The Alpha's Pack (Kit Davenport Book 6)

by Tate James

  His grin spread wider. “Of course. Follow me, draga.”

  I did follow him, but I sure as shit didn’t let my guard down. As in love with him as I was, I hadn’t totally left my brain at home. The game wasn’t officially won until I reached our rendezvous point.

  “Just through here,” Vali murmured to me as we rounded another darkened corner. “I left one of the glass panels open and hitched a rope to it, so we should be able to shimmy on up and out without a hassle.”

  “Interesting choice,” I commented. He must have meant one of the panels that made up the glass pyramids visible from the street above the museum. I’d considered them as a point of entry, but discarded them as too risky to be left open for the amount of time I needed. That, and too obvious.

  As we turned the corner into the room, my heart shuddered to a stop, and I froze in my tracks. What in the ever-loving shit…?

  “Regina, are you okay?” Vali asked me with a smug grin on his face. Like he didn’t know I was severely in shock.

  The whole room below the massive glass pyramid was lit with hundreds upon hundreds of candles scattered throughout the space, and the floor was littered with fragrant rose petals. All the exhibits had been cleared out to make way for the rows of chairs, within which a handful of our closest friends were seated—all turned to stare at me triumphantly.

  “Hot stuff?” I murmured to Vali, not moving a single muscle. “What the hell is happening here?”

  The infuriating Romanian huffed a laugh, tugging his black pullover off to reveal a crisp white tuxedo shirt underneath. One that matched what my other five lovers wore at the end of what could only be described as an aisle.

  “Here?” Vali cast an innocent look over the room and all its waiting inhabitants. “Well, I would have thought that was pretty obvious. We’re getting married, regina mea. All of us.”

  I swear my brows could not have risen any higher if they’d been connected to pulleys. My jaw flapped, but no words came out.

  “Hah, we got you this time,” Lucy crowed with glee as she approached me in her shimmering evening gown, her white wings proudly on display. “Don’t stress, girl; I thought about the finer details that these dopes forgot.” She threw me a saucy wink, then pressed a shimmering finger to my chest and transformed my stealthy Fox-clothes into a breathtaking wedding gown. Hell, she even managed to trade my combat boots for a pair of limited edition, ivory satin Louboutin’s. I knew what they were because we had both admired them in the store a month ago.

  “Is this for fucking real right now?” I finally gasped out, eyeing the six of my dianoch, who now waited for me together.

  “As real as the feathers on my back, Kit babe,” Lucy whispered back to me, tucking my arm through hers. “This is your happily ever after. Are you ready for it?”

  My heart was lodged so far into my throat I knew that I’d cry if I spoke. So I didn’t. Instead, I just nodded and glued my eyes onto the six men who loved me more than anything—in this realm or any other.

  Was I ready for my happily ever after? I had no idea. Was anyone, really?

  One thing was for damn sure, though. I was going to give it a fucking good try.

  THE END

  AUTHORS LOVE NOTE

  (to anyone who wants to read this far)

  Holy…coffee beans. It’s over. End of the line, everyone off, train is closed. What a ride though, huh?

  So first things first, if you do have any outstanding questions about Kit, her dudes, her universe…basically anything Kit related, please feel free to ask in my readers' group, The Fox Hole. This is the last book for Kit; I don’t have another sneaky one stashed up my sleeve (yet), so you’re welcome to ask absolutely anything.

  Some thanks need to be made for making Kit Davenport possible. In the early days, I had no idea what in the hell I was doing. I was in a dark period with my new life as a mum and really struggling to get through each day. I’d read every damn RH book I could get my paws on, both good and bad, and I’d run out of options. So I decided to write a book that I wanted to read. It was never intended to go anywhere; it was just an exercise in imagination and emotions.

