The Wolf Princess: The Wolf PrincessOne Eye Open (The Pack)

by Karen Whiddon

  That revelation should have shocked him, especially since he didn’t know if she really had changed into something decidedly not human.

  Drugs? Or reality?

  It didn’t matter. Whatever she might be, she was still his Brenna. His. For now, for this exact nanosecond in time, he would focus every breath, every heartbeat, every fiber of his being on protecting her, especially once they found his enemy. After Brenna saw what Alex had become, he was going down.

  Edging around a corner, Carson finally sighted his target. Target. Yeah, that was how he’d come to think of this man who’d once been his partner. An inanimate object—not a person.

  Alex saw him at the same instant. Narrowed his eyes at the sight of his sister, who remained at Carson’s side.

  Carson raised his gun.

  Alex raised his, too.

  Target in sights. Still, Carson’s fingers merely hovered over the trigger. One squeeze, one shot to the chest, and the big man would die.

  Beside him, Brenna gave a stifled cry, a gasp.

  God help him, this was her brother, her blood. Carson couldn’t help remembering Alex as his partner, his best friend.

  This was Alex. Alex.

  While Carson hesitated, Alex did not. He fired.

  Chapter 15

  Carson jerked, but the bullet went wild. From behind him, someone grunted. Another man. Whirling, Carson saw Brenna leap forward at the exact instant the other guy squeezed off a shot. She knocked away the gun, but the bullet went—where? Brenna reared back. She spun and dropped to her knees. Head down, she gave a muffled cry.

  No time to think. Carson raised his gun and shot. The man fell, crimson blossoming on his shirt. Pivoting, Carson brought his weapon to bear on Alex.

  “Brenna?” Keeping Alex dead center, Carson backed over to her. Hunkered down. “Are you all right?”

  Her hair a dark curtain shielding her face, she raised her head and grimaced, showing white teeth. The orange glow of the flames reflected in her brown eyes. “I’m fine.” She sounded winded.

  He didn’t believe her.

  His gun arm wobbled. Steadying it, he kept his weapon on Alex while he pushed away her hands from her shoulder. Scarlet stained her sweatshirt.

  “You’ve been shot.” His gut clenched.

  “Let me see.”

  She moved away. “Alex,” she said. “He saved your life.”

  “No. You saved my life. We need to get you to an ambulance.”

  “Alex fired first,” she insisted. “He didn’t shoot at you. He hit that guy in the stomach. Kept you from taking a bullet in the back.”

  She was right, Carson realized. “Why?” He stared at his former friend, now nemesis.

  Stone-faced, Alex lowered his gun. “He was gonna shoot you.” His grim expression showed his awareness that Carson still had a weapon trained on him. Dead center, finger on the trigger. Then he looked past Carson to his sister, concern softening the harsh planes of his face.

  “Are you all right, Bren?”

  Nodding, she pushed herself to her feet. “I’ll live.” She kept both hands pressed against her shoulder. “You know me. I heal fast.”

  Carson sucked in his breath.

  “He saved your life,” she repeated, raising her voice to be heard over the roar and crackle of the flames. “He could have killed you, but he didn’t.”

  “I realize that.” While he’d hesitated, Alex could have taken him down with one shot. Instead he’d fired to save Carson’s life, even though he knew Carson wanted to blow him away.

  None of it made sense. Unless…

  Part of the building went down. A side wall crumbled, giving way to the fire’s fury. A man ran screaming from the inferno, his entire body on fire. Two others tackled him, knocking him to the ground and rolling.

  Carson focused on Alex. “Tell me the truth. Why not shoot me when you know I plan to bring you in?”

  At his words, Brenna shifted. “Bring him in?”

  “I couldn’t kill him.” He met her eyes. “Once, maybe, I would have. Now, because he’s your brother, because you love him, I’m going to arrest him and bring him in to stand trial.”

  Shouts came from the other side of the burning house as the roof collapsed. Flames roared into the sky, sending smoke and sparks over them in a shower.

