“Have you heard from Drake about Sammy?” The alpha asked, refusing to beat around the bush. After all, it was his operation that was now in danger. While he’d kept her away from most of the inner workings, there was no guarantee she hadn’t seen something or overheard a conversation that could jeopardize what they were working toward. Of course, the main reason he wanted her back was because she had embarrassed him. No one used him—no one.
“As a matter of fact, I have,” the magi fingered the rim of his glass before downing the drink in one gulp. “I don’t know how, but the Windy River pack managed to figure out your plan and destroyed my creation.”
“My plan? I thought you said they wouldn’t be able to tell the difference between your walking meat suit and the original. Obviously, he must have given something away.” Alpha Clifton shook his head. “Why you thought you could trust something that is so obviously against nature is beyond me.”
“Says the man who is playing god with genetics,” Ashton chuckled. “Face it; you blew this because you have an ego the size of Jupiter, and you can’t keep it in your pants. I should walk away and cut my losses with you.”
Alpha Clifton sat back in the chair and crossed his arms over his bulging chest. “And then who would you have to do your dirty work? You and the others get to sit back while I take all the risks. I’m fine with that as long as you all have my back. But lately, it feels like maybe it’s time I walk away from all of you.”
The alpha watched as Ashton sneered at him before responding, “You forget who you are talking to—”
“I know exactly who I’m talking to, your highness, but without the shifter warrior army I’m building, you and the others would be nothing. You allowed your coven to be wiped out during the Salem witch trials—all killed by lowly humans.” Alpha Clifton leaned forward. “So, don’t you threaten me. In fact, you better hope nothing ever happens to me because I’ve got a little insurance policy that someone will deliver to Alpha Grant upon my death.”
“What have you done?” Ashton ground out; his fist clenched so tightly around his tumbler that the glass shattered. Clifton smiled as he saw he’d hit home with the narcissistic bastard. They might all believe in the purity of their individual paranormal races, but it was time Ashton realized that the magi were not on the top of the food chain. If war broke out between shifters and other paranormal beings, he was sure they would come out on top. After all, shifters weren’t afraid to get their hands bloody—in fact, they loved it.
The alpha pushed his chair back and stood calmly. He noticed the two magi who guarded Ashton had pulled their hands from within their sleeves ready to defend their high priest. He just laughed at them. “You know what; I don’t need your help in this matter. I’ll take care of it myself. You and the others just be ready to do your part when the time comes.”
He calmly left the BDSM club and got into the waiting vehicle. As the car drove away from the club, the alpha turned to look at his new beta. The man was almost seven foot tall and full of muscles. He had gray hair even though he didn’t look a day over forty. But it was the scars that covered his face and body that put most people off. He’d thought Sal was crazy, but Silver was worse when it came to killing. However, unlike Sal, he willingly followed orders and had yet to fail.
“We need to put together a plan to infiltrate the Windy River pack. If we can’t get Sammy back, then we can at least make sure she can’t talk. Who knows, maybe we’ll get lucky and get rid of Alpha Grant at the same time.” He listened as Silver began to make calls. If things went as planned, he’d be giving the Windy River pack their own version of the Saint Valentine’s Day massacre.
Chapter 15
Shadow tried to wake Jake when they pulled up to the alpha’s residence, but the man was out cold. Who could blame him after all he’d been through? He climbed out of the car and gently lifted his mate into his arms. He shook his head when Blaze tried to take the unconscious shifter from him. His hip was killing him, but there was no way he was letting his wolf out of his arms.
Blaze and Dove walked ahead and opened the door for them. As he entered the house, he saw Sammy standing at the foot of the stairs. “Is he?” She asked as she rushed toward them. He could see the worry etched in her face, followed by anger. When she found out what happened, he wouldn’t be surprised if she tried to go after Alpha Clifton and gut him all by herself.
