Winter Wolf (A New Dawn Novel Book 1)

by Rachel M Raithby

  Katalina had almost made it to Bass when her name fell from Jackson’s lips. She froze, a deer in headlights, wondering whether it would be rude if she just turned, and ran.

  “Kat, have you met Amelia and her two boys, Thomas and George?”

  “N-no,” Katalina stammered, still in the hallway. She shifted from one foot to the other, contemplating escape.

  “Come say hello. Amelia, this is my daughter, Katalina. You see, I have my child here where it’s safe.”

  Great, I’m being used to put across his point!

  Katalina sighed, having no choice but to say hello to Amelia. “Hi, it’s nice to meet you.”

  Amelia gazed at Katalina, her mouth in a hard line. “Hello, Katalina, I’m pleased you are back home, but your father is trying to distract me.”

  Katalina smiled. “I gathered that, and it’s just Jackson. My father died a few weeks ago.”

  “Oh, erm, I-I’m sorry,” Amelia stammered.

  Katalina smiled sadly but said nothing. Jackson eyes darted between them looking agitated, his plan clearly not going to plan.

  “Hey, Thomas, George, do you want to come with me and see my dog, while your mommy and Jackson talk?” Katalina crouched down as she asked them.

  “Sure!” they both chimed in unison, ripping their hands from their mother’s grip.

  Amelia look startled. She clearly didn’t want to let them go, but didn’t have a valid excuse to say so. “Boys, we’re leaving, so you can’t today.”

  “Aww!” they moaned.

  “Amelia, please, you’re safest here. At least wait until I can have someone go with you,” Jackson pleaded.

  “This place was attacked just a short while ago. I’m taking my chances at home. I’m sure they wouldn’t attack a mother and her children anyway. It’s you they want. As far as I’m concerned, the further aw—”

  Bass’s voice cut through the room, halting her conversation. “They would.”

  “I beg your pardon?”

  “Dark Shadow would attack a mother and child.”

  Amelia gasped, clutching her chest. “A-and who are you?”

  “Sebastian Evernight.”

  “Evernight? Is-isn’t that a Dark Shadow name?” he asked in a small voice.

  “Yes.”

  “Oh, my God!” Amelia gasped, reaching for her boys’ hands again. She turned her angry gaze on Jackson. “You want me to stay here with him? Nowhere is safe anymore.”

  “He’s not going to hurt anyone,” Katalina said firmly, cutting Amelia’s ranting short.

  “And how would you know that?” Amelia had gone from concerned to outraged. She stood, glaring at Katalina.

  “Hey now, don’t you talk to her like that.” Jackson cut in.

  “That’s all right, Jackson. I can take care of myself.” She took a step forward. “Because I know him. I know he’d never hurt anyone unless provoked, and because he’s just defended all of you, against his own pack. He’s killed to protect River Run. And because he’s my mate.” Katalina glared, her eyes unblinking. “Now listen to Jackson and stop acting irrationally. It doesn’t make sense for you to take off with two children unprotected when it’s clear some of Dark Shadow would like us all dead.”

  Amelia stared dumbstruck. Her boys snickered.

  Katalina turned and strode out of the room. She took Bass’s hand as she left, dragging him with her out into the hallway. When Katalina left, Amelia started her ranting again.

  Katalina dropped with a huff onto the stairs, using the steps as a seat. “Is it too late to change my mind and hide at my grandmother’s forever?” she asked the floor.

  Bass just laughed. Arne stuck his head on her lap. She scratched behind his ears, trying to block out Jackson’s voice becoming more irritated by the second.

  “I just made that worse, right?” she asked Bass, looking up to find him standing by the front door, his fingers playing with the net curtain hung hanging over the small window.

  “You were doing okay until you mentioned your mate’s a Dark Shadow.”

  “But my mate is a Dark Shadow and they are just going to have to deal with it.”

  He glanced at her with a smile just as Amelia pulled open the front room door. Her twin boys followed, seemingly enjoying the drama. “We are leaving!” she shouted, grabbing the boys’ coats and throwing them at them.

