“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Nova asked, interrupting Amara from her thoughts. Nova’s voice was edgy, and Amara almost felt guilty for worrying him. But she couldn’t be cooped up any longer. Finally, she was getting out. Somehow she managed to convince Nova to allow her to go back into town. Nova drove the truck through the gate and waved at the two guards. She knew them by name now; Nate and Ian.
Nate waved at her from the guard box. He was smiling, but his eyes were strained. Ian watched her solemnly. “Stay safe, Amara,” Nate advised her.
Amara forced a smile. When they were clear of the gate, she huffed out a sigh. “I’ll be fine, Nova. It’s just the bar. And you’re dropping me off. It’s not like I’m walking by myself or anything.”
Nova frowned. “I know. I just don’t like leaving you alone like that, is all. I wish you’d let me come with you.”
“You are not going to babysit me at work,” she said firmly. “I would never be able to explain that anyway.” She brought his hand to her lips and grinned at him. “Nova, it’s not just that I need to go back to work. I need to go back to my life. It’s been two whole weeks. I can’t keep hiding from reality with the Pack. I have a life, a job, family. I have friends that I have basically been hiding from. Sadie won’t even talk to me. I can’t let Kal take my life from me. I won’t. I know you’re just trying to protect me, Nova, I do. But I need to do this.”
For a moment or two, Nova watched the road, not saying a word. She knew it was hard for him to let her go. He’d spent the last ten years protecting her from the Valley Clan wolves. The night he had saved her and her friends from Kal when she was a teenager, he had sworn to protect her, even though she hadn’t known it. And if anything happened to her, if she even got a scratch, she knew it would torture him. But she couldn’t live in a safe little bubble forever. She was going insane. And she needed to talk to her sister.
Finally, Nova nodded and the tension in her shoulders gave way to relief. It wasn’t just being away from her life that made her eager to get away from the compound. Most of the people were nice enough; welcoming even. Nemoy, the Pack’s alpha and Nova’s older brother, had allowed her in and offered their protection, even though she knew he wasn’t comfortable with a human knowing their secrets. Still, he was always kind to her. His wife, Ivanah, had taken a liking to her, and the two of them had become fast friends.
But not everybody was willing to heed their Alpha’s orders. In fact, there was a small faction who had voiced heavy opposition right from the start. Their protests had been silenced, or at least somewhat quieted by Nova and Nemoy, but it was hard to stop a force once it was in motion, especially when that force was being spear-headed by their mother.
Neveah Lowery was a pillar of the community in her own right. As the widow of the previous Alpha and the mother of the reigning Alpha and Beta, the respect within the Pack for her was insurmountable. So, when she was the one vocalizing her discontent with Amara’s presence, and her feelings were reciprocated by other members of the Pack, it was hard not to feel uncomfortable and unwanted within the compound.
But telling Nova his mother was the reason she wanted to leave would break his heart, which she had no intention of doing.
At last, they reached the main street of Strathford. Nova pulled the truck up to the curb outside Murphy’s Tavern and put it in park. “Don’t go out alone,” he cautioned, a pained look on his face.
Amara’s lips crooked up at the corners. He sure was cute when he was worried. “I won’t.”
“And don’t try to walk home by yourself. I’ll be here to pick you up at the end of your shift.”
“Okay.”
“And stay away from outsiders. Let Mitch or someone wait on them.”
“Nova. Relax.” She leaned closer, brushing her lips against his. “It will be fine.”
“But—”
She kissed him again, this time deepening the kiss. She let their tongues intertwine, savoring the sweet vanilla and pine scent that was Nova, hoping her touch would have the same mind-numbing effect on him as his did on her.
When she pulled back, his dark eyes seemed blissfully blank, and she considered it a job well done. She kissed him again, lightly this time, and beamed. “I have to go. I’m going to be late for my shift.” Without waiting for his protest, she opened the heavy door and climbed down from the truck, shutting it behind her.
Nova rolled down the window. “I mean it, Amara,” he called, and she tried her best not to be annoyed. “Don’t go outside alone.”
