Destiny's Path

by Kimberly Hunter

  “I am aware of that, Mother.”

  “Okay, what’s this challenge thing?” Sasha asked. “Though I can see by all your faces it’s not good.” Flynn was the first to answer. “A Challenge is issued when a rival female wants to be Alpha or the resident Alpha senses a threat from a new rival and wants to dispense with her first. Not kill, but dominate to show who is stronger. Which means a trial by combat.”

  Well, that certainly cleared a few things up, but Sasha still had a bad feeling about this. “Okay, but I don’t want to be Alpha. I just defended myself. It wasn’t a Challenge.”

  “It wouldn’t have been, only you threatened me. That’s a Challenge in itself,” Jenna crowed with delight. “I formally issue Challenge!”

  “I’ll kill her myself!” Flynn roared in rage, making a move toward Jenna.

  Thank goodness Roan was faster; otherwise Jenna would have been a dead Lupa.

  “No, Flynn. Killing her will only complicate matters more,” Roan said as he grabbed Flynn around the shoulders.

  “Sasha doesn’t deserve this, Roan. She’s been through enough as it is.” Flynn’s voice was tight with restrained violence, his eyes glowing with it.

  “I know this, brother. But don’t worry; I have things well in hand.”

  “Well in hand? You let her come here—” Flynn stopped in mid-sentence, shock registering on his face. “You knew, didn’t you? You knew she would try this, and yet you let her come anyway?” The look on Flynn’s face said he couldn’t believe his brother would let that harpy in their house, let alone do this.

  “I suspected as much, yes.”

  “Then why? Why would you let this happen knowing Sasha and I are True Mates?” Flynn stepped back from Roan, his expression showing a sense of betrayal.

  “Have you no faith in me, brother?” Roan smiled, his glacier-blue eyes twinkling with mischief.

  “What are you up to?” Sasha asked as she walked over to Flynn and took his hand, knowing Roan must have had a plan after Jenna showed up.

  “All in good time,” he said mysteriously.

  “Now, Roan…” she started to say.

  “Yes, I am quite aware of your aversion to mysteries. But trust me, this won’t take long.” He looked meaningfully at Flynn and her.

  “Don’t think you can weasel her way out of this, Roan. Challenge has been issued. I know my rights under Pack Law,” Jenna stated.

  “Rights, my ass.” Gabe snorted sarcastically. “She issued Challenge on a non-transformed Lupus. That makes the Challenge null.”

  “I don’t think that matters, Gabe. I’m quite sure she’s vindictive enough to wait till Sasha has gone through the First Transformation, then issue Challenge again,” Charlie said with disgust.

  “So what do they do? Let her get away with this?” Gabe asked, clearly upset. He wasn’t the only one. Flynn still looked pissed enough to commit an act of violence on someone. His eyes had yet to lose their glow, and his frown was nowhere near close to turning upside down.

  “I think all of you, including Jenna, are overlooking something,” Roan said, looking at Sasha strangely.

  “Okay, I’ll bite. What are we all overlooking?” Sasha wished Roan would get to the point. Her stomach needed food. Being threatened and Challenged worked up an appetite.

  “How many Lupus, male or female, have ever fended off an attack from an Alpha before going through the First Transformation?” The question was rhetorical, seeing as no one knew the answer.

  “None I have ever heard of,” Gabe replied, looking to the others for an answer.

  “Only the occasional rumor, but nothing concrete,” Flynn answered, the look on his face saying clearly he wasn’t sure where this was leading.

  Roan looked about the room again. When no one else spoke up, he answered, “The answer is three, and Sasha makes four.”

  “Okay. Now I’m confused. What exactly does that mean?” Gabe asked.

  Flynn looked at Roan again, his eyes widening a bit. “I think I have an idea, but Roan could probably explain it better.” Sasha could see he wasn’t happy about what he had deduced.

  “The reason those three and Sasha were able to accomplish this feat is because of power. We all know some Lupus gain more after the First Transformation, and some stay the same. An Alpha would, of course, gain considerably more power after the First Transformation,” Roan finished, his eyes never leaving Sasha’s face.

