****
As soon as Ashlyn was at a safe distance, Rage attacked. The demon wolf came at him hard and the next minute was a blur until another right connected with his jaw. Gray staggered almost losing his footing. Hounds be damned but he was losing. Blood ran from a gash in his forehead and at least two of his ribs were cracked. Not to mention the wound slashed along his entire chest, which was pretty much what happened when two inch razor sharp claws ripped across flesh. It was getting harder and harder to stand up. More and more difficult to ward off the blows. He couldn’t shake the feeling that Rage was holding back. The big wolf should have had him by now.
Sap that he was, he actually felt sorry for him, they were still friends despite the fact that they were trying to kill each other. The time had come to dig deep, it took more than just muscles to win a fight. It also took skill, determination and for a half blood like him, a bit of luck.
Rage struck a particularly hard blow to his jaw. His teeth cracked together. Time slowed as he fell. Only one thing on his mind.
Ash.
His Demon Chaser had put herself on the line for him. Had been willing to defend him when nobody else would. The only other person that had been willing to do that was his mother, but that was different. A mother had an obligation. Ash had chosen to stand with him. Gray turned his head as he lay sprawled on the ground. Phoenix held onto the little Chaser who fought and raged against his confining arms like a single bolt of wild lightening against a clear sky. The rest of the pack was waiting calmly for Rage to deliver the death blow.
He’d heard of Omegas being at odds with their demon halves. The two species so different that internal wars were a given. There was only one time in his life he had ever been at odds with his demon. When he’d had to fight hard to suppress his inner wolf and had gone against everything his instincts were telling him. It had been last night whilst making love to Ash. His canines had been extended on the soft spot just beneath her ear. Hounds, hearing her beg him to bite her had been almost more than he could handle. His demon had also begged. Everything in him had told him to do it and for a second there, he had been afraid that he had. To have marked her during mating would have bound them to one another irrevocably regardless of species.
Laying here, on the hard ground, his Demon Chaser still fighting to save him, he wished so hard that things could have been different. Another time, another place, he would have made her his. They did belong together, his demon was right.
Once the thought took residence, he felt a stirring, his wolf grew and strength poured through his veins. Warming, filling, fuelling.
Rage leaned over him, his features pulled back to semi human. “I’m sorry my friend.” It was a growled whisper and then he surged back into wolf form leaning in for the death lunge.
It happened so quickly he didn’t have time to think, just act. His limbs stretched and cracked as he mostly erupted, not quite making a completely turned wolf but close enough. Rage faltered for a second which was enough to take the advantage. Three well placed swipes had the tables turning. Rage landed hard on his back, Gray clamped his jaw on Rage’s throat, but he couldn’t do it. Blood trickled from the wounds his canines inflicted. If Rage tried to break free it would tear him apart. Gray needed to make an example to the rest of the pack.
Rage growled in fear and anger, “What are you waiting for?”
He released the much bigger wolf, standing he addressed the pack. “Let this be a warning. Next time there will be no mercy.” Gray observed the faces of his pack, lingering on the larger more dominant Beta males. They all looked down submissively. One or two of the older males even nodded in acceptance.
Gray turned to leave, but Alisha put herself in his path dropping to her knees in front of him.
“Forgive me Gray. I’m yours if you’ll still have me.”
It was time to set things right. He also needed to recheck the Lores. What had just happened was not normal. Omegas did not erupt unless under the light of a full moon. What in hades was going on?
“Follow me, we’ll talk in my quarters.”
Chapter 9
Ash pushed the last of her clothing into her bag. How could someone be so incredibly happy and so unbearably sad all at once?
She had been wrong. She couldn’t stay and watch Gray take Alisha as his mate. Instead, she’d called the Agency and arranged to have someone else take her place. If she was really honest with herself, she’d compromised the investigation anyway by sleeping with Gray. Her mind was on other things.
“Leaving us already?” Ash gasped as she whipped around. A tall woman stood directly behind her. She had so made the right decision by asking to be removed from this case, no one should have been able to sneak up on her like this. If she hadn’t been so wrapped up in her thoughts it would never have happened.
The demon wolf looked exactly like Alisha, only not. This woman was as plain as Alisha was pretty.
“How rude of me, I’m Katrina, Alisha’s older sister.”
She smiled broadly, but Ash could only focus on her teeth as they extended into sharp daggers.
****
Alisha had regained her composure. He might have thought he had dreamt the whole begging scene if it weren’t for the dirt stains on her pants.
“Why have you changed your mind?” he asked really wanting to know.
“You proved yourself today.”
“I don’t buy it. You don’t love me.”
“Does it really matter?” She flicked a piece of grass from her white blouse. The gesture seemed disinterested and if it weren’t for the tremble of her fingers he might have bought it.
“The funny thing is that yesterday I would have said no to that question, but today I feel differently. It matters Alisha. Please be honest with me.”
She put a hand over her mouth in an attempt to staunch a wail, but failed as the sound punctured the silence. Her eyes turned glassy with unshed tears. It was difficult, but he stayed still while she pulled herself back together. Alisha wasn’t the hugging type or the crying type. This whole situation left him uncomfortable.
