by Jane Jamison
“Give up while you can. Maybe they’ll take it easy on you.” Not that she expected the pack to forgive him for killing two of his own, but if she could make him think so, then maybe she’d get out alive.
He barked a short caustic laugh. “They’ll kill me if they get the chance. All I have to do is wait for the rest of my followers to show up.”
“They won’t get here in time. You might as well give up now.”
The minute she saw his face, she knew she was wrong. “Sorry, bitch, but my men are already here. They were at the Wolf’s Den and left at the same time those traitors did. They waited until the time was right to attack.” He laughed again. “Your men are going to die, bitch. Then I’ll make you mine forever.”
Horrible sounds drifted into the shelter. Howls split the air above them as pounding after pounding shook the ground. From the sound of it, an entire pack fought above them.
“Let me go.” She yanked at the rope binding her to the cot. “Please. Don’t let others die.”
He tilted his head again, listening. “They’re doing what they’re supposed to be doing. They’re protecting their leader.” Leaning against the wall, he smiled up at the ceiling. “Those who are faithful to me will win. And when they do, we’ll go outside and claim our right to be their leaders.”
“I don’t want to be their leader.” She struggled again, yanking on the rope even though she knew it was useless. “Stop this while you can. Part ways and leave Fate. You know you can’t stay after killing Henrietta and Carl.”
“Shut up, bitch. I want to hear my victory as it happens.”
She hated him, more than she could ever put into words. But what use was there in trying to talk to him? Instead, she listened to the fight.
If I live and my mates don’t, I’ll kill you, Moses. I swear I will.
“The hate I see in your eyes makes me proud. You hate me now, but in time, your hate will turn to strength. Then you’ll be worthy to call my mate.” He fisted his hand at the ceiling. “Hear that? Those are my wolves, my pack.”
“Fuck you.” She spat, propelling a thick wad of spit at him.
Again, he chuckled. “Yes, mate. We will fuck and soon.”
* * * *
Willa stayed huddled in the corner of the shelter. Perspiration dotted her forehead, not only from the lack of air circulating in the small shelter, but from her nerves. Every growl, every howl she’d heard splintered another stab of pain through her. The fight had gone on for what seemed like an hour, yet she knew it couldn’t have been that long. Even Moses had stopped gloating about how “his warriors would kill all the unfaithful” and was worriedly staring at the shelter door.
When the silence came, it was almost deafening. Moses turned toward her as though expecting her to tell him the outcome of the fight.
Then, suddenly, startling both of them, the pounding on the door continued. Moses pulled out his phone. “Come on. Answer, damn it.” After several tries, he tossed his phone to the floor.
“They’re not answering because they didn’t win. They lost and left you to face the new pack alone.”
He snarled and lunged at her. Before he reached her, however, another pound and a shout came from above.
“Moses, we know you’re in there. Come out now.”
Grant.
Relief flooded her. Grant had survived the fight, but had Ryan and Thomas?
Moses paced the floor and rubbed his skin again, as though the blood he’d wiped away earlier had reappeared.
“Listen to him. It’s no use. We can’t stay down here forever. Give yourself up.”
He growled, his inner wolf once again finding its way to the surface. If he shifted, would he kill her?
“Moses, the pack has new leadership now,” shouted Grant. “The fight is over. Open the door and face us like a man. Like a true alpha.”
She held her breath as Moses seemed to consider Grant’s words. He didn’t have many options left. Either he gave himself up and turned her free or he stayed where he was, holding out for as long as he could. If he chose to say, he might end up killing her first before the others found a way to get to them.
“Please, Moses, if you ever felt anything for me, open the door.”
“If I ever felt anything for you?” He gaped at her. “I wanted you as my mate. Doesn’t that say it all?”
She’d tried to appeal to his emotions and hadn’t realized she’d strike a nerve. “I’m sorry. I never knew. I thought I was just a prize, nothing more.”
A sadness enveloped him. She was certain she saw a tear in his eye.
And then, before she could say more, the terrible Moses was back.
