The Virgin Goddess and the Alpha

by Rita Stradling

  Becca lowered her bow slowly. It was probably the first time I’d ever seen my sister’s jaw hang open when words weren’t coming out of it.

  Artemis crossed over and took the bow from Becca’s loose grip. “You do have good aim. If you entered my service, I could make you better. Now bring everyone outside so I can meet them. The sooner I start hunting, the safer you will be.”

  “Who . . .?” my sister breathed the word. “Who the hell are you?”

  I tensed. Sure, my sister was being damn stupid and ignoring my orders to shut the hell up, but if they were about to go head-to-head, I’d step in the line of fire to save her. She was a pain in the ass, but she was my pain in the ass.

  Artemis sighed. “I’ll tell you the truth, it saddens me that a strong woman, as you clearly are, would demean and dismiss another woman so blithely. I forgave your insults because I see you are a great huntress, and therefore it is mine to protect you. However, it is wise to fear insulting me again. You do not need to apologize, but do not get in my way. I’m here to save all of you.”

  “Yeah, okay.” Becca nodded, and I couldn’t help but notice her shaking hands. After a second more, Becca turned on her heel and headed to the front door, but it was already opening.

  A head of messy blue hair popped out and Jamie, the youngest wolf in the pack, craned his neck to look at the arrow. “What the hell was that?” he asked excitedly. “The tip is poking through the door on the other side.”

  “Get the fuck out here,” Becca breathed, her voice barely above a whisper.

  As my second-in-command and top enforcer, Becca had won more death matches than Aiden and Luca put together. Artemis hadn’t even threatened her, yet, honestly, I’d never seen my twin so shaken. It was obvious that her mate Guy knew it the moment he walked out the door. He towered over my sister, his blond, shaggy hair messy as always. When the show aired and one of us was always front and center on the cover of the gossip magazines, he’d gained the nickname ‘Surfer Guy.' It was probably the only media nickname any of us received that actually got it right—Surfer Guy managed to sum up my brother-in-law's looks and personality. As Becca’s lesser dominant, he’d never do her the dishonor of coddling her, but he went to stand behind her at her shoulder, signaling that he was giving her his support.

  Jamie walked backward, still staring at the arrow. His bright blue hair made a startling contrast to his pale complexion, a product of a Northern European heritage and rarely leaving his computer desk for more than five minutes at a time. The moment he spun around and saw Artemis, he stopped dead. “Whoa. Hey there.”

  “Hello,” she said with a smile.

  A huge satisfied grin lit across Jamie’s face as if he’d won something by making her smile. I clenched my hands into fists, and in a feeling completely unfamiliar to me, I had to use all my restraint not to punch that grin straight off my friend’s face. Damn. There was obviously something seriously wrong with me.

  Two more enforcers followed after Jamie and Guy. Patricia stepped right outside and leaned against the side of the house. “Glad to see the doe didn’t win, Alpha,” she teased in her lightly accented English. Patricia was the only member of the original pack we joined so long ago. She never talked about her age, but I was almost certain that Patricia was one of the oldest wolves in North America, even though she didn’t look much older than her late forties. I knew that she was originally from Mexico, and when she was really angry she sometimes fell into a language I was almost certain was Nahuatl, but otherwise, she gave no hint to her past. Her gaze moved over to Artemis. “Or did the doe win?”

  Artemis nodded to Patricia.

  The last member of our pack, Michael, rushed out the door. Flour coated his pants, outlining an apron that he must have taken off hastily. “Sorry, sorry, I’m Michael!” he boomed as he rushed over to stand beside Becca.

  I crossed my arms over my chest, trying to give everyone before me the message that they should give her a shit-ton of respect. If I’d been standing in front of my submissive wolves, this wouldn’t be a problem. Among these guys, respect needed to be earned and tested on an individual basis. Unlike Becca, these guys were coming in recognizing Artemis as a powerful creature, and I could see that spark in each of their eyes meant they wanted to put her to the test. “Listen up guys; this here is Artemis, she’s here to help us hunt the creature. The hunt starts now, so you all have one minute to greet her, and then we’re taking off.”

