The Finder (Wolves of the Northwoods Book 1)

by A J Manney

  Emma nodded, taking a deep breath. “You’re right. Sorry.”

  “Now, do you have any other t-shirts that would work?” Madison asked.

  “No,” Emma said sheepishly. “That’s why I’ve been panicking. We didn’t really buy short-sleeved t-shirts that would work.”

  Madison huffed in exasperation. “Then wear the stinkin’ bra and let’s go.”

  Emma grabbed her clothes and hightailed it into the bathroom. She pulled on her pants and put on her purple and black sports bra. It was her most modest one with a high-cut front. The back had several cross straps and her pants had a matching purple band at the top. She put on her socks and sneakers and pulled her hair into a high ponytail. She thought for a second about adding some light makeup; then talked herself out of it. Makeup was not the way to go prove yourself as a fighter.

  She looked in the mirror at herself, trying to conjure feelings of confidence and project intimidation. A knock sounded at the door. “What are you doing in there? Let’s go!”

  “I’m coming,” Emma said. She quickly grabbed her sweatshirt and phone and followed Madison out the door. Kyle was waiting in the living room.

  “We’re going to be late,” he said.

  “I know. It’s Emma’s fault,” Madison said in frustration.

  “Sorry,” Emma said. They hustled out to the car. Kyle and Madison sat up front. Emma slid into the back and moved to the middle when two other enforcers joined them. They introduced themselves as Noah and James. Emma nodded her head at each of them but didn’t shake their hands. All too soon, they pulled up in front of the huge gym. Emma climbed out and followed Madison and Kyle inside.

  Inside, the place was hopping. The music was thumping, and there were people everywhere. Emma had no idea if Garrett was there or not. Madison said he wouldn’t miss it, though. “I’ll go sign you in,” Madison said. Emma nodded and waved her on. Kyle went with Madison, and Emma was left to herself for a few minutes. She let herself take everything in. The bleachers were filled with people. You could tell which wolves were here to watch and have fun and which ones were here to fight. The ones here to have fun had drinks and snacks.

  Before Emma could take anything else in, somebody ran into her, almost knocking her over. “Oh, I'm sorry. I didn’t see you standing there.” Emma turned around to see two girls probably a few years older than her standing in front of her. They, of course, had wolf genes and just like everybody else, were absolutely beautiful. One girl had dark hair and olive-colored skin with beautiful thick lashes and flawless skin. The other was a perfect Barbie model with long blonde hair, a figure to die for, and bright blue eyes that were currently shooting glares at Emma.

  “Uh, hi, I’m Emma,” Emma said, putting out her hand.

  The blond sniffed. “Yeah, we know. You’re the only human around for miles. We could smell you before we got in the front door. We just wanted to have a chance to have a little chat with you.”

  The olive-complexion girl smirked. “Yeah, a chat.”

  Emma crossed her arms. “Fine. Chat away.” She had already decided she didn’t like these two.

  They both stepped closer to her. “I don’t know what kind of spell you weaved over Garrett, but I’m here to tell you—it won’t work,” the blond said.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Emma said.

  “Sure you don’t,” the black-haired girl said.

  “Do you really think that Garrett, the most powerful alpha in the country, is going to mate a human?” the blonde asked, incredulously. “Alphas don’t mate humans. They need a strong wolf to mate with to sire their pups.”

  Emma stuck her chin up. “I’m his mate,” she said.

  They both laughed. “Sure you are,” the blond smirked.

  “Has he slept with you yet?” the black-haired girl asked.

  “That’s private,” Emma responded.

  “That would be a no,” the black-haired girl said.

  “He said wolves don’t mess around; they wait for their mates.” Both girls started laughing hysterically at that.

  “Oh, honey, how naïve can you be?” the blond asked. “Take a look around. You think all these healthy, strong, sexy men are just waiting for their mates?”

  Emma didn’t know how to respond. The blond stepped closer. “They’re not,” she said. “I don’t know why Garrett’s after you right now. It’s probably because you’re human. You’re a mystery, something new and shiny. But when he gets tired of you, he’ll come and find himself a wolf, a real woman who can give him what he needs in bed. Wolves aren’t like normal men, honey. They need much more than you, a human, could ever give him.”

