Pack Bound

by Holly Hook

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Pack Bound (The Alpha Legacy #2)

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  There's More!

  The Dragon Born Trilogy

  The Abnormals Underground Series

  The Alpha Legacy

  Book 2

  By Holly Hook

  Pack Bound

  The Alpha Legacy #2

  By Holly Hook

  Copyright Holly Hook 2018

  Chapter One

  "Waiting and seeing will be too dangerous," Cayden says, leaning close in the lunch line.

  Even discussing the threat of the school snob turning into a werewolf won't diminish the tingles on spine every time Cayden does that.

  But, business. "You don't understand," I say, sliding my tray along the counter. "This is Olivia. She won't let us get anywhere near the Shallow Table. We can't just ask her if she's got a werewolf bite under the cast."

  "I know that," Cayden says, scooping greasy pork chops onto his tray. He goes for a second helping but the lunch lady glares from the end of the line. He stops, scooting his tray to the macaroni. "But we have just one more week until the full moon." He keeps his voice low when he says the last sentence.

  Nobody around us needs to hear this conversation.

  But I can hear fine. With my new, heightened senses, I sometimes catch more than I want. If I focus, I can listen to conversations in the cafeteria. Ellie and Sarah are sitting at the usual theater table while the Shallow Table in the cafeteria agree on what a slut they think Rachel Yosimi is. I want to tell them they're projecting their own faults on others, as usual. Since turning two weeks ago, confidence has bloomed, but with it has come aggression. But every time I pause and take a breath, I can keep it under control. At least Noble Wolves can stop themselves from attacking people, unlike Savage Wolves.

  And Olivia, my arch-rival, could turn into one in a week.

  Cayden and I leave the lunch line, taking the table with his surviving siblings, Everly and Remo. At least I'm welcome here now and even Everly, who was ice to me before, gives me a small wave as I sit. Improvement. But I still tense. Everly stays curt with me, never warm. And there's another reason, too. I've spent more time with the Lowes over the past two weeks and my theater friends now realize.

  “She's over there again,” Sarah says. Her words traverse the cafeteria.

  “I hate it when people date and they forget their friends.” That's Ellie.

  “She'll come back,” Noah says. He spears something on his tray—the pork—and stuffs it in his mouth, chewing in anger.

  “I don't think I should stay here for the entire lunch period,” I said, trying not to look back at my usual table.

  “I understand,” Cayden says. “But we can't sit together, as much as I'd love to hang out with the other theater kids. Pack discussions have to stay that.”

  He's right. We don't have long to figure out if Olivia will become a threat to the people of Breckenridge in just a week--and to us. I turn and check. Olivia still wears the cast on her leg from the Savage Wolf attack. It's covered in well wishes and colored hearts now. Since her family kept her injury quiet, no one knows the exact nature of it. Only that she got attacked by wolves.

  “How likely is it she got infected?” I ask Cayden.

  His hazel eyes lock with mine. Since turning, I can make out every fleck of color in them. A whole new world of art has emerged since I woke after my bite, convulsing and in agony. “It depends on how deep her bite was. Not every bite will turn a human into a werewolf. A person can get away with a shallow bite unaltered. If it's true that the Savage Wolves broke a bone with a bite, the chances are high.”

  “Statistically very probable,” Remo says. “I'd estimate the chances to be at eighty percent. But I don't have all the info I need. Noble Wolves don't go around biting people often like Savage Wolves do.” A dark look comes over his face and he looks at his tray. “If Noble Wolves bite and infect humans, it's to save their lives.”

  “Wait,” I say, recalling how Aunt May ripped off my silver pendant, which forced me to turn. “If I turned in one night, why hasn't Olivia? She doesn't smell like Eau de Rotting Wood. Maybe she's fine.”

  Cayden and Everly grin. Twins.

  “You turned fast because you inherited your father's nature,” Cayden says. “The only thing holding it back was your pendant. The bite couldn't have infected you.”

