranksys are out of town for two weeks,” he said, indicating the door Grace was about to break down.
She didn’t respond, so he continued.
“They called Karen, my wife, today because they’d forgotten to hold the paper. We’ll be picking up their paper. And I called you guys to alert you. Karen said sometimes you include a house on the night rounds if the owners are away for a while? I talked to Sheriff Warren. You can ask him.”
Grace was frozen to the spot. Somehow she managed to pull herself together enough to respond.
“Thank you for letting me know. Dispatch must have sent me the wrong code. I’m very glad you came out.”
“Anytime! Say, do you guys ever enforce the parking restrictions on this street?”
She was already down the stairs and halfway to the patrol car.
“I’m sorry to run but I have to make sure dispatch didn’t send the wrong address instead of the wrong code. Stop by the station whenever you want to talk about parking!”
Grace’s heart was beating a mile a minute. She turned on the car, but didn’t know where she was going.
Whatever Clive was doing, he’d taken her off the scene for half an hour with a phony call.
She remembered the people headed to campus and took off.
Grace normally viewed wolf stuff as none of her business. But Clive had stepped over a line tonight. She’d be damned if she was going to let this play out when Ainsley needed her.
Chapter 11
Ainsley was drowning in agony.
Her wounds throbbed and burned. Adrenaline from her injuries was pumping her wolf senses high and higher. The lights and sounds were painful beyond description.
Her heart ached for Erik.
She shifted.
The sensory pain disappeared, allowing her to better appreciate the singing pain of her injuries. She would be easier to kill in this form – but she was going to die anyway. It seemed more dignified to die as a person.
The tawny wolf before her shimmered and melted into a man. The brilliant lights behind him threw his figure into silhouette.
He was larger than life – more like a statue than a man.
He stepped closer and she could see his face.
Even through her pain and fear, Ainsley marveled over how handsome he was. His sandy hair was tangled and a little streak of her blood widened the appearance of his lush mouth. His torso was ripped like one of those guys on the cover of a romance novel.
Too bad he’s mad as a hatter.
“This has been a long time coming, Ainsley Connor,” he said as he approached her.
Ainsley tried to slow her frantic heart.
“I’ve been the alpha of this town for all practical purposes for months. All you had to do was lay back and let me fuck you. But I should have known you would find a way to screw it up. You were an uppity little cunt in high school and you’re an uppity little cunt now.”
Ainsley focused on taking breaths. She’d better enjoy them, they would be her last.
In and out, in and out.
He kicked her hard in the stomach.
She retched and curled into the fetal position.
“I should have killed you when I killed Brian. It’s a shame you won’t be around…”
Kick.
More ribs shattered.
“…to see what I do…”
Kick. The top of her head shimmered with pain.
“…with your new boyfriend!”
He kicked her hard in the chest.
Ainsley saw stars and for a moment she couldn’t breathe.
Brian’s death was all her fault. Even if she didn’t do it herself, just being with Ainsley had been enough to end his life.
And now it was going to happen to Erik.
Clive backed up and Ainsley could see he was gathering speed to come at her hard.
She closed her eyes, but her broken heart kept pumping as she waited for the killing blow.
Suddenly everything went dark and silent.
Was she dead?
There was shouting.
So she wasn’t dead.
Ainsley opened her eyes.
“Catch that bitch!” Clive was screaming.
Ainsley turned to see Cressida’s outline melting into wolf form and running away from the machinery, with two larger wolves in pursuit.
Cressida had turned off the lights and equipment to help Ainsley.
Suddenly, Ainsley’s whole body was trembling with an electric current.
The spectral figure of Brian walked toward her.
Followed by her parents.
Through them, she could still see Clive. He was screaming again but in slow motion. Everything was in slow motion.
Except her parents, and Brian, who had nearly reached her.
“I’m sorry,” she choked.
She coughed, her ribs crushed in pain, and she spit a mouthful of blood into the dirt.
“Ainsley, don’t be ridiculous. It was our job to protect you – not the other way around,” Michael Connor said in his warm, rich voice.
“And look how well we managed that!” her mother said.
“It’s all my fault,” Ainsley said.
“There is only one person at fault here,” her father said. He reached down and touched Ainsley’s shoulder.
Chapter 12
A jolt of electricity shot through her, then Ainsley was watching a scene play out through her father’s eyes, like a movie.
Her parents were in her mother’s Subaru, headed for the city. Her father drove and her mom gazed out the window.
“Do you think this Othello will be better than the one the Walnut Street did in oh-five?” her father asked.
Ainsley smiled, Othello was one of her favorites.
“I just wish Ainsley were seeing it with us,” her mother replied.
