Is that where they were holding Tressa?
The door on the hall swung open and a large male stepped out. Lance. The bastard had an arrogant fucking smirk on his face. Knew he held all the cards. He was flanked by several other males. His eyes and ears while he was occupied with the alpha of an unwelcome pack.
Gabe tried to slow his breathing, gain the control that continued to slip with each passing second. The entire drive over, he’d refused to think about what Tressa had told him, the reasons she’d run, what they’d do to his son if they discovered his mixed blood.
If they’d hurt that little boy, harmed one hair on his head, there was nothing and nobody that could stop him from tearing this place apart. His first target would be the smug bastard standing on the stairs, waiting for them to approach. Self-important asshole.
Gabe shoved the door open, but Fletch grabbed his arm before he could get out.
‘I want you to hang back, I can smell your hostility, my friend, and so will they. You won’t do your family or us any favours by fucking this up, yeah?’
He was right. They both knew he was incapable of rational thought right then. He nodded his agreement and climbed out of the car, searching the surroundings, looking for a glimpse of them, any proof that they were okay, that they had arrived at this shit-hole in one piece.
Nothing. Not a damn whiff.
Fletch made his way to the other alpha. They exchanged a firm handshake then were ushered inside the hall. Lance sat at a small table and invited Fletch to do the same. Both had men at their backs, both groups watchful, wary. Ready to fuck each other up. One word from their respective alphas and it’d be all on.
Gabe stayed by the door, where he could hear what was said and still keep an eye outside.
Fletch started things off. ‘You know why we’re here. You’ve had men camped outside our borders preventing Tressa McCray and her cub from returning to her family…’
‘My brother’s cub.’ Lance crossed his arms over his wide chest. ‘Let’s not waste any more time. I’m gonna clarify a few things for you. We don’t do things here like you do in Black Hills, Mr Stone. We aren’t some new-age, hippy commune. We don’t welcome strays or half breeds. We have traditions, we stick to those traditions. When you become pack you stay pack. Females don’t just up and leave, especially when that female belonged to our alpha and had his cub. That’s not how we do things here.’
Gabe held the door frame, clutched it for dear life, and couldn’t decide if he needed it for support after finding out they were both okay, that they hadn’t discovered Sawyer wasn’t Dan’s, or if he was hanging on to stop himself shifting and tearing the son-of-a-bitch’s throat out.
Fletch’s men were tense behind him, pissed at the insult to their alpha, but the man himself remained deceptively calm.
‘We’re willing to negotiate,’ he said with quiet authority. ‘Tressa’s mother wants her daughter and grandchild home after the death of her mate. Would you consider a fixed time frame?’
If he hadn’t known the lie was coming, he would have lost it there and then. At this point their main aim was to get her the hell away from here and deal with the consequences later, when they were on their own land, with the support of their entire pack.
‘Not happening. Tressa’s mother can come and visit her here if she wants to see her so badly.’
Fletch shook his head. ‘Her mother’s unwell. Traveling would be too much for her.’ Another lie, but it rolled off Fletch’s tongue fast and easy.
‘The answer is still no. Tressa is needed here. She’ll be resuming her role as head bitch here at Harlow and we can’t spare her.’
Something slithered down his spine, twisted in his gut.
‘I would’ve thought your own mate would take up the role, Lance.’ Fletch knew it too, Gabe could hear it in his voice. He knew what this meant as well as Gabe did.
‘Tressa is my mate…or will be after a suitable amount of time has passed. She still grieves for my brother, but it’s only a matter of time before she’s mine. There’s no one better to raise my brother’s cub than his own uncle.’
Fletcher nodded.
‘I see.’ He leaned back in his seat. ‘This I didn’t expect.’
Lance shrugged. ‘How could you? Like I said before, we do things differently here.’
‘Can I see her? Give her a message from her mother?’ Fletch asked.
Gabe knew he was biding time so they could come up with a new plan to get her back, but he’d run out of patience. His beast was struggling to break free, to seek revenge, to kill and maim every Harlow male standing in this room.
