Alpha Wolf Rising (3 page)

Marek’s eyebrows quirked, and he glanced Nolan’s way. Nolan shrugged, not wanting to go there. It was more than obvious what they’d been doing.

“We found Dale unconscious about one hundred yards from the ritual site. All he remembered was walking behind your father when they’d left the clearing, and then the next, waking up with us yelling at him. He’s got a big-ass knot on his head, and it’s pretty obvious someone’s snatched your father. Probably thought he’d grabbed the alpha, since no one outside the pack knew about the transition taking place tonight.”

Sierra stalked to the wall cabinet, yanked the doors open, and started flipping switches. “Moon weary or not, we’re going after him.”

Every muscle in Nolan’s body went rigid at her declaration. “Now hold on a minute,” he demanded. “You can’t leave here, and you damn well know it.” He’d follow protocol if he had to drug her to do it.

She turned on him with a snarl, baring her teeth. “New management…new rules. Get used to it.”

Sierra pivoted back to the radio and tuned to the emergency channel they’d all prepped for. Nolan wasn’t sure he was prepared to follow her orders when it came to her own safety, but damn if she didn’t look hot in charge.

She pressed the mic key. “Status report. Now.”

“
Who is this, and why are you on this channel
?”

Uh-oh.

“This is your new fucking alpha, and I said report.” Warning growls erupted from her throat.

“
I—uh, we don’t know yet. We’ve found three unconscious protectors and now have three missing pack members. Last report on the intruder, or intruders, was the initial report
.”

“So you’ve got nothing.” It was not a question.

“
I’ve got every available man on the hunt. We’ll find them
.”

Sierra slammed down the microphone and reached for a pair of boots.

“What do you think you’re doing?” Marek demanded.

She didn’t look up until she’d finished dressing and moved toward the door. He stepped in front of her and blocked her path. Like it or not, she wasn’t leaving.

“Get out of my way, Nolan,” she seethed. “We can go together, or you can stay behind. It doesn’t matter, but I’m leaving.” She shouldered past him until he twisted and grabbed her arm.

“I don’t think so.” While he too cared about her father and the rest of the pack, he had one priority.
Her
. “I’m not letting you wander around out there when we don’t even know what we’re up against.”

“Dammit, Nolan, now is not the time to get all he-man on me.
I
am responsible for what happens to the pack now, and I won’t sit idly by and do nothing.”

Her eyes blazed bright and hot, and he didn’t doubt she’d meant every word. “That’s too bad, because you aren’t going out, and tonight of all nights, you don’t have the power to override me. Maybe you’ll kick my ass tomorrow, but not right now.”

She glared at him, her lips curling back into another snarl.

“He’s right, Sierra,” Marek interjected, “especially now that you’re alpha. Your responsibilities have changed, and some things you have to delegate.”

For a minute, Nolan thought she’d try to make a run for it. The tension radiating from her was almost palpable. A long few minutes passed before her shoulders eased and her stance relaxed.

“I don’t like this,” she whispered.
Nolan released her arm and wrapped himself around her. He wasn’t sure he liked it either. Not the her being safe part, but the new being alpha. Their relationship was bound to get complicated, and like it or not, they wouldn’t stay a secret for long, no matter what she thought.

There were already more than a few pack members growing suspicious.

“You need to take a few minutes and remember everything your father has instilled in you all these years. Especially the information he’s passed on over the last few weeks. It’s time to trust in the pack and the guardians you’ve helped train. Nolan runs a tight ship, and you know it.”

She nodded, her breath warm against Nolan’s chest. Marek had a way of reasoning with her when she wanted to go off half-cocked. It was an important trait for an alpha wolf mate.

“
Nolan, are you there
?” The loud squawk of his walkie-talkie sounded at his hip. He grabbed it and keyed the mic.

“Yeah, I’m here. Please tell me you have something.”

“
Yep, we sure do. The intruder is in our custody
.”

“Only one? Has that been confirmed? What about the missing pack members?”

He sent Sierra a hopeful look.

“
No, just the one guy so far, and no sign of our pack. So I’m guessing we’re looking at a team, but so far, this guy’s not talking
.”

“Is he human?”

“
Uhh—yeah, I think so
.”

