Chapter 25

The silence that fell over the room was deafening. No one expected those words to come out of Ryker’s mouth. Not even Ruby. Ryker was adamant to never go back to pack life. Well, not West Coast pack life anyway. And now he planned to challenge Tyson? There was a chance that he could defeat Tyson and still walk away from the pack entirely… but with Ryker changing his position on the subject, Ruby was not sure what he would do.

But thankfully, my father decided not to be patient about wanting that information.

“You plan to challenge him? Then what?”

“JEEZ! Dad!” Ruby exclaimed.

Ryker chuckled at her. “It’s fine. I did just switch gears on you guys. I expected you to ask first, though.” Ryker winked at her. He probably thought he was being cute, but she honestly just wanted to slap him in the face. “Tyson still views me as the Big Bad Wolf and wants me out of the way. I had no intention of going back, but it is clear that his disillusions will someday affect the pack. I can’t allow that when I know I can do something about it. I will challenge him to end his madness.”

Davis and Heather nodded their heads along as Ryker spoke. Davis realized that Ryker did not answer the second part of the question.

“Then what?” Davis repeated.

Ruby looked at Ryker, waiting for his response. Ryker would not meet her eyes.

Is he ashamed of what he wants? she thought to herself. That did not seem like the Ryker she had come to know.

“I don’t know. How has the pack been in my absence?” Ryker questioned.

Davis and Heather looked at each other. Jeremy stood up from sitting in the chair and moved to putting his back against the wall. He looked down at his shoes to avoid Ruby’s gaze when she looked at him for a possible answer.

“Honestly, things could be better. Tyson is a very selfish man. Not once has he made a step forward to bring more business to the sanction. All of his efforts seem to be pushed toward finding you,” Heather answered.

Ryker rolled his eyes. Ruby was surprised he didn’t answer with a growl.

“He never should have been able to become the Alpha.”

“You should have killed him in that fight and never left,” Davis deadpanned.

Ruby stopped breathing for a moment, terrified that Ryker would lose it on her father for that statement. Ryker stilled inside of her arms and looked at Davis. There was no hint of anger behind his eyes. Instead, it seemed to be understanding.

“You’re probably right. I should have. Instead, I didn’t want to be marked as a killer more than I already was. I walked away when I should have taken further action.”

“Well, Alpha. What are you going to do to fix this?”

“Like I said. I’m going to end this once and for all.”

Davis opened his mouth to say something else, but Ryker interrupted him.

“I apologize, Davis, but I think you should be heading back. I’ve done my best to keep Tyson’s men away from the barrier, but they seem to be persistent. There is one section that no one has been near, I think we need to get you through there before they suspect anything.”

Ryker lifted Ruby off his lap as he stood up and placed her on her feet. Her heart broke a little at the thought of her family leaving her. There was no telling when she would be able to see them next.

“Another problem will be…I have to allow the magic to erase your ability to find this place again.”

Ruby gasped and then let out a growl as she turned onto her mate. “You have to be fucking kidding me. Why aren’t they allowed to know how to come back?”

“Tyson has the ability to go through all of the pack bonds and access this memory if he pushes hard enough. We cannot risk that.”

Ruby opened her mouth to scream at Ryker, but her mother swooped in and hugged her. “It’s fine, Rube. It’s not forever. We will figure out how we can see each other again.”

“I didn’t say I would erase the memory of the fact that you are alive. They already knew that. They just won’t know where you are or how to get here.”

Davis put his arm around Ruby’s shoulders and guided her down the stairs. Jeremy and Heather walked behind them with Ryker bringing up the rear. Davis whispered into Ruby’s ear as they walked across the club toward the door.

“Ryker is right. It is the only way we can keep everyone safe for now.”

“You would agree with him. Stupid Alpha logic,” Ruby mumbled under her breath in aggravation.

“Only way to argue is with logic.”

Ruby growled, and Davis laughed. Ruby knew he was right, she even used that line recently herself, but it didn’t mean she liked it.

Ryker led them to the area of the barrier that was not being investigated. While on the way, Davis questioned Ryker on his ability to connect with the magic from a Witch this way. Ryker explained that the Witch had given him the magic to share with the barrier so he could command it the way that he does. The more Ruby heard about this Witch, the more she was afraid to ever cross her path. The amount of power she seemed to have was frightening. It was scarier to think that she made deals with Wolves in this capacity as well. Most would never share a part of their magic with a Shifter, yet this one did. If she was okay with doing this with one, how many others had she helped?

