by Jana Leigh
Cami nodded and looked out the window again. How was she ever going to understand all of this? Did she even want to?
“What happens if I say no?” Cami whispered.
“A wolf will have only one mate, one person that is their true compliment. Once they meet, that is it. Quin will never tell you, but the madness from rejection will take over and he will end up feral. Most times then, the Beta kills them, and takes over the Pack,” Grace said gently. “You do have a choice. Make sure you truly understand what you are accepting if you say yes. If you’re claimed, and then change your mind, Quin will not only lose his mind, but also his Pack. He can be banished for having his mate reject him after claiming. If you reject him before claiming, it will take years for him to go feral, at least he could get his stuff in order.”
Grace said it all so nonchalantly that Cami almost believed she had a choice. A few hours later, back in the bedroom, she realized she really didn’t have a choice. She could no longer send Quin away, any more than she could deny what was between them. She just needed time to see how things were going to work out. She couldn’t just jump into bed with a man and then be married to him. When she was younger, having a one-night stand had been her way of not getting close to anyone who could hurt her. She could not just fuck this man and leave him. He was going to be the only one she had sex with for the rest of her life. What if he really sucked?
She fretted, and worried, until once again, the sun had set and she was alone looking out the window again. A soft knock on the door came, and she was actually scared to answer it. What if it was Quin and he wanted an answer? Cami took a deep breath, opened the door, and let out her breath when she saw it was Grace, who was knocking.
“Quin wanted me to tell you that he wouldn’t be here for dinner. There has been another attack, he had to go and deal with it,” the older woman said and smiled at her.
“Another attack?” Cami asked.
“The Rogues have been getting more and more aggressive over the last few years. They have an Alpha leading them, who, for some reason, seems to have a personal problem with Quin. So far, he cannot find out who it is and why he has such a grudge for us. The one attacked today was a young female. They roughed her up pretty good outside her parent’s restaurant,” Grace said and pulled Cami out of the room towards the kitchen.
“Restaurant, you mean Margie’s place?” Cami said and frowned. She remembered Quin telling her last night, the woman ran the place with her family.
“Yes, her youngest. Ruby just turned eighteen last week, we had a party for her, and she was so happy and alive,” Grace replied and Cami saw tears form in the woman’s eyes.
“Oh no, we were there last night,” Cami said and then thought for a few moments, how much had changed since she was in the restaurant eating with what she thought was her new landlord.
“Yes, Ruby came in the morning to open as usual and there were five Rogues waiting in the alley for her. I don’t know the whole story, Quin would never tell me, but he was extremely upset when he left,” Grace commented, and pushed a plate of food in front of her.
“Shouldn’t they call the authorities?” Cami said and picked at her plate.
“We have to handle it within the Pack. We have our own doctor and laws. Quin will take care of it,” Grace said confidently. “I suspect he and his Beta will be planning on what to do, well into the night. Quin will never let this go unanswered.”
“Do? What will he do?” Cami asked.
“Hunt,” Grace said calmly and Cami's eyes went wide.
“Wait, I thought you said that Quin was the leader, surely he would have others hunt,” Cami said feeling very protective all the sudden. “The leader should never go where he can be hurt.”
“Dear, he is an Alpha Pack leader. He is the strongest of the group, and someone has challenged the fact that he takes care of the Pack. He will never send someone to do his dirty work. He will hunt with his Enforcers, and find the wolves that dare touch one of his. It is the way of the Pack,” Grace said gently.
Cami didn’t want Quin to go anywhere near some rabid dog, she pushed her plate back, and stood up. “I need to go,” she said firmly.
“Go? Home?” Grace said innocently.
“No, I need to be with Quin, to help. I have no clue what the hell I will do, but for some reason it feels like that is where I need to be,” Cami said, and walked to the bedroom to change her clothes. She wore the same thing she had worn yesterday. Sometime during the day, a duffel bag of her clothes had been brought to the bedroom, and she needed to change into her jeans.
Cami ignored the older woman who tried to get her to wait until she called down and found out where Quin was. Cami finally gave in and nodded, then waited in the hallway dressed in her comfortable jeans, a heavy sweater and hiking boots. She had the feeling she was going to need to be comfortable tonight. It could prove to be a long night.
“He is next door, on the third floor, which is the doctor’s office. Margie and her daughter are there. They made Rodger leave because he was getting angry and upsetting the girl. Quin is there with his Beta, Devon. I let them know you were on the way. One of the Enforcers will be here soon to take you over,” Grace said.
“Enforcer? Why do I need an escort? Surely I can walk across the street,” Cami said stubbornly.
“With the way things have been going, Quin has left orders for all females to be escorted when on the street,” Grace said.
“Oh, well then, I guess I can understand that,” she said grudgingly. She hated to feel as though her independence was being taken away. She may be little but she could protect herself.
Grace smiled a little when she lowered her head. Cami was going to make an excellent Alpha. Once she felt a little more comfortable in the Pack, Cami was going to be a spitfire.
