“Yes,” the dark-haired woman answered. “We are here for our wolf.”
“What wolf?” I asked, taking a step toward her. She shuffled backward.
“The big black one. He belongs to us.”
I looked down the line at the other fidgety witches. “That wolf does not belong to you. Wolves belong to no one but their packs.”
The leader hissed. I called up a big breeze and blew her stupid-looking hat off her head.
“Please do not harm us,” several of the witches begged. Holy hell, they were pathetic.
I calmed the wind and waited for them to stand from their huddle. “Why did you have that wolf?”
“He was payment for a debt of another werewolf. We wanted our own wolf from which we could collect blood and conduct rituals. We were using him to summon a lesser demon when he escaped.”
Demon rituals involved blood and suffering. That explained the whipping marks on Levi’s back. Stupid as this coven appeared, they probably had underestimated the strength of Levi’s wolf. Most likely they had used some sort of binding spell to keep him from changing, but his wolf was strong enough to overcome the spell and escape. Idiots.
The leader looked me up and down. “Surely you understand the convenience of having a sacrifice so readily available.”
No, she did not just say that to me.
I pointed to myself. “Earth witch here, chick. I don’t do sacrifices.”
“Earth witch? Those aren’t real.”
“Well, pardon me for being a figment of your imagination. Now, what wolf turned him and then gave him to a group of dark witches?”
The leader bowed her head, refusing to answer. I tossed a fireball at her friends and it was amazing how quickly she began babbling about a wolf with an Italian accent who wanted to know about Malandanti magic. I radioed Simon. He asked a few questions and she answered quickly, only hesitating once and another fireball took care of that.
Simon contacted the Alpha of the Wisconsin pack and he agreed to take in the youngster. If Levi couldn’t learn to control his wolf, Galen would put him down during a one-way trip into the woods.
I texted Lucas and let him know we would be back in Wisconsin on Thursday. He replied he was going to visit over the weekend. I hadn’t fully decided about speaking to Galen before Lucas arrived. If I talked to Galen and Lucas didn’t show up, I’d look like a total idiot. Galen seemed like a reasonable kinda guy even if he was over a hundred years old. He didn’t look it, of course–like all the other werewolves, he was the picture of vitality and youth, with his body locked in its prime. The wolves weren’t immortal but they were hard to kill, lived hundreds of years, and I’d never met an ugly one.
I’d also never met one who took my breath away until I found Lucas. He was mouthwatering, but there was much more to him, so much more I wanted to know. He had a vulnerability in his eyes that made me want to wrap my arms around him and protect him from the world. There was strength about him also, so powerful I wanted to climb into his arms and let him hide me.
His lack of involvement with the pack wolves made no more sense than why he was interested in me. Aaron’s comments about Lucas had gotten under my skin. Pack wolves always supported one another. Did Lucas’s pack really not like him or was Aaron making that up just to piss me off? I’d never known Aaron to lie, but what was there to not like about Lucas?
We finally made it back to America, our lumbering C-47 circling the base like a buzzard over a carcass. A lump of lead settled in my stomach. Levi was doing his best to be brave, but the kid was terrified. Johnny had been a good choice as a mentor. He was soft-spoken and thorough as he explained how Levi should act when first meeting the Alpha. Levi’s wolf was strong, but hopefully he would succumb to the power of the Alpha. Levi had made no effort to challenge any of the wolves of Bravo and that was a good sign. If he went after the Alpha, he wouldn’t make it to dinner tonight.
As the plane rolled to a stop, I stepped through the rigid vampires and grabbed my bag. It was time for the kid to meet his future. I waited by the door as Levi followed Johnny like a puppy.
“Galen is a good man,” I said as Levi looked around nervously. “Do what Johnny told you and you’ll be fine.”
Levi swallowed hard and took a deep breath. Tiny flickers of silver tinged his eyes but that was to be expected. He had never met a true Alpha.
“Sergeant Welker?” he called softly.
