Wolf Moon

by A. D. Ryan

  “And that’s Miranda, Marcus’ wife.”

  Her hair was stylishly cropped to her chin, framing her narrow face, and her hazel eyes were bright and cheerful—like a mother who was happy to have all of her children home for the holidays.

  A knot formed in my stomach and slammed around uncomfortably. Nick noticed and gave my thigh another gentle squeeze, drawing my eyes to him. This time, I didn’t pull away. I welcomed the affection if it meant I could focus on something other than how much I missed my family. “You all right?”

  I opened my mouth to say something as he brought his hand up and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. It was another small gesture, but it relaxed me, and I laid my hand over his, leaning into the touch. I did it to keep up the guise, but the familiarity of the act was all too clear. “I will be,” I replied softly. “Just missing my family, is all.”

  There was a sound of disgust behind us, and I didn’t have to turn around to see that it was Roxanne. Her jealousy polluted the air almost as much as the perfume she’d apparently bathed in. I don’t know what came over me, but I reached out and ran my fingers through Nick’s wavy, sandy-blond hair. I loved how soft it was, and now that it was longer than he used to wear it back when we were dating in college, I reveled in its texture. Even though I didn’t mean for it to happen, I imagined tugging it during a passionate moment, and immediately blushed.

  “Have I told you yet how much I love your hair like this?” I asked him, noticing through my periphery that Roxanne took a chair kind of kitty-corner to me, next to Layla.

  Nick smiled broadly, his blue-green eyes sparkling with enthusiasm. “Oh yeah?”

  I nodded, inhaling deeply as a fresh burst of his pheromones washed over me like a warm wave as I teased the shorter hairs at the nape of his neck. I really did like it this length, but I felt horrible that he was enjoying this more than I’d intended. He wanted us to keep up this pretense, but it felt like I was leading him on. It wasn’t right.

  Chair legs scraped across the floor to my right, and someone sat heavily in its seat. A cold shiver of dread wormed up my spine, my skin tingling with awareness as I slowly turned around. Next to me, sat an older man in jeans and a t-shirt beneath a leather vest. His arms were bigger than my thighs—not that this was a huge accomplishment given my slender build—but they were at least twice the size, veins bulging out all over. His jet-black hair was straight and pulled back into a ponytail. Everything about him screamed “intimidating,” especially his brown-black eyes.

  Without thought, I gripped Nick’s hand as this unfamiliar face eyed me up and down, his tongue darting out and licking his bottom lip hungrily. Nick threaded his fingers through mine and addressed the man. “Karl. Didn’t know you were going to be back already.”

  His eyes lingered on my chest a little longer than I’d have liked before he lifted them to Nick. “Accomplished our mission in Ottawa, so I came back. I was particularly keen to return when I learned of our newest addition here.”

  There was a low rumble in Nick’s chest, and my breathing picked up; this was what Nick warned me about. This was why I was supposed to appear mated to Nick.

  “She’s cute. Looks feisty.”

  I quickly averted my gaze, looking to Nick who was silently trying to assure me I had nothing to worry about. It didn’t really work, but I thankfully wasn’t able to dwell on it too much when everyone else sat down for dinner. Marcus and his wife joined us at the table soon, bringing with them a couple more dishes, and then Corbin and Colby followed, also adding more food to the feast before us. It seemed like an outrageous amount of food, but I deduced with twelve of us it was an appropriate amount, especially if they ate as much as I had been lately.

  Colby and Corbin sat down across from each other, and Colby looked ecstatic to be next to Zach. Their mother stood at the foot of the table between them and Marcus stood at the head, looking around at each of us proudly. All eyes were on them as they looked at each and every one of us, and then her eyes found mine.

  “First off, Marcus and I would like to welcome all of you home. I can’t tell you how empty this place feels with so many of you away for long periods of time,” she said. “The Ontario situation was handled, thanks to Karl and the Ottawa Pack. They did an excellent job tracking the strays that needed to be held accountable for their actions.”

  Confused, I turned to Nick, and he nodded back to Marcus’ wife. I had no doubt he’d tell me later.

