by Sadie Moss
“Don’t worry about it, Sah. It’ll all be okay.”
I tried not to stare at their interaction, but it was hard not to. I’d seen Rhys’s softer side on occasion, but for the most part, I was used to his hard outer shell.
Watching him with Sariah, though—the way he kept an eye on her at all times, the way his voice shifted when he talked to her, the deep register becoming soft and reassuring—made something warm and gooey spread in my chest. He seemed to fill the role of part-brother, part-parent, and judging by the concern in his gaze when he looked at her, he was worried about what all those years held captive by Strand had done to her.
I hadn’t known his sister before all this, not like he had. But even I could tell there was something missing, something a little off in her demeanor. As though a part of her hadn’t come with us when we’d left the Salt Lake complex. I could only hope that as the reality that she truly was free began to sink in and she got reacquainted with her brother, she’d come out of her shell and find some kind of peace.
Not an easy task. I think we all know that firsthand.
My gaze met West’s, and although I could still see a deep sadness in his dark brown eyes, he didn’t turn away from me.
Noah took my hand, picking up our flagging pace with a determined stride. “Rhys is right. And if it’s not okay, we’ll come up with a new plan. We’ve gotten pretty good at that over the years.”
“That’s the fucking truth,” Jackson agreed with a chuckle. “Hey, remember that time after we first got to Vegas? When West decided the best way for us to make a living was by becoming strippers?”
“It was just a suggestion,” West grumbled, his dark skin flushing slightly.
“Uh, sure it was, buddy. You had the playlist and tear-away pants allll ready to go.”
I hid my smile behind my hand, sharing a look with Sariah. For a brief moment, I got a glimpse of the girl she might’ve once been, vivacious and full of life. Then her eyes darkened again, and she dropped her gaze.
“Well, I still maintain we could’ve made at least as good of money as we did in our other jobs,” West insisted.
“Yeah, sure. But we wouldn’t have picked up any useful skills.” Jackson laughed. “Knowing how to pick locks and hot-wire cars has saved our bacon a bunch of times. How would you have stopped the blond Terminator if all you knew how to do was strip? Give him a lap dance?”
West rolled his eyes, shoving Jackson’s shoulder. The brown-haired shifter stumbled sideways a few steps before bouncing back to continue teasing his pack mate.
I lost myself in the comforting sound of their banter and the steady rhythm of our footsteps as my mind drifted back to Molly and Carl. As concerned as I was about me and my mates, I hoped the two of them would be all right too. I’d hugged the sweet blonde nurse so hard before we left that I’d probably bruised her ribs, and she’d hugged me back just as fiercely.
Somehow, through all of this, she’d become like a sister to me. And despite the differences in our situations, one thing we had in common was that we each knew where our homes were—and it had nothing to do with a physical location.
My gaze drifted over my four mates, my four rescuers.
My home.
No matter what the universe had in store for us, I had to believe that as long as we were together, we stood a chance of overcoming it.
With such a large group, many of whom were in shock and slightly malnourished, our progress through the pine forest was slow. At least this time we knew exactly where we were going, thanks to Val’s coordinates.
We were about a mile away from our destination when howls in the distance split the quiet air. Our entire party froze in place, cocking our heads to listen. Then, as one, the Salt Lake City pack tipped their heads back and added their voices to the haunting song.
Goose bumps prickled along my skin as the sound permeated my ears, heart, and soul. It was beautiful and sad, hopeful and melancholy. The she-wolf inside me lifted her head at the call.
Then, from the forest ahead of us, four large wolves emerged. The leader shifted in mid-stride, becoming a woman with long auburn hair, hazel eyes, and a wickedly curved scar along the right side of her face.
Val.
Her bearing was confident and strong, her expression severe. But as she neared us, taking in the multitude of wolves around us with a sweep of her gaze, her lips parted in a broad smile.
“Ho-ly fuck.” She shook her head with grudging respect, her eyes glinting. “You did it.”
“We told you we would.” Rhys put his arm around Sariah’s shoulders protectively, shooting an almost challenging look at Val.
“That you did, shifter. That you did.”
The fierce woman looked almost wistful, as though she was sorry she’d missed out on the fight. I wondered for the first time what might’ve happened if Nils and his hunters hadn’t tracked us to the Lost Pack’s previous location and attacked the camp. Rhys had intended to ask Alpha Elijah whether he’d allow members of his pack to help us if they chose, but we’d been forced to run for our lives before he could get an answer.
Would Val have volunteered? Would any of the other Lost Pack wolves have stepped forward?
Val’s assessing gaze took in the new shifters with us, noting their dull fur and thin frames. Her face hardened with anger at the pitiful sight as her three shifter guards walked among us, sniffing at the newcomers.
“And I’m guessing these are others from the same complex where you found your sister?”
Rhys nodded.
The auburn-haired woman stepped forward, completely unfazed by her nakedness. Her long hair fell over her shoulders and breasts, and somehow, even without a stitch of clothing or armor on, she looked like a fucking warrior.
She raised her voice, addressing the crowd. “You are all welcome here. The Lost Pack has been, and always will be, a safe haven for escaped shifters. Please, come with me.”
With a jerk of her chin, she signaled to her guard. They fanned out around us, two on each side and one bringing up the rear. Val fell into step with us as we resumed walking, turning her head to look from me to my men. Her expression grew grave, and she lowered her voice.