I smiled at him. “Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
I took his hand and squeezed it. “I’ll see you soon.”
Levi walked alongside Johnny. I stayed on the ramp and watched as the two disappeared into the night. Johnny was taking Levi to Galen’s house for the formal introduction. Hopefully Mother Earth would answer my prayer to help the kid do the right thing. Galen would be fair, but ultimately he would do whatever was necessary to ensure the safety of his pack. If that meant Levi must die, so be it.
Aaron tromped down the ramp. “That kid owes you his life, Bre.”
Maybe, if he lived through this. “You think he’ll be all right?” I asked, momentarily forgetting I was not a member of Aaron’s fan club.
Aaron slung his bag over his shoulder. “He didn’t go after any of us and he damn sure didn’t want to do anything to disappoint you, so he’ll probably be fine. Galen knows how to handle newly turned wolves.”
It was hard to watch Levi walk away knowing he was either going toward his new life or certain death.
We disembarked and headed to the debriefing room. Simon kept the meetings short, particularly when we’d been gone for weeks.
Thirty minutes later Simon dismissed us to head our separate ways. My house, about ten minutes off base, was close enough for me to walk or fly to work. Tonight the stars were twinkling and the moon was shining bright–a stroll sounded good. I waved goodbye to the guys, promised to call Celeste later, and headed down the sidewalk toward the quiet neighborhood I called home.
Lucas hadn’t said he’d call again, but I thought, or at least hoped, he would. The phone didn’t beep and after three minutes, no new messages showed up. A little more lead plopped into my stomach. Maybe none of this with him was real after all. He could have been stringing me along, toying with me for whatever reason. It didn’t make any sense why he liked me anyway. I was a witch and not exactly the belle of the ball. I spent more time polishing my boots than brushing my hair.
“He’s not coming,” I muttered, rounding the block onto my street. I could have kicked myself for being disappointed.
“Stop feeling sorry for yourself,” I fumed, passing the last two houses before my little cottage. I had a solid career, worked with good folks, and made a difference in this world. The humans didn’t have a clue how close the monsters of their nightmares actually were and Bravo made sure they never found out. Yep, life was good. Who needed smoldering brown eyes for company at night? I had the NHL Network and a gallon of cookie dough ice cream waiting for me.
My house looked the same as it had twenty-two days earlier. I’d bought the two-bedroom one-bath bungalow fixer-upper for a song. Simon had scowled and told me it was in need of razing, not fixing up, but I bought it anyway. It had taken all my savings to buy the house and its two-acre lot, but I loved it and it was mine. I knew its faults as well as my own, right down to the squeaky boards on the porch and the closet doors that scuffed.
There was something out of place on my front porch. As I got closer, the odd thing on my porch took the shape of a vase of flowers. Okay, not just a vase of flowers but a vase full of every flower the local florist must have had in stock. The display of wild flowers was breathtaking in the moonlight and wider than my front door.
The card danced in the evening breeze, announcing the florist just off base had delivered the flowers. I plucked the card and read the message.
Welcome Home. Can’t wait to see you again. Lucas.
Someone at the florist had written the words, but they had come from him. The flowers fl
uttered like they were waving at me and I stood dumbstruck for several minutes. These flowers were for me. These flowers were from him. He had sent me flowers.
Nobody sent me flowers. I wasn’t a flower kinda girl. I was dressed in camo with my hair in a scrunchie and dirt under my nails. I hadn’t showered in two days and smelled as musky as the damn werewolves.
It was ten in the morning in Italy and Lucas would be at work. I called him anyway.
“Good morning, il mio angelo,” he answered. Geez, his accent was sexy as hell. I wanted to reach through the phone and rip his shirt off.
“Good morning, Wolf. I just got home and there was a big vase of flowers on my porch.”
“Oh?”
“Thank you,” I said, praying my voice didn’t tremble.
“Did you like them?”
“They’re beautiful.”
“As are you.”
My face got hot and I was glad he couldn’t see how much he affected me.
“Did you find what you were looking for?” he asked.