  “And my Aunt May,” I add. I think of the Savage Wolf's bite on my shoulder. That moment divides my life. Human, and werewolf. Born, and then reborn.

  “She's not even looking at us,” Tiana says at the theater table.

  With my old friends and drifting away.

  “And her,” Everly adds. “A regular human who gets infected from a bite never turns until the night of the full moon. And they always become whichever breed of werewolf bites them.”

  “Will Olivia be...Savage right away?” I ask.

  Everly shakes her head. “When transformed, yes. Her human side will take longer to turn.”

  I think of the Baltic Wolves and of Travon, who cared for no one, human or Wolf. Travon's death and driving out the pack hasn't made Breck safe. Not only may Olivia turn, but the other Savage Wolves might come back and seek revenge.

  “We can't waste any more time,” I say. Though I know I'm drifting away from my friends, I'm diving into a new family, and the pull from that is something I've never experienced. But there's a definite bond between members of the pack, as Cayden puts it. It's hard to describe—an undercurrent of warmth keeping the five of us together (including Aunt May.)

  But the sense of isolation from everyone else is real. There's an invisible social wall between us and the theater table, where I want to take Cayden and socialize with the familiar.

  “We can't,” Cayden says. “Olivia acted in the play, so maybe she only sustained scratches and is playing up her injury, but we have to find out for sure. A bite can be bad. Deadly to others. A new Savage Wolf presence could spread through Breckenridge. And that's without the others returning.”

  “I'll ask Noah how she danced in the play,” I say. “Again.” He won't stop talking about how he landed somewhat of a real kiss on her during the final acts. Olivia let Noah guide her along. I didn't see it. I spent that weekend trying to stop Cayden from facing down the Baltic Wolves by himself, watching his little brother and parents die, and becoming a werewolf myself.

  “Or,” Cayden says, “You can talk to Olivia yourself. She might open to you after you gave her the lead back.”

  I swallow, throat dry. “I don't know if that will work.” Then I eye the Shallow Table. Olivia sits with Bonnie and Stephanie, who giggle about Rachel's acne. I can hear them from four tables away.

  “I might have to do that,” I say, admitting defeat. Cayden could speak to Olivia, but she's too angry with him for resisting her advances. “What do I tell her? That she might grow extra body hair in a week?” A part of me relishes the idea.

  Cayden grips the table and takes a breath.
“Maybe just asking her about how her injury's healing will work.”

  Though Cayden and I have decided we're equals, his words feel heavy in my mind. After the death of his parents and taking down the alpha of the Baltic Wolves, he's become alpha of the Breckenridge pack. The one meant to make all the decisions. Though he suggests ideas and tries not to sound forceful as his father always did, they still feel like they carry weight.

  “That might work,” I say. “I have to get her alone. And if it's a bite? What do we do after that?”

  Cayden lets out a breath. He and Everly exchange a glance and grimace as if they don't want to tell me the next step.

  Remo speaks. His blue eyes fill with sadness. “We must do something about it before she becomes a threat to everyone who lives here.”

  “Which is?” I gulp.

  Cayden leans across the table. “If she turns into a Savage Wolf, we must drive her out. But if she refuses to submit, we'll have to kill her.”

  * * * * *

  “Cayden, there has to be a better way,” I say, slamming my locker.

  “We can't allow another Savage Wolf pack to form here in town,” Cayden whispers, leaning against the lockers. “I promise we won't hurt Olivia if we don't have to. She might not even turn. But if she does, we have you on our side.”

  His words weigh me down again and I feel the power behind them though I know that's not Cayden's intent. As time goes on, his presence as alpha strengthens.

