Sabina giggled, which made my heart happy, then asked, “What do you mean, you didn’t know what you were doing?”
“I didn’t. Someone guided me. Just as they guided me to help you that first day we landed in Oz.”
“Kali Sara,” she whispered, “that’s so strange.”
“Not going to say it isn’t.”
“I mean, did I eat the fruit?”
“You were in your wolfskin. You saw how the bitch wolfed it down. Why wouldn’t you in that form?”
“Everyone’s a comedian,” Austin muttered.
I tugged one of my hands free and wiped my eyes, rubbing a little harder to try to get them back online.
Surprisingly, though I didn’t expect it to work, it did. I peered through the shadows marring my vision, and muttered, “Mother.”
“My reaction exactly.”
Eli’s dour words didn’t make me tense up. I knew what he was thinking.
We already had a pack of naturals living in the woods, roaming around. This pack was twice the size. There’d be challenges, and that was a damn shame, because we couldn’t afford to lose the naturals.
They were slowly going extinct from the way the humans kept on taking their territory, so we worked hard to bring them here, to tether them to this safe space.
“Maybe they’ll be okay,” Austin murmured softly. “I mean, these are freaky wolves. They’re not like the others, are they?”
Sabina tugged me over to the she-wolf who was licking the little pups, tending to them.
When her belly started contracting once more, I pulled a face as she tensed and released a keening cry.
A couple of minutes later, she birthed the placenta, and Austin muttered, “Well, that’s some shit I didn’t expect to be seeing today.”
He wasn’t wrong. I’d never anticipated this either.
Hell.
What I didn’t expect?
For Sabina to reach over, grab it, then wander over to the totem.
“She asked for yours—”
Sabina shrugged at Eli’s statement. “Doesn’t matter. I think the totem needs this too.”
Who the hell were we to argue?
At least she seemed to know what was going on, while we were just in the dark. Still, I could stand being in the dark so long as she was here with us.
The center around which we all orbited.
Our very own sun.
Thirteen
Austin
I sensed the council’s disdain the second we wandered into the clearing, but I ignored it because, as always, they looked at me and Ethan like we were pieces of shit. There was no change there, but I was looking forward to Eli bringing them down a peg or two.
I wasn’t sure when it would happen, just knew it would.
And that was a day I was excited about embracing.
As we stood there, beside the pedestal, with me at Sabina’s back, Ethan on her left, and Eli on her right, I watched as the pack trounced in, the totem messing with them, as was its way.
When they circled us, the supernatural pack of wolves, in turn, circled them, which immediately had tongues wagging.
“Brothers, sisters,” Eli declared, the second we were all in place. “I bring you here with great news.”
I could feel the anticipation in the air, especially since I knew people were still reeling from Brandon being taken off the beta pedestal.
While Ethan wasn’t a popular choice, Brandon was a prick, so he wasn’t that popular either.
And if I could compare popularity to one of us, that meant Brandon had been hated by the regular folk in the pack.
My lips twitched at the thought as Sabina took a slight step back, not stopping until our bodies purposely collided.
In her ear, I whispered, “You doing okay, sweetheart?”
“I’ll be glad when this is over. I’m nervous.”
My lips curved as I slipped an arm around her waist. Behind me, I heard some padding paws, the rustle of leaves behind the totem, and I knew who it was.
Or what.
The she-wolf.
The bitch was like my woman’s second skin.
I wouldn’t lie, my nose felt like it was pushed a little out of joint now that she had the bitch at her side, but how could I be unhappy that she had a constant guard? Someone who’d keep her safe no matter what?
I couldn’t be upset about that. If anything, I was fucking relieved.
The idea of a world without her was something I couldn’t abide. Knowing that the Mother had granted her a guardian that would help tighten the safety net around her?
It felt like I’d been given a double dose of Valium, especially in the face of my new position.
Sharing a job with Ethan was a helluva a lot different from suddenly being the one who enforced shit on my own. With Ethan tied up with more work, and Eli struggling to figure out a way to overturn the council without toppling the pack into chaos?
We needed all the help we could get.
Throw in the fact that I was trying to help them with their jobs, and Ethan was still being contacted by some of the pack, even though they had to know I was the only enforcer—shit was confusing to say the least.
“I wish to introduce you to Sabina Highbanks,” Eli announced. “Our new omega.”
The whispers were there, surging to the fore, merging around us, and Sabina tensed somewhat as she evidently keyed in on their mutters.
They weren’t necessarily excited, more curious.
I figured that was the best we could hope for.
“While she takes that position, and Ethan settles into the new role as pack beta, don’t forget that Austin is still enforcer. Our duty to you has not changed, however, what is unusual is that the three of us are bound to the omega.”
“She’s that powerful, Alpha?”
Trust Maggie May to be the one who dared speak out at that moment.
Conrad muttered, “Shut up, Margaret!”
Maggie just grunted and focused on Eli. “Son?”
I ignored Conrad and replied, “Yes. She’s that powerful. Capable of more than you’re ready to hear, but as she learns her way, she’ll be our guiding light.”
