Chapter 14 - Bailey

I get tossed onto the back of a motorbike behind a skinny she-wolf. I try to hang on with my legs so I don’t have to hold onto her, but she rides like a maniac, taking corners so hard I have no choice but to grab her waist.

“Alpha boy’s getting sweet on me!” she howls, weaving through the pack. Others hoot and cheer, enjoying the joke.

We ride out of town in the opposite direction of where we came in. I can’t stop thinking about that beautiful cabin with its big bed and deep hot tub. The wine menu was exceptionally good, and the food looked delicious.

We could have been there right now!

I know Gina was right, though. If we had stayed, we definitely wouldn’t have come looking for the rival pack until tomorrow, possibly even longer.

This needs to be dealt with.

I don’t like these wolves, any of them. And I don’t like having wolves like these close to my territory.

Maybe all of them aren’t like this.

I hold onto that hope as we leave the main roads and hit rough, dirt tracks. They wind through trees, finally coming out into a clearing under the edge of a rocky peak.

The place is massive, a three-story cabin made of wood and stone. It looks like a palace.

Or a fortress.

The bikers who rode ahead of us have dismounted, and I see the burly guy holding Gina near the door. I hurry to dismount the second the she-wolf turns off the engine.

“Aw, don’t hurry off, cutie,” she says, mocking me. “I thought we were gonna have some fun.”

The only fun I could have with you would be kicking your skinny ass out of my territory!

The bikers form a corridor leading to the door of the cabin so I have to walk between them. At the very end, at the bottom of the steps, the burly guy holds Gina. He has her pressed up against him, one hand across her belly and the other at her throat. She looks right at me as I approach. She doesn’t look scared at all, but calm and determined.

“I hope you don’t hold up your end of the deal, pretty boy,” the guy says. “I’m going to make sure me and all the boys here show this one a really good time.”

For an instant, my rage is so intense, a white-hot flash jolts my body. Holding myself back in that moment is the hardest thing I’ve ever done.

If I react, they all jump us, and then I can’t protect her at all.

I look at Gina as I pass, and she nods slightly, telling me she’s okay.

None of this is okay.

I take a deep breath as I head up the stairs, wondering what I’ll find inside. I’m half-expecting it to be a death trap, and my senses are on full alert, waiting for an attack.

To my surprise, there is only one person inside, a tall, wiry man with silvery hair sitting on the floor behind a low table. He gestures for me to sit.

“I am very honored you agreed to speak with me—” I begin.

The alpha holds up a hand, shaking his head and closing his eyes. This wasn’t what I was expecting at all. It looks like he’s listening to the forest outside, but my senses aren’t picking anything up.

Maybe it’s the rest of the pack closing in.

I didn’t need that thought in my already anxious state. It’s bad enough that Gina is being held out front by a group of dirty bikers. I don’t need to think about more pack members showing up.

Finally, the alpha opens his eyes and stares right at me. His eyes are pale yellow, glowing in his thin face. He looks thin, but well-muscled and extremely strong. His long white hair makes him look old, but that could be deceptive.

“Why have you come here?” he asks. His voice has a deep resonance to it, as if he and the wolf in him speak at once.

“My scouts reported a nearby pack had withdrawn, and your wolves had been seen in the territory. As alpha, I wanted a meeting with you to discuss sharing the territory.”

The other guy smiles suddenly. An extremely wide, creepy smile. His teeth look stained red.

Is that fresh blood?

“They… withdrew?” he repeated. “That’s what you think?”

“My scouts reported that the other pack was no longer in the territory—”

“Yes.” The guy’s smile somehow gets wider. “That part is true, but they didn’t withdraw. They didn’t get a chance to.”

A very bad feeling is beginning to creep through my bones. I can hear the bikers outside starting to get restless, cat-calling and making cracks about me, trying to upset Gina.

They are dishonoring my woman out there while I’m stuck inside with this maniac!

“So, you killed them.” I keep my voice flat. There’s no point beating around the bush with this guy.

He nods, still grinning. “We started by picking off their scouts. They knew they couldn’t stand against our numbers and pulled back into an old mine.”

He leans forward, still showing his teeth. His breath is foul, as if he’s been chewing on rotted roadkill. “We pinned them in there and slaughtered them.”

“Why didn’t you claim the territory right away?” I ask.

“Ah, we were waiting for you, dear boy,” the alpha says. “I knew once the territory emptied out, someone would send in scouts. We wanted to test you and get an idea of your numbers. I have to tell you, those scouts of yours are impressive. They are almost impossible to track.”

“I know,” I answer, allowing myself a small smile and a burst of confidence.

“I didn’t expect you to come walking straight into my den,” the alpha laughs. “I thought we’d manage a few skirmishes before we understood your ways and moved in to finish you off. What insanity possessed you to walk into my territory like this?”

“Not insanity,” I counter. “Honor. I came to negotiate fair trade and alliance. I came alone; I brought no pack, no weapons. I made it clear I had no desire to fight you.”