Amara rolled her eyes and forced a sunny smile. “Okay, dad,” she hollered back, spitefully delighted when Nova winced. “I promise I’ll be good.”
She loved the man; really, she did. But she would be lying if she said she wasn’t feeling smothered. A few normal hours of work would do them both some good.
Turning on her heel, Amara stared at the face of the stone building before her. It didn’t look like much, but the bar felt like home. She had helped her best friend, Mitchell Murphy, build the business from the ground up. Her name may not have been on the paperwork, but Murphy’s Tavern was as much hers as it was his. She truly did love the place.
Taking a deep breath, Amara hauled open the door and let herself be immersed in the sounds and smells of the bar. It was a typical Saturday night at Murphy’s, and conversation was both loud and exuberant. The regulars she’d come to know on a first-name basis were seated at their usual tables and bar stools. The younger crowd filled booths and trickled onto the dance floor, occasionally emitting high-pitched shrieks, or chants of “chug, chug, chug!” The air was filled with the mixed aroma of spirits, beer, and fried food, with just a hint of sour and bleach underneath.
Amara’s face split in a wide, enthusiastic grin. It was good to be home.
“Hey, Mara,” the bouncer, Sam, greeted her. His round cheeks blushed a sweet crimson at the sight of her. “Glad to have you back.”
Taking off her coat, Amara let the warmth wrap around her, chasing away the crisp chill from outside. She squeezed Sam’s arm affectionately and pretended she didn’t see his blush deepen. She handed him her coat and waited while he hung it on the rack behind his ample frame. “It’s good to be back,” she told him, before winding her way through the clientele to get behind the bar.
“Hey, hey!” Mitch called out when she approached. He handed the beer he was holding to the patron he was serving, and bee-lined for Amara. Before she could even respond, he had wrapped his arms around her and lifted her from her feet in a giant bear hug. “You’re back,” he exclaimed, setting her on her feet again.
Amara swayed a bit and took a step back, trying to find her balance. Her grin widened. “I am. Did you run this place into the ground without me?”
Mitch chuckled. “Almost.” He lowered his voice. “I had to hire Zoe to pitch in some while you were gone.”
Amara’s eyes widened in alarm as she tied the knot of her apron behind her back. “You had to do what?”
“I know. It’s worked out okay,” he conceded, glancing over his shoulder to where Zoe was leaning against the bar, her own apron around her back. “Which is surprising, actually.”
“I’ll say.” Amara glanced around, suddenly feeling out of place. She’d only been gone for two weeks. “So, what else did you change while I was gone?”
“I hired a chef, kicked out all the regulars, instated a disco night, and hired Zoe to replace you full time.” When she merely gaped at him, Mitch smirked. “Relax, Mara. Zoe’s only giving me a hand for a little while. She needed the work. Everything else is the same.”
Amara pursed her lips, but she felt a little better. Reluctantly, she smiled back at him. “Good.” She took the towel from him and began wiping down the bar. “Because you would look awful in a disco suit. Ugh.” She wrinkled her nose. “Spandex.” She shuddered. “Lord, spare me.”
Howard, a long time regular who had been friends with her late father, set down his em
pty glass and tapped on the counter. “Lord, spare us all.”
With a wicked laugh, she winked at him and refilled his glass, leaving Mitch scowling and shaking his head behind her.
Chapter 2
It didn’t take her long to get back into the swing of things. Before she knew it, she was slinging drinks, taking orders, and delivering hot plates to co-eds on winter break as if she’d been born to it.
She and Zoe worked together surprisingly well, which seemed to please Mitch to no end. He kept hinting to Amara that maybe he should make it a regular thing, to which Amara’s answer was to repeatedly smile and grind her teeth.
At one point, she managed to corner Mitch and asked about her sister.
Frowning, Mitch scratched his head. “Yeah, she’s come in a few times. Usually with that guy she’s been dating.”
Amara’s heart sank. “So they’re still together?”
“Looks like it.” He shook his head. “I don’t like him, Amara.”
“No.” She squeezed her eyes shut, trying to push the worry aside until she could do something about it. “I don’t like him either.”
