Alpha Temptation: Sanmere Shifters Romance Collection

by Lola Gabriel

  She shrank back when she saw Clive coming into the warehouse. He was carrying something that made Ellery take notice. It was a large tray and on it were three bowls with steam coming out of them. She had expected their meal to be slop, but if the delicious smell wafting through the air was anything to go on, she had been wrong about that.

  Clive set the tray down on the ground and turned and left the warehouse without speaking a word to the women. Ellery glanced across at Ava and Lisa. Ava gave her a sympathetic smile which she returned.

  “I’m sorry about earlier. I just…” Ellery started.

  “It’s okay,” Lisa interrupted her with a smile. “We’ve all been there.”

  “So is that why you both go along with their demands? Because if you don’t, they punish someone else?” Ellery asked.

  “Yup,” Ava nodded.

  Ava got up and moved toward the bowls. For a horrible moment, Ellery thought the chain’s give was going to run out before she reached them but it didn’t. She picked the tray up and smiled as she started back toward the others.

  “Soup,” she declared. “And a bread bun each.”

  “I take it by that reaction that’s not normal, then?” Ellery said.

  “Sometimes we get a nice meal, sometimes we get slop. Alex must be around. We get fed much better when he is. If he knew the things that went on with us when he wasn’t around, I think Clive and Simon would be in a lot of trouble,” Ava said.

  “So none of the women who’ve been taken from here tell him how bad it was?” Ellery said.

  “I don’t think so,” Ava said. “But I’ve never asked.”

  “I think they probably do, but no one cares,” Lisa added.

  Ava handed out the food and Ellery began to spoon the soup into her mouth. It really was good, and the bread bun she was given was fresh. The women ate in silence and Ellery got to thinking about their escape again. She still hadn’t come up with a plan yet, but she also wasn’t ready to admit defeat either.

  Not long after they had finished their meal, the warehouse door opened again. Ellery looked up, expecting to see Clive or Simon, but instead, their visitor was a woman. She looked at Ava and Lisa, who smiled at the woman. She felt herself relax a little bit. It must be one of the women they had mentioned.

  “Ellery, this is Laura,” Ava said. “She left our little prison a couple of weeks ago.”

  “Hi,” Laura smiled at Ellery. “I can’t stay long tonight, ladies. I’m supposed to grab the bowls and spoons and not hang around.”

  She dug in her pocket as she spoke and held out a chocolate bar to Ava.

  “I managed to get you this. You’ll have to share it; it’s all I have.”

  “Thank you,” the three women chorused together.

  Laura began collecting the dinner bowls.

  “Does Alex know how we’re treated down here?” Ellery asked.

  Laura glanced at her, wincing when she saw the cut on Ellery’s face. Ellery was sure there would be a bruise there too. Laura shook her head.

  “No. He doesn’t want to hear it. I’ve tried to tell him and I know some of the other girls have, but he just cuts us off, saying that was our old life and none of it matters anymore,” Laura said.

  “What’s it like? Being Alex’s mate? Are you still a prisoner?” Ellery asked.

  “I suppose technically I am in that I’m not allowed to go out without Alex or one of the guards with me. But I’m not treated like a prisoner. I’m treated like a queen. And Alex isn’t so bad. He’s strict, but as long as we do what he says, he treats us well. And let’s face it, I know you haven’t been here long, but trust me when I tell you it’s better than being down here, being treated like an animal,” Laura said with a smile.

  Ellery sighed.

  “I’m not so sure I’ll feel that way about it when my time comes,” she said. “I mean, it’ll be nice not getting slapped around or felt up by the guards. But here I’m only treated like I’m an animal. When I get out of here, I’ll actually be one.”

  “You mean the wolf thing? I didn’t think I’d like it either, but it’s not so bad. There are worse things to be,” Laura said with a shrug.

  “But there are better things to be too. Like free. Laura, do you know where Alex’s guards keep the keys to these chains?” Ellery said.