  Emma’s anger rose up swift inside of her. “Stay away from Garrett; he’s mine,” Emma said.

  “Is he though?” the blond asked, now completely in her face. “He hasn’t even marked you as his. He may be entertained by you right now, but just remember...” She backed away slowly from Emma. “You’re not his first,” she whispered. Both girls walked away laughing.

  Emma stood still, watching them walk away. She turned away and tried to catch her breath. She looked down and saw her hands were shaking. She thought she was going to be sick. There was no way she could fight now. Had everything Garrett told her been a lie? Had he slept with that… Her mind refused to let her use the word she wanted to. The doors across the gym opened and Emma watched Garrett, Kyle, and Max saunter in. For just a moment, her breath caught in her throat. They were all similarly dressed in black sweat pants, tight black t-shirts, and combat boots. They looked deadly, especially the one leading the pack. Emma turned away. She couldn’t even look at him. She put her hands up to her eyes.

  “Excuse me, ma’am, are you okay?” Emma looked up at one of the enforcers who had ridden with her on the way over. She couldn’t remember his name. Joe or John or something. “Should I get the alpha?” he asked.

  “Oh, no,” Emma quickly responded. Anything but that. “I’m fine. Thank you.” She looked around her trying to find a path through the people to get to the door. She needed to get out of here. She would have to find Madison and tell her she couldn’t do it. She moved forward, trying to see where Madison had gone. Her eyes searched the bleachers. She was surprised by the number of females she saw. When Garrett said they had a small number, she was thinking much smaller. There were still a good thirty or so women in here, and every one of them looked more fit than Emma. Emma was really reconsidering her decision now. She needed to find Madison and get her name off of the sheet for tonight. She looked towards the tables where Madison said she would sign them in. She saw Garrett and Liam going over the sign-in sheets. She held her breath. Maybe Madison hadn’t put her name in yet. Suddenly, Garrett’s head snapped up. He said something to Liam. Liam grabbed the clipboard and looked at it. Then their heads both turned towards the crowd.

  Emma ducked. She knew instinctively they were looking for her. When she felt it was safe to come up, she stood back up and looked towards the table. Angry dark eyes locked with hers.

  Chapter 40

  “Shoot!” Emma said. She tried to duck, but he was already coming her way. She looked around her, desperately trying to find a place to hide. She tried to push through the crowd of people coming in, but she couldn’t get anywhere. Suddenly a hand enclosed around her elbow. Emma closed her eyes briefly before turning to face the angry wolf in front of her.

  “What do you think you’re doing?” Garrett asked in a furious voice.

  Emma tugged her elbow out of his grasp. He let it go and crossed his arms. Liam appeared a moment later, standing next to him. He was usually easy-going, but not this time. His arms were crossed and his eyes narrowed just like Garrett’s. Emma was not in the mood for their games. She felt anger brewing deep inside of her for the ways Garrett had lied to her. Liam was guilty by association. Her anger was with both of them. She crossed her arms. “I'm fighting,” she said defiantly.

  Garrett and Liam both gave a short laugh. Laughed! Rage
surrounded Emma. How dare they judge her and laugh at her. She hadn’t planned on sticking around and fighting, but now she was itching to do just that. Maybe she’d get lucky and get Barbie in the ring. Garrett’s eyes narrowed. “You’re serious,” he said. Emma didn’t respond; she simply raised her eyebrows. “You’re not fighting, Emma. I forbid it,” Garrett said and turned to start walking away.

  “Why? Because I’m not a wolf?” Emma challenged. “I’m just a weak human?” she taunted him.

  Garrett stiffened and turned back to her. His eyes were dark with anger. “You’re not fighting because you’re my mate, and I am not going to stand by and watch you get hurt,” he said.

  “Oh right, because I couldn’t possibly hold my own,” Emma said sarcastically.

  “Emma,” Liam cautioned, looking between her and Garrett in confusion.

  “You’re. Not. Fighting,” Garrett ground out.