He didn’t like that response. “You think so? Wait. Never mind. Place him in a holding cell in town, and once we feel certain of Sierra’s safety, I’ll be down to interrogate him. In fact, I don’t want anyone trying to talk to him unless he volunteers information about his group or what he wants. Capisce?”

“
Yeah, Boss. But I think you’re going to want to get down here as soon as possible
.”

“Why’s that?” A pit formed in his stomach. He had a feeling he wouldn’t like the answer.

“
I don’t think we should discuss it over this channel, but he’s demanding to speak to the alpha
.”

“Yeah, I’ll just bet he is.” Nolan fingered the knife he also wore on his belt. Violence welled up in him at the intrusion on Sierra’s big day. Even though he’d been excluded from the mating process, her happiness and safety meant more to him than anything else.

“Tell him when he produces the missing members, we’ll consider his request.”

“
Will do, Boss
.”

Nolan hooked the walkie-talkie back to his waist and wandered to the front window. Last year, they’d installed bulletproof glass, so there was no worry of a stray gunshot. But outside these walls a lot of factors couldn’t be controlled.

“Nolan, you need to talk to him,” Marek insisted.

He shook his head. “I don’t leave Sierra’s side until all is secure. You of all people know this. When the dark moon passes and your waning power restores, we’ll go. Until then, none of us leave here.”

Silence filled the room, heavy and thick. He couldn’t imagine having the power they did, and having to deal with a day every month when you were as vulnerable as any human.

They could still take up arms and fight the good old-fashioned way. Guns and knives worked well too. Unless of course they were dealing with other supernaturals; then things could get sticky. Hence the bunkers and warded cabins.

“I doubt anything is going to happen to our pack members. The retribution would be swift and deadly.” Sierra spoke quietly, an edge of steel in her voice.

His woman was a little scary when she got like this. They needed to distract her before she lost too much of her legendary control. He didn’t want her getting hurt.

Nolan left the window, secure in the fact nothing was amiss around the property. “You need to relax.”

“Didn’t you already try that?” The smart-ass tone in Marek’s statement didn’t really surprise him.

“What did you think was going to happen? I’d pulled her away almost before you’d finished. The scent of sex covered her, and it doesn’t take a shifter’s enhanced senses to smell it and get aroused. Hell, on one level or another, we’re all pretty primal at times.”

“Were you jealous?” Worry crossed her face.

“It’s not that simple, Sierra. I understand duty, and we all got involved with our eyes wide open. But watching the ritual is magical, and even humans aren’t immune to that much sex magic. I didn’t want to stop you. I wanted to join in.”

Sierra stepped forward until she was close enough to touch. “It’s like that for the pack, but stronger. So compelling nature won’t allow it to be denied. If I’d thought for a second you could participate, I would have been thrilled. I wanted more.” She held up her hand to stop Marek’s protest. “No, Marek, don’t get me wrong. I always enjoy when either or both of you love me. But in the ritual, when we were being mated, I wanted more. Nolan was missing, and I felt it. So did the wolf.”

Sierra pressed her lips softly to his mouth, her tongue stroking the seam, freezing Nolan where he stood.

Marek moved in behind her and bent his head to her neck. The brown waves of his hair ruffled across her smooth skin.

Damn, this was so not the time for this, but someone needed to tell his dick that. It pulsed and swelled along with the raging need coursing through his blood. Sierra gave new meaning to the saying, “zero to sixty in seconds flat.”

Nolan grabbed her waist and ground her pelvis into his, the hard ridge of his cock nestling against her soft belly. One day, hopefully soon, a baby would grow there. Technically fathered by Marek, since their DNA didn’t match up to a human’s, but they’d already discussed it, and somehow, someway, they would be a family unit.

His head buzzed with sex and pent-up energy. He needed to question the intruder who’d ruined her special night, but he wanted to fuck her again. Doing the right thing was sometimes too damned hard. Maybe a few more minutes…

He deepened the kiss, shoving his tongue into the silken warmth of her mouth. A groan slipped out, swallowed by their urgent kiss. She grabbed his arms and pulled him even closer. They weren’t going to be able to stop soon.

Nolan wrenched his mouth free. “We shouldn’t do this.”

“Why the hell not?” Marek argued as he latched on to the back of Sierra’s neck. A vivid red mark had bloomed in the curve as a result of Marek’s earlier bite.

“Because we have a prisoner that needs to be interrogated, and I’m having second thoughts on waiting.”