  “No, you are not!” Jackson boomed back.

  “What’s going on?” Karen asked as she rushed in from the kitchen. It was utter chaos, shouting, staring. The back door banged open as Cage ran in. He froze for a second as he took in the scene, and then decided what he had to say was more important.

  “Bodies are all collected and covered in the back of the truck.” His voiced carried over the ranting and raving.

  Katalina buried her head in her hands, wanting to disappear.

  “Someone’s here,” Bass said into the noise.

  Jackson spun around turning his back on Amelia just as the door opened. More people crowded into the already packed hallway. Amelia pushed past Jackson, racing for the door, her knuckles strained white as she gripped her little boys’ hands.

  “No, you don’t!” Jackson moved with such speed, Katalina couldn’t follow the movement. One minute Amelia was making a run for it, the next Jackson was lifting her from the floor, his thick muscular arm wrapped around her middle.

  The three men who walked in looked on in surprise. Katalina decided this was the craziest family reunion ever.

  “I didn’t want to do this but you leave me no choice.” Jackson sighed before he spoke his next words. His tone changed, taking on a whole new level. The power and strength in his words was palpable in the air, the command an unbreakable thing. “As your alpha, I forbid you to leave this house unless given permission by me.”

  Jackson put her down, dismissing her. “What do you know?” he asked the men standing with their backs against the closed door.

  The eldest of the three was about to answer, but Bass interrupted, “Jackson.” Everyone went silent, staring at him as if they couldn’t believe he’d spoke.

  “Yes?” Jackson half-growled.

  “We’ve got company, cops.”

  “Shit!” Jackson ran his hands through his hair with a groan. “Everyone in the back, now! Not a word out of any of you.”

  Katalina jumped to her feet. “Come on, boy,” she murmured, patting her leg as she instructed Arne to follow.

  People scrambled into action, bodies pushing their way through the door into the kitchen.

  Katalina heard Karen speak in a firm tone. “Everyone over there. I don’t want Toby disturbed.”

  “Look at this place! It’s like a war zone!” Jackson shouted, looking at the bloodied rags across the floor.

  Katalina picked them up, as she walked.

  “William, what the fuck are you doing sitting bleeding on my floor? I told you to go see Karen.”

  Katalina came back into the hall to see what was taking Bass so long.

  “Well, someone had to keep an eye on him. Dark Shadow scum!” William spat.

  Bass froze in his path. Katalina saw the hurt cross his face for the briefest of moments before his mask slipped back into place.

  “And how exactly did you plan to stop him with a broken leg? Cage, come get this idiot off my floor!”

  Cage appeared through the doorway, took one look at William and laughed, “Come on, buddy.”

  There was a knock at the door.

  Jackson’s eyes looked at the pool of blood William had left behind.

  The knock came again, louder.

  Katalina pulled a towel from off the banister and rushed forward to mop the blood up. “Get the door,” she hissed.

  “Just a second,” Jackson called toward the door. “Both of you stay out of sight. I don’t want either one of you caught up in this.

  They slipped through into the kitchen in silence. William lay on the floor with Cage at his shoulders holding him down. Karen’s fingers pro
dded at his leg, causing William to moan in pain.

  “Shush, Jackson’s talking to the cops,” Katalina hissed.

  Karen looked up at her. “Kat, come help.”

  Katalina tossed the towel aside and dropped on her knees beside Karen.

  “What do you need?”

  “Well, the stupid idiot didn’t come to me straight away, so his leg’s healing crooked. I’m going to have to re-break it. I want you to hold his thigh down. Cage, hold his shoulders. Here, William, bite on this. No noise, remember.”

  Katalina watched as Karen knelt at his feet. She took his foot in her hands and pulled. The crack echoed through the silence. William’s muffled cry sent a shiver down Katalina’s spine.

  Jackson popped in briefly to inform them of the cops’ departure and then disappeared to do something else. Hoping to escape now the cops had left and William’s leg had been straightened, Katalina went to stand but Karen gave her more instructions and before she knew it, she was lost in the task at hand. Katalina followed Karen’s instructions not thinking of anything else.