  “You’re not in charge of me,” Emma said in anger.

  “I am the alpha of this pack!” Garrett responded in anger.

  “Right. And I'm not a part of that pack, am I?” she challenged him.

  Liam turned and looked at her in confusion, but Emma paid him no mind. Her eyes were locked on the angry man in front of her. “Hey, what’s going on here?” Madison asked, coming and standing next to Emma.

  Garrett turned his dark gaze on Madison. “You brought her here.”

  Madison crossed her arms. “I did.”

  “Then you’re responsible for what happens to her,” he said before turning and walking away. Without a word, Liam turned and strode after him.

  “What was all that about?” Madison asked staring after the two of them. Emma had no words. The hurt she felt earlier was nothing compared to Garrett turning his back on her.

  Madison turned towards Emma and put her hands on her shoulders. Emma met her eyes. “I can’t do this,” she said.

  Before Madison could respond, they heard Liam’s voice in the microphone. “Goooood evening, Pack, and welcome to fight night!” he yelled.

  The room exploded. There was no way Emma would be able to hear Madison now. Liam yelled a few more things over the music, getting everybody pumped up. She watched Garrett hand him a piece of paper. She watched as Liam looked down at it and then back at Garrett for a moment. Garrett crossed his arms and nodded. “And now, what we’ve all been waiting for. It’s time to fight!” Thunderous applause echoed off the walls. “The first female fight of the evening... Trish the Terminator versus,” he paused for a brief second. “Emma the Extra,” he said. Emma shook her head. He had obviously just made that up.

  “Oh no,” Madison said next to her.

  Emma turned to her. “What’s wrong?” Madison’s eyes were wide as she looked at Emma. Emma could see the panic in them. It didn’t take a genius to figure out what she had already worked out in her mind. Garrett wanted to get rid of her in the first round.

  Emma had a brief second where she considered walking out the door and never coming back, but she squared her shoulders and began walking towards the fight ring Liam had pointed out. Madison walked next to her. Emma thought she was maybe talking, but she couldn’t hear anything over the crowd. Emma could feel the electricity in the air and the hundreds of eyes trained on her. She did her best to not think about it. She kept her eyes trained on the ring and didn’t look in the direction where Liam and Garrett stood.

  Emma stopped just outside the ring and took off her sweatshirt and gave it to Madison.

  Kyle came and stood next to them. “You got this, Emma,” he said sincerely. Emma could have hugged him in that moment. That was the boost of confidence she needed. She turned to look at him. He must have seen the doubt in her eyes. He put his hands on her shoulders. “Emma, you’ve taken me down several times; and it wasn’t because I was going easy on you. You’re tough. You’re a good fighter. You can do this. Go show everybody what you’re made of.”

  Madison put her hand on Emma’s back. “Listen, you can do this. I’ve fought her many times before. She’s tough. She’s strong and built like an ox. Don't let her punches land on you, and whatever you do, don’t end up on the floor. That’s where her game is. If you end up down on the floor, you’re done. You won’t win against her brute strength. But for all her power, she’s slow. You can tire her out. Be light on your feet. Make every hit count. Dance around her; make her work for it. She’s used to just using her strength. Tire her out; then when she slows down, take her down.” Emma nodded, listening to everything she was saying.

  “You gotta go,” Kyle yelled above the noise. Emma nodded and slipped into the ring. She looked down at Kyle and Madison one last time. They both nodded in affirmation at her. Emma looked at the wolf across from her and studied her for a brief moment while she stretched and warmed up. She heard Liam yelling into the mic one more time; then she heard the sound of the air horn, signifying the start of the fight.

  Everything stilled around Emma as she tuned the world out. Trish might have been standing across from her, but Emma saw only saw Alec and his friends and all the people who never thought she was good enough. She saw the laughing faces of Barbie and her black-haired friend. Whether or not anything came from her and Garrett, she realized she had to do this for herself. She was no longer that scared little girl always trying to just survive. She had learned to survive and to fight back, and now it was time to prove it.

