by Ellis Leigh
Suddenly the two standing outside to greet him seemed more like a wall between him and those inside the house. As if they needed protecting…from him. “Do I suddenly require a chaperone to meet with my pack?”
Zoe stared him right in the eye, something few wolves could do. “Ariel is here.”
Ariel—mate of Thaus—and a woman of intense emotions who broke Luc’s heart at every turn. Luc had felt the low thrum of the vortex inside of her since his brother had found his mate in the brave Omega, but it was stronger there. More chaotic. Fear and stress and anguish permeated Luc’s Alpha bond to her, and he didn’t want to exacerbate that. She’d been a victim of a ring of kidnappers who’d held her hostage and run experiments on her. Had tried to breed her forcibly. She carried the scars of that time both on her body and in her mind. Luc would never want her to think of him on the same level as those animals. So if Zoe was planning to run interference to keep Ariel calm, he would accept that.
Luc nodded to Zoe. “Lead the way.”
He followed the Omega inside, bathing himself in the pure happiness of the space. Ignoring any of the darker, sickly sensations coming from outside in the world. His pack all together created almost a bubble of emotion so strong, he didn’t think he’d ever experienced anything like it. He loved that sensation. Such a stark contrast to what he’d been feeling in the forest and in the days leading up to this reunion.
It reminded him of being with Cassiel.
“Luc,” Thaus called, standing slightly in front of a small, dark-haired woman who could only be his mate. A woman whose eyes couldn’t meet Luc’s but who stood tall and strong—shaking but holding her ground. Such a brave little wolf.
“Peace, brother. I mean no harm.” Luc stepped closer, keeping his own emotions reined in so as not to influence the Omega. Watching her carefully in case she spooked. “You must be Omega Ariel.”
The woman nodded, reaching out a hand even as she kept her arm locked with Thaus’. “Nice to meet you, sir.”
The chuckle Luc let loose came all the way from his belly. “There are no sirs here, sweet Ariel. We are family, and I am so happy to finally meet such a vital part of ours. You are as strong as I’d expected you to be.”
Zoe and Charmaine—Mammon’s gorgeous blond mate with a heart bigger than the mountains around them—appeared at Ariel’s side, both women looking positively fierce. Ready to protect their sister at all costs. Such strong women to have been brought to his pack—gifts from the fates, truly. He couldn’t help but wonder how Cassiel would fit into this group. If she would.
“Would you like to meet the baby?” Michaela appeared from a hallway, carrying a blanketed bundle that had his wolf sitting up and taking notice. A baby gave off no sense of male or female, of gendered energy. The only thing he could sense from within those white blankets was love and security, the purity of a new soul that he rarely ever got to experience.
Ariel spun, a smile breaking across her face as her son neared. The overpowering, endless love between mother and child was something Luc could have stayed wrapped in all day, but Thaus eclipsed even the strength of that with an emotion so deep and fierce, Luc couldn’t even imagine walking around feeling that all day. His brother adored his little family and would absolutely, no doubt, murder anyone who dared to put them in danger.
He would be an amazing father for the little pup.
Ariel took the baby from Michaela, bouncing him a few times before turning back to Luc. Before pulling all of her emotions together and giving him a stiff smile.
“This is Micah.” She glanced up at Thaus. “Our son.”
Pride. So much pride filled the room. This was the next generation of Dire Wolf, the continuation of their ancient and legendary line. Another time around the circle of life for their pack. The very concept staggered Luc.
“I am honored to be in your presence, sweet Micah. Let your Alpha take a look.” He took the baby from Ariel, being careful not to make contact with the skittish wolf and holding the child in one hand. Once the child was settled in his grasp, he shot Thaus a look. “An angel name for a Dire Wolf.”
Thaus grunted. “We figured one generation of demons was quite enough.”