  “I’m sorry I can’t stay longer, but before I go, I have something to ask.” Artemis drew herself up, and though, aside from Patricia, she was nearly a foot shorter than everyone around her, she managed to look the tallest among us. “This creature who’s hunting you has already chosen her next victim. I need to know which one of you it is.” She paused to look at each one in turn and raised her hands up in a conciliatory gesture. “Don’t run away, I want to help you. But I need to know: which one of you has been contacted by the missing submissive wolves?”

  Chapter Seven

  Artemis

  I stared at the unfamiliar faces. Plain shock was written across all of them. All but one, that was.

  “What the hell?” Jackson growled down from just beside me. His shock was wearing off quickly, and clear anger was overtaking his features. I could almost read his mind: betrayal.

  Immediately, I felt a surge of guilt, the same guilt I’d felt since I hatched this plan, but I again pushed it down. I knew the kind thing would have been to tell him that his wolves were most likely all alive. On a hunt like this, I could not choose kindness over making the choice that would produce results. Staying objective was important. Just because every time Jackson’s gray eyes landed on me I felt like lightning bolts shot through my body was not a reason to act stupid.

  My gaze tore away from his and back to the man whose face didn’t fall slack at the mention of their missing pack mates. He stood behind the wolf Jackson had called Becca. He was muscular and tall. A tangle of blond hair fell about his eyes and face, softening his chiseled features.

  “Don’t run,” I told him.

  But he didn’t listen to me, just as all the other wolf-humans turned to him, the man rushed past Becca, jumped over the black metal fence and broke into a sprint across the lawn.

  “Guy?” Becca whispered, in clear confusion.

  I was already running before anyone had the chance to stop me. I dodged between the wolves who all seemed paralyzed with shock and aimed straight for a palm tree with the slightest lean up. Keeping my weight on my toes, I ran up the tree’s rough plates of bark, thirty feet up and then launched myself off, aiming straight for the running wolf.

  Midair, I realized my mistake. The wolf had been aiming for the cliff. I hadn’t realized the precipice cut in dramatically on this side of the house.

  As my body collided with his, I realized I had made the same foolish mistake I’d been making my entire life. I’d acted and reacted too quickly, and now we were both going to pay for it.

  My heels hit the ground, shattering immediately, and then we tumbled end over end off the cliff. As my feet seared and healed, I wrapped my arms around the much bigger man. I planned to drop my weight and flip us midair, so I’d take the impact on my back, but something grabbed my ankle, and suddenly both the man I held and I were hurtling in the other direction.

  We landed on the grass, rolling over each other until I managed to get on top and pin him. “Don’t run, please!” I shouted down at the man who stared wide-eyed at me.

  Another arm wrapped around my waist and wrenched me off the man.

  I looked up, startled to find Jackson glowering down at me. The other pack wolves formed a loose circle around us three.

  “Let go,” I said.

  “Fuck no,” he growled back. “Guy, you stay right where you are. Both of you have some serious explaining to do!”

  I grabbed his arm. “Let go of me or I’ll make you let go of me.”

  He leaned in, his mouth only inches from my ear. �
�You want to break my arm, fine. Do it. Otherwise, I’m not letting go. We might be putting on a brave face for you, but my pack has been through worse than hell! You have no idea what your words just did to us, and you did it in the worst way possible. On top of that, you now almost seriously injured one of my pack mates.”

  I flinched. Even though I knew I had made the right choice, the accusations stung like a thousand wasps.

  “I know that this sounds heartless, but I’m here to save all of your lives, not your feelings. This was the best method to do that; I needed to know who her next victim was.”

  “So you could attack him?” Becca asked as she crouched down next to the man splayed across the grass.

  “He was running for the cliff. I did not realize how close it was. I was planning to do my best to break his fall. Now, let me go, Jackson.”