“I won’t give you up. You’re my mate, not theirs, bitch.”
She let out a squeak as he strode toward her, his face dark. He tore free the rope binding her to the bed. Clutching her hair, he dragged her off the cot and toward the ladder. “Up.”
She began to climb with him following close behind. Hanging on to the short ladder together, he yelled, “We’re coming out. Back up and keep away. If you’re too close, she dies.”
“Willa, are you all right?” shouted Thomas.
“Yes! I’m okay!”
“Enough. Back off. Now.” Moses waited a moment then pushed the door open.
Sunlight streamed in, blinding her until her eyes could adjust. With Moses keeping a firm hold on her, she climbed out of the shelter.
Wolves and men lay scattered over the ground as though a giant child had tossed his toys away. The dead were horrible to look at, but the wounds the rest of them suffered tore at her.
“Willa.”
The men she loved were injured, blood inching down their arms and faces, but they were alive, their wounds already healing. She tried to smile but couldn’t. Not with so much death surrounding her.
“Back off or I’ll kill her.” Moses grabbed her hair again and pushed her in front of him, using her as a human shield.
“Turn her loose,” ordered Ryan. “Turn her loose or I swear I’ll rip you apart.”
“Easy, asshole. If anyone comes too close, I’ll tear her throat out.”
Growls came from all around her as Moses pushed her forward. Strangely, however, she wasn’t afraid. As long as her mates were alive, she wouldn’t worry about her own safety. “Just let us go. Please. I’ll be all right.”
“Stay back, everyone.” Grant held his arms straight out, a barrier to those around him.
“Bullshit. That asshole killed my mate.” Bull Janks came out of nowhere, storming through the dead bodies and the men and wolves surrounding them. He threw his body at Moses, shifting in mid-air.
“No! Don’t!” shouted Thomas, but it was too late.
Moses snarled and shifted, loosening his hold on her, but only for a moment. She started to run, but massive claws jerked her backward. As her gaze met Grant’s horrified one, she felt the pain of Moses’s teeth sinking into her flesh.
Chapter Nine
Willa came to, sitting up and screaming. At least, she attempted to scream, but the rawness of her throat turned the scream into a raspy croak. She clutched her throat as Grant, Ryan, and Thomas rushed to the side of her bed.
“Easy, baby,” Grant drew her hand away from the scar around her neck. “Don’t try to talk yet. Ryan, get her some water.”
Ryan darted into the adjoining bathroom and returned with a full glass of water. “Here. Sip, don’t gulp.”
She couldn’t have gulped it if she’d tried. Sipping was hard enough as the small bit of liquid slid down her throat. Although it wasn’t exactly pain that hit her—it was more like a soreness after she’d strained a muscle—she handed the glass back to him and shook her head.
“That’s okay, baby. You take all the time you need. We’re here for you twenty-four-seven.”
At first she couldn’t remember how she’d come to be in the room or in the large bed that could hold four people easily. Then the memories came back, swamping her in their intensity.
<
br /> Moses.
Claws digging into her flesh.
Pain in her neck.
Blackness taking her.
She clutched the sheet and pulled it up to cover the T-shirt she wore. Someone had changed her into one of the men’s shirts and put her in the bed. “What happened?” Her voice came out a whisper.
They checked with each other as though wanting to be certain they all agreed on what to tell her. Ryan and Thomas remained silent, their attention locked on Grant, urging him to speak for them.
“You’re all right.” Grant squeezed her hand. “That’s the main thing to remember.”
“Moses?” she asked, her voice again merely a hoarse whisper.
Grant’s expression hardened, a flash of anger coming then going. “He’s dead.” He looked to his friends. “The pack attacked him and killed him.” Regret relaxed his features. “But not before he bit you.”
Moses had bitten her. The foggy memory came into clearer focus. She remembered the terrible pain, the feeling of losing control, the terrible darkness that had followed. But that wasn’t all she remembered. There were images that came and went, never staying long enough for her to understand them.
