Alpha Werewolf Complete Set

by Marilynn Fae

  Master Monty had purchased her from an auction for an extravagant amount of money. She thinks he did it not because he wants to keep her, but because he doesn't like the man whom he's bidding against. She remembers the stranger's face, cruel and harsh with a sort of hunger, like he can't wait to touch her. The man bidding aggressively for her was much younger than her Master, who already had a head full of white hair at that time. She doesn't know which Master would be kinder for her. The other man looked a little bit like her. He has the same eyes, yellow with a slit of green and black for pupils. She thinks he would be able to understand her because he is a little bit cat. But Master Monty had looked so much kinder, even then, even though he's a wolf. He brings her home and pets her head when she looks up at him quizzically. He had taken off her collar at the auction house and hadn't put a new one on her.

  "Are you my new Master?" she asks.

  He nods, sage and a little bit unhappy because he hadn't meant to buy her. He only wanted her away from the other man's hands. "If that's what you want, then yes," he says, and then he explains that he has to keep her hidden, but she's free to roam in his estate. His servants are paid generously to keep their mouths shut and she's free to be human if she wants to be, even with her cat ears and tail. He has a huge estate, a mansion that takes her a week to finish exploring and a maze-like garden surrounding the mansion. A forest surrounds the garden, and it takes half an hour by car to drive from the main gate to the garden, and then another fifteen-minute walk to the front door.

  He treats her like a daughter he's never had. Except he has children. He has several children with their own families who don't talk to him anymore because he refuses to give them money. He had a younger wife, a woman he fell in love with when he was in his seventies. She had no business falling for a man more than twice her age, but loved him nevertheless and he loved her more than he had loved anyone. They have a son together and he seems to be the only one of his children whom he talks about fondly. He never visits too. When his wife died ("Cancer," he had said with a soft, far-away look) his son took off and never looked back. The house reminded him too much of his mother. "Now he's off living his own life," he would say with pride. "Doesn't want to live off his dad's money," he continues, sounding entirely too approving.

  "I'm living off your money, Master," she purrs, curling up at his feet, blinking up at him pathetically.

  "You're different," he huffs. "You're working too. You keep me company," he says and she knows this is true. She doesn't really do anything other than keep him company, but he tells her that when she's eighteen, he'll have a marriage contract arranged for her. There are people who would pay an obscene amount of money to take her as their bride. Half shifters like her are status symbols. Rich men keep them around to make themselves feel important. "I'll sell you, and then I never have to work a day in the rest of my life ever again," he says.

  "You already do that, Master," she tells him with a little frown and he laughs.

  Master doesn't need the money. Even after spending so much to purchase her from the auction house, he has plenty more.

  Maybe he does have someone in mind for her, but she won't be able to find out now. Master Monty dies two days before her birthday and his body is found by the servants that night.

  None of the servants in the sprawling mansion knows what to do with her. Their contracts to keep quiet about her are binding, even in his death. If they talk about her, they risk losing not only their jobs, but everything they've ever earned from Master Monty. So they don't talk about her even when a lawyer shows up with someone from animal control and before she can bolt, the man has a steel wire around her neck and is tossing her expertly into a cage. He locks her inside while she panics and the rest of the employees look on vainly. Several times, she thinks someone is going to speak up and point out that she's not actually a cat and putting her in a cat cage is inhumane, but they pull back before actually doing anything. The lawyer isn't even looking at them. He's looking at her Master's other family members, who have suddenly shown up and appear all-too-gleeful about her Master's death. They're only here for the money.

  "There's none," the man says. "The house is going to Shadow, as is the cat."

  "What?" someone splutters. Anna can't see her from the way she's being carried in the cage, but her voice is high pitched and a little grating. "Why would we care about a cat?"

  "Half of the inheritance is meant for the cat," the lawyer deadpans, sounding like he's dead inside. "That includes this entire estate. Whoever owns her gets the house."

  "How can a cat inherit anything?"

  "I can take care of the cat."

  "Take care of a cat?!"

  People are screaming over each other, each wanting to be heard. She grimaces and wishes the cage could close off sound too.

  "She is bequeathed to Mr. Shadow."

  "He left everything to the little bastard, didn't he?"

  "That fuc-"

  She channels her animal and stops listening. She does, however, start protesting anew when she realizes that she's being taken out of the garden and into a car that smells utterly unfamiliar.

  When she starts trashing about in the cage, someone injects her through an opening at the side of the cage and she fights the lethargy seeping into her bones. She's fighting a losing battle. The drugs spread through her system until she is made her sleep for a long time and when she wakes again, she is in the same cage, but she's no longer in the first car. Instead, she's in the passenger seat in the front of a car and there is a sullen man driving the car, smelling agitated and unhappy.

  She opens her mouth and lets out a plaintive, "Mraawl."

  The man lets out a threatening growl that makes her curl up tighter around herself. She's never met another werewolf who's not her Master before. "Quiet," he growls for good measure and she stops trying to make another noise but makes herself focus on the person driving the vehicle that smells like leather.