  I shudder when I think of how well I fought the Baltic Wolves after transforming for the first time. We've come no closer to solving the mystery of a new wolf with the fighting skill of an alpha. “I hate Olivia, sure, but I don't want to help kill her.” Can I hold back? While transformed, that fighting instinct takes over, leaving no human in its place. Though I haven't shifted since the Baltic Wolves as things around town have stayed quiet, Cayden and the Lowes guarantee me I won't have a choice in about a week.

  Just like Olivia if she's infected.

  I might have changed, but right now, I'm still Brie.

  “I know you're worried. You shouldn't have to be. Want to walk home together?” Cayden asks, cutting into my thoughts. “We'll cut through the woods. Make sure none of the Baltic Wolves have come back into the area. It's our turn to patrol. Everly and Remo did yesterday. We--" He stops, looking over my shoulder.

  “Brie!” Noah says from behind me. He taps on my back. “Want to hang out with us tonight?”

  I whirl. I can smell the faint pork on Noah's breath. He also carries the scent of old books, the musty props room, and Teeyah's, the coffee shop where we theater people hang out. A wave of nostalgia sweeps over me. Noah has a different scent than Cayden's—which is forested and wild—but it fits him.

  An idea hatches. “Sure,” I say, winking to Cayden. “I want to talk to you about the play and how things went with Olivia.” Maybe Noah can help us find out more about her. “What time?”

  “Seven?” Noah asks. “We're going to Teeyah's. No auditions yet to practice, but we can brainstorm ideas on which play we'll do next. Mr. Saffron is open to suggestions after Beauty and the Beast. And you never got to celebrate at the after-party with us. What's wrong with you?” Noah keeps his tone light and wags his finger at me, but underneath, there's a legit question. As one of my best friends, I tell Noah almost everything, but there's one big secret I can never divulge, and it's me.

  Something new has separated me from my friends.

  “What am I?” Cayden asks. “Mystery meat?”

  “Can he come with us?” I ask.

  Though he's trying to hide it, the corner of Noah's mouth turns down in a frown. It's clear he's been hoping to get me to hang out, just like old times. “Cayden can come along."

  “I was just joking,” Cayden says. He rubs my shoulder, and his touch sends shivers of electricity down my arm. “I have to walk home and get things done, anyway. I'm sure you and Brie will have fun talking about the play and about Olivia.”

  Hint, hint. That's what I must do. Noah, with his major crush on her, can help us get close enough to uncover the truth.

  And Cayden will patrol while I'm at Teeyah's. Alone. With trying to get things done, he's no better than me with putting himself in potential danger. It's no wonder we're attracted to each other.

  “Are you sure?” I ask Cayden.

  He nods, confident and strong. “Sure. I'll see you later, Brie.”

  I hate I'm not patrolling with the Lowes as I should be. But Noah needs me back and so to Sarah and Ellie, or they'll force me to explain myself. And worse, I don't want them to think I'm turning into Olivia and ditching them for a new crowd.

  Cayden walks away without looking back at me. For a moment, I fear he's starting his old act and shutting me out again for the first time in weeks, but once he reaches the door, he turns and waves.

  I wave back and nod. I'll catch up later.

  "Ready to go?" Noah asks.

  "I'll drive," I say. "And you picked a good day to catch me. Aunt May doesn't need me at the store until Saturday."

  "Sometimes, I think you do way too much," Noah says. "You're always at the store. Soon you'll look like all the old ladies who come in. Is that a gray hair?" He pulls a strand off my head.

  "Hey!" I grab my hair. "I don't have grays."

  Noah holds the stand he pulled. "Are you sure this isn't one?"

  "I'm sure. And Aunt May isn't selling the store to that guy anymore, but we're still in the red," I say. Aunt May wants me to butt out of the store's situation, even though I work there and now realize how important it is we stay in Breckenridge. Protecting the people here depends on it.

  "I'll tell everyone I can to shop there," Noah says as we walk together into the parking lot. He waves to Sarah and Ellie, who stand on the green between the lot and the football field.

  And on the other side of the lot, Cayden ducks into the woods. Alone.

