Raber Wolf Pack Box Set

by Ryan Michele

  “Pfft.” Syd says, “What kind of power is a wolf that can’t shift going to have? Nothing. You’re feeding her a line.”

  “My dear,” he says, inching around me to focus on Syd, “if I were you, I’d watch your mouth. You never know when it will come back to bite you.” She huffs but says nothing.

  “Marvin, this is a lot for me to take in.” He nods. “How? When?”

  “Those are other things I cannot answer.” This sounds like the beginning of one of the horror movies I watch, only this time I seem to be one of its stars. How in the hell did this happen? He levels his gaze at me. “And you need to keep practicing. It is of the utmost importance.”

  “My shifting?” I ask, hesitantly.

  “That and the other.”

  The ability to move things with my mind. It really is my power. Holy shit. I swallow, my throat suddenly feeling like the desert, and my stomach plummets farther. Not only do I have to find my mate immediately, I also have to hone in my power and learn to shift. How am I supposed to do that?

  THE RIDE HOME IS quiet. Almost too quiet in an eerie way. Hell, even my sisters are quietly fuming and that’s a miracle. My mother keeps turning and stealing glances at me, but says nothing. And I haven’t missed my father’s looks of surprise in the rearview mirror. They are both irritated with me and I knew they would be, but there is also concern written on their faces. The unspoken questions I see in them only make my decision to keep it from them harder and guilt rises. But I’m having a shit time dealing with this, too—going from knowing nothing and my life being blank to needing to find my mate, learn my power, shift, and helping be someone’s light. I need some time and I really don’t want to discuss why I defied the pull of my mate right now to my parents.

  Jumping out of the SUV, I shut the door behind me. “I’m going to go for a run. I’ll be back in a bit.” My words come out in a rush as I move, not wanting to give them the opportunity to stop me.

  “Why don’t you come in for a while? What you just learned is a lot to take in,” Mom says, and she is not wrong, but I keep moving.

  “I just need to run for a while to clear my head.” Even though I can’t shift, I still find running in the woods is one of my favorite things to do, and I love the peacefulness it brings. Our pack is on the outskirts of town with lush woods all around us. We’ve never had any issues with humans, or anyone for that matter. We keep to ourselves and others stay away.

  “Be careful, sweetheart.” This comes from my father.

  I give my parents a small smile and take off through the dense brush. It’s still dusk, allowing the sunlight to peer through the limbs of the trees. It is a beautiful sight and any other time I’d enjoy it, but right now I need to run.

  How in the world is all of this going to work? How am I going to be able to do whatever it is that I have to do? How is someone like me supposed to help? Not to mention, I have to find my mate. The weight of that is heavy. It’s not really a choice at this point. Why? Why me? What do I have that is special? Nothing. I’ve moved something twice. Twice. And haven’t been able to do so again.

  My feet pound through the leaves as I rush past the trees with ease.

  What if my mate hates the fact that I can’t shift? I know what my mother said and I hope to the Heavens that she’s right, but what if she’s not? What if he feels burdened or my lack of shifting wears badly on him? Then what? I’d love some answers, some real answers.

  Running on the outskirts of town, I hear the hustle and bustle of cars along with people’s conversations. The trees rustle and off in the distance, a bunny hops quickly away from me. If I were in a better mood, I’d chase after it just for the fun of it. But I’m not.

  So, what do I do? Go hang out at the library and hope my mate comes back? Marvin didn’t say exactly how I could find him, just that we needed to meet.

  I suck in a deep breath of the crisp air, so clean, so pure. My eyes catch a glimpse of something sparkling in the sunlight off to the right, and for some reason my legs take me right to the spot. Moving some of the fallen leaves away from the object, I uncover a beautiful crystal lying on the ground. I pick it up and brush the dirt off of it. It’s shaped like a teardrop, and a thin leather cord is looped through it. A necklace. Whoever lost this, I bet is upset. It’s beautiful and looks seriously old.

  My ears perk up as a low growl sounds in the distance. I sniff, smelling wolf, but not my wolves. Strange wolves. What the hell are they doing on my pack’s territory? I need to get out of here. I shoot off in the direction of our den faster than I knew I could run, allowing the twinge of fear to push me. I dodge fallen trees, and slice through the brush quickly.

