Alpha Wolf

Chapter Five

Michael knew he had to find the right words to use to answer Scarlett. At the moment, talking to her was like running through a minefield blind. Every other sentence gave him a new piece of information that might blow up in his face or make him lose a limb.

“He can’t unmate us. He might be able to do something, some sort of weird magic thing, but you would still be my mate. And in the very, very remote chance that he could and he tried, I would kill him.”

And gods knew he would really like to kill someone after having restrained himself twice now. First with the three amigos, who were rapidly increasing in his estimation, and second with Cole who only got to live because he’d sheltered Scarlett from Zack.

“You don’t want to get a new mate?”

“No! And I think I’ve answered that a few times now.” He wasn’t endlessly patient even if he wished he was. “So the next time you ask or hint that you think that might be the case I’m going to get angry.”

Her neck muscles clenched and she glanced down. “What will my punishment be if you get angry? What will you do to me?”

“I won’t do anything to you. Most likely I’ll stomp around and mutter. I might even, I don’t know, swear a little bit or yell. Then, with a little time, like a few hours maybe, I’ll get over it.”

She looked up. Good, they were making progress on that front. More and more she held his eye contact, even if her first instinct were to stare down.

His wolf spoke. That might always be. It might be a Beta wolf thing.

She doesn’t have a wolf and she’s my mate. She doesn’t belong in the whole Alpha/Beta scenario. Lots of Betas make plenty of eye contact with their Alpha halves.

That’s true. His wolf yawned. It had been a long day for him. But you’re not mated yet.

What difference does that make? I want her to be unafraid of me when we have sex.

Michael, his wolf hmphed. I’m not speaking about sex. I’m talking about mating, genius.

With that, his wolf lay down and went to sleep. Evidently, his canine half was done with their conversation. Although he had certainly given Michael plenty to think about.

All of this was a problem since no one ever discussed their matings. It was the best-kept secret in a pack where everyone knew almost everything.

“Michael, are you talking to your wolf?”

Jolted, he stared back at Scarlett. He’d been staring straight ahead for a few minutes during his exchange.

“Um … yes … sorry. I guess I’m not used to being around other people. I kind of just talk to him whenever I feel like it. It’s rude. My mother would have yelled at me two hundred years ago.”

“No,” she laughed. It was the first time he heard the sound. Scarlett’s laugh was akin to a bird twittering. Adorable, just like the rest of her. “I’m used to it. I wanted to make sure you weren’t having a seizure.”

He stood up. “A seizure?”

Scarlett scratched at her arm. “You just had a big fight. Maybe you were hurt and you didn’t know it. I read about seizures. People sometimes look like they’re just staring straight ahead.”

“Really?” He’d never heard of that. When he thought of seizures he thought…

His mate’s movements caught his attention. She’d just scratched her arm and now she was itching her neck.

“Are you okay?”

Nodding her head, she stood up next to him. “It’s just time for my vitamin shot.”

His wolf senses went on alert. Something was wrong. The hair on the back of his neck stood up straight as his eyes turned wolf. He stepped forward taking a deep breath.

Something was wrong with Scarlett.

He pulled her into his arms and she gasped. “Michael?” Her eyes were huge.

“Not going to hurt you. Would never hurt you.” But he needed to concentrate, needed to figure out what happened.

Her temperature was too high. Not terrible, not so much that she would even notice, but it was at least one degree higher than it had been that morning or since they’d entered the room. He could feel it coming off her skin.

What kind of vitamin shot would do that?

Her heart rate had picked up, but maybe that was just because he had grabbed her abruptly. No, it was her scent that most concerned him. It spoke of pain and he had a taste in his mouth like blood. Scarlett’s pain was becoming his own.

Finally, when he could speak he let the wolf out of his eyes. “This person—this pack wielder—he gives you this shot how often?”

“At my age, I