“What kind of accident?” Marcy asked. She’d been sleeping, curled up on the leather couch for the past hour. I wished she had stayed asleep. She yawned loudly and then propped her head up with her elbow, looking at Beck groggily.
“You know what they’re used for,” Beck said coolly, before I had a chance to come up with a lie. “Do you really need to ask how they died?”
Marcy jolted upright and her hands flew to her mouth. She gasped. “Oh my God.” Her eyes widened and she started to shake.
Dominic squeezed my shoulder again, most likely trying to warn me not to flip out, and then he went to Marcy, pulling her into a tight hug. Heat rushed up my neck and my muscles tensed as she started to sob into Dominic’s sweater.
“Were you planning on telling me?” I growled, settling my glare back on the enforcer.
He raised an eyebrow and shrugged. “Just did.”
“How many?” I demanded. My imprint started to heat up, and my scent rolled off me like a tidal wave. I gripped the armrests of the chair, feeling the plastic snap within my hands. If Beck wanted to push me, I’d push back.
He winced, and he let out a mix between a growl and whimper, before he said with a slight tremble in his voice, “Two. Jeff is trying to stall things so you can claim your mate. He says that’s why he took the mission to bring in the women they want. With them dead, we’ve got time.”
“Beck, you’re a heartless bastard,” Marcy shrieked. Her face was tearstained and her shoulders were shaking. She pushed out of Dominic’s arms and stomped over to him, balled her tiny fist, and swung at him.
Beck caught her fist easily, closing his hand around it, and his eyes flared. “Maybe, but it is my job to kill people.” He squeezed her hand, and Marcy yelped, and tried to tug out of his grip. “You’ve been claimed,” he said to Marcy, letting his voice drop to a growl. “You’re part of this pack now. Learn the rules. I’m not going to warn you again.”
“Let her go, Beck,” I said, and scrubbed at my face, in an attempt to cover up my simmering rage. Things just weren’t adding up. No one seemed to know why Ray would have made a deal with the cougars. There was something missing; I was sure of it. I just couldn’t figure out what it was. What could Bruce offer that Ray wanted?
Beck cut me a look and let Marcy go. She jumped back from him a few steps as he dropped his feet from the table. A yellow ring glowed around his blue eyes, and his jaw twitched with tension. He growled, letting his inner-wolf come out in his voice. He flexed his hands, balling and un-balling them, as he glared at me with a silent challenge. “Tone the scent down, alpha,” he said. “The enforcers are behind you now, but that can change.”
I laughed, a cruel kind of laugh, that didn’t sound right coming from me. I pushed my chair back and as I did, Dominic skirted around my desk, and leaned on it, blocking my view of Beck. “Has your team picked up anything?” he asked with an edge. He shot me a quick pleading look, and I reluctantly pulled the scent back … a little.
“Not yet but we will,” Beck said tightly, and I smiled, more than a little glad that I was affecting him so much. “And now that we don’t have to worry about the humans, we can clean them out when we find them.”
A sick feeling rushed over me as I listened to the enforcer. I didn’t want to admit it, but he had a point, and I actually agreed with him. Without any humans left to worry about, we had time to track them down. We could watch them. Figure out their weaknesses. It would give us more of an edge against them. And with Jeff stalling and feeding us information, we could hit them and clear them out in one shot. I hated to admit it, but overall, the deaths would make everything … easier.
The tension slowly started to break, and fizzled away as I pulled back the last of my scent. Dominic’s rigid shoulders sagged, and he let out a loud puff of a breath. “I think we’ve freaked her out enough,” he said, turning back to me.
“Yeah, probably,” I agreed. “You sure you guys want to do this?”
Marcy was all splotchy, but her tears had dried up, and she gave me what I thought was supposed to be a reassuring smile. “Jade will forgive us later. She always does. Besides, Jade is an act first ask second kind of person. If she thinks she’s losing you, she’ll finish this off.”
“You’re really going to tell her you’re taking Tiff as your mate?” Beck asked, leaning back in his chair, the smug and cocky smile back on his face.