Indeed. “It is a strong and noble name and will suit him well.” Luc leaned down, letting his wolf come forward. Sniffing all over the child to permeate his scent in Luc’s memory. Eventually, Micah’s masculine energy would develop, but for the moment, he was all love and light—the pure innocence of youth not yet assigned a role in the world. Luc could barely take his eyes off the child. “Such a sweet young one. So pure and bright. You will do amazing things one day, Micah. I can already tell.”
He handed the child back to Ariel, the thump of her relief slamming into his chest. The little pack of three within his pack of fourteen stood as a solid unit once more.
“We are blessed as a pack to have received so much from the fates over the past few years. From our brave Sariel to our giving Charmaine, from our talented Armaita—” Luc shot a grin at Levi’s mate “—and yes, I know you prefer Amy.”
She nodded, her smoky blond hair falling over her shoulder. “Thank you, Luc.”
“And then came Ariel, full of a fierceness of spirit few could exhibit. Michaela, so smart and independent—a true leader among us. And then our lovely and wild Zophiel stole her way into our pack and added her feisty personality to the mix.”
“Damn right, I did,” Zoe called, leaning against Deus and looking as sassy as ever.
“Yes, you definitely did. Now we have Micah, and the pack feels more complete than ever. We are blessed.”
The men of the group all repeated Luc’s final line, the love pouring through the room. Luc couldn’t have asked for more. His wolf disagreed with that thought, immediately throwing a picture of Cassiel into their shared mind. Something Luc could only ignore as he fought his instincts to focus on his pack.
She is meant to be here. His wolf growled, still trying to overpower Luc’s concentration with images of Cassiel.
He could not ignore his pack, though. Which meant he needed to ground himself in them. “Sariel, please tell me how Angelita is doing. We haven’t heard much from her lately.”
Hours later, after an evening of food and catching up and getting to know one another, Luc sat on the porch with Levi, Phego, and Michaela. Young Levi’s mate, Amy, had already gone to bed, her pregnancy tiring her much earlier than normal. Luc had a feeling Levi wanted to talk to him about something. Otherwise, he would have followed his woman to bed like a good mate. Luc could sense the troubled thoughts of the younger Dire Wolf, but he waited for Levi to find his words. To lay out what he needed to feel more confident and surer of his position. It didn’t take him long.
“I don’t want Amy taking any watch shifts, even if there are others with her.” Levi huffed, shaking his head. “She’s in a delicate condition.”
Michaela’s laugh could only be described as boisterous. “She’s pregnant, not breakable.”
“I know, but…” Levi stared off into the woods, his face growing grave. His expression darkening. “When that nomad shifter took her from me, when I thought she’d been shot…”
Luc rested a hand on Levi’s thigh, sensing the distress inside him. Knowing how hard that moment had been, having experienced the rage and panic with the younger shifter. Levi had been protecting Amy when she’d been taken, had been just feet away when a nomad had snuck inside and tried to steal her. That sort of action, that slip, would have unnerved any one of them.
Luc could only reassure his brother. “We would never let her come to harm.”
“I know that, but I still want her someplace safe.”
Just as had been happening all evening, a picture of Cassiel flashed through Luc’s mind. This time, he focused in on her delicate frame and slight build, the kindness of her eyes. He wanted her safe, too. Not that he had the same connection to her that Levi had with Amy, but still…the idea of Cassiel in danger wreaked havoc in his thoughts.
Inside, his wolf whined. They were in agreement, it seemed.
Deus suddenly stepped out of the door, holding it open as he said, “Levi, Amy’s cold.”
Which was a very polite way to request her mate’s presence in her bed. Likely with both of them naked.
Levi jumped to his feet, grinning. “A mate’s job is never done.”
Phego and Michaela followed him inside, leaving Luc alone with his most trusted packmate. The man who knew most of Luc’s secrets. The Dire he’d relied on for years to provide him with whatever he needed—information being the primary focus of those desires.
