Wolf

by D. M. Turner

  Just as they reached the Liberal Arts building, the woman stopped and whipped around on her heel in one smooth motion, shoulders tense, eyes pinning Tanya with a glare. “What do you want?”

  The pungent scent of angered wolf was all the confirmation Tanya needed that she’d trailed the right person.

  “I’m no threat.” Tanya held up her empty hand, palm out, keeping books tucked close to her chest with the other. “I need to talk to you.”

  “Why? I don’t know you. What could you possibly want?”

  “I know what you are.”

  “Oh, and what’s that?” The bored annoyance on the woman’s face didn’t shift so much as a hair. Surely she knew what Tanya was talking about.

  Tanya glanced around to make sure no one was within hearing range. No one nearby, but she slowly closed the distance between them to about six feet to be on the safe side. “Wolf.”

  Boredom and aggravation gave way to shock then a concerned frown. “What do you know about that?”

  Remembering a tactic Colin had used on her four months prior, Tanya circled the other woman, keeping eye contact soft and her body language passive, until the wind pick up her scent.

  “You’re—” She lifted her head, clearly scenting the air.

  “Yes. Since early June.”

  The woman’s gaze dropped to the ring on Tanya’s left ring finger. “Did he Turn you?” The tightness in her tone suggested disgust at the idea.

  “No. He saved me from the ones who did.” She smiled. “My name is Tanya Campbell.”

  “Kelly Darrow.”

  “Why are you here?”

  “Uh duh.” The dark-haired woman rolled her eyes and smirked. “I should think that’d be obvious to a moron. I came here to go to school.”

  “Why’d you choose NAU?”

  “It seemed like a good idea at the time.” Green eyes narrowed. “What do you care?”

  “Because you’ve moved into my pack’s territory, and we’ve got unmated males aplenty.”

  “Crap.” She threw back her head with a hefty sigh. “Out of the frying pan….”

  Tanya forced herself not to smile. At least the other woman understood the significance of that. She wouldn’t have to explain.

  “I just came here to go to school and try to have some sort of normal life, if that’s even possible. I don’t need this.”

  “I know what you mean.” Sadness welled inside. “Until four months ago, I didn’t even know any of this existed. I was a college student going into her senior year, planning a life as a writer and whatever else it took to pay the bills. I had a family, a church, and a regular life. Everything changed completely after my Turning.”

  “Your family rejected you?”

  Tanya gave her a startled look.

  Kelly smiled faintly. “I’ve seen a lot of Turnings work out that way. Regulars can’t usually deal with the reality that is us.”

  Regulars? Interesting way to refer to non-werewolf humans. She hadn’t heard Ian or any of the others call them. They simply referred to them as humans. “My brother and sisters are doing well with it. My parents? Not so much. What about you? Were you rejected by your family after you were Turned?”

  “I was born this way.”

  Tanya smiled. “My husband, too.”

  “Is he the only Natural in your pack?”

  Natural? Oh, boy. She’d get a whole new vocabulary talking to this woman. “If you mean wolf-born, I think so.”

  “Hm. Most of my old pack were Turns, too, but I have siblings.”

  Might as well ask. Maybe she knows? “Do you happen to know if anyone has written about us? You know, information about the rules we live by and things like that.”

  Kelly laughed. “Why would anyone do that? Do you really think they want to give our enemies that kind of information?”

  So much for that. “Just wondering. I keep getting handed information one piece at a time, and it’s really aggravating.” She shook her head. “Anyway, you might want to talk to our alpha, let him know you’re in the area. Maybe he can convince the unmated males to leave you alone.”

  Dark brows shot up. “Why would he do that?”

  “Because he wouldn’t want them bothering you.” Why was that so baffling?

  “Yeah, right. Only if he decides he wants me for himself. I know how dominant males are. My father is a pack alpha.”

  “Somehow I suspect your alpha was very different from mine.”

  “I doubt that.”

  A sharp, shrill whistle cut through the air. They both turned toward it.

