“What will you tell the pack?” she asked, raising her head slowly. “How will you explain to them that I am now your mate, instead of your son’s?”
“We’ll tell them the truth,” he snapped, his eyes narrowing before he broke out in a great guffaw. “We’ll tell them you just can’t decide which man you want for your mate, as evidenced already, and have finally agreed to be mine. Obviously,” he went on smiling. “We’ll have to be careful not to cast any blame or scorn upon my dear son, but I’m sure once things settle down and you produce a cub or two, they’ll all realize how perfect for each other we are.”
“Perfect, yeah,” she replied, stupefied. This man was deranged. She had to find a way to escape from here before the mating ceremony.
~~~~
Not knowing where Donovan had disappeared to since his mind-shattering announcement, Beth was literally on her own. It was hard not to be angry with him for abandoning her to her fate, but she couldn’t say she blamed him. She really had been nothing but trouble and heartache for him since the night of her ceremony, and this latest development must have pushed him over the edge, but she was the one who had reverted to a commodity here, and damned if she’d go down without a fight.
Her morning was taken up by Herb Lore as she had promised to attend, and not wanting to appear unpredictable, she had to wait until after lunch to seek out the weaver ladies. Finding a quiet spot in the forest around the village, Beth nibbled on fruit and cheese, trying to work out where she went from here. If she bolted, no doubt they’d track her to the ends of the earth. She shivered, remembering the story of Lissa. And if she stayed, she’d be reduced to a child-bearing trophy-mate. If she went back to the Loam Floor pack, they’d just send her right back, and then there’d be hell to pay.
How long could she make it, on her own? Could she run far enough and fast enough to find a different pack, far away from here, willing to take her in? She did have her pure-breed status to bargain with, an enticing prize for any pack, but she would bring a universe load of trouble on her heels. And could she get away, in any case? She wasn’t stupid enough to think she didn’t have her shadows here in the village, and if she were to venture too far, they’d probably show themselves very clearly. While searching for a particular herb that morning, she’d gone a little too far into the surrounding woods and caught the scent of two distinctly different males that she’d never met, and she was pretty sure they’d been following her.
If Bradley had put guards on her, he would know every move she made, probably before she even made it. Taking a thoughtful bite from her apple, she weighed her options. Her only real options. She could run, and be hunted. Or stay and be bred. Both options were unthinkable, but one at least afforded her a measure of freedom. The apple felt like chewed up glass as she swallowed.
~~~~
“Beth!” Marybell exclaimed in delighted surprise. “I am glad to see you, dear.”
“Not as glad as I,” intoned Margo in a decidedly chilling voice. “I hear all sorts of gossip these days, you see. There have been strange snippets of gossip for the past twenty four hours. When exactly did you decide to take Bradley to mate?”
“I didn’t!” she protested savagely.
“I rather thought not,” the old woman replied, reaching for a cup of tea, her hands shaking. “It’s time for my tea, then?”
“No, Margo,” Marybell protested loudly, putting two hands on her ample hips. “It’s far too dangerous–”
“Nonsense!” she cut in shrilly. “If Bradley Tall Grass even remembers my existence, and puts two and two together, what can he do?” she cackled. “Put me on trial?”
“No, she’s right,” Beth interjected. “It is far too dangerous. If he should ever learn of it, well, you wouldn’t have to worry about a trial, let’s put it that way.”
Marybell flinched and sat down abruptly, but Margo - tough old goat that she was - merely shrugged a bony shoulder. “And so what? If it will help, I am glad to do it. And if Bradley, or any of his bullies come calling late at night,” she shrugged again, taking a slurp of her tea. “I have a few tricks up my sleeve.”
“I can’t let you take that risk,” Beth said, shaking her head so hard that her blond locks fell about her face in disarray.
“I will make the tea, in any case,” Margo told her sternly. “And I will not take no for an answer.” Her bony hand slashing the air put a stop to anything Beth had planned to say. “In an emergency, it could be helpful. And who’s to say you didn’t make it yourself, hmm?”