Excerpt from Cat’s Choice
The Chosen’s War Book One
By Jana Leigh
Prologue
Lightning crashed, and thunder boomed as the wind pelted large spears of rain against her already sensitive and broken skin; but she couldn’t stop running if she wanted to stay alive. Day was quickly turning to night and she knew he would be after her soon.
Her tears were washed away by the harsh rain, and her sobs could barely be heard over the loud thunder. She thought this would at least be one blessing because the storm would make it harder for him to hear her and to catch her scent. Perhaps, there was a god after all.
However, she quickly pushed that thought away when images of her parents and her little sister flashed before her eyes. Their horrific screams as he tortured them and broke their bones. Then the ill silence as they lay lifeless in a pool of their own blood, while he stood over them with their blood dripping from his mouth. His eyes had a bright-red glow to them and oh god, those teeth, no; they weren’t teeth, they were fangs! The man was a Vampire.
No, she couldn't let the images stall her. She could not break down and give up; she had to keep running. There, a cave that she could possibly hide in until the next day, she knew he wouldn’t be able to chase her in the day so it would be her only saving grace.
She ducked into the cave and ran as far into its darkness as she could. Something large and hard caught her feet, and she tumbled over it; face first, on to the dirt floor. Just as she started to push herself up, she heard it—at first soft, then ever growing rumbling of a growl. She turned her head and saw the large, yellow eyes looking back at her. Oh no, that wasn’t a rock she stumbled over, but a large animal, possibly a bear.
It came closer to her as she lay still, watching it as best she could, in the darkness. She felt its muzzle on her, sniffing her. Then she didn’t feel anything at all; she couldn’t even see its eyes. Did it leave? Then suddenly a man’s face was in front of hers. Thankfully not the face of her captor, but his eyes glowed yellow, and he looked just as evil.
“Chi la sono?” Who are you? Is all she heard of his snarly voice before her world went black.
***
>
Caterina sat up in her bed abruptly. Sweat poured from her brow, and her lungs burned as she gasped for air. She looked around at her surroundings, not remembering where she was at the moment. Her eyes adjusted quickly to the darkness, and when they did, she saw that she was in her room, safe and sound.
A thud against the window made her jump, but when she looked over, she saw it was just a tree branch hitting the glass because of the strong wind brought on by the storm. Her body shivered as the word storm entered her consciousness. Caterina hated storms; they always brought the memories back. She hated to remember, she always tried to push the thoughts away. It was better for her that way. But when it stormed, especially at night, her dreams would force her to relive everything all over again.
Caterina pushed the blankets off her and swung her legs over the edge of the bed to stand. She walked into her small en-suite bathroom and went to the sink to splash her face. As the cool water hit her skin, the images in her head began to fade. Finally, after the shaking stopped, and she felt she had washed away all the sweat and tears from her face, she stood straight and looked at herself in the mirror. She did this to remind herself that she was not that same girl five years ago. She was not a scared child running for her life from some horrific monster. She was safe and she was strong, thanks to the help of her best and dearest friend. She knew if she had not met him that night, she would be dead by now, or worse, a slave to that horrible man. No, not a man, but a Vampire. If she had not run into his cave, she would have never been saved from the Vampire's clutches. Adolfo was the very best thing that had happened to her.
Without Adolfo, Caterina would not have lived; she would not have escaped. He kept her hidden, deeper in the cave, until the following day. Then he ran with her, to the nearest train station and acted as her bodyguard as they got as far from Italy as they could. They took a plane to America, thanks to Adolfo having money to do so. He had explained to her that he didn’t live in that cave but in a house not too far away from it. That cave was on his property, and he sometimes liked to go there just to rest as his wolf. He said he had been running in the woods when the storm started, and it was closer than his house, so he went into the cave to wait it out. Apparently, Adolfo was well enough off, because when they got to America, he supported them as they moved from state to state.
Caterina hated the moving, but they had to, because wherever they stopped just for a while, it seemed a Vampire would turn up wanting Caterina. One time she had actually gotten an explanation from one of them before they tried to drain her and ultimately died when Adolfo ripped them to shreds. It had something to do with her blood; there was something special about it that called to them. Caterina often wished she could remove that ‘special’ part of her blood so the Vampires would leave her alone, and she could live in peace. But that wasn’t possible.
Caterina left the bathroom and crawled back into her bed. She sat there staring through the window, wondering when it would be that she and Adolfo would have to move again. She wondered why Adolfo would put up with her and go through this mess with her for so long. The Vampires weren’t after him; he could just walk away and never have to deal with them again. She knew it wasn’t because he was in love with her. They had tried being a couple once when things were a bit more peaceful for a time. But they soon found that they were not meant to be more than friends.
She would ask Adolfo many times why he stayed with her for so long when it would have been better for him to let her go. He would always answer, “Because you are special, Caterina. I look at you, and I see something that I have never seen before. I feel that because of you that one day, life will be better for all of us, shifters and humans alike. I look at you, and I see hope.”
