Prowl (Winter Pass Wolves Book 3) (3 page)

Do you have a mate?

Avery wished like hell that she could answer back.

C
hase walked
out of Winter Pass’s only grocery store, tucking several paper bags of groceries into the passenger side of the car before sliding in the driver’s seat. His mood was so dark that he was feeling self-conscious about it, like a cartoon character with a dark thundercloud following overhead. Every time he thought about Avery, about the fact that it’d been almost 26 hours since she'd walked out of Roxy's Diner, his scowl deepened.

He jammed the keys in the ignition and started the car, leaving Winter Pass’s rinky-dink main strip behind in a matter of minutes and pulling out onto the winding rural highway that would lead to the Lodge.

A few minutes into his drive he lifted his eyes to the rearview mirror and saw Avery’s bright violet eyes reflected back at him. It was everything Chase could do not to yank the steering wheel so hard that the SUV careened off the road.

"What the fuck?” Chase bellowed. "How did you get in my car? Better yet, how did I not know you were in the car
with me
while I was driving?"

He risked a glance backward and saw that Avery had sunk back down in her seat, her eyes trained on the window as if expecting… Well, who knew what Avery was expecting at this point. If Chase was in Avery's shoes, God knows he would be paranoid too.

“Keep driving."

Chase didn’t argue, distracted by Avery's presence and the clear signs of worry and fatigue on her face as he watched her in his rearview mirror. She remained silent all the way to winter pass, and he didn’t try to fight it.

He pulled his SUV up close to the front porch, then turned to regard Avery. She’d closed her eyes for a few minutes, further evidence of her exhaustion, but now they fluttered open.

“I need to get these groceries inside. How about we meet on the porch and talk?” Chase suggested. “Then maybe you need to get some rest.”

A smile quirked Avery’s lips.

“I’ve felt better,” she admitted. “If you’ve got something strong to drink, I wouldn’t turn it down.”

Chase let her take her time, striding inside and across the main lodge into the area that housed the professional level stainless steel kitchen and the roomful of long wooden tables with benches for communal dining. After he stuck his grocery bags in the fridge, he moved toward the cabinet where liquor was usually stored. When Avery said she wanted something strong, he got the feeling she meant bourbon.

Steam rising in gentle curls over the coffeemaker caught his eye, the delicious scent rising in the air. He decided that coffee would be more productive than booze at this moment, and poured two cups of rich black liquid to take back outside.

Avery was sitting on the far corner of the porch, her legs swinging as she stared off into the distance, expression unreadable. When Chase joined her and offered her a cup of coffee, she perked up a little.

“Ahhh,” she said appreciatively after her first sip.

“It seemed like a good idea,” Chase said. “Besides, I’m still a little shaken up from you popping up in the back seat like that.”

Avery gave him a tight smile, but he could see the anxiety in her eyes.

“Sorry about that. I can’t let anyone see us together, or Winter Pass will be under siege before you can whistle Dixie.” She sipped her coffee and shivered, pursing her lips at the sudden chill in the early evening air.

“Here,” Chase said, slipping his hooded jacket off and putting around Avery’s shoulders. Avery went tense for a moment, as though she’d refuse the kindness, but then she just went back to her coffee. Chase was content with that, and he waited for her to speak again.

“I have two and a half days,” she said after a minute. “To get my affairs in order, supposedly. After that I am to turn myself in for a forced breeding program, or a bounty goes out on me and every Hunter is going to be crawling all over the town of Winter Pass, looking to put my head on a stake.”

Chase gave a growl, reaching out and gently pulling Avery to his side.

“That’s not going to happen,” he promised.

Avery arched a brow and sighed.

“It might. The whole timeframe has been accelerated here, meaning that we have two days to take down the entire Compound or…” She paused, biting her lip. “Even if I ran, Chase, the Hunters would come here first thing. You’re the only other wolves in Winter Pass, and you’ll be their first target.”

“I know,” Chase said.

“What about your friends?” Avery asked, glancing up at him. “And their mates? I don’t think it’s fair to ask all of you to risk your lives for this. Maybe you all should go out of town until… you know, this gets resolved.”

Chase was completely caught off guard by her suggestion.

“And exactly how do you think this is going to
get resolved
without anyone helping you? Not to mention that those bastards have my sister, and they’ve threatened you too. They’re not getting away with any of that, and you’re not taking them down alone.”

Avery didn’t try to argue, which was the only thing that kept Chase on an even keel. Of course, he couldn’t just let it lie, either.

“You said something about… breeding?” he asked. “Can you be more specific?”