Michael Connor reached across the seat and took his wife’s hand in his own.
“All children grow up, Sylvia. She just needs to work through things.”
There was a lump in Ainsley’s throat.
He put his hand back on the wheel and there was silence in the car for a moment.
Suddenly high beams flashed in the rear view mirror. A pickup truck flew past theirs and cut them off.
Michael slammed on the brake pedal but it went all the way to the floor.
He cut the wheel to avoid hitting the other vehicle.
The Subaru plunged through the guardrail and over a steep embankment. Its lights were still on and Michael had a crazy view of trees and ground as the car flipped twice and skidded down into a gully.
After what seemed like an eternity, the car came to a rest upside down.
Immediately, Michael looked over at his wife.
She was hanging upside down by her seatbelt, lifeless. Her neck was broken.
Michael called her name, knowing she couldn’t answer.
His own vision was clouded by blood.
He heard a thrashing sound. Someone was coming down the embankment. M
ichael blinked and saw a figure come into view. Upside down it was hard to tell who it might be.
His heart leapt when he recognized the shape of the Sheriff.
No, no, Ainsley thought.
Michael opened his mouth to call to him, but no words came out.
The Sheriff was carrying something. He swung it lightly in his beefy hand.
A can of gasoline.
Suddenly, Michael realized what was happening. He tried to shift, but he was too broken.
The smell of gasoline filled his lungs. Then fire consumed everything.
Chapter 13
Ainsley’s father removed his hand from her shoulder and she snapped back to the present.
Her wolf howled to be released. She was white with rage and longing for vengeance.
Ainsley’s mother crouched down next to her and looked at her with the same sure eyes that had coached her through every skinned knee and childhood hurt.
“I can’t do it, Mom. I’m not strong enough. I’m not strong enough to fight. I’m not strong enough to lead.”
“There is more than one kind of strength, Ainsley. And you have always been strong. You need to find that strength now.”
“How?”
“You are the daughter of the best leader the pack ever had. And you are the daughter of the only witch ever to be accepted by any pack. You are the one who can bridge the gap. You are the one who can lead the pack into a new age. You are strong. You are proud. You are Ainsley Connor.”
Ainsley watched in wonder as her mother lifted her hand. She caressed Ainsley’s cheek with such gentleness Ainsley could barely feel it.
She forgot her pain.
Shaking, Ainsley rose to her feet.
Her parents faded away.
The world came back into focus.
Clive was turning to her.
“Jesus Christ, you don’t even have the sense to know when you’re beaten! You should have stayed down. You know you can’t win. You’re weak.”
He melted into his golden wolf form and charged.
“No!” Ainsley heard herself say.
She could feel her skin begin to glow with electricity.
“I am. Ainsley. Fucking. Connor!” she screamed.
Blue light blasted out of her fingertips.
The golden wolf flew backward and shifted into a human again.
Clive lay on the ground, stunned for a moment. Then he tried to get up. His legs went out from under him and he fell back.
“You bitch!” he roared. “You can’t beat me like this! You cheated! You didn’t fight fair!”
“Did you fight fair when you killed Brian Swinton?” Ainsley asked calmly, and blasted him with another dose of blue light.
“How about when you ran my parents off the road? Or when you lit the car on fire to finish them off? Was that fighting fair?” She hit him again.
The crowd buzzed at the revelation. Ainsley could feel the green pinpoints of support bolstering her up.
Clive reeled, his mouth open. Then he rallied.
“I did what I had to do to keep this pack strong, to keep it pure. Your parents were ignoring the old ways. And your whore mother was wrong to ever try to bring magic into the pack. You’re just like her. No one would have followed them into their brave new world bullshit, and no one is going to follow you. Especially now that they know what you really are.”
He looked back at the crowd for support. No one spoke.
Justin let go of Erik and moved to Clive.
Erik broke loose from Will and ran for Ainsley immediately. His face was a mask of relief.
In spite of the dirt and the dust and the sweat in his too long hair, Ainsley’s heart skipped a beat.
She held up her hand to stop him. The confrontation was not over yet.
She turned to Clive. Justin had helped him to his feet.
“Clive Warren, as the alpha of the wolves of Tarker’s Hollow, I revoke your membership to the pack. You are banished. Forever. If any member of this pack sees you on our lands after the next sunrise, you will be torn to pieces.”
There was silence.
Finally, Clive lowered his head. He turned and walked to his truck with Justin trailing behind.
Someone had thoughtfully placed his clothes on the hood of the truck. He began to dress.
Ainsley slowly lowered the hand that was holding Erik back.
Erik ran to her, swept her in his arms and spun her around. By the time he had set her down, other wolves had joined them.