“Yep, that’s the plan,” I said, pulling myself up to my feet. My legs felt like they were tied down as I made my way over to the door. I still wasn’t sure that Dominic and Marcy were right about this little idea, but everything I tried had failed epically, and I was out of options. I just hoped Jade didn’t try to kill me after I told her.
“You’ve got guts,” Beck said and chuckled. “That girl has bite to her.”
I glared at Beck hard. His commentary was not helping, and he damn well knew it. He grinned and got up, joining me at the door. I took a deep steadying breath and then stoned my expression, forging cold remoteness into my body, and I pulled the door open.
As soon as I opened it, I froze. Jared had Jade on his lap, his face buried in her neck. And Jade … Jade was giggling. Her hands were on his bare chest, and her head was tilting to the side, as if she was trying to give him better access.
My inner-wolf went wild, clawing at my stomach, and tearing at my heart. Raw heat pulsed through me, and my chest started to hurt. A cold sweat broke out on my back, and the plan to tell her that I was picking someone else vanished from my mind. “Jared,” I growled. “She’s off limits. This is one rule you can’t break.”
Jared chuckled, and looked up. His golden eyes met mine, burning with a silent challenge. “I think she’s ready to give up, alpha,” he said. He took his time untangling himself from Jade, stood up slowly, and pulled her to him. “She’s free game.”
Jade looked at me a little desperately, as she tried to wiggle out of Jared’s arms. Jared leaned into her, whispering something so softly in her ear, that I couldn’t make it out, and she stopped moving. She held my eyes and as Jared spoke, something passed across her face. It was cold and hateful and vile, and her scent pulsed into the air. Jared smirked and let his arms drop from her waist, but Jade didn’t move. She kept her back pressed firmly against his chest, and his smirk turned into a wide grin.
I started toward her, slowly, carefully, wishing I knew what was going through her mind. She’d looked at me with hatred before, but it was nothing like this. I was half way across the waiting room, only about fifteen steps from her, when she snarled, “You had me competing for you. When did you plan on telling me?”
“Jade …” I said, and dammit, but my voice cracked on her name. The hatred in her eyes … it was just too much. My heart crumbled like a piece of dried bread.
“Did you think I wouldn’t find out? That I’d just … just … become an alpha, be your mate …” She was visibly shaking, and her skin flushed cherry red. Her scent burst from her wildly, hitting me with a deadly force, and I stopped instantly, unable to move. My throat closed up, as if someone cinched a rope around it, and started to choke me.
“Jade,” Marcy snapped, stepping toward her.
Jade’s eyes flared, and a shudder rushed over her skin. “Shut up, Mac,” she growled, and her canines sharpened. “Let me guess. You weren’t really in jail with Dom. You two have known all along.”
“Jade,” Dominic said, with the stern tone he always used with her, and he groaned long and loud. “You’re overreacting.”
“I think I hate you guys,” she said. There was so much heartbreak in her voice. Her invasive scent receded, and I sucked in a breath. She looked at me then; her golden eyes shimmered with what I was sure were tears. “How many more things are there, Aidan? What else have you lied to me about?”
I took a step toward her. I wanted to pull her into my arms and comfort her as she cried. She was breaking; I could see it in her shivers as her inner-wolf tried to take over, and in the small tears tha
t slid down her cheeks. I wanted to tell her it was all going to be okay. I wanted to hold her and tell her how sorry I was, but as I moved toward her, she put her hands up, and leaned further into Jared.
He grinned over her head and snaked an arm around her waist possessively, and she let him. She didn’t wiggle or try to move out of his arm. She sagged against him a little, as if she was taking comfort in his presence. My inner-wolf stirred restlessly, and my scent ramped up.
Now was my chance to tell her everything. I knew that. I could tell her about her father. About the cougars. About the humans that died. But the only thing that came out of my mouth was, “I graduated high school last year.”
Jade stiffened and another shudder rushed over her skin. She clenched her fists and sucked in a few noisy breaths. She met me straight on, her expression an emotionless mask, and said, “I won’t fight for you, alpha.” She grabbed Jared’s wrist, pulling his arm from her waist, and she started for the door.
Jared chuckled and went after her, slinging an arm over her shoulder. She shrugged it off and turned into him, “Jared, I need space,” she said, putting a hand on his chest.