Thomas gazing down at her as he carried her.
Grant urging her to hold on, telling her the pain and the transformation would soon pass.
Ryan holding her down as she gnashed her teeth. No, fangs.
Suddenly, everything became all too real.
With horror filling her, she grabbed Grant’s arm. “He changed me. Moses changed me.”
His regret deepened. “I’m sorry, babe. We couldn’t stop him in time. I’m so sorry.”
She sucked in a hard breath and reached for the scar on her neck. “Moses changed me so—” She had to force the rest out of her. “Oh, God. Does that mean he made me his mate before he died?”
Grant closed his eyes, the struggle to tell her the truth marring his expression. When he opened his eyes again, he nodded. “Yeah. It means you’re his mate.”
She shook her head and looked to Thomas and Ryan. “No. It can’t be true. I’m not his mate. I’m yours.”
Ryan took hold of her leg. He tightened his grip on her. “You are our mate. We don’t care what happened. You’re still our mate.”
“He’s right, Willa.” Thomas leaned in closer. “Moses changed you, which, according to pack law, made you his mate, but we don’t care. He never lay with you, never made love to you, so it’s in name only that he was your mate. But he’s dead now, which means we can claim you as our mate now.”
“He changed me? I’m a werewolf?” The joy she’d dreamed she’d feel once she became a werewolf died. How could she be happy about her transformation when it was Moses who had bitten her?
“You are. You’re a part of the new Garrett Pack.” Grant attempted a smile, but it never really came. “The Rann boys are in charge now, and we’re all primary alphas. You’re an omega, but it won’t be long before you rise in rank.”
He was trying to make her feel better, but he was failing. “I don’t care what rank I am. I wanted to become a werewolf, but I wanted to be your werewolf, not that asshole’s.”
“I know,” added Ryan. “But there’s no changing it. You’ve already gone through the transformation. Don’t you remember? Waking and sleeping? The pain?”
She did remember in the way one remembered a nightmare. Yet there were parts of the journey that were good. “I remember seeing all of you around me.” She looked to Thomas. “I remember you holding me when I shivered. You told me how much you love me and talked about running under the moon together. Did that really happen?”
“It did. One of us was always with you during the change.” Grant drew in a long breath, as though he’d gone through a torturous time as well. “But all that’s behind us. The pack is doing great, and you’re recovering. You’ll be running with us in no time.”
They were willing to forget that Moses had been the one to change her, but she couldn’t. She wouldn’t let him take her dream away from her. “You have to bite me. All of you.”
“But why?” asked Thomas. “You’re already changed. Having us bite you again won’t do anything except hurt you.”
“It’ll do more than hurt me. It’ll give me three new scars that I’ll love.” She pressed her fingertips to the scar on her neck. “Every time I look in the mirror, I’ll have to see the mark he left. When that happens, I want to be able to look at the three marks made by the men I love. It’s the only way I’ll be able to stand it.”
They weren’t convinced, but she could see them trying to understand. “Please, you have to do this for me. It’s the only way.”
“If we do…” Thomas paused, reconsidering, “If we bite you, you’ll need more time to recover.”
“I don’t care how long it takes to recover. It has to be done.” She brightened, hoping her smile would convince them. “Think of it this way. Biting me will keep me in this bed longer.” She shot them a sultry look. “Which means I’ll need company. Lots of company in bed with me.”
“I’m not sure you’ll be up to it.” Yet Ryan’s eyes gleamed with excitement.
“Moses bit me, but your bites will be the ones I treasure. And it’ll be your love that will make me your mate.”
“She has a point. He never… Right?” Grant stopped, unable to say the rest.
“No, Grant, he never took me. I would’ve killed myself before I let him.” Perhaps it was a false bravado considering she couldn’t have stopped the bigger, stronger werewolf. But she would have tried with everything in her. If she’d failed, she would’ve died inside. She had to push the idea of Moses taking her away before it took hold. “While I’m recuperating, we can talk about our future together. Family. How many kids you want. Who I’ll marry legally. All those things we should’ve already talked about but didn’t have time to discuss. It’ll be fun.”
