Chosen

by Melanie Purser

  Somehow, I dodge before clamping my teeth down on his front paw. I yank him forward, sending him head first into the dirt.

  His face crunches against the ground, leaving him disoriented, and I don’t hesitate to use teeth and claws to try and tear his head off.

  James throws me off, but it’s too late. I killed the bastard. I killed his father. I killed an Alpha.

  Tumbling away, unable to catch my balance, he bounds after me.

  Every last bit of my strength is gone, and the enraged gray wolf is poised to strike, but a large mass of fur barrels into him.

  In an instant, James’ head is no longer attached to his body. I used everything I had and couldn’t even get John Flint’s head all the way off, but this wolf tore it off as if he was taking a bite out of a muffin.

  Darien. The sight of his massive wolf has never been so reassuring. He made it in the nick of time, along with a small army of wolves.

  Bounding over to me, his wolf looks over mine. Seeing all the blood and my weakened state makes his eyes glow fiercely.

  The baby? He asks gently, despite his anger.

  I can’t know for sure.

  I didn’t know what else to say. I couldn’t lie to my mate.

  With that, he howls again and leaps into the fight with his men.

  Now that the Alphas are dead, these men don’t have to be slaughtered if they give up, but they came here to steal and force women and children into situations that they should never be forced into.

  Darien doesn’t make deals with men like that. Regardless of their attempts to surrender, they are all dead men.

  My girls did well. They took on an army three times the size of ours, and we only have one casualty. However, it is a loss that will haunt me forever. Someone has lost a loved one when they shouldn’t have.

  Looking around, I see my fierce warriors. Some have taken quite a beating, but there is a change among many of them; a fierceness they didn’t realize they had in them. Most of these women, including I, have killed for the first time today. A small part of me thought it would be difficult taking another’s life, but knowing that these men were here to take these women and children gave me the strength to take that step without pause.

  Jerek tends to Alex, licking her wounds to help heal them, but I can see that he has some wounds of his own. Neither of them or anyone else appears to have their life in danger, so I try to relax.

  Darien’s presence by my side soothes my soul, and suddenly I am exhausted. His tongue laps at my wounds. It’s painful yet blissful at the same time as I begin to heal. When he’s satisfied, he goes inside, and I’m suddenly hurt that he just left me lying here. I’m too tired to follow after him so I stay put with all my wolves surrounding me.

  Darien returns in human form, dressed, and with a blanket in his hands.

  Damn, has he always been that sexy? I laugh at myself. Of course, he has. My mind apparently goes to the gutter when it’s been run through the ringer.

  He throws the blanket over me and through our bond, I feel him gently urge me to shift. He has learned not to command me to do anything. It doesn’t have the wanted results. I do as he asks though.

  He keeps me wrapped in the blanket as he lifts and carries me into our home.

  “Women and kids are locked in the basement,” I say through the fog that seems to thicken with every passing second.

  “I smell them. I’ll let them out after I put you to bed, baby,” he gently lays me in our bed, pulling the covers over me, “You did good, love.” And with those words I plunge into nothingness.

  Darien

  I’m sorry, Darien. I love you.

  Those words. The pain in her voice. Every nerve in my body exploded at that statement. I was so close. I could smell the blood and death from where we landed.

  In wolf form, I bolted out the emergency exit and had already started running before we touched the ground. I pushed myself faster than I ever have before.

  When her words hit me, a howl with intense power and emotion rips from my wolf’s throat. I’m right here, baby! Fight just a little more. I don’t send the words to her so that I don’t distract her, and I sure as hell am not going to say goodbye.

  When they come into view, I see that Ari had been pinned by Flint’s wolf, and another who I assume is his son. In the same second I spot her, she gets away.

  She needs me.

  My legs carry me even faster. With amazing skill and strength, I watch as she kills John Flint before I can reach her. She killed an Alpha.

  Flint’s son charges after her in a rage, but I slam into him. He stands no chance against my bloodthirsty wolf. His head is mine.

