by AJ Skelly
Dad’s eyes widened and his nostrils flared. “This cannot be.”
Icy tendrils started winding through my veins. I felt Cade tense beside me and noted the worry etched on Sarah’s forehead.
“Wolves are meant to protect and serve. Not to rule,” Dad continued in a voice that carried his authority.
“Our sentiments as well,” Mr. Thornehill agreed with another nod. “We will keep our noses to the ground up north. I trust you and your pack will do the same. Should something arise, it would be in everyone’s best interest to quash things quickly and quietly. Together, if necessary.”
“Agreed.”
The icy tendrils wove their way around my heart. If it got out that werewolves existed, that some were trying to take over the human population—rewrite the entire system of government in the United States—mass pandemonium and witch hunts that put Salem to shame would sweep the nation. It would destroy not only the werewolf population, but essentially thrust America into a dark age. No one would trust their neighbor, discrimination, enslavement, murder on a Hitleresque scale, nothing was beyond the realm of possibility.
“Mind you, I’ve only heard rumors. I’ve no concrete proof of anything,” Mr. Thornehill was saying, “but I felt it wise to inform you.”
“We appreciate that,” Dad said as he encompassed me in his gaze. I nodded my agreement.
The rest of the meeting took a lighter tone as we discussed more trivial matters and outlined the key players in our packs, and how communications should work as we felt it would be in everyone’s best interest for our packs to become more acquainted. While the shock of the uprising rumors faded, I still felt a slither of unease. Whether it was lingering nerves or worry over what would happen with Megan, I wasn’t sure. My senses stayed heightened.
About eight p.m., the formal side of things wrapped up, and we stood.
“Shall we continue pack acquaintances here tomorrow or meet more informally?” Dad asked the Thornehills as he sipped the last of his coffee.
“I think having our ranking pack members meet here briefly and then interspersed throughout the festival might be the most unobtrusive.” He glanced at Sarah, and she nodded. “Sarah, why don’t you go on with Sam and Cade and meet a few other pack youth while we finish things up here?”
“Of course,” she replied, turning a polite smile on us. I hoped Megan wouldn’t be opposed to meeting Sarah, and that her wolf wouldn’t overreact. My own wolf was ready to be next to Megan again. I needed the reassurance that she was still mine—and I was still hers.
Chapter 38
Megan
After another busy hour, there was finally a lull. There were still plenty of browsers, but not as many die-hard purchasers wandering the stalls. People had finished with desserts and the urge for a late-night snack hadn’t hit yet. We had a little bit of a breather for now.
“So Kyp, how are you liking Rock Falls?” Rachel opened.
“It’s nice. It’s good to have some new scenery. Mom is an EMT, and she said her crew is really friendly.”
“That’s awesome. Are your classes going well?”
“They’re all right. About the same as they were in Kentucky.” He smiled ruefully and dragged a hand through his dark brown hair. It had a slight reddish cast to it. “Have you guys ever considered opening up your own bakery at some point?” Kyp directed the conversation away from him as Rachel took a swig from her water bottle, and I munched on a cherry Danish.
We looked at each other.
“Yes!” we said together.
“We’re hoping to open up our own bakery business—something bigger than HarvestFest—after graduation,” Rachel chimed.
“We’ve got some notoriety already from doing HarvestFest the past few years, and we’ve done several party cakes and different dessert catering things,” I offered.
“I think we could do well with an online bakery at first,” Rachel said.
“And the community college over in Circleville has several business classes we plan to take to work through more of the logistical side of things.” Wolf nudged me. That was close to home.
Kyp chuckled. “Well, if tonight is any indication, you guys shouldn’t have trouble drumming up business.”
“Ah, thanks.” Rachel’s eyes lit up.
I nodded in agreement. Tonight’s success had blown away previous years. And there was still tomorrow and Sunday. It was a comforting thought to dream about baking for a living. Flour up to my elbows, replicating Grandma Elsie’s recipes, making special orders, and taking good care of our customers.
“I hope it works the way we’ve envisioned it,” I said. I bit my lip as Wolf nudged me again. Community college was near Sam.