And he needed information now. “Do you ever remember a mating happening where there wasn’t an initial pull to bond? Where one side didn’t experience the mating at all?”
Deus sat down beside him, not pushing for more. Not interrogating his Alpha. Simply staring off into the darkness and giving the question serious thought. “There are often matings that aren’t acceptable to one or both parties.”
“Not that. Not an adversarial partnership. More…like the bond was too quiet to be felt by one party.”
“I’m not aware of one, but I could go through the records to see what’s been reported over the years.” He sat back, supporting his upper body on his straightened arms. “Someone in particular you’re thinking about?”
Luc grunted his yes but didn’t say more. He didn’t need to. Deus would never require such information.
When Deus finally spoke, it was to change the direction of the conversation. “When I was up here with Zoe, you told me to watch my mate. Continuously.”
He had because of the pack. The sickness in the air. “The pack is not close.”
“How do you know?”
Luc let his senses unfurl a little, teasing Deus with a taste of what he dealt with constantly. “Can you feel that? The sickness around us?”
“Yes.”
“That’s nothing compared to how strong it was when you were here with Zophiel the first time. I don’t sense them as being close to us.”
“And the women of their pack?”
The women. Luc’s personal slice of hell served up on a frustrating platter. “Still nothing. I can’t sense them.”
“What if they’re not here?”
“They are. I know they are.”
“But you can’t sense them, and we can’t find them.” Deus sighed, rising from his more relaxed position. “What are we going to do about the pack?”
Luc worried his lip, letting his instincts spread. Letting his senses dance more on the surface of his mind. Letting the static build into a cacophony only he was subjected to. His distraction sat too deep, though. His mind too caught up in the odd tickling sensation he understood as Cassiel to focus. He had no answers, and that bothered him greatly.
“I need to run.”
Deus didn’t even blink. “Go. We’ll hold down the fort here.”
Luc didn’t need to be told twice. He shifted on the spot, racing into the shadows as if hell itself were on his heels. The deep darkness of night in the bush soon enveloped him, hiding him from the rest of the nocturnal eyes in the trees. He ran for what felt like hours, jumping over rocks and fallen trees, skidding around turns and splashing through puddles. This was what he needed—what he craved. Freedom. Even if just for a moment. Just enough to clear his head.
He ended up at a spot overlooking the lake from the far end, about in the middle of where his cabin and Cassiel’s were situated. He couldn’t actually see them—it was far too dark—but he could sense them both. Subtly, a tickle in his brain. Just enough for a taste… And then he truly let his senses go.
Normally, Luc held back his powers—restrained his wolf because his own energy influenced the shifters around him. But this time, he released it. He could feel his packbrothers—one moving closer as if he needed the protection, while the rest gathered at their homestead. Protective SOBs, though he couldn’t deny them the desire to keep something so precious to them safe. He also began to feel the bleakness of the pack presence, the darkness within. They seemed closer than he would have thought, but not close enough to be a threat. More something to pay attention to. And he needed to pay attention—there was no feminine energy coming from the black hole of their presence, but he knew they had two women under their control. Or had. Could they have lied to Deus? No—Luc had sensed them. He’d felt their power and the surety of women in the pack. They had females somewhere; he just couldn’t feel them.
Unable to resist the pull to her, he looked out over where Cassiel resided, allowing her presence to dance along his senses. Still weak, but there. His feel of her was tenuous at best. He needed more time in her presence to figure her out, but time was something he didn’t have. Especially in the range. This pack—the wrongness within them—had been eating at him for a long time. It could be a danger to his pack, to Cassiel, to everything. He needed to focus.
“You’re having trouble with your priorities.” Bez morphed from the shadows, the Dire seemingly made of darkness himself. Coming to sit beside his Alpha and look out over the world below.
Luc never had kept much from the shifter. “I am torn in two directions.”
“Could she be your mate?”
