The Gift of My Mate (Siberian Volkov Pack Romance Book 9) (3 page)

“Hello, brother. Ujarak said you might need a little help keeping your mate safe from a human. Since, I know a human couldn’t be a problem for my big brother, I decided to come see for myself,” the woman said, reaching for the ties of her jacket, she shrugged it off. “Kumaglak came along to test his new dog team.”

Mathis looked first at the woman and then at Margot. Finding the whole scenario slightly surreal, Margot sat. Mathis had a family? Family that smelled funny, or maybe that was the furs they wore to keep warm. Mathis continued to look at her, his gaze worried.

“Did we interrupt something?” the woman asked, looking from Mathis to Margot. “Won’t you introduce us?”

Margot waited for Mathis to tell the woman, she wasn’t his mate. That he worked for her father, and was tasked with keeping her safe. Instead he smiled and held out an arm to the woman. She slipped into his embrace.

He hugged her briefly and then turned to Margot. “Margot, this is my sister, Malina, and the one Ujarak is hugging is my middle brother, Kumaglak. Malina, this is my mate, Margot Martin.”

Margot froze.
No.
Her nostrils flared, expecting to smell the scent of a lie, instead the smell of truth was behind Mathis’s words. She shook her head. She must be wrong. Mathis wasn’t really her mate, she just wished him to be. He wouldn’t hide the mating bond from her, not for two years.

Her body began to shake. Margot tipped back her head and howled her grief to the sky. The need to run, to flee from her mate’s treachery, gripped her. She leapt for the open door and the darkness outside.

Mathis lunged at her. “Margot, NO!”

She made it past his grasping hands and jumped into the waiting snow. Then she ran.

§

“Dammit!” Mathis ripped off his shirt and reached for his pants.

“What are you going to do?” Ujarak asked.

“Go after her. If we’re not back by tomorrow, come looking.” Mathis shucked his pants and called the change.

White lights surrounded him as his jaw lengthened and fur sprang from his skin. In a moment he was a huge white wolf, broader and shorter than other lycans, he was still bigger in stature than most.

He ran out the door, trusting his family to have his back. Margot’s trail, easy to follow through the snow, led to the northwest. Thank goodness, the storm passed leaving a layer of powder. Mathis lengthened his stride. He would need to catch her before she ran into any
nanuk
. Not all polar bear shifters were friendly with the lycans.

The cold of the night air burned her lungs. Her heart pounded, flooding her ears with the sound of rushing blood. She reached for the next stride. How could Mathis do this to her? He denied her. Kept their mating a secret from her. She leapt over a narrow ravine.

Tears blurred her vision, but still she ran. The moon bounced off the snow and an occasional bush. She ran and ran. Her heart shattered in her chest. All she ever wanted was to be loved, to have a family of her own. Her mate didn’t want her. It rang in her head with each stride, didn’t want her, didn’t want her.

Her lungs fought for breath. Her legs quivered. She was broken, alone. From the corner of her eye, she saw a gigantic monster wolf coming up beside her. She put on a burst of speed, wondering why she bothered to fight to survive, when she had nothing to live for.

The animal growled, showing huge white teeth. Margot shuddered, fear coursed through her. Was this one of the ferocious amarok the Inuit Indians spoke of? She tried to swerve away. The beast stayed with her. She swerved again. He followed her. The animal snapped his teeth, barely missing her. Margot jumped to the side. Next, he lunged at her, knocking her over.

She rolled. He surrounded her. She bit and scratched. He growled,
“Dammit, Margot! Stop it! Stop fighting me,”
pierced her brain. She froze. They rolled to a stop at the bottom of a ravine. The enormous beast held her down. His jaws clamped on her shoulder. She looked into chocolate brown eyes glaring at her in fury. She whimpered. Slowly, his hold on her lessened. He watched her, waiting to see if she made a move.

“Stay right where you are. You’re foolishness has increased the danger you’re in tenfold. Wait while I dig us a snow cave.”

