Chapter 2

Bowen

Silas’ wolf brushed against mine. He shook out his tawny fur—a mixture of brown, red, white, and black—as we sniffed the perimeter of Hidden Creek’s territory. A blanket of snow buried the lush landscape, turning the forest into a winter wonderland. Night had descended, concealing the dangers lurking just beyond our borders.

Alpha Wynn had recently increased the size of our patrols, requiring us to run a perimeter check in teams of two instead of alone.

Does Chasity still think she’s got a chance at playing bedmate? Silas asked.

I instantly wished I was alone. The Beta female wasn’t shy about letting me know she’d be happy to warm my bed again. It was something I hadn’t taken her up on since my unit agreed to forgo female company in favor of waiting for our Omega. When the Hidden Creek pack regained our sanctioned status, we knew it was only a matter of time before we’d participate in the Hunt. My unit mates and I didn’t want to risk our Omega being uncomfortable or having to deal with the fallout of female attachments.

Unfortunately, Chasity seemed to have selective hearing on the topic.

Fuck if I know , I projected bluntly.

Why else would she still be sniffing around you? You didn’t make it clear enough , Silas replied.

I haven’t slept with her in six months. Besides, I told her we were done. How much blunter could I be? Do you want me to put a barricade around the house?

My wolf sniffed in amusement.

The tawny wolf narrowed his eyes accusingly at me. I wanted you to listen to me when I told you Chasity wasn’t the female to dip your dick into.

I did listen. I pause, then admit, Mostly. It was one night. A night I was very clear about. How was I supposed to know she’d start following me around like we were an item?

You should have known. Think, Bo. The females have been restless since the Omegas started showing up, and now we have three. To make things worse, the last one is unattached, and there’s a fourth due to arrive in a month and a half.

Fuck. I didn’t think about that—not that I’d ever admit it.

All right, I fucked up, I admit it. I’ll have another talk with her.

Silas’s wolf gave me a pointed look that I did my best to ignore.

Our sanctioned status no longer kept us safe. Our enemies were everywhere, and the Council—the group we once believed stood between us and extinction—was the worst. We were hiding an Omega—the younger sister of one of our mated units—in our pack, and that act alone was a declaration of war. At least, it would be when they found out about her. And they would . . . eventually.

Until then, we would do our best to keep outsiders at bay.

I’ll sort it out, I growled.

You need to, and fast. What happens when it’s our turn to participate in the Hunt? Do you think Chasity is the type to stand aside? I don’t want some female approaching our Omega because of your mistakes.

And you think I want that? Anger flared through our bond.

Silas’s wolf made a noise somewhere between a sigh and a grunt. That’s not what I meant, and you know it. We can’t afford to take chances right now. It’s bad enough that the Council has been making more visits to our territory. We don’t need threats to the Omegas within our borders as well.

My wolf huffed our agreement.

Alpha Wynn was working on securing alliances with the other sanctioned packs and gauging how much they trusted the Council. The air had shifted in Hidden Creek, and the pack's tension grew with every passing day. We were on the brink of change—the brink of war. It was only a question of when and who would be on our side.

As we trotted along the edge of pack land, our senses were alert, attuned to the slightest disturbance.

The crisp air carried scents of the forest—pine, damp earth, and faint traces of passing animals.

Silas’s wolf veered left, checking a small alcove beneath a copse of twisted birches, while my wolf took the narrower path to the right. It led to the valley that served as a marker for the beginning of the wild lands—lands that neither sanctioned nor unsanctioned packs claimed. That was rogue territory.

Moving with preternatural grace, my wolf wove through the foliage, analyzing the familiar scents of the forest. A tendril of sweetness broke through the earthy odors, capturing my wolf’s attention. Subtle, honeyed, and slightly wild—the aroma was wholly unfamiliar yet inexplicably alluring.

Omega.

My wolf darted through the trees, drawn toward the intoxicating—and perplexing—scent. My mind raced. It couldn’t be an intruder . . . could it?

Silas , I called through our link.

Already on my way , he replied. The west edge is clear. What do you sense on the eastern border?

I’m not sure yet. Something is off.

In what way?

There’s a scent in the area. It is unlike anything I’ve ever smelled, and I can’t get a read on it.

Was this some new trick to lure us beyond our borders? I was helpless, unable to resist as it teased my senses. It defied comprehension and commanded every bit of my focus.

A low rumble escaped my throat as I lifted my muzzle to the sky and released a plaintive howl that echoed through the woods. Silas responded in kind, his form materializing beside me as he broke through the tree line.

That smell , Silas said. It’s . . .

I know. But it can’t be real. What the hell would an Omega be doing in these woods?

They wouldn’t be, not naturally anyway, Silas replied.

We set off in the direction of the enigmatic scent.

Keep alert. We don’t know what this is, Silas cautioned.

My wolf gave a brief jerk of his head. Do you think it’s a rogue? I doubt they’re smart enough to change their scent, but it’s possible if they struck a deal with witches.