“But you said it wasn’t safe for Sierra.”

“Dammit, don’t talk over me like I’m not even standing right here,” Sierra growled. “Nolan is right. If the guy is human, I am perfectly capable of defending myself. Why do you think Nolan has made me train every day since I was sixteen?”

“Fine.” Marek pushed away from her, the look on his face like that of a sullen child who’d lost his toy—or a shifter still in the grip of an interrupted sexual frenzy.

“Get ready to go. We leave in five. Marek, you’ll find any gear you need in the chest over there.” He nodded in the direction of the cabinet secured to the wall before he headed to his private safe behind the door.

He needed to get out of this room. The pheromones rolling off the two of them were off the charts. They were either going to fuck nonstop for the next twenty hours, or he was going to take it out on a human who somehow knew things he shouldn’t. And truth be told, that worried him. Who in the pack or his squad would dare? He mentally ran through every member one by one, eliminating the ridiculous and categorizing any potentials who might have cause for leaking information.

Nolan pulled rifles from the safe and checked they were loaded and ready. The same with the pistols. None of them would step outside unarmed.

His mind logically processed member after member until he’d temporarily escaped the pull he felt from Marek and Sierra. He took comfort in the scent of gun oil, the cool metal, and the raw power in his hand. They couldn’t afford for him to be distracted. The pack alpha meant everything to him, and he would never allow someone to hurt her.

Except that one time.

The voice of old memories pulled at him. Made him think of a past better left forgotten. They’d both gotten over it—moved on. So why was it nagging at him now? His gut twisted. He’d done what he’d had to. His job was to do the right thing, no matter what the means or the cost.

Duty was everything.

Chapter Three

Sierra examined Nolan carefully. So much controlled anger and violence inside him that he kept on a tight leash. She’d known him for as long as she could remember, yet the nagging sensation that he harbored secrets never fully went away.

Without a doubt, she trusted her life in his hands. He loved her fiercely and with devotion, yet he pulled away if anyone pushed too close to the dark side of his nature. It had to be a human thing. He may not be of their kind, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t a different type of primal beast inside of him. Some of those instincts he used now as he prepared to face an enemy.

Whoever dared to breach her land would end up very sorry indeed when he got his hands on them. Thinking about the pack, she bent and strapped a knife to her calf. It bugged the hell out of her to have to rely on cold-blooded weapons, but at the same time, they gave her a sense of security when she least expected it. She brushed her pants down until the straps were covered.

She’d never had to fight to the death as a human. How would it feel to bury a knife in a man’s throat or belly if he threatened her life? Sierra bit back a smile at the image. As if Nolan and Marek would let anyone that close to her.

She stood up and nearly knocked into Marek. “Jeez, scare me, why don’t you?”

“What’s wrong? Are you nervous?”

“Nervous for the pack. I can take care of myself, but not everyone has had the same training.” She busied herself with the pistol at her hip.

Marek’s hand cupped her chin and tilted her head to meet his gaze. “Everyone is accounted for except the three. The pack is safe. And we will get your father back.”

“I know we will.” Her spine straightened, but she doubted that Marek missed the sheen of tears she desperately held back.

“It’s okay to be afraid. No one expected this of you on your first day as alpha.”

“Yet, here we are.” She couldn’t hide the bitterness threatening to choke her. They'd missed out on most of the specialness of a black moon and it would be a long time before they had another.

“We’ll face it together, and when it’s all said and done, you, Nolan, and I are going on vacation, even if it is only in our own woods.”

She smiled. Marek, the most fun loving of the three, or at least the wildest of them. Sierra studied him closely. Dark chestnut hair curled around his ears and nape. She rubbed her fingertips together, remembering how it felt wrapped around them: thick and soft, much like his pelt when he shifted. Her gaze lifted to his face, falling on hazel eyes that glowed amber when he got aroused or angry. It didn’t take much to bring the wolf to the surface, but Marek was as easily subdued as well. He was a complete contradiction in wild and calm. His loyalty and intelligence made him the perfect wolf mate. Together, they could encounter any issue with the pack head-on and come out on top.

A slight shiver rippled across her skin, her nipples hardened, and pressure built between her thighs as the beginnings of fresh arousal flamed inside her. When his nostrils flared she realized he’d taken notice of her heightened state.