Her foolishness?
With a final stroke, his words turned what was left of her heart, to dust. She laid where he left her, uncaring whether she lived or died. Tears leaked from her closed eyes, the cold slowly eating its way through her fur.

“Dammit, Margot! Why didn’t you move to stay warm?”

Strong arms lifted her and carried her through a small opening into a dug-out snow cave. Mathis laid her down, his hands searching for wounds on her body. The bite on her shoulder left her fur wet, but he was careful not to break the skin. He rubbed her legs and torso, trying to get her warm. Finally, he pulled her into his arms, using the heat of his naked body to warm her. She laid on his lap, unable to respond. He lifted her head and brushed the frozen tears from her face. “Open your eyes, Margot! Look at me, dammit!” He shook her slightly.

The tone of his voice grabbed her. Her wolf spirit whined and forced her to comply with the Alpha’s wishes. She blinked her eyes open. Mathis captured her gaze. Warmth suddenly flowed into her body, into her heart. “You will shift. Right now!” he commanded.

In moments, Margot sat on Mathis’s lap in her human form. She shivered from the cold, her skin prickling from the frigid air. He leaned down and took her lips, his kiss hot and demanding. His thoughts flooded into her mind, his desire for her, his need to keep her safe. Arms tightened and crushed her to his chest.
“Shift back to your wolf. I won’t let you freeze. NOW!”

Margot obediently called the change, unable to deny the Alpha voice Mathis used on her. She blinked her eyes, and once more she was a wolf. She looked up and noticed he too had shifted. He towered over her, his front paws, one on each side of her. She whined. He leaned down and sniffed at her, burying his nose into her fur. Then he licked her muzzle.

“Sleep if you like. We will stay here until sunrise. Then we will make our way back to the cabin.”

Too tired, and too confused to do otherwise, Margot closed her eyes and rested her head on her paws. Mathis laid down next to her, pressing his body against hers. Margot leaned into him, needing the warmth he provided, if only for now.

§

Mathis slept lightly. Margot crossed into nanuk territory. He must be on guard. Not all the nanuk tribes welcomed lycans. Mathis might be able to talk his way out of a confrontation, since he was amarok and could claim kinship, but Margot would be fair game. Until he could take her to bed and cement the heartmate bond into place, the nanuk could be a problem.

Nanuk tribes were low in numbers and like their animal brothers were polyamorous. Mates were shared. In early times, depending on the population, a male might have several wives, or a woman would be required to take several men to her bed. Because their numbers were low, every woman was expected to give the tribe a child each year if the hunt was successful. Only because of health reasons could the woman refuse.

The system sounded barbaric, but these relationships weren’t forced. The woman was cherished by her men and kept safe from other unwanted suitors. Other times a triad would consist of two women and one male, the women sharing the household duties and rearing of the children. A female polar bear could be fierce when fighting for her home and children.

Mathis’s grandparents were a triad. He loved both of his grandfathers and grandmother. He saw the love in their eyes and how his grandmother was treasured.

Though Mathis understood the premise of the triad, as an amarok, he took after his mother’s lycan ancestors. He wanted one woman, forever. Margot was that woman.

The sound of sniffing, and a low growl, made Mathis jump up and go to the entrance. Margot sat up, her ears easily picking up the sound. Light filled the cave proclaiming a new day had arrived. The smell of polar bear filled the air. Mathis didn’t know if it was friend or foe, animal or shifter. A hunting polar bear was one of the most dangerous predators on Earth.

Mathis growled low as first arms and then a head appeared in the doorway. A naked Ujarak crawled into the small cave. Mathis looked over at Margot, glad to see she averted her eyes, even though nakedness and shifting went together.

“Hey, big brother. You’re a lot farther north than I expected.” Ujarak looked at Margot and winked. “Malina was so worried you might find trouble that she sent me after you. Guess Margot gave you a run for your money.” He winked again. “Good girl, keep him on his toes.”

Margot turned her back on them and laid back down. Ujarak looked from Margot to Mathis, the smile falling from his face. “What’s wrong? Is she okay?”