  Ari is my first concern, along with my unborn child. When she says she is okay, I take in the wreckage behind me. The others have arrived, and I join in on taking out the remaining few men. Some try to surrender, but my wolf wants their blood. No one comes onto our territory, injures my mate and pack, and gets to live.

  The scene displayed in front of me is unbelievable. Nearly 150 bodies litter my lawn.

  Cars are wrecked and covered in blood and gore like a scene from a zombie movie. A few women had been knocked unconscious and thrown into trucks, while many others are injured, but they are all alive. All except for one.

  Everyone gives me room as I make my way to Jamie’s body. She was an older woman and was a nanny to a lot of the children in the pack over the years. The devastation I feel through the bond is almost crippling, and I can feel them waiting for an update. I send them all a message through our pack bond, letting them know that it’s all over as I kiss Jamie’s hand. She is with her husband now who had lost his life in one of our raids.

  Walking to get a blanket for Ari, I notice Jerek sweetly tending to Alex’s wounds, and I smile. My mate has sneakily been trying to set them up for weeks, and it looks like they have finally figured it out. They both deserve to be happy, and I have to agree with my mate. They are a great match.

  Hurrying back to my mate, dressed and in my human skin, she eyes me strangely. I ask her to shift, not daring to command her. She does as I ask, and I scoop her up before taking her inside. Her rambling is cute as I take her up to bed. She is asleep the moment her head hits the pillows.

  I want nothing more than to crawl in beside her, to hold her tight, and reassure her. This beautiful woman is carrying my child. Even underneath the scent of blood and death, I can smell the change in her. I feel like an ass for not noticing before.

  It’s true that I don’t deserve this Goddess, but no one is taking her away from me. I’ll become a God myself if that’s what it takes to keep her.

  Holding her hand, I realize how exhausted I am from all the stress. My mate handled the real hard work. Now it’s my turn to take over and do what needs to be done.

  I kiss her lips, tasting blood from the wolves that dared to challenge her. Putting my hand over her belly, I shake my head in amazement before I leave her to rest.

  Hours have passed. While the women rested, the men and I loaded bodies upon bodies into the trucks. Jerek wanted to come, but I made him stay behind as me and a few others drive the trucks to Shield Logging. There we have a giant pit where we burn rotted wood and various other things. Together, we push the trucks filled with bodies into the pit and light them up like a funeral pyre.

  Though I feel terrible for doing it, I leave them behind to bury it once it’s all burned to ash. We will make a new pit somewhere else later, but I need to be with my pregnant wife.

  I hurry home to her, and I am surprised to find her awake. Not only that, she is showered, dressed, and in the kitchen helping a few of the other women cook dinner for everyone. Some women are still cleaning up or resting, but everyone is surprisingly calm.

  Our eyes meet the moment that I walk in. I don’t hesitate to go to her. Wrapping her in my arms, I take in her intoxicating scent, not giving a damn who might be watching.

  I’m so desperate for her that I’d take her right now, except my shy mate wo
uld kill me on the spot. However, when she whispers, “Take me upstairs,” into my ear, it about takes me to my knees before I swoop her off her feet and do just what she commands.

  Holding back is a struggle, but I make love to her slowly and sweetly. She has had enough roughness today, and I won’t put our baby in any more danger. In fact, I might just retire early so that Ari and our little pup will always be at my side. I’ve never been one to stay out of a fight, but I’ve never had reason to. Now I have two reasons.

  When I have taken care of our needs, I kiss her belly. We have only been together a month, and she’s already pregnant. Before, I had never imagined kids, and you would think since our relationship is so new, that we would want to have more time together as lovers rather than parents, but I am out-of-my-mind ecstatic. A baby won’t change my lust for my wife. Not in a million years.

  Ari smiles sadly at me, and my stomach drops with worry.