Sabina was tense in my arms, and I knew that came from being at the center of attention. As beautiful as she was, as confident, being stared at by a bunch of people you didn’t know was just never on someone’s to-do list.
I couldn’t blame her for being nervous. She was in a circle of creatures that, until recently, would have inspired terror in the heart of any human if they were aware of what we truly were.
We’d known she’d respond this way. Omegas were, after all, incredibly empathic, and here, at this moment, with the pack in great upheaval, it was a wonder she was standing.
That was why when Eli tipped his face to the totem, then angled his head back to stare up at the moon, and hollered, “And now, we run!” I grabbed her and held her back.
He shifted without stripping, which was a waste of clothes, but who was I to judge, which prompted everyone in the vicinity except for Ethan, myself, and Sabina to shift in turn.
That right there was proof of why we belonged to be where we were in the pack.
Might ruled in these situations, because might was goddess granted, and that was the truth of it.
Seconds after he’d transformed, the pack was all furry. Eli looked at me and waited for me to nod to check in with him. Then, Ethan shifted and started to run with Eli toward the edge of the circle where they’d lope into the forest.
For the rest of the night, they’d play and run and walk as wolves, but me and Sabina?
We wouldn’t, because something was holding her back, and it was on me as the only normal one of her three mates to uncover what was wrong.
When I grabbed her chin and gently twirled her to look at me, I saw she was relieved to be standing here in her human skin, and I shook my head at her. “You’ll have to run with them soon.”
A hum escaped her. “That’s
not my purpose.”
I arched a brow. “What do you mean?”
“The alpha, beta, and enforcer run with them.” Her lips twitched. “They don’t need me. I hate running.”
Nose crinkling, I told her, “It’s different as a wolf. You’ll love it. You liked it on the other plane, didn’t you?”
“I did. But that was different. Here, I’m not supposed to do that. I’m not supposed to run with you.”
I frowned at her, because she either sounded incredibly certain or she was really good at bullshitting me.
Who knew, it was probably both.
A laugh escaped her, and she elbowed me in the belly, before she muttered, “Gotcha.”
I rolled my eyes. “I knew you were bullshitting.”
She sniffed. “No, you totally didn’t.” But it didn’t stop her from snatching my hand, turning me to face the totem, and asking, “I wasn’t sure if you could shift with clothes on.”
My brow furrowed. Was that the issue? I’d have thought days of being naked in the other realm would have calmed her down. “You can. It wrecks your clothes. If you’re powerful enough, it even makes them disappear.”
“Why?”
I scoffed, “Like I’d know. The Mother works in mysterious ways.”
Her lips twitched, but she scanned the totem with an attention to detail that surprised me. “Isn’t it strange?” she eventually commented.
“Strange ain’t the word, doll,” I replied wryly, not particularly interested in the totem, even though I knew she was, because hell, I’d seen it all my life. It was the exact opposite of completely new to me.
She glanced at me, then muttered, “I’d never have said that to Eli.”
My lips curved, and I squeezed her hand. “I know, but he’s all bark and no bite where you’re concerned.”
She shrugged. “Probably wouldn’t have said it to Ethan either.”
I sighed, tugged on her hand, and swirled her backward into me so that she was leaning against me once more. “They’re your mates. You can say whatever you want to them, and if they don’t like it, well, it won’t cause a war. You’ll just argue. Simple.”
“I hate arguing.” She sighed. “I’m not very good at it, plus, it’s such a waste of energy. There are much better things I’d prefer to do.”
“Oh?” I teased, grinning when she shimmied against me.
“Yeah, oh,” she remarked wryly, “but not just that, I don’t want to offend anyone.”
“What do you mean?”
She hummed. “When everyone stepped into the circle tonight, I heard a cluster of whispers.”
“You did? That’s great news!” Anything that enabled her to be more at one with her powers was for the good. We’d need all the skills the Mother granted her to take the pack forward to where it needed to be.
None of us were exactly sure where that was, but we figured we’d find out once it started to unfold.
“Yeah, but not.” Her nose crinkled much as mine had earlier, and I watched as she ducked her head between her shoulders and muttered, “I don’t think Merinda was very popular.”
I thought about that, then shrugged. “Probably not. Eli doesn’t realize that though. He thought the moon rose and fell on her.”
“She was his mom. Of course, he thought that,” she chided softly.
I just hummed. “She was mine too… I think that’s a measure of the woman. For her to do what she did? It says a lot about her.”
“I agree. I was just surprised is all. I thought they’d be hostile to having a new omega because they loved the old one so much, but they weren’t. Aren’t. They’re curious about me. A little nervous, a lot wary. They can scent I’m a wolf child, but they also sense my power and are happy if Eli is.” She looked thoughtful for a second. “The council is going to be trouble.”
“When aren’t they?” I muttered.
She sighed, and it was dreamy and definitely not because she was thinking about the council. “It’s so beautiful.”
“No more beautiful than you are, my mate.” She looked up at me and graced me with her smile, and I felt that smile in my heart. Reaching for her hand, I raised it to my mouth and kissed her knuckles. “Do you want to go for a walk?”