  “No,” Laura said quickly. She picked up the tray that was now loaded with the dirty dishes. “Alex doesn’t talk about anything like that with us. I have to go now. Goodbye, ladies. Hang in there. One of us will come back when we can.”

  “Laura, wait,” Ellery said. “Is there any way you can try and get the keys?”

  Laura’s face went white and she shook her head quickly.

  “No. I’m sorry. It’s too dangerous. The best thing you can do is just embrace your fate and try to look forward to getting out of here and joining the rest of us.”

  4

  Grey Langdon looked around at his pack and felt his heart sink a little bit. It wasn’t that they didn’t care about the wolf attacks. They did care; he knew they did. It was just that they were a small pack, much smaller than Alex’s pack, and he could see they already felt defeated and like there was nothing any of them could do to stop Alex and his pack of hooligans.

  “You guys all know I take these attacks very seriously. It gives every wolf shifter a bad name when Alex’s pack runs rampant and kills humans. And how long do you think it’s going to be before the authorities start questioning the likelihood of this being supernatural? I know generally humans are unwilling to believe in shifters, but it only takes one. And the more this happens, the more likely it’s becoming that someone will start to believe it. Even the most closed-minded human has to face facts eventually when they’re put underneath their noses often enough,” Grey said.

  “We know all of that, Grey,” Ariel, Grey’s beta wolf, said.

  “Then why don’t you all seem more concerned about this?” Grey snapped. “Am I wasting my time here? Has it gotten to the point where you’re all starting to think going feral is the way forward?”

  “Of course not,” one of the pack shouted. Grey wasn’t sure who.

  “That’s not fair, Grey,” Ariel said, barely daring to meet his eye.

  “Not fair? I’ll tell you what’s not fair. What’s not fair is humans being picked off for sport and the increasing chances that our pack is used as a scapegoat for it. Because make no mistake, that’s what will happen. Once the authorities accept the impossible and start looking for shifters, how long do you think it’ll take for someone in Alex’s pack to call in an anonymous tip sending them looking in our direction?” Grey said. He paused, looking around the room at the pack and then he went on. “And when that happens, do you think the authorities will believe we didn’t do this? Do you think they’ll be willing to sit down and listen to us explain that we’re the good guys? We’ll get lumped into the monster category and that will be the end of us. Any of the pack who don’t get rounded up will have to flee and live in hiding for decades, and any of us who are caught will either be killed, or more likely, locked away and experimented on.”

  Grey looked around at the pack members in turn, meeting the eyes of each of them. None of them replied, but at least now they’d stopped arguing with him. He hoped that meant they would be on board with what he was going to say next.

  “We’ve discussed this before as I’m sure you all remember. How if Alex’s pack gets out of hand, we’re going to do something about it. And I think we can all agree that they’re out of hand now,” Grey went on.

  Most of the pack were nodding reluctantly. They knew as well as he did that Alex’s pack was completely out of control and that this situation was only going to get worse the longer they were allowed to run rampant through the city.

  “I know we didn’t want it to come to this, but it has. It’s time. Time to take those bastards down,” Grey ended, his voice loud and passionate. He sounded much more confident than he felt.

  No one spoke and
hardly any of the pack would meet his eye now.

  “Well?” he prompted them.

  “Well, you’re right obviously. This has gotten way out of hand. But why is that our responsibility?” Luke asked.

  A few pack members nodded their heads in agreement with his statement. Their nods were much more enthusiastic than they had been in response to Grey.

  “Because no one else is going to do it, are they? No one else accepts that shifters even exist. We know who they are and we know where they are. This kind of puts it on us. And what are the other options? The one I outlined above which none of us want. Or calling in a hunter with an anonymous tip, and I really don’t want to do that. As bad as Alex’s pack is, I’m not ready to betray my whole race and go to a hunter.”

  “Plus, a hunter wouldn’t be content to stop with Alex’s pack. They’d come for us too,” Michelle added.