Thank you for the change of subject. “We got him. We brought him back with us. He’s a kid, newly turned wolf, and Galen’s gonna help him.”
“You make a career out of saving damaged werewolves, Sergeant Welker?”
“Just doing my job, sir.”
He planned to fly to Wisconsin in a few days and promised to call as soon as he could. I never asked if he wanted me to talk to Galen. The werewolves could be funny about chain of command and territorial permission crap.
I carried the flowers inside.
Kitchen counter or bar?
They ended up on the nightstand beside my bed where I could stare at them while I fell asleep. A part of me was so excited that somebody like Lucas was even interested. Another part of me was scared to death because, realistically, how could this work out between us? Would he expect me to give up my career to be with him? I loved my job and, for the most part, the guys I worked with. Would Lucas understand that?
“Getting ahead of yourself, aren’t you?” I mumbled around my last spoonful of ice cream. I hadn’t had a single date with the guy and already had us breaking up because of my career.
Talk about negativity. Way to go, ray o’ sunshine.
The phone danced to life on the nightstand. I was comfortable and warm, all tucked in with my Pluto pillow and Dumbo blanket, a stomach full of cookie dough ice cream, and very tempted to let the call go to voicemail. I was tired of talking.
Except this call was from Lucas and I almost fell out of the bed to grab the phone.
“Hey, Lucas! What’s up?”
Chapter 12
Lucas
“What did your dad say?” Tristyn asked as the plane rolled down the runway.
“Not much. I told him I’d be back Tuesday and I was going with you.”
Tristyn unfolded his newspaper. “Ah, he thinks we’re on one of our special trips, huh?”
Tristyn knew my father didn’t approve of our friendship and the pack had long whispered the two of us were more than friends. Tristyn and I had met when my father sent me away to boarding school in France. Tristyn’s father had sent him to the same school, though for a totally different reason. We both graduated from L’Ermitage in France and then Dartmouth College in America.
“He didn’t ask, just grumbled about me taking time off from work and how Nicolli would have never done something so irresponsible.”
Tristyn shook his head and pulled out the sports section. “I don’t know how you deal with him. You can’t do anything right.”
I shrugged off his comment. “He’s a hardass.”
“Have you guys ever talked about what happened?”
“No.”
“Is Stephano still around?”
The mention of my cousin’s name put my wolf on edge. “He’s in Naples. Josef sent him there to oversee the southern offices of Benelli Enterprises.”
“Is that the only reason he sent him away? Maybe after all these years your dad has come around to your side of the story.”
“Doubt it.”
I leaned back, hoping to take at least a short nap during the double-digit-hour plane flight. Between the layovers and weather delays, it would be almost twenty-four hours before we stepped into Green Bay, Wisconsin.
Tristyn drifted off to sleep, but my mind would not settle. What did I have to offer Breanna? Her kind wasn’t welcome in my father’s territory and I couldn’t leave.
“This will never work,” I mumbled out loud.
“Yes it will,” Tristyn answered sleepily.
“I thought you were asleep.”
“I was,” he groused, “until you started with the Poor Pitiful Lucas routine.”
“Pardon?”
Tristyn elbowed my arm off the shared armrest. “Everything will be fine. We’ll find her, she’ll be crazy about you, and the two of you will live happily ever after. Quit worrying,” Tristyn huffed as tried to sleep again.
“You think I’m worried?”
“Uh huh.”
“You’re wrong. I’m not concerned.”
“Yes, you are,” he replied without opening his eyes.
I tried to stare a hole through his head. He finally looked at me.
“You’ve been chewing on your lip nonstop and if you’d stop bouncing your knee I might get some rest.”
I looked at my knee. “Sorry.”
“Do you remember how nervous I was around Alex when I first met her?”
He had been a nervous wreck and Tristyn had dates all the time.
“You’re worse.”
That was a sobering thought. Nerves weren’t good. The Wisconsin Pack wolves would smell my insecurity. I had no idea how they would react to me coming into their territory. I had opted not to contact the Alpha beforehand, not willing to chance him saying no to my request.