“We have to rein it in. There’s a job to do.” He spoke calmly and quietly, the best way to settle her wolf. The slightest aggression right now, and she’d be on him so fast their heads would spin. Heat flooded her vagina at the images she couldn’t control. Need coursed through her.

“It’s time to go.” Nolan’s clipped military voice sounded behind her.

She bared her teeth at Marek in response, daring him to do the same. One sign from him was all she needed.

“No. We have to go.”

Sierra threw back her head and shook her hair.
Fine
. She’d find another outlet. Maybe they’d get lucky and would come across someone in the woods. She needed a snack.

Nolan went first. He had the sharpest human instincts, despite Marek’s and her superior hearing and smell. Out on the porch, she sorted through the familiar scents of the forest. Leaves, dirt, and wildlife. Now that she’d recovered from the mad rush of adrenaline during their escape, she picked up a trace of something foreign, but it was faint.

“Definitely human but not fresh. They’re gone,” she stated.

“Yeah I figured that. The right tactical move would be to wait until whoever you were working with was in the clear before you surrendered. I don’t think we are dealing with someone stupid. Not in the purest sense. Whether he realizes the extent of what he’s tangling with remains to be seen.”

“Agreed.” Sierra followed Nolan down the steps and into the woods. They moved quickly, only stopping to ensure no one else remained in the vicinity.
Within thirty minutes, they’d made it to the edge of the forest nearest the sheriff’s office. The area crawled with people. Nolan’s squad of protectors had turned into an armed military unit that was ready for anything.

On the nights of the black moon, Sierra had given little thought to what went into their jobs. The primal change in their bodies always took precedence. Even now, standing at the edge of the tree line and looking at her small town scrambling to maintain control, only half of her focused. Her wolf was more attuned to the trickle of liquid soaking through her panties. Since when did men in uniform with guns get her so excited?

“Sierra, you need to settle down before we go in there.” Marek was at her side. He understood the distress she fought, because he too was affected.

“It’s not a great idea for her to be here for long.”

“You’re doing it again,” she growled.

“Doing what?”

“Talking about me as if I’m not standing right here. I know perfectly well what’s going on and how much I can handle.”

Marek shrugged and shut up. Thank gods.

Nolan grabbed his walkie-talkie and raised it to his mouth. “We’re here.”

“
What do you mean you’re here? Where
?”

“We’re holding back at the edge of the forest until you give us the all clear.”

Just then, a piercing howl filled the night air from the direction of the sheriff’s office.
What the hell?

Instinct overrode good sense, and Sierra took off at a dead run. Marek and Nolan shouted behind her, but she sprinted harder. Who or what was in her jail?

Men looked wildly in her direction, and the dirt spewed around her as she ran. She might not have her shifter power, but even as a human, she moved faster than others of the pack.

At the door of the jailhouse, two men blocked her way. Sierra growled low in her throat. “Let me by.”

“I’m sorry, ma’am, but we can’t. We have our orders.” They shifted nervously, hands on their hips.

She grabbed the hilt of the knife strapped to her hip, fully prepared to pull it out. “You’ll either move or I’ll force you out of my way.” She wasn’t sure if she had the strength to follow through on her threat, but if she unleashed her claws and teeth on them, she’d manage a lot of damage before anyone stopped her.

Another howl ripped its way from inside the building and sent a shiver racing down her spine.

“Move,” she commanded once more.

One of them glanced over Sierra’s shoulder and then slowly moved out of her way. Obviously, Nolan and Marek had caught up with her.

Inside the sparse waiting area, three men whom she recognized were on duty.

“Sierra, you can’t go in there. We don’t know if it’s safe,” Nolan reasoned.

“Why the hell not? Isn’t he being detained in a cell?”

“Yes, but…”

She looked over the guards. Sweat beaded on their forearms, and their gazes darted everywhere but her face. They were nervous, and it had something to do with her.

“Sierrrrrrra.” The cry came on a long howl, and she stepped back at the pain in the throaty sound.

"What the…?” Nolan moved in behind her. “Report now.”

The apparent leader glanced nervously at her again.

“Oh for fuck’s sake.” Sierra shook her head. “Whatever it is, just say it already.” She’d reached the end of her patience, and she wanted an answer now.

“He’s a changeling.”
Sierra’s heart stuttered, her breath clogging her lungs. This was so not happening on her first night.

