Fated for the Alphas: The Complete Collection (Nine Book Paranormal Romance Box Set) (27 page)

A mile into the trees, Lark gave a quiet bark. Then they were off, sprinting over the packed earth. Their escort tried to follow, but fell woefully behind. They were too big to fit through the same gaps Lia and her friends could. Their huge paws got caught on roots and vines. Lia felt a surge of joy as she raced forward, her packmates beside her. She was free.

Ronan’s face bloomed in her mind, his forehead creased with worry as he asked her to stay safe. But she was safe. And she wasn’t running off alone, either. Her friends were with her. Without bothering to look back, she bounded faster and faster, running deep into the forest.

Lark turned south, motioning for them to step through a shallow pond. They had agreed to hunt along a thin band well within the pack’s territory. Lia would keep her word, but she wouldn’t make it easy for anyone to follow. She sniffed the wind, a sharp need in her wolfish heart. She wanted blood. She almost wished Shade would show up. He would make wonderful prey.

Jumping onto a fallen log, Lark shifted. She cupped a hand to her ear. Lia’s ears swiveled back. She could hear the noise of the far-off guards struggling to catch up. None of them had howled for the Alphas, so clearly they thought they had things under control. Lia wouldn’t put up any fuss, as long as they didn’t interfere with her hunt. Once she’d bagged her catch, she was happy to let them carry it back to the den for her.

“All right,” Lark said, the words tumbling from her mouth. “Here’s what we’re going to do. The four of us are going to comb the woods for prey. We’ll try for something bigger than a rabbit. At my signal, Dove and I will flush the quarry. Lia, you chase. Cricket, stay on her heels in case she needs help bringing it down. Everyone understand?”

They nodded.

“Then let’s go.” Lark shifted back into a silent wolf. With her in the lead, they set out again. There was a tingling in Lia’s paws. It was almost time, she could feel it. Her wolf was taking over her mind as they swept through the forest, listening intently. There would be no room for human thought this time, no guilt, no mercy. The prey would be hers.

There was a rustle in the undergrowth. Lia turned, vexed. Had Flint caught up with them? She met the startled eyes of a doe for a split second before it bounded away.

The scent of its fear was keen. Lia tore after it.

“Lia, no!” Lark called. “Don’t chase it like this! Remember the plan! We’re supposed to be the ones with the element of surprise.”

Her voice grew distant, until Lia couldn’t hear anything at all. She couldn’t let Lark distract her. If she wanted to shout rather than give chase, that was her choice. Lia had made hers. She would have the doe.

It jumped over a boulder and veered south, its hooves flashing tantalizingly out of reach. Lia kept right behind, imagining the feel of her fangs sinking into its throat. It was faster, for now. All she had to do was outlast it.

Her friends were far behind, but she couldn’t focus on that now. This was her doe, her first kill. She had no intention of losing it.

She could hear its labored breathing as it clambered down a rocky slope. The doe leapt away once it reached the bottom, its hoof almost clipping Lia’s muzzle. The forest was sparser here, and it shot through the trees. Lia followed, dimly aware of her aching paws and her heaving lungs. There would be time to rest, once the doe’s blood had been spilled.

The doe’s fear spurred it on for miles, until Lia wanted to kill it out of exasperation. She would close in on it at any moment. Why wouldn’t it just give up? Her wolf didn’t mind. She enjoyed the chase. She reveled in it.

Ahead, there was the sound of rushing water. The rivers. The doe was headed for the place where they met. Lia wouldn’t allow it to jump for the far bank. This had gone on long enough. Bunching its muscles, the doe prepared to leap.

Lia caught its flank, pulling it to the ground. The doe called out, pawing at the earth. She wouldn’t let it suffer. She would make it quick.

The doe convulsed as Lia sprang to its neck. She dodged the wicked hooves, sinking her teeth into its tawny hide. Hot blood pooled in her mouth. She tore away its throat, and the doe’s eyes turned glassy as it breathed its last. Its tongue lolled as it went still.

Lia stood over it, triumphant. She was going to eat now, and she wasn’t going to stop until she had her fill.

“Well, well. What have we here?”

Lia crouched over her kill, snarling at the three men who appeared on the far bank.

“She don’t look too hospitable, do she, Wasp?” asked a hulking man.

One of the newcomers shook his head. “We’ll have to teach her how to share.”

Lia shifted, wiping blood from her mouth. “I’m not sharing. This doe is mine, and my pack’s.”