  So it was a shock a little while later when she felt the first trickle of anxiety form in her gut. She focused on the feeling, wondering where it had come from, because although, treating injured people wasn’t the nicest task she’d ever done, it was nice to feel needed, to help. It took her a minute to realize it wasn’t her feelings, but Bass’s. She glanced up from her task of holding the splint while Karen strapped William’s leg in place. Bass stood alone in the corner, his eyes glazed, staring at nothing. To anyone else in the room, he look as indifferent as he always did, but to Katalina, he looked lost, and Bass never looked lost. He was the type of person who owned a room. As if he sensed her looking, his glazed eyes focused on her. He flashed her a forced smile.

  “Hey, Karen, can I leave you to it? There’s something I have to do.”

  Karen glanced up at Katalina and then to Bass. “Sure, Kat, thanks for your help.”

  Walking silently toward him, Katalina took his hand, leading him out the back door. Arne stood from his position by the twins, but Katalina told him to stay. Once outside, she turned to face Bass and squeezed his hand as she asked, “Are you all right?”

  “Of course, why wouldn’t I be?”

  “Bass, I’m not stupid. I can read you better than you think. What’s wrong?”

  “I’m fine.” He sounded pained.

  Katalina took his hand and placed it over her heart. “I know I’m not as good at this shifter stuff as you, but I know this feeling inside of me is yours, and not mine. Talk to me. You’re anxious, fearful even.”

  Bass sighed, “It’s hard to explain.”

  “Try.” She gave him an encouraging smile.

  “These people, River Run, they love you. You might have not have grown up in the pack, but to them, you’ve always been a member. I can see it, how easily you slot in.”

  “I’m not so sure I fit in, but isn’t them accepting me a good thing?”

  “Yes…it’s just, they look at me and see Dark Shadow. These are your people, but they may never accept me. I don’t want you to resent me, or them because I don’t fit in your world.”

  “Sebastian Evernight, you are my world.” Standing on tiptoes she placed a soft kiss on his lips. “Please don’t feel like that. Give them time. I belong here about as much as you. I’ve never been in a pack and I certainly won’t be taking orders from Jackson. We’ll just take each day as it comes, but I promise you, I’d never want to be anywhere other than by your side.”

  Chapter 26

  They didn’t go back inside. Bass stood behind Katalina with his arms wrapped around her. She melted into his hold, her body molding against the hard panes of his torso. “This right here, this is my home,” she whispered to him, tipping her head to the side and kissing him along his jaw. The few days old stubble rubbed against her sensitive skin.

  “How are you coping, Kat? Having to fight, I know it’s not something you wanted to do.”

  Katalina stood in his embrace, watching as the sun slid its way down the sky. She could see the distant outline of people still working to put out the fire. The sun lit the smoke turning the plumes into a canvas of purples and oranges. She thought about driving through the fire and the feeling of being transported into another world. She remembered every beat of her heart as she watched Toby fall and not get back up. She recalled the anger and driving need inside of her, to protect, to stop those wanting to hurt the people she cared for.

  “I honestly feel fine. I’ve come to realize something. Fighting and protecting others is in my blood. My wolf could never stand back and watch others fight for her, and she’s as much a part of me as my human half. I suppose I feared that if I accepted who I was, then I would lose myself. I wouldn’t be Katalina Winter anymore. My wolf has always been a part of me. I was born shifter, not human, and I’ve been denied my true self long enough.”

  Katalina felt Bass’s lips against her neck, his breath hot against her skin. He breathed in, opening his mouth to speak, but the back door opened, cutting him off. They both looked up to see who’d come outside.

  “Jackson,” Bass murmured with a nod.

  “What did you say to the police?” Katalina asked.

  “I didn’t have much to tell them other than someone decided to set fire to my land. They didn’t buy it but they can’t prove otherwise. They’re gone for now.” Jackson’s eyes narrowed on Bass’s arms wrapped around Katalina. He looked to be having an argument with himself. He took a deep breath and with a hand on his neck, he said, “Kat, we need to talk.”