  Brett waved to Tanya, indicating for her to follow him to the parking lot where he’d parked that morning. In return, she waved him over to where she was. He scowled then started toward them.

  “That’s Brett Mitchell, our pack second. He’s a history professor here.” To Tanya’s surprise, the words seemed to send new tension through Kelly, who stiffened and hardened the look in her eyes as she stared Brett down.

  Brett maintained steady eye contact with the woman, seeming more amused than threatened by her hostility.

  A second or two before he reached them, Kelly’s gaze shifted lower, breaking the connection. Tension remained.

  Tanya wasn’t surprised Kelly hadn’t won the passive battle for dominance. Only Ian could out-stare Brett.

  “Kelly, this is Brett Mitchell. Brett, meet the new wolf in town, Kelly Darrow.”

  His brows rose for a moment then settled. “New in town, huh? I don’t recall Ian mentioning anyone new.”

  “Apparently, she didn’t know she’d come into someone else’s territory.” Just five months before, those words would’ve sounded completely ludicrous to her. Made them sound like mobsters or drug dealers.

  “I see.” His blue eyes narrowed. “Kelly Darrow. Irish first name meaning brave warrior. Scottish last name from the Gaelic darack, meaning oak tree. Strong, immovable. Interesting.”

  Kelly’s look went from hostile to baffled.

  Tanya laughed. “I did warn you that he’s a history professor.” She touched Brett’s arm. “I suggested Kelly talk to Ian, told her we’ve got several unmated males in the pack.”

  “Good.” His gaze shifted to the new wolf. “Come for dinner. You can talk to him then.”

  “Yeah, right,” Kelly scoffed. “Like I’d walk into a strange pack’s den. I’d probably end up locked in a basement or something.”

  The flinch went clear to Tanya’s soul. She growled. “They’d never do that. They rescue people from chains. They don’t put them in them.”

  The other woman met her gaze, stiffened, and raised her head. Her gaze locked on Tanya.

  “Easy, pup.” Brett’s hand on Tanya’s shoulder made her realize how angry her body language had become. She forced herself to relax. “I don’t think our uninvited guest meant any offense. It sounds like she’s had harsh experience to back up that paranoid streak.”

  She lowered her gaze and nodded. “You’re probably right. Like me thinking all wolves are killers because of my first experience.”

  “Exactly.”

  “I am not paranoid.” Kelly’s tight tone snipped off each word.

  “Whatever you say.” Brett smiled indulgently, with just enough condescension to get across his real meaning. “So how much courage do you have, brave little warrior?”

  Ouch. Could he possibly be any more patronizing? Tanya studied the other woman to gauge her reaction.

  Kelly gritted her teeth and glared at Brett. “Fine. I’ll have dinner with your alpha. Where do I go?”

  “Are you done for the day?”

  “Yes.”

  He nodded in satisfaction. “Good. Then you can follow us back to the house.”

  Tanya opened her mouth to suggest she ride with Kelly, but a hard look from Brett sealed her lips shut.

  He pointed to the parking lot behind them that exited onto Beaver Street. “We’re parked over there. We’ll wait for you.” Without another word, he flipped around o
n his heel and headed that direction.

  Kelly followed his example, muttering as she walked away. “Rude, overbearing, domineering, presumptuous….”

  Tanya chuckled and ran to catch up with Brett. “You sure ticked her off.”

  “She’ll get over it.” He shrugged. “Or she won’t. Her choice. Either way, not my problem.”

  “I could’ve ridden with her, showed her the way to the compound.”

  “Right, I was going to let you get into a vehicle with someone none of us have ever met, we know nothing about, and we have no idea of her intentions. Yeah, that would happen.” He shook his head. “Did it occur to you she might know exactly who you are and have evil intentions?”

  “No.” She sighed and looked at the ground passing beneath her feet. “I’m sorry. I should’ve thought of that.”

  “You will next time. You’re young yet.”

  Did he make everyone feel like an inept four-year-old, or was it just her? “Have you ever had a mate?”

  “No, why?” He shot her a puzzled sideways look.