Silas’s wolf growled . Fucking witches.

The possibility of a trap made me uneasy.

Silas and I moved in synchrony, silent except for the soft shuffle of our paws against the forest floor. Anticipation mingled with apprehension as we ventured closer to the source.

As we entered a clearing bathed in silver moonlight, a distinct figure separated itself from the landscape.

Do you see that? I asked.

At the base of a tree, buried beneath a mound of snow, lay a lone Omega—vulnerable and unmoving. If it weren’t for her scent, I would have thought her dead.

What was she doing out there? Where had she come from?

The Omega’s intoxicating scent enveloped us. She was defenseless, and it tugged at my wolf’s instincts, stirring up our protective nature. The need to go to her and cradle her in the safety of my arms was overwhelming, but caution prevailed. An unfamiliar Omega in the woods near our territory was puzzling, and the situation was fraught with uncertainty—even if my wolf felt the urge to shield her.

Silas and I exchanged a glance, wordlessly acknowledging the potential peril of this encounter.

The closer we came, the more her scent gripped me with an urgency that thinned the veil between man and beast. Something primal thrummed through my veins. She was all I could see.

Our bond flared and pulsed, writhing in an unfamiliar dance.

My wolf inhaled, taking deep gulps of air as electricity poured through our veins. My world fractured and reassembled in a matter of moments.

There was only this tiny, broken creature.

And I knew she was mine.

I shifted and ran toward the curled body in the snow, dropping to my knees and brushing flakes from her frozen form. I heard bones snapping and reshaping behind me as Silas shifted, and a heartbeat later, I felt his heat at my back.

Our bond flared with recognition, and the strands of the other members of our unit—Theron and Gentry—pulsed with surprise, confusion, and worry.

“She’s alive,” Silas said, his voice rough with emotion.

I knew he was avoiding the obvious dilemma and trying to accept what this discovery meant for our unit and Hidden Creek.

“Barely,” I replied, ignoring the way the thought of the Omega’s injuries made my wolf see red.

Silas helped dust the ice from her fur. “What the fuck is she doing out here? Shit, she’s frozen.” He ran his hands along her limbs to warm them. “She was probably out here all night.”

That didn’t bode well for her.

I scanned her golden fur, noticing her visible ribs and underdeveloped muscles. My wolf growled. “She’s thin. Too thin.”

“A loner?”

“Possibly. Though if she were, she would have known the area better—would have had some idea of where to find shelter in this storm.” I inhaled, checking for the acidic edge that often accompanied a rogue’s scent. “She’s not a rogue either.”

Silas nodded in agreement. “She doesn’t seem to have any wounds, so she wasn’t attacked.”

A growl poured from his throat. One question echoed down the bond: if she wasn’t a rogue or a loner, and she wasn’t one of the Council’s Omegas, where had she come from?

From the looks of her, it wasn’t anywhere good. She was becoming more of a mystery by the second.

“Do you think she was left here on purpose?” Silas asked.

“Does it matter?”

Her wolf whimpered, and the pained sound was urgent and . . . needy.

The perfume of her scent increased and thickened. The sweet, untamed musk of honey, wild berries, and crisp apples flooded my nostrils. Arousal directed my blood south, and my cock hardened.

“Fuck,” Silas muttered. “She’s in heat.”

Our eyes met, the bond flaring with determination.

“We take her back,” I stated.

With an almost imperceptible nod, Silas stood. Spine erect, stance wide and dominant, he took up a defensive position as I scooped up the much-too-light wolf and cradled her to my chest. Ignoring the chill of her frozen fur, the wind against my skin, and the snow beneath my bare feet, I moved toward the pack’s medical facilities with Silas guarding my every step.

Theron and Gentry would be looking for us, the ebb of emotions unusual enough to cause concern. The Omega remained still—only the shallow dip and expansion of her chest kept my wolf from completely losing his shit.

Still, he rode the edge of my skin, trying to reach for his mate and comfort her wolf.

Silas’s wolf flashed through his eyes, and his muscles bunched with resistance. His wolf was riding him just as hard as mine, driven by the unconscious Omega in my arms.

An unspoken question hovered between us—what would happen when she woke?

We had an unexplained Omega within our borders—yet another person to hide when the Council visited the pack.

What would we do when we found out where she came from?

Worry built in my chest like a lead weight at the horror of the reality facing my immobile mate. It was the only thing I’d ever wanted but which had always seemed out of reach. Our true mate.

But what would her presence cost our pack?

Whatever the price, I would gladly pay it. That desire for her—for this female I didn’t know—frightened me more than any consequence of this moment.

My wolf growled, possessive and defensive of his mate’s vulnerable state.

The medical building came into view. Silas placed a hand on my shoulder and squeezed.

His message was clear. The Omega was ours, and we would do whatever it took to keep her.

But first, we had to make sure she survived the night.