Shadow slowly walked up the stairs toward the room he had been using to recover. His leg complained about the exertion, but he ignored it. The doc hadn’t been thrilled when he’d insisted on going on this mission, but nothing was going to keep him here when Jake was putting himself in danger. Sammy opened the door and entered ahead of him. She pulled down the bedding and watched as Shadow gently placed Jake on the bed.
“What the hell is he covered with?” Sammy asked quietly.
Shadow couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped his lips when he thought about Sparky’s reaction. When Sammy’s eyebrow rose into her hairline, he decided he should let her in on the joke. “Drake turned out to be a zombie. Dove thought it would be a good idea to blow him up, so most of us ended up with zombie bits and pieces all over us.”
“Zombie? Like Night of the Living Dead?” Sammy shook her head, “How is that even possible?” Shadow shrugged as he began to remove Jake’s clothing. Sammy went into the bathroom and returned with a washcloth and a couple of towels. She placed one across Jake’s hips, which made Shadow smile again.
“What? I’ve seen it all before, but I also know my brother. He doesn’t like to be on display.” She helped him get Jake cleaned up as best they could. She sucked in a breath when she saw that they had broken her brother’s arm again. Jake looked like he’d been on the losing end of a battle. He had deep claw marks over his rib cage, and his neck was discolored where Drake had tried to strangle him.
A knock at the door announced the arrival of Doc Houston. The man always reminded him of Doc from the old western Gunsmoke. “I’m glad you two took my advice to take it easy for a few days. I see he managed to break his arm again. You two could make me rich—if I charged for my services.” He glanced sideways at Shadow, “Maybe I should start.”
“I’m pretty sure it wasn’t his idea at the time, Doc. How does he look?” Shadow asked as he sat on the side of the bed. He watched as the doctor checked his mate over. He winced as Jake’s arm was straightened to reset the bone. He was glad Jake was out cold for the exam and resetting the bone this time.
Doc wiped his hands on a towel before he sighed. “Assuming you two can stay out of trouble for more than five minutes, he should heal up pretty well with a couple of shifts. I’m going to give him an IV to top off his fluids and give him an antibiotic just in case. When he wakes, make sure he eats and then let him shift,” the doctor paused and glanced at Shadow. “And don’t think I didn’t see you wincing, do I need to sedate you two to make sure you get some rest?”
Shadow shook his head, “No worries, Doc. I plan to stay in bed for a while.” He watched as the doctor shook his head while Sammy rolled her eyes.
After the doc finished, Sammy walked the doctor to the door. She returned and sat down in the same chair her brother had been using when Shadow had been bedridden. It didn’t take long before the inquisition started, “You never told me what happened. How on earth did Alpha Clifton get his hands on a zombie?”
Shadow ran his fingers down Jake’s cheek before he answered, “We don’t really know except according to Artemus, a bokor had to be involved. We already know that Charlie’s old coven is somehow involved in all of this but with Winston gone there is no clue as to who could be helping the bastard.”
Sammy sat back a thoughtful look on her face. “You know while I was there a few lower level magi joined the alpha’s army. I’m not sure what coven they were from, but it’s possible they came from Goldfield Coven.”
Shadow sat back against the headboard easing his hip as he continued to run his fingers lightly through Jake’s curls.
“Can I ask you a question?”
Sammy shrugged. “Sure.”
“You were there for months, why didn’t you kill the bastard?” Shadow didn’t think he would have been able to avoid getting rid of the old alpha of Willow Creek. He watched as Sammy glanced over toward the window for a moment before she turned to look back at him.
“It’s weird, but I felt like killing him wasn’t what I was meant to do.” She clenched her hands into a fist, “Don’t get me wrong there were times when it was hard not to kill the bastard, especially when…” she swallowed, “…well, you know.” The she-wolf squared her shoulders and looked directly into Shadow’s eyes. There was no shame in them only determination.
“Somehow I knew I had to save Charlie and then Radar. It was just a feeling that they were important for some reason. I’m so glad they both made it here. Which reminds me, I need to give this back to Charlie.” Shadow watched as she pulled a necklace from under her blouse. It looked ancient and was shaped like an arrow. In the center was a stone that appeared to glow with an internal fire.