  “Is everything okay? Is something wrong with the baby?” I stiffen, waiting for the ball to drop. This day had turned out much better than it could have, but maybe not so well after all.

  “Shh,” her finger moves to my lips, “The baby seems to be fine. I’m sorry for ruining the moment. Let’s go back downstairs.” She tries to distract me, and moves to get up, but I pin her back down.

  “Ari,” I warn, “tell me what’s going on.” Defiance shines in her eyes, but then it’s replaced by something that I never want to see on her face ever again; shame.

  Something inside me snaps, and I’m no longer the tough Alpha as I cup her face in my hands. I’m sure she can see my weakness as fear overcomes me. Tears pool in her eyes, but they don’t fall.

  “I’m so sorry, Darien. I disobeyed. I left everyone, and then they waited on me to return. It was all my fault that we didn’t get out in time!” Her voice is hoarse with unshed tears as she looks away from me. I drop my hands to my lap, unsure of how to proceed.

  My wolf rears its head then, with an intense power, and my strength returns tenfold. I can feel the power in the pack, and I know they will all agree with what I say, and she needs to hear it.

  “Arianna,” she looks up at my sharp tone, “you would be dead right now if you hadn’t broken my command. What’s worse, is that every single one of you would have been taken, and I wouldn’t have known until after the fact. They could have left, but they chose to stay and fight with you, not because you are the Alpha’s wife, but because they love you.”

  She tries to process it all, but all she can see in her mind is that she abandoned everyone, that she held them back, and that she couldn’t protect them all. She has more compassion and sense for what’s right and wrong, more than anyone I have, or will ever meet.

  Her eyes avoid mine, not believing, or perhaps not wanting to believe. Though she has plenty of reason to boast, and is confident in herself most of the time, she is also very humble. She doesn’t want to believe that she did a good job when she also feels guilt. It’s my fault that she feels that way.

  I tilt her chin back up again, forcing her eyes to meet mine.

  “I was wrong, Ari. Commanding you to stay was wrong of me. I don’t always know what’s best, and it was a stroke of luck that you did what you did and discovered John Flint’s scent. You saved my ass. If you hadn’t tried to follow me, it would have been my fault, not yours. You have this amazing gift to defy Alphas, and because you are such a strong fighter and trainer, and taught our pack how to fight, we survived. You, Ari, are the real reason that we are sitting here having this conversation.”

  The tears fall freely now, and I’m not scared of them like I was before. I know the reasons why now. Pulling her into my chest, holding her tight, I rock her until she cries it all out.

  She recovers quicker than expected, and she goes to the bathroom to clean up. Her face is clear when she returns. She starts dressing, making me wonder what the hell she is doing, and she looks up at my confused expression.

  “Baby’s hungry,” she says simply, and that’s all the answer I need. I’m up dressing right along with her, and we make our way downstairs. Everyone watches us descend, and the way everyone looks at my mate is not lost on me. They have all become fierce warriors; ready to do battle for the woman I love. She is just as much their Alpha as I am.

  All of the younger pup’s pounce on Ari before I can stop them. She laughs and picks some up to hug them. I can see how happy she is that they are safe. Only gone a day, and they all absolutely adore her. Seeing that fills my heart, and I can’t wait to bring our own child into our home. I will be the father mine never was, and I already know that Ari is going to be the best mother in the world.

  After loving on the kids, she makes a plate of food that she had been helping make earlier. I join her, and we all sit together. Though there is a collective sadness for Jamie, everyone is in high spirits. Women have always been made to appear weak, and while I knew that wasn’t true, their strength is far greater than I ever imagined.

  While I still don’t feel comfortable putting our women at risk, I can’t deny them anymore. After what they proved today, we need their skills. For now, though, I am going to enjoy the rest of my night, chatting, laughing, and watching my beautiful mate capture everyone’s heart, just like she has captured mine.

