Love Bites (Bitten Book 4) (5 page)

I grabbed her slender arm and roughly hauled her into the small alleyway between two buildings. Snarling viciously, I felt my canines elongate as I all but threw her against the wall. The air left her lungs on a gasp and she stared at me with frightened eyes.

Too late for fear now, bitch
.

She shuffled to the side, making a half-hearted escape attempt, and I lunged forward, my hand wrapping around her throat. Using just enough pressure to let her know that running would be an even bigger mistake than the ones she’d already made, I pinned her against the wall. Again, I growled and felt the bones in my face shifting slightly under my skin, preparing for the change to wolf.

I leashed the urge to shift and rip her apart, reminding myself that she was a bratty little girl in a grown female’s body and that she didn’t understand she’d come between me and my mate, which was considered one of the worst crimes of our pack. Mates were tied together and being without one another often led to madness and death for both of them. Any effort to separate marked mates was forbidden.

Seeing the slip in my control, Brittany finally did the smart thing. Her struggles ceased immediately and she lowered her gaze to my chin, whimpering softly.

“Have you lost your fucking mind?” My voice was so low it was barely human. “Who do you think you are to question your beta?”

Brittany didn’t respond, merely stood perfectly still in my grip.

“Answer me!”

“I’m s-s-sorry,” she stuttered. “I meant no offense.”

I scoffed. “Bullshit. Your intent was malicious and we both know it. I’ve cut you slack in the past because you’re young, but that’s at an end. In the eyes of pack law, you are fully grown now. I would be within my rights to take you before Lachlan and demand punishment for what you’ve just done.”

Her face paled as her eyes flew up to mine. I was glad to see the seriousness of her predicament was finally sinking in, because the punishment for insolent behavior to a dominant pack member was typically harsh. If I threw in that she had caused trouble between mates, it would be even more severe. I kept that little bit of information to myself. Brittany obviously wanted to undermine my authority and knowing that I mated with a human would give her enormous ammunition. I had to tread carefully until I had Ricki fully under my protection.

Tears filled her eyes. “Please,” she begged.

I released some of my anger and felt my face and teeth return to their human appearance. “Consider this your one and only warning. Any more problems and you won’t like the consequences, I promise.”

She nodded.

I released her neck. Though I’d held her firmly, I’d been careful not to hurt her so not a single red mark marred her skin. I had wanted her full attention and to emphasize the fact that I was in charge. “Go.” She started to scurry away. “Wait.” Brittany froze and I could see fear in every line of her body. “I think it’s best if you stay away from me for a few days. Understood?”

“Understood,” she responded softly.

“Good. Go now.”

I scowled as she darted out of the alley and out of sight. Her attempts to challenge me had grown bolder. Perhaps it was time I called a meeting with Lachlan and her father. I didn’t want to tell George Hayes that his perfect little princess was a scheming bitch, but to continue to tolerate her attitude would make me look weak in front of the pack. If he couldn’t get her under control, I would do as I threatened and hand her over to Lach for punishment, which could range from being refused entrance to functions for an extended period of time, caning, expulsion from the pack, or even death. The severity of the punishment depended on the crime.

Shaking my head, I put Brittany Hayes out of my mind and pulled my cell phone from my pocket. After Ricki left me at the party last night, I asked Conner for her number. He refused to give it to me unless Donna agreed. That conversation had been uncomfortable. Ricki had shared what happened last weekend with Donna and, needless to say, she was extremely unhappy with me.

As a recently turned vampire, she didn’t know much more about shifters than Ricki, but her attitude changed drastically when I explained exactly what was going on. If only I’d been as articulate when I tried to tell Ricki the same things, this mess could have been avoided.

I called Ricki, hoping she would answer the phone since she wouldn’t know it was me. The phone rang multiple times before finally going to voicemail. As I listened to her recorded greeting, I gritted my teeth.

After the tone sounded, I said, “Ricki, it’s Calder.” I had no idea what to say, so I went with impulse. “Look, I know that you think I’m a liar and that everything I told you yesterday was bullshit, but it wasn’t. Please, call me back. There are things you don’t know about me and about wolves. If you did, you would know that—” A long beep sounded, cutting off my message. “Fuck!”

I shoved my phone in my pocket and stalked out of the alley, heading toward my truck. I would give Ricki some time to cool off tonight, but our conversation would be continued tomorrow. Whether she liked it or not.

I just hoped that convincing Donna to give me Ricki’s address wouldn’t be as difficult as getting her phone number had been. I had to laugh because I knew that hope was futile. Donna would rake me over the coals and Conner would sit back, watch, and laugh. Shit.

*     *     *

When my phone
rang at three in the morning, I was still awake, staring at the ceiling above my bed.

I sighed and reached out an arm to snatch my cell from the side table. “Atwood.”

“I need you.”

I sat straight up in bed at Lachlan’s tone. “What’s wrong?”

“The Faction moved on Kerry Gayle tonight. There was also a scout near Belinda’s property, but they left when they realized she wasn’t there. You need to get your mate and come to the compound. We need to close ranks and figure out our next move.”

I rubbed my forehead. “That’s going to be…difficult.”

Lachlan’s silence was his only response.

Sighing, I explained, “Brittany Hayes gave Ricki the impression that there is a sexual relationship between the two of us. She wouldn’t stop long enough to let me explain and won’t take my calls.”

“So get her, bring her here, then take time to talk to her,” he stated simply.

“I wish it were that easy.”

After a long pause, Lach replied, “I’ll get her address from Conner and send a few pack members to keep an eye on her apartment until the morning. When things settle down a bit, I’ll have a talk with Brittany and George.” For a moment, I thought he was done, but he continued. “And Calder, you need to settle things with your mate as quickly as possible. Now is not the time for a drawn out courtship. She needs to be under pack protection immediately.”

