by Alisa Woods
Marco scanned the crowd of milling shifters, looking for Stefan—when he found him shouting out directions to someone to take care of the kids and get a headcount, he saw Julia was there, right in the thick of it. She was yelling at Cruz, who had one of the men on the ground with a gun pointed at his head. Cruz shook his head and pulled back, putting his gun away and giving her some kind of shit for it.
Marco’s heart swelled and twisted at the same time. He hustled over to them—Julia was so focused on giving shit back to Cruz that she didn’t see him until he was right up next to her, reaching for.
Her eyes went wide, and her arms flew around his neck, holding him fiercely.
Everything else faded—it felt so damn good to have her in his arms—but he quickly came back to his senses and released her.
She pulled back and looked him over. “Oh, thank God! Tell me you’re all right.”
He looked down at the mess that was his body, still bloody and torn, but quickly healing. “I’m fine. But what are you doing here? I told Stefan…” He looked around for his beta and best friend, who he had explicitly told to keep Julia out of harm’s way during all this.
Stefan was gathering the kids together, but Marco caught his eye, and his beta had to know exactly what his glare was all about—Stefan just shrugged and held his hands up like he couldn’t help it.
Marco shook his head and turned back to Julia. “Stefan’s lucky you’re okay.”
She scowled at him. “If you think for one moment that he could have kept me from coming for you…” She stopped, struggling for words.
He cut off her torment by pulling her close and kissing her quickly on the lips. “It’s all right. I honestly didn’t expect any different.”
Cruz was scanning the area. “Where is that fucker? Don’t tell me you let him get away, Wilding.”
Marco winced. “There are some kind of underground tunnels here—I chased him down, but they had a car.”
“Fuck!” Cruz looked like he legitimately wanted to beat the shit out of the Wolf Hunter, which made Marco pull back and reassess him.
“Kind of surprised to find you here,” Marco said to him.
Cruz arched an eyebrow. “Kind of surprised to see you alive.” He gave a snort that was half laugh. Then a sideways look to Julia. “You can pretty much thank your mate for that.”
Mate? Marco whipped his head to look at Julia, his eyebrows lifting, but he held his tongue. She gave him a don’t blow this for me look, so Marco played it cool.
He swung back to Cruz. “Yeah, I wouldn’t recommend getting on her bad side.”
Cruz snorted another laugh, then quickly sobered. “Fuck, I was really looking forward to killing that Wolf Hunter asshole. It takes all the fun out of this day.”
Julia frowned. “If he’s escaping through some underground tunnels, they have to dump out somewhere.”
Marco squeezed her hand and fought back his grin. “Exactly what I was thinking. If we’ve got people and cars, we might find them. If things are under control here…” He looked around, and they seemed to be. “… and if we get moving…”
Cruz nodded. “I’m on it.” He trotted off, barking commands, but he didn’t get far before another flood of people streamed in through the front door. Only these were the last people Marco ever expected to show up.
The police.
He turned to Julia. “What is going on here?”
She grimaced as she watched the police come in with their flak jackets and their automatic weapons drawn, shouting for everyone to stand down… only the situation was already under control.
“That video you had Casey post,” Julia explained quickly. “The police decided to do something about it. They’ve been tracking the van… and us.”
A cop in regular dress blues strolled through the door behind his men
Julia winced. “I was hoping we would get in and out before they arrived.”
Marco understood why—as far as he knew, she was still wanted by the police. Not that half the room hadn’t been on an arrest warrant at one time or another.
He dropped Julia’s hand. “You hang back. Blend in.” Then he marched forward, ignoring the drawn guns of the SWAT team and heading straight for the guy in charge. Cruz was already there, holding tight and saying nothing. Marco didn’t blame him—trying to explain the situation was completely fucked up.
The stitching on the cop’s uniform said, Officer Turnbull.
“Hello, officer,” Marco said. “Nice of you to show up and give us a hand rescuing these kids.”