  Chapter 21

  Ari

  Darien’s phone going off wakes me early in the morning. He answers, and I roll away from him. That was a mistake. I run to the bathroom, clutching my hands over my mouth before throwing up dinner into the toilet. Thank God werewolf pregnancies are much shorter than a normal human’s pregnancy. My morning sickness should only last maybe a week or two.

  I’m startled when a hand starts rubbing my back, but realize it’s just my mate. He helps me up, and I rinse and brush my teeth before going back into the bedroom.

  “Time to deal with Canada?” I ask him. He nods in return. “So, what’s our plan?” I wait for him to tell me again that I can’t go with him. I’m not sure I have the strength to fight him on it again. After yesterday, I still feel guilt heavy on my heart, but at the same time, Darien’s words were true. I should be happy about the outcome of yesterday’s events.

  “You’re pregnant, Ari,” here we go, “I am a fool to bring you, but I would be an even bigger fool to leave your side again. I try to learn from my mistakes.” Wait, what? Our eyes meet. Is he serious?

  “You mean you’re not just nice to look at?” I tease, making him laugh softly.

  “Everyone is coming. We are going to meet at the border with your father’s pack and the rest of our pack to figure out what to do from here.” There is no humor in his voice, so he must be telling the truth. He’s not going to leave us again.

  I leap into his arms, and he catches me with ease. Our lips meet, and it’s as if all my confidence has been restored. Without even a fight, I am making good on my promise to myself and to the women of my pack. We won’t be left behind and will never be without a choice.

  As I get dressed and pack a couple items in a small bag, Darien goes to tell everyone the game plan and to get ready to move. Gray already has a plane ready for all of us.

  It didn’t take us long to get organized. Together with our remaining vehicles, we headed to the airport and boarded our plane.

  Darien held my hand the entire time and kept trying to talk about baby names, but I haven’t quite gotten that far with everything that has been going on. Our flight is short, and when we land, I realize that I am excited to see everyone.

  We land in Alaska not too far from the border of Canada. We aren’t far from the pack so we decide to shift and run with our belongings in our mouths or strapped to us. Darien and I take the lead while everyone else follows closely behind us.

  I feel at home again, recognizing certain smells and even catch the scent of some old pack mates.

  When we aren’t far, we shift and change back into humans before getting dressed. Without having to ask, Darien shields my body as I change. I didn’t care much yest
erday since it was just the women and Jerek, and I am surprised to find that I don’t really care today either, but I would rather be covered than not.

  The sound of people coming alerts us before they come into view. Even from afar, I recognize dad, Charles, and Niko at the head of an army of people. My group stops a short distance away, but I close the distance to my father. He engulfs me in his arms with a huge grin plastered on his face. I hear him sniff me, so I lean away to look at his face.

  “Ari! You’re pregnant? Already?” he asks in disbelief. I guess Darien didn’t fill him in during any of their conversations. I nod at him with a smile, and he looks so happy for a few moments before he frowns, “And you fought yesterday in this condition?” And Darien brought you here to yet more danger, he says with his eyes as he glares at my mate over my head.

  “Well she needed some kind of handicap to make it fair,” Niko laughs, making me grin.

  “And she still handed their asses to them,” Charlie adds in, and suddenly everyone around us joins in the laughter.

  Despite his anger at Darien, he looks proudly at me, and I know he can see the changes in me. I’m not his disgruntled little girl anymore. I’m happy and strong in a way I wasn’t before. Darien steps forward to shake my dad’s hand as I take turns hugging my uncles.

  Backing away to stand beside my mate, he tucks me into his side a little possessively. He still doesn’t like other males touching me.

  They all see his display and smirk, but I could care less. As long as he doesn’t take it too far that is. I am his, and he is mine after all.

  “Let’s go somewhere where we can sit down and discuss things comfortably,” dad suggests and starts to lead the way with Charlie and Niko flanking him. Our pack leaves to intermingle with theirs, and I know the women must be tracking down their mates. I follow my mate of course, and Jerek follows me, along with Trace, Asher, and Ben.