by Jana Leigh
Ariel gasped and Ryan laughed. “Holy Shit.” Ryan said and slapped him on the back.
“This is gonna be fun!”
“Why?” Lagon asked worried. What if his mates refused him? What would he do?
Ryan must have realized how he sounded and said, “No, I did not mean it that way.
Blaze is a great guy. I meant that you were going to be part of the Council now. You know Trinity is one of the Chosen?”
“Oh, no, I didn"t know that.” Lagon said frowning.
“Yep. Welcome to the loony bin. What was your name again?” Ryan said. “Let's go and make sure your mates are well cared for.”
“Lagon.” He said and smiled a little. His mates, he thought.
Ryan and Ariel each took an arm and drug him behind them as they walked towards a building they had been taking the injured into. The front sign said Bed and Breakfast, but it had apparently been turned into a hospital. People ran around the foyer with medical supplies and sheets. The small woman who they said was the Alpha female, Cami, sat in the middle of the room with tears running down her face as she looked around helplessly.
Ariel ran to her side and said, “What happened?”
“Everything. Nothing, I don"t know. I"m the only one who is awake besides Casey and her mates, and they are busy giving birth. I"m here by myself, with everyone"s life hanging in the balance. How am supposed to make all these decisions? What if one of them dies? What the hell am I going to do?” She said dramatically and Lagon and Ryan shifted uncomfortably on their feet. They hated when woman cried.
“Cami!” Ariel said firmly. “Who are you?”
Cami raised her singed eyebrows at her tone. “Uh, Cami?” She said uncertainly.
“No. You are Cami, the female Alpha of the Denver and New Council Pack. You are one of the most powerful and influential wolves of the century. You are the heart and soul of the Pack, look around you. These are your wolves. They love you and would do anything you ask them. Don"t let them down now.” Ariel said fiercely.
Cami sniffed and looked around. “Oh fuck, you"re right. Ok. Nervous breakdown has to wait for a while.” Cami said and straightened as much as she could in the wheelchair she was in. “Thank you, Ariel.” She whispered and then cleared her throat. “Listen up everyone. I need medical updates on everyone brought in here. Also, there are reinforcements coming. I need a list of details completed. As you know, most of the leadership was in the blast. I need volunteers. Right now, until further notice, Ariel and Ryan are going to be my official Beta"s,” She announced.
Ryan almost laughed out loud when he realized that he was just demoted. Ariel hit him in the ribs and whispered, “Feel honored, dipshit.” Ryan did laugh a little then. “Yep.” He whispered back.
“Until further notice all the Enforcers will answer to Ryan. Also, the man who saved my husbands and your Alphas is right there.” Cami said and whispered, “I"m sorry, what was your name?”
Ariel laughed and leaned over and whispered, “Lagon.”
“Right. Lagon. Until further notice, he is named an Enforcer of the Pack. He has shown great courage and will help us guard the Chosen.” Cami said and nodded to Lagon.
Ariel leaned down again and whispered, “He is Blaze and Trinity"s mate.” Cami looked up quickly and smiled. “Fuck a duck. Really?” Lagon nodded and smiled hesitantly. He wondered if the expression meant something good or bad? “Yeah, I found them when I was in the ruble and scented them as my mates. I am sorry I did not come directly to you, Alpha.” Lagon said and bowed his head showing her proper respect.
“Please, like I really care about that. Oh, happy days!! Listen up, everyone. I have a revision to make. Lagon is part of the New Council. His mates were just discovered.
Trinity, Blaze, and Lagon are the Pack builders. Please extend proper courtesy.” Cami clapped and bounced a little. “Yeah, I"m not alone! Another Council member!” She said happily.
Lagon looked a little uncomfortable. How was he supposed to tell her that he was a mate to the Chosen but he also had another job, one that would supersede his role on the New Council? He really needed to talk to one of his guides. They would have the answer. But there was nowhere private right now. So for now he would play the role of the New Council member. For his mates.
***
Braden sat outside of the town and talked to the men he brought with them. They could see the billowing black smoke rising above the trees in front of him and he smiled. It was still on fire. Perfect. Things had to be crazy and chaotic still. No one would notice him going in and taking his mates. They had monitored the radios and knew that all the New Council members had been found alive, but clearly, there was still a question about who would live. His contacts were texting him updates also. His mates were both at the Bed and Breakfast. He knew exactly what room. They were at least on the same side of the building. As luck would have it, their windows faced the east, which was the side that nothing was built on so no one would be on that side of the building.
They would slide into the gate and make their way to the building. Then one of them would walk through the house as if they belonged and go to his mate"s room. They would hand the women out the window to him and his wolves who would be waiting.
Braden went over the plan again. They may be strong wolves, but they were not real bright. Braden sighed when one of them asked the same question over again.
Slowly he drove through town. He was a little surprised to see there was no activity at all on the streets. He assumed the shifters and humans who lived in town would be moving around and running to help the compound. It looked like the shops were locked up and everyone remained in their homes. How odd, he thought and drove slowly until he saw the wall of the compound. Holy shit. Every hundred yards or so there was a guard standing on the outside of the wall. The first shifter they came upon eyed them suspiciously and then raised his hand with a radio in it.