Carol Lotus patted Ainsley’s arm with a smile that said she was holding back tears.
“Well done, Ainsley,” Mr. MacGregor said.
Will stood miserably behind the rest of the group. He was obviously sorry he had been on the wrong side of the fight.
Ainsley nodded at him.
“I’m sorry,” he said. “I didn’t know about your parents. I would never…”
She tilted her chin up to acknowledge his apology.
Cressida bounded up, still in wolf form, and head butted Ainsley so hard in the chest that she would have been knocked over if Erik hadn’t grabbed her.
From near and far, warm green rays of submission washed over Ainsley. She felt peace like she had never known as the joyous buzz of her pack enveloped her.
Their wait was over. The wolves of Tarker’s Hollow had an undisputed alpha once again.
Chapter 14
Clive could barely walk, but his wolf was still snarling and snapping inside him.
It just wasn’t fair.
Clive was the biggest and the strongest, plus everyone said he was a natural leader. He had sacrificed everything to stay in this town.
That bitch Ainsley Connor had run off to the city to get rich. And she had only come home to sell her parents’ fancy house and leave again.
She wasn’t even a real wolf. She was half witch.
No, based on her behavior today, she was all witch.
Now she was the alpha and he was an outcast.
His big body felt broken. Clive eased himself into the driver’s seat of his truck and grabbed his gun belt off the passenger side seat to put it on, like always, when he remembered the old Smith & Wesson.
He’d worn it to honor his dad. Clive knew he would have been proud to see his son become the alpha.
Now that was all ruined, but there was still one thing he could do to to even the score. Clive flipped open the cylinder. The silver bullet glinted in the car’s dome light.
His heart leapt with joy as he imagined how they would all howl when he shot that bitch dead.
He exited the car, squared his stance and aimed the revolver carefully at Ainsley’s forehead. No way he would miss at this range.
Clive didn’t normally let a lot of thinking get in the way of taking action. But something stopped him from pulling the trigger.
It wasn’t fair. She would be dead and it would be over for her. He would still be outcast from his pack forever.
With a little snort of glee, he adjusted his aim.
He’d taken her parents. Now he would take her boyfriend.
Let her live with that.
Clive aimed for Erik’s heart. He didn’t have to be completely accurate – if he got Erik in the chest, the silver would do the rest. But he was careful anyway.
He pulled back the hammer and fired.
Chapter 15
Ainsley wanted to collapse in Erik’s arms. The initial burst of energy from her victory was dissipating. Now she was exhausted, broken, hungry, and longing for her mate’s soothing touch.
But she needed to be strong in front of her pack.
And they were certainly paying attention to her.
Everyone was talking at once.
Will couldn’t seem to hold back the flood of regret about her parents and he repeated himself endlessly, assuring her that he hadn’t known.
MacGregor was trying to tell her that he would let the Federation know that she was firmly in charge now and that the pack leadersh
ip was secured.
Sadie Epstein-Walker, who was almost unrecognizable without her floppy garden hat, was holding a small, yipping dog and asking Ainsley something very important about rhododendrons.
Ainsley was about to ask MacGregor if she ought to make that phone call to the Federation herself when her wolf perked up its ears at an ominous click from just outside the site.
Ainsley snapped her head around to see Clive standing by his car with a weapon drawn.
Pointed at Erik.
No!
Ainsley gave Erik a terrific shove and somehow managed to get him out of the way as the gunshot rang out.
The bullet entered her left shoulder. Searing pain followed it, unlike anything she had suffered during the brutal fight. Her arm was on fire, burning from the inside out.
Erik had told her that shifting would help her heal. She tried desperately, but the bullet held her like an anchor, trapping her in her frail, human form.
A tidal wave of nausea swept over her.
She dropped to one knee and locked eyes with Clive.
His blue eyes crackled with fury and he dropped his head back and roared. The sound reverberated the chain link fence around the site.
His howl of triumph was cut short by three loud cracks.
Blood blossomed on the front of Clive’s shirt. He fell to the ground, a look of surprise frozen on his face.
Grace Kwan-Cortez stood behind him, feet wide, gripping her gun in both hands.
For a moment, Grace’s small form was frozen in place.
Then she holstered her weapon and ran for Ainsley.
Ainsley smiled dreamily at her friend. Grace was always so brave.
The world faded away before Grace could reach her.
Chapter 16
Erik fell to his knees in the dirt.
Ainsley was bleeding out quickly - her skin had already gone a deathly pale.
No, no, no…
He was sure there was some sort of first aid he should remember but his brain wasn’t cooperating.
Instead, he found himself brushing the hair out of her eyes and tucking it behind her ears. As if that would help her.