  If the Baltic Wolves return—

  "Where's he going?" Noah asks, following my gaze.

  "It's a long shortcut home," I supply.

  "A long shortcut? Isn't that an oxymoron?"

  "Well, yeah," I say, not feeling his sense of humor. Before, Noah would always make me laugh. Now that my world has changed—now that I've changed—that magical closeness we shared has faded. One world has opened, and another is closing.

  I listen to Cayden's footsteps vanish deeper into the woods. His woodsy scent blends with the rest of the wilds. I should be there with him, making sure he doesn't get into trouble. Alpha or not, he's not the best decision maker.

  Noah waves Sarah and Ellie over, and we all climb into my creaky car. The Beater starts on the first try (now that there isn't a Savage Wolf coming over to attack me) and I drive to Teeyah's, parallel parking in downtown Breckenridge. The building is two stories, brick, with string lights in the window. The sky's dark and spits rain as soon as I'm out of the car. Cayden's in the woods by himself in this weather.

  Inside, it's warm, and an escape from the autumn chill hanging in the air. We find a booth near the back of the place and Noah orders us all cappuccinos, which Aunt May says I'm not supposed to have. But I sip mine anyway. I'm tired of following the rules.

  Before the others can start a goofy conversation, I ask, "So, how did Olivia do in the play with her leg?"

  "Why did you give her the lead back?" Sarah asks. "You traitor." She pokes me in the arm.

  "Because my Aunt May was in the hospital," I lie. "I had to. Mr. Saffron yelled at me afterwards, but I think that was because I left half an hour before opening without telling him."

  "She was fine," Noah says. "Her leg bothered her, but you wouldn't believe how we soldiered through it."

  I've heard this before. "Have you talked to her?" I ask, steering the conversation in the direction I need. "Did she get a bite on her leg?"

  "With Olivia, you never know," Ellie says. "I think she's faking it myself. She danced okay in the play. You could see her cast under her dress a little, b
ut I don't think the audience minded."

  "Is the bite still her official story?" I ask. "The terrible, terrible bite she bravely suffered?" Olivia talked about it for a week with her shallow girlfriends. And every time she had to carry a bunch of books and there were cute guys around, she'd mention it even louder. She ran. A wolf sunk its teeth into her leg, breaking her bone. She managed to stagger to the police station. The last part's a lie for sure—her brother said a police officer drove past and scared the wolves off.

  Noah takes a big gulp of his jittery drink. "I don't know, but she broke her leg. The cast is real. We can never say break a leg again to her or anyone else. She showed me the X-rays. Her tibia got destroyed in one spot. Broke in half. The doctors had to put pins in her leg and I had to hold her up while we were dancing. My arms were raw hamburger for a week after that." Noah sighs, crushed, and pauses a moment before speaking again. He leans close to my ear. "I kissed her, but she turned her mouth away when I did. At least I got to write my name on the cast though there was only space on the heel."

  "Oh," I say. "Oh. I'm sorry." Noah's dreamed of kissing Olivia since junior high. He's had to endure watching her chase Cayden and then he had to watch his one chance fly out the window. I'd known Noah and Olivia kissed, but not like this. Now I know why he's wanted me to hang out with him. Noah needed to vent and for the past two weeks, I haven't been available.

  Ellie and Sarah stay silent as if they already know. Noah told them before me.

  "Do you have a copy?"

  "Of the fact that she steps on my name every day? Unless she sends her cast to a molding place when she gets out of it--"

  "I mean the X-ray."

  Noah looks at me, lifting his eyebrows like I'm crazy. "Do you have an obsession with seeing Olivia hurt or something? I know you don't like her, but sheesh."

  Heat rushes to my cheeks. My body still betrays me. And now Noah's smell changes. Instead of old books and the props room, he's metallic. Cayden tells me it's adrenaline, pumped through a human or animal when they feel fear or anger. Noah's angry.