  “You’re right, Carson. I didn’t save your life.” Alex kept his hands at his sides. “Not this time. My shot didn’t take him down. Brenna saved your life. She stepped between you and his gun.”

  “So your shot—” Carson heard his voice go flat “—was only to protect your sister.”

  Alex shook his shaggy head. “And you, idiot. Put the gun down.” He took a step forward, holding his own weapon loosely, hand at his side.

  Carson ignored him. “Freeze. Alex Lupe, you’re under arrest for the murders of Becky Turner and Julie Turner. You have the right to remain silent. You have the—”

  “Stop.” Alex held up his hand, his expression tortured. “I didn’t kill Julie and Becky, Carson. I was too late to save them, but I tried. Damn it, they were like my family, too. I loved them. You have to know that. You saw me with a gun, maybe you even saw me shoot, but you didn’t see who I shot. That day, I did save your life.”

  Confused and exhausted, Carson swayed on his feet, though he didn’t change his position. Weapon on target. Finger near the trigger.

  Beside him, Brenna made a strangled sound. She sank to her knees. Carson’s heart stopped.

  Brenna or Alex? If he had to make a choice, he chose Brenna.

  He lowered the pistol. And went to her.

  “Let me see.” Tenderly he swept back the hair from her face. Capturing her hands, he moved them so he could see her wound again.

  “I’m fine,” she protested, pushing him away. “Alex—”

  All around them, smoke and fire and noise. Men down, men being led away in handcuffs. The acrid, coppery smell of gunpowder, of ashes and fire. The flash of cameras. Reporters already? No. The crime scene guys took photos.

  Occupied in fighting the blaze and rounding up stragglers, a few of the federal agents glanced their way and moved on. No one interrupted them, seeing only a fellow agent in their matching, standard-issue jacket as he talked to two others.

  Alex took another step forward. “Your cover was blown. We’re not sure exactly how or by whom. I heard about the hit and went after the guy. I thought I could get there in time to stop it.” The lines in Alex’s face reflected his own pain.

  “Instead I was too late. But I got there in time to take down the shooter before he finished the job. That’s what you saw. I shot the guy who’d just shot you in the back. Stopped him from putting another bullet in you.”

  Carson stared at him blankly, cradling Brenna in his arms. She watched his face silently, hope and love mingled with the pain he saw in her expressive eyes.

  Carson shook his head, trying to think.

  “Don’t you remember me calling your name?” Alex came closer. “I ordered you to hang on.”

  “No.” He searched the other man’s face. “After I saw you throw away the gun, I don’t remember anything until I woke in the hospital room. I never saw anyone else. Just you.”

  “The DEA knew there was another guy. The shooter. The guy I killed. They couldn’t reveal that and risk blowing my cover. So they put the story out that I did it as some sort of initiation test.”

  “You didn’t kill them,” Carson said slowly, woodenly. “But Hades’ Claws believed you did.”

  Immobile, Alex jerked his head in a quick nod. “I had to stay inside to find out who’d ordered the hit. I also had to excuse my dropping the guy they’d sent to do it, so I said you shot him. Since he was dead and couldn’t tell, the story worked.”

  “I used to wish I’d died, too.”

  The corners of Alex’s mouth twitched. “What, and miss all this?”

  “I thought it was you. I’ve been hunting the wrong man all along. I want the name of the murdering bast
ard. The guy who ordered them killed.”

  “We got him. His game’s over.”

  Holding himself still, Carson tensed. Chest tight, he waited to hear the true name of the man he’d been seeking for so long. Then he felt Brenna’s hand on his shoulder, comforting. With only her touch, she kept him sane.

  Carson kissed the top of her head. He looked at Alex.

  “Senator Guiley. Top dog. We’ve got him in custody.”

  “The guy in the limo.”

  Alex nodded. “New York State Senator and drug lord. He raked in millions. What was one agent’s family to him? He ordered the hit. He wanted you dead.”

  With a sound of disgust, Carson looked away. “All this time,” he muttered, scarcely able to take it all in. “All this friggin’ time.”

  He buried his head in Brenna’s hair, inhaling deeply. His eyes full, he breathed in her beloved scent. Despite the fire and the smoke, she still smelled like spring.

