“Yeah, just give me a minute.”
Aaron leaned over me, brushing strands of hair out of my face. “Do you need mouth-to-mouth?”
“Don’t make me kill you after all that.”
Aaron chuckled and helped me sit up. “What happened back there? I tracked the female werewolf to the edge of the river and the next thing I know, I can’t move and I’m drowning.”
“She was a werewolf? Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
“That was Malandanti magic. They caught you in a binding spell.”
“Malandanti? Seriously? I didn’t see anybody but her.”
I banged my fist against my forehead. “We need to find that envelope she gave them. I grabbed it, but dropped it upstream a ways.”
He snorted in disgust. “Why did you drop it?”
Damn arrogant werewolf. “To save your scrawny hide.” I climbed to my feet. “Let’s go. I’m cold.”
His arms snaked around my waist. “I know how to warm you up.”
I kicked him in the groin and he crumpled.
“I guess I deserved that,” he grunted.
Thankfully I’d left the radio in my jacket pocket. “I’m getting backup.”
“Bonjour, my dear,” Simon answered. “Please tell me you have not disobeyed another order.”
“Maybe a little, but it was to save Aaron.”
“Explain.”
I filled him in on the Malandanti, Aaron’s ordeal, and the envelope.
“I’m almost there,” Simon replied, abruptly ending the conversation.
“Find it?” Aaron asked as I stomped up the muddy bank.
“No, they must have circled around and got it.” I kicked a rock and it rolled toward spit-shined black boots.
Major Ezekiel Trenton, the werewolf commander of the Combat Unit of Bravo, curled his lip in disdain as I drew closer. Aaron and I stood to full attention.
“Sergeant Welker,” the enormous man muttered as if he would vomit from saying my name.
“Major Trenton, sir. I was not aware the Combat Unit was in the area.”
He snorted. “That proves what kind of Recon Unit a vampire runs. A pathetic one.”
Simon emerged from the darkness. “Greetings, Ezekiel. Have you lost your wolves again?”
A chuckle stuck in my throat and Trenton glared at me. “Major DuChard,” the werewolf answered coolly. “It seems your recon soldiers have been playing in the water.”
“We aren’t playing,” Aaron said. “We were looking for the envelope the Malandanti dropped.”
Trenton’s eyebrows shot up. “Malandanti? There haven’t been Malandanti sightings in over two hundred years.”
“Just because nobody saw them doesn’t mean they aren’t here,” I responded before really thinking.
Trenton ignored me. Typical.
“My soldiers have seen no signs of Malandanti. Where’s your evidence?” he asked Simon.
“Bre saw them,” Aaron piped in, meaning to be helpful, but Trenton took advantage.
“You’re taking the word of a witch there are witches here?” Trenton rolled his head back and laughed. “DuChard, you have lost your mind.”
“Major Trenton, you will address all members of my unit with respect or you will answer to me,” Simon responded with no hint of emotion.
For a moment I thought–at least hoped–Trenton would make a move. Simon would wipe the floor with him. Apparently Trenton knew it because he stepped back and reined in his wolf. With one last sneer in my direction, he turned on his heel and tromped through the forest.
I never realized how much crap Simon got for having me in his unit. It was tough being the only vampire commanding officer of a primarily werewolf company, but knowing he had to deal with shit like this gave me even more respect for my commanding officer.
“Thanks.”
Simon nodded suavely. “I am sorry you had to hear that exchange, my dear.”
“I’m sorry they give you a hard time about me.” I thought back to all the things I’d done in the last ten years and clenched my fists. I’d do better from now on. No more disobeying orders.
“So, you engaged the Malandanti again?”
Damn.
Aaron bumped my shoulder. “She had to, Major DuChard. Bre pulled me out of the water.”
“Ah, that would explain the poor appearance of your uniforms.”
Aaron, Simon and I slopped along the muddy riverbank, searching for footprints or something to support our story. Simon and Aaron picked up the faint scent of a female werewolf. I got the residual black magic from the spell casting, but nothing concrete we could share with the command post.
“Thanks for looking,” I said as we made our way back toward the road. “I’m sure they were Malandanti. I think they were the same ones from last night.”
“I wish I could’ve gotten a better look at the werewolf,” Aaron muttered. “I got nothing but scent.”
“Could you identify that scent again?” Simon asked.
Aaron crinkled his nose. “Not sure. It was so faint. I know it was a woman and she wasn’t in heat.”
All righty, more info than I needed to know.
We piled into Simon’s Humvee and rode to Camp Ederle. Aaron headed to the showers and I followed Simon into his makeshift office. Celeste, his elf mate and the designated healer of the unit, was waiting. She leaped into his arms and I tried not to watch. The two were so in love they were painful to be around.
“So, Simon, got any ideas why a werewolf might be meeting with the Malandanti?”
He put his arm around Celeste. “Not really.”
The reappearance of Malandanti after so many years bothered me. All the data we had suggested the cloaked witches had been annihilated in the nineteenth century. So why were they running around Italy, and more specifically, why were they after Lucas?
“Aren’t Malandanti considered opportunistic?” I asked.