Braden heard the man reporting his SUV plate to someone on the radio. “Shit.” He murmured and continued his slow pace. Each shifter he passed did the same thing.
Finally, a movement from behind alerted him the shifters were following his car. He sped up and drove right by the gate that was closed and locked with several guards standing there.
Braden pounded his hand on the steering wheel and growled in frustration. They had locked down the compound. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and called his contact. “What the fuck is going on?”
“Master.” The wolf whispered. “It"s the female Alpha. She and the cats ordered the lock down and guards. They have called for reinforcements and they should be arriving soon. I tried to text you, but they are blocking data service around here. I am lucky I can receive a call. I have to go, people are looking at me.” His contact said and hung up on him.
Damn that girl! He hated her from the first moment he met her, all smiling and acting like she was too good for him. Braden tried to eliminate her early on. Lola was supposed to kill her. But the incompetent woman had tried to be cute about the whole thing. Her orders were to just kill the Alpha female. Then after a time, he and Oliver would present her as a replacement mate to the Alphas. But the stupid woman talked too much and had thought it was fun to try to play a game. A game she lost. Since then, the Alphas were very protective of their mate. Where she was, one of them was sure to be.
Damnit. His mates were in that compound and he wanted them. Something about his plan had to start going right. Braden fumed and drove quickly back to the highway. He was going to have to regroup. The blast was not supposed to come so quickly. He thought he would have time.
It was time to pull out the big guns. If they were not going to be tricked, Braden would meet them head on. He just needed to change a few more wolves and gather his followers. Soon he would be ready.
Chapter 9
Trinity slowly came to. She felt each and every bruise, bump and broken bone before she even opened her eyes. Gods, she hurt. She took a deep breath and frowned. Her mate, and wa
it, her other mate? Trinity struggled to open her eyes. She knew there were three people in the room. She could scent Blaze. His scent had already become familiar. The other one, though, was new. But it was just as appealing. It smelled like chocolate. Sweet and smooth, she groaned at her response. She was lying in a bed wounded and hurt, and she was aroused. How the hell did that work?
“Hey, baby girl, open those eyes for me.” A deep, smooth voice flowed over her. She shivered a little. Blaze had a deep voice also, but his was more commanding and firm, with a hint of teasing. This voice flowed over her and enveloped her. Made her feel safe.
Like nothing would ever hurt her again.
Trinity opened one eye first and closed it again right away from the brightness of the lights. That hurt too. She groaned and then she felt a hand take hers and say softly, “It"s okay, slowly. You have been asleep for a few days. I just want to see your eyes, beautiful.” The voice said and she forced both of her eyes open this time. She blinked a few times and cleared the fuzzy vision. Things did not seem real. She focused on the light hanging from the ceiling and once it came into view, she turned her head slowly toward the voice.
Purple eyes? She thought and looked at the most beautiful eyes she had ever seen. Of course, they were attached to a smoothly handsome face. He looked like a model out of the catalog she looked at from time to time. His hair was red, but not like a normal red.
It was actually the bright color red. He had to dye it. And his eyes. Wow.
Trinity licked her lips, her mouth was dry, and she croaked out, “Water?” The man quickly grabbed a glass of water with a straw up to her lips and gently lifted her with one hand and helped her sip. She closed her eyes as the cool liquid went down her dry and sore throat. Gosh, what the hell had happened, she wondered. As the man laid her back down, she tried to concentrate. They were in the huge house, she was told she was one of the Chosen, her mate showed up, they were going to eat something and she had been so hungry.
Trinity"s eyes popped open and looked around. Wait! Chosen? Mate? Blaze, he was her mate, who was this guy? She discreetly sniffed the air and felt her body react to the man. Who was he?
“Hey, beautiful. How are you now? My name is Lagon. Our other mate is right here.
Blaze.” He said smiling. “He was awake a few minutes ago but drifted back off. He was worried about you too.” Lagon smiled at her and she felt like she should smile in return.
His face was pretty. She turned her head so she could see Blaze; he was lying on the bed next to her. She frowned when she saw the bandages and injuries he obviously had.
Trinity looked back at Lagon. “What happened?”
“Don"t you remember?” Lagon said worriedly.
He looked to the door and Trinity"s eyes followed his gaze. The small Alpha named Cami was walking in slowly. “Yep, shifted a few times, and now I"m getting better.” She announced and stood at the foot of her bed with her hands on her hips. “Well, look who is finally awake. Trinity, you have a good man here. He has been working his ass off to help me while everything has been such a mess. I really don"t know what I would do without him. And the children love him for some reason. They are constantly demanding his presence in the nursery. Even Casey's new babies stop crying when he comes into a room. It"s weird. Oh well, so how are you feeling?” Trinity looked confused back and forth from Cami and Lagon, what the hell was going on here? “She just woke up. I think she is still a little confused about what"s going on.” Lagon said to the Alpha.
