Conquering Theana (18 page)

But Rafael and Gregori showed me wrong
, he thought and cursed. They had the reactions
of a mate, and so did
Theana
. Though she had fought
it, he was sure, as she'd fought him, she was in their home. He could smell her
on them in the meeting. Knew they'd touched her.
The
both
of them.
Something else that he hadn't even thought
of, but fitting when
Theana's
own father had been one
of a trio.
He hadn't thought many wolves could bond as such, but it
seemed that
Theana
could. And he could smell her now.
The taste of her essence was on the air, swirling around him, taunting him,
until he fairly couldn't breathe. He clenched his jaw until it ached, forcing
his hands to leave the steering wheel. He exhaled, trying to calm down. When he
couldn't smell her he was calm, rational,
even
jovial
as he always was. A jester who enjoyed making people laugh.
Theana
,
it seemed, brought out the worst in him.
Made him feel like
he was just as dark as his brother, as if the same darkness that had permeated
Justice's soul was also in him.

"Gods
no," Camden moaned, and crawled from the car, eager to put some sort of
physical distance between him and the thought. He was not his brother. He
couldn't be. He was kind. He was strong, but fair.
And was
only ruthless to those that deserved it.
He took a deep, calming breath
and stepped from his car. He had no time for trips down memory lane, or even
crying over spilled milk. He could not hope to best Rafael, let alone him and
his beta. He had lost, and he would do well to deal with it. The
Udolph
clan had been able to get more from the
woman,
he was sure by some
unpleasant
means. She had
nearly killed one of their own, and they would want revenge. Though he may not
like the methods, he understood the necessity, and had even administered his
own form at times when it was needed for the safety of the shifters. It seemed
that his original thought had been true upon hearing General White's name.
There was a special unit, of a few hundred soldiers, whose sole job was to
eradicate the shifters, or so the woman had told them. This group, though
working secretly out of the government view, was a
part
of the
government, and so had the resources and manpower to cultivate from. There was
no telling how far up the chain of command went, but Seurri could find itself
in danger in the coming months if they didn't fortify themselves. Before he
would begin the plans for the change, as Rafael had requested, he would share
this information he received with them, even if he hated them at the moment.
The wolves of Seurri came first.
Always and forever.

So
he walked through the front door, acknowledging the bowed inclined heads of
pack members at his entrance with a nod of his head and waited in the main
foyer. An omega would already be rushing off to alert Rafael and Gregori that
another alpha was on the premises. He was sure, though, with their strength,
they already knew he was there. His thoughts were proven true when not a few
seconds later Rafael appeared around the corner into the main room, Gregori
close on his heels. What Camden hadn't been prepared for was
Theana
, wearing soft pink yoga pants and a matching tank
top coming with them, the dark crests of their marks clearly visible on her
neck where it met the shoulder. Camden tried to contain his fury. She'd let
them mark
her,
let them make love to her. She was
theirs
,
never to be
his
. The pain that lanced his heart nearly staggered him and
washed away the rage. Not his. She would never be his. He swallowed, closing
his eyes and stifled a moan. His wolf whimpered before lifting its head with a
wail. Camden shushed him, trying his best to look away. But he couldn't. Each
step brought her closer, a smile on her face, still lost in the bliss of their
possession. He'd never made her smile like that after he'd shown his interest.
Not like he had before, when she'd found him entertaining, a friend that was as
strong as she, and protective to boot. No. The minute he'd said he'd wanted her
she'd done nothing other than snarl at him. Even when he'd tried to run with
her, as he'd done so many times before, her nightly jaunts around the lake well
known by all of Seurri, she'd run from him.

"Why
are you here, Camden?" Rafael said, and Camden could hear the warning in
his voice. He forced himself to look away from
Theana
and stare off Rafael's left shoulder respectfully.

"The
woman has told us more," Camden said then, not sure how much Rafael had
told
Theana
or the others.

"Go
ahead. My alpha bitch will be coming to Council meetings from here on out.
There is nothing to be kept secret from her."
Theana
gasped, and then beamed.
Beamed
.
The bastard.
The fucking bastard had found the key to her
happiness, and Camden hadn't.

"She
states there is a military group, several hundred strong, that's run by a
covert unit of the government whose job is to eradicate shifters. We couldn't
get how high the chain goes. She most likely wouldn't know real numbers, all
the players, or who's pulling the strings, but what she gave us doesn't bode
well," Camden answered through clenched teeth.

"So,
it's what you feared,"
Theana
said, her husky
voice wrapping around his cock and stroking. Camden shifted his weight on his
feet, sick he was still so affected when she had another's scent all over her.

"Not
nearly as bad as we imagined, but much worse than we hoped," Rafael
agreed.

"We
will have to verify if it's true or not," Gregori said, staring Camden
down. Camden could feel his gaze but didn't look at him. He knew the reproach
he would find there. He knew he shouldn't be lusting after another alpha's
mate,
or any other wolf's mate for that matter. But he was
in a constant battle to
not
stare at
Theana
,
to take her and run from the building and keep her with brute strength.

I am out of my mind.

"We
have a possible location," Camden said out loud. "I have a team ready
to move at your orders."

"I
need you here, Camden, to finish the preparations that I asked of you. If this
is true then we must safeguard our people sooner than later. Begin immediately.
Gregori and I will move out with your team and some of the
Rendall
clan as well. Make the preparations," Rafael ordered. It took everything
he could muster not to roar a denial. Leave him behind. He understood that
protection was important, but it was
his
team.
His men
who could be in danger.
Why would he be left in safety while his men
weren't?

"Alpha,"
Camden began.

"No.
I need you here. End of discussion," Rafael said and then turned to
Gregori. "We must leave within the hour."