The officer squinted at him, but he was taking in the situation with a cool, calm look. Marco had no idea which way this was going to swing—either there was about to be an all-out shifter vs. police brawl, while Cruz and his pack fought to keep the kids and themselves out of police custody, or the police were going to decide for once in their lives to do the right fucking thing when it came to shifters.
Marco literally had no idea which way it would go.
After a long moment, Officer Turnbull held out his hand to Marco. “Looks like you’ve got things under control here.”
Marco was so shocked, he almost didn’t take the man’s hand. Then he slowly reached up and shook it firmly. “We’ve got things locked down, and the kids are safe, but we could still use your help with another matter.” He watched Officer Turnbull’s expression flip through a couple different emotional states—frown, concern, suspicion, then a cautious optimism.
“What would that be?” he asked.
“The guy responsible for this, the Wolf Hunter, got away.” Marco gestured over his shoulder to the corner. “There are underground tunnels, and they had a vehicle stashed down there. I don’t know where the tunnels let out, but if we all work together and spread out, we might have enough personnel to catch him wherever he comes up.”
Officer Turnbull’s eyebrows lifted, but he gave a slow nod. “Sounds like a plan. I’ll leave a couple of my men here to guard the children and the prisoners you have there.” He lifted his chin to point to the captured thugs. “Sounds like we need to move on this, if we’re going to have any chance of catching the guy.”
Marco smiled. “Exactly what I was thinking.”
The next five minutes were a flurry of activity, shouted commands, and hustling people to cars. Marco and Julia took one group. Stefan and Casey led the other two pack vehicles. They kept in communication by text with Cruz and Officer Turnbull.
In spite of the manhunt spreading out and making quick work of searching the perimeter of the airfield, the exit of the tunnels was well hidden—by the time they found it behind a small rise that dumped out onto a field, they were too late. The Jeep tire tracks led away from the door, and once they hit the paved road, there was no way they could track them.
There was a lot of cursing involved, but in the end, the police put out an APB on Marco’s description of the Jeep. That was all they could do.
When they reconvened—the two packs and the police—Marco could see Officer Turnbull giving Julia a good look-over. It bristled out every protective part of his wolf, and if Turnbull had tried to arrest her, Marco was pretty sure he would’ve taken the man down.
He didn’t—but Marco was certain he’d ID’d her.
The police left with the Wolf Hunter’s men in their custody. Marco and his pack piled into their vehicles. Cruz and his men were the last to leave, still scanning the perimeter for the Wolf Hunter.
Stefan drove. Marco had Julia in the backseat on his lap—the vehicles were jam-packed in order to transport everyone, but he couldn’t stand to have her more than an inch away, anyway.
He spent the car ride home thinking about how to keep this amazing woman in his life—forever. It was only a matter of time before the police would come for her.
He was sure of that.
By the time he got home, he had a plan.
All the drama of the day before seemed like a crazy dream to Julia.
She made love to Marco several
times through the night, but they both eventually dropped off to sleep due to sheer exhaustion. They hadn’t talked much, just expressed themselves with hands and mouths, touches and orgasms. And that was fine by her, but she felt like she was carrying a burden in her heart that she couldn’t quite express.
She was sure the police would come knocking at her door today. Or tomorrow. Eventually. They knew who she was, and they knew where she was. It was only a matter of time before they decided to round her up and bring her in.
In the meantime, she was determined to enjoy the time she had left with Marco and his pack. Her pack, even if it hadn’t been cemented by committing to their alpha or having him claim her. She understood that he might not want that now, in spite of her using the title of mate to orchestrate the whole operation.
Why claim a mate who would soon be off to jail?
When she had woken up this morning, she snuck out, leaving Marco snoring in their bed to join the morning training session with Stefan and Casey and the other lieutenants. They welcomed her with smiles and not even a little bit of joking around about her taking a position among them. She had been fully accepted by them, and it felt like a warm blanket wrapped around her. Not only had she embraced her wolf, controlling it when necessary, but she had been embraced by other wolves—she had no idea what she had been missing, all this time, growing up without a pack.