Cami nodded and smiled. “Understandable. So, here is a quick recap. Dumbass Braden who was the Beta of the Old Council was here on the grounds when you arrived. Of course, we did not have a clue that he was a Rogue until your father told us. Well, when we went to find him, he had left and also left us a nice little surprise. He wired the computer system to activate a bomb he placed in the security room, just in case we found out he was tracking our movements. So the house went boom, we got hurt.
Lagon here saved almost all of us from the house. Casey was in labor, and had two beautiful babies, all while she had a broken thigh bone; Super Woman is what I am calling her. Everyone has various different injuries; the worst is Jordan, Spencer, and Oliver. They are all in critical condition. Don"t worry; your parents are next door. You have been out for two days. The doctor will come in a few minutes, tell you that shifting is the best thing, although you will be sore for a week or two. My mates are already screaming and yelling about being in bed, the big babies. Control issues. Any questions?” Cami said and took a deep breath.
Trinity wanted to laugh. But her head hurt too much. She went through everything that she had to say and frowned. “Yes, what about Jordan?” Cami looked at her and smiled gently. “Jordan is in another surgery this morning for her leg. Most of her injuries were life threatening. We have been watching her closely.
Don"t worry; the doctor said she would survive. Her mates are with her constantly. In fact, I was on my way to see how things were going when I passed by here. I will go and get an update and let you all know.”
Lagon looked at his mate and smiled. “Were you good friends with Jordan?”
“No, I just met her. But for some reason I was drawn to her in the meeting. She is human, and she was so sad. I just wanted to know that she was not going to have to suffer any more.” Trinity whispered. “Weird, I know, but I am not a stalker or anything.” She said and looked at her mate.
How was she ever going to deal with this? She thought and looked at Blaze too. She was plain Jane, girl next door, go to the movies as friend, girl. She was not a Chosen, hot, marry me, shifter. What if her mates figured it out? Would they leave her for someone prettier or more exciting? She was boring. Trinity had begun to wrinkle the sheets in her hands worrying. When she felt Lagon place his hand over hers.
“What"s going on in that pretty little head of yours that has you frowning?” He asked and smiled down at her. When he looked at her, she felt like she was the center of his world, but that had to be her imagination. She was the center of no one"s world.
Blaze groaned and then moved a little. Lagon jumped up and went to his side. She watched as he eased the hair back from his face tenderly and whispered to him. “Hey, handsome, how are you feeling now? Our pretty little mate is worried about you.” Blaze smiled and raised his hand to cover Lagon's and Trinity smiled a little. They were cute together, she thought and then frowned. Wait a second. She had heard of tri-mating, but had never seen any of them until she arrived here. So she had two mates, and they were also mated to each other. Since she had no experience at all about these things, her skin heated up at the thought of seeing both of them naked and together.
Wow, she thought. Maybe it was time for a change. She needed to make sure that she was enough for them. Looking at the men, she knew that she would fall in love with them. She was not going to lose them; she thought and smiled when Blaze turned his head to find her.
“Hey, little one. How are you?” Blaze said huskily and looked at her from head to toe like he could see her injuries.
“I"m fine.” She whispered and Blaze grinned at her.
“We are gonna have to work on the shyness, little one.” Blaze teased.
Lagon stood up and pushed Blaze"s bed until he and Trinity were right next to each other. Blaze reached his hand out, took hers and held on tight. “I am sorry you were hurt. I tried to protect you.” Blaze said sadly.
Trinity raised her eyebrows and snorted. “From an explosion? Give me a break. I am just glad that no one died.”
“Shifters are made heartier than that, it takes a lot more than a blast to kill us. Not that I want to find out. Has the doctor been in yet?” Blaze said concerned.
Lagon laughed and looked down at his two mates. They were perfect. He wanted to grab them, fly them to his cave, and protect them. Of course, he knew he could not do that. He was waiting until they were both awake to talk to them. Blaze and he had been able to talk a little since he woke up. The doctor had only
gotten him to shift once. He hoped he would shift again when Trinity did.
“Good morning, people.” A man with a white coat said from the doorway.
Lagon stepped back and let the doctor through. “Well, Blaze you are looking much better. I think a few more shifts and you will be up and around. And you missy, should be good after only a few shifts too, fortunately the big guy over here took the brunt of the blast for you. You have a broken wrist where you fell down, and a head wound. I think you will all be fine in a few days. Better than most around here. Trinity, your parents are right next door. They both suffered breaks in their legs and will be on bed rest for at least a week. They are wanting to see you when you are well enough. Okay then, I will leave you to it. I would suggest both of you shift while in bed for today. Tomorrow we will allow you to get up and shift. If you need anything, just buzz. Lagon, there are a few Enforcers looking for you, Ryan and Ariel are meeting with the Alphas shortly and they requested your presence.” The doctor said at the door and then he left.
Lagon shifted uncomfortably on his feet and looked around. He did not want to make a big deal out of it. And he wanted time to tell his mates. But he did not think that was going to happen. Quin and Jaden had both been asking questions about him. They were not as trusting as Cami. He knew he was going to have to tell them today, or no matter what Ryan said, they were going to make him leave until they were well enough to investigate him. Ryan and Ariel had come by earlier and told him the Alpha males wanted to meet him, they had questions. So would he if a stranger had come in and saved the day after a blast.