  Trish came at her with a hard right, and Emma almost didn’t get out of the way in time. That hit snapped Emma back into real-time. Emma got her head back in the fight. She circled around Trish for a moment or two, getting a feel for how she moved. Then she decided to go for it, like Madison said. It was time to use her stamina to tire her out. She went on the aggressive, landing a few hits. That made Trish angry, and she came at Emma like an angry bull. Emma was ready for her. She deflected each of her hits, dancing out of her way. This only made Trish angrier. Emma continued to dance around her, getting in a good hit here or there, but also taking a few hits. Those hits were hard, and Emma knew she couldn’t afford any more of those or she wouldn’t be able to keep going. Shifters were so much stronger and faster. Emma needed to speed up her plan to get Trish down.

  She went on the offensive again, not really landing too many blows, but at least making Trish have to work at deflecting. In learning to fight against the wolves, Emma had learned that the only way to win was to look for that one chance in a fight when her opponent was not fully recovered or weak, and then pounce. You had to know what to look for and when to go for it. Emma had trained herself to find it in every fight, because she could never win on skill, strength, or speed. The wolves would always trump her in all of those. She finally saw her moment and went for it. With several punches and a sweeping kick timed just right, Emma got Trish flat on her back and successfully pinned a moment later. She held on for dear life, knowing she just had to make it a few more seconds. The air horn blew. That was it.

  Emma released her hold and rolled off of Trish, putting a hand down to help her up. Trish stood up and grinned at her. “Nice work.” They shook hands, and Emma walked to the other side of the ring and climbed out of the circle. Madison grabbed and squeezed her tight, and so did Kyle.

  “I knew you could do it,” Madison said. Emma grinned. She felt pretty good at the moment. She wanted to look over and see if Garrett was watching, but she didn’t.

  “I’m next for my fight. I’ll catch up to you soon,” Kyle said to Madison. After a quick kiss, he was gone.

  Madison handed Emma her sweatshirt. “Let’s go watch Kyle and get you something to eat before your next fight.” Emma followed Madison through the throngs of people. Madison picked up an energy bar and a Gatorade for Emma, which Emma worked on while she watched Kyle fight. He did a great job and won his round quickly, much to the delight of his screaming wife. After a few more rounds, it was Emma’s turn to fight again.

  This time she faced a girl who was much more evenly matched with Emma in size at least. Madison sa
id she was just learning to fight in the ring. It was a quick victory for Emma. Her next two fights went fairly easy, which was good so she could conserve energy. Because the fights were single-round elimination, the rounds were ticking along quickly.

  Her fifth fight of the night put her in a ring with a male wolf. Emma was glad she had spent time training with Kyle. This guy was good, but he wasn’t as good as Kyle. It took longer, but Emma finally managed to take him down. Her next round was her last. She gave it everything she had, but her opponent was just too big, too fast, and too strong. They went for a while, but eventually he pinned her. At least he was gracious about it. He was respectful to her and helped her up the second the air horn blew.

  Emma moved to where Madison and Kyle were waiting for her. Madison crushed her in a hug. “I’m so proud of you. You did amazing tonight!”

  Kyle nodded. “Good job, Emma.”

  Madison linked her arm through Emma’s, her signature move. “Let’s get you some fuel,” she said. “We’ll be back to cheer for you for your next fight,” she told Kyle. He grinned and waved them off.

  Emma and Madison sat and watched Kyle’s next three fights. Emma was pretty sure now after watching him fight that he had been holding back with her, letting her take him down the few times she did. He was a really good fighter. She absently wondered how he would stand up against Liam, Max, or even Garrett. She had been secretly hoping to watch Max and Liam fight tonight, but they hadn’t entered. She knew Garrett had been fighting all night. She'd heard his name mentioned constantly in different matches. So far, she had avoided watching him, until now.

  Chapter 41

  Emma couldn’t look away from the fight in front of her. Garrett was in the ring with a shifter Emma recognized as one of the enforcers, but she didn’t know his name. Garrett was incredible to watch. She was pretty sure that he was letting the fight go on. He probably could have ended it within the first thirty seconds if he wanted to. He was so fast and so powerful. He finished the fight, and the crowd erupted.