  “Not until you explain a couple of things.” His voice held less of a growl, but it was still unyielding. He would not let me go.

  I knew now I had a choice: break Jackson’s forearm and head out on this hunt alone, or hang from his bicep like a naughty child. My pride demanded one; my need to succeed in the hunt demanded another. Blowing out a breath, I chose not to hurt Jackson. But it was because I knew that the hunt would be very difficult without his knowledge at this point.

  That was the only reason.

  For the first time in our conversation, Guy moved. He sat up but immediately hung his head. “I’ll tell you what I know, Alpha, but it might mean that she’ll kill Sammie—eat her.” His hands came up to rub the bridge of his nose. “I screwed this up so bad.”

  Becca’s hand went to either side of his face. “Baby, talk to me, what’s going on?” There was no anger in her words; instead, they brimmed with sadness and concern.

  “Sammie called me this morning. I–I wanted to tell you, Bee, but she said she’d be killed if I told anyone.”

  “Sammie told you that?” It sounded like she couldn’t believe what he was saying.

  He looked up at her. The bridge of his nose had red streaks from where he must have been rubbing hard. “No, this woman did. Sammie called me at first. She—she did good. The moment I picked up she started yelling out details. Said the woman was about five-four, long black hair, dark eyes, slight accent, Italian, Spanish or Greek.”

  The wolves looked over at me as he spoke.

  “She was with me all morning,” Jackson said, his words rumbling against my side as he held me to him.

  The position I was in was growing very uncomfortable. Jackson had basically draped me over his arms with my feet dangling. Wiggling back a little, I managed to get my feet to the ground, and then I twisted around, so my front faced Jackson instead of my back.

  His arm remained locked around my waist, but he loosened up enough so I could get more comfortable.

  “What else did Sammie say?” Jackson asked Guy.

  “Nothing. She cut off, and then an unfamiliar woman’s voice read off an address before saying that if I told anyone, she’ll know and eat Sammie.” He squeezed his eyes shut with the last words.

  “Who is Sammie to you?” I asked though I felt very strange speaking to him while I was all but cuddling Jackson. My cheek was only an inch from his very wide chest. I understood this was likely the easiest way to restrain me without hurting me, but the position felt strange—as if he should be holding me by my wrists instead of embracing me. It wasn’t that the touch was invasive, but I couldn’t help noticing I was in a perfect position to wrap my arms around his chest and lay my head against him. Two things I had no plans ever to do.

  As it was, I had to crane my neck so I didn’t touch his pec with my cheek.

  Guy looked up at me and then over to Jackson. Only when Jackson nodded did he answer me, “She’s my sister—or she’s become my sister over the years.”

  “And she’s the one you’re closest to of the missing wolves?”

  “Yes,” Jackson answered.

  I really had to arc back to look at him. This was just too ridiculous. Putting a hand on his chest, I pushed against his strength gently.

  He looked down, eyes narrowing. “You’re going to break my arm after all?”

  “No, but this position is just too foolish. Either give me some room or trust that I won’t act against you.”

  “Or pull any other bullshit.”

  Bullshit had no definition in my head, but I understood the gist of it. I raised my hand. “I have no plans to pull any more bullshit, as you say.”

  He released me, his hand moving away from where it had wrapped around my waist. Somehow, the ghost of his touch lingered even after he’d moved. I stepped away from him, needing a little distance so my senses and instincts would sharpen. I didn’t know why, but his proximity was muddling my focus.

  “Guy,” I said as I crouched down.

  Becca tensed over the man, her glare hot on mine. I knew I’d intimidated her earlier. She was aware that I far outstripped her abilities, yet she would still attack me if I made any threat against this Guy.

  To assure her, I lifted both of my hands up in the international sign for peace. “Guy,” I repeated as I gained his blue gaze, “Your hearing is better than a human’s, is it not? Did you hear any echoing or reverberating from the voices? Would you say they were in a cave?”

  “No,” he said.