Grinning at each other, the three men crossed the river. They stood far too close. They didn’t seem to care that she had been a bloodied wolf a moment ago.

The rangy one looked her up and down, raking her with his eyes. “Forget the meat. She needs to learn to share everything.”

“She should, Stoat. We’ve gone without for so long. It wouldn’t cost her anything to spread for us.”

Lia stepped back. Though her wolf burned to guard their kill, the men unnerved her. They gave her the same, slimy feeling that Shade had, only there were three of them this time.

“You think you can run, girly?” The hulking man smiled, revealing yellowed teeth. “It looks to me like you’ve run such a long way already. You look wore out.”

Now that the rush of the kill was fading, her legs felt like lead. She wouldn’t be able to run, not nearly as far or as fast as necessary.

Lia planted her feet as her wolf growled in her chest. She could fight, though. She could bring down at least one of them, just as she’d brought down the doe. They’d be sorry they’d tangled with her.

“What’s this now?” the one called Stoat asked. “Show us that you can be as friendly as you are pretty.” He reached out as if he expected her to come to him.

Lia recoiled. It smelled like he hadn’t bathed in days. It also smelled, strangely, of mint.

Stoat grimaced. “I’m warning you. We can be gentle, or we can be rough. Canker here,” he pointed to the hulking man with the yellowed teeth, “he can be very rough. Last time a girl didn’t cooperate, he snapped her in half.”

“I took my pleasure first,” Canker said, as if that were the gentlemanly thing to do.

“So here’s the question,” Stoat said. “Are you going to be sweet? Or should we just dispose of you?”

The one called Wasp closed in. “You can’t run, and you’re too far away from anyone who could hear you scream.” He brushed his fingers over her collarbones. “Not that I’d mind hearing you scream,” he whispered.

Stoat smirked, as if they’d already won. “So what’s it going to be?”

Lia shifted, baring her fangs. She wouldn’t let them take her easily. They prowled forward, leering at her.

“Hello boys,” Lark said. “I hope you’re playing nice.”

Behind her, Dove and Cricket growled in harmony.

Stoat looked at Lia, disgusted. “She brought reinforcements.”

Canker shrugged. “Now we all get a morsel. Why are you complaining?” He shifted into a huge wolf with mustard-colored fur. His crooked fangs made Lia shudder.

A short, sharp bark made him whip around. His hackles rose, but he backed away from Lia. She looked back, and saw Orion and Huck standing by Lark. They were so huge in wolf form that they made Canker look like a Pomeranian.

Flint strode forward, glaring. “You dare to trespass in Twin River territory? You dare to approach the mate of our Alphas? Is there anything else you’d like to add to your list of crimes?”

“Hey,” Stoat whined, “we didn’t know who she was. We don’t know anything, we’re just the lowly border patrol. And she was about to trespass in
our
territory.”

Orion shifted. Somehow, he looked even more intimidating in human form. “But she didn’t. You felt it necessary to step onto our territory. You know the consequences.”

Wasp cringed. “Do you really want to get the Alphas involved in this?”

“Too late.” Shade appeared where the rivers met, water frothing at his waist.

Chapter Three

Lia recoiled.

The members of the Twin River pack growled as one. Lark put a protective arm around Lia.

“My, my. Such hostility.” He examined his fingernails, as though he were thoroughly bored with the proceedings. “Canker, Stoat, Wasp, I’ve warned you about this. Our northern neighbors aren’t very friendly.”

Huck bristled. “That’s because you keep trying to steal our women and recruit our men.”

“Fair enough,” Shade said, letting his fingers trail through the water. “By the way,” he looked at Flint, “my offer still stands.”

Flint spat at him.

Shade sighed. “No manners at all. And you expect us to be civil?”

“We expect you,” Orion said coldly, “to stay in your territory.”

“Here I am.” Shade raised his arms, dripping water. “Firmly in my territory.”

Huck snorted. “If that were true, you’d be past where the rivers meet.”

“If you say so.” Shade took a step back.

The wind shifted, and Orion sniffed the air. “Do I smell mint?”

“You do,” Huck said. “On them.” He pointed to the three Shadow pack wolves. “Been doing any other trespassing lately?”

Stoat looked at his Alpha nervously, while Wasp grew very interested in the ground.

“They may have been a bit overzealous in their border patrol,” Shade said. “It was an accident, I assure you, one that I’ve already warned them not to repeat. Send my deepest regrets to your Alphas.”

