He takes my hand in his and looks me straight in the eye with a knowing expression.
“Don’t let anyone kill your spirit, Ari,” he says sounding much older than he looks to be. “Once it’s broken, it is hard to put it back together,” and he seems to know the feeling. Though I just met him, I am sincerely worried for Jerek. Through his happy-go-lucky attitude, I can sense something else in him. Something dangerous.
“Did someone kill your spirit, Jerek?” he ponders my question for a moment, lost in thought. Then suddenly, he smiles, breaking that haunting look in his eyes.
“Nah kid, I was just waiting for you to come into my life,” he teases and ruffles my hair as if I am way younger than I am. I want to punch him, but I am just happy that he doesn’t look so lost anymore. “What do you say we head into your party?” he extends his hand to me again. I stand on my own, earning another chuckle from him.
Darien catches my eye the moment I walk into the living room where everyone has gathered. The same living room him and I made sweet love in just last night. He looks suspiciously between Jerek and me, but I ignore his curiosity and move to his side.
“You been harassing my woman?” he shoots the question at Jerek.
“Hey, she’s the one putting innocent bystanders in choke holds,” he says matter-of-factly. My face burns red as Darien and everyone in the room erupts into laughter. Mom would have been scolding me by now, even if I had just been defending myself.
“Everyone,” Darien calls the room into attention as he reaches for my hand, “meet Ari, my mate. If anyone messes with her, prepare to deal with, well, her.” He laughs again and the rest of the room whistles and howls in welcome.
He continues to address them, and I watch their faces, amazed at how intently they listen. What’s more, is how relaxed and happy everyone is, as if they feel safe here. Even my father’s pack had the few edgy, annoyed, or just plain bored groups. Maybe it was the lack of sunshine we get there most months.
Throughout the night, everyone takes their turn to come greet me warmly and to get a sample of my scent, though I’m sure my scent is all over this place. I try not to ponder that thought too long before I lose my cool. A few males linger too long, mainly because of my increased hormones that they undoubtedly smell. Darien always came to the rescue though, keeping his aggression in check, but a few growls escaped when some pushed their luck.
Thank goodness we mated before the full moon. Senses and emotions are much stronger in wolf form, and an unmated female is fair game. Things would have been bloody.
A familiar face distracts me from my thoughts.
“Hey Ari,” Alex greets me with a wink and a hug. We talk for a moment but she doesn’t steal me away for too long. I am surprised at first to see her unmated to anyone, but then I remember she hasn’t been here long.
I try to ignore Jerek’s stare following me most of the night. He kept his distance from everyone and focused all of his attention on me so that people would leave him alone. I know, because I used to pull the same shit.
Darien noticed his eyes on me too, and he looked as puzzled as I felt. Hell, even Jerek himself looked confused about something.
I was finally relieved from his constant staring when Asher and Trace came over to redirect his attention, but as everyone was leaving, I caught his eye once again. His confused look had changed to one of determination. I smiled and waved as he left with the rest of the pack.
“What’s his story?” I question Darien once everyone is gone. I didn’t have to clarify whom I was asking about. He knew.
Darien
Jerek had been born into this pack a few years before me. He was always the goofy one, playing pranks and getting into mischief. He was strong though, and also a good guy with a nice girlfriend that he was head over heels for.
However, under my dad’s rule, nothing stays good forever. My father didn’t like Jerek, nor did a lot of the elders because of the trouble he always caused them. Not to mention that he is a dominant, and wasn’t afraid to stand up to the older wolves when they were being shady bastards. He was young, but dominant enough to become a second.
When his girlfriend went missing, he went looking for her after the second day had gone by. Some wolves will take off for a day or two just to get some alone time with their wolf, but something apparently didn’t feel right to Jerek. He said she wouldn’t have left without telling him first.
It had snowed, so it took four days before he had found her body. He carried her home, accused my father of rape and murder. It wasn’t clear if it was murder or suicide, but there were many scents mixed together on her body; one being his Alpha’s distinct scent.
Jerek tried to fight him in his rage when he denied the accusations. My dad beat him almost to his death before setting the girl’s body on fire in front of him. It broke him.
It took everything I had not to step in. The girl was already long dead. I had to be smart about it. If I had tried to kill him, the pack would have killed me. Nobody wants someone in the pack who would kill his own father. If he killed me, nothing would change, and no one would know the truth.
By this time, I had known the truth, but I needed to have evidence to show the pack. I’d been trying to find proof of my father’s evilness for a while when that happened. I was also training, making myself stronger for the day that I would inevitably have to take down my own father.
It was shortly after that incident that I had found what I needed. It took me a while, but I’d figured out his password to his computer. I found emails to and from other Alpha’s in nearby territories, containing pictures of women, female shifters from other packs. One was of Jerek’s girlfriend.
After saving the emails to a thumb drive, I talked to a few of the women I knew were in my pack that were also in the photos. Most wouldn’t talk to me, but I could see the fear and shame in their eyes.