Tristyn bumped my elbow again. “I’ve never seen you so worked up over a girl before. This one must really be special.”
“I’ve never met anybody like her. It was the way she looked at me, like the two of us were the only people on earth.”
“Hey, maybe you guys can start your own pack.” Tristyn laughed. “And you can get the hell away from your dad.”
That really didn’t sound too bad. “Our own pack of two.”
I closed my eyes. God, I hoped she liked me as much as I liked her. We hadn’t really spent a lot of time together, but when she was near, my world was quiet. Her presence brought a calm I’d never felt. It was like our souls had known each other long before we met.
“It’s fate, Luc. Fate brought you to her. Stop second guessing and enjoy it,” Tristyn said, leaning against the headrest. “We’ll deal with the hard stuff later. Right now, think about what you want to say the first time you see her.”
When the plane finally landed, I found a quiet place and called the Alpha of the Wisconsin pack. This was the first step to seeing Breanna. Pack protocol dictated the Alpha must give his permission for me to be in his territory.
We drove three hours to the Wisconsin Pack’s public meeting place, the local Shoney’s. Tristyn and I had secured a table in the corner before the Alpha and his wolves arrived. It was tradition for the Alpha to bring his second-in-command to any meeting. The Wisconsin Alpha had his second and six more wolves.
Galen McGregor was exactly as I had pictured, only taller. At six-foot-five and over two hundred fifty pounds of solid muscle, the man was an imposing figure. Salt and pepper hair, weathered skin, and sharp green eyes that saw everything without looking, this werewolf was over a hundred years old but could easily pass for mid-thirties.
“Bet there’s more in the parking lot,” Tristyn said quietly as the group moved toward us.
Tristyn and I kept our eyes down as the wolves fanned out and filled the booths around us.
“You boys eat yet?” Galen called from the breakfast bar.
“No, sir,” I answered without looking.
“Well, get some food. No sense
talking on empty stomachs.”
Tristyn shot me a questioning look before heading toward the stacks of plates. I stayed close behind him, not trusting the wolves at his back.
With plates full of food, we returned to our booth. The Alpha motioned for us to join him.
“Tristyn, it is an honor to meet you.” The Alpha extended his hand. “How is that beautiful mate of yours?”
“She’s well, Alpha McGregor, thank you for asking,” Tristyn answered politely as the two shook hands. Everybody knew Tristyn. That was what happened when you were the subject of a prophecy.
“Call me Galen.”
Tristyn nodded in acknowledgement.
“So, Lucas, what brings you to Wisconsin?” the Alpha asked as he gulped a glass of milk.
“Personal business, sir.”
“Hmm.”
I tried to swallow my steak but it stuck in my throat. “My business does not involve any of your wolves, sir.”
Green eyes twinkled across the table. “You sure about that?”
I looked up at him and quickly lowered my eyes. I didn’t want to do anything he might misread as a challenge. I only wanted permission to be in his territory.
No one spoke for several minutes. The chatter of hungry humans was deafening.
“So why are you looking for Breanna?”
I dropped my fork. If the Alpha knew her by name, that meant she was of interest to his wolves.
“Lucas?” He waited for an answer.
“I only wish to speak to her, sir.” That came out much weaker than I intended.
He cocked his head and smiled. “How badly do you wish to speak with her?”
I glanced at Tristyn, who looked as perplexed as I felt. “I’m not sure what you mean, Alpha McGregor.”
The Alpha had not offered me the use of his first name.
“Would you accept a challenge from my wolves?”
“Yes.”
The Alpha cocked an eyebrow. “More than one?”
“Yes.”
“Multiple challenges have been formally filed regarding your presence in my territory. If you defeat these challengers, I will grant your request to be in Wisconsin Pack territory for up to a week. If you do not win the challenges, your request will be denied. You will leave immediately. Failure to do so will be considered a direct threat to pack security.”
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