by Milana Jacks
Rey swung open the door.
“Looking good, Rey. Looking good,” I said and hugged her, which proved difficult with her growing belly. Jamie locked his eyes on mine when I didn’t let go of her waist. Rey was warm, a blanket of comfort, and for a brief few moments, I took it. When my brother huffed, I ran a hand through her hair for good measure. Rey giggled and went into the kitchen.
“I’m gonna have a herd of males with one hand,” Jamie said.
“All I need is a hand, Alpha,” came from the kitchen.
I rounded the corner. Four of our males and a pair of our most vicious battle females went quiet as I stepped inside. I turned a bar chair and straddled it. Across from me, Jamie did the same. “Tell me,” he said.
“I’m leaving her here. Alone.”
Jamie’s eyes widened. “Say that again?”
“She’s free to stay at our house. I’m moving to New City like we planned. Sounds good to me. Let’s talk about the community. Who’s on your team?”
“Back up, hold on. Did you ask her why she took the key?”
“No, but I presume she wants the food from the storage.”
“Mm-hm. And how did she plan to get it? She can’t move it alone.”
I shrugged, uninterested in the damn key.
Jamie continued. “Did you ask her where she put the missing key?”
“No.”
“I understand it’s not a priority, but it’s buggin’ the crap out of me. I need to know what she wanted with the damn thing. Taking care of the stray pairs, providing shelter for them doesn’t add up to the key. Dewlyn can’t move all that shit by herself. Something’s not adding up. The girl’s gotta whole lot of reasons to hate us.”
“Dewlyn does what Dewlyn wants do to. Leave her alone.”
“No can do, bro. I gotta know.”
“I can’t even hug Rey without you throwing a fit, so if you think I’m gonna let you interrogate my mate, we’ve a big problem.”
“I need to talk to her.”
“You’ve talked enough.” I’d challenged our Alpha just now, and I didn’t give a shit.
Jamie inhaled a breath, then let out a growl.
I growled right back.
Felicia, one of our females, cupped Rey’s elbow. “I’ll help you up the stairs.”
“Thank you. I think I will stay. This is my kitchen,” Rey said. “I cook here, I make shit happen here, and small furry beasts will be running around this kitchen soon. Something for all of you to think about before you walk in here loaded with attitudes.” She lifted a spatula. “You two are getting on my nerves. Those women in the shelter need food and maybe a job or two. Have you thought about providing for them here in the city? Maybe then they’d warm up to the idea of mating.”
“Torrent,” I barked, “pull up a list of males with reported runaway pairs. Tell the males to head to our compound.”
Jamie nodded. “We’ll secure the pairs, bring them into the compound.”
“And where is this shelter, genius?” I asked.
“Easy peasy. Dewlyn’ll tell you. You don’t want me on her ass, you take her ass. I mean that in any way you wanna take it, perv. Let’s get shit done. Community, then the shelter. Shelter, then community. Same difference to me. Full day of hunting, and I gotta be home for”—he inhaled—“turkey. Ready?” Jamie stood to leave.
Rey found his arm and tugged. “What do you mean, secure the pairs?”
“Collect the pairs, get them returned to their mates.”
“They don’t want to be returned.”
“But they will be.”
“Well, that’s not fair!”
“Baby don’t get upset, all right? The mate is the last person in the world who will hurt them. Remember how we started out all fucked up, and look, now we’re pregnant.”
“Dewlyn runs the shelter. She is the shelter. She promised them nobody would find them. Those women have nowhere else to go.”
Jamie’s head tilted. “How do you know all this?”
“She told me.”
My eyebrows shot up. We didn’t know until last night, so Rey must’ve known for a while now. Well, at least I wasn’t the only one with issues. Clearly, the girls had gotten close during the time Dewlyn had spent here, and Dewlyn had told her about the hidden pairs. And clearly, Rey hadn’t shared, because Jamie looked like someone had hit him over the head with a hot iron. Dumbfounded, I stared at her too.