  The more I got into it, the more I doubted myself. I needed encouragement and reassurance, so I sought out a couple of beta readers to see what they thought. My best friend was a logical choice, as was my mum (yes, she’s read all my work…lol), and after them I grabbed two more. Strangers, because that was the advice another author gave me. Only strangers will give you honest feedback. So Kate Kelly and Anna Green took on the task, and wow was it a big task. I had no idea at the time. Until I finished it, I felt supremely proud of myself, and sent it for content edits.

  Ouch.

  In hindsight, if it weren’t for Heather making me cry for around eight hours straight after receiving edit one back, I would never have come this far. At the time, however, it felt like the sky was falling.

  Nonetheless, I sucked it up, pulled on my big girl panties and got to work. To my shock and horror, when I calmed the fuck down, her notes actually made sense.

  Next came Jax, my copyeditor who also moonlights as a content editor. Thank fuck, too, because she caught a huge error in my fact checking for that first book! Jax was the anti-Heather, patting me on the head as she pointed out mistakes.

  After Heather and Jax put me through the wringer, I needed a hug. So damn bad. That’s where Rebecca Royce stepped in, and she hasn’t left me since.

  Since that first book, there have been loads of people who have helped me along the way. Incredible authors who have encouraged me to keep going, even without knowing that’s what they were doing. People like Jaymin Eve who took a chance on a newbie and read my first book! Or C.M. Stunich who, before I even published Kit #1, offered to cowrite a ridiculous story about plumbers with me. Now we’re sort of author married, but you already know that from the number of co-writes we do.

  Most importantly of all, my Fox Hole. Some of those readers have been my unwavering cheerleaders since before day one, thanks to Sara and Jamie-Rose catching me while tipsy and prying arc copies out of my paws a full month before release.

  Along the way I made some mistakes, got too involved, trusted too easily and had my trust broken, but what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, so I now enter my second solo series with what I consider a really awesome support network. Authors who are genuinely happy to lift one another up and see their friends succeed. Readers who are always ready with a gif or kind word when it’s needed, and a PA who has glued herself to my ass tighter than a barnacle on a whale. It’s cool, Sara, I love you too, but you don’t need to stand so close, yeah? ;)

  So what’s next, you ask? Well, let me tell you!

  Next up, I have book one of a new series releasing on September 24th. It’s called IMPOSTER and it's book one of The Royal Trials. It’s a fantasy reverse harem which follows a seriously sassy heroine named Rybet (pronounced Rye-Bet) and her accidental entry into a series of tests which will determine the next Queen of Teich. I’ve included chapter one of this over the page if you'd like a little taster! If you’re looking for comparisons though, think of it as Hunger Games meets The Selection meets Cinderella. Confused? Better read it just in case!

  Also by Tate James

  Kit Davenport Series

  #1 The Vixen’s Lead

  #2 The Dragon’s Wing

  #3 The Tiger’s Ambush

  #4 The Viper’s Nest

  #5 The Crow’s Murder

  #6 The Alpha’s Pack

  The Royal Trials

  Imposter (September 24th 2018)

  Standalone Contemporary

  Slopes of Sin (Winter 2018)

  Co-Authored by Tate James and CM Stunich

  Hijinks Harem

  #1 Elements of Mischief

  #2 Elements of Ruin

  #3 Elements of Desire

  The Wild Hunt Motorcycle Club

  #1 Dark Glitter

  #2 Cruel Glamour (2018)

  #3 Torn Gossamer (2019)r />
  Foxfire Burning

  #1 The Nine

  #2 The Tail Game (TBD)

  Turn page for Chapter One of Imposter…

  THE ROYAL TRIALS: IMPOSTER

  Three trials. Three weeks. Three Royal Princes.

  It should have been an easy task, for a skilled mercenary like Rybet Waise. Simply break into the royal palace, and rescue her friend from the executioner's block. But when Rybet accidentally qualifies for the Trials, she finds herself with little choice but to see them through.