“I hated Bain.”
Her words shocked him, but he kept silent.
“The way he carried on rutting with anything that struck his fancy, especially human women, and whether they wanted him or not. After all those years of putting up with all that”—she bit her bottom lip and shook for head for a few beats—“he decided to take an Omega mate. I was thrilled but scared because Bain would have wanted to keep me too anyway. Then he died and my life finally was worth living. I fell in love Gray.”
Of course. It all made sense, “Rage.”
“Yes. It’s the only reason he challenged you. Thank you so much for sparing him. You’re a good man and for doing what you did, I’ll become your mate. Do whatever you ask of me.” She reached out briefly touching his hand.
He held his breath not sure what to expect. The contact brought…
Nothing.
He didn’t feel a single thing and rightly so. Alisha was never meant to be his true mate.
“You never loved Bain? Now that I think about it, who would love a bastard like him?”
“Did you know that he was even sleeping with my sister? It’s why she never took a mate of her own. He destroyed her life and her sanity. She believed that she loved him.”
Something tickled in his mind. “Maybe Bain loved her too in his own sick way.”
She scoffed, “Katrina wasn’t human enough for Bain’s taste. Why do you think he ended up choosing an Omega? Had to keep the pack happy, but wanted to satisfy his own little fetish at the same time.”
“You said he cost your sister her sanity. What did you mean?”
“Katrina was so brain washed by Bain, she would do anything to please him. Even told me once that she would seduce young human females for threesomes. All to please him.”
“You guys talked about this sort of thing with one another? I knew that wolves sometimes took more than one mate,
but hounds…”
“He was one sick puppy. Worse than you know.” Alisha pulled a face. “I found Katrina upset one day and she told me that Bain had left her out of the fun. She was angry Gray like I’ve never seen anyone before. She said that the human bitch would pay. Not Bain, never Bain, it was always someone else’s fault. He had her so wound up it was scary.”
His heart beat stopped for just a second before racing to catch back up. “Do you think that it might be her hurting these women?”
Her eyes widened. “No. It can’t possibly…,” she gasped. “It could be. Hounds Gray. It could be.” She answered more forcibly. “Ever since his death, she’s been quiet, secretive. She disappears for days on end. No I’m wrong. It was after we found out about the Omega Bain had chosen for his mate, which was before Bain died. She’s just become worse since—”
He didn’t wait to hear any more. Just knew with unexplained surety that Ash was in trouble. His pack had seen how Ash had reacted to Rage’s challenge. Anyone close enough might have smelt him on her. She fit the profile, a young, beautiful human, favoured by a wolf…by him, the Alpha. And she was alone…
****
“You stink of human. Sweet, sickly, yuhh.” Katrina gagged, increasing the pressure on her arm.
Ashlyn had to bite her lip to keep from moaning. They were headed for the middle of nowhere. Thick forest surrounded them and yet they kept going.
“And you’re really fucking ugly. What our Alphas see in you puny disgusting human women is beyond me.”
“If I’m so disgusting to you, then why don’t you kill me now?” Ash kicked herself mentally. She was supposed to be trying to stay alive not get herself killed more quickly.
“Wolves have excellent hearing. Even stupid Omegas. I plan on making you scream until your throat bleeds right along with the rest of you, until you beg me to finish you.”
As if her words hadn’t been enough, the psycho started to hum to the tune of a fairy tale. Suddenly she was more scared than she’d ever been in her life.
Ash was pulled along at an exhausting pace for some time. “Gray will be able to scent it was you. He’ll kill you Katrina.”
She laughed, “No he won’t. All he’ll smell is you. I learned a little trick or two from those demon skins. Thanks ever so much for getting rid of them for me.”
“What little trick?”
Katrina smiled. It was one of those twisted smiles of a psychopath. Simultaneously, she began to bulge and shimmer, like she was made out of molding clay and an invisible hand was manipulating her. “He can’t smell me because I’m not allowing it. Enough talk, the time has come for the screaming to begin.”
****
Gray felt his bones snap and lengthen, felt his muscles rope and thicken, the transformation took a split second. If he weren’t so anxious about finding Ash, he might take a few moments to marvel at being able to run on all fours during daylight hours. Something he’d never experienced before. After finding Ash’s room empty and her missing trench coat and gun in Katrina’s bedroom, his suspicions were instantly confirmed. The demon wolf was the killer and she planned on making Ash her next victim. He had stopped only to let Alisha know what was happening so that she could send backup.
What confused him was that he could only pick up one scent but it didn’t matter, he could smell the scent of peaches clear as the nose on his snout and would only be content once he found his Chaser. Alive and well.
****
Ash had to find a way to distract the demon wolf. She still had her knife but the problem was that she’d carelessly shoved it, sheath and all, into her jeans pocket. If she even managed to get the thing out, she knew she’d only get one shot, so she best she make it count.
Also, the knife was small, she knew from experience, that both skins and wolves didn’t go down easily and right now she didn’t know exactly what Katrina was. She would have to sever an artery to slow her down and then go for her weak spot.
A roar sounded. Loud and close. Both angry and deadly.