Lance stood and motioned to the door. Meeting over.
‘I’ll allow a short visit with her in the yard, with me present.’ The asshole moved towards the door and his eyes lifted, locking onto Gabe’s.
‘Guardian, I hope there’s no hard feelings? But after the way you fucked us over at Tressa’s motel, I’m sure you understand why my man was pissed. He might have hit you a little harder than he should.’
Gabe’s fangs elongated, claws pushing and stretching the skin at the ends of his fingers. Fletch shook his head, moved in the goddamned way as Lance exited. Following, he willed his fangs and claws to retract.
Negotiation time was over. As soon as Tressa came out, he was snatching them both. There was no other option. He would not leave here without them.
Lance sent someone to get her, and a few minutes later a door opened across the yard and Tressa stepped though. Her gaze immediately scanned the new faces, searching him out. As soon as she found him, their eyes locked. He tried to keep it together for both their sakes, but then he realised she was on her own—she didn’t have their son.
Tressa walked calmly over to the group of males standing outside the hall and came to a stop beside Lance. Seeing her with him, it did something, tore at something inside until he felt like the place behind his ribs was a shredded mess.
Fletch started talking to her, but Gabe heard nothing, the buzzing in his head too loud, the rush of blood in his ears, the pounding of his heart, it muted everything around him. His sole focus was Tressa—getting to her, getting her the fuck away from this place. Then Lance lifted his hand and placed it at the back of her neck, leaning in, murmuring something in her ear.
The possessive way he touched her stripped away the last vestiges of his control, the last traces of the man and left only the beast and his thirst for blood.
‘Mama?’ Sawyer’s small voice sliced through him, stopping him mid-shift. His son’s eyes, big as saucers, were trained on his mother and he ran to her. Another female ran out after him. He was in his human form, which explained why Lance didn’t know the truth yet. Before the other female could reach him, Tressa scooped him up and held him close.
Gabe had taken several steps towards them before he knew what he was doing.
Lance scowled down at Sawyer, a growl rumbling from his chest.
‘I told you to stay put.’ He reached for him.
It happened all at once. Tressa stepped back, a vicious sound coming from her, a sound only a mother protecting her young could make.
And Sawyer, due to his fear and inexperience, shifted in his mother’s arms.
Chapter 11
Every wolf went silent.
All eyes zoned in on Sawyer. There was no hiding her son, not when he lifted his head and hissed at Lance. The sound was pure cat. Her timid, tiny son was attempting to protect her.
‘What the fuck is that?’ Lance’s voice was nothing but a growl, contorted with rage, disgusted.
Sawyer’s obvious differences could not be explained away and she braced for what was to come. Backing up another step, she lifted her arm, as if that would hold off the bastard.
‘Dan knew. He agreed to accept Sawyer into the pack.’
She was stretching the truth, but right then she’d say anything, do anything to protect him.
Lance spat on the ground. ‘Bullshit.’
She
wanted to shift, to run as fast and as far as she could. She could carry Sawyer in her mouth, but she was too afraid to put him down for even a second.
‘It’s the truth, but I knew after he died you wouldn’t accept him. That’s why I left.’
His big chest pumped, teeth gritted, lips pulled back. Then the sound of bone popping and skin tearing filled the clearing and Lance shifted. He looked rough even in wolf form, his shaggy brown fur was matted and coarse. With his head down he moved in. Low, rumbling growls vibrating from deep in his chest.
She backed up and Fletch moved in, saying something she had no hope of hearing past the blood pounding through her ears. Then Lance lunged. With nowhere to go and no way to defend herself, she spun, giving him her back and wrapped herself around her son to protect him.
Seconds ticked by, but he didn’t make contact, and when she spun back Gabe was there, in his shifted form, almost identical to their cub. The sight of Gabe’s beast had been enough to stop Lance in his tracks.