  I can’t wait.

  Bass stepped back from Katalina, but his hand remained tight around hers.

  “Both of you, really,” Jackson stated, looking more uncomfortable by the minute.

  “We’re listening,” Katalina muttered, glaring.

  “Right, well, I’m not going to say I’m happy about this, but I understand I have no right to dictate your life, and even if I did, there is little I can do to stop a mating. It’s very clear you’re mates. I only need to watch the two of you to see that. The way you move and act together, it’s as if you’ve known each other for years. I sincerely wished it had been Cage, not because I don’t like Sebastian, because honestly, Kat, he’s strong, stronger than Cage, and he’s obviously willing to protect you, but he’s Dark Shadow, Kat. His father is their alpha, and quite frankly, I’m losing this war. I’m not sure I can protect you. I’m worried, Kat. I made a mistake giving you away, and now, I’m frightened I’m going to lose you again.”

  Stunned, Katalina had no idea what to say. This was the first real conversation she’d had with him. The first time she actually felt as if she was listening to her father, and she had no idea what to say.

  Bass saved her from having to speak. “It’s my job to protect Katalina. I will deal with my father.”

  “Okay, so you have a plan?” Jackson asked.

  “Yes, I’m going to talk to my father. See if I can reason with him.”

  Katalina thought Jackson’s eyes might bulge out of his head. He linked his hands behind his neck, staring at Bass as if he’d gone mad. Bass had his mask in place, looking cool and collected, as if nothing fazed him.

  “Talk? And you think he’ll listen?”

  “Not at all. I think he’ll see my mating to Katalina as the ultimate betrayal and finally have an excuse to kill me.”

  Jackson actually laughed. He turned toward the house and then back around. “Wonderful,” he muttered. “Well, correct me if I’m wrong, but your plan sucks.”

  Katalina tugged the hand she held. “Bass I’m sure your father will listen. Look at Jackson. He’s come around.”

  Bass looked her straight in the eyes. “My father is nothing like Jackson. He will want to kill me, but I’m going to kill him.”

  “Bass!” Katalina gasped.

  “What are you, like twenty?” Jackson asked.

  “Nineteen.”

  “Right, nineteen a
nd you’ve got the strength to take on an alpha and lead a pack like Dark Shadow?”

  “I never said it was an easy plan, but there are a lot of members in Dark Shadow who follow my father through fear not loyalty.”

  “Shit! This is the craziest half-assed plan I’ve ever heard.”

  “When I lead Dark Shadow, Katalina will be safe, and so will you.”

  “I’m not denying that, but let me ask you something, Sebastian. Are you ready to kill you own father? Mentally and physically?”

  “He’s not killing anyone! This is crazy. I can’t listen to this. How can the two of you stand there talking so casually about killing someone? Your own freaking dad, Bass.” Katalina stormed off, ripping her hand from Bass’s. She slammed the door as she stomped in, rattling the side of the house.

  “Kat!” Bass called after her.

  “Leave her,” Jackson said, taking hold of his arm. “You need to answer me, boy. You truly want me to accept you. I need to hear you say it.”

  Bass pulled out of Jackson’s hold and faced him head on. He let the wolf inside of him to the surface, allowed his true self to come forward.

  “I have been preparing for this day all my life. I have never gotten along with him and I have always seen the world differently to him. I always knew there’d be a day when he’d pushed me too far, when I couldn’t stand by and watch his cruelty anymore. And as to my physical strength, I’m not sure. I thought I’d have more time, but my times up. I don’t have a choice anymore.”

  “Does he know how strong you are?”

  “I’m not stupid, Jackson. I’ve always stayed under the radar. I’ve never fought for dominance or a higher ranking within the pack. But neither is my father stupid. He’s had me training from the moment I could walk, always pushed me so I could defend myself against River Run, but I don’t think he knows the full extent of my power; otherwise, I’d have been dead a long time ago.”

  The back door swung open. Cage’s head popped out. “Everything all right? Kat’s trying to knock the house down.”

  “Yeah,” Jackson answered. “Has the fire crew left yet?”