Her family gave her an even bigger hug than they did the last time that they parted ways. It was difficult to say goodbye, and Ruby struggled not to bawl her eyes out as she watched them cross the barrier and disappear. Ryker pulled her into a hug and kissed her forehead as the tears rolled down her face.

“I promise; you will see them again.” Ryker told her.

“Don’t make promises that you can’t keep, Ryker.”

“Who said I can’t keep that promise?”

Ruby looked up at him, “how can you possibly be able to keep that one?”

Ryker smirked at her, “I have my ways.”

“I guess I shouldn’t bring up what you wouldn’t answer?”

Ryker’s smirk faded quickly. He let her go and gave her a look that told Ruby that she shouldn’t ask.

“Fine. Later then.”

“We have a club to open in a few hours. Let’s get ready for that first.”

Ruby wagged her eyebrows, “let’s, Alpha.” Ruby took off running before Ryker could grab her. She knew how she said that word got to him every single time.

* * *

It was definitelyweird being behind the bar again. It had been a few days, and Deacon had covered the shifts that Ruby had missed. Between being told Ryker was her mate, Mack’s betrayal and death, she and Ryker marking one another, and then seeing her family again… Ruby wanted to come back just for normalcy and as a distraction.

But not even sex with Ryker managed to distract her.

There were a few missteps with her entering things into the system and even where something was on the shelf. Tasha raised her eyebrows at Ruby and gave her a sympathetic smile. Ruby wanted to yell at her for feeling any sort of pity for her, but Ruby knew it was just because Tasha was being empathetic to everything Ruby had been through in her absence.

Somehow, Ryker hired another bartender as well. This was news to her, and it was clear Ryker forgot when he saw this person behind the bar when they came downstairs to get things set up. It was needed since the club was busier than usual, but it also threw Ruby off even more to have three people behind the bar instead of two.

The new bartender was a young male wolf that had just come to Wolf’s Den. He ran off from being with his pack when he was sixteen and had been living the life of a rogue for the last two years. Jayson was skin and bones, his brown hair was past his shoulders and smelled as if the shower he recently had was his first one in two years. His soft brown eyes reminded her of a domestic dog, and it made her want to just hug the poor kid. Tasha had trained him, and he even seemed to be bonded to Tasha because of it.

What made things worse, though, was that bitch Stacy was sitting at the end of the bar like she always did. When Ruby spotted her, Tasha switched sides with her so she could tend to Stacy’s bullshit. It didn’t stop her from trying to flag Ruby down, but Ruby ignored her. Unfortunately, that didn’t last near as long as Ruby had hoped because, within an hour, Tasha ran off to the bathroom when a wave of pregnancy nausea hit her after smelling an apple liquor, and Stacy needed a refill. Ruby was not going to have Jayson tend to her, so she walked down to Stacy to ask if she wanted her usual or something else. Stacy glared at her, as usual, and then spotted her mark on Ruby’s neck.

“You were marked? By who?”

Ruby cocked her eyebrow at the she-wolf. Before Ruby retorted at Stacy’s disdain-dripping question, Ryker appeared behind Stacy. Ruby smirked and decided to let Ryker handle it.

“Red, where is Tasha?”

“Bathroom. She smelled the apple liquor.”

Ryker made a ‘yeesh’ face and then continued, “need any help back there, Babe?”

Ruby flashed him a smile as Stacy’s face went white. “No, Baby. I got this covered.”

Ryker winked at her and disappeared into the crowd. Stacy’s jaw was nearly on the floor while she stared at Ruby’s mark.

“Stacy, you didn’t answer my question. Would you like your usual or something else?”

“He- you- what?”

“I’m sorry. I don’t speak babble. What was that?”

Ruby heard Jayson snicker behind her, and she fought the urge to smile as Stacy stammered through more nonsense than words.

“I am not sure if you are okay, so I am going to just make your usual for you.”

Ruby walked away and finally cracked the smile she had been holding back. Ryker’s sexy voice slid into her head, and it only made her smile bigger.

Did I cause something over there?

Don’t act cute. You know exactly what you did, she retorted back at him.

I always hated her. Now maybe she will stop trying to get on my dick.

Ruby made the drink to Stacy’s normal specifications and handed Stacy the drink. Stacy did not meet Ruby’s gaze and thanked her briskly for her drink. Ruby almost lost her cool and laughed out loud but managed to keep herself together and started working through a line of people waiting for her.