Rey swallowed, probably feeling the force of our stares. “She gets things they need. They must’ve run out of money, so she stole the key.”
I recovered first and asked, “What money?”
Rey pinched her lips, and I saw red. Men of Earth money? If Dewlyn worked with Men of Earth, it would drive us planets apart. Their ideology appealed to the humans. It would mean my mate had played me all along.
Jamie slapped a hand on the bar. “Our money. Isn’t that right, Rey? That’s where she gets shit from. You gave her money before she ran last time, didn’t you? You freed her from Vice’s house, gave her your bike, and sent her away with the money I left for you.”
“I did. Dewlyn was a complete stranger who returned my hound to me. Despite knowing you all were after her, she walked into the house of Alpha Beast to offer me shelter in case I didn’t want to be paired. She came in here and asked if I was okay and happy and if I needed something. And what have you done for her? You hunted her down like a dog.” Rey’s chin quivered, and her eyes watered. “Going into the community isn’t gonna change anything. Retrieving pairs and bringing them back won’t either, but providing for the pairs is going to change something. Finding a way to fix the Pairing Program will change something.” She sniffed. “I gave her money because good people like her shouldn’t feel alone.”
“The Pairing Program isn’t broken. It’s your fucking humans who…no, I don’t wanna go there. I’ll be right back,” Jamie said and picked up his mate.
When he strode back down the stairs, his face showed distress. “The pregnancy has been hard on us. We’ve been told the babies should be more active by now.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Felicia said.
Jamie nodded.
“Rey gave her money,” I said. “She’ll do it again.”
“Not if I got something to say about it.”
“Like what?” I cocked an eyebrow at my brother. If Rey wanted it, Rey would get it. I knew it, and he knew it. “I’m curious what you gonna do about it.”
“Vice, we got a bigger problem. What is it about the key that’s buggin’ me?”
Jamie’s instincts were spot-on, while I chose to ignore mine, so I said, “You just can’t move past the key. She’s not involved in anything. It’s a shelter for which we are going to provide money.” I lifted my hand before he protested. “Felicia, you will handle this sensitive issue and relieve the Alpha’s mate of this immediately. She and the babies cannot be compromised. Can I get a ‘yes, Vice.’”
“Yes, Vice.”
“Going into the community won’t change shit.”
“Yes, Vice.” A little louder this time.
“But”—I winked—“it’ll make for a great supper.”
“Hell yes, Vice.”
Jamie went back upstairs. They argued for about an hour while the rest of us ate Rey’s biscuits and gravy and heard every word they said. When Jamie quieted and Rey started moaning, I pushed back my chair, ready to walk outside. The doorbell rang. Prepared for the raid, the people in the room, already with their teeth in descent and fur springing out of their necks, straightened, ready to pounce. I lifted my nose and sniffed the air. Female. The bell rang again.
“Big man, I know you’re in there,” the female voice said. “Rey! You gonna get the door?”
I swung it open if only to shut her up.
A purple-haired girl from Cake and Deco barged inside. She looked up at me. “Oh, it’s you again.”
I showed her my teeth. “Me again. What’s inside the box?”
“Yo mama’s head.” What the fuck? She rolled her eyes. “What do you think it is? It’s a wedding cake. Not vanilla. Rey orders one a week. Rey!” she hollered. “Got your cake!”
“In the kitchen, please!” came from upstairs.
The girl who I remembered as Paulina carried the box into the kitchen. At the sight of pale eyes and teeth-filled jaws, she paused, reluctant. I pushed the middle of her back. “Go on. We love sweet things.”
She scurried to the table, dropped the cake as if it were on fire, and turned up her palm. I reached back for my wallet, paid, and tipped her well.
“See ya later, Rey!” She slammed the door and left.
I opened the wedding cake, and we all gathered around to peek inside. A white-coated not-vanilla cake reminded me of my pairing party. Dewlyn had worn a white dress, her hair was pinned up, and she’d lasted all of an hour in her high heels before going barefoot. Felicia swiped the sugar groom and bit off his head. We laughed when Jamie appeared next to her. “Got somethin’ to say to me?”