Deus had either talked—highly unlikely—or Bez had overheard their conversation. He couldn’t blame the shifter for being curious—Luc so rarely called all of them together. And though he didn’t need to answer the question, he figured he might as well at least attempt to be honest. “I don’t know.”
“If you’re not sure, I have to assume she’s not.”
And yet…that didn’t feel right. “She’s something, though. There’s a pull to her that I can’t explain even though I don’t feel the return of it from her. It’s…unusual.”
“So, figure it out. Then we can all get back to work.” Bez rose to his feet once more, placing a hand on Luc’s shoulder. “I want to take my mate home where she’s safe. And that’s definitely not up here.”
“Are any of us safe anywhere, though?”
“So long as I can stand between my mate and what’s coming, I have a shot. This pack—the heavy feeling of this range—I don’t know where the danger might come from. And neither do you.”
Bez walked off into the night, shifting and running back to the homestead. Leaving Luc to sit and think over his words. He didn’t know where the danger might come from anymore. He used to—had been positive he could have identified all threats within the pack. Now?
He didn’t know anything anymore.
10
Days. Luc traveled days through the woods without going back to Cassiel’s. Every minute away, every hour without seeing her safe and sound, wore on him even more than the constant pressure of feeling his pack so closely. Of enduring the barrage of their emotions at such close range. Being without Cassiel had quickly become the hardest part of his days.
He didn’t stop running, though.
Luc and his pack hunted relentlessly. Chasing shadows through the forest, exploring some of the caves they discovered along the base of the mountains, and investigating every possible paw print and trail leading to the lake. The land spread far, the possibilities for hiding endless, and still, they hunted.
Deus, Phego, and Levi had joined Luc on the morning run, leaving the cabin full of Omegas and their guards behind. The quietness of having his brothers at his side soothed Luc for only a brief moment before the sickness in the forest began to wear on him again. Until it began to eat away at his control. Until he was forced to shift human and sit among the fallen trees to clear his head of everything.
“You okay there, man?” Deus came to sit beside him, the two others standing to the side. Almost surrounding him, as if he were a threat. Someone to worry about. The thought just about made Luc laugh.
“I am tired, brothers. That is all.”
He could almost feel the concerned look on Phego’s face as he said, “Perhaps we should stop hunting for a few days. Rest and regrou
p.”
But Luc couldn’t stop. Couldn’t hold off. The woods called to him, Cassiel called to him, his pack called to him. Everything and everyone in a thousand-mile radius called to him. It was all…
“Luc?”
His head throbbed, the sickness around him bearing down harder than ever. The pack was close. He could sense it. Their presence made his brain ache and his body sore, made his wolf almost uncontrollable. Made him want to—
“Is he shifting slowly? What the fuck is going on?”
Luc didn’t need to identify the wolf in question—something was wrong with him, and his brothers were seeing it firsthand. Seeing all he’d been trying to hide from them for decades. They would soon know, and then…they’d leave him to die.
He had one last rescue to finish before he welcomed the end. “I need to hunt. I need to find the females.”
With that, he shifted again, his wolf taking off at breakneck speed down the ravine. His brothers soon followed, their anxiety persisting into their animal forms. The call of nature, the singing of Mother Earth, embraced Luc as it always had, but the sickness from the pack marred the affection. Gave it a dangerous edge. One that ramped up his senses even more than usual.
He came upon the pack almost by accident. He’d run up another hill and came to a stop with the lake to his right. Below him, moving along the rocky base of one of the cliffs, were twenty wolves. The energy from them hit him hard and without warning, the disease within their pack infecting him. No hope, no future, no way to find the females he still couldn’t sense. There was nothing but loss and negative energy, and he could barely breathe through it.
It wasn’t until the wolves began howling from below that he realized he’d lost control of his gift. That he noticed he was broadcasting their own chaotic energy back at them. He tried to rein in his power, but it was too late. The damage had been done, and the pack had begun looking for whatever was upsetting them.