Avery glanced down, but Chase saw her lower lip tremble. She’d sounded so cavalier about it before, but now he could see that she was truly upset. She blew out a breath, her words rushed and emotional.

“He’s found some poor shifter and separated him from his mate. Did experiments on him to make him super strong and fast, I think. My uncle told me flat-out that my choices are either let this guy… make me pregnant…” She stopped, her throat working for a moment. “Or die. The stakes just keep rising. Now all I can think is that if I bring you into this and he catches us, you’ll be his next experiment and I’ll be dead.”

There was a rushing sound in Chase’s ears, a moment of barely-conscious rage at the defeat in her tone, at the realization that she didn’t believe they would triumph.

The next thing he knew, Chase had dragged her onto his lap, her coffee cup rolling off to the side as he dragged Avery’s lips to his own. Their mouths came together in a heated crush, a small sound of surprise escaping Avery’s throat before she melted into him, her nails raking the back of his scalp as Chase held her close, consuming her. She sat sideways on his lap, his arm tight around her waist, his free hand buried in her hair.

Quick as a flash, their fire burned high. They lost control, nipping and kissing and cupping and moaning. The press of Avery’s ass on his lap was enough to make him hard, make him ache for more of this, the feel of her in his arms when he took her to bed. When he held her afterward too, face buried against her nape as he listened to her catch her breath.

Damn, what this woman did to him.

Only when Chase felt the damp heat of Avery’s tears on his own face did he pull back, looking down at her. Eyes closed, cheeks flushed, lips reddened from the kiss, Avery was irresistible… but the fresh tears coursing down her face turned Chase’s mood dark.

Even as he cupped Avery’s jaw with a tender grip, using his thumbs to wipe away her tears, even as he kissed her forehead, Chase’s thoughts were vengeful. Gorgeous, kind, intelligent Avery Burke didn’t deserve a single bit of what was happening to her, and Chase was going to end it.

Sooner rather than later. He drew in a deep breath and forced himself to be calm, not wanting to distress Avery any further.

“Look at me,” he said.

Avery lifted her thick dark lashes, staring right up at him with a terrifying vulnerability. It made his heart give a tight squeeze, the trust in her gaze.

“None of that is going to happen, A,” he swore. “No one will ever touch you. If I have to, I will raze the whole Compound to the ground with the Hunters still inside, but you and Brooke are going to walk away from this scot-free. Do you understand?”

Avery bit her lip for a moment, then nodded. She brushed her lips over his, giving him a soft kiss that drove him crazy with want. She tucked her hand into his, pressing a piece of metal into his palm, then looked away.

“What is this?” Chase asked, holding the USB drive between his thumb and forefinger.

“Everything we need to take down the Hunters, I hope,” Avery replied. Something had shifted for her, the heat of the moment slipping away, the same worry weighing her down.

“Alright,” Chase said, scooting her off his lap. He stood first and then helped Avery up. “Let’s go inside.”

“Oh…” Avery said, her brow knitting. She glanced at the car, clearly thinking she was going to return to the Compound.

“Yeah, you’re not going back there until we take it down,” Chase told her point-blank. He knew he was being more aggressive about it than he needed to be, but he couldn’t help it. Avery was
his
, damn it, and he took care of his own.

“Chase, I—” Avery’s argument was cut off when Chase scooped her up and threw her over his shoulder, carrying her inside. After locking the front door and engaging the new security system, he carried Avery straight to his room.

When he deposited Avery on his bed, she gave him a look that he couldn’t quite read. Curious, yes, but also tired and perhaps even a little skeptical.

“Relax,” Chase said, giving her a smirk as he held up the USB. “You’re sleeping. I’m working.”

“Oh,” was Avery’s only reply other than a bright pink blush. There was a note of something else now. Embarrassment, maybe… or disappointment.

“Don’t get me wrong,” Chase intoned, reaching out to brush her hair back from her neck so that he could trace his fingertip over her collarbone. “I can’t wait to seduce you, Avery. I’m dying to strip you and taste you. But I think you’re too worn out to be the eager participant we both know you can be, so…”

Avery’s mouth opened, a sound of shock rolling out, but Chase just raised a brow.

“You are so… cocky!” Avery huffed.

“Damn right,” Chase said, which only made Avery’s cheeks more red. “Now go to sleep, and try not to think about how much you’ve missed being in my bed.”

Leaving Avery to chew on that, Chase spun on his heel and headed over to his desk to grab his laptop. Wanting to let Avery rest, he headed out to the living room, knowing he’d find solitude there but still be close enough to hear Avery if she needed something.

