by M H Soars
“Do you think there will be information about her in one of those old diaries?”
“It’s a long shot. But it’s all I have to go on right now. Maybe if we learn about Natalia, we can begin to understand Red’s strange powers.”
A strand of suspicion sneaks into my mind, making my heart clench painfully. “Dante, do you think Valerius knows about Red’s special abilities?”
Dante opens his mouth to reply, but Mrs. Redford sticks her head in and interrupts. “I thought you wanted those diaries, boy. My granddaughter can’t save your asses without some kind of help.”
I wait until she heads out once more to turn to Dante. “When did Mrs. Redford become so impertinent?”
“At least now we know who Red got her feisty personality from.”
Chapter 26
Tristan
Headache or not, I go look for Mom. There’s no time for mourning, not when we’re on the brink of war. I find her in Dad’s old office, her ear glued to the phone while she paces back and forth in front of the massive mahogany desk. She glances briefly in my direction when I enter the room, but that’s the only acknowledgement I get from her.
“When do you think you can get here?” she asks.
A moment later, she replies. “Thanks, Simon. I appreciate it.”
Ending the call, she turns to me. “You look like hell.”
“I feel like hell. Was that Simon Riddle on the phone?”
Simon is the alpha of the London pack, the oldest in the history of wolf shifters. There are other packs in England, but Dad didn’t have a strong relationship with any of them. Simon was one of Dad’s closest friends, and also present at the dinner that resulted in my father getting a chip implanted in his head.
“Yes. I’ve spent the morning calling all the alphas who belong to the World Council of Wolves to let them know about your father and also to give them an update on Valerius’s movements.”
“And what did they have to say about Valerius?”
I haven’t forgotten that someone in my father’s inner circle betrayed him.
“It’s hard to tell over the phone. They all expressed their condolences and said wonderful things about Anthony, but are their sentiments sincere?”
“Simon was with Dad during that dinner in Vancouver.” I don’t need to say more to convey my meaning.
Mom crosses her arms, letting her chin hang low and sighing loudly. “I know. He was the most distressed to hear about your father and Valerius. Either he’s a terrific actor or he didn’t betray your father. We shall find out soon enough.”
“What do you mean?”
Mom lifts her face, her gaze turning cold and hard. “I’ve requested assistance from Simon and also from the other alphas present during your father’s dinner. If we’re dealing with a traitor, I want them exposed sooner rather than later.”
I don’t disagree with the plan, but they might arrive here too late. I keep my worries to myself, though.
“We have a problem. A bigger problem. Valerius just declared war on us. He sent Deacon’s head inside a box as warning of what’s to come.”
The blood drains from Mom’s face. For a brief moment, I catch a hint of fear in her eyes. But then, she squares her shoulders, lifting her chin up while determination takes over her countenance.
“Where are the enforcers? I want a task force ready and sentries spread out throughout our territory.”
That’s exactly the order I should have given the enforcers before I came here. Fuck. Why the hell didn’t I? I can’t put all the blame in my damn hangover. Did losing to Valerius affect my confidence that much?
“I asked Seth to retrieve the security tape from the North gate. That’s where the package was delivered.”
“That’s useless. We already know Valerius did this. I don’t care who he sent to deliver the package.”
I wince as if Mom’s words physically slapped me. I’m already feeling like an utter failure, having her criticize my decision is the cherry on top of the cake.
She motions for the door, ready to play the alpha role, but I have to warn her. “Mom, wait. There’s something you need to know.”
“What is it, Tristan?”
“Before Valerius’s package arrived, I was at an impromptu meeting organized by Seth. The most experienced enforcers were there, and they were questioning your leadership. They wanted me take the place as the new alpha.”
Mom’s expression doesn’t reveal anything. She has the perfect poker face on, but it must be killing her to hear her wolves don’t trust her.
“I see. And do you feel you can be a better alpha, Tristan?”
I become rigid in an instant. That’s not a question I want to answer. “You are the alpha.”
“I might not be the alpha of this pack for much longer. But is there only one wolf who can take the job?”
“Are you referring to Dante and Sam?”
From the moment I began to understand how pack politics worked, I knew that if any of us became the new alpha, the other two would be forced to leave or die. We’re just too equally matched in strength, and the wolves would force the alpha to fight the other two. An alpha is not a true alpha if he can’t make his entire pack yield to his dominance. Because I’m the oldest, it was always assumed I’d be the one to take my father’s place. But now, I’m the last wolf qualified for the job.
“You and your brothers possess different qualities, but you all have the alpha strand, the fire and power to lead. This has never happened before, but you’re also mated to the same wolf. A shifter who possesses extraordinary gifts.”
“I don’t follow where you’re going with this, Mom.”
“Think about it, Tristan. Three equally matched alphas mated to the same woman. This pack is not meant to have one new alpha. It’s meant to have three. You and your brothers are the legitimate alphas of this pack.”
I stare at Mom for several beats without blinking. What she just said is insane and impossible.
“The pack will never accept that. You know it, Mom.”