Gabe shook his head, making the thicker mane like fur around his head stand our further, hiding nothing, standing proud, letting everyone in the clearing know that they belonged to him.
Lance blinked, his yellow eyes moving between Gabe and Sawyer. When the light bulb finally went on, he lunged again, and all hell broke loose. Clothes tore and fur exploded as every male shifted. Gabe and Lance went at each other in front of her, holding nothing back, while Fletch and the men he had with him, moved in, trying to stop the Harlow pack wolves from getting to her.
Trapped, she was unable to make a break for it. The fighting was brutal. The Black Hills pack were far outnumbered. Gabe had the better of Lance, pinning him to the ground with his massive jaws, but then two Harlow wolves came to their alpha’s defence and the fight was now three to one.
She cried out. God, no. They were going to kill him.
Fletch and his men were in similar situations all around her and that’s when Lance broke away, leaving Gabe to his pack mates, and set his eyes on her. He closed in, blood coating his fur and fangs.
No one could help her. She was on her own. Backing up until her back met the outside wall of the meeting room, she spun and placed Sawyer on the ground.
‘Get under the building. Hide, baby.’
Sawyer shot through the small gap under the wooden stairs, doing what she asked. Then Tressa turned back and shifted. Her clothes disintegrated to tatters at her feet and she faced off with the massive wolf closing in.
If she could fight off Lance long enough for Sawyer to get away, or for Gabe or one of the Black Hills wolves to get to him, he might have a chance.
Lance struck, his jaws snapping down hard on her front leg. She twisted, latching onto his ear and shook her head viciously. She was about to die, but she wouldn’t go down without a fight. The bastard would not come out of this without a scratch.
She heard Gabe roar, knew he could see what was happening, but couldn’t get to her. And that hurt more than Lance’s teeth hitting bone. With little effort he shook her off, and keeping his teeth buried deep, flung her several feet. She landed hard on her side, but sprung back to her feet.
He edged forward, about to come at her again. A growl ripped across the clearing and he stilled. She didn’t look to see who it was, too afraid to take her eyes of Lance. But Lance stopped and spun around. Colt moved towards them, breaking away from the edge of the forest. Dan and Lance’s older brother kept himself apart from the pack most of the time, living on the outskirts of their land. In all the time she’d been here, she’d only spoken to him a handful of times.
The massive male prowled towards them, huge chest heaving, fangs bared. She’d heard the stories. Most of the wolves here were afraid of him. They thought he was crazy, ruthless.
She didn’t know if any of that was true, but she did know in either human or wolf form, he was the biggest male she’d ever seen.
What the hell is going on?
Colt stopped Lance in his tracks, but he was still a Harlow pack member and Lance still his alpha.
He moved in, right up close to her. Her heart pounded in her chest. God, he could kill her with one bite. But then he turned and faced Lance, protecting her with his big body, a growl so loud and deep tearing from his throat, she couldn’t stop a pitiful whine from escaping.
He’d laid down a challenge, a challenge for Lance to try and get by him, and if he did try to take him on, a challenge for leadership.
Lance had one choice. If he backed up, showed weakness of any kind, it would be the same as losing the fight, and he would forfeit his position as alpha.
The fighting around them had ground to a halt, all eyes on the two wolves in the centre, some even shifting back to their human forms. As the pair moved away from her, the Black Hills pack moved back in, surrounding her, then Gabe was at her side. She shifted to her human form and he pulled her into his arms. His skin was slick with blood and sweat, several deep wounds marring his body, but he stood tall and strong, shielding them from harm as best he could.
Fletch came out of nowhere, Sawyer in his arms. Her son stared up at the Black Hills alpha, eyes wide, but he wasn’t afraid, she could tell by the way he’d curled up in the male’s arms. Fletch handed him to her and she nearly sobbed with relief. He took her other side, giving Gabe a sharp chin lift. Something past between them, then they were back to watching what was happening in the centre of the yard.
‘Stick close to me, baby,’ Gabe said close to her ear. She could feel his heartbeat, strong and sure against her side, feel the tension in his muscles.