She had gone through three partners already and was currently sparring with Griffin. The kid might know something about munitions, but he wasn’t very skilled in hand-to-hand combat.
She threw a closed-fist punch that he did a decent job of blocking with his arm, but he was too slow to come around and go for a jab to her gut. She deflected it and rolled around, whipping her elbow to catch him in the jaw and send him to the ground. It was his fourth time on the pavement in less than two minutes. She should probably ease up on the guy.
He stayed down, shaking his head and peering up at her.
“Need a break?” she asked.
“No! I’m good.” He staggered up to standing again.
“You’re doing great,” she said, trying to throw him a bone.
He just laughed and shook his head, rubbing his face where she caught it with her elbow.
“I think he likes you,” Marco said, coming up from behind her.
His voice startled her, so she turned to look. Griffin took that opportunity to make a grab for her, trying to hook her around the neck. She ducked under his swing and brought up her fist to catch him in the stomach, which again dropped him into the pavement. He landed with a loud ompf.
Julia danced back from engaging with him.
Marco laughed out loud. “He likes you a little too much.” He gave a halfhearted snarl at Griffin on the ground.
The kid raised his hands in surrender, rolling on his back. “I give! I give!”
Marco chuckled then slipped his arm around Julia’s waist. Every time he touched her, it brought her alive. It only had been a few hours since they’d made love, but she could never get enough of him.
He kissed her lightly on the cheek. “Can I tear you away from beating up on my men? I have someone who wants to meet with you.”
Her heart sank. She knew it was coming, but she was hoping for a little more time. “Sure.”
Marco smiled and slipped his hand down to hold hers. As he tugged her away from the training lot and towards the door to go inside, he dropped his voice just for her. “Hey, it’s going to be okay.”
She doubted that very much, but she just nodded.
They wound through the shelter until they reached the front. It was midmorning, so the eating area was cleared out, and there was a single man waiting for them at one of the tables. He rose as they approached, but Julia could see his police officer’s uniform long before she reached him.
Her stomach bunched in knots as Marco introduced them. “Julia, is Officer Kaden Grant. He’s a special liaison to the mayor’s office. I told him about your situation.”
The knots in her stomach ramped up to a full-on cramp. Was Marco turning her in?
She couldn’t force words out of her mouth, but fortunately, the officer spoke first.
He extended his hand to her. “I’m not officially with the police anymore,” he said to Julia. “And I’m not here to arrest you if that’s what you’re thinking.”
“You’re not?” She stared at his hand, still extended, for a long moment, then slowly shook it.
Marco gave her a nod of encouragement. “Kaden is my cousin Terra’s mate,” he explained. “I asked him if he could help us out with our… special situation.” His eyes glittered.
Was he saying what she thought he was saying? Had he worked out some kind of deal for her to go free?
She faced Officer Grant. “I don’t understand.”
“I hear you were involved in a situation with your stepfather,” Officer Grant said. “Because it was a shifter-involved case, the mayor’s authorized me to oversee the investigation. I’m here to get your statement about what happened.”
Julia swallowed and hesitated, but Marco’s hand landed at the small of her back, and the warmth of his touch reassured her. “It was self-defense,” she said. “He was beating my mother and was trying to attack me and…” How could she explain that she lost control of her wolf without it sounding like she was guilty of murder? She didn’t really believe she was, not anymore, but how would that look in the eyes of the police?
“That works for me,” Officer Grant said. “I’ll take that back to headquarters and get it cleared out.”
Julia’s mouth dropped open. “That’s it?”