“It will. These are amazing,” Raven commented as she took a bite of double-fudge chocolate-chip cookie that made me think again of Sam.
“Well, I’m pretty sure some of tonight’s success lies in your awesome decorating skills. You may have to come work for us,” Rachel told Raven with a wink.
Just then, I caught sight of the shaggy head that made my heart stutter. Then I caught sight of the gorgeous, leggy blonde beside him, and my heart stopped altogether. The Danish turned to ash in my mouth, and Wolf jerked, howling to be let out.
“Look at me, don’t look at her.” The words were the softest breath of sound, and I ripped my eyes away and looked into Kyp’s brown ones. He was far more observant than I had given him credit for. I breathed hard through my nose, clenched my fists, and forced myself and Wolf to calm down. I thought of Sam’s smile, the way his eyes twinkled, then remembered his kiss at the movie theater, the kiss we shared in the kitchen that night. Wolf stopped howling but did not retreat. I shivered and took the water bottle Kyp handed me.
Half the bottle was gone in one gulp, but I had myself mostly under control when Sam, Cade, and the gorgeous girl who could only be Sarah Thornehill, sidled up to our booth.
Sam wasted no time, came right in, and slid his hands around me, planting a kiss on my lips in front of everyone. Wolf immediately calmed at his touch, and I only just resisted the urge to thoroughly make out with him right there to stake my claim.
When he pulled his head up, his eyes searched mine for a second longer, then he took my hand.
“Megan, this is Sarah. Sarah, this is Megan.” He put emphasis on my name that warmed me. His tone said she is mine. Part of me squirmed at the emphasis and attention, while Wolf, and not an insignificant human part of me, relished it.
Sarah beamed, genuine pleasure lighting up her face and her pale green eyes. “It’s nice to meet you. I’m really glad you and Sam found each other.”
I gave her a tentative grin. “Thanks. It has definitely been an adventure,” I said. Sam snorted beside me.
“Are they done with the big percolator in the meeting room now?” Raven asked.
“Probably. They were finishing up a few things,” Cade answered.
“Good. Would you come help me bring it down here?”
Cade rubbed the toe of his shoe on the ground, hesitating.
“Rachel, can I steal Megan for a few more minutes?” Sam cut in before Cade replied.
“I’ll stick around if it would be helpful,” Kyp said.
“Be my guest!” Rachel smiled. “We’ll get coffee sorted while you’re out.” She winked at me, and I rolled me eyes as my lips twisted up.
“Thanks. You definitely get a break when we get back,” I told her.
Sam tipped his head to the exit, and I grabbed my purse and my jacket, threading my arms through the sleeves as we headed for the door.
“See you guys,” he called as I waved.
“I feel a little guilty leaving Rachel at the booth.”
“I don’t think she minded too much. Although, I am being selfish. I want to walk around the festival with you. And possibly find a dark corner and make out,” he finished with a roguish look.
I laughed. “Riiiiight…So. That was Sarah. How was the meeting?”
His ex
pression fell. “The mate business went better than expected, but there are some rumors circulating up north that are concerning.”
“Concerning how?” I asked as we exited the building. The night was clear, cold, and shining with stars and hundreds of sparkling lights strung up on poles throughout the festival lanes. My breath plumed in front of me, a frosty mist that dissipated as we walked. The sounds of fun, general merriment, and aromas of tempting food swirled around while a loud cheer went up from the archery stalls directly to the left along the back perimeter of the festival grounds. He took my hand, and we meandered toward the archery games and the giant old oak tree wound in shadows.
“Probably best not to talk about it out in the open. I promise I’ll tell you on the way home, though.”
Heat curled in my belly at the word home. Our home together. I shook my head. It wouldn’t be my home forever. I had to keep that in mind. It was getting harder to pretend we weren’t really together.
Footsteps thudded behind us, and we turned to find Cade jogging up. He flipped his black hair out of his face.
“Sam, Beta Babe,” he teased in greeting. I grinned back at him but noticed Sam was tense beside me.