When Tasha came back, they allowed Jayson to have a small break. Deacon appeared with a container of food for him and walked him over to the staircase to Ryker’s apartment so he could eat in peace. There was a small break in people ordering drinks, so Tasha told Ruby how Jayson arrived the morning after the incident with Josh. Tasha trained him while Deacon helped behind the bar so it would not be as difficult for him to learn the job. Jayson was staying with someone in town until he could either live on his own or chose to move on. After hearing how Jayson was timid, and seeing it with her own eyes, she hoped he would stay within the barrier; she did not want him to have to endure the hard life outside of the sanctuary.

When Jayson came back from his break, Ryker appeared at the end of the bar and wiggled his finger for her to come to him. She gave him a look at first, to which he rolled his eyes with a smile, and then did it again. Ruby walked over, and he leaned over the bar to say something to her in her ear.

“Dance with me.”

It did not come out as a question, and something about his tone made Ruby not care. She looked over her shoulder at Tasha, and she motioned with her hands for Ruby to go. Ruby walked from behind the bar and onto the dancefloor, and a song with a rhythm that Ruby could only describe as something that encouraged couples to grind on each other blasted through the speakers. Ryker was behind her and pressed his body against hers. She looked up into his navy-blue eyes, and it had some mischief behind them. There was no way that he would hear her, even with Shifter hearing, so she mindlinked him instead.

Did you plan this?

What if I did? he countered as he grabbed her hips and pressed his fingers into her skin.

Ruby responded by putting one hand around his neck, the other on one of his hands, and rocking her hips to the music. Ryker’s chest rumbled and followed her movement. They easily fell into a groove, and Ruby felt Ryker becoming hard as they danced. Before she commented on it, Ryker spun her. Ryker put his leg between hers and slid one of his hands up her back. With a quick movement, he had her dip and continued to run his hand up her back so she would slowly return to a standing position. The smirk he wore was dangerous, and she could feel herself getting damp as he rocked his hips and led her into a dirty dance to the music.

Where did you learn to dance like this? She asked him as the song began to slow down.

A friend I had growing up. His dad was a dance instructor, and he wanted someone to learn with him. I saw it as an opportunity to get girls, so I took it.

Good choice.

Ryker smiled before kissing her fiercely. A slow song came on afterward and Ryker somehow led them into a slow rhythm as he kissed her. It was passionate, possessive, and tender all at once. Ruby felt heat spread through her chest as they kissed as if the bond between them had forged stronger. Before she knew it, the song was over, and Ryker broke the kiss. Ruby groaned and Ryker kissed her forehead.

“I kept you longer than I planned. Go back to work. We can finish this later.”

“That better be a promise,” she said over her shoulder as she sulked back to the bar.

Ruby wore a goofy grin as she stepped in front of a customer that had just walked up to the bar. Her smile quickly faded when she recognized who it was…Josh fucking Wilson.

His bald head glistened under the lights, and he smirked at her as she scowled. Ruby wanted to just call Ryker over to have him kicked out, but she did not want to spoil the mood that Ryker was in. Instead, she put on her best customer service smile.

“What can I get you?”

“Whatever is lite on tap.”

Ruby gave him a nod and made her way over to the glasses. Tasha walked over and bent over as Ruby did so she could talk.

“I can have Deak bounce his ass out, Rube. Give me the word.”

“No, I got this.”

Ruby got the drink and walked back over to Josh. She felt sticky from sweating on the dance floor and felt her hair sticking to her neck. She pulled all of her hair to the back and pulled it into a low ponytail so it would remain off her neck for the remainder of her shift. Just like Stacy, Josh zeroed in on her mark.

“Someone really marked a bitch like you? Who was desperate enough to do that?”

Ruby’s growl reverberated through her throat, “the fuck did you just say to me?”

Josh narrowed his eyes at her, “did you hear me stutter? Who thought it would be a good idea to make you his mate? I didn’t think there was a wolf in town that was that hard-pressed for a piece of ass.”

Ruby laid her hands out against the cooler in front of her and leaned in toward Josh. She heard the metal bend underneath her hands but did not care. Scarlett perked up inside of her and was pushing on the walls to shift.

“And who the hell gave you the right to talk to anyone like this? You are nothing but a piece of shit and a waste of Shifter magic, if you ask me.”

“What did you say, Bitch?”

“I don’t know why you have such a hard on for me, but let me make this clear. It is none of your damn business who my mate is. I am sensing some jealousy, and I feel sorry for you.”