The alpha keeps up his creepy smile, even as his eyes become cold and lifeless. “That was your mistake. You have exposed your pack and left them vulnerable. Tonight, we will claim the middle territory. I expect we will slaughter some of your scouts. They will pull back to the main pack and lead us straight to them. We can then move on to your territory… since we know the alpha is not there to lead them.”

“My elders will not go down without a fight!”

“Still, my boy, they’ll die. Every last member of your pack will die. Except that wonderfully delicious den mother you have out there.”

I clench my fists in anger, thinking fast.

How am I going to get us out of here?

The alpha has tilted his head back, eyes closed, as he sniffs the air. “She is old blood, true blood, and beautiful. So very beautiful.” He opens his eyes and snaps his gaze back to me, that big creepy smile stretched across his face again. “And now she’s mine. Your territory and your mate, mine. All I have to do now is decide what to do with you.”

“How about a deal?” I ask, trying to keep my voice even. I’m so angry I can barely speak, but I have to hold it together.

I can’t fight them all.

He chuckles. “What do you propose?”

“A fight challenge. It is a tradition between packs for generations, and it is meant to solve disputes between packs without a fight that causes significant damage to both.”

He tilts his head, amused. “A fight challenge! I like it. What are your terms?”

“If I win, you let us go.”

“What do I get out of it?”

“Gina.” I have to force the word from my throat.

The alpha’s eyes light up, and he leers again. “Brutus!” he yells. A big, broad guy in black leather comes in the front door and picks me up by one shoulder. The alpha follows us as Brutus drags me out the front door.

The others have formed a big circle outside. I can see Gina being held by the same guy as before. The alpha goes to stand next to them, eying Gina appreciatively.

If he touches her, I’ll fucking kill him.

He doesn’t, though. He crosses his arms and watches as I’m thrown into the circle.

I expect Brutus to enter after me, but he doesn’t. Everyone backs off, and across the other side of the circle, a tall blond woman walks through the parting crowd. From her pale hair and yellow eyes, I guess she’s related to the alpha. Possibly his daughter.

She strides into the center of the circle, spins, and kicks, forcing me to stagger away. Before I can hit back, I have to roll away again as she comes at me with her hands.

I manage to leap up and charge her, slamming my shoulder into her guts and sending her flying. To my shock, she starts laughing as she flips onto her feet and runs towards me.

What is wrong with these people?

I slip to the side, slashing with one hand to get her across the throat. She hits the ground, but flips and rolls straight back onto her feet and leaps at me, clawing at my eyes.

I realize I’m going to need all my strength and speed to beat her. As I square up and watch her come at me, I tense my muscles and get ready to put all my strength into my next blow.

I have to bring her down.

Suddenly, something hits me over the back of the head. My vision goes black for a second, and when I blink to clear my eyes, I see the pale she-wolf coming at me, way too close.

I don’t have time to move. She tackles me, and we both go down, rolling in the dirt. Someone kicks me in the back, and I feel another blow on my shoulder. When our momentum slows down, the she-wolf is on top, and she starts punching me in the face over and over again.

Growling, I flip up off the ground, sending her crashing onto her back. I’m surrounded by the rest of the pack, and they are closing in on me, shrinking the circle. Some of them have weapons—chains, steel bars, bats.

This is going to get ugly.

“Bae!” Gina screams. She’s some distance away now, and I can’t see her.

What are they doing to her?

I launch myself at the crowd, making some of them stagger away. Because they were standing so close together, some of them crash into each other and fall down, making a gap. I charge into it and start punching and kicking, spinning as I land blows on my enemies in every direction.

I can’t keep this up—I can’t beat them all!

Through the haze of rage, I detect a whistle in the air and duck. A chain whooshes through the air above me, quickly spinning back to the hand of its owner. As I stand up, the others give us some room.

It’s a thin, short guy facing me. He doesn’t look like much, but he twirls the chain with precision. And from the way the others stepped back, he must be damn good at it.

I watch his movements carefully, managing to slip to the side or roll under the chain. I’m waiting for when the chain goes slack and I can grab it without losing my fingers.

There!

As the loop flies over my head, I reach up and snatch it. With one swift twist, I take up the slack and yank on it as hard as I can.

The other guy stumbles, going down on his knees. I leap forwards, jumping over him and spinning so I’m behind him.

I moved so fast, no one has been able to counter me. I wrap the chain around the little guy’s neck, and I don’t hesitate—I yank the ends in opposite directions as hard as I can.

There is a tremendous crack as the loop closes, practically cutting off the guy’s head and breaking his neck. I don’t stop to look around; I don’t give myself time to think. I just drop the chain and run towards Gina.

They had no intention of honoring the deal! They were always going to kill us!

And now I’ve killed one of them.

I charge towards the burly guy holding Gina and the alpha, focusing on breaking their grip on her and getting her out of here and into the forest. When she sees me coming, she smashes her boot down on the big guy’s foot and elbows the alpha in the face.

They stagger back from her. I speed up even more, holding out my hand. She grabs hold of me, and we run into the forest, the howls of the other pack echoing through the valley behind us.