She hummed. “That would be nice.”
“You want to run as wolves?”
She shook her head. “No.”
“Why not?” My question had her shrugging, but I repeated, “Why not?”
“Just don’t feel like it.”
I squinted at her. “You think that if you shift, you’ll feel something else?”
She shoved me a little. “Since when could you read between the lines?”
I laughed. “Since always. Ethan just thinks I’m the dumb one.”
A gasp escaped her. “He doesn’t think that.”
“He does.” I shrugged. “It’s okay. I think he’s a boring fuck too.”
Sabina giggled. “Well, you’re both wrong, and I love you both exactly how you are,” she stated primly.
“You’ve got no taste. You like Eli too. He walks around like he’s got a stick up his ass.”
When Eli howled at that, making me fully aware that he was listening in on our conversation, I chuckled when she jumped.
“He can hear from that far?” We both could sense how far away the pack was, and I just shrugged.
“He’s powerful, and as a wolf, when he runs, when he lets the beast out full throttle, he will always be keyed into you and your needs first and foremost.”
A shaky sigh escaped her. “I’m still not sure how that happened.”
“It didn’t just happen, love. It was preordained by the very lady who made this.” I gently slapped the totem, shivering a little as I did so.
The magic in the circle was incredibly potent, and I’d just felt it filter through my bones like an electric shock.
The zap had me shaking my hand, then reaching for her. “Come on, let’s get out of here.”
I tugged her into my side, and we started walking out of the circle.
With nowhere really to go, I turned her to the house where Ethan and I lived. Or used to live.
We’d need to move out soon enough, and I figured, like most women, she’d be curious about where we stayed.
“I heard that. I’m not most women,” she groused.
“No, but you’d still like to see our place, wouldn’t you?” I teased.
When she huffed, I knew I had my answer.
Behind us, I heard padding paws stepping through the mulch and dead leaves lining the forest floor, but concern didn’t filter through me because I knew it was the she-wolf.
“She’s protective of me,” was all she said, picking up yet again on my train of thought. That the bitch was protective of her was something I knew she liked. Didn’t get it, but she liked it nonetheless.
“I’m glad she is.”
And I was. I could feel it brimming in the she-wolf’s heart—a possessive protectiveness that would see the beast kill anyone who dared put Sabina in harm’s way.
Fuck, if her life goal and my life goal weren’t exactly the same.
“We’ll need to make sure if she bites someone, no one knows it’s her—”
“She won’t bite anyone,” Sabina scoffed, making me snort.
“She’s wild. Of course she will!” I tugged on her hand. “It’s okay.” I pressed another kiss to her knuckles.
She sighed, smiling into my eyes as my lips connected with her skin. “I meant to apologize to you.”
I arched a brow. “Why?”
Her hand came up to cup my cheek. “During our claiming, I treated you badly.”
My brow furrowed, but I knew what she meant. Aside from the natural wolf attack, I considered our claiming to be perfection—that she didn’t, that she felt guilty for her actions, was because she felt too much. “You were still a victim then. I understood it then, and I understand it now.”
Her lips twisted, but the smile that shone through wa
s more genuine than I could bear. “You’re right. I was. But I’m not anymore.”
I winked at her. “Trust me, sweetheart, I know that. Anyway, no apologies. None are necessary. Come on. I want to show you my den.”
The walk to my cabin didn’t take long, not from the totem’s location, and when I guided her inside, she peered in each room, shaking her head and smiling as she did so.
“What’s got you smiling?”
She grinned. “It’s nothing like I thought it would be.”
My eyes widened. “Is that good or bad?”
“It’s neither. Just nice to know you two can surprise me.” She leaned up on her tiptoes, then pressed a kiss to my lips. I sighed into it, as did she, before she darted off and started exploring.
When she strode into Ethan’s room, I leaned against the jamb, watching her.
“Kali Sara, he likes books, doesn’t he?”
My mouth twisted into a smile. “Yeah. He likes them. A lot.” That was an understatement. The walls were lined with books, and every possible surface was stacked high with them—all types, thicknesses, and sizes.
“I hate reading,” I muttered.
She grinned at me. “Sacrilege.”
“It’s just not how I work. If you tell me a story, I’ll never forget it. But if you have me read it?” I blew out a breath. “I’ll hate every second of it.”
“I want to hear a story from you sometime.” She hummed. “Eli was saying you’re great at telling them.”
“Well, that’s not a way to give me stage fright, is it?” I grumbled, surprised that Eli had given me that compliment.
She snickered, but ceased trailing her hand over the books, the myriad tomes that Ethan considered priceless possessions, before she wandered over to me.
“I want to see your room now.”
“Who am I to disobey?”
She grinned, then laughed when I led her in there.
“Austin, really? Did it need to be so big?” was her first response.
I winked at her. “Big is as big does.”
“True,” she mused. “Your dick is as big as the TV.”
“Be grateful it isn’t, sassy monkey,” I chided, but I leaned over and nipped her bottom lip for her pains.
WOLF CHILD: A PNR RH Romance (The Year of the Wolf Book 1) Page 29