“She’s tired from her run. She’ll be all right once we get back to the hunting cabin,”
Mathis sent telepathically to his youngest brother.

Grief and misery flowed through the golden light that connected him to Margot. Even with the mating bond being as thin as a pencil, the emotions almost brought Mathis to his knees. Margot was devastated by his deception. He didn’t know if she could ever forgive him.

Mathis didn’t want to share his problems with Ujarak. He would never give up Margot. Somehow, he must get her past his lying to her.

He sent his enormous strength through the mating bond, tempering her grief and trying to wrap her in reassurance. They must still make their way back to the cabin. Margot needed to get up. Mathis went over and nosed her shoulder, and licked at her muzzle, before giving her a nudge.
“Come on, Margot. We need to go.”

Margot sighed, and got to her feet.

Ujarak crawled from the snow cave and Mathis followed. He waited at the opening until Margot climbed out of the makeshift shelter. Ujarak had already shifted and rolled around in the snow, playing like a cub.

Margot froze, her whole body quivered and on alert.

“It’s all right, Margot. Ujarak is my brother. I am only half-lycan.”

“Your brother is a polar bear shifter?”

“Actually, all of my siblings are nanuk. My mother and I are the only wolf shifters. She named me, Mathis, after her grandfather. My brothers and sister have Inuit names since they are nanuk.”

“I’ve never heard of such a thing.”

“The mating bond snapped into place for my mother and father. Their mating is interracial, but it is filled with love. Mother left her pack and moved to nanuk territory with my father. It happens sometimes.”

“Can you turn into a polar bear?”

“No. It seems I inherited my wolf shifting genes from my mother, while my siblings inherited the polar bear shifting genes from my father. Now if my brother will stop playing around, we can get on our way.”

§

Mathis was half polar bear shifter? Margot stared at the huge bear that was Ujarak as he rolled in the snow. He came up smiling with a goofy grin and winked at her. She glanced at Mathis. He stood a little way from the entrance to the snow cave, testing the air.

Suddenly, he ran over and stopped in front of Ujarak. The huge bear began to lumber away. Next, Mathis ran up to her and nosed her shoulder.
“Run, Margot. Back toward the cabin. We’re being hunted.”

The tone of his command rang in her ears. Margot began to run. Mathis followed her, nipping at her heals. She lengthened her stride and he moved up beside her. Mathis increased their pace, urging Margot to go even faster.
“Hurry, Margot. We must make it back to the cabin.”

“Who is hunting us and why?”

“We are in nanuk territory without permission. Not all nanuk are friendly with lycans.”

“You’re saying we are being hunted by polar bear shifters?”

“Yes. Now, run! Our only chance is to get out of their territory before they can catch up to us.”

Margot tried to match his speed, running full out. She was confused about where the danger came from, still she ran. She glanced at him. It made sense that he was half polar bear with his white coat and broad body. He was so much stockier than a regular lycan. He even smelled different from other lycans, with that hint of frost scent mixed into his lycan aroma.

The cabin was up ahead. Mathis growled low as two polar bears lumbered into view.
“Keep running, Margot. Don’t stop for anything. You need to get into that cabin and stay there.”

Mathis dropped back behind her, keeping his body between his mate and the polar bear shifters behind them. Margot pulled on the last of her reserves and shot into the trees next to the hunting cabin. Shadows darkened the ground. A man stepped out between two trees, his body covered in furs, a rifle at his shoulder.

Margot yipped as the dart hit her hindquarter. She stumbled, but tried to push on. Mathis leaped at the man, knocking him down. Then he shifted and struggled for possession of the gun.

Margot continued to run, her pace slowing, her gait becoming uneven. She stumbled again, and then collapsed. She lay in the snow, unable to force herself up. Her vision blurry, she let her eyes close. She heard the roar of a polar bear and expected any minute to be mauled.

Strong arms lifted her, rousing Margot from her drugged haze. She recognized Mathis’s touch as much as his scent overlaid with the smell of blood. She struggled to wake. Mathis was hurt. He might not want her for a mate, but she needed to help him.