“I’m glad to see you alive. But I have to warn you, not everyone may share that sentiment. Alpha Elijah still blames you for the ambush of our pack. His paranoia kept us prepared for attacks, so our losses weren’t as devastating as they could have been. But we did lose several beloved members, and because of the alpha’s influence, other pack members may blame you too.”
Guilt twisted my stomach. It was hard not to agree with Alpha Elijah’s assessment. Our arrival had been the thing that led Strand hunters right to the Lost Pack’s doorstep. The fact that we didn’t know, that we’d never intended to bring that kind of danger with us, was irrelevant in the end. It didn’t change what had happened.
“I don’t think he’ll deny you entry.” Val glanced back over her shoulder, taking in the group behind us. “Especially not with so many in need. But I thought you should know what kind of reception to expect.”
“Thanks.” West’s brows drew together, his face tightening with concern. “We’ll talk to him.”
“All of us except Rhys,” Jackson joked, although I was sure he absolutely meant it. “He already pissed the alpha off bad enough. Maybe he should just keep his mouth shut.”
“I have nothing to say to him,” Rhys said flatly.
Vivid memories of our first time meeting Alpha Elijah filtered through my mind, and the worry in my gut intensified. Rhys had clashed with the stoic, immovable man almost immediately, and things had only gone downhill from there. He might say he had no words for the alpha, but how long would that last?
“Good.” Jackson chuckled. “’Cause the only things I imagine you want to say to him would probably burn all the hair off his ears.”
“We’ll have to be smart about this,” Noah put in. “We need to—”
He broke off as we crested a small rise and f
But this?
This was something else entirely.
“What…?” I breathed, staring at the large array of buildings before me.
“It’s an abandoned military base,” Val filled in. “There’s no electricity, so most of the facilities don’t work, but it’s a roof over our heads, at least. And it hides us better from aerial view.”
I nodded, my gaze still locked on the base. It looked unnervingly like the kind of compound we’d just rescued Sariah and the other shifters from, and I had to remind myself that there was nothing to fear inside those walls. This wasn’t Strand.
We walked the rest of the way in silence, all of us on high alert, bodies tense and ears pricked. Finally, we reached the edge of the compound, following a path between two large gray buildings. Lookouts must’ve seen us coming, because before we made it more than a few yards, Alpha Elijah appeared, striding quickly toward us.
He took in our whole party with a sweeping gaze before his penetrating stare settled on Noah, Jackson, West, Rhys—and finally, on me. Val stepped forward to speak low in his ear, gesturing to us as she did. The middle-aged man’s eyes widened, then narrowed. He swept a hand through his shaggy brown hair, his thick beard quivering as he clenched his teeth.
We all waited in silence. Not even Rhys spoke.
For several long moments, the alpha glowered at us, brows drawn together over his dark blue eyes. I tried to keep my expression neutral, but I could feel the muscles of my legs and shoulders tensing, preparing to run or fight. I wiped my sweaty palms on my pants.
Shit. He’s not going to let us stay.
But would he let us leave? Now that we’d seen the Lost Pack’s new location, would he risk letting us go? Risk Strand capturing us again and using us to track them down?
Finally, when I thought my heart was going to pound right out of my chest, the alpha blinked. Then he lifted his head, raising his booming voice.
“No shifter who seeks asylum with the Lost Pack will ever be denied. You are all welcome here. Even those of you for whom this is a second chance.”
His dark tone didn’t match his civil words, and instead of saying anything else, he pivoted on his heel and strode away.
Val returned to us, cocking an eyebrow as if to say, I warned you.
I let out a shuddering breath, nodding in acknowledgment. At least she had warned us, although it was too late to change course now. She gestured us forward, and we continued through the abandoned base, the wolves behind us snuffling and whining nervously as Lost Pack shifters stopped in their tracks to watch us pass by.
I could feel their gazes on us like scorching spotlights, following our slow progression through the camp. Whispers and murmurs buzzed in our wake as the onlookers’ expressions morphed from surprise into resentment, anger, and fear.
Noah slipped his hand into mine, lacing our fingers together, and Rhys grabbed my arm protectively. He kept Sariah close on his other side as Jackson and West crowded behind us, eyeing the Lost Pack shifters warily.
The tension that had been winding through my stomach settled into a hard knot.
We’d promised the Salt Lake City pack they would be safe here. And they would. I had to believe that. But a nagging voice inside me kept asking the same question over and over again.
Had we brought them into an even more dangerous situation than the one they’d been in before?
THANK YOU FOR READING!
I absolutely loved writing this book, and I hope you loved reading it just as much! If you did, please leave a review (even a sentence or two makes such a huge difference!).
And don’t worry, I won’t leave you hanging! Book three, Wolf Claimed, is coming very soon.
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In the meantime, you can dive into my complete reverse harem urban fantasy series, Magic Awakened, starting with the free prequel novella, Kissed by Shadows.
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Also by Sadie Moss
Magic Awakened
Kissed by Shadows (prequel novella)
Bound by Magic
Game of Lies
Consort of Rebels
The Vampires’ Fae
Saved by Blood
Seduced by Blood
Ruined by Blood
The Last Shifter
Wolf Hunted
Wolf Called
Wolf Claimed
Wolf Freed
Academy of Unpredictable Magic
Spark
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