“It will be hard, and you’ll have to prove that’s how it’s supposed to be. Why do you think I decided to remain the sole alpha? There’s been too much instability already, and the pack needs to be prepared for the change. I wish we didn’t have to deal with a shifter war while we’re at it, but that’s how things are. Now, the question is, are you ready to step up to the challenge?”
I open and close my mouth, but no sound comes forth. The old Tristan would have said yes without an ounce of doubt. Why am I feeling hesitant, unsure of everything?
“You don’t need to give me your answer right now. Where are your brothers?”
“I haven’t seen them yet.”
The pinch of Mom’s lips tells me she’s very displeased to learn that. She tries to reach them by phone, but she’s unsuccessful in both attempts.
“They’d better be doing something productive and not getting into trouble.”
I wish I could jump to their defense, but knowing Dante and especially Sam, they’re probably up to no good. God, what if they decided to go back to Shadow Creek and rescue Red?
“Let’s go.” Mom heads for the door. “We have a war to prepare for.”
Chapter 27
Red
The first sense that returns to me is my hearing. There are two people talking nearby, a man and a woman. They’re in the same room as me, and they don’t seem to care if I overhear their conversation. They must believe I’m still sedated. So I try my best to not move a muscle.
“How long until the sedative wears off?” the man asks, and it takes me a second to recognize his voice. It’s Martin, which means I must be inside the mysterious building protected by the rune spell.
“Another hour or so. The operation was successful. The chip is in place,” the woman replies.
Chip? Fuck, no. They’ve put a controlling chip in my brain. What am I going to do?
“Good. Valerius will be pleased. You used the regular
chip, right?”
“Yes, like you specifically told me to. I don’t get why Valerius didn’t want to use the special chip on that one. She looks like she could use a bolt of extra strength.”
“You’re not here to question my orders.”
“Chill out, Martin. I’m not questioning anything. Anyway, we’re almost out of both kinds. Actually, the one I installed in that girl was the last of the regular type.”
“How many do we have left of the other one?”
“Ten, but with the way your boss keeps recruiting new subjects, we should be out of those in a week.”
Martin curses. “Why the hell didn’t you tell me this before, Felicia?”
“It’s Dr. Felicia,” the woman seethes. “And I didn’t tell you because we still had a few of the first prototypes, but you destroyed them.”
“Those have proven to be unreliable. I don’t need a fucking rogue wolf turning on my team.”
“So, what are you going to do?”
“What do you think I’m going to do, moron? I’m going contact our supplier and ask if they can send more this week.”
My heart is thundering in my chest, and I’m afraid it will give away that I’m awake with the way it’s beating so loudly. Valerius is creating an army. His strife is not only with the Crimson Hollow pack. That’s obvious.
“When will she be ready for testing?” Martin asks, shoving the knife of fear deeper in my chest.
“As soon as she wakes up.”
“Good. Let me know when that happens. I want to personally oversee that.”
“As you wish, boss.”
I detect the sound of a door gliding open, and then Martin’s and the woman’s voices begin to fade away. They’re gone. I count to sixty in my head before I open my eyes to slits at first. I don’t see anyone else around, so I open them fully now. I’m in a hospital room, white and sterile, similar to the one Valerius put me in on my first day of captivity. Once again, my hands are bound to the bed’s side railing.
The first thing I search for is a security camera. I’m certain Valerius has them installed everywhere. Sure enough, I find one in the upper corner of the room. Damn it. How long until Martin returns to make sure I’ve turned into a mindless wolf? And what was all that talking about a special kind of chip and extra strength?
No time to think about that now. I need to get out of here. Inspecting the bindings around my wrist, I notice they’re the same kind as the ones Valerius used before. Unyielding and unbreakable while I’m in human form.
The bed is completely flat, which limits my view range. One thing I can see is that this room has big glass windows to the hallway, which leaves me completely exposed. Raising my head as far as I can, I try to see beyond the room. No one is around, but it doesn’t mean I’m alone. Martin is still somewhere nearby. Who knows, maybe he’s watching me struggle through the camera feed and laughing his ass off.
I’m running out of time, so if I want to get out of here, I have to shift before Martin turns on the chip in my head. Focusing on the energy inside my core, I call forth the wolf. It’s there, restless, begging to be set free, but something is keeping it bound, contained. For fuck’s sake. What did Martin do to me? My hands turn clammy as I curl them into fists, sweat pooling on my forehead. Grunting, I struggle to free my wolf until I finally feel my gums ache. Yes!
My celebratory sentiment dies as fast as it came when the gliding door opens again, and Martin fills the entrance.
“Give up, Amelia. Your days of shifting at will are over.”
“We’ll see about that.”
A woman with bright red hair comes in carrying a medical chart in her hand. She must be the fucking doctor who put the chip in my head. Deep lines form on her forehead as she peers intently at me.
“Hmm, the sedatives wore off sooner than I predicted.” She approaches the bed, bringing forth a small flashlight to check my eyes.
“Get away from me.” I turn my face away from her, not letting the bitch do her routine checkup. If they think I’m just going to lay here and let them to do whatever they please, they’re sorely mistaken.
None too gently, she grabs me by the chin and turns my face in her direction. I keep my eyes shut.