Settling in a comfortable chair, he booted up his laptop and inserted the USB drive, giving a low whistle when the contents began to pop up. Avery had done an amazing job, grabbing tons of passwords and maps and even information about all the prisoners being held at the Compound.

Chase could only grit his teeth when he came to Brooke’s file, containing nothing more than a mugshot and a handful of intake notes, like she was some patient at a psych hospital or something.

Focus
, he reminded himself.

Not only was Brooke in imminent danger, but Avery’s life hung in the balance here, too. Chase needed a plan, and soon. Luckily, he had two more badass Marines at his back, part of the blossoming family that had taken over Winter Pass Lodge.

Pulling his phone from his pocket, Chase thumbed through his top contacts and then made the call he’d been dying to make.

“Pax? It’s me, man. Yeah, I know you’re out in the woods brooding, but you should come back to the main house. Avery brought us all the schematics and codes to take the whole Compound down once and for all.” He paused, listening. “Yeah, man. We’re gonna get Brooke out of there. So get your ass up here and help me come up with a plan that doesn’t get any of us killed.”

He hung up and sent Harlan a similar text, not wanting to interrupt the man’s private time with his mate. Soon all three members of the Triad would converge, putting their combined experience and smarts together, and together they would tackle this like the good soldiers they were.

Kidnap his sister, torment and threaten his future mate? Fuck no, not on Chase’s watch.

The Hunters were going
down
.

T
he wolf ran
through the moonlit woods, warm breeze ruffling her fur as her paws struck the dark, rich soil. Creatures rustled softly in the dark underbrush, but her attention was only on the glory of the run, the soaring of her heart as she flew along, her body working hard to free her mind.

She was no lone wolf, not tonight. Another followed behind her, not chasing exactly but urging her on, every bit as enthusiastic as she was. He, and it was unmistakably a he, was right on her heels. Meeting her stride for stride, not holding back, completing the perfection of the moment.

She slowed as she approached a clearing, spotting a little cottage tucked away in the trees. Light shone from the windows, seeped from the front door where it’d been left ajar. The light drew her in, and the wolf trotted right up to the front door.

Her companion was right behind her, a comforting if silent presence as she nudged the front door open with her nose. She stuck her head inside, stilling when she saw two people inside.

It made little sense, but the wolf recognized the two humans as herself and her companion. They were passionately embracing on a big white bed, lips locked in a breathless kiss. When the man broke away and kissed a hot trail down the woman’s body, the wolf couldn’t look away.

He parted her thighs and kissed her low on her body, making her back arch as she buried her hands into his hair and panted his name.

“Chase”, she said, and the sound of his name made the wolf’s heart thrum with excitement.

The woman cried out, hair falling back in a cascade, writhing under the man’s attentions. Flushed and panting, she peaked, the man’s growling kisses pushing her over the edge. She collapsed backward, a sated smile creeping onto her face.

The man kissed her hip, her breast, the side of her neck to make her shiver.

“You are my mate,” the man told the woman, brushing his lips over hers.

She merely cocked a brow and kissed him back, too flushed with pleasure to respond…

A
very opened her eyes
, the dream slipping away. Her face was still flushed from the wildness of the scene her dirty mind had cooked up. Soft sunlight filtered into the room, throwing warm stripes over the bed. Time to get up, apparently.

She pushed up on her elbows and found Chase sitting in an armchair a few feet away, working on a laptop. He looked so handsome sitting there like that, scrutinizing his screen with laserlike focus.

This could be my life every morning, Avery found herself thinking. She sat up a little more, drawing Chase’s attention. He glanced over at her, eyes flicking appreciatively over her form before he spoke.

“Bad dream?” he asked. “You were muttering in your sleep.”

“No,” Avery said, her lips twitching. “The opposite, actually.”

Chase’s sudden grin made Avery roll her eyes. She stretched, pushing up the sleeves of her shirt, and immediately regretted it. Chase’s gaze went straight to the scars on her left arm, long silver ribbons that meandered in a lazy spiral from her inner wrist to her shoulder. A few days after her attack they’d spontaneously healed, but left indelible signs of her moonlight struggle to fend off the torture-maddened shifter who’d attacked her.

“How did it happen?” Chase asked, setting his laptop aside. The concern in his eyes made her shift uncomfortably, but Avery refused to be cowed by the past.

“I was attacked walking from the dining hall late one night, just after you and I…” she trailed off, unable to say the rest.

“A shifter got into the Compound?” he asked, brow hunched.