“Sure thing, little girl,” he said, and leaned into her, brushing a light kiss on her lips, and dammit, but she let him. She even smiled at him a little, before she dropped her hand and walked out the door.
I lost her. I really lost her. I deserved it. I knew that, but it didn’t make it hurt any less.
“Looks like the games are over,” Jared said, snapping me back to the room, as the door slammed behind Jade. He folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the wall. I crossed the room, feeling oddly calm, and when I was directly in front of him, I pulled my arm back and punched him. His nose crunched and snapped under my fist. Too bad it didn’t make my shredded heart feel any less broken.
CHAPTER 30
~ JADE ~
I ran through the woods. I couldn’t stop. I didn’t want to stop. My heart was pounding in my ears, and my breath was coming fast and ragged. Branches whipped at my face, and the underbrush ripped at my ankles, but I didn’t care.
The trees around me were covered in fall. Oranges and reds, deep and rich. Leaves scattered the ground, and crunched under my feet. The fall leaves used to be soothing, but right then the fiery colors only added to my rage. Betrayal hurt more than I had thought it would. It was like an icy pick jabbing and twisting into my heart. I’d watched Dominic turn his back on me before, and Marcy, well, Marcy pulled crap like this all the time, but this … this was too much. They were playing with my life. I could have been killed. Erika could have …
All of this for a stupid crush, I thought bitterly. I should have listened to Dominic from the start. I should have stayed away. Found someone else. But I walked willingly right into Aidan’s game. I had never felt as utterly stupid as I did right then.
I felt stripped to the core. And vulnerable. And stupid. Really, really stupid. Each step I took, my inner-wolf fought me. It wanted Aidan. It wanted the power. It wanted its mate. Aidan felt like … home. But that home was gone. Ruined with lies and deceit. It just sucked that my inner-wolf didn’t care about that. She wanted out. The bursts of raw adrenaline were only seconds apart now, but I fought against it. I knew with every part of me that if I shifted, I’d end up right back at his feet.
My stomach rolled, and I swallowed the bile. I felt dirty. I shouldn’t have let Jared touch me. I shouldn’t have let him kiss me, but when he had, all I could think about was hurting Aidan as much as he’d hurt me. How could he endorse women fighting over him? It was sick … twisted … What did you expect from an alpha? My heart twisted and split down the center. He was no different from the rest of the pack, using and manipulating people to get what he wanted.
My legs burned and my skin was numb from the beating of the tree branches as I ran. I didn’t want to stop, terrified that if I did, I’d run back to him. What was wrong with me? Even with the cold truth, a part of me still wanted him. He’s your perfect mate, a voice in my head whispered.
Suddenly someone grabbed my arm and yanked me to a stop. I spun and snarled viciously. My skin felt like it was on fire, and my blood was boiling. “Back off, Erika,” I snapped in a voice that did not sound like my own. It was like gravel, rough and jagged and sharp.
She jumped back, dropping her hand from my arm, and averted her eyes from mine. “I tried to see you last night,” she said softly. “The enforcers wouldn’t let me in. I’ve been worried about you.” She looked at me then and smiled a little. “I heard what happened with Aidan.”
“Leave me alone,” I growled, and turned my back on her. I needed to keep moving, keep fighting my inner-wolf from breaking free.
“Tiff’s been searching for you,” she said, as I started walking away. “She wants to end this. You need to get ready.”
Another shudder rushed over my skin, and my ankle buckled and snapped. I sucked in a breath, and waited, willing my body to relax and stay human. “Let her have that lying piece of crap,” I said, gritting my teeth against the rush of power and adrenaline, as my ankle began to piece back together. She grabbed me again, spinning me around to face her. “Erika, back the hell off!”
Her fear was thick in the air, tangy mixed with salty sweat. It was so thick that I could taste it. “She’s made a deal with your dad, Jade. I’m the first female she’s going to send to the cougars.” She was shaking, her hand trembled against my wrist, but she squeezed harder.
I forced myself to relax. She was terrified, and the urge to hug her and tell her everything was going to be fine was overwhelming. My inner-wolf calmed slightly, and I asked, “What cougars? What are you talking about?”