  “Exactly,” Grey said, feeling a little relieved that they at least accepted that bringing in a hunter wasn’t an option. “So, who is with me?”

  “We want to be, Grey,” Ariel said carefully, her words measured. “But going after those guys is a suicide mission. They’re cold-blooded and ruthless, and they outnumber us three to one. What can we really achieve by going after them except getting ourselves killed?”

  “I understand that we’re outnumbered, but we’re wolves, guys. We can’t spend our lives living in fear. It’s not right,” Grey countered.

  “What’s not right is getting ourselves killed just to prove we’re not afraid,” Evie put in.

  “We wouldn’t be doing this just to prove a point. We would be doing this because it’s the right thing to do,” Grey said with a sigh.

  He had expected some resistance from the pack, but even he had to admit he hadn’t expected this much. It was getting to the point where he thought they were going to outright refuse to do this. And that might lead to him being challenged as the alpha of their pack. That didn’t worry him too much—there was no one in the pack he couldn’t take—but he had always prided himself on being a fair alpha, not a dictator, and leading his pack in to something against their will, knowing there was a good chance most of them would be killed, didn’t sit right with him. He had no choice, though. He had spoken the truth earlier when he said no one else was going to do this.

  He didn’t want to be an asshole of an alpha, but more than that, he didn’t want to be someone who turned a blind eye to the injustices of the world, especially when they were happening right beneath his nose.

  “So if we agree to this…” Evie started.

  “There is no if,” Graham said, cutting her off. “It’s obvious Grey has already made his mind up about this. He’s letting us think we have a choice, but we don’t. Right?”

  Graham looked at Grey, his expression begging him to say Graham had it all wrong and of course there was a choice. Grey didn’t say anything and from that, his answer was clear.

  “At least say you have a plan. A better one than swarming into their headquarters and getting killed,” Luke said.

  “I do,” Grey said. “You guys were right about us being outnumbered. And I’m not stupid. If we go in there as a pack on the attack, then we’re all going to be killed. So that’s not what we’re going to do. Alex’s pack members are feral in one sense—they view humans as their toys, something inferior to pass the time of day with. But they do observe the rules of our world. My plan is to take down Alex. Once we do that, then the pack members will answer to me, and killing them will be easy. They’ll have no choice but to surrender.”

  The pack considered this for a moment and then Ariel nodded her head slowly.

  “That makes sense, Grey. It’s a plan I could get on board with. Except for one thing. When is the last time any of us have seen Alex outside of his own buildings?”

  “It’s been decades,” Grey admitted. “But that doesn’t mean anything. If someone asked Alex when he last saw me, his answer would likely be the same, but that doesn’t mean I don’t go out. It means Alex and I hang out in very different places. Alex is a lot of things, but a coward isn’t one of them. He’s not the sort of alpha that locks himself away surrounded by guards.”

  “But how will we know where to find him? And how will we know when he’s alone or close to it so we have a chance to end him?” Luke asked.

  “Because I’m going to their headquarters. I’m going to hang around for a while, blend in. Get to know the area and Alex’s routine. I’m not going to get too close, I’m just going to scout around and see what intel I can gather,” Grey said.

  This drew a few gasps from the pack.

  “No way,” Ariel said. “It’s too risky, Grey.”

  “I’m not saying there aren’t risks. But this is less risky than any other plan I can come up with. If anyone else has a way to take down Alex with less risk, then feel free to share it,” Grey countered.

  No one responded and Grey nodded his head.

  “Yes, that’s what I thought,” he said.

  “Fine. But I’m going with you,” Ariel said.

  “No way,” Grey said.

  Ariel glared at him, opening her mouth to argue, but Grey didn’t give her a chance to speak.

  “If I go there and get myself killed by one of Alex’s pack, then the same rule I’m counting on working for us will come into play for them too. You’ll all officially be answerable to Alex. And joining up with those monsters is a fate worse than death. Ariel, you need to stay here with the others, because if I end up dead, it’s going to fall to you to lead the pack. No surrender. Forget the rule about answering to whoever takes down the pack’s existing alpha. Fight the bastards to the death.”