Lance and his brother circled each other, snarling and snapping. Lance lunged first, but Colt just shook him off, far stronger, and unbelievably quick for such a big male. She realised then, the only reason Dan then Lance had become alpha was because this huge male wanted it that way. Within minutes Lance lay pinned on the ground, belly up, forced to submit to the far larger male.
When Colt released him, Lance flipped to his feet and limped from the clearing.
The Harlow pack’s new alpha shifted and faced his pack mates. It was the first time she’d seen him without the dark glasses he always wore, and she sucked in a breath when his pale gaze caught hers. One eye was pale blue like a snow wolf…but the other was green. Wolves didn’t have green eyes, ever. Not unless they were hybrid. Green usually meant human blood somewhere in the bloodline.
Gabe growled a warning when the other male’s gaze lingered on her. She wrapped her fingers around Gabe’s forearm, crossing her chest, and gave him a squeeze. ‘It’s okay. He won’t hurt me. He helped me.’ The growling stopped, but the tension in his body remained.
Everything clicked into place. Colt’s car right outside her place that day, keys still inside, the money. He’d left it there for her. He’d given her a way out.
Colt turned from her then and faced his people. Most stared openly, their shock obvious. Some stared at the ground, more than aware that the male in front of them was now their alpha and to meet his gaze could be seen as a challenge.
‘You will let the Black Hills pack leave, and you will let them take Tressa and her cub. Anyone who has a problem with that step forward now.’ His voice was like gravel, so deep and rough it sent a shiver over her skin.
No one moved.
He pointed to his eye. ‘This is what my family kept hidden. This is what shamed my brothers, my parents. You would harm…kill, an innocent child because you believe them to be less than you. Weaker. Am I weaker?’
Heads shook and feet shuffled. ‘Yeah, that’s what I thought.’
He turned and walked to them then, stopping several feet in front of her. ‘You are free to go.’
It was all he said before shifting and running back into the forest.
Gabe turned her body into him, holding her and Sawyer tight, kissing the top of her head. ‘God, I thought…if anything had happened to you…’
She ran her hands down his back, over the thick slabs of muscle, feeling the way his bo
dy shook slightly. ‘I’m okay.’
‘I thought I’d lose my mind in that meeting hall, but when Lance attacked you and I couldn’t get to you…’ he rasped. He pulled her arm around to inspect the bite Lance had given her. ‘This is deep. We need to get it dressed.’
The wolves around them had backed off, but they were keeping a close eye on them. Gabe gave her one last squeeze and Sawyer squirmed between them. Gabe smoothed his fingers over his son’s ears then brushed his lips across hers.
‘Let’s go home.’
Chapter 12
Gabe chose to sit in the backseat with Tressa on the way home. He needed to touch her, to keep reminding himself that she was okay, that she was his. They’d patched up her arm and she was wearing a pair of his sweats and one of his t-shirts. His clothes swamped her small frame and though he thought she was one of the strongest females he’d ever known, seeing her that way made it hard as fuck to settle the hell down.
She kept her hand in his the whole way back to Black Hills, head resting on his shoulder, like she knew how much he needed her right then.
Sawyer hadn’t shifted back, still in his animal form, and stretched across their laps, curling into both of them. Looking at him like that—so tiny, so fragile—brought out every protective instinct in him. His son had a hard road ahead, full of prejudice and rejection. But at least he and Tressa could make it a little easier. Sawyer would grow up in a loving family, be part of a pack that would welcome him, not throw him away.
With Fletch, the alpha of his mother’s pack, he had a fighting chance, a chance for change, for tolerance. Maybe one day acceptance.
When they arrived home, they drove straight to Tressa’s mother’s house and as soon as they pulled up Connie McCray walked out to meet them. Gabe watched their cautious reunion from the sideline, not wanting to get in the way.
Then the older female turned and smiled at him. She was extremely nervous and he could smell her fear.
A Wolf’s Deception (Novella) Page 9