“So uh, I was wondering…” Cade was suddenly tongue-tied. “Since you won’t be, um, pursuing Sarah, is she—” He cleared his throat. “Is she fair game?”
Laughter burst from Sam’s chest, some of the tenseness fading, his arms regaining some looseness. The old oak tree towered behind us, a breeze rustling the leaves like they were laughing with him.
“As far as I’m concerned, she’s completely up for grabs. Although, you may want to have a chat with her dad. If you think it’s going to get serious, you may want to have a chat with my dad, too. He takes the Alpha bloodlines very seriously,” he finished softly so there was no chance of being overheard, even though there wasn’t anyone close to us this far back by the perimeter. He cocked his ear slightly to the side, his eyebrows drawing together. Then several things happened at once.
Cade opened his mouth to respond as Sam’s eyes enlarged to momentarily show his wolf’s irises. Sam ripped his hand from mine and shoved me hard. I hit the dirt with enough force to crack my teeth and bruise my jaw. There was a whirring thunk. Sam grunted, and then something wet was running over my hand as Sam’s body fell across mine. Wolf rose to the surface, my senses on high alert, still confused and unsure what was happening as pain radiated down my jaw and neck.
“Cade, go!” Rolls of icy power crashed over me as Sam commanded Cade. I’d never heard a command issued, and the raw intensity of the power behind his words both thrilled and terrified me. Cade wheeled around and sprinted toward the archery stalls. I struggled to rise, but Sam’s body covered mine and offered no give.
“Megan, don’t move,” he gritted out between clenched teeth. Panic bloomed in my chest, and my hands trembled where they were trapped beneath me. Something was wrong. So, so wrong. From the corner of my eye, I saw Sam looking in all directions, his body still completely covering me. My hand and arm were sticky with the wet and the tang of blood suddenly saturated my nose, flooding me with a fresh wave of panic. Wolf assessed us, concluding we were uninjured aside from a few bruises. So much blood. Sam.
“Sam?” The terrified whimper left my mouth as Wolf thrashed to get out, to protect Sam.
“Be still. I’m all right.” Pain laced his words. Wolf listened, stilling but whining. Panic bled through my pores. “On my mark, I want you to get up and stay behind me. We’re moving toward the building. Keep to the shadows.” He waited a moment. “Now.”
He jerked us both to our feet, his body a human shield between me and the archery station. Glancing around wildly looking for the threat, I stumbled and sucked in a breath when I saw the arrow protruding from the ground a few feet from where we’d been.
“Sam, where are you hit?” My voice came out an octave higher than normal.
“Just my arm. I’m okay.” His eyes never left off scanning the crowd. Miraculously the festival carried on around us, oblivious to the near-death experience we’d just encountered. My body started to shake uncontrollably as Sam guided us quickly nearer the main building.
At the last minute, he dodged into the row of cars parked not far from the entrance and away from the streams of people.
“Get in my car,” he ordered, clicking the unlock button. He opened the door and all but shoved me in before racing to his side and locking the doors behind us.
He leaned his head against the headrest for a minute, closing his eyes as his chest heaved for breath. I couldn’t move, couldn’t think for a full minute in the silence before Wolf burst through the shock and moved me into motion.
“Sam.” I gasped. “Show me your arm.”
“Are you hurt?” He looked at me fully, eyes dilated dangerously large again.
“I’m fine. I’m a little bruised, but I can already feel it healing.” He grimaced. “Show me your arm,” I repeated.
He grunted in pain. “It’s my left arm. Can you help me out of my jacket? I called Cade back. He didn’t find the shooter, and there was no panic. No screams, so no one saw what happened. No witnesses.” The pain and frustration were evident in his voice.
Gingerly, I reached up and tugged the right sleeve of his jacket. His back arched and he groaned. An agonizing noise that sent my heart lurching up in my throat and brought tears to my eyes. With his right arm out, he maneuvered his left sleeve off.
“Sam, your shirt is soaked with blood.” My voice quivered. “Here.” I grabbed at the towel in the backseat that had been wrapped between layers of cookies earlier. “Use this on your arm.”