  “I’d also like to welcome our newest member to the Pack,” she said. “Brooke, we’ve all heard some wonderful things about you, and we’re so very happy to have you finally join us. While I understand the circumstances weren’t typically ideal, know that this is your home now, and we want you to feel comfortable here. If you need anything, please let me know. We’re all very much indebted to you for the way you handled yourself in Arizona.”

  “Thank you,” I replied with a soft smile, unsure what else to say.

  “She’s right,” Marcus interjected, drawing everyone’s attention. “Some of you may not know this, but Brooke single-handedly disposed of Gianna.”

  I shook my head, embarrassed at having been made the center of attention. “N-no. Nick was there.”

  Smiling and patting my hand, Nick refused to take any credit, so Marcus continued. “You’re a valuable asset to our ranks, Brooke. We’re happy to welcome you with open arms. You and Nick seem to work well together.” There was a pause. “Now, we’re still dealing with a little bit of backlash since the fire in Alaska. It’s not as bad as it could be with Gianna and that sadistic freak she sired gone, but she had rebuilt her ranks since the fire in Alaska. We need to track the rest of her coven down and execute them before things get out of hand.”

  I couldn’t help myself, knowing the “sadistic freak” he was talking about was Bobby, and a low growl started to build. It alarmed several at the table who hadn’t been made aware of my connection to this entire situation.

  Marcus seemed surprised by my reaction, but instead of calling me out, he looked between Nick and me. Nick placed his hand on my back and leaned in to whisper in my ear. “Breathe. You’re going to hear a lot of things about him that you’re not going to like. Remember what I told you: he wasn’t the same man you once knew.”

  His breath fanning my skin had this strange calming effect over me, and I inhaled shakily, cutting the growl short, and dropped my eyes to my lap. “Sorry,” I mumbled, clenching my hands together and channeling all of my anger into that. My fingernails bit into my palms until the sting was all I focused on.

  “It’s all right,” Marcus responded. “I understand you have a past with him, but he’s caused this Pack a lot of grief over the years. Mates have been lost, children murdered…” I gasped, looking back up, then at Nick who’d failed to yet mention this.

  “I told you,” he said quietly, eyebrows knit together with worry. “There’s still so much you haven’t learned.”

  “And there’ll be time to prepare her,” Marcus continued as Miranda took her seat after rounding the table and filling everyone’s wine glasses. “But in the meantime, let us all enjoy this amazing feast that my beautiful wife and daughter spent all day preparing for our reunion. Welcome home, boys, and welcome to the family, Brooke.”

  At Marcus’ orders, the women dished up first. I followed their lead and dished up a substantial, yet reasonable, amount of the various foods. Ham, potatoes, salad, fresh dinner buns, and roasted vegetables covered my plate, and when the women had finished, the guys took their turns. They took slightly more, but that was to be expected in any normal situation.

  Once everyone started eating, Layla cleared her throat. “So, Brooke,” she said, opening up the conversation. “Vince told me that you were a police detective back in Scottsdale?”

  I nodded, swallowing the bite of potatoes I’d just taken. “I was,” I replied, the knot in my stomach tightening again. “I, uh, took a leave of absence.”

  She nodded, looking sympathetic.
“Yeah, he told me what happened to your partner. I’m so sorry.”

  I clenched my fork so tightly, I felt the thick metal bend in my palm. My mouth went dry in an instant, and I grabbed my wine, willing the sting in my eyes to disappear before I blew everything. They’d never buy that Nick and I were together if I started crying over the loss of another man.

  “From what I heard,” a voice sounded from across the table. I looked up and saw Jackson looking at me. “He was pretty brave. Went up against one of Gianna’s spawn to defend her.”

  I smiled my appreciation, and Nick’s hand moved up and down my back to soothe me. I mouthed a silent “thank you” to Jackson, who looked back down at his plate and took another heaping forkful.

  “I heard she got away,” Roxanne’s grating voice interjected.

  “Cool it, Roxy,” Nick warned. “We got her in the end.”

  She scoffed. “Wouldn’t have had to ‘get her’ at all if you’d dealt with the corpse in the first place. But you were careless.” She was irrationally angry at Nick, and there seemed to be a great deal of blame in her tone.