  Brenna—his rock, his love. Head bowed, he struggled to regain control of his emotions.

  “I’m sorry,” Alex said.

  Unable to speak, Carson swallowed. When he finally lifted his head, he saw the man who’d meant to kill him lying on the ground, blood drying on his shirt.

  Brenna sagged in his arms.

  “She’s unconscious.” He heard panic in his voice. He pushed back her shirt at the shoulder, gently lifting the blood-soaked material from her skin.

  Alex clapped a hand on his shoulder. “It doesn’t look deep. I think his shot winged her.” He swallowed, visibly shaken. “But you got him in time.”

  “We need to get the paramedics over. I want her thoroughly checked.”

  “She’ll be all right. She’s not badly hurt.”

  Carson narrowed his eyes. “How do you know that?”

  “She’s my twin,” Alex said simply. “I know.”

  For the first time it occurred to Carson to ask about what he’d thought he’d seen earlier, when Brenna had slipped the handcuffs. But, he thought as he studied the other man, if Brenna could change into a wolf, Alex was capable of the same thing.

  His head throbbing, Carson decided to ask. “I—”

  Like his sister, Alex seemed to know instinctively what Carson had been about to say. “Not now.”

  Two federal agents charged around the corner, guns drawn, too late. They skidded to a halt, backing off when Alex waved them away.

  “You know they’ll want to debrief you.”

  “Later. I’ve got to talk to Brenna.”

  Alex’s gaze sharpened. “What do you want with her?”

  “My entire future.”

  “Really?” Alex’s voice seemed unnecessarily curt. The steely glint in his dark eyes carried a warning.

  “Damned if I’m going to ask your permission.”

  “He saw me change.” Brenna lifted her head, her voice weak.

  Alex frowned. “When?”

  “To get free of the handcuffs.”

  Carson kept his arms around her. “You mean when you—”

  “Became a wolf. Yes.”

  “How?”

  Alex ignored the question. “Among our people, it is forbidden to change in front of a human.”

  “You’re worried because she broke some stupid rule?” Clenching his jaw, Carson inhaled. “We were handcuffed to the bed. The building was on fire. She did it to free us. She saved both our lives.”

  “I won’t let you hurt her. She’s my sister. I love her.”

  “I do, too.” Lowering his gaze, Carson looked at Brenna as he spoke. Her eyes filled with tears. “I love you.”

  She sat up, grimacing as the movement caused her pain. “Even though you know what I am?”

  Carson hesitated. As an undercover agent, he’d thought he’d seen it all. Now he realized he’d barely scratched the surface.

  “What are you?”

  “We’re shape-shifters.” Brenna’s low voice was edgy, yet controlled. “We’re an ancient race.”

  “Werewolves.”

  “In a way.” Alex shrugged. “Though we rarely howl at the moon. And we can control it, for the most part. We aren’t compelled to change because of a full moon or anything like that. We try to integrate ourselves into society and live normal lives among humans. Insiders know us as the Pack.”

  Carson turned to Brenna. “You once referred to your family that way.”

  She nodded, her expression watchful.

  “This all sounds like some movie of the week.”

  “Yeah.” Alex gave a short laugh. “Or a good book.”

  “Yet it all makes sense. Your eyes, the way you move, your confidence.”

  Brenna grinned. “Like that, do you?”

  Alex coughed, drawing both their frowns. “Still, we are not human.”

  “Are you immortal?”

  “No. Though we heal much faster, our life spans are the same as yours.”

  Tilting his head, Carson considered the woman he loved. “Let me get this straight. You live, you die. You eat, you sleep, you breathe. Like me. Right?”

  Brenna nodded, her expression tight.

  “So the only difference is that you can change into a wolf at will.”

  Again she gave a nod, still watching Carson with shuttered eyes.

  Throat tight, Carson managed to lift one shoulder in a shrug. “So who cares?” He took a deep, shuddering breath, trying to take it all in, knowing he couldn’t, not yet. So instead he focused on what he did know, what really mattered. Love.