  As hints went, it was subtle. Not.

  “Her? An Alpha?” Jenna laughed with derision. “Absurd.”

  “She tossed your ass, didn’t she?” Gabe countered, getting a scathing look in return.

  “Enough!” Flynn shouted, his patience at an end. “I don’t think I like your plan, Roan. It’s too dangerous.”

  “Uh, since I’m the one being discussed, could someone let me in on the plan?” Sasha’s patience wasn’t exactly intact at this point either.

  “Your actions tonight were those of a true Alpha. After the First Transformation, you’ll be more than capable of winning Jenna’s Challenge and her position,” Roan explained.

  Oh, is that all, she thought. I just kick her butt and take her place? No problem. That is if she survived the First Transformation. Then she wouldn’t have to worry about fighting the Alpha bitch. She’d be dead and Flynn along with her. Jeez, some days it just didn’t pay to come out of a coma.

  Chapter Five

  “Sasha?” Flynn touched her shoulder, worry clouding his beautiful eyes. “You don’t have to accept the Challenge. We’ll find a way to beat Jenna at her own game without you getting hurt.”

  “That’s a nice thought, but you know as well as I do she won’t stop. One way or the other, it will come down to us fighting. She’ll see to that.”

  Flynn pulled her into a fierce embrace. “I don’t want you hurt. Even after the small amount of time we’ve spent together, the thought of anyone trying to hurt you makes me crazy.” He nuzzled her neck.

  “Me, too. Which is why I have to do this.” She pulled back to look in his eyes. “I’m not a coward, Flynn. I don’t like to fight, but I won’t run from one either.”

  Flynn nodded in understanding. And she was right about Jenna. She wouldn’t stop. She’d keep dogging Sasha’s heels until she relented or Jenna caught her off guard. No way was she going to let that happen. So she would accept Jenna’s Challenge. And since these types of things had terms, Sasha was going to issue hers. All would be in her favor, of course, but then, why not? She didn’t know the rules, and Jenna had counted on that when she Challenged her. Too bad her terms would disabuse Jenna of that notion.

  She turned around in Flynn’s arms, looking at Jenna, then at Roan.

  “You going to run or fight?” Jenna sneered.

  Sasha ignored her jab; Jenna would be feeling hers soon enough. “I assume there are terms to these Challenges?”

  “Of course. Do you have any?” Roan asked.

  “I do.”

  “They are?”

  “I’ll accept Jenna’s Challenge, but under the terms that I go through the First Transformation first and I have two weeks after to prepare and acclimate myself to my new life.”

  “What?” Jenna shouted. “She can’t do that!”

  “Ha, outwitted again.” Gabe laughed.

  “You forget, Jenna, you may be the one to issue the Challenge, but its Sasha’s right to set the terms. Take ‘em or leave ‘em,” Flynn said curtly.

  She could tell he wasn’t thrilled about her decision, but they both knew their backs were against the wall. Sasha’s terms gave them more planning and breathing space. That is, if she didn’t die from the First Transformation. “You’re just afraid to fight me. This is all a ploy to get me to back out,” Jenna spat.

  “No ploy. I’m just too smart to play the game by your rules,” Sasha told her.

  “The choice is yours, Jenna. You accept the terms or withdraw the Challenge,” Roan advised.

  Sasha could see Jenna weighing her options by t
he play of emotions on her face. She wasn’t sure of Sasha now, not after she showed herself capable of defending her person. Sasha was the unknown factor in an equation Jenna had worked out in her favor. Sasha’s actions had changed the variables, and her transformation could change them even more. She didn’t like that, but Sasha knew her kind. Greedy, grasping, never happy no matter how much they had. Always wanting what others had and thinking the world and everyone in it owed them a better life. And it didn’t matter if they never lifted a finger to help others just as long as they got what they wanted. Oh yeah, Sasha knew her kind. She also knew if she didn’t stop Jenna now, she would keep coming back. No way was she going to allow that. She had to win. She had to become Alpha.

  “I accept your terms,” she replied stiffly. “I’ll call later and let you know where to meet.”

  “No.” Roan stopped her at the swinging door.