  A thin veil of etiquette, elegance and glamour hides the true nature of the Trials. Behind closed doors, they are brutal and bloody, and to fail means to forfeit her life.

  Thrust into the limelight and forced to compete with the Kingdom's elite sweethearts, unlikely allies emerge, and bonds are formed. But someone will stop at nothing to see her fail.

  After all, she's nothing but a dirty pond-dweller.

  Rybet will do whatever it takes to survive until the Golden Ball, Princes be damned.

  IMPOSTER

  CHAPTER ONE

  “That one,” I whispered to the grubby faced boy beside me. “You see? The one with the beer gut? He's half asleep, an easy mark.”

  We stared across the crowd to the cluster of guards following the smartly dressed Royal Steward as he went door to door through the richest part of Lakehaven—capital city of Teich—delivering invitations to the most eligible women in the kingdom.

  “Are you sure now is the best time to be doing this?” my companion asked with a tremor in his voice. “Surely with the Trials about to start, everyone will be on high alert?”

  I rolled my eyes and turned to glare at him. “That's exactly why now is the best time. Look at them all, acting like it's Frogs’ Feast or something. Trust me, Flick, they aren't focusing on two unassuming kids who have wandered too far from The Pond.”

  My charge, Flick, screwed up his dirty nose as he inspected me. “You're not exactly a kid, Rybet. If those guards caught you, you'd be tried as an adult now that you're eighteen.”

  I gave him a bitter smile and chuckled. “So would you, kid. The royals don't give a shit about us dwellers. We've seen loads of Pond kids hung for bullshit crimes, and well younger than eighteen, too.” He blanched white under his freckles and I cuffed him around the head. “So don't get caught okay? Master Bloodeye and I have invested far too much time and money into you to see you hang now.”

  If anything, this only made him look more like he was going to vomit, and I sighed heavily.

  “Look,” I offered. “Do you want me to go first and show you how easy it is?”

  He nodded frantically, his dirty blond hair flopping in his eyes and making him need to push it away again so he could see me. “What will you take from him?”

  Turning my attention back to the guards following the steward, I considered what they were carrying that might make a target both easy enough to take without being caught, and hard enough that Flick could prove he was ready to go out alone.

  Our boss, Master Bloodeye, was no amateur. He took in orphans of The Pond. Gave them a roof over their heads, clothes on their backs and food in their bellies. In exchange, we stole for him and contributed to making him the unofficial ruler of The Pond.

  Once upon a time, the area we lived in was the richest part of Lakehaven, with marble streets and sprawling mansions for the Teichian nobles. That was before our deities tried to kill us all with the Age of Darkness. Before the droughts that took away our water and storms that plunged us into two years of darkness and rain. Before the plague.

  Now, that area of the city was a relic, a painful reminder to us all not to piss off our gods.

  Streets that were once walked by women dripping in gold and jewels, escorted by their wealthy husbands and fathers now lay under a foot of murky water. Technically, that area of town was supposed to be off limits. The buildings were too damaged to be safe, and the water seemed impossible to drain.

  Technicalities never mattered much when you had nothing and no one.

  It took no time at all for those abandoned mansions to become the new homes for those of us without one of our own... and so The Pond came to be. Our very own water logged slum bordering the palace grounds.

  “That,” I announced, spotting my target. We'd been trailing along the street some distance back from the royal emissaries but keeping them within sight. As they approached each house, one of the guards would withdraw a tightly rolled invitation from his jacket and hand it to the steward, who would then present it to the household.

  It was a huge to-do. The girls would come rushing out to receive their invitations and gush and cry as though they had no idea they'd be getting one. All within view of the street, of course. What good would it do to be chosen by the palace and not rub their neighbours faces in it? It took ages too, in the time we had observed them, only three invitations had been successfully delivered. No wonder Tubby looked half asleep.

  “The invitations?” Flick squeaked in surprise.