  “I love you.” He swallowed. “And I think you love me, too. I’ve been given a second chance. I don’t want to waste it. What we have between us is special. I took it for granted once. I won’t make that mistake again.”

  Brenna’s expression didn’t change. “What about children?”

  Children. For a moment Carson’s heart constricted as he thought of his lost daughter, Becky. Could he have another child, take such a giant leap of blind faith? Then he remembered the love he’d seen shining in Brenna’s eyes and knew he could.

  “What happens with children born of a union between a human and a shape-shifter? Is such a thing possible?” he asked.

  Alex answered, one corner of his mouth lifting in a wry smile. “We call them Changelings. They can change, though they are not as strong. Still, among our people, they’re welcomed and loved.”

  Love. “That’s all that matters.”

  “Then I give you my blessing.” Alex sounded formal—and pleased.

  “Wait.” Brenna pushed herself away from Carson to stand. “You two are talking like I’m not here.”

  Alex grinned. “Sorry.”

  Holding her shoulder, she focused on Carson. “We’ve been through a lot together. I don’t think you’ve had enough time to think this through.”

  “Time?” Carson ran a hand through his hair. “I’ve spent the past eighteen months shunning life, living in the past. I’m not avoiding life anymore. I love you. I want to spend the rest of my days with you.”

  She didn’t move. “I was engaged once. His name was Jeff. He loved me, too, or so he said. Yet when he found out what I was, what I could do, he ran from me in horror. He lost his life that night, Carson. Because he couldn’t face what I am.”

  “I know what you are.”

  “I want you to think about it.” She went to her brother and placed a light kiss on his cheek. “If he has any questions, answer them.”

  Then, turning, she faced Carson from several feet away. “This distance between us feels like a chasm.”

  His heart sank. “Only if you make it one.”

  “Three days.” Sadness clouded her eyes. “Meet me in the woods in three days. If you don’t show up, I’ll understand.”

  With an effort Carson tamped down his impatience. Not an easy task when every heartbeat, every breath, sounded out the need to convince her. “I won’t change my mind.”

  Her smile was a pitiful attempt. “We’ll see.” She walked away, still holding her
shoulder.

  Carson started after her. Alex stood, blocking his path. “Let her go. She’s right. Think about things. Then, if in three days you still want her, both of you will be certain.”

  Shoving his hands in his pockets, Carson swallowed. “I don’t understand.”

  “It’s not often we mate with humans. To expose her true nature to you, Brenna took a terrible risk.”

  “Did her fiancé really die?”

  “Head-on collision. Killed instantly.”

  Carson grimaced. “I guess I can understand her need to be certain.” He started to turn away.

  “I need to ask a favor.”

  Something in the other man’s tone stopped Carson in his tracks. A hint of desperation, tinged with worry and fear.

  “Once this is all done, there will be a trial,” Alex said. “I’ll have to testify. I don’t want anything to happen to Brenna if…”

  The rest of his sentence hovered in the air, unsaid.

  Pain blossomed as Carson thought of Alex, of Brenna, meeting the same fate as his family. Then, to his amazement, the pain slowly receded. He didn’t hesitate. “I will protect her with my life.”

  “I thought you would say that.” Alex nodded. “You really love her, don’t you?”

  “Yes.” With an effort of will, Carson kept his voice even. “I’ll give her the time she wants, then I’ll tell her again myself.”

  “Three days.” A fierce grin broke out across Alex’s face. “Sunday evening. Meet me in the woods near the cemetery around seven. I’ll take you to her then.”

  “That’s late. Make it earlier.”

  “She needs time.”

  “You’re sure she’s fine?”

  “Yes. Agreed?”

  Though his first impulse was to argue, Carson knew what the other man asked was fair. Or would be, if he were a reasonable man. Unfortunately, he’d wasted too much time to be sensible.

  “I’ll be there,” he said, and got up to go.

  “They’ll need to talk to you now.” Alex jerked his thumb toward the cluster of Feds.

  “Later.” Ignoring what he knew he should do, Carson headed out to the road and his battered Tahoe. “I’ve got a pet to look after.”