“Kids? So is that a yes or a no to having kids?” A different kind of excitement lit Ryan’s eyes.
“Definitely. At least a boy and a girl.”
“More. Like maybe six,” added Thomas.
“Six?” She couldn’t imagine. “And if they’re all born werewolves? I don’t know, but we can talk about it later.” She searched them again, trying to put all she was feeling into her look, into her tone. “Please, you have to do this for me.”
“I say we do it. We bite her.” Thomas skimmed his fingers along the scar. “And I’ll bite you right here. The scar I make will rid you of his.”
“Good idea. I wish I’d thought of it.” Ryan pulled the sheet down, exposing her bare leg. “I’ll bite your leg. That way, when you shift, you’ll have a scar right there. I’ll lick it when you’re in your wolf body and in your luscious human body, too.”
Grant chuckled and took her arm, lifting it close to his lips. He pressed a soft kiss to her skin. “I’ll put my mark right here so that every time you use your arm you’ll see my mark and remember how much I love you.”
“We all love you,” added Ryan. “Like you love us, right?”
She touched them, one at a time, gentle sweet touches that excited her. “I love you with all my heart. Now bite me, boys, and make it good.”
They shifted just enough to bring out their fangs. Lying back, she closed her eyes and waited for the pain.
The pain won’t stay but the love will.
* * * *
Attending Henrietta’s funeral had taken a lot out of Willa. She hadn’t fully recovered from their bites, but she’d refused to miss the funeral. Yet instead of the sight of Henrietta’s casket being lowered into the ground bringing back fresh pain, instead of crying as she had expected to do, she’d felt numb. Cold. Lost.
They’d moved away from the graveside as soon as they could, telling her to rest. She hadn’t argued. She had, in fact, needed to get away from Henrietta’s stoic mates. Did they blame her for involving Henrietta? They’d told her men that they didn’t, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that t
hey did.
She’d been more than a little relieved once they’d made it home. After visiting Bosco’s grave in the backyard, she’d heeded her mates’ advice and gone to bed. Later, as the moonlight filtered through her window, she’d awakened and realized there was really only one way to make her feel better. Henrietta would have wanted her to make her dream come true.
Tearing off the T-shirt, then the panties, she dashed outside and found her men, her mates, where she’d known they would be. Whenever they needed to talk, to get away, they went to the barn and took care of the horses. But she was the one who needed someone to take care of her. Not in a comforting way. Not to tell her to get more rest. No, she needed another kind of care.
“I want to shift right now.” She planted her feet and made her stand at the entrance to the barn. They turned, her handsome werewolf cowboys, and, in the same moment, tilted their heads at her in question.
“You’re naked.” Ryan stated the obvious, his tone anything but casual. Instead, it was filled with raw need. “Damn, but you look hot.”
Grant put up a hand, holding Ryan back. “No, it’s too soon. You’re not ready, Willa.”
She arched an eyebrow. It figured he’d be the one who’d be the cautious one. “Don’t tell me how I’m feeling, Grant Standard. I’m fine, and I want to shift.” She twisted around and gazed at the beautiful moon. “I want my first run to be under a full moon.”
“But—”
She whipped out a finger and slashed it through the air to silence Grant. She looked to Ryan as the one who would say yes first. “What do you say? Do you want to go on a run with me, Ryan? Do you want to make love to me under a full moon?”
“Hey, no one said anything about making love,” complained Grant.
She tossed him a haughty look. “Really? I’m standing here naked and you don’t think I want to make love? But whatever. You snooze, you lose. What about it, Thomas? Will you run with Ryan and me? Or do you want to stay home with Grant and take up knitting?”
Grant let out a human growl. “Don’t push me, mate.”
She loved being called mate, but she didn’t let him know it. “I’ll push if I have to. I want to shift and run, and I want to do it right now.” Her sexy smile grew. “And I want to make love after we run.”