“Cade’s here,” Sam replied so I wouldn’t startle as Cade’s dark head came into view. He grunted again as he hit the unlock button and put the towel over the river of blood on his arm as Cade slid into the back seat.
“Whoa, Sam, that needs stitches,” Cade said without preamble as Sam covered his wound with the towel. Cade’s face was ashen in the festival light filtering in.
“I know,” Sam gritted. “For right now, this stays between us. No one else is to know anything.”
Chapter 39
Sam
I was woozy from the pain in my arm and possibly blood loss. My body was healing, but it was a fairly deep gash and needed some professional attention.
“Sam, you need to get your arm looked at now,” Cade pressed. I could feel his fear and guilt that he hadn’t caught the perpetrator.
I closed my eyes a second and tried to think past the slamming of my heart and the throbbing in my arm.
“Okay. Someone hand me a phone. Mine is in my left pocket, and I can’t get to it.”
Megan whipped her phone out. “911?” she questioned.
I shook my head and gritted my teeth as the movement pulled at the torn muscles down my bicep. “No. I don’t want this going any further than the three of us for as long as possible.”
“What are you thinking?” Cade asked.
My brain was spinning ninety miles an hour going through scenarios and calculations of the best course of action. “Later. Arm first. Meg, dial for me. Hold it up for me and put it on speaker. I’m all bloody.” I rattled off Kyp’s number to her and was thankful he picked up on the second ring.
“Hello?” the speaker voice was tinny and muffled with the noise inside the building.
“Kyp. It’s Sam. I need a favor.”
“Sam? What’s wrong? You sound…off.”
“Yeah. Is your mom working the festival shift right now?”
“She should be. Is someone hurt?”
“Yes. Please call her and have her bring her med kit to the back entrance of the building. Cade will meet her there and tell her where to go. Tell her to hurry and come alone, and don’t say anything to anyone else. Tell Rachel that I got sick, and Megan is taking me home early, and that she’ll call her later. Consider this your first pack test. Got it?”
“Got it. Human injury?”
“Wolf,�
� I croaked.
“Dialing now.” He hung up, and my head fell back against the headrest again.
“Cade, I want you to go wait by the entrance. When Jennifer gets there, bring her here, but do a sweep to check for anything out of the ordinary. If anything is even remotely off, even if it’s someone from our own pack, abort. Take her back into the building.”
Two sharp intakes of breath met my words.
“Sam, what do you mean?” Cade’s voice was steely.
“I have to be sure,” I murmured. I was so tired.
“Sure of what?” Megan’s strangled whisper broke the shroud of silence in the car.
“Sure that you’re safe.”
Cade cursed under his breath. “I think that’s her. Hang on, Sam. Don’t pass out.”
“I’m hanging.” I flexed my arm, and a wave of fresh pain and nausea traveled through my system, the pain sharpening my senses again, keeping me alert.
“Sam,” Meg whispered again. I knew she was battling shock, but she was holding it together. She rested her hand on my thigh.
My heart was still slamming in my chest. That arrow had been meant for Megan. Two attempts on her life. My brain twisted through the fog of blood loss and adrenaline to snatches of conversations. If Megan stayed human. If she stayed wolf. Her blood didn’t carry the Alpha gene. If she were dead, the impediment she brought to me, and therefore the pack, would be gone.
No. I couldn’t—wouldn’t—think it. But it was there. The suspicion had taken root. Could my own father be capable of murder?
****
Five agonizing minutes later, Cade and Jennifer Kypson were outside the door of my car.
“Keep watch.” I ground out the words with a nod of thanks at Cade. Jennifer got out a flashlight and knelt at once to better examine my arm.
“Sam, this is a doozie.” Her face impassive, she fished something out of the bag slung over her shoulder with one hand and opened her med kit with the other. “Here. Eat this. It’s a special blend of things that I make up for Kyp to help speed up the healing process and dull the pain. Wolf-friendly.” I bit down on the proffered food. It tasted like chewy oats and had a distinct bitter edge to it that I identified as willow bark. “Hi, I’m Jennifer, Kyp’s mom. What’s your name?” she asked Megan.