  The scent and sounds of the wolves grow closer, way too close. Shit. All these times I’ve run in these woods, I have never seen another wolf that wasn’t in our pack. Snarling comes from in front of me, stopping me dead in my tracks. I look around and find two other wolves. There is one on each side of me, and the one in front of me. I glance behind me and see nothing, so I’m not completely surrounded.

  Three wolves that I don’t know and they are pissed as hell. Shit. My pulse beats erratically, but I try to keep myself together. With everything I have, I fight my fear. With the crystal still clutched in my hand, I take a few steps back to get a better view of the three. The wolf to the right shifts into a handsome man with dark hair and brown eyes. But those eyes are angry and fierce. This male is furious and not one to mess around with. Shit.

  “Give me the crystal,” he demands in a deep voice. His words have my hands clutching the small gem tighter in my fist.

  “Is it yours?” Keep him talking, Sabrea, until you figure out what to do. He can have the damn thing for all I care. It really means nothing to me and it’s not worth my life. But something tells me that even if they get it from me, they won’t stop until I’m dead. Well, isn’t today just a bowl full of fun. My wolf is alert, taking in the situation.

  “It is. Hand it over.” Think dammit. Think.

  “Once we get to the town.” No way I want to lead them to my pack and the town is close by with people to watch. Judging from his expression, this is a long shot. “I’ll hand it over.”

  The male snarls and charges me. I turn, darting off in the only open direction. Immediately, the thuds of feet and paws sound behind me. Shit. Not a good move, Sabrea. Running. Again.

  Angry Eyes grabs me from behind, wrapping his arms around my waist. With all of my might, I kneel, quickly sending him over my back and crashing to the ground. He immediately shifts into a wolf and the three of them surround me again. If I thought they were pissed before, I was wrong. Now, they are seriously infuriated.

  The dull gray wolf in front of me charges as I stumble, losing my balance, and crash to the ground. He is on top of me in a flash, his claws digging into my flesh and sending shards of pain throughout my body. His teeth snip in my face, and he has really bad breath. Probably not the time to think of that, but it comes. I fight as best I can, which isn’t much.

  I smell him. My mate is here. How in the hell? Wolves begin to jump out from the brush, gnashing their teeth and growling. My mate with his shiny brown coat and white ears, knocks the wolf off of my body and in the process, presses the wolf’s claws deeper into my skin. Blood rushes from my chest and stomach. Shit, that hurts. He’s poked something that’s leaking rapidly, not good.

  I roll to my side, the pain a bit much to bear, as growls and yelps come from all around me. There is too much blood and I can’t shift to help myself heal faster. In other words, I’m screwed. My wolf is slamming her head against the glass of her confinement, but not able to break free. I’m not able to break free. I guess I won’t be with my mate after all. A headache pulses just as darkness seeps in, and I try to keep my eyes open, but it pulls me under.

  Thor

  I RIP THE THROAT out of the piece of shit that attacked my mate, enjoying the flow of his blood into my mouth for a brief second. It just so happened that I smelled her, the female
from the library. It was faint, but I did, though it was far off in the distance. Then I smelled the fear radiating off of her in waves. I moved as fast as my legs would take me, and called Xavier on the go. Looking around me, I’m thankful that my pack answered the call so quick.

  “Thor!” Xavier calls from behind me and I turn. “The female is hurt bad. Max and a few of the guys have one of the wolves alive; we’re going to get some answers.”

  I rush to my mate’s side, seeing blood all over the ground and panic sets in.

  What the hell is wrong with her? Why the fuck didn’t she shift? She needs to, to heal. Why isn’t she? I shift back to human-form.

  “Healer, Xavier. Quick!” I call out. “Sweetheart, can you hear me?” I try to ask calmly but not feeling calm at all. I’ve never been so damn scared in all my life. My hands shake as I touch her and roll her to her back. “I need you to shift for me. You’ll heal faster.”

  I brush her brown hair off of her sweat-slicked face, my wolf instantly wanting to mark her as ours and I never thought I’d say this, but so do I. Shit. She’s beautiful and smells too damn good not to, but this isn’t the time.