She swallowed hard. “No, Alpha.”
He pointed at the cake. “Nobody touch the cake. There are pregnant monsters in this house.”
“I heard that!” Rey bellowed.
“I know!”
I slapped his back. “Ready?”
“Fuck yes.”
Outside, we loaded up on the bikes. I glanced at my brother. Usually, we trailed Jamie, but I wondered if he’d let me take the lead this time around. Challenging him for the Alpha of the Beasts wasn’t on my agenda. I didn’t want to deal with the shit Jamie dealt with, but some things I did want, and this was one of them. Everything having to do with Dewlyn also had to do with me. I couldn’t stop thinking about how scared she must’ve been, lying on that table, ready to go under the knife. When they removed her parts, they took away her spirit, then sold me a broken mate, left me to deal with it without telling me that the girl I’d met, the girl full of life who spelled trouble on every corner she turned, was sold completely devoid of the will to live. I couldn’t’ve known, but that didn’t mean her accusations were false.
I could’ve picked her up right then and there.
I could’ve prevented all this.
We could’ve had a…well, something altogether different.
If only I hadn’t left.
I revved the engine.
“Feels good, doesn’t it?” Jamie asked.
The adrenaline right before battle. I’d forgotten. We’d conquered this planet over one hundred years ago, and even then, my claws didn’t rip into flesh, and even then, I didn’t consume prey. The humans surrendered after a day; not many of them fought, so even that bit of action didn’t count. The only other way for unmated males to burn through our raging hormones was to schedule cage fighting on the weekends. Jamie allowed it as long as nobody died or suffered permanent damage. I didn’t participate. Instead, I preferred the small quiet library in our compound, where I read history books and kept Jamie’s operations going.
I nodded in affirmation. The impending mayhem thrilled me. I could almost smell their fear. I lifted off, Jamie by my side, the three others behind us, and the rest headed back to the compound. The main spaceway, packed with civilians both beast and a few humans, looked busy at this time of day, so we flew over the beach behind our houses and headed for Dewlyn’s community, some three hours away at our speed.
Three hours gave me plenty of time to plan the execution of those who’d wronged me and mine. It also gave time to think about leaving Beast City. The thought of being so far from her made my teeth descend. I simply didn’t know what else to do with her. Everyone, starting from her parents, then even me, had denied her the things she wanted. Ironic, since all she ever wanted was a supportive mate and a comfortable life. By the time she had both, she’d changed and done the very opposite of her dreams.
I wanted to believe people weren’t using her. I wanted to believe she hadn’t involved herself with rebels, but deep down, I knew Dewlyn would do anything at all for what she believed in. She was too young and too reckless not to take things into her own hands. The key she’d stolen opened the largest warehouse in New City, filled with perishables and enough food to feed an army of several thousand for a month. The risk was too big, the supply of food too large for what I projected was about a dozen women.
But love defied logic.
Despite the churning in my gut, we continued toward her community.
Dewlyn
Stinky morning breath penetrated my nose. I wrinkled it and got a lick over it in return. I buried my head into the pillow and wiped my face, then said, “Vice, that’s…different.”
He didn’t reply.
When I lifted my head, a dog’s face came into view. Dark stared down at me with purpose. The fierce force of his stare should’ve awoken me. “Hey, you.” I scratched behind his ear.
What time was it anyway? My body felt well rested, our bed super comfy, the pillows and comforters all filled with feathers so I’d sunk into them. In the shelter, we didn’t have this kind of luxury. I reveled in it while I could. With the house on lockdown, I couldn’t leave anyway, so I might as well.
I gasped, remembering that Vice had removed my collar last night, and I could leave. My fingers flew around my neck, and it felt…empty. I growled at that thought. I should feel free, not empty. I swung my legs, prepared to leave the bed, then groaned. Oh my. I’d slept well, not because of the comforters, but because of the soreness between my legs. Vice wore me out. I curled my toes, feeling the soft carpet, thinking of last night.