  Jenna turned to look at Roan with annoyance. “What do you mean, no? I issued the Challenge. I choose the place.”

  “If this were a normal Challenge, then I would say yes, but it’s not.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “You came to my home, with full knowledge that Sasha and Flynn were True Mates and what you were going to do regardless of that fact. Plus, you knew Sasha hadn’t gone through the First Transformation yet. That’s a serious breach of Pack Law. Punishable at my discretion because the offense occurred in my home, and I am Alpha of this Pack.”

  “Yet you let the Challenge stand. Why?” Jenna asked suspiciously, starting to look nervous for the first time.

  “Because you have abused your position by taking this action, among others. And because I know that Sasha can win.”

  “She’s not Alpha yet, Roan. She still has to fight me and win to get it. I’m not that easy to beat.”

  “You’re not Alpha, either.”

  Everyone gasped at that bomb, Jenna most of all. Boy, Roan sure could drop ‘em, Sasha thought.

  “You can’t do that! I earned the right to be Alpha in fair combat. You can’t take that away from me!”

  That was when Sasha sensed the power flowing from Roan. Saw his eyes starting to glow like a silver-blue flame. Jenna had pushed him too far.

  “I can and have,” he growled low. “You gave up your right as Alpha when you issued Challenge with full knowledge of a True Mate and non-transformed Lupus. And to exacerbate matters, you did it not in defense of your position, but because of it. You are not fit to be Alpha and are therefore stripped of the title and position. When Sasha wins, she can accept the title, or it can be up for grabs for the next in line. The trials will begin upon this decision. You are not allowed to compete for the title again. Ever.”

  Jenna’s eyes stated to glow with hatred, and it was directed right at Sasha. “This is all your doing!”

  “Don’t pin this on me. This is your fault, not mine.” Sasha couldn’t help but grin a little at the other woman’s misfortune. She brought it all on herself but wasn’t woman enough to own up to it.

  “You think you have won? Well, not yet. You still have to face me, and I will show no mercy, you useless bitch.”

  “I do hope that’s not the best you can come up with. I mean, I’ve been called worse and by a lot better than you.” Sasha laughed.

  Jenna snarled at her but was too smart to make a move. Sasha wasn’t the only one in the room who would stop her. And the others, Flynn in particular, seemed more than willing should that happen. In fact, they seemed to be hoping she would.

  “I will give you the place and the day of the Challenge. But before that happens, you are confined to your home,” Roan told her.

  “But…” Jenna started to say.

  “No, Jenna. I want no early attempts or misunderstandings. You will follow all the rules of the Challenge and the terms to the letter. If you make any attempts to do otherwise, the Challenge will be null.” Roan strode toward Jenna, stopped in front of her. “Then you will deal with me. Do you understand?”

  Jenna’s face drained of color as she nodded tersely.

  “Say the words,” he commanded with a menacing growl.

  She shot a hate-filled look at Sasha and then looked at Roan. “I understand,” she bit out.

  “Good.” He went back to his chair at the table. “I’ll be sending two of my personal guards by later to make sure you follow my orders. Now leave.” Sitting down, he took his napkin and placed it in his lap.

  Jenna glared at Sasha one last time, then stormed out the swinging door. When they heard the front door slam and a car tear out the drive, they knew she was gone. Too bad they would have to meet again.

  “Wow. I’m not part of your Pack one day, and already trouble has found me. Must be a record.” Sasha chuckled, trying to lighten the mood. She got a lukewarm response.

  “Not your fault, Sasha. She’s been trouble since her First Transformation.” Charlie sighed as they all took their seats at the table again. “Just like her mother, too. Always wanting what she couldn’t have.”

  Sasha nodded with understanding. “Kind of a bad family trait. Though I guess there are worse ones.”

  “True.” She smiled. “Now come on, then. The dinner isn’t a total loss. Most everything is still warm, and if it isn’t, it can be heated up.” She gestured for them all to start eating.

  “Mom! Can I come out now? It’s boring in here,” Dillon shouted through the kitchen door. “And I’m hungry.”