Katrina snarled, “I was hoping to kill you slowly but it looks like we’re out of time.”
Her snout elongated as she erupted, a process that would take a few seconds for a lower ranking female like Katrina. Her opportunity had come. It was act now or die. Gray was close but not nearly close enough to save her. She could take care of herself. Just like she had always done in the past. Ash grabbed the hilt of the knife and pulled, thanking her luck when the tightness of her pocket freed it from the sheath as well. The demon wolf had turned to look in the direction of the approaching Alpha and was in the process of turning back when Ash plunged the knife home. She’d made the mistake before of letting the knife go, not so this time, she held tight as Katrina pulled away, her muzzle open wide exposing a mouth full of sharp teeth, in a silent scream. Ash had to work to keep from falling, but managed to stay upright.
From the amount of blood that spouted from the wound, Ash knew she had struck the jugular. Another lucky break.
The demon wolf was only half erupted so her gargled scream ended in a high pitched snarl. When Katrina’s glowing eyes settled on her, she knew it wasn’t over yet. Those green shards went from regular garden variety psycho to full blown crazy psycho bitch in seconds. Ash swore she could see the wolf’s canines elongate as she lunged forward intent on ripping her throat out. Last chance, this would either work or she’d be dead. Using both hands, Ash lifted the knife at an angle to Katrina’s chest. Anything less than a mortal wound would fail to stop this wolf, this very sick, very deranged brand of insanity would only stop when it was dead.
The impact had them both falling to the ground. For a second, it felt like the knife would inflict no more than a flesh wound but then Katrina’s full weight landed on her and the blade, which might be small but it was also very sharp.
Just above her, Katrina’s eyes widened, she breathed out in an almost contented sigh. Again she worried that the blade was not long enough to have punctured Katrina’s heart, but the female demon wolf slumped forward. Her lifeless body pinned Ash to the hard earth.
Just when she thought she’d pass out from the weight, Katrina’s body was pulled free and Gray’s concerned face stared down at her.
“Thank hounds…,” Gray enveloped her in his strong arms, he picked her up and kissed her. Hard.
For a moment she was so happy to be safe. It felt so right to be with him like this that she forgot everything else. When reality set in, she pulled back.
“No Gray,” she whispered trying to get him to put her down, horrified to see the faces of several wolves staring back with more and more joining every second. “Gray please listen, you have to put me down, your pack, your mate—”
But he pulled her to him. So close she could feel his breath tickle her lips as he talked. “You are my mate.”
“Have you lost your mind?”
Gray smiled letting her pull back at last, allowing her to try and search the faces for someone that would reason with him. So she scanned the scatter of wolves, her eyes locking with Alisha’s. Oh no, this was becoming worse. Rage’s hand was possessively around the female demon wolf’s shoulders. Alisha was crying silently but when she caught Ash’s eye, she nodded in...acceptance? Had everybody lost their minds?
“What’s going on?” she asked with mounting confusion.
Gray turned his head to the building crowd and growled. Rage strode to where Katrina’s body lay and carefully picked it up. Within seconds, they were alone.
“You may not have noticed Gray, but you’re naked.”
His clothes must have been ripped off during the transformation.
“I hadn’t. Not important.”
No sooner were the words spoken and he devoured her lips. His tongue stroked in and out of her mouth. He put her down cradling her face in his hands. Sighing as he broke from her, Gray put his forehead to hers. “I’m so glad you’re such a good Chaser. I was so worried. Thought I might be too late.”
Ash p
ulled away. The time had come for answers. “What’s going on Gray? What did I miss? I’m not your mate.”
“Are you finished?”
She clenched her jaw to try and stop herself from answering no and launching into a whole new series of questions like back to her original had he lost his mind? Then he smiled and she melted a little. Okay she melted a lot.
“You are my mate,” his eyes were locked with hers.
“What happened to Alisha?”
“Alisha is Rage’s mate. Never meant to be mine. You are mine. I’m sorry it took me so long to figure it out.”
God how she loved hearing those words. You are mine. “Stop with the whole possessive thing. I don’t belong to anyone. What about the full moon situation?”
“There is no longer a situation. I never thought for a second that the last Lore would apply, but I was wrong.” He tucked a wayward strand of hair behind her ear, and was looking at her with such tenderness, such…love.
“What Lore?”
“The one that says I will turn into a full blood demon if I take true love as my mate. I firstly didn’t think I would find true love in a matter of days and secondly, I thought that it would have to be with another wolf to apply. I was wrong.”
She pulled in a deep breath, too scared to even blink in case this whole thing turned out to be a dream.
Gray went on, “You are my mate. Mine, and if you don’t mind I would like to make it official.”
“Official as in marry me?”
He laughed. It made her want to kick him in the shin.
“No. We have to mate. Here. Now. I will mark you and you will be mine.” His eyes turned liquid gold. His voice had lowered to a husky growl. “It is what needs to happen.”
“You bastard.”
****
It was not the reaction he had expected.
“So that’s it then? No going down on one knee? You’re not even going to ask me? It’s just taken for granted that I’ll become your mate?”
“I’m almost a full blown demon wolf, or will be when we mate which means—”
Alpha Page 6