“Jade, please,” she begged. She dropped to her knees before me, grabbing at my jeans. “They’ll kill me. Your dad … he’s …” A gasping sob fell from her, and she jammed her hand into her pocket. “Here, just watch this.” Erika pulled her iPhone out of her pocket and tapped the screen, bringing up a video.
“So we have a deal then?” my dad’s voice crackled through the speaker, and my heart stopped. The image was fuzzy and dark, but even if I couldn’t make out the face, I knew the voice well.
“Yeah, I’ll send you some females, but why wolves?” a female asked, that I assumed was Tiffany. The image zoomed in a little, and her carrot hair came into focus, confirming my assumption. She was the only person I knew with hair like that.
“They’ll heal faster,” Dad said, his voice cold and impossibly cruel. “These humans break too easily and my boys like some fight in their women.”
“And your daughter?”
There was silence for a second and then my dad laughed. “She’s Aidan’s weakness. The boy is lovesick. Give her to one of the enforcers. We’ll use her when we’re ready, but someone might as well have a little fun with her in the meantime.”
The video stopped, and the play icon appeared in the center of the screen. My body temperature dropped to ice cold. I snatched the phone from Erika and played it again. I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t want to understand what was being said. I’d never seen anything like this in my father before. He sounded twisted, cruel, wrong. They heal faster. My boys like some fight. Give her to one of the enforcers.
My inner-wolf stirred again, restlessly. My chest felt tight, and the adrenaline rush hit me again. “Did you show this to Aidan?” I asked harshly, trying to hide how much I was hurting. My father, Aidan, Marcy, Dominic … I couldn’t handle much more. How many more people were going to betray me? “Shouldn’t you bring this up to the enforcers or to him?” I glared down at her, trying to stay strong. I never thought for a second Erika, of all people, would come to me before her pack. Only days ago she hated me, attacked me, and changed me into a monster. She’d done everything she could since she had become a werewolf to make my life hell. She’s treating you like an alpha, Dominic’s voice clouded my brain.
“Challenging females don’t have to follow pack rules,” Erika said. “As long as they don’t k
ill an opponent after they’ve submitted …” she let her voice trail off for a second, and a flash of guilt passed across her face, but she shook it off fast. “Once the alpha female steps up, Aidan has no control of what happens to the rest of us. Alpha female rules the females, alpha male handles the males. The enforcers could do something, but they scare the hell out of me. I tried to show Jared, but he was all ‘get out of my face’ and he wouldn’t listen. And Aidan hates me because I’m following you.” Her voice was getting higher and higher as she spoke. She was desperate. I could see it in her eyes, and it scared me to death. “Jade, you can’t let her win. This pack is screwed up enough. I need you. We all need you. We need a strong alpha pair. You’ll stand up to him. I know you can stop this.”
My brain was spinning and my stomach rolled. I paced a few steps away from Erika. What the hell was I supposed to do? Mate with Aidan and try to fix this screwed up pack? Walk away and keep the little bit of self-decency I had left? I didn’t want to do either. I should have just stayed away from the pack! Did I want the responsibility of the females? Could I handle it? Could I actually walk away knowing what would happen to them, and leave them in the clutches of Tiffany? If I walked away now, I could leave town and never see that lying jackass again and that idea wreaked havoc on me. I couldn’t imagine not having Aidan around, even if I did want to kill him at that very moment. But if I took alpha female it’s as if I’ve condoned what he’s done.
An idea began to form, slow and a little sketchy, but it was something. Something that I thought I could live with … maybe. I turned back to Erika. “I’ve got an idea. Do you have Jared’s number?”
CHAPTER 31
~ AIDAN ~
My office felt empty. It wasn’t, but it felt it. The average sized, beige room felt huge and dull and vacant. Jared sat on the edge of my oak desk with a smug grin, and Beck stood nearby fighting back a laugh. They were playing with her, I was sure of it, just as they were toying with me, and they were enjoying every second of it. What I didn’t get was why? Why did the enforcers give a shit about Jade? And what were they getting out of ripping us apart? I couldn’t bring myself to believe that Jared actually wanted her, or that she was attracted to him. I knew it was possible; I’d seen them all over each other, but the thought of her with him, or anyone else, made me feel sick.