He smiled. “You’re a hero, Julia. A video of you being almost kidnapped along with a bunch of kids, and then being involved in the rescue of those children, has made all the news. You and your pack…” He gestured to Marco and the shelter around them. “Are the heroes of the city right now. The last thing the mayor wants is to see the police cracking down on the city’s new favorite shifter hero.” He cleared his throat. “Besides, whatever the hell your stepfather was trying to do, I’m sure he got what he deserved.” He coughed. “That part’s off the record.”
Julia smiled, mostly in disbelief. “Is this real?”
“Absolutely.” Marco held his hand out to Officer Grant. “I can’t thank you enough for this, Kaden. Seriously. Anything you need, you let me know.”
Officer Grant shook his hand, then gave Marco a careful look. “This is a goodwill overture from the mayor’s office. Plus it’s the right damn thing to do. I can clear this out, and the fact that you brought the Wolf Hunter’s operation to a standstill, even if he escaped, wins big with the mayor’s office. But I can tell you this, Marco—it won’t last. The mayor can’t be in bed with a shifter gang. You have to clean up your act. Get out of the illegal stuff. There’s only so much I can do. And I’m really just coming off the bench for this one case—I’m working for Riverwise now, and we’re all about catching the Wolf Hunter. We could use the help of the few good wolves like yourself and your pack. And I won’t hesitate to call on you there if you’re open to that. But if you want to stay on the right side of the law, you have to change a few things around here. That’s all I’m saying.”
“Understood,” Marco said, his face solemn. “Regardless of how that goes, I appreciate what you’re doing for Julia. I won’t forget it.”
Officer Grant nodded. “Of course. She’s the mate of a Wilding now—and family sticks together.” He smiled.
His mate? Julia’s eyes went wide, but she kept her mouth shut.
Marco ducked his head and gave a small nod. They exchange goodbyes, and Officer Grant left through the front door.
Julia waited until he was gone to whisper, “He thinks I’m your mate?”
Marco arched an eyebrow. “Don’t blame me. You’re responsible for that rumor going around. Not that I object.”
Julia’s face heated. It was her fault, and she really didn’t know what he thought about it… except that
he had called in a favor from his family, a family he never spoke to anymore, to get her cleared with the police.
She was free. She could hardly believe it.
Marco turned to her and gently took her hands in his. Peering into her eyes, he said softly, “You’re cleared now. You can go back to your normal life if you want to.” He left those words hanging between them.
She swallowed. “I don’t want to,” she said, the words just a whisper. “I want to stay.”
His eyes brightened. “You have no idea how much I wanted to hear that.” He cupped her cheek with his hand, and she leaned into it, loving the way it felt. The tenderness in his eyes made her heart swell.
She swallowed, hoping this wasn’t pushing it too far. “And I have some ideas about how you can get out of the illegal business…”
“I’ll bet you do,” he said softly, leaning in closer.
“You could make this shelter a legitimate safe harbor for wolves,” she said, peering up into his eyes. “I love everything you’re doing here, Marco, except for the part that’s going to cross you with the law, and eventually, mean that I lose you. You deserve better than that. And your people do, too.”
“You’re right, of course.” He moved in even closer, almost kissing her, but not yet touching her lips. “But if you weren’t going to stay, I would have left all this behind—all of it, Julia—to be with you. I want you so badly, my wolf is ready to strangle me.”
She slid her hands up to his cheeks, holding him like he was holding her. “I don’t want you to leave it. I want you to make it better. And to do that, you need a mate. To make your pack strong. To let them know you’re ready to go straight.”
“A mate, huh?” He breathed against her lips. “Have anyone in mind?”
“If you pick someone besides me, I might have to scratch your face off.”
He chuckled lightly, then let out a breath that was almost like a sigh of relief. “I’ve been dying to hear those words from you.”
Then he pulled her in hard against him and crushed her lips to his. The kiss was wonton and heated and so possessive, it took her breath completely away. Then, before she could recover from that, she was suddenly lifted into the air—he’d swept her up into his arms and was carrying her bridal-style across the dining area and down the side of the shelter. They caught a few smirks from shifters hanging out by their bunks.