  He must be Shadow. Master had showed her pictures of him before and she had always thought that he looked frightening. He is even scarier in person, tanned skin and stern lines on his face, hands clutching the wheel of his car so hard she's surprised it hasn't shattered in his grip.

  "I don't have use for a cat," he says fiercely, low and dangerous, and glances at her. "Why would he give me a cat?" he grumbles under his breath.

  For a second, she is terrified that he would open the window and just throw her out. She tries to make herself even smaller, but fear makes her fur puff out and she bares her fangs at him.

  He seems to deflate a little at the sight of her and he lets out a sigh, the fight going out of him in increments. "I'm sorry, love. I'm sure you're lovely," he says and she preens a little bit because she is really very lovely. Master makes sure to groom her every other day. Didn't even know the old man had a cat," he says. "Apparently you're important," he says. "Old man left half his estate to you," he continues and the words don't really mean much to her except tell her that he can't just throw her away easily now. Estate means money and people don't throw money. Her body shakes and her brain starts taking note on how it would be safer for her if he doesn't know she's a half shift. If nobody told him, does that mean Master didn't want him to know?

  But Master left her with Shadow, so he must have trusted him.

  As he continues driving, she realizes that it doesn't matter whether he knows or not if he's not going to let her out of the cage. She can't shift in a place like this. If the cage is made of metal and steel, then she could die trying to shift into her full human form. Maybe he'll do it when he gets home. People don't generally keep their cats in cages, right? She's a very pretty cat, fluffy white fur and she's very well behaved. She'll do tricks too, when the mood strikes her. Master likes to hold her when she's in this form and pet her hair until she's all soft and pliant. And then Master would snip her nails so she doesn't scratch up all his expensive furniture. She misses Master.

  "What's gotten you all upset?" the
man asks suddenly, his attention fully focused on her. As if she had spoken or moved, neither of which she had.

  There's a small pause as she opens her mouth without any real idea of what to saw. Then, she lets out another plaintive, "Mreowl."

  "I don't know what I expected," he sighs. "Come on, then. I'm not moving into the old man's estate, so you better get used to my house."

  She curls up tightly and whines when she feels her cage being lifted up. Master never puts her in a cage. It's big enough that she can curl around and stare at the back of the cage instead. She wants to see where she's going, though. It's pointless. She can't see much and trying to look out is only making the cage shake. She's getting kind of dizzy.

  "If you throw up, I'm going to hose you down." His voice fills the silence, callous and cruel as though he's reporting on the weather. She doesn't want to get hose down. They used to do it to her back in her first home and it's terrible. It leaves her shivering cold and she can never get herself fully dry because she can't reach her head with her paws.

  She hears the sound of the doors whirling shut and then she's being lowered into a corner. It smells like food in here and she can sort of see the dining table and chairs. Master had liked antiques, things that are older than him and furniture that looked and smelled like history. Pine and hardwood and expensive things from all over the world. It's homey.

  Her new Master's home is metal and glass, expensive in different ways. She sees extravagant glass decoration on the surface of the table and giant coffee machines and knows in her mind that he's not going to let her out here. He won't risk his expensive new things. She is already thinking of the pretty noises they'll make when she pushes them off the counter.

  She wonders if he's going to feed her. How is he going to feed her if he doesn't let her out. He has to, right? At some point or the other? She'll behave. She's a good kitty.

  He turns the light on and then she hears the sound of plastic rustling, and then a few seconds later, a can is opened. The scent of tuna fills the air.

  Her stomach grumbles.

  "Cats eat tuna, right?" he murmurs, squatting down in front of the entrance to her cage. She thinks of running. Maybe- maybe she can get back to her Master. She doesn't want them to bury him without her. He'll be lonely. Master Monty spends all his time with her, petting her and grooming her fur and watching silly shows with her.

  When he gets the door open, she is frozen in place because he bends down and she sees his face clearly for the first time and he looks so much like Master Monty when he's not glaring at everything that her breath hitches and she forgets to run. He's like Master Monty, but younger and healthier and looking like he's in his prime. He's so handsome, so much like Master Monty. She lets out a broken-hearted mrawl and he pushes the can in front of her and before she can think of moving, he locks the door to the cage and walks away.

  Her eyes track him as he walks to the edge of the room and opens the door to his fridge. She can't see what he takes out from it, but it must be some sort of cold cut sandwich because he starts to eat it right away.

  She tells herself that she's not going to eat the tuna. Canned tuna is bad for her fur. Master only feeds her fresh fish. Her mouth water as she hears the sound of her new master biting and chewing the sandwich and her stomach growls, but the thought of her Master makes her heart clench and she loses her appetite.

  She curls up and closes her eyes, tries to relax.

  It doesn't take her long to fall asleep, dreaming of tuna.

  Chapter Two: Rage

  She feels like she's been in the cage for weeks now even though she knows it's only been two days at most. It's hard to tell the time locked up in the cage like this, though. She doesn't see any windows and the only source of light she has comes from the living room.

  Shadow's obviously not used to having a pet. He hadn't even bothered giving her water.