  “That wasn’t his fault,” I shot back, remembering the night we found Samantha’s body. “There were cops everywhere. When I stumbled across Jackson, he was hiding in the woods. Possibly waiting for the right moment.”

  Roxanne looked surprised, looking down her side of the table at Jackson, whose attention was still solely focused on his plate. “I don’t recall hearing that Jackson was there.”

  “Regardless of what you heard, Roxanne,” Nick quickly said, “Brooke tracked and killed Gianna…and well within her first month of being turned. When was your first kill?”

  That shut her up, but she shot daggers in my direction with a silent snarl that said I should probably watch my back. Of course, her silence was too good to be true as she muttered under her breath, “Seems almost suspicious that she bagged the queen of the hive her first time out.”

  Swallowing thickly, I ignored her and looked to Nick. “Can we change the topic, please? I’m still not ready to openly talk about this.”

  Looking apologetic, Nick picked up my hand and kissed my knuckles. I had to keep on reminding myself that it was all just for show; it was the only way to keep my guilt from eating at me. “Of course, babe.”

  The conversation shifted to Karl’s expedition in Ottawa. He was apparently sent out when one of the local Packs started having issues with some strays hunting humans. He seemed all too eager to share every gory detail while we all ate. Not that this diminished my appetite at all; I’d finished my plate and was staring at the rest of the uneaten food with a look of longing in my eyes. I wanted more. It made no sense, because I’d piled the same amount of food on my plate that I usually did now. And yet…

  Nick nudged me with his elbow after hearing my stomach gurgle. “Brooke, if you’re still hungry, eat. There’s plenty to go around.”

  My stomach growled again, and I shook my head. “I’ve already eaten a ton. I don’t want to appear gluttonous,” I whispered.

  Nick chuckled. “We’re days away from a full moon, and you haven’t mastered shifting on your own yet. Your body is preparing itself. You need the extra calories.”

  “He’s right, dear,” Miranda spoke up sweetly. “Help yourself to anything you want or need.” She smirked and then shot me a wink. “Just be sure to save room for dessert.

  Still hesitant, I self-consciously piled more food on my plate and proceeded to eat it without a problem. By the end of my second plate, I felt satiated, but when Colby brought in the various pies—apple, pumpkin, cherry, and lemon meringue—I couldn’t help but have a slice. I chose pumpkin since I’d missed Thanksgiving and Nick had apple, so we shared.

  After dinner, I offered to help clear the table, but Colby—who seemed absolutely sweet and charming—told me not to worry about it. Miranda agreed and suggested I get a little more comfortable first, and that there would be plenty of time in the future to pitch in.

  So, with the evening clear, Nick suggested we take a walk. I had yet to acquire a winter jacket, so Nick gave me one of Layla’s to borrow until we could head into the city to buy me a few things.

  The sky was dark already as we stepped out into the frigid night air and walked around the house. There were enough lamp posts throughout the yard to light our way, plus the stars and moon were unobstructed by clouds or pollution, really setting the scene for a romantic walk—if that was what we were on.

  Nick took me past the tennis court, and I absorbed my surroundings a little more carefully now that I wasn’t being overwhelmed with anger and hurt like earlier. He showed me the back of the house where the indoor pool was. It was enclosed in a large glass building, and I watched as several of the Pack filtered through the doors in their swimwear. Karl caught me looking as he dropped his towel, maybe hoping to entice me. I shuddered and looked away, hating the way his eyes seemed to undress me.

  “Cold?” Nick asked, wrapping a protective arm around me.

  “A little, I guess,” I said. Then I remembered what he had said about no more secrets. “What’s Karl’s deal? The way he looks at me is unnerving… Was he the one you warned me about?”

  With a sigh, Nick nodded. “He has yet to find his mate, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to test out any of the females we bring into the Pack. Roxy and Layla have gotten used to his crass antics—Layla’s even put Karl in his place a few times, which is a sight to behold—but he’s more wolf than man, being born a full-blood. His parents weren’t part of this Pack or any other, so he doesn’t really ‘get’ the process.”