  I blew out a breath. That was too bad. It seemed that my prey was not sticking to the old tricks of her kind. I feared that she had modernized while I had stayed in the past all these centuries. It gave her quite an advantage on me.

  Jackson crouched down next to me, his liquid-gray gaze grabbing mine. He was so intense and intent that I almost wanted to look away. I didn’t let myself, though.

  “What is this thing?” he asked in a low voice.

  “I can’t be sure until I see her last attack,” I said.

  “You seem pretty damn sure to me.”

  I was pretty damn sure. This wasn’t the time or place that I had intended to tell him, but I had a feeling Jackson had had enough of going along with my plan, and that I could either tell him or lose his cooperation. “Do you know what a Nemean Lion is?”

  “No.”

  I didn’t think he did, but it would have been easier if he had some knowledge.

  “She can take the shape of any human. The Nemean Lion targets heroes; that’s her favorite meal, I guess you would say. She must have determined you as heroes.”

  They all glanced at each other, some understanding passing between them.

  “There was an article--” Jackson said slowly after a minute. “We did an article with Celebrity Life and Times Magazine, and they titled it, ‘America’s Secret Super Heroes.' It was right in the beginning before the media turned against us.”

  I blinked slowly. There were so many unfamiliar words in there it took me a few seconds to sort out the definitions. By the time I focused on Jackson again, he was staring at me questioningly.

  Realizing that he was expecting a response, I nodded. “That may have a lot to do with it. You were proclaimed heroes, and your supernatural qualities would be irresistible to her. She has no interest in easy prey. Demigods were a particular favorite of hers in Greece.”

  “Jamie,” Jackson called out. “Go look up everything you can find on a Nemean Lion.”

  “On it,” called the blue-haired young man as he spun on his heel and sprinted for the house.

  “Becca, you take Guy inside and make sure he doesn’t go anywhere until I’m ready for him to.” He pointed down at Guy. “And you stay the fuck put, do you hear?”

  “Yes, Alpha,” Guy said as he looked down at his hands.

  “The rest of you are with me. The moment Aiden and Luca get home, we’re going to stake out this place she meant to kill Guy in.”

  I spun on him. “That’s idiocy.”

  Jackson turned with fire in his smoky eyes. “That’s my orders to my people, and that’s what I’m doing.”

  “Well, then you’re a fool.” I
crossed my arms over my chest and glared right back. “You don’t think that she’d planned for the eventuality that Guy would tell? Eventually, one of your men or women was bound to tell you—I’d even say she’s counting on it.”

  “Your point?”

  “My point is that it means either she won’t be there, or she’ll have something in place to kill you all.”

  Jackson grinned, and I almost wanted to back away from the look on his face.

  “Maybe I’m counting on that,” he said.

  “Fool. You haven’t even asked me her weaknesses, which are very few. I did not come here to watch you die out of impatience and hubris.” The irony of the words was not lost on me. Those two qualities had long been considered my hamartia, or fatal flaws. But at the same time, my words were true. I did not leave my thousand years of isolation to lose this hunt on a hasty, impassioned move.

  “Oh no, Goddess.” Jackson shook his head and stepped in closer, too close. I felt his proximity, his heat, up the entire length of my body. “I’m damn patient when I need to be; you’re just going to have to see that for yourself. When I have my mind set on a hunt, I’ll wait as long as it takes—and I always get what I’m hunting for.” His words held a promise, but for some reason, it felt like the promise was for more than just his victory over the Nemean Lion.

  Most of me wanted to step back, or better yet, push him back and punish him for continuously invading my personal space with his touch or proximity. Yet, another very small part of me wanted to close the distance between us and mold my body against his. I wanted to wrap my arms and legs around him and run my tongue over his soft lips.

  Father Zeus in Olympus, what was wrong with me? It was as if my years of isolation away from any man had worn down my hard-won control over my thoughts and inhibitions where men were concerned. And then to make matters worse, this particular man had seen the weakness in that control and was working fast to destroy it altogether. His stormy eyes and calloused fingers could very well be my undoing if I let them.