“I will. I’ll see her later today and we’ll talk. Thanks for your help.”

“I’ll see you soon.”

“Understood.” I disconnected and threw back the sheet to climb out of bed.

As I dressed, I put my issues with Ricki out of my mind. Though I wanted to contemplate what I would say to her and how to fix the mess between us, I had a job to do. I was beta of the MacIntire pack. I couldn’t afford to let my focus waver, especially when war was brewing.

The Faction had yet to openly attack the pack but, in a meeting with the vampire council and the witches’ High Priestess earlier today, Lachlan had suggested that Cornelius the Slayer would likely set his sights on other groups within the supernatural community. He was right. After the vampires, it appeared the witches were next. It was only a matter of time until the enemy turned on the pack. Particularly since we had openly allied ourselves with vampires, witches, and other shifters.

Ten minutes after my conversation with Lach, I was in my truck, a cup of cheap gas station coffee in my hand. The drive to the compound normally took around an hour and a half, but traffic at 3:15 in the morning was almost non-existent, even in Dallas. I made it to the pack settlement in an hour. Though the ride was shorter than usual, it still felt too long. I passed the time by calling Conner and Lex and arranging for them to send some vamps to act as back up to the pack members that Lach had already assigned to keep an eye on Ricki. I also endured a lecture from Conner on how to deal with human women after I told him what happened with my mate earlier that evening.

He only laughed when I told him it was too little, too late. “It’s never too late,” he responded cryptically.

I hung up on him after that.

My farmhouse wasn’t far from Lachlan’s, so I parked the truck in my drive and walked over. The lights on the lower floor were lit. After an abrupt knock, I let myself in. I knew he was expecting me, so I didn’t bother to wait for an invitation.

I heard him moving around in the kitchen and headed straight toward the back of the house. When I saw Belinda seated at the breakfast bar, a steaming cup of tea in front of her, I paused. Lach would never allow the witch to witness private pack business. He might be willing to discuss peace with the vamps and coven, but he wouldn’t allow the High Priestess to sit in on a meeting between the pack alpha and beta.

Belinda glanced over her shoulder and gave me a wan smile. “Hey, Calder. You made good time.” She smoothed down the collar of her shirt, drawing my gaze to her neck.

There was a perfect imprint of Lach’s teeth, the skin shiny and still a little pink.

My eyes narrowed. Lach had only brought Belinda to the compound today, but that bite was a week old, maybe a few days more. How had my alpha become so close with the High Priestess yet the rest of the pack remained unaware?

I realized that Belinda was watching me with probing eyes and that I hadn’t responded to her greeting.

“Hi, Belinda.”

Her face was serene as we sized each other up. Though her appearance was conservative and very feminine, I could see a core of steel within her. It was in her posture, the way she held her head, and the steady gaze that never wavered from mine. Very few humans could meet the eyes of a shifter or vamp without looking away. It was natural instinct for prey to avoid direct eye contact with predators. Though most humans didn’t consciously recognize vamps and wolves for what they truly were, the innate knowledge was there. Direct eye contact was a challenge from the hunted to the hunter, guaranteed to result in a chase.

“Calder.”

So caught up in my assessment of the High Priestess, I hadn’t heard Lachlan approach. I turned. “Lach.”

He angled his head toward the breakfast bar. “Grab a seat. There’s fresh coffee if you want it.”

Belinda rose. “I’ll get it.” She smiled slightly at me. “Go ahead and sit, Calder.”

I nodded and did as she directed. I watched as she poured coffee into a mug and added two teaspoons of sugar, exactly the way I preferred it. That was the sort of thing the alpha’s mate would do; attention to detail and small gestures such as those put other pack members and visiting alphas at ease.

Considering the mark on her neck and her level of comfort in the kitchen, I didn’t argue when she set the mug in front of me and resumed her seat at my side. As Lach’s mate, she had every right to be in the room as we discussed pack business.

However, I didn’t envy Lach’s position in having to explain her presence to the pack. While they might sneer at humans and consider them inferior, shifters were wary of witches and vamps. Up until fifty years ago, mating between the species was forbidden and punishable by exile or death. Lifting that ban had been a nightmare. One my father had attacked with gusto.

As pack alpha before Lach, my dad was far more progressive than previous leaders. He openly encouraged pack members to mingle with other supernatural species and passionately argued with the old-fashioned attitudes of elder wolves.

Dad felt that keeping the supernatural species separate weakened us. If accounted for all together, shifters, vampires, and witches only made up a small portion of the world population. Separately, we were vulnerable should humans ever realize we existed. Together, we were still outnumbered, but our strengths and weaknesses were complimentary. It would be much easier to defend ourselves.

As I wasn’t much more than a newborn when dad decided to step down, he chose Lach as his successor. Lachlan held many of my father’s beliefs as his own and strove to continue forging alliances with other packs and shifter species as well as vampires.

“Calder.” Belinda’s quiet voice interrupted my circling thoughts and she smiled when I looked at her, as though she knew exactly what I had been considering.

I turned to meet Lach’s steady gaze and I realized he knew what I was thinking about as well. The corner of his mouth kicked up in a vague smile, but he didn’t say anything.

“Okay, so what happened?” I asked.

By the time Lachlan finished his story, my gut was tied in knots. It took every ounce of willpower I possessed not to sprint out of the house, go to my mate, and drag her back to my den where I knew without a doubt that she would be safe.

The war was spreading and it was only a matter of time before it reached the pack.

Ricki