  “So, if he wasn’t raised in the Pack, how did he get in?”

  “His parents were killed by another group of weres—some kind of territorial war, from what Marcus told me. He was young when Marcus’ predecessor found him. Eleven, maybe twelve. He invited him in, but he wasn’t unable to change his mentality entirely. He does what he wants when he wants, and perilously skirts Pack Law. Especially when it comes to another wolf’s mate.”

  Nick and I continued walking, and he took me to the gazebo I’d sought refuge in earlier. He sniffed the air, and I did the same, knowing instantly what he smelled.

  “You and Jackson were here?” He seemed uneasy, maybe worried about something. “Together?”

  I nodded once, wrapping my arms around myself like I was cold. “We were.”

  “You talked?”

  “We did. He found me in here earlier and told me about his family,” I confessed, worried that maybe he thought Jackson overstepped his boundaries. “That’s it.”

  Nick seemed surprised. “Wow. That’s a big step for him. He’s usually reluctant to open up like that to anyone.”

  “I think he wanted me to know that I wasn’t alone,” I whispered, sitting on the bench.

  “Still… Definitely explains how he was quick to jump to your defense at the table. Makes me wonder what his ulterior motive is.”

  I looked up at him as he paced in front of me. “He can’t just be cordial? He has to have some sinister plan for befriending me after what he did in the park that night?”

  Nick exhaled heavily, his breath creating a dense fog as it mingled with the cold winter air. “Listen, Brooke… About that night—”

  Suddenly, a scream pierced the night, forcing me to my feet. We took off across the yard and headed back toward the front of the house. There stood Colby and Zach, his arms around her protectively as she clung to his jacket, her face buried against his chest.

  “What is it?” Nick demanded as we both came to a stop beside them.

  I smelled the blood before I saw the steam rising up from the driveway, and when I looked down, I gasped loudly, reaching out and grabbing Nick’s arm, my nails digging into his bicep even through his parka while my other hand covered my mouth.

  There, on the ground, was a wolf. Not a werewolf from the smell of it. No, this was one hundred percent animal. I didn’t know the different breeds of wolves that were out there, having
been born and raised in Arizona where wolves were a rarity in and of themselves, but it was gray and white and about the size of a German Shepherd. It had been cut from pelvis to throat, all of its organs spilling out onto the snow-covered concrete, and its eyes were wide and unseeing. Frozen in shock and pain for all eternity.

  Nick stepped forward, but I remained paralyzed in place, being forced to relinquish my hold on him. He knelt down next to the animal, cringing as the smell hit him harder than a second ago. “It’s a gray wolf,” he announced. “Not anyone we know.” While I’d already suspected it wasn’t one of our kind, I assumed he was saying this for Colby’s benefit.

  I turned toward her and found that we’d been joined by the rest of the Pack, and Marcus did not look pleased as he stared off into the night. I knew in that instant what was happening…

  Someone—and I didn’t know who—had just declared war on the Pack.

  Chapter 7 | fear

  Jackson stepped forward to help Nick clear away the animal’s corpse while Vince ran to the garage, returning with a tarp to make the task easier. Before getting started, Nick turned to the rest of us.

  “You can all head inside,” he said as Marcus stepped forward, sniffing the air. I did the same, picking up the subtle notes of the vampire that dumped the body. He was going to try tracking it. Maybe I could help.

  I took another step forward while everyone else went inside. When Nick noticed, he stood up straight and stepped in my path. “Brooke, please.”

  I shook my head, looking to Marcus and then back at Nick. “I can help,” I told him.

  Marcus looked interested, but Nick continued to shoot me down. “No. It’s too soon. You’re not ready.”

  “I was a cop, Nick. At least let me look around. Walk the scene before you guys compromise it further.”

  Nick opened his mouth to argue, but Marcus stopped him. “Let her try,” he said, much to Nick’s chagrin. “She wants to be helpful. No use in sending her inside like a timid female.”

  I smiled brightly, my ego puffing slightly. Nick, however, was not impressed, but he didn’t dare argue with his Alpha. “Thank you.”