  She groans. “I can’t,” she whispers, almost like she’s in a dream it’s so soft. Or maybe the pain is too much for her to bear.

  “Baby, you have to or you’re not going to make it.” I place my hands over the wounds that have the most blood seeping out, but it does nothing but coat my hands. This is not good. So not fucking good.

  “No, can’t shift. Broken,” she says softly as her head turns to the side and falls utterly limp. Shit.

  I try to shake her softly, but nothing happens, and that’s when the real panic sets in. She is not dying, dammit. “Wake up. I need you to wake up.” I plead over and over. “Xavier, healer!” I scream over the wolf they caught, through his cries of pain.

  “I’m here!” Stella says after shifting to human-form. Stella moves quickly, placing her hands over my mate’s limp body. A soft glow comes from her hands, illuminating my mate’s skin. Minutes pass as I watch the wounds on her body heal one after the other, but she lies there still, unmoving. It feels like hours, but I know it’s only seconds. Time seems like an enemy at the moment.

  My mate gives out a loud gasp and her eyes dart around, life springing back into her and color coming to her face. “What’s going on?” she asks quickly in a sweet, panicked voice, eyes scanning all around.

  “You didn’t shift when they came after you. Why?” Her eyes come to mine and grow wide in recognition. Good to know she feels this shit too. I must say she has the most beautiful blue eyes I’ve ever seen. They remind me of a robin egg and draw me in, commanding my body without words.

  “I can’t shift.” She pats her body as the last few moments seep in. She darts up from her spot, taking in her surroundings, frantically searching the surrounding woods. “Where are they?” Her voice is terrified as she continues to look around the space, searching for the assholes who attacked her.

  I reach out and lightly hold her shoulder, needing to comfort her. She doesn’t flinch from my touch, but doesn’t melt at it either. “Two are dead. One, a few of the guys are playing with.” I gesture off in the distance, where they are in fact working the wolf over, and her eyes follow then snap back to me. “Now. Why can’t you shift?”

  Despair flashes in her blue depths with a splash of fear. “I was born this way.” She looks down to the ground avoiding me. Is she embarrassed? Like I’d give a rat’s ass. The Heavens picked her for me for a reason. Shifting or no shifting, she’s mine.

  “Okay. We’ll talk about all that later. Right now, let’s get you out of here and to the den. We’ll get everything settled out there.”

  She stiffens as I reach for her arm to help her to her feet. “I need to go back home.” Her body shakes, showing her fear, and I bet anything that her wolf is riding her hard. She is deliberately avoiding eye contact with me. She’s scared. Why would my mate be scared of me?

  I lift her chin with my index finger and her eyes continue looking everywhere but at me. “Look at me,” I say in the calmest voice I can. No use in scaring an already scared wolf. Her eyes slowly come to mine and the instant they do, it’s like a magical puzzle that snaps into place. Her breathing becomes erratic just as mine does. My heart constricts and the connection between us grows, snaking around the depths of my soul.

  Mine, rings through my head, my wolf snarls to be released, to claim what is ours. Her eyes alight with fire and I’m lost. I crash my lips to hers, pulling her body so close to mine. I want to climb inside of her. Consume her. She responds enthusiastically, meeting me move for move. Her hands thread through my hair, holding me in place, but I’m not going anywhere and neither is she.

  I’ve heard stories all of my life about meeting one’s mate and how there is this uncontrollable desire to get as close to the person as possible and claim them. I always thought they were full of shit, but now I don’t. It is exactly how I feel about her and I don’t even know her name yet. Shit.

  I pull away briefly. “Name?” I say between gasps of air.

  “Sabrea.”

  “Beautiful. Thor.” I devour her lips again, her taste infiltrating my mouth, body, and soul. The warmth of her body drives me higher. I lift her ass and she wraps her arms and legs around me tightly as I stand to my full height. Damn. Her body begins to move against me, her hot core against my aching flesh. Heavens, I need to fuck and mark her now. I pull away, her eyes lost in a dreamy fog. “Need to mark you, baby.”