  “Well, that about says it all, doesn’t it?” Charlie laughed.

  “Come on out, scamp, before you starve,” Flynn said as a bit of red hair poked out the door.

  “Cool!” He smiled, making a break for his chair, then looking around in confusion. “Where’s Jenna? You beat her up? Was it gross?” he asked Sasha with boyish glee. He may have been in the kitchen, but he was a Lupus, and they had great hearing.

  “All right, that’s enough,” Charlie intervened. “That’s none of your concern, young man, so eat.” She gave him a gimlet eye, brooking no argument.

  “Okay,” he said dejectedly.

  “Don’t worry, champ.” Gabe leaned over to whisper, “I’ll fill you in later.” “Yes!” Dillon exclaimed.

  “Gabriel,” Charlie warned.

  “Condensed, of course,” he promised.

  Everyone laughed, bringing the mood around the table on a lighter side. And the food was still good. Which was why Sasha was glad Roan waited till she was almost done before he brought up a topic better left alone.

  “I talked to your mother today,” he said casually, taking a sip of his drink.

  “That was thoughtful, Roan. The poor woman has probably been worried sick,” Charlie replied.

  “Well, yes and no.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean? Surely you didn’t have any trouble smoothing things over, did you?” Flynn asked, clearly curious as he looked at Sasha for an answer.

  “Actually, she was very decent about the whole thing.” Roan frowned.

  “Then what’s the problem?” Flynn glanced at Roan, seeing his obvious displeasure, then looked at Sasha. She kept her face as blank as she could, no doubt making Flynn wonder what was so upsetting that she would have this reaction at the mention of her family.

  “It was her utter lack of concern for Sasha’s welfare that bothered me,” Roan answered, his glower deepening.

  “Surely you must have heard her wrong, Roan.” Charlie frowned, her tone saying clearly that she was unable to believe otherwise. Too bad Sasha had to disabuse her of that notion.

  She took a deep breath. “He didn’t hear wrong, Charlie,” she said, seeing shock register on her face. Then she turned to Roan. “Let me guess, when you told her I had been injured, or whatever, her concern lasted just long enough to hear I was okay. And then she tried everything in the book to get off the line with you.”

  “Exactly, but with a variation.”

  “What was that?” Although she somehow knew.

  “She wanted to know when you would be
coming home, because her prescriptions had almost run out.”

  “Ah yes, my monthly donation to the Goddess of Pharmacology is due. Can’t be late with that.” Her reply was heavy with sarcasm.

  She leaned back in her chair, rubbing her temples. She so did not want to tell these nice people about her family. It was like reopening a bad wound. But she knew she had to. Otherwise, her mother would be calling here every day, demanding she come home so Sasha could pay for her drugs. Sasha’s health was unimportant compared to her mother getting her next fix.

  “You all right, sweetheart?” Flynn wrapped a comforting arm around her shoulders at seeing her distress.

  “Well, I was, but this can’t be helped, and you need to know about my family.” She placed her hand over Flynn’s.

  “You don’t have to tell us anything, Sasha. We can all see you’re upset about this,” Charlie said with concern.

  Sasha smiled wanly in thanks. “Not upset, Charlie. Just resigned. And used to it.”

  She pushed her plate away, what was left of her appetite fleeing on swift wings due to hearing about her mother. Too bad. The grilled chicken was great.

  “It wasn’t always like this,” she began, thinking of happier days when her father was still alive. “We were poor but well enough above the poverty line to get by. And with four kids to feed and clothe, well, there were a lot of rough times. But we made do. Mom went to work after we all got school age, so that helped out. And we were close, all of us, even though my brother was outnumbered. There are three of us girls. Alexandria is the oldest, then me, my brother Bobby, and then Elaine, the baby.” She smiled in recollection and then frowned. “But times change, and you get older, have greater responsibility. You see, my father was a workaholic and didn’t take very good care of himself. His health only got worse as the years passed until finally, one day, he went to the emergency room for an asthma attack only to have it end in a coma.” She heard Charlie tsking in sympathy. “I won’t go into details about the whole thing, only tell you it was hospital negligence and leave it at that.”