  Her stomach hurts a little when she wakes and she gives the can of tuna a kitten lick and scrunches her nose. It tastes artificial and gross. The alternative is going hungry and she decides to take it for now. Maybe she'll be lucky and just die in here. She feels terribly melodramatic but can anyone blame her? She just lost her master.

  The thing is, she hasn't stayed in her cat shift for so long since she started staying with her Master. He knows how dangerous it is for half shifters like her to lose themselves in their minds. There are shifters like her who are forced to stay in their shifts for so long that they forget they're human and can't shift back. She thinks maybe that won't be too bad. The less human she is, the less she feels. It is still a little disconcerting to have her animal mind seize control. She's fine with staying in her cat shift. It feels a little disconcerting, though. Her animal mind is taking control.

  It's easier being a kitten- cat, her brain corrects herself. She's an adult now. She's a cat. Not a kitten.

  But she's used to being pampered and getting plenty of pets and hugs and delicious snacks. She licks the tuna again and blanches. It's truly awful. It's not even just catfood. It's the sort of cheap tuna that's made of ground bones and discarded bits from fish that nobody in their right minds would eat.

  She's really very hungry though. She mewls and mewls, louder and louder until Shadow finds it prudent to come out and check on her. She yelps when her cage is yanked up abruptly and she losses her balance, tumbling around in the cage. She is all but slammed on top of a table. The can of tuna upends, smattering all over her pristine fur and the inside of her cage.

  She sees him looking at her now, all human and pissed off as his eyes look her up and down. She whines and curls her tail up around herself, hiding as far into the corner of the cage and as far away from him as she can.

  His expression softens. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry," he says. "I never wanted a pet. I don't know what you want."

  Food would be nice. Maybe some water.

  He notices the mess for the first time. "Fuck. You made a mess," he says like it's not his fault that the can of disgusting tuna is all over the cage and on her fur. "Come on. I'll wash it off." He gets the door open and she remembers his earlier promise of hosing her down and she panics, claws lashing out the draw three neat lines across his hand.

  He hisses and yanks his hand back. Then, his face and eyes shift, snout growing and teeth lengthening, more wolf than man. He's terrifying and she's- she's-

  She's snarling at him because it's obvious now that she has no sense of self preservation.

  "Have it your fucking way, then," he says, locking the cage once again and leaving her on the kitchen table.

  She cleans herself miserably, licking up the tuna and swallowing fur together with it. She doesn't like it. If she could cry, she would, but all she can do in this form is yowl and meow loudly to get his attention. She hears the door slam close a few minutes later and she's left all alone, still covered in tuna and mouth tasting like artificial chemicals. She hates it already and lets the cat take control of the grooming. Master usually grooms her and she's used to having him comb her fur and massage oil into her skin.

  She whines and wishes he would come get her. She yowls louder when she's reminded of the fact that her Master is dead and he's never coming back for her. She's stuck here.

  Shadow returns a few hours later, remorseful and full of apologies. He has a bag with him that smells vaguely medicinal and she has a moment of panic when she worries he's going to put her down humanely without knowing she's actually human. Well, partially human. Sometimes. Her panic eases when she sees him taking out cat toys and different cans of catfood down. She recognizes some of those brands. They're the expensive sort that Master would feed her as treats every once in a while.

  She lets out a tentative mewl.

  "I don't know what to do with you," he confesses. "You're a beautiful little thing, aren't you?" he peers into the door as he says this. "The old man must be smitten with you to have left you such a big chunk of his estate." He drags his palm over his face. "I was hoping to make amends wit
h him before he died. Did he suffer, you think? They tell me you were with him. Was he at peace?"

  She looks at him, unsure of how to respond when she's like this. Master hadn't suffered. He had been getting sicker and sicker. He refused treatment. It rarely worked with his kind, he said. And he would much rather die in his own terms. She was upset that he didn't want treatment, but a little bit selfishly glad because if Master goes to the hospital, she can't go with him. He didn't suffer.

  "Jesus. I'm talking to a cat," he laughs. "Alright. The vet says maybe you're just upset from the new environment and I should keep you in there for a little while so you don't try to escape. I'm not punishing you for anything, okay?" Then, he makes a face and turns away. She spies the slashes on his hand and feels a little bad for hurting him. He clearly has no idea what he's doing and she shouldn't have punished him for trying.

  She wishes she could move around in her cage though. It's getting a little cramped in here. She curls up and tries to sleep a little more.

  Chapter Three: Half-Human

  She is mostly asleep when she hears a familiar voice at the door that follows a confused Shadow. The old woman marches in with all the wrath of an avenging god. Or in this case, a pissed off caretaker. Master Monty's primary caregiver is a terrifying woman and keeps order around the house with an iron fist.

  She must have been so sad when she came back from her son's graduation and found out that Master Monty had died.

  "Melissa? What're you doing here?" Shadow sounds uncertain for the first time since she's been here. "How did you get in?" he continues, completely flummoxed.

  "The staff tell me that you took Anna with you," Melissa says and her ears perk up at the sound of her name. "Where is she?" Louder, she calls out, "Anna? Anna, darling. Where are you?"