“More like he escaped from confinement.” She paused, then decided to tell him everything. “Recently, my uncle revealed that he and my father engineered the attack. They knew that I was losing faith in the Hunters, and they wanted a way to hold me. They dangled the implant, telling me my life didn’t have to change… but then I
belonged
to them.”

Chase was quiet for a long beat.

“Was it bad?” Chase asked, meaning the attack. Avery got the idea that his own turning hadn’t been too pleasant, and she couldn’t help but agree.

“It was violent,” she said, figuring he didn’t need all the dirty details.

He nodded, turning to other matters.

“We’ve come up with a plan,” he said. “Pax is going to rig up an explosion, cause a distraction, then he’s going to start freeing shifters in the private prison bunks. We’re pretty sure that’s where Brooke is being held.”

“That sounds right,” Avery said, blowing out a breath.

“Harlan’s on Hunter duty, taking as soldiers many down as possible, creating chaos. That leaves you and me to unlock the black site and take down the command center.”

“And my uncle, I’m guessing?”

Chase nodded.

“Cutting off the snake at the head,” he said.

“I want to be the one to take my uncle down,” Avery said. “He’s taken everything from me. Turned me, probably killed my father, tried to make me a science experiment…”

“Fine,” Chase agreed, surprising her. “He’s all yours. I’ll just be backup.”

She’d expected him to put up a big fight.

“So when do we go?” she asked.

“Today we’ll spend a lot of the day going through the plan, step by step, until we all know our roles perfectly. Tomorrow night is the full moon, so we need to pull the trigger at dawn, before we find ourselves trying to free a bunch of moon-shifted werewolves.”

“I’m not sure…. I’m not sure if I can face Pax,” Avery said, dropping her gaze. “After all, he barely knows me. As far as he knows, I’m—”

“A werewolf,” Chase said, cutting her words off. “You’re one of us. Let me deal with the others. All you have to do is learn the plan and prepare yourself to do what needs to be done. You understand what I mean, right?”

“Kill my uncle,” Avery said, her lips thinning. “Yes. I wish it was different, but I know it has to be done. He’ll just reform again and again until he’s put out of commission.”

Avery hesitated, then surprised him.

“Can you help me take my implant out before we sit down with the others? It’s just under the skin, but I’m too squeamish to do it myself.”

Chase pulled a face.

“I can’t hurt you, but I can ask Pax to do it. He’s got nerves of steel and a little medic training. I bet we can even rustle up some anesthetic and something topical to numb the site.”

“Let’s do it,” Avery said. “I’m ready to meet my wolf.”

“Good,” Chase said, rising. “Now come with me. Meet your new family.”

Swallowing a lump in her throat, Avery climbed out of the bed and followed him, wondering at this new change of course in her life.

“
A
lright
,” Chase said, pushing back from the dining room table where they’d all been camped for countless hours. “I think we’ve done all we can do.”

“Agreed,” Harlan rumbled. His mate Penny stifled a yawn and nodded, looking like she wished she’d gone to bed long before.

“Maybe we should go over the precautions we’re taking to limit cross fire one more time—” Pax said, his final words drowned out by a collective groan.

Avery rubbed her eyes. With the exception of breaking for a couple meals and bathroom breaks, none of them had moved from this table all day. They all knew the plan forward and backward, up and down, including all the contingencies.

“Pax, there’s nothing more we can accomplish here tonight. Try to get some sleep so you’re fresh in the morning when we take down the Compound,” Chase said, concern flashing on his face.

Avery’s heart squeezed at the way the three soldiers cared for each other. Chase had the biggest heart, and he deserved that kind of mutual friendship.

Pax muttered something that Avery couldn’t quite make out, but everyone stood and headed for their respective rooms. Chase gathered a stack of Compound maps, leaving the table neat as a pin. Once military, always military, Avery supposed.

He spent a minute working to finish something on his laptop, and it suddenly struck Avery that this could be the very last night of her life.

Her last chance to be with Chase, the man who made her heart and her wolf sing in unison.

“Chase?” she asked, trying to get the words out before she lost her nerve.

“Mmhm,” he said, typing something out and closing his laptop.

“Take me to bed.”

Chase looked up at her, his eyes flashing with hunger and a thousand swirling emotions she couldn’t begin to name.

“Are you sure, Avery?” he uttered, his voice gone to gravel.

“I want to be yours, in every way possible. It’s the only thing I’m sure of in my whole life,” she promised, holding out her hand for him to take.

Waiting for her mate to give her everything she’s been waiting to feel for all these years.