“Tell them yourself.” Flint inclined his head. On the other side of one of the rivers, Kane and Ronan raced along a beaten track. As one, they leapt from the opposite bank, shifting in midair. Kane came to stand on Lia’s right, Ronan on her left. Her heart swelled. Shade was in trouble now.

“What’s going on here?” Ronan demanded. He pinned Shade with a stare.

“Nothing you should bother yourself with,” Shade replied, his voice like silk. “Just a misunderstanding.”

“Misunderstanding my ass,” Huck growled. “Ask them why they stink of mint, and where else they planned to go today.”

“We wasn’t going nowhere,” Canker said sulkily.

“You came here,” Lark snapped. “And you threatened Lia.”

“We didn’t know who she was!” Stoat protested.

Kane snarled, his eyes locked on Stoat’s throat. A small whimper escaped the rangy man.

“We’ll take care of that in a moment,” Ronan said. “First, Shade needs to answer for what he did to Lia the other day.”

“Oh, that little jest?” Shade asked, all charm. “I didn’t frighten you, did I, Lia? If I did, I most certainly didn’t mean—”

Kane gave a warning growl.

“You aren’t allowed in our territory unless invited,” Ronan said through gritted teeth.

Shade drew circles in the water. “Oh, but I could say the same to you.”

“Excuse me?” Kane asked, his voice low and dangerous. “When have we ever trespassed?”

“Just now,” Shade said. “You own all the territory between the two rivers. I’ve claimed the area around them. The track around the rivers is mine. Your patrols, even you yourself, Ronan, trespass once, twice, or more each day.”

“Don’t test my patience.” It sounded like Ronan strained to keep his voice level. “Your territory is south of where the rivers meet. Ours is north. That’s the way it’s always been.”

“Oh, my dear Alpha.” Shade sighed. “‘The way it’s always been’ is that wolves hold whatever territory they’re strong enough to keep. And I think I’m stronger than you.”

“If you claim our territory, we’ll have to fight,” Ronan said. “Do you really want war? What about the treaty?”

Shade smirked. “I’ll be generous. You may use that section of my territory for the rest of the summer. Consider it a gift, in honor of your new mate.” He nodded toward Lia. She had the sudden urge to take a scalding bath.

He waded out of the water, dripping as he climbed onto the bank. Stoat edged away from him. Wasp and Canker lowered their gaze, as if they dared not look their Alpha in the eye.

“Still,” Shade drawled, “I don’t think we can allow your little forays into our territory to go unpunished. I don’t ask for much.” He raised his hands as Kane and Ronan bared their teeth. “Just a token of your understanding. Our stores have run low lately. That doe would go a long way toward improving our relations.” Shade looked at Lia, all smiles. “What do you say, Lia? For the good of your pack, and mine.”

Her wolf wanted to lunge at him for daring to take her first kill. Lia wanted more than a taste of hot blood. She glared at Shade for even daring to suggest such a thing. Did he really think she’d give in? There were nine of them, compared to Shade and his three. How did he think a battle between them would go?

“You disappoint me, Lia.” Shade shook his head. “I didn’t think you’d need encouragement to be friendly to your neighbors, but I guess that’s what the world is coming to these days.” He raised a hand. On both sides of the river, dark forms slid from the shelter of the trees. She counted four on each side. Shade made a fist, and they halted.

He turned to Kane and Ronan. “I know you’ll make your mate see reason. She hasn’t seen combat before, has she? You wouldn’t want her getting hurt in a tumble. She seems rather—fragile. You never know what could happen in the midst of battle.”

Kane snarled as he shifted. It seemed his rage couldn’t be contained in human form. He paced in front of Lia and Ronan, his eyes on Shade’s throat.

Shade simply watched him, bemused. “I see you’re not going to argue with me.” He glanced at Ronan. “Are you?”

Ronan glared. “Take the doe. But take this warning with it: Any member of your pack who we catch north of this point will be dealt with swiftly and painfully. If you try to take our land, there will be no quarter. No mercy. We are stronger than you, and we can easily prove it.”

“So be it.” Shade grinned. Turning his back on them, he waded across the river. “Be careful with that carcass, boys. I don’t want my dinner bruised.”

Canker and Wasp hurried to hoist the doe between them. Stoat helped them across the river. It seemed they didn’t want to be left alone with the Twin River pack.