“Martin, a little help here?” she says, frustration lacing her words.
He chuckles. “Oh, no. I want to see how this will pan out.”
“Open your fucking eyes, bitch. I don’t have all day.” The slap to my face comes swift and hard. I almost laugh. All the sharp pain did was to snap some of the invisible bindings keeping my wolf in place. My canines descend and before the stupid doctor realizes what’s happening, I’m sinking my teeth into her hand.
She yells and tries to pull away, but the more she struggles, the harder I bite.
“Martin! Get this bitch off me.”
I’m too lost in my blood lust to notice the hunter walk around the bed with a syringe in his hand before it’s too late. I feel the prickle on my neck, and a second later, my entire body begins to numb. The sellout doctor finally manages to break free when my jaw slackens.
“Why did you sedate her again?” she asks, clutching her bloody hand against her chest.
“Did you want to lose an appendage?”
“You could have activated the chip, idiot.”
Martin is on the doctor in a split second, lifting the woman off the ground by her neck. “Who are you calling an idiot, butcher?”
“Let go of me.” She tries to pry his fingers open to no avail as she kicks her legs.
My eyelids are getting heavy, but I fight the numbness with every fiber of my being. I don’t want to go under again.
“Not until you apologize.”
“I’m sorry. Put me down.” She’s getting purple by the second. Perversely, I want Martin to keep squeezing her neck.
“Aren’t you forgetting the magic word?”
I have no doubt he’ll choke her to death if she doesn’t comply.
“Please, put me down,” she manages to say with effort.
He drops her as if she were a sack of garbage. Gasping for air, she leans forward, bracing her hands on her legs. “You’re fucking crazy,” she says after taking a few deep breaths.
“Yes. And you seem to have lost your brain. Do you think I’d be stupid enough to test the chip before you finish examining the girl? Nothing can go wrong with her.”
“What’s so special about that bitch?”
Valerius thinks I’m the Mother of Wolves, that’s what’s so special about me. But he doesn’t know that I can bring forth a powerful beast capable of shredding my enemies to pieces. Too bad my connection with the great wolf apparition seems to be on the fritz since I was brought to Shadow Creek. I only sensed its presence once when Nadine and I were running away from the demon.
“That’s not your concern,” the hunter says dismissively, leaving no room for further questions.
The sedative is finally winning the battle. I close my eyes, unable to prevent succumbing to the void.
My head is throbbing and there’s a foul taste in my mouth. I’m not sure how long I stayed under. I’m still in the same room, but not alone. Martin is sitting in a chair in the corner, his eyes like a hawk on me. Déjà fucking vu. Only this time, it’s not Valerius waiting for me to wake up. I can’t say Martin is a better visitor.
“Welcome back.”
I bite back an angry reply. Since I don’t know the next time I’ll be alone with the hunter, I decide to pester him with questions even though my brain feels sluggish.
“Why are you helping Valerius? What’s in it for you?”
Narrowing his eyes, he leans forward. “I’m not going to waste my breath explaining my reasoning to you. It doesn’t matter anyway. You’re his to do with as he pleases. You’re never getting out of here to pass on the information to your friends in Crimson Hollow.”
“We’ll see about that.”
“You keep saying that. Yet, there you are, still bound to the bed at my mercy
.”
“I’ll take great pleasure ripping your throat out.”
“I’m sure you mean it, but that ship has sailed, Amelia.”
He stands up, then approaches the bed. I can’t see what he’s doing, but suddenly, the bindings securing my wrists slacken. I immediately want to jump at the opportunity to claw the smug smile off Martin’s face. But just as my muscles tense for the action, the will to hurt the man vanishes. It’s then that I notice the little remote control in his hand.
“Good, girl. Now I want you to calmly get out of bed and shift.”
I fight the compulsion to obey with all the strength I have, but in the end, I succumb. Glaring at Martin, I swing my legs to the side of the bed, but when I try to stand up, dizziness makes my head spin. I have to hold on to the wall to keep upright.
“I don’t know if I can shift,” I say in almost a whisper. I’m totally exaggerating. I want Martin to believe I’m weaker than I am.
“You can. Now do it.”
The compulsion to obey comes again, stronger than before. It’s the strangest thing, because in order to shift, I have to connect with my wolf’s essence, but now, I can barely feel it inside of me. And yet, my muscles begin to change shape as if they have a will of their own. Grinding my teeth, I throw Martin another glower. The motherfucker will pay even if it’s the last thing I’ll do in my life.
To add insult to injury, the transformation is twice as painful. Maybe because it’s not a natural shift. By the time it’s complete, I’m panting, still riding the ache. Instead of the wolf’s energy and wild instinct in my head, all I can hear is static. The chip must run interference between the connection with my human conscience and the wolf’s. I want to growl, bare my teeth at Martin, but of course, nothing happens.
“Very good. We’ll start with a few simple tricks first. Sit.”
Before I know it, my rear is on the ground. My wolf’s body did it without me being conscience of the action.
“Good girl. Now roll.”
This is humiliating. Martin has me doing dog tricks, and there’s nothing I can do to stop it.