“You all know I had no Herb Lore before coming to this pack,” she replied, thin eyebrows drawn together in frustration.
“Ah yes, but perhaps you weren’t totally honest, eh? You ever think of that?”
“I suppose...”
“Well then, that’s settled. Marybell, I will need certain ingredients which you must fetch for me. Beth can’t be seen to be preparing anything, or doing anything at all out of the ordinary.” All three agreed on that. “I suggest that you find Donovan. If you explain the entire situation, I’m sure he’ll help however he can.”
“I can’t!” Beth paced the tiny room in a panic. “Don’t you think I’ve tried to find him? I’ve asked each person that I’ve come across today, and nobody has seen him since last night. Apparently he took off into the woods and hasn’t returned.”
“Poor boy,” Marybell whispered. “He can’t shove his head in the sand any longer.”
“He can if he can’t be found,” Beth replied, feeling lost.
“Leave him then. We’ll make do.” The old woman once again reached for her cup, found it drained and motioned for Marybell to re pour. “For the next hour, you need to make yourself unavailable for private audiences, do you understand?” Her rheumy eyes seemed to stare straight into Beth’s mind.
“I understand. The Common House, then?”
“That would be wise,” she nodded, her white hair floating ever so slightly with the motion. “Call back here before you return to the Great House today. I shall need no less than an hour to procure and produce the tea.”
Nodding, Beth took her leave. She felt like a traitor, a sneak and the worst sort of liar, sitting in the middle of the Common House with the few members of the pack who were grouped around the tables, chatting animatedly, and occasionally gesturing in her direction. She knew they were all discussing the recent change in mate status, and knew too that they were equal parts excited and confused. A few approached her with congratulations on their lips and frowns on their faces. She just nodded and said “thank you” to each of them before returning to the book she had brought with her from the weaver’s cottage. It was an ordinary book, telling the tale of weaving from history - on the outside at least. Inside was a detailed map of the territory which Margo had pulled out of some dusty corner of the cottage. Beth was looking for a likely escape route.
Not knowing the territory wasn’t the only problem. It was not knowing where other Den Houses may be, or whether or not they had sentries patrolling the borders. Margo wasn’t sure, and Marybell was truly clueless, but they’d said it was a safe bet to assume there would be at least a couple of wolves she’d have to avoid on her journey.
“Can we talk?”
Beth snapped the book closed guiltily and looked up to meet the anguished face of her previous mate. “What is there to say, Donovan? It’s done.”
“Dammit,” he replied, taking her roughly by the arm. “I want to talk to you!”
“Donovan.” Keeping her voice low enough to avoid being overheard, she tried to remove her arm from his iron grip. “People are looking.”
“I don’t care,” he replied in a voice like ice. “I need to speak to you, now.”
“Okay,” she agreed. “But not here. Meet me back at the house in fifteen minutes. Your father is not there.”
“Fifteen minutes.” His eyes lingered on her for a moment, and with a twist of his lips he was gone.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
Quickly
burying the herbal tea in a plant pot in the hallway, Beth made her way upstairs, where her nose told her Donovan awaited her.
When she entered the room, she was surprised to see him pulling the blinds and running the shower. “Donovan, what the hell–”
“Shh!” he told her, taking her in his arms. “You must be quiet.”
For a moment neither of them spoke. Donovan stared into Beth’s eyes with such intensity that Beth began to feel afraid, truly afraid that he’d gone mad. “It’s not me you need to fear,” he told her softly. “Tell me, Beth. What do you think our Alpha would do if he got his hands on the wolf who Bound you so tightly? The wolf who took your virtue?”
“Gareth?”
“Yes, Gareth! Who else?”
“I don’t...I mean...what’s this about?”
“What do you think he’d do to him, Beth? Be careful how you answer.”
Beth said nothing. Her mind whirled with images generated by all she knew of Bradley. He was a cruel and jealous man by all accounts, not even really wanting his own son to have her. She remembered Lissa, chased and hounded for “many months”. Of both Lissa and Jake’s disappearance. She thought about the very careful way the members of the pact behaved. Of the rough treatment he’d given her, and of the dark promise in his eyes every time he perused her with his glittering eyes.