“What is it?” Shadow asked.
“Charlie told me it helped him with his abilities. We never really had much time to discuss it because he and I were always under the watchful eye of the alpha or his beta’s.” She fingered the amulet, “Sometimes I can feel ancient magic from it, but nothing has happened.”
Shadow smiled at the she-wolf as she put the amulet back inside her blouse. From the runes on the ancient black stone, he was pretty sure it was something Charlie would be glad to have returned to him. “Personally, I’m glad you listened to your instincts. You’ve been able to give us valuable information, and you managed to save those two young pups. By the way, have you named them yet?”
Sammy chuckled, “Jake asked me the same thing. He wanted to name them Thing 1 and Thing 2.”
“Sounds like him,” Shadow replied fondly. It was amazing how quickly he was falling in love with the shifter. Maybe someday Jake would learn to love him as well. But he could be patient. The last thing he wanted to do was scare the man back into the closet by proclaiming his true feelings for him. “Well, it could have been worse, if you let Dove name them, he’d probably come up with something like Bert and Ernie. After all, this is the guy who named his robotic rats Frick and Frack. Not to mention he now has a barn owl named Who.”
Sammy shuddered but laughed. “Well, no need for anyone to come up with their names. The pup with blue eyes is named Castor Johnathan Williams, and the other one is named Pollux Jake Williams. Johnathan was our father.”
Shadow cocked his head to the side. “You named them after the Gemini Twins—the Greek gods?”
She shrugged. “What can I say. I had a dream last night, and the names came to me.”
He smiled. “I think it’s kind of cool. You know that Castor was known to be good with horses. He was kind of the horse whisperer of ancient Greece.”
“What about Pollux?” Sammy asked.
“Ah, he was a warrior. I bet he’ll take after his mother and uncle in that respect. Since he carriers another warrior’s name, there is no way he won’t be powerful.” He glanced down at the sleeping man at his side. “You and Jake certainly proved yourselves over the past few days.” He watched as the she-wolf blushed. It seemed embarrassment ran in the family. He couldn’t wait to see a different kind of blush on Jake’s face. The fact that he knew his lover was a virgin only made the anticipation better. He’d be Jake’s first—and last.
“Well, I think I’m going to let the two of you rest.” She rose from the chair and began to walk toward the door before she paused and looked back, “Just remember if you hurt him, I’ll castrate you with a silver knife.”
Shadow unconsciously crossed his legs as he watched the she-wolf leave the room. He could hear her chuckling as she walked down the hallway. Of course, he didn’t have to worry. He had no intention of hurting the man beside him. His last thoughts were of Jake before sleep finally pulled him under.
Jake groaned as he slowly opened his eyes. The first thing he noticed was he wasn’t in the SUV. The second thing he noticed was he was being held against a hard chest. He blinked a couple of times before he realized that he also had an IV in his arm. The bag was empty, so he pulled the needle from his arm. He groaned as pain shot up his injured arm.
“You need to shift,” Shadow mumbled before the body behind him moved away. For a moment Jake wanted the arms back around him. How weird was that? But now that he was more awake, his bladder alerted him that lying in bed was no longer an option.
Jake pushed himself up carefully with his good arm and was glad to see that when he stood, he didn’t fall over. His arm ached and his throat and ribs hurt, but all in all, he didn’t feel too bad. “I’ll be right back,” he winced at the sound that came from his damaged throat. He sounded like a frog after a rough night on the town.
“I’ll go down and grab us some breakfast. Doc Houston wanted you to eat before you shifted. You go take care of business, and I’ll be back shortly,” Shadow said as he stood. Jake noticed they both were wearing jogging pants. Part of him was disappointed while the other part appreciated what Shadow had done. He nodded as he headed to the bathroom.