Simon nodded. “They are not known for elaborate schemes such as what was carried out the night the werewolf was injured.”
“They were there. I saw them.”
He tilted his head. “I believe you, Breanna, but once again you see the problem. No evidence.”
Sometimes it really sucked to be a witch.
Chapter 4
Lucas
My room hadn’t been mine in a very long time. I’d spent most of my childhood at boarding school, holidays at Tristyn’s house, and all of my adult life away from the headquarters of the Italian Pack. Even after so many years, the thought of this room being pitch black at night sent a shiver up my spine.
The door swung open. “Lucas, are you hungry?” my mother asked for the third time in twenty minutes.
“I’m fine but thanks anyway.”
Mom perched on the edge of my bed. My leg and ribs had healed, but movement was uncomfortable. “Honey, can we talk about Tessa?”
“There’s nothing to talk about.”
“Tessa is a beautiful woman and dedicated to the pack. She was to be your brother’s mate. Nicolli’s disappearance devastated her.”
“Did Father pick her for Nic, too?”
“No. Tessa and Nic had been together for over two years.” A single tear rolled down her face. My mother was much too beautiful to be crying.
My brother’s disappearance had been particularly hard on her. Nicolli had been the golden boy of the pack, the future Alpha. Mom loved me, but she adored Nicolli. Everyone did.
Mom fidgeted with the edge of the sheet. “You are the future Alpha. Your father must ensure your mate is appropriate to stand in a position of power within the pack.”
Was my entire family stone deaf? “I will not be the Alpha. I’ve told him that at least a hundred times. I came home to help with the company, that’s it. He needs to find someone else to run this pack.”
“Lucas, you are all he has left. When Nicolli disappeared it almost killed him.”
“Nicolli’s life was this pack. I’m not him.”
She started to cry and I felt like a total ass.
“Mom, I’m sorry, please don’t cry.”
She dabbed at her cheeks. “I don’t know what we’ll do if you don’t help your father. He spends all his time trying to manage the pack and run Benelli Enterprises. I’m worried he’ll work himself into an early grave.”
I doubted that. My father was strong and young in werewolf years. He was a great Alpha, though we didn’t see eye-to-eye on pack politics.
“I don’t want to take Nic’s place. There are lots of wolves who would gladly step up and lead this pack. I’ll help him with the company, but I’m not getting involved with the pack.”
She stood abruptly. “You are his only remaining son and it is your job to follow in his footsteps. Put aside what you want for the good of your pack.” She said the words with so much bitterness, I looked up. The faintest flecks of silver shone in her eyes.
I argued with my father all the time and made my mom cry. What a great son.
“Tessa is downstairs. Would you like me to send her up?”
“Send her home.”
“Lucas,” my mother chastised, “that is no way to treat your future mate.” She hurried from the room but left the door ajar.
I managed to scoot up in my bed far enough to see the orange and pink hues of the setting sun. My window looked out into the edge of thick underbrush. It was quiet, peaceful.
My father had gone into town on pack business and the other pack wolves were standing around the front door. Not wanting to run into any of them, I found my cane and limped along the wall to the glass patio door. It had been a long time since I’d been hurt, not since Tristyn and I had run into a very angry demon. That had been worse and no beautiful witch had held my hand on the way to the hospital.
“Breanna, where are you?” I asked the wind. Meeting her had been the only good thing to happen since I returned to Italy.
I had come home with the best of intentions, to work out things with my father. Nicolli handled most of the work for Benelli Enterprises. His disappearance had left a gaping hole in the company and in my father.
Mom had convinced me to come home, saying my father needed me though he would never ask. Mom had been sure this was a way for us to mend the differences between us.
She’d been wrong.
And I was stuck here. My old agent job had reopened a few months ago and I sent in my application without speaking to my father. He’d been livid when the Divine Council called him about releasing me from my pack ties so I could take the job. Mom had intervened to keep us from coming to blows. She knew how hard it was for me to control my wolf around my father.
The smell of female musk interrupted my thoughts. There was nowhere to go so I eased onto the wooden bench.
“Why are you out here?” Tessa snapped, her steps shaking the patio.
“Leave me alone.”
She wrinkled her nose and sniffed the air. “I want to go over the mating vows.”
“No.”
She stomped her foot. “What did you say?”
I’d always tried to be polite to Tessa. Within three days of my return to Italy, my father had told the pack I would be taking Tessa as a mate and replacing Nicolli as the future Alpha. That had gone over real well, since every wolf in the pack hated my guts.
“I will not take you as my mate.”
I thought she’d be upset–instead, she laughed. “Like you have the balls to disobey your father.”
I rose to my feet and placed my cane against the wall. “Call your father and have him come over.”
“Why?” She crossed her arms.
“So I can tell them the mating is not going to take place.”
She laughed again, the sound grating on my nerves. “And what reason are you going to give my father for refusing me as your mate?”
Any kindness I’d ever felt for her was gone. “I don’t want you.”
“You don’t want me? Do you know how many wolves want me?”
My wolf rumbled. He hated her.
She curled her lip disdainfully. “Stephano said you begged him.”