“He would kill him,” she replied, convinced.
“Yes,” Donovan confirmed. “He would. And he will, if you don’t do something.”
“What do you mean? Is that where Bradley is? Oh, God, Donovan, what has he done?”
Beth’s teeth chattered together as Donovan shook her. “Calm down,” he grated. “He hasn’t done anything yet. But your wolf has been slinking around near here. Can’t you smell him? His stench literally hangs in the air all over the village.”
She shook her head. No, she couldn’t smell him. Gareth, is here?
“Of course you wouldn’t. Forgive me, the scent of him is constantly with you, in any case.” He seemed to relax a bit. “So, you had no plans to run with him?”
“What? No!” She’d had plans, but they didn’t include Gareth. She would never endanger anyone in that way. “What’s with all this?” Gesturing to the blinds and the shower, she met his gaze in confusion.
“So our conversation remains private. I’m more concerned about your tails hearing about our visitor than about them thinking we’re up here doing something illicit.”
She’d never thought of that. How much had they heard from the weaver’s cottage earlier? Her mind whirled as she mentally went over the lay out of the village. No, there was nowhere they could safely hide themselves in the village outskirts without giving themselves away to her, so she was pretty certain she was safe, even here. Nonetheless, she’d be taking precautions in the future.
“And while they think we’re doing something illicit, you need to be elsewhere.” He turned her around and sent her back towards the door. “Go to the hallway, there’s a door. Behind it is a tunnel that leads directly into the surrounding woods. Use it, and tell your wolf to disappear. I can only convince so many people that the scent wafting around is from your Bond, rather than your wolf.”
“Donovan, I...thank you.” She fled towards the stairs.
“And Beth?”
She turned to see him framed in the doorway, sadness radiating from him. “You better be quick, because my father is the best tracker in the world, and if he comes home and you’re not here, he will find you.”
Nodding, Beth took the stairs as quickly as she could, rounding them at the bottom and rushing through the hall where the door to the basement was. Sure enough, there was a rickety, wooden stairs, shrouded with cobwebs, that led to a dirt tunnel. With the soft earth cushioning her steps, she flew towards the woods, and Gareth. She had to warn him. She had to get rid of him.
~~~~
Stumbling in her haste, she ended up sprawled in a heap on the far side of a log when he found her. “Beth!”
She looked at him and was totally lost. There he stood, tired and wretched, and beautiful. Her heart beat a million times a minute and she gasped for something to say. Anything. But all she could do was mouth his name. He loomed over her and hauled her to her feet, only to be crushed in an embrace so tight she could hardly breathe. She was hardly breathing anyway. “Gareth!” she pulled away abruptly, staring at him in disbelief. Even though Donovan had told her he was here, she still couldn’t quite believe it. “What are you doing here? Don’t you know they’ll kill you?”
“I know,” he replied slowly, his face hardening. “And I don’t care. They’ll have to catch us first.”
“Us?”
“Beth.” He sat her down on the log, taking her hands in his and she was immediately aware of the contrast between his rough, calloused hands, and the soft, gentle hands of Donovan. “You know why I’m here. Come with me now and we’ll run. They won’t catch us.”
“I...can’t.”
“Come on, Donovan won’t chase us forever, anyway.” He grinned at her, his mouth stretching into the cheekiest, most perfect smile she’d ever seen.
“It’s not that. It’s not him.” Her heart almost stopped dead as she realized she’d have to tell him what had happened.
He took her in his arms once again, breathing deeply the scent of her hair, her neck. He trailed kisses around her jawline, and she sighed, melting. “What is it, then? I know you want me. Damn you, I can smell it.”
“Gareth,” she whispered. “I’m no longer Donovan’s mate.”
He froze in the act of kissing the corner of her mouth, and laughed heartily. “Well that’s great news!” he exclaimed, palming the back of her neck. “Now there’s nobody in our way.” The kiss was so scorching, so full of pent up emotion and arousal that it near set her afire.