“That’s not possible,” she whispered.

“Sir, you should probably talk to him. He’s been trying to tear the place down since we brought him in, and that howling… It’s been driving us all mad.”

“What does he want?”

They all looked in her direction and spoke in unison. “Her.”

Something familiar nagged at Sierra’s memory as she tried to puzzle the situation out. No changeling she’d heard of had ever survived the change process.

“Sierra, I think you should stay here and let us go in.” Marek moved to stand in front of her and she scooted out of his reach.

“No. If he wants to talk to me, then I aim to find out why. Even if he’s a changeling, and I do mean
if
, I imagine all this firepower can handle the situation.”

She walked away, not bothering to wait for a response. If a half man, half wolf had disrupted their ritual and taken her father, she’d see what he had to say right before she kicked his ass across town and put him down. Three steps later, Marek and Nolan caught up and moved in behind her.

Bars rattled and growls grew louder as she walked the length of the hall. For one person, he sure made a lot of racket. Their footfalls echoed loudly in the enclosed space. He must have heard them, because the noise came to a sudden halt, and then he spoke.

“Sierra?”

Her step hitched at the simple question. He’d spoken as if he knew she was coming, as if he was familiar with her scent. Her own nose flared, sorting through the various aromas of the facility. He did smell familiar, although the wolf was not as strong as she expected.

At the end of the long hallway, she spotted hands gripped around the cell bars. Human hands covered with hair and extended claws. Another shiver worked its way through her.

“I’ve been waiting for you,” the deep voice stated with an unnatural rumble as she neared.

Sierra glanced through the containment bars and the long waves of jet-black hair tumbling beyond his shoulders captured her attention. Tall and broad, he must have stood at least six feet four. Her gaze moved to his face. A thick beard disguised much of his features, but when her eyes met his, the striking intensity of the blue unnerved her.

“Still beautiful as ever. The years seem to have been kinder to you, though.” The soft words did little to hide the sharp sarcasm in his voice.

“Do I know you?” He seemed familiar, but how would she have encountered a changeling and not known it? The wolf was evident in every way. Sight, smell, and the raw power emanating from him.

“Leave it to the princess bitch to forget a man as soon as she’s done with him.”

“That’s alpha bitch now, and if you don’t mind, I’d rather not play games. Tell me who you are and what you want.”

“I’ve come for you. Haven’t you realized that yet?”

Both men behind her tensed, and she held up her hand to stop them.

Sierra forced her lips into a half smile. “Then why take others? If it’s me you want, let the other pack members go, and you and I can hash this out.”

“You mean your father?”

Anger bubbled up, but she tamped it down. She wasn’t about to let this asshole get the best of her.

“Okay, obviously you know a lot about me, so how ’bout you go ahead and tell us what you really want, and we’ll see if we can come to some sort of agreement.”

Something about the way he pierced her with his cool gaze tugged low in her abdomen. He seemed so smug in his knowledge of her, so why couldn’t she remember him? When it came to people, she usually had a photographic memory.

“You really don’t remember me?” A menacing growl accompanied his statement as he stared her down. His tongue darted out and licked his lips like a wolf licking his chops, waiting for a meal. For all she knew, that’s exactly what he had in mind.

She took stock of his clothes. Dark denim pants, worn and frayed, a large loose polo shirt stretched over the broadest chest she’d seen since…

Her head jerked up, and she searched deep in his eyes. The same ice blue. Her gaze lowered. The same sharp, straight nose leading to full red lips that she’d nibbled on night after night in his dorm room bed. Oh dear gods.

She stumbled back, her hand holding her belly as if that would stop the churning. This couldn’t be happening, but the self-assured look in his eyes was all the proof she needed.

“Cole?” she whispered.

“There ya go, sugar. I knew you remembered.” The familiar term of endearment ripped through her heart, and the barrier of emotion she’d walled away when he’d left her naked and crying in the woods crumbled into ash.

“But you’re a…a—”

“A freak?” he supplied.

She shook her head and turned away from him. This wasn’t possible.

“That’s right, Sierra. I’m now a freak of nature, and it’s all your fault.”

The silence in the room threatened to choke her as all eyes turned to her.
“What kind of bullshit is this?” Marek marched forward, and Cole swiped at him, slicing the fabric of his shirt in two.