I lunged, but she leaped out of reach. “Go to hell,” I roared, my wolf dangerously close to taking control. If he succeeded, Tessa would never make it to the house.
She narrowed her eyes. “I’ve heard the stories. Your father was so disgusted, he sent you away so you wouldn’t bring shame to this pack.”
Wood splinters flew when I slammed my fist into the patio. The support pole cracked from the impact. Tessa shrieked and ran for the house.
My control was slipping. My hands trembled as I fell back on the bench. My wolf wanted blood. Tessa’s blood.
Tessa stopped halfway between the gazebo and the house. “You killed him, didn’t you? You killed Nicolli!”
My wolf surged as she dashed the last few meters into the house. I hadn’t killed my brother. My life would have been much better if he was alive. At least I wouldn’t be here.
My father’s car wheeled into the drive. “Lucas!” he yelled, stepping from his car.
There was no way I could deal with him now. He’d rant about what a disgrace I was, about how much better Nicolli had done with the company, and about how many mistakes I had made throughout my life.
My wolf wanted to fight the Alpha. Our wolves hated one another with an unnatural passion, but the human side of me didn’t want to fight. The human side of me loved my father in spite of everything that had happened.
A change was coming, my wolf seizing control. Needing time alone, I limped toward the trees. If my father pushed me today, we would fight and one of us would die.
My transition from human to wolf was painfully slow. The injuries affecting my human body resonated within my wolf form but it was worth the pain. My wolf needed to taste blood. Better a rabbit than my father.
The smell of rotting leaves and dampness calmed my wolf. For hours, the soft crunch of the forest floor beneath my paws was the only sound. It was cool, the animals preferring the warmth of their dens and nests to the open night air.
Breanna. Where are you?
Wanting to get to know someone was an odd feeling. Tristyn had known me since we were kids, but I’d never been close to anyone else.
Wonder what her favorite color is? What kind of music does she like?
The stars twinkled as I walked along an old deer trail. Maybe Breanna was out there staring up at the same stars. Doubtful. A woman as beautiful as she surely didn’t have to spend her nights alone.
In the distance, limbs snapped. The thrum of Alpha power rushed through the forest.
Get away from here now.
My wolf bristled for attack.
Go. Deeper into the forest. Go. Now.
My wolf fought for total control. He wanted the blood of my Alpha, the blood of my father.
What the hell is wrong with me? Sons don’t kill their fathers.
I dove farther into the brush. My wolf demanded his due.
Alpha compulsion pushed through the darkness, my father commanding me to stop.
Wolves should bow to the dominance of their Alphas. Wolves wanted to be with their packs. Why didn’t I feel pack bonds? Why didn’t I feel compelled to obey my Alpha?
The crashing of limbs was closer. If we fought, one of us would die.
Fine. Let it be me.
I crouched in the clearing and waited. The Alpha stopped. It seemed like an eternity before the soft footsteps of my father in human form tracked closer. My wolf sensed victory, my father no match for me in wolf form.
“Lucas?” he called. “We need to talk.”
I couldn’t see him yet, but his dominance was choking. And enraging.
“Are you hurt?” he asked.
He would have felt the pain or anger or fear of a pack wolf. With me, there was nothing. He stepped into the clearing. I met his glare with my own and forced my wolf to take a step back. I had never bowed to his dominance, but I would acknowledge his status.
“If you feel so strongly about not taking Tessa, I will entertain other choices for your mate.”
If I’d been in human form, I would have smiled. My father was trying to work with me. That was a first.
“There are women who would help create an alliance between the French and Italian Packs. I will speak with Alpha LaPierre regarding his niece, Morganza.”
My heart sank. This had nothing to do with me.
“She is not an attractive woman and I understand she is difficult. However, the mating would greatly strengthen our ties with the French. With the Croatian wolves becoming more aggressive, it would be in our best interest to bolster our defenses.”
The mark of a great Alpha, always thinking of the safety of his pack.
“I intend to host a pack run Friday night for out-of-town guests. I expect you to be here.”
My father nodded before disappearing into the darkness. My wolf wanted to follow, to stalk him and end it all tonight, but I held onto the slimmest thread of control. Sons did not kill their fathers.
By the time I trudged home, the sun was cresting the horizon. My house was twenty kilometers from my father’s estate and the walk left my leg thrumming. I ducked into the heavy brush and changed to human form. Naked and starving, I punched the key code and slipped through the gate onto my property.
I tossed on a clean shirt and jeans and headed into the kitchen. Alpha power rushed into the room. My father would be arriving any moment and he never bothered to knock. Too tired to avoid him, I scavenged for food. Sustenance would appease my wolf while I dealt with my father’s demands.
Josef burst in the door as I finished my third sandwich.
He dropped my phone onto the bar. “I have spoken to Alpha LaPierre. Morganza is not interested in meeting you.” The sheer disappointment in his voice was like a gut punch. “However, I expect you to be at the pack run. We will have guests and you need to make an appearance.”
There was no time for me to protest, not that it would have mattered. He never listened. He knew I didn’t do pack runs, no matter how much he snarled and grumbled. Too many werewolves. Too much contact. Too many memories.
Chapter 5
A Pack of Two Page 4