  “Just wondering.” Not exactly surprising. What woman would put up with his attitude? “How old are you?”

  He sighed and pulled car keys from his pocket. “Why the sudden interest?”

  “Well, I’ve heard you’re the oldest member of the pack, and I’m curious what that means.”

  “Generally, it means a person is older than everyone else in a group.” The patronizing tone and superior look grated, but she kept her gaze averted from his and forced herself not to snap back. Brett was not a good man to annoy.

  “What I mean is how old are you exactly?”

  He unlocked her car door and held it open. After she slipped inside, he went around and got into the driver’s seat. Once there, he reversed out of the parking spot then waited to one side of the driveway for Kelly to appear.

  “I was in my first fight during the War of 1812. Killed a British soldier I caught raping a young woman.”

  “1812? Then… you’re over two hundred years old.” Not what she’d expected. She’d thought maybe sixty or seventy, not a couple of centuries.

  “Two hundred and twenty this past spring. The way I see it, unless one of us gets ourselves killed in some way or another, which we tend to do, we could potentially live forever.”

  A car pulled into the parking lot. Not Kelly.

  He scowled. “Where is that girl?”

  “Maybe you scared her off.”

  “If so, she’s not worth our time, and she can deal alone with the ramifications of being an unmated female lone wolf. Not our problem.”

  Another car came down Beaver Street and turned slowly into the parking lot. Kelly.

  He motioned to her then headed for the street.

  * * *

  “What makes you so sure we had an intruder?” Dad turned from the window, arms crossed over his chest, a scowl darkening his features.

  “I found a partially eaten kill in the Preserve. There haven’t been any predators big enough to take down an elk in years, except for us.”

  “Any idea what it was?”

  “Mountain lion. The throat was crushed. I didn’t see any pug marks, but there’s a lot of rock in that area. Not much soft ground for tracks. I sure smelled a big cat though.” He’d never seen one in the wild, at least not one that he remembered, but his father had taken him to the zoo once so he could see and smell mountain lion, bear, and a host of other animals he might have dealings with while patrolling the Preserve.

  “How old was the kill?”

  “A couple of weeks, I think. The cat had tried to hide it, so it hasn’t been picked over by many other animals yet.”

  “Did you scent it in the area?”

  “No. I don’t think it’s been back to the kill site for a few days.”

  “Well, don’t assume it’s gone.”

  “I won’t.” His father’s tension made sense. Colin’s mother had been killed by a mountain lion. Dad had no love for the species as a result. Though he knew they served an important role in the ecosystem, he would’ve destroyed them all if he’d had the chance. If Colin had lost his mate to a cougar, he wasn’t sure he’d feel any different.

  The faint rumble of car engines made Colin cock his head. “Brett and Tanya are home. Someone else is with them.”

  They followed the hallway from the office, past the kitchen, into the living room, and waited near the foyer for the door to open.

  Brett opened the door and marched through, stopping to hold it for Tanya and a woman Colin had never seen before.

  Tanya smiled and walked into his arms, snuggling close. Troubles of the day set aside, he absorbed her warmth and the scent that was purely hers. Ever since they’d consummated their marriage the day before the last full moon, she’d been openly affectionate with him. He reveled in that.

  He leaned down and breathed in the lavender scent of her hair. “I missed you today.”

  Her arms tightened around him. “Good.”

  He straightened and raised a brow as he looked into mischief-filled blue eyes.

  “Serves you right for sending me out this morning with that mysterious promise.”

  He chuckled.

  A throat cleared.

  Colin shot a glance at his father, whose lips tightened around a grin. “Sorry, Dad.”

  “I remember what it was like,” his dad mumbled. Then his gaze turned to the other woman as Brett closed the front door.

  Brett stepped around the young woman, brushing close enough to touch her but not so close as to bump her.

  She flinched and snarled without making a sound.

  Wolf, Colin’s nose told him.

  “Ian, this is Kelly Darrow. Kelly, Ian Campbell, the alpha of this territory.” Brett crossed his arms over his chest and leaned a shoulder against the wall.

  “Unmated female?” Dad looked her over.