“Morning.”
“Oh!” I lurched up, twisted, then pulled the sheet to cover my nudity. Rey lay next to me on Vice’s side with headphones over her ears. Damn, I slept like a log. “Morning to you too,” I said. “Whatcha listening to?”
“Porn.”
Hm. Having never listened to porn, I crawled over the bed and pressed my ear to her headphones. A deep male voice boomed in my ears. I frowned, then recognized the voice. “Oh my God, Alpha Beast narrates porn.”
“You should hear his morning voice.” Rey wagged her eyebrows and slipped off the headphones. Remembering last night, I blushed like a schoolgirl, thinking of Vice’s monster cock and his filthy mouth. I cleared my throat. “What’s new?”
“You tell me.”
I knew she hinted at finding me naked in my bed, but I evaded. “Vice took my collar off last night.” Rey didn’t respond. “Yup.”
Silence resumed. Although Rey was a good friend to me, she also really liked Vice and hoped we’d get together.
“So,” she said, “what you’re up to now? The house is unlocked. You can come and go as you wish.”
“I’m going, but I’m not coming back.”
“You can come back, because he won’t be here.”
“What do you mean?” Where else would he be?
“He’s leaving for New City. You get the house and everything in it.”
I blinked. Wow. “He said that?” Oh man, I loved this house. No more sleeping on the bottom bunk and listening to whimpers from girls at all hours of the night.
“Mm-hm.” Rey shifted, looking a bit uncomfortable, and from the pinch of her mouth, I knew it wasn’t because of her belly. “Jamie found out I let you go and gave you the money.”
I hopped out of bed, uneasy. “How?”
“They all met in my kitchen and talked about the key you stole, what it means, what it’s for. Then Vice and Jamie got into it, something they’ve been doing lately, you know, fighting, so I said what I had to say. After, Jamie busted me for helping you escape and giving you money to boot.”
“Eek, how did that go?”
“Yet to be seen.”
“And the shelter?”
“They’ll provide for the shelter.”
“They will?”
“They assigned a beast…bitch to the project.”
“Well, they can’t assign her. It’s my shelter. I found it.”
“I kn
ow, so I came to tell you she’ll be stopping by.”
“Do they know where it is?”
“No. They hope you’ll tell them.”
“Never. They’ll want the pairs returned, and the pairs don’t want to be returned.”
“That’s what Jamie wants, but Vice doesn’t. Vice ordered the shelter provided for.”
“Jamie won’t do it.”
“Leave Jamie to us.” She patted her belly. “He’s fussing over babies, and soon he’ll have a full house. I believe he’ll be a hands-on kind of dad. Shelter will come second to the babies, I’m sure of it.”
I bit my bottom lip, thinking about this. If the shelter was provided for, Vice would see no reason for me to be active for the shelter. It was another way of placing me back into the house, keeping me in a home he’d bought for us so he’d know where I’d be. He gave the pairs at the shelter more security, knowing they’d be provided for. Still, I didn’t want anyone snooping around the shelter, and that was why I hadn’t even told Rey the location.
When I’d proposed we leave together the day she’d freed me from the house, she’d refused and given me a backpack loaded with money. If she didn’t want in, she didn’t need to know the location. I’d kept it a secret for this long, and I’d continue keeping it a secret. They’d never find out, because I’d deal with the beast girl. I didn’t trust her, and the pairs sure wouldn’t either. “I gotta tell them the news.” I walked to the closet.
“What about Vice?” Rey asked.
“I think I’ve worked out something with him.”
“Have you?”
I dressed in jeans and a T-shirt and sat back on the bed. “Kind of.”
“I heard about your parents.”
“Yeah.”
“I celebrated when Jamie killed my uncle.” Rey grinned. “Slow and painful. He deserved it and so do your parents. They’re gonna raid your community.”
Man, Rey might be as sweet as a cake, but the glint in her eyes when she thought about her uncle or the impending raid on my community gave me the creeps. “You’re vicious. It’s creepy.”