A little after midnight, the heavy door opened again. In walked Nate and Ian, the two Pack guards from the compound. Both were dressed like the typical Strathford blue collar worker. She knew they rarely made it into town except when they were on patrol—usually on Nova’s orders. They both found seats at the end of the bar.
Amara saw Zoe catch their eye and start to move towards them, but she shook her head. “Those are mine.”
“Why?” Zoe wanted to know, her pretty face pinching into a frown.
“Because I know them.” Zoe’s lips puffed out in a pout. Amara suppressed a sigh. Pouring two beers from the tap, she set them in front of Nate and Ian. “How’s your night going, boys? Nova put you up to this?” Nate began to stutter while Ian just smiled sheepishly at her. He was the quiet one, and she liked him all the more for it. “I see.” She was trying hard not to be annoyed. “So, because he knew I would kill him if he hovered around here all night, he sent you two instead. Does he really think I need a babysitter?”
“He’s just worried, Amara,” Nate assured her. She tried to remind herself that they all had good intentions. Nate and Ian were just doing their job, and Nova? Well, in his own way, he was doing exactly what she asked. He was giving her the space she had asked for. She supposed she would just have to be grateful he wasn’t babysitting her himself.
Shouts sounded from outside. The door crashed open and three men poured in. Amara recognized them as the Jones brothers; they lived on their family farm on the outskirts of Strathford. The eldest, Clarence, swiped his hat from his head. His chest was heaving. Clarence grabbed Sam’s arm for support. “Help,” he wheezed. His face was turning red from the exertion. “You’ve got to help me. Donny’s outside. It…it got him.”
Silence fell.
Amara threw the towel she was holding down on the bar. “Oh, shit.”
The wolf attacks had risen to a new high in the last few weeks. Her town was being terrorized, and she knew the Valley Clan was at fault. It hadn’t been this bad since before her father was killed by wolves—and she’d been twelve years old at the time. The Elders of the Strathford Council had rallied and nearly decimated the wolf population in the area. Or so they thought. Now, with the attacks growing fiercer and bolder by the day, the town was damn near in panic.
The patrons in the bar began to move. There were shouts and the sharp shuffle of chairs as people rose to their feet. Amara shared a quick glance at Mitch, who immediately turned to Zoe and told her to keep order in the bar, before disappearing into the back room.
Amara turned to Nate. “Call Nova. Ian, come with me.” Without waiting for a response, she hurried out from behind the bar, Ian at her heels. Mitch met her at the door and handed her a shotgun. She checked to make sure it was loaded, then went outside.
There was already a crowd on the street. She could hear Donny’s screams from down the block, but nobody had stepped forward to help yet. Amara pushed to the front of the crowd and ran toward the commotion.
Donny lay on his back, thrashing and screaming. He was covered in blood. The wolf was circling around him, periodically darting in to bite or scratch, amid new screams from Donny.
Rushing forward, Amara squeezed the trigger and shot her gun into the air. The wolf froze. Squaring her shoulders, she stood her ground and leveled the barrel at him. The wolf growled low in his throat. His light brown fur bristled down his spine.
Nate and Ian stepped up on either side of her. She could feel the energy coming off of them. They wanted to attack, to kill the other wolf. He was their enemy after all. But shifting in front of humans was forbidden.
“I’m going to shoot,” Amara muttered from the side of her mouth. “But I’m going to miss. Follow him when he runs off and take him down.” She felt, rather than saw them nod. Once again, she levelled the gun at the wolf. This time, when she fired, he jerked back with a yelp. She knew, without a doubt, that she had grazed him. Sure enough, as he clambered to his feet, blood seeped through his brown sugared fur. A low growl rumbled from his throat, and there was a dangerous glint in his eyes. With his version of a canine sneer, the wolf loped off, disappearing into the dark alley across the street.
Amara peered over at Nate and Ian. “Go.” They went. She rushed over to Donny. He was unconscious. Kneeling down, she searched over his wounds. He was pretty torn up. His arms were covered in deep gauges from the wolf’s claws beneath the shredded remains of his flannel shirt. Blood coated his throat. She leaned forward to get a closer look. Amara blanched; her skin went clammy and pale. The wolf hadn’t just gone at Donny’s arms, he had gone for the jugular and damn near succeeded.