  “Yes,” she replied tightly. “And don’t think you can force me into a mating either.”

  Dad chuckled with a half-grin. “I wouldn’t dream of it. We don’t use force here, unless you cause sufficient offense to warrant it. You’re not part of my pack. Mated or unmated is your problem, not mine.”

  “Tanya said you have unmated males in your pack and might be able to warn them away from me.”

  “Really? She said that?” He glanced at Tanya, who smiled sheepishly and shrugged. “I can ask them to leave you alone, but whether they do or not is another matter. As long as you stay clear of the Preserve around and during the full moon, you should be fine. Any lone wolf that wanders through is your problem. I only put my pack at risk defending those who belong to me.”

  Kelly snorted. “Typical.”

  “Excuse me?” If she’d known his father better, she’d have known that tight yet quiet tone meant not to push him.

  “Alphas. You’re all the same.” She glared at him, without meeting his gaze. “Your pack. Belong to you. Makes them sound like inanimate objects, or slaves, instead of people free to come and go as they please.”

  Dad’s nostrils flared, and the sharp scent of his anger swept through the room. “My pack is my family. I take care of them, watch over them, protect them from outside threats. If that offends you, then so be it. They are not slaves, in any fashion of the word.”

  To her credit, she seemed to realize she’d gone too far. Her gaze dropped to the floor, and she cocked her head to one side, exposing her throat. “I didn’t mean to anger you. I’m just making an observation.”

  “Based on ignorance,” Dad growled.

  “Based on experience.” She raised her gaze to the region of his chin. “My father is a pack alpha. I’ve watched him rule since I was born. Alphas are cruel, demanding tyrants who only care about themselves.”

  “If those are your expectations for a pack leader, your father is a lousy leader.” Dad’s growling tone didn’t ease. “Your experience is with him, which has nothing to do with me.”

  Kelly cocked her head and studi
ed Dad. Then she nodded with a faint smile. “You’re right.”

  “You’re what… twenty-four, twenty-five?”

  “Twenty-four.”

  “So you’ve been through… eight or nine heats.”

  Oh, good grief. Had his father honestly asked that question? Wasn’t that a private matter? What business was it of theirs how many heats she’d gone through?

  “Yes.”

  “Then why aren’t you mated?”

  “Because I scared off the first four mates my father picked, and I would’ve killed myself before I submitted to his latest choice.” She sneered. “He’s just like him. Vile and brutal. I’d kill him or die trying before I’d let him bed me. I figured coming to school in Flagstaff was safer for everyone.”

  Dad’s brows rose, then he smiled. “Good to meet you, Kelly. Is everyone hungry?” He made an about-face and headed for the kitchen.

  Kelly watched him go, eyes wide, mouth hanging open. “What just happened?”

  “He likes you.” Brett snorted. “Welcome to the heart of the pack, brave little warrior.”

  “Stop calling me that.”

  “Why?” He cocked his head with an arrogant grin even Colin wanted to knock off his face. “Perfectly suitable. Fits you to a T.”

  She glared at him, staring him down for several seconds, before she lowered her gaze a fraction and marched past him to follow Dad.

  Brett studied her back as she passed. With a sigh, he followed her and his alpha to the kitchen.

  Shock shook Colin. Had that hostile little fireball captured the attention of the pack’s most confirmed bachelor? He pushed down a smile.

  Tanya shifted away, intent on going to the kitchen most likely, but he tightened his hold. “Wait up a sec.”

  “Is something wrong?”

  “Don’t leave the house alone for a while.”

  She cocked her head. “Why?” Curiosity and confusion only. No challenge.

  “I found the remains of a mountain lion kill today.”

  “Inside the inner walls?”

  “No, but not far from them.”

  “Is a mountain lion a bad thing? I mean, aren’t they all over these mountains?”

  “Not this part. Dad allows the pack to run through the outer part of the Preserve at times. That keeps most of the other large predators out of our territory. Mountain lions and wolves don’t get along, and the cat usually loses the fight because wolves most often bring numbers to bear.”