The Runaway Cat (Book 2 Cloverleah Pack Series)

by Oliver, Lisa

  “All right, come on then. Let’s announce it and get these challenges finished.”

  “Thank you Alpha,” Diablo said quietly. Kane shot Diablo a surprised look at the use of his title but got the message behind it loud and clear. Diablo would never be a wolf, but he did accept his position in the Cloverleah pack and now he wanted to fight for it.

  Kane strode to the middle of the pack circle as the next contender stepped into the ring. Holding up his hand, Kane spoke loudly to attract the attention of all of the shifters.

  “I have an unusual announcement,” he said clearly. When all of the men were quiet Kane said in a slightly quieter voice. “After checking with the Shifter Guardian,” Kane indicated Shawn who stood with Diablo on the side of the circle, “I have decided the last eight contenders will face Diablo in the ring.”

  The crowd went wild. Never in shifter history had a non-wolf shifter participated in the Mating Ritual challenges and there were a number of questions thrown at Kane as he stood waiting for the ruckus to quiet down.

  “Enough,” Kane yelled firmly. “I have been advised that there is no law against Diablo fighting. It’s just not something that has ever come up before. Diablo is a full member of the Cloverleah pack not only because of his mating with Griff but because of his ties of friendship with the rest of us. He is a valued member of our pack and as such has the right to fight with the rest of us.” Kane said the last part with his gaze firmly on Griff.

  But Griff wasn’t having it. “No,” he said stepping forward. “I forbid it.”

  Raising his eyebrow, Diablo said quietly, “You forbid it? You forbid it?” All of a sudden the whole situation, his trouble with the FBI, his having to be saved from Georgio and Griff’s constant need to be a top since they had gotten home got the better of Diablo and he stalked over to Griff, his long limbs easily showcasing the man’s devilish sexuality and the power of his hidden form. Diablo was pissed and he wasn’t afraid to show it. Griff swallowed as Diablo got nearer.

  I won’t let you put yourself in danger. You are my mate and it is my job to protect you.

  You think I need protecting, my little wolf. Diablo quietly mocked the man as he prowled around him, not quite touching but as the heat grew between them Griff was finding it difficult to breathe. All of a sudden he longed to bend over, grab his ankles and submit to his mate. The power of Diablo’s cat flowed around Griff, something he had never experienced before.

  I just want you to be safe…I love you, you know that.

  I love you too, my mate, but your pack is tired and if I am to be accepted as more than your mate then understand I need to do this.

  I…I…

  And when I have finished your ass had better be ready for me, do you understand me? You have no right to forbid me to do anything. Anything!

  Yes, my mate.

  Griff took a deep breath and shuddered, snapping his eyes open, eyes he didn’t even realize he had closed. His body was awash with goose bumps and his prick pulsed painfully behind the zipper in his jeans. While his logical brain tried to point out that he would never allow anyone to speak to him like Diablo did through their mind link, he also had to admit it was one of the biggest turn-ons of his life. As Diablo’s calm measured tones had washed through his brain Griff realized he should also be extremely grateful that Diablo had used their mind connection rather than exercising his power over Griff in a more verbal fashion. Griff would have never been able to live that down.

  Griff felt his ass muscles clench with pleasurable anticipation as he thought of what was to come later that evening. It was time for Griff to stop thinking about his mate as a weak man who relied on his protection and instead recognize his lover as the lethally strong equal partner that he was.

  As Diablo strode forward to meet his first contender he eyed up the man carefully. The contender was shorter than he was but powerfully built like most shifters. When Diablo got closer the man’s face twisted in a sneer.

  “Trouble in paradise, pretty boy?” He asked.

  “A misunderstanding between mates, nothing more. What form do you choose?” Diablo’s response was quiet and deadly calm. It would not do for the contender to realize just how angry Diablo was until they actually engaged.

  “Oh definitely human, pretty boy. Wolves prefer to fight naked. Are you going to drop those pants for me and show me what you’ve got?”

  “My mate prefers me covered.”