  At my words, she stills as if the clouds cleared, uncovering something in her mind. Her legs drop from around me, and I’m pissed because I miss it entirely too much. “You can’t mark me until you know.” Her voice is so soft, skeptical and afraid. Dammit, I don’t want that from her.

  “What do you want me to know?” I move a stray piece of her beautiful silky hair from her eyes. They widen and she gasps so loudly, wolves within miles would hear. “What?”

  “The crystal.” Sabrea frantically looks at her hands and then begins patting the pockets of her jeans. Is this the crystal that we are looking for? How did she get it? She pulls out of my embrace and rushes off to where she was lying on the ground. Blood covers the dirt, but she doesn’t care. She sifts through it at rapid speed. “They were looking for it. Wanted me to give it to them. Where did it go?”

  Her body shakes, no doubt the events of today getting to her, but as frantically as she is digging, I know it’s best not to stop her. “What did the crystal look like?” Once she describes it, I know it is one and the same and fall to my knees to help in the search. “Xavier, here.” I call over as he jogs to me. “They wanted the crystal.”

  “How did you get it?” he barks and she flinches, stilling her search. Anyone, male or female, would feel the pressure from our alpha’s words. I lay a hand on her back just to let her know that I’m here and won’t let anything happen to her, ever.

  “I…I found it on the ground while I was out for a run. I picked it up and a couple of minutes later they were chasing me. They cornered me. One turned to human-form and demanded I hand it over. I was going to do it, but realized quickly that no matter what I did, they were going to kill me.” Fury like none I’ve ever experienced bubbles through my veins like hot lava. No one. And I mean no one, lays a hand on Sabrea. “The one wolf got on me and slashed me a few times. I tried to defend myself, but it didn’t do much good.”

  “Why didn’t you shift?” Xavier calms his voice just a touch, sensing her apprehension in speaking with him. For that, I’m appreciative. Zara is really rubbing off on him.

  Her eyes dart to me, regret filling them. “I can’t. I was born this way and no one knows why. I shifted three times and then after that, nothing. My wolf is trapped inside of me and can’t escape. My parents took me to doctors, witches, and wizards but they never could figure out what is wrong with me.” She hangs her head, defeat written all over her body.

  I sweep her in my arms; she resists
at first, but then melts into me. Silent tears fall from her eyes and I have to wonder if this has been a fear of hers. That her mate wouldn’t accept that she is different. “There is nothing wrong with you. Shit happens and you figure out a way to deal,” I say, squeezing her tightly. “Xavier, we need to get the pack out here to cover the woods.”

  “Already on it.” Xavier shifts back to wolf and I feel him through the pack link as he trots off to the wolf he captured. The cavalry should be here soon.

  “I really need to go home.” Sabrea tries to pull out of my arms, but I don’t allow it as I tighten my grip around her. I won’t let her run from me. Ever.

  “I’ll take you to your old den to get the things you need, but then you come home with me. Sleep in my bed next to me. Do you understand?” I tried to be gentle in my words, but they came out a bit rougher than I intended.

  “I can’t.”

  Tears fall onto my arm that’s cradling her and for the first time in a really long time, my heart breaks for someone. Damn, I hate this feeling.

  “Why?”

  She shakes her head. “I also don’t have an ear.” While this is shocking, it’s not anything that would keep me away from my mate.

  “And…?” I prompt. She looks up at me like I’ve grown twelve heads with snakes coming out of them. Damn, she really was freaked that I wouldn’t accept her as she is. “I don’t give a shit about any of that. You are my mate and that’s all that matters.” It crushes my heart that she feels like this, and probably has since she found out she couldn’t shift. That had to be weighing heavily on her.

  “You don’t?” Surprise lights her words and it pisses me off that she has thought this way about herself. That she didn’t feel worthy. She is, and I’ll make damn sure I show her that.

  “No, I don’t. We’re going to go over to the library.” She flinches at the word. I know she had to smell me there and must have purposefully stayed away. Damn. “Our SUV’s parked there. We’ll drive to your old den. I can meet your parents, old pack, and then I’m taking you home.” She has no idea what the hell she has in store for her. I really don’t want to drop the ‘you’re part of a legacy’ bomb on her right now. She has enough going on in that head of hers.