  Ariel opened her mouth again, but Grey shook his head. It had come to the moment he had known it would, but it didn’t make him feel any better when he spoke his next words.

  “This isn’t open for discussion anymore. I am the pack alpha and as the alpha, I’m telling you this is what’s going to happen,” he said in a voice that left no room for any argument. “This meeting is dismissed.”

  Grey walked away from the pack, knowing they would all spend a while discussing his decision. He wondered how many of them would secretly admire this decision and how many of them would genuinely believe he had lost his mind completely.

  “Grey, wait,” Ariel said behind him.

  He stopped and waited for her to catch up with him.

  “You’re not going to talk me out of this,” he said.

  “I’m not going to try to. You’ve obviously thought this through and I know when your mind is made up,” Ariel said. “I just wanted to wish you luck. And lay down a few ground rules.”

  Grey raised an eyebrow at this.

  “Look, you’re the alpha, I get that. But if I’m going to lead the pack if you get yourself killed, then I think I get a say in this,” Ariel rushed on.

  Grey nodded. It wouldn’t hurt to hear her out.

  “When are you planning on going to Alex’s pack’s headquarters?” she asked.

  “Tonight,” Grey said without hesitation.

  “Then here’s my condition for going along with this,” Ariel said. “If you get killed, we’ll all feel it deep down in our souls. But if you don’t get killed and you don’t come back, we won’t know what’s happening. There’s no guarantee Alex will have you killed immediately if his men spot you. He could keep you around as a prisoner and use you as a bargaining chip.”

  Grey hadn’t considered this, but now that Ariel had brought it up, he couldn’t deny there was a very strong possibility that she was right.

  “Go on,” he said.

  “If you’re not back here checking in with me by four a.m., then I’m coming to look for you,” she said.

  The pack had bought a small hotel when they had first come to Miami and they all lived in it. All Ariel was asking was that Grey knocked on her door on the way back to his quarters. It was a reasonable request—one he knew that he couldn’t say no to. It wasn’t like he even ha
d to go out of his way to do it.

  “What if I need longer than that?” he said.

  “Then you can go back tomorrow night,” Ariel said without hesitation.

  “I don’t like this, Ariel. The whole point of me going in there quietly like this is so that the pack doesn’t have to storm the place and end up killed. And that’s exactly what you’re proposing.”

  “No, it isn’t,” she said. “It’ll just be me and maybe one or two others. We’re not going to storm the place; we’re going to be stealthy and get you out of there if you’re a prisoner.”

  “You could still end up getting yourself killed doing that,” Grey pointed out.

  “And so could you. But like you said, who else is going to take care of this? I’m willing to take the risk and the matter isn’t open to discussion,” Ariel said firmly.

  “What if I just deny your request?” Grey said.

  “Then don’t come back at four and risk my life for nothing when I come looking for you anyway,” Ariel said.

  “You’re not really leaving me any choice in this, are you?” Grey said.

  “No. And that’s why you chose me to be your beta.”

  Grey nodded reluctantly. Ariel was right. He had chosen her to be his beta because she was one of the bravest wolves he knew. And she was also stubborn, which he hadn’t banked on. There was no way to talk her out of this, alpha or not. She had already admitted to him she would disregard his orders and come anyway.

  “Fine,” Grey sighed. “I’ll come by your rooms at four. You better have a humongous drink waiting for me when I get there.”

  “Deal,” Ariel laughed.

  5

  Grey crept through the darkness like a shadow, clinging to walls and trees to keep himself blended in now that he was in Alex’s territory. Where Grey’s pack had bought the small hotel to house themselves, Alex’s pack was far too big for anything like that, and they had bought up a whole industrial complex. Most of the units had been converted to homes, meeting places, and offices, but a few were still used for storage.