As quickly as she could, she put her hands over the wound and pressed down, applying pressure. She glanced up at Mitch who was standing over her shoulder. All the blood had rushed from his face. “Mitchell, call an ambulance.” He just stood there. “Now, Mitch!”
Suddenly hearing her, Mitch jolted, then hastily fumbled through his pocket for his phone.
Amara fought through the repulsion and attempted to find a pulse. Please let him be alive, she thought. Please let him be alive. There. It was weak, that’s for sure, but it was there. Thank goodness.
In the distance, a siren blared and Amara sighed in relief. They were coming. “Hold on, Donny,” she murmured to his still form. “Just a few more minutes now.”
She waited until the ambulance got there, then quickly stood and relayed the sequence of events to the EMT. She stepped aside and stood next to Mitch as they shifted Donny to a stretcher and loaded him into the ambulance. Mitch wrapped his arm around her shoulders as the doors slammed shut and the ambulance drove away.
Amara stared down at her hands. They were saturated with blood. She shuddered. Shrugging off Mitchell’s arm, she started for the bar. She needed to get clean.
Mitch frowned, concern filling his eyes. “Mara, are you okay?”
“Yeah, I just…I need to…” Unable to continue, she fled, but when she reached the door, she was shaking so hard she couldn’t get it open.
“Amara!”
“Oh, thank God.” Turning, she all but fell into Nova’s arms.
He rubbed her back in soothing circles. “I knew I shouldn’t have let you come to work by yourself tonight.”
“Nova, don’t.” She pulled back and heaved a sigh. “Look, right now, all I want is to get this off my hands. I need…I need to be clean, but I can’t even open the damn door.”
Though it appeared to take some effort, Nova pursed his lips and nodded. Opening the door for her, he followed her as she threaded through the tables and chairs, straight to the bathroom. Reaching over her, he turned the knob of the faucet, then stood back while she washed her hands.
“I’m sorry,” he muttered, staring at her.
Amara met his eyes in the reflection of the mirror. “Don’t do
that. I can already see what’s going on in your mind, Nova Lowery. But I’m not going to let you lock me up on the compound again. This isn’t your fault,” she stated, effectively cutting him off. Nova’s mouth closed as if in slow motion. “You sent Nate and Ian to watch me. I should have expected that. But they did as you asked. Look at me; I’m fine. I’m safe. But they couldn’t know that the attack on Donny would happen right outside. And neither could you.”
Drying her hands, Amara turned around and went to Nova. She placed her hands in his. “This isn’t your fault. This is Kal’s fault. Him and his entire pack. They’re the ones who have been attacking people. They’re the ones who have been terrorizing my town. Not you. You and your pack, you’re the ones who have been trying to protect us—for decades. So, I don’t want you blaming yourself. I mean it,” she said, catching his look. “I won’t accept it.
“Now.” She placed her hands on her hips, and a slow, steady smile crept across her lips. “Take me home, would you? My home? I really want to sleep in my own bed.”
Though she could tell it pained him to do so, Nova slowly loosened his control and let out a sigh. Wrapping his strong arms around her, he pulled her to him. Her head rested against his chest, and she fell quiet as she listened intently to the sound of his heart.
“You shot a gun,” he said, his voice strained.
She smiled. “Yes, I did.” Though she couldn’t prove it, she felt him suppress a chuckle. She was winning, and they both knew it.
Finally, Nova pressed his lips against her hair. “Alright, Shooter, you win. Let’s go home.”
When they pulled up to her house, she was surprised to find the light on. She felt Nova tense beside her. “Wait here,” he ordered. Yet, before either of them could get out of the car, the front door opened and Sadie stepped out.
Amara felt a rush of relief and hurried up the porch to meet her. “You are the last person I expected to see,” she said, wrapping her little sister in a hug. To her surprise, Sadie hugged her back. “I thought you were still mad at me.”
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