Finally, one of them told me exactly what was happening. With that information, I gave the thumb drive to the people I trusted most, Trace and Asher, and then set out to kill the Alpha who was no longer my father.
His death, I think, is the only thing that kept Jerek from leaving the pack, although he resents me for not killing him sooner. I had even asked him to be my fourth in command, but he refused.
To be honest, I am surprised he is still here, and that he even showed up here tonight. I don’t think he is trying to steal Ari from me, but he did appear to have an intense interest in her. Today I saw parts of the man he used to be rather than the cold, distant, lazy man he has been since that day.
I can understand now more than I ever have why he became this way. Feeling the way that I do for my mate, I know that if I were to ever lose Ari, I would blame myself for not protecting her. I would not be able to live with myself. The fact that Jerek hasn’t gone rogue is even more astounding now, but I can tell that he has only been hanging on by a thread before today.
Ari seems just as concerned as me and questions me the moment everyone is gone. I reluctantly give her the gory details of his past. I also warn her to be careful because I don’t know what he is capable of anymore. She’s quiet as she processes every word. She knows few details of the pack’s history and mine, and I’m afraid that the more she learns will send her running.
“Fuck your dad! Bring that bastard back to life so I can kill him myself!” She spits, and I am quickly retracting my last thought. A lot of female wolves are tough, but I don’t think anyone but Ari would have been able to whoop my dad’s ass without hesitation if he’d tried anything with her.
The thought of her anywhere near that monster sickens me though, and I instinctively reach out, pulling her into my embrace. She stiffens in surprise, but eventually settles into me.
Just her scent has me rock hard and throbbing.
“Everyone loves you, Ari,” I whisper to her. I could tell that she was nervous earlier so I didn’t push her to come inside. I knew she would come in when she was ready, but I hope she realizes now that she was
worried for nothing. I don’t know what it was like at her old pack, but here, she will be forced out of her shell.
She tilts her face up to me, looking unsure. We are connected by blood so I try something with her. I gently kiss her nose, and at the same time pour some of my power into her. Ari takes a sharp breath in, and then blinks up at me in surprise. I’d never tried this before, but it must have worked.
Ari
When Darien’s lips gently touch my nose, I am suddenly filled with strength and power. His power.
I know that I am strong, but this was something else entirely.
It is warm and reassuring as it flows through me. With his energy I can feel the packs energy mingled in with his, and it’s a comfortable feeling that I can’t describe as anything other than home.
“You are my mate now, and the only one who can access this. Use it anytime you need it,” Darien offers without the slightest hesitation, which is very generous considering Alpha’s hate the drain on their energy and that it can affect the pack energy as well. I also heard, and know firsthand, that Alpha’s can just be very stingy and controlling as well.
None of that mattered to me though. Unless absolutely necessary, I wouldn’t take energy from him or the pack, but I am currently enjoying the feeling of being a true part of a pack. I can almost feel their thoughts, and his words appear to be true. They actually seem to like me.
Darien’s actions are also gently telling me to stop being a baby.
I’m his mate. The soon-to-be wife of the leader of this pack. I don’t have to be my mother, but I can be strong for my pack, and be there for them, along with showing support for Darien. I can’t hide or run away anymore. Especially if I ever expect Darien to let me on the front lines or go on missions. I will need to be a team player.
Over the next couple days, following the pack meeting, Darien and I spend a lot of time getting to know each other better. Both in, and outside of the bedroom. He showed me around town some more, and drove me by his work, which happens to be a logging company.
At first, I thought it was odd for werewolves to be in that business, beings that our other half lives to run free in the woods, but it also made a lot of sense. After all, someone needs to do the job, and its way less risky for a werewolf than it is for a human.
Being the environmentalist that he is, Darien employs other members of the pack to go through and replant more trees once they’ve finished an area.
They also handle controlled burns to help prevent wildfires, and promote new, healthy growth for the future.
Of course, being the Alpha, Darien owns the company. Alpha’s need to be in a dominant position or things can be challenging. They don’t take orders from others well. Plus, being in charge is necessary since he needs be able to have more free time to take care of pack matters.
Trace, Asher, and another wolf by the name of Brendon, take turns managing the place when he is gone. Everyone is happy with the system because unlike me, wolves are usually very accepting of their roles and just content to be in a pack.
Darien and I also went grocery shopping, which was much more entertaining than I ever imagined it could be. It’s almost comical watching this large, supermodel looking man doing something so menial and human.
My mother did all the shopping, though I tagged along sometimes just to make sure she got the things that I liked to eat as well since she liked to conveniently forget to pick up the items I’d ask for. Shopping with her was never fun, but I found myself really enjoying myself with my mate, and he was totally at ease.
Grocery shopping was most likely going to end up becoming a duty of mine though. I figure I will have to do the cooking too, which I don’t necessarily mind, but I like that we have been taking turns when it comes to that so far. I enjoy his cooking, and he enjoys mine, so it’s a good meal no matter who cooks it.