Caterina snorted, hope, there was nothing hopeful about Caterina’s situation. There was only doubt and uncertainty, but no hope. She had changed her hair so many times she wondered if the true color was still even there. Her hair, now long and dark, flowed around her shoulders, and she loved the times where she could sit and brush it like her mother used to do. But the next time they moved, she would have to change it—probably a lighter color—that’s what they did. She was happy at least that her curls remained, although when she cut it shorter, every time it grew out, the curls were a little bigger each time. However, her green eyes never changed. They were the only thing, which kept her knowing who was looking at her in the mirror. Her face round and full never seemed to change, no matter how much her weight fluctuated. She had a baby face and lived with it, though her hair, in its natural color, was pale brown; she liked it when her hair was dyed red, it seemed to match her eyes a little better. Maybe next time she would change it to a fiery red, shit, no, she couldn't—it would draw attention. Sighing, Caterina forced herself to relax and lay still. Maybe she could go back to sleep.
She lay down on her pillow and stared at her ceiling for a while. She wondered if Diavolo still hunted her. She remembered when she met him. She was working at a small café in her village, and she was just cleaning up and closing for the night when he entered. He didn’t seem so evil when she first met him. Actually, he was quite charming and handsome. He took her on a few dates, and they always seemed to have great fun together. She couldn’t for the life of her figure out why his parents would stick him with such an awful name as devil—until he changed. He asked her to come away with him, to live with him in his home in Umbria. Caterina had told him he was moving too quickly, and she was still in school. She didn’t want to leave her parents because they were both disabled and unable to fend for themselves. She thought he would understand, but he became angry. Then one night he showed up at her house and attacked her family. That's when she saw the reason, he was named devil. He slaughtered her family, drinking their blood as he did it. Then, when he was done, he said, “There, now you do not need to care for them anymore and have no reason not to come with me.”
He really gave her no choice after that; he just took her to his castle right outside Umbria where he imprisoned her in one of the rooms during the day. It wasn’t a dungeon where he had her, it was actually quite a beautiful room and comfortable. His donors, as he called them, would be her servants during the day, bringing her food, clothing, anything she needed, really. But during the night, Diavolo would come to her and rape her, taking her blood. She didn’t understand why he was doing this to her, but he would often say she was the key. The key to what? Even now she didn’t know what exactly she was the key to.
She knew when he would come to her, he would say it didn’t work and that maybe he needed just a little more blood. Then he would take her blood again while he forced himself on her. He wouldn’t really have to physically restrain her to do it, just use some sort of compulsion, and she would do whatever he wished. But after a while, Caterina had given up and allowed him to do as he wished without even using the compulsion.
Then one night he came to her in a rage. He said he didn’t understand why it wasn’t working, and he was tired of waiting. He beat her and drained her to within an inch of her life before he left her to die in her bed. The servants had come in the morning and seen she still lived. They tried nursing her back to health as much as they could, then helped her escape the castle before nightfall.
Caterina often wondered what happened to the servants—no doubt; he probably killed them all for helping her escape.
A large crash downstairs had Caterina jumping from her bed and rushing out the door to see what it was. When she got halfway down the stairs, she stopped, frozen where she stood. There, in front of her, was a grueling seen. Adolfo was fighting with a Vampire, holding him down as much as he could. But unlike the other Vampires Adolfo had destroyed for her safety, this one was strong enough to push Adolfo off of him.
Adolfo flew off the Vampire and hit the wall on the other side of the living room. Then it stood and faced Caterina. That's when Caterina felt all the blood rush out of her head and terror claw at her insides. There, standing before her, was none other than Dia
volo.
He rushed toward the stairs and got to the first one before Adolfo tackled him back down. She watched the fighting because she couldn’t get her body to do anything else. She was struggling to comprehend how he had found her. She and Adolfo had always been so careful not to leave a trail, but here he was, fighting with her friend, trying to get to her again.
What was she going to do now?
Adolfo’s howl brought Caterina out of her terror-filled thoughts. She saw that he was now under Diavolo, while Diavolo was twisting his arm back trying to break it.
“You will not keep me from her, wolf,” Diavolo snarled, as he twisted Adolfo’s arm back further. “She is mine and will always be mine.”
Suddenly, Adolfo turned on Diavolo and somehow got the Vampire under him again.
“She is not yours, Vampire.” Adolfo growled into his ear, “I will kill you before I allow you to take her.”
Adolfo started to change into his wolf. His face elongated, and his claws came out. He pushed the Vampire further into the carpeted floor.
Then his eyes met hers. “Caterina, run. Go to where we planned, as we have talked about doing. Go there and they will keep you safe. Run now, Caterina, and never look back.”
At first, her legs couldn't move, but then she found herself flying down the stairs. She picked up her purse, car keys, the plane tickets that were sitting on the table next to the front door, and then she opened the door to run out.
She looked back at her long-time friend and guardian to see that he had now fully changed and was holding the Vampire down by his teeth around Diavolo’s throat. Adolfo looked up at her, and their eyes met. She saw then something she had never seen in his eyes before. She looked at his side and saw the blood that was matted in his fur and dripping from his side. She knew at that moment that Adolfo knew he would not survive this fight, that he would not be able to go with her and protect her anymore.