Ruby’s words made Josh go red in his face. He leaned himself closer so he could be more in her face.

“I bet your mate only marked you so he would know when you spread your legs for someone else.”

Ruby went to jump at Josh only for him to not be in the chair anymore. It did not stop Scarlett from pushing enough to force a shift, and her paws landed on top of the bar. There were several screams between Ryker throwing Josh onto the dance floor and Scarlett’s growl piercing through the music. Ryker stood at the side of her, and Scarlett snarled as Josh made his way to his feet. The music cut out and everyone who remained in the club had their eyes on the show before them.

“You’re going to allow this bitch to shift on a customer?” He spat at Ryker.

“You’re lucky I didn’t snap your neck instead for disrespecting my mate.”

Josh’s eyes flew back and forth between the two of them. Once it fully registered, Josh started laughing. “This bitch is yours? Did you Choose her? I sure as shit wouldn’t have. She is only worth the time spent on her back or knees.”

Scarlett snarled and jumped down onto the floor. Ryker’s growl mixed with Scarlett’s snarl, but he remained standing in the same place as Scarlett stalked toward Josh.

“The Goddess chose her for me, and as you see, she chose right. Ruby nor Scarlett need me to fight their battles for them, so either apologize and leave, or say something else stupid that could get you killed.”

Josh spit at Scarlett’s feet. “Fuck you and your wanting an apology. She should have apologized for shaking her ass at me last time and making me think I could get what I wanted.”

Ryker shook his head. Josh hadn’t broken any law, so Scarlett continued to stalk toward him. When she got within a few feet, Josh swung his leg back and attempted to kick Scarlett in her face. Scarlett jumped to the side and then launched herself onto Josh. Scarlett heard the crack of Josh’s skull hitting the hard floor, and his eyes were rolling to the back of his head. It took a few moments before they focused on Scarlett’s large body on top of his own. Josh swung his arm and punched Scarlett on her snout. Scarlett held in a yelp and snapped her neck to grab onto his forearm. With one quick movement, she broke his arm and ripped open his skin and muscle. Blood poured onto the ground as Josh let out a scream.

Ryker stood over him as Josh howled in pain and held his wound with his other hand.

“Apologize and leave.”

Josh, instead, shifted into his wolf. A mixture of grays and white with golden eyes stared into Scarlett’s. Scarlett realized that his wolf was significantly smaller than her, and she huffed.

No wonder he acted the way he did. He is not a large wolf.

It’s like when human men have small penises. Overcompensate.Josh growled at her, but she bared her teeth at him. He lowered his head and growled once more, like it would make him more intimidating. Ryker stepped back and didn’t intervene as he saw that Josh was not going to back down from this.

Josh snapped his jaws at Scarlett, and she didn’t move. He realized that he did not intimidate her, so he ran at her instead. They slammed into one another and snapped their jaws as they stood on their hind legs. Scarlett’s paws sliced open his belly since she had the longer range. Josh tried to use his claws on her but missed as he flailed them about. Josh backed up and did the same thing again. Scarlett managed to scrape her claws into the same spot, making the gashes deeper. When they pushed off each other, Josh tried the same thing for a third time. Scarlett jumped out of the way. She then rounded on him and jumped onto his back. Scarlett’s teeth cut into his shoulder and took a chunk out of it. Josh howled in pain and fell onto the ground. His breathing was erratic, and his eyes were filled with fear.

Scarlett paused, and it was a mistake. Josh’s wolf clamped down onto her leg, and Scarlett heard the crunch of her bone breaking. The only thing Scarlett thought she could do since she was still standing atop the wolf was grab his throat at a weird angle and shake her head. Since his wolf was small, it led to his neck snapping at Scarlett’s powerful jaw and shaking.

Ryker walked over and tapped Scarlett on her head since she did not unlatch her jaw. Scarlett looked up at him and whined.

“He attacked you. This was justified.”

Scarlett pushed her head into his stomach and Ryker scratched behind her ear.

“You did good, Red. Go upstairs and get cleaned up. Tash will open the doors for you. I got this.”

Scarlett limped her way to the door and looked back just before she went through the doorway. There was no one in the club but Ryker, Tasha, Jayson, and Deacon. She had no idea when everyone left, but she was thankful that they did. Ryker smiled weakly at her and waved his hand for her to go up the stairs.

Well, maybe now the men around here will stop treating she-wolves like they are nothing but someone they can be vulgar to, Ruby thought to herself as Scarlett cautiously walked up the stairs.