After the grocery store, he stopped at another store. Once he told me why we were there, I repeatedly told him that it wasn’t necessary, but he ignored me and signed me up for my very own cell phone.
He insisted that he needed to be able to reach me somehow when he is at work or away for whatever reason. I guess shifting to communicate telepathically when at work is probably not the best way to go. Not to mention, we don’t know how far our telepathy reaches.
I appreciate the phone and that he wants to keep in touch with me. It’s just another thing he has had to spend money on. I have to admit though that it has been kind of fun learning something new, and I’ll even be able to call my dad whenever I need or want to now.
Darien had the representative program all of his contacts into my phone so that I would have all of the pack’s names and numbers. He then proceeded to send out a mass text, letting everyone else have my number. The next thing I know, my phone is “blowing up,” as Darien called it, with welcoming texts and weird pictures called “emojis”.
“I told you they love you,” Darien had winked at me as we drove home. All I could think was ‘Do I really have to reply individually to each and every one of these?’ Later, Darien laughed at me and told me to just send back a “thumbs up” emoji and that everyone would see it since it’s apparently a “group thread”.
So now that I am educated in the ways of texting, I was able to figure out the rest on my own pretty easily. I love the camera feature most of all. I’ve already filled my photo library with photos of Lightning and Royal, and the beautiful area around our home. I can also go online and apply for jobs, so that will definitely come in handy.
While Darien was busy with some work, I took the time to start applying for a few jobs that popped up. One was for a coffee stand, another for a waitress position, and the other for a receptionist at a dentist office. All nothing I could see myself doing. Maybe Darien will hire me at his logging company. Or maybe he will know someone else in the pack in need of a helping hand.
So aside from not having a job yet, I am pretty much set up and settled into my new life. All that was left now is to prepare for the full moon tonight.
Darien
When I got a call from a pack member that lives in Kalispell, Montana, I excused myself, telling Ari that I had a work call. Technically it wasn’t a lie, but I felt bad all the same. Dave is one of many of my wolves that live close to Canada’s border. Him and a few others run perimeter checks together, and he only calls when he finds something. It’s a call I don’t want Ari to worry about, but I know she wouldn’t want to be kept in the dark.
Today has been such a good day, and I don’t want to ruin it with worry about Canada making another move. After getting their asses handed to them, and going home empty-handed, I assumed they would lay low for a while. Alpha Flint is lucky to be alive. Instead of being grateful that we spared his life, he is apparently leaning more towards getting vengeance.
Dave confirms my fear when he tells me that the scent of Canada’s wolves have been lingering way too close to the boundary line. Their scent didn’t go very far East along our lines, but rather North, along Alaska’s territory.
Now that we are united with them, Dave ran along some of the boundary lines of British Columbia, following their scent for a couple hours before finally turning around. Canada is definitely looking for a weak spot.
After thanking Dave for the information, I get Ari’s father on the phone. I’m not going to wait to have one of the elders speak with him. He answers after a few rings.
“Hello?” his familiar voice says cautiously.
“Hello Alpha Wilder, do you have a moment?”
“Darien? This is…unorthodox.”
“Sorry. It was a time sensitive matter, so I made the decision to call. I’ll keep it brief,” I say, not giving him the opportunity to refuse me, “I just received a call from my patrol in Montana. They found Canada’s scent flirting with the boundary line, and they followed it up along part of your border in B.C. before calling it quits.”
“I see. I will get more men on patrol.” I’m about to end the call before he q
uickly asks, “How is my daughter?” I can tell that he is trying to hide the emotion in his voice, but I heard it all the same.
A million answers run through my head, but I finally decide on, “Amazing.”
“I knew she would be. Take care, Darien,” he says before the line goes dead.
Chapter 13
Ari
The night of the full moon is finally here. We all meet at a secret spot out of town away from most civilization but where there is a greater population of wildlife. Every pack member from the other night is present along with a few younger wolves, including children. Tonight, we hunt as a pack with the Alpha, and me, his mate. Together with his second and third flanking us, we will lead them.
When, whom I believe to be Trace, moves to take position on the other side of me, a wolf from the group growls and charges forward. Trace actually takes a step back and the other wolf stops right in front of me. I stand my ground.
His wolf towers over mine. He is almost as large as Darien. His strawberry blonde fur and glowing sapphire blue eyes tells me that it’s Jerek before I can confirm his scent. There are even streaks of red in his fur and it’s very different from most wolves’ coats that I have seen. He is definitely unique. I stare into his intense gaze.
Every set of eyes watches the scene, and I can feel the tension build as Darien and Jerek hold each other’s gaze. Jerek’s eyes shift away first, but he doesn’t move away from me. Trace moving to flank me is what set him off. He’s not trying to claim me, I realize, but trying to fill the position as my own personal second.
He waits for Darien’s decision, but I growl, bringing Jerek’s attention to me. His amber eyes jerk to mine in surprise. In fact, I can feel the shock of everyone around me, but my attention is given to Jerek alone. It will be my decision who I take as my second, not Darien’s or anyone else’s.
Chosen Page 13