“I’m not Donovan’s mate,” she whispered brokenly, pushing him away, ignoring the soft, confused smile on his face. “I’m Bradley’s. The ceremony is set for tomorrow. And I assure you, he would run us to ground. He would find us. And he would kill us both.”
For a few moments he sat in a haze of puzzlement. She could see it when the impact of her statement made itself clear. “Donovan just gave you up?”
“No, it’s not like that. You don’t understand–”
“The hell I don’t!” he interrupted ferociously. “I understand that I fought tooth and nail to get to you. I understand that I may not be, may never be, the better man, but I also understand that I love you, and I will never let you go again.”
“Oh, Gareth.” Her heart breaking, she put a hand on his cheek. He loved her. He really loved her. What a mess this all was.
“Oh, Gareth? Is that it?” He stood, anger evident in his posture and his scent, and Beth struggled to think of how to explain the entire situation. “I see how it is,” he snapped. “I’ve behaved abominably, and you’re entitled to some anger, but dammit all, Beth, I know you want me. I know you feel the same way.” He turned back to her again, his face softening. “Tell me I’m wrong. Tell me I mean nothing to you, and I’ll leave, alright?”
She swallowed hard. “Gareth...”
“Tell me!” he demanded.
She began to reach for him, and suddenly she was in his arms, and his mouth was on hers, and everything felt right. His lips blazed a fiery path down her throat, his tongue dipping into the neckline of her tee, brushing the swells of her breasts, making her ache, making her need. All it took for her body to turn cold in his arms was the distant crack of a twig. She jumped, whirled and realizing it was only a passing animal, took stock of the ludicrous thing she was doing. Was she mad? Was he mad? They’d both be killed if Bradley ever found out. As it was, she’d have to scour herself in the shower to rid herself of the fresh scent of him. Madness.
Steeling herself, and hoping the scent of her fear would mask the scent of her lies, she told him what he needed to hear. “Listen, Gareth. There was a time when if you had offered me all of this on a plate, I’d have taken
it all and asked for more. That’s the honest truth. I even asked you for this once,” she replied with a bitter smile. “But you didn’t want to give up your Alpha position.”
He shook his head, frowning. “I thought you understood that I wanted you to stay with me, eventually rule with me.”
“That wasn’t the impression I got. Look Gareth,” she sighed, sorrow filling her. He hadn’t rejected her at all, he’d wanted her to stay and officially take him to mate. She was so stupid. But it was too late now. “I’m about to be mated to the Alpha. I am the Alpha Female here, a status I could never have achieved on my own in my old pack.” By referring to their pack as her “old pack”, she was subtly distancing herself from him, and he sensed it. “I have to stay here.” Another truth. “And I can’t leave.” Truth, again.
“Right,” he replied unconvinced.
Beth realized she’d have to notch it up if she was ever going to get him out of here with his life intact. “Don’t you hear me, Gareth? My place is here. Your place is there. The two do not coincide. You need to leave right now.”
“I’m not going anywhere unless you’re with me.” The set of his jaw was stubborn, and stiffness of his shoulders said he wasn’t taking no for an answer.
“Leave, Gareth. I don’t want you here. I don’t need you here. I don’t love you.”
The afternoon sunlight chose that moment to shine brightly on his features, so she had a wonderful view of his face as it fell, as his eyes dulled and his mouth set in a grim line. She could hear his heartbeat speed up, and could smell his disappointment. She knew she was breaking his heart, but how else was she to save his life? Her own heart was breaking every bit as much.
“So I was good for a roll by the riverbank, but not good enough to be with? Is that it, Miss Purebred?”
Where's this coming from? She knew Gareth was a survivor, but she’d never guessed he had thoughts of not being good enough for anything. Certainly, he had never seemed insecure. If playing on his fears kept him safe, she’d take it. “That’s it exactly, Gareth. You were never good enough for me, but it was fun.”
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