A short time later, he emerged feeling much better. He managed to take a quick shower. While someone had cleaned him up, he could still smell Drake on him. How Shadow had managed to sleep next to him, smelling like a sewer was beyond his comprehension. He didn’t want to climb back into the bed because he was pretty sure the bedding would need to be changed.
A soft knock on the door caused him to jump before he heard the voice of the she-wolf who helped with the housework. “Come in,” he croaked. Boy, he couldn’t wait to shift and get his voice back. He watched as she entered and quickly changed the bedding. She gathered the dirty linens and towels from the bathroom.
“Do you need anything else, Jake?” She asked softly.
“No thanks, Elaina,” Jake replied with a smile. She nodded and winked at him before she left the room. It wasn’t the first time she’d tried to catch his eye, but now that he decided to accept Shadow, she didn’t have a chance. Not that she ever did. He had to admit, he enjoyed being able to finally accept his preference for men—especially one in particular.
Shadow entered as she was leaving. He carried a huge tray loaded with eggs, bacon, and sausage. There was even a carafe that from the smell was filled with freshly brewed coffee. Jake’s mouth watered as the wonderful smells filled the room and then blushed when his stomach rumbled.
“I see I got here just in time. Doc was downstairs and said he’d come up and check on you in a bit. I told him you’d shift in the room and would rest until then.” Shadow stopped and seemed to rethink his statement, “I mean if that’s what you want?”
Jake chuckled. “It’s fine.”
Shadow frowned when he heard his voice. “Oh man, I probably should have brought you softer food. Do you think you’ll be able to eat with your throat or do you want me to get you something else?”
The wounded shifter had never heard Shadow sound so uncertain with him before. But then he’d been running from the man so often maybe it had been there all the time. He sat on the bed and patted the mattress beside him. He smiled when Shadow got the message and brought the tray with him.
The two shifters ate in companionable silence. As soon as they finished, Shadow removed the tray and put it on the dresser. He grabbed a book from the window ledge and took a seat in the chair by the window. “I’m just going to read while you shift and take your nap.”
Jake dropped the towel he’d been wearing after taking his shower and shifted. He sighed with relief when his leg supported his weight without too much trouble. He limped over to lay down at Shadow’s feet. He glanced up and saw the name of the book his boyfriend was reading and smiled. Sun Tzu’s Art of War seemed to be the perfect book for the man who put learning ahead of fighting. It was another thing Jake loved about Shadow.
As he fel
l asleep, he smiled at the feel of Shadow’s hand on his fur. For the first time in his life he felt as if he belonged to someone—and that someone belonged to him.
Chapter 16
Sammy stood outside the door to Charlie and Sparky’s room. After giving the pups their breakfast, she decided it was time for her to give Charlie back his necklace. She paused as she heard Sparky yelling at his mate.
“What do you mean you don’t want to celebrate Valentine’s Day? It’s tomorrow, and I expect you to woo me with chocolate.”
“I’ve never celebrated the holiday before. Isn’t it just another Hallmark holiday? I mean seriously, Sparky, I told you I don’t do hearts and flowers.” Charlie’s voice sounded through the door. Sammy grinned; the man was really stepping in it. She hadn’t known Sparky long, but she knew he wouldn’t let it drop.
“That’s why I asked for chocolate or better yet, chocolate flavored underwear!”
“How would you eat it?” Charlie’s voice clearly sounded bewildered. Sammy could just imagine Sparky with one hand on his hip while the other one waved in the air to make his point. Boy, she knew Charlie was secluded most of his life but surely, he’d at least watch a little porn in his time—didn’t all men?
There was a loud sigh, “Not for me, idiot! You’d be wearing it. Just imagine me eating around your—” Sammy knocked loudly on the door. There was no way she wanted to hear any more of this conversation; even though she’d pay to see Charlie’s face.
She still had trouble imaging these two men together. They were just so opposite of each other. But they appeared to be making it work. The door opened to show Sparky standing there his blonde spiked hair still had purple highlights. His blue eyes danced with mischief as he grinned at the she-wolf. “I wondered how long you would stand there. Come on in.”
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