  “Yup,” I nodded. “See how they all keep them in their left inside breast pocket? Tubby over there at the back hasn't taken any out but you can see he has some from the way his coat sticks out a little on that side. He's also only bothered to fasten two buttons, so it should be a cinch to slip a little hand like yours in there and snag one.”

  Flick chewed at his lip in nervous anticipation. He was usually pretty confident every other time I had taken him out, so his anxiousness was out of character.

  “Hey, I'm going first remember? I'll show you exactly how to do it. Follow me and repeat what I do, you can't go wrong. Okay?” I bopped him on the head and tucked a stray piece of my own straw blonde hair behind my ear.

  “Okay,” he nodded. “Let's do this.”

  “Remember, watch me closely. I will meet you at the Pig and Ferret when you're done, yes?” I eyed him sternly to make sure he understood. It was protocol to split up once you'd made a snatch and run, that way if you got caught you weren't dragging your partner down with you.

  Not that I did this sort of work much any more. Pickpocketing was for the children, like Flick. He was barely eleven but well old enough to earn his keep and pay back his debt to Master Bloodeye.

  He gave me a nod of encouragement and I melted into the crowd. It took me less than two minutes to reach my mark, divest him of one scroll, and then slip back into the excited spectators. Then again, I was one of the best. At age eighteen, I'd already gained quite the reputation for myself in Teich. I was the notorious Rybet, protégé and suspected favorite of Master Bloodeye.

  It was no mistake my name sounded like the noise a frog made. Technically, it wasn't my name, it was a nickname given to me at age five when Master Bloodeye saw how easily I could slip in and out of buildings and crowds unnoticed... slippery, like a frog. I had no idea what my real name was, since he found me as a four year old right after the Age of Darkness.

  The guardsman barely even blinked when my hand slipped inside his coat, lifting the rolled up piece of parchment out and slipping it up my own sleeve. That was the benefit to having so many people around, for sure.

  When I had made it further down the street, I glanced over my shoulder to ensure Flick was doing as instructed, repeating exactly what I'd just done.

  Our meeting point, the Pig and Ferret, was only a few hundred yards away, but I needed to keep an eye on him to make sure he wasn't cocking it all up. My gaze tracked him as he made his way through the crowd and approached the same tubby guardsman who was yawning heavily.

  Flick's back blocked his hand from sight but I knew he'd be making the transfer from guard’s pocket to his own sleeve, and then... I released a nervous breath I had been holding as Flick moved away. The guard was none the wiser.

  Good boy!

  Letting the tension drop from my shoulders, I turned my back on him to hurry my ass along to the Pig and Ferret, so he wouldn't know I stayed to watch. I wanted the kid to think I trusted him to do it all on his ow
n.

  Just as I laid my hand on the heavy wooden door of the inn, a commotion broke out in the street behind me. Dread pooled in my belly and I turned to see what was causing such a fuss.

  “Aana's tits,” I cursed ignoring the gasp of shock from a passerby as I rushed back into the crowd. As if I was the only one to curse using the names of our deities.

  I still needed to get closer to see what was going on, but when I did my heart lurched.

  Flick... his wrist held firm by that same overweight palace guard and the stolen invitation being brandished in his panic stricken face. Shit! How?

  It didn't matter how, though. I needed to get him free of those guards or he stood no chance. The palace didn't care if he was only a kid. He was a Pond dweller, and they saw it as their civic duty to cull our numbers any way they could.

  “Flick!” I yelled, pushing forward faster only to be grabbed from behind with an arm like steel, and dragged into a dark alleyway between two ostentatious mansions.

  Fight or flight instinct was a powerful thing, and I had both. Thrashing hard, I threw elbows and heels into my captor to try and release his hold on me but he didn't for a moment waiver. His arms held me firm against a strong body and a large hand clamped down over my mouth before I could scream.

  “Stop it!” he hissed in my ear. “Stop fighting, boy! Does you life mean so little to you that you'd throw it away to save a Pond orphan?”