"I
will protect those in the house,"
Theana
said.
Such a perfect alpha bitch.
No crying, no arguing. She
simply did what needed to be done. She should be his. He would appreciate a
woman like that. He would be strong enough to protect her and be by her side.
Rafael and Gregori didn't deserve her. As Rafael and Gregori turned to leave,
secure that he would follow their orders like a fucking dog, he stared at
Theana
. She left with her mates, hips swaying suggestively
with each step. He would have her. Of that he had no doubt.

Fuck it
, he thought with a growl. He stalked from the house, whipping out
his phone. It rang twice before the burly voice of his beta came over the line.

"Alpha,"
Sloane said.

"Are
you with me?" Camden asked, knowing that Sloane would understand.
       

"You've
decided to do this?" Sloane asked.

"More than ever.
They stole her, and it's my right to have her
back. She is my mate. I have a right to have her at my side, and fight any who
would challenge me."

"So
is the rule. If such is the case, I am with you, alpha."

"It
is," Camden assured him.

"I
will replace some men on the team to verify the traitor's information, and
those that will remain behind will be trustworthy. We will run with you."

"I
thank you. I have never thought to fight Rafael before, but I must have my
mate. My wolf will let me do no other." Camden sighed, climbing in the
car.

"Then
we will be ready. Where will Rafael and Gregori be?"

"They
are going to go with the mission. She will be defenseless. We will take her on
her run. No one goes with her when she runs."

"Agreed, alpha.
We will be ready."

So
would he. Never before had he thought he would fight his own leader over a
woman, but tonight he would. It was his right to protect his mate, to do
whatever was necessary in her defense. Something was wrong with her, or Rafael
had done something. She wasn't meant to be theirs. She was meant to be
Camden's. No one would challenge him on this. Even Walter had originally agreed
to give
Theana
to him. He was the aggrieved party,
and everyone simply moved on, forgetting the pain they caused him, the shame,
or the disrespect. Well, he would earn it all back. He would claim her, and
never give her back.

Chapter Twelve

Okay,
so
Theana
could totally admit to herself that she was
being a wimp, to herself anyway. Rafael and Gregori had more than proven, in
such a short time,
who
they really were, and what she
could have with them. The pack was one that she could see easily becoming her
family, Tim and Luna already feeling like the little brother and sister that
she'd never had, and
Narina
, another mother. It
amazed her, and humbled her, to realize how wrong she had been...and maybe
she'd always known that all alphas wouldn't be like Camden, she'd just hadn't
wanted to admit it. None of the men she'd ever come across had ever truly
touched something within her, until Rafael and Gregori. No matter how much she
fought, or thought to argue, they kept proving her wrong at every turn. And
now, with the moon high in the sky, her body still thrumming with their
repeated possession over the last few days, she needed a break.
Some time away to think, to clear her head.

She
wasn't running away. She wasn't.

There
was nowhere she could go even if she wanted to. Now that she was officially the
alpha bitch of the Ulric clan she could not leave her pack behind, under any
circumstances. With her mating marks, as well, Rafael and Gregori would be able
to find her anywhere. Through their bond they would, eventually, find their way
to her side. She supposed it was a safety mechanism developed in their kind in
their creation, so that mates would never be apart. It heartened her to know
that she would know that Rafael and Gregori were safe at all times. Even now,
as she peeled off her clothes under the moon, preparing to go for her routine
run around the lake, she could feel them inside of her, the tether that bound
them. It was like she could feel their heart beating along with hers, knew they
were calm, safe, sleeping.
I wonder if
they will be going out on that mission with the team,
she thought to
herself. She'd tired them out, so she wondered if the
Convel
team could carry out the recon mission while her mates relaxed.
Nah, the safety of the city is too important
to them to send substitutes.
She smiled slightly, her heart quivering in
her chest. She knew, without a shadow of a doubt, that in a couple of days when
the allotted time for pack cohesion was over that she would not be leaving her
new home. Theana couldn't put a name to the emotion. She refused to do so in
such a time, but she knew she was beyond fighting to get away.

There
had been so much going on lately, with her men investigating what they'd found
out from Lacey. It terrified
Theana
to realize that
there were some in the government, a select group that even Rafael had yet to
uncover, that wanted all shifters dead. The wolves that had gone out to
investigate hadn't been able to do more than validate the claims that General
White was amassing a special unit to kill them, without alerting anyone that
the shifters were on to their plan. They'd wanted to be careful that they still
appeared not to know what was really going on, and Lacey hadn't been allowed to
leave Seurri grounds. It seemed that General White liked to pick loners, people
with no family or ties, to induct in his organization. It was a good plan, fewer
people to ask questions, less information to try to hide. It could also
backfire, in Lacey’s case, against them. There was no one who'd be looking for
her, no one to mourn her. The only
ones
who may know
that she was missing, and simply deem her dead, were General White and his
unit. They'd have to be just as quiet when they went looking for her, and
Seurri would be ready.

Camden
had followed Rafael's orders precisely. Whatever her misgivings were about
mating him and not being his true mate, she knew that he cared about his
people. He would protect them until his dying breath. Quietly and quickly, the
plans were made and agreed on to turn Seurri into a beautiful compound with
thick, high security walls, enhanced surveillance, personnel, and
reinforcements to all buildings. Rafael had even gotten it into to the local
Council for Seurri to become a protected wolf reserve, allowing him to build
the thickened walls to protect the wolves he'd be housing. It would take some
time, as nothing would be done overnight, but their protection was being worked
on. They were most vulnerable, perhaps, in this time, when the transition
hadn't been completed yet. But Theana didn't think General White would be
stupid enough to strike directly against the city. They had time. For now, they
were safe.