  “No matter, I’ll get them off you soon enough,” and with that the man moved towards Diablo throwing a punch to his mid-section. Diablo quickly deflected the blow and swung round on one foot lifting his leg to deliver a well placed kick to the contender’s rear end. The man, already in motion, fell to the ground in a sprawling lump.

  Recovering quickly the contender sprung to his feet and lunged at Diablo again, crouching low with the clear intention to try and get Diablo off his feet. In an apparent move to help him Diablo waited until the man was real close and then dropped to the ground allowing the stockier man to go over the top of him. Once clear Diablo bounced back to his feet in one smooth liquid move and clasped the man around the neck from behind. As the contender tried to remove his arm, growling and kicking all the while Diablo’s quick fingers sought the pressure point he was looking for and seconds later the man slumped in his arm, unconscious.

  “Five minute break,” the Shaman called out as Diablo stepped from the circle. He had no wish to go to Griff, or even see what the man had thought of his performance. He just wanted to centre his energy and study the next contender who was watching him from the other side of the ring with a cocky smile on his face. This wolf was bigger, about as tall as Diablo but he had a lot more muscle mass around the chest and shoulder area. Diablo scanned the man carefully and noting the thinner legs smiled to himself. He had always believed that every man had a weakness and part of being a good fighter meant identifying the weakness and playing on it.

  As the Shaman called time, Diablo moved back into the ring and asked again what the contender’s preference was. When the contender asked again for “human” to the jeers of the crowd it was clear that a secondary theme to this fight was the desire of the crowd to see Diablo naked. Well tough shit, Diablo thought to himself as he broached himself for the man’s attack. Minutes later the contender was unconscious on the ground and Diablo went to the side of the ring again.

  The ritual repeated itself five more times. The contenders preferring to fight in human form, Diablo assessing the weakness of each one and exploiting it within minutes. Each contender left eventually unconscious on the ground. At one point when a punch actually landed on Diablo’s face he heard Griff growling loud over the noise of the crowd and the shouts of Kane and the others who fought to hold his lover back. If Griff stepped into the circle the fight was void and Diablo would lose by default. As the contender tried to grope Diablo’s crotch when Diablo held him in a head lock, only then Diablo lose a bit of control.

  “I should break your neck for trying to touch me,” he snarled as he found the man’s weak point and dropped him to the ground. Shaking himself, Diablo resisted the urge to kick the downed shifter and went to the edge of the ring once more. Only one shifter left to go and Diablo knew he would need all of his resources to fight this man if he decided to go with human form.

  But the menacing man in front of him surprised the whole crowd as well as Diablo when he called out “Animal” as his preferred choice of fighting.

  “What?” The contender smirked as he looked at Diablo. “This crowd wants to see you naked and I’m not afraid of a little kitty cat. Shift and show us what you’ve got.”

  Shrugging, Diablo released the top button of his jeans and partially pulled down the zip. He could hear Griff growling again and thought to himself that Griff really needed to get a grip and trust him more. Diablo had no wish to be naked in front of this or any crowd of wolf shifters. Throwing the contender a smirk, Diablo left his jeans on and leapt into the air. As he leapt he initiated
his shift, the movement of the air and his jump causing his jeans to drop as the shift took place.

  Seconds later Diablo stood in his shifted form, black, powerful and completely lethal. Four hundred pounds of fluid muscle combined with enhanced senses. Diablo sniffed, there was a tinge of fear in the crowd. Smirking to himself as only a big cat shifter can Diablo shook out his fur and then lifted his head, yowling across the top of the wolf shifters. The roar of a big cat is designed to inspire fear in its prey and it was certainly working on this crowd. Unconcerned Diablo sat down waiting for the contender to shift. He was amused to see a slight look of consternation on the contender’s face before the man quickly shifted into a large, but no where near as large as Diablo, wolf. Diablo had enough time to notice the crowd had gone deadly silent before the wolf made his approach. Hmmm, it seems the wolves hadn’t seen a cat quite as big as his before. Well tough shit to that as well. What were they expecting - a house cat?

  As the wolf lunged towards Diablo, Diablo went into a crouch waiting until the shifter was over the top of him before rising himself up and flinging the wolf off his shoulders. The wolf fell to the ground about five feet away and got to his feet shaking his head before lunging at Diablo again, his teeth bared. Diablo evaded him and then stepped back to swipe at the wolf’s side with his claws blunted. Diablo had no wish to draw blood on the man although it would have been perfectly acceptable in a challenge like this and given how the wolf hadn’t closed his mouth since Diablo had thrown him the wolf obviously had every intention of drawing blood from Diablo.

  On and on the fight went. The wolf intent on drawing blood and lunging and snapping wherever he could. Diablo intent on staying bite free and just toying with the wolf, getting in thuds and knocks where he could - simply winding the wolf without hurting him too much. Inside Diablo was grinning. His cat hadn’t had the chance to play in a long time and driving this wolf to insanity was more fun than he had had in a long time. Even though the wolf was tiring, Diablo did nothing to bring the fight to an end. He was having far too much fun.

  “Come on Diablo, stop playing with your food. Finish this already.” Griff’s snarls came across the crowd and caused Diablo to stop for a second. He eyed the wolf who was circling him slowly. The wolf’s chest was heaving and he was panting, his long tongue falling from his mouth. The fact that the wolf was still standing was testament to how strong he must have been but after playing with Diablo’s cat for more than twenty minutes the wolf’s strength was gone. Diablo shrugged and leapt, landing on the wolf’s back pushing them both to the ground. Although the wolf tried to turn his head and snap at Diablo, Diablo opened his mouth wide and pushed it over the wolf’s neck, gently piercing the skin with his huge teeth.

  With Diablo’s teeth in his neck, his weight on his back and Diablo’s huge paws holding his head firm the wolf had no choice but to submit. He whined and then Diablo felt the tell tale shimmer of the wolf shifting beneath him, Diablo’s teeth still in his neck.

  “I submit,” he called out weakly, dropping his head to the ground as Diablo released his neck. Pushing himself up Diablo padded over to the edge of the circle and allowed himself to be surrounded by his pack members. Once hidden from the crowd’s eyes, Diablo shifted and pulled on the jeans that Griff held out to him. Before the button was closed Griff had pulled him into a strong embrace. Inhaling sharply Diablo purred as he felt Griff’s scent wash away any of his remaining tension and when Griff’s lips sought his, he opened readily drinking in the man who was his in every way, kissing him back with as much passion as he could muster. Only when the men needed to breathe did they pull apart.

  “You are amazing, my lover,” Griff snarled quietly.

  “No more than you,” Diablo said simply. He looked up and looked at the rest of the pack, his pack. “Thank you guys not only for fighting for me today, but for allowing me the chance to show you I can be an asset to this pack rather than a weakness. I appreciate that.”

  Kane grinned and nodded and then indicated that the Shaman was waiting for them in the centre of the ring. Griff and Diablo went to stand before the man, their pack surrounding them on all sides.

  “Griff, Diablo and the Cloverleah pack. You have all fought well today and managed to vanquish more than sixty contenders for the right to keep Diablo in your pack. You are to be commended. This Mating Ritual will go down in wolf pack folklore not only due to the high number of contenders but also because it is the first time in wolf pack history that a non-wolf shifter has fought for his wolf mate. That type of loyalty can’t be bought,” the Shaman said firmly.

  “So tomorrow,” the Shaman continued, “we will conduct the Mating Ritual ceremony at noon, and no-one will be allowed to question the validity of this union.” He scowled as he looked over the gathered wolves. “No one will be allowed to issue challenge to this union and no challenge will be accepted. Is that clear?”

  A few of the wolves muttered and looked at their feet but eventually all of the gathered shifters nodded their acceptance. The Shaman smiled and nodded the Kane.

  “I think for now the party is all yours, Alpha of the Cloverleah pack. I will see you tomorrow,” and with that the Shaman left the circle and went to talk to Cheryl and Arthur.

  Kane looked around at the wolves that stood on his land. In all of his time of living in the area he had never entertained as many wolves in the one place, but he was proud to do so. The links formed with other gay wolf shifters only strengthened his own beliefs. Something he would never had thought possible when he and Griff were booted out from their home pack all those years before.

  Standing tall, every inch the Alpha that he was, Kane called for attention.

  “Welcome to Cloverleah pack land. You are all welcome to stay for the ceremony tomorrow. Food and drink has been provided and you can pitch a tent anywhere within this enclave. The forest areas,” Kane indicated the trees beyond the clearing “are all predator and hunter free. We have over 1000 acres here so you are free to run, hunt or whatever.”

  The crowd roared.

  “However,” Kane said firmly, “there will be no more fighting on this land today either with this pack or between yourselves. The challenge is over and now is the time to celebrate the union between Griff and Diablo. Any questions?”

  “Yeah,” came a voice from the crowd. “How the hell can you let a big assd cat shifter in your pack? Aren’t you worried about him trying to take over your territory?”

  Kane grinned as he looked at Diablo who had his arm wrapped around Griff’s waist, the bigger guy’s arm firmly across his shoulder. He knew that the cat shifter was thinking of their first meeting when Kane had indeed questioned the same thing himself.

  “Why should I be worried? Diablo is a good man - loyal to his mate and thereby to his pack. He is intelligent, strong and he has proven today that he can fight when he has too. As a pack we are really proud to have him.” Kane stopped and pulled Shawn closer and smiled again at the crowd.

  “Besides I have a Shifter Guardian as my mate so while Diablo is formidable in his own right and Griff and he together make an unbeatable team, I have no doubt my own mate will protect the best interests of the pack.” Looking over the crowd Kane’s voice was firm as he rolled out his Alpha power.

  “Make no mistake. The Cloverleah pack is very small but it is growing and will continue to grow especially as more gay shifters look to find a place where they can be who they are without reprisals from their pack and our own members find their mates. This is a gay shifter pack and will remain so and we will never turn away anyone that is different in any way. Those of you that have a problem with that are welcome to leave at any time. I don’t have a problem with your own beliefs provided you keep them to yourself, but your issues are not mine and it is my beliefs that count on Cloverleah pack land. While you are on this land you will respect that.”

  Kane looked around the crowd, staring them all in the eye individually, his pack members tense and ready to fight at his side. When
he caught his father’s eye he saw the older man nod at him approvingly. It was nice to see his father proud of him. Only when he had finished and was satisfied that there would be no challenge from anyone in the crowd did he smile.

  “Now, as I have said, there is food and drink available. It has been a long day and I am sure you are all ready to relax and have some fun.” A cheer went up as Kane and his pack headed back into the house. In front of the porch large trestle tables had been set up, all of them loaded with food, plates and silverware. A bar was set up to the side of the porch and Kane could see Xander and another man from his Dad’s pack serving the drinks.

  Cheryl had set up a separate table for his pack on the porch and for a while the men sat around eating and drinking, reliving some of the more entertaining points of the challenges through the day. Griff noticed that Diablo was quiet but as his little slip of the tongue at the challenge hadn’t been addressed yet, he felt it was probably best for him to not pursue the matter.

  Griff had absolutely no idea why it was he thought he could forbid his mate to do anything. Then again that wasn’t true either. Griff knew he spilled those fateful words simply because he didn’t want to see Diablo fighting with other wolves. In his heart of hearts Griff had always been an old fashioned kind of wolf and despite the fact that he was gay and he knew he would end up with a male partner he always believed that he would be the one that would protect his mate from all others.

  The Fates however had other ideas obviously. They had sent him a mate who was more powerful than he was, at least in animal form. The fact that Diablo was also smart and a canny fighter as Griff had witnessed today proved that in a lot of ways Diablo didn’t need Griff - definitely not to protect him. But the more Griff thought about it, the more he realized that he really didn’t care. Diablo was his and he belonged to Diablo and even though he knew he had some form of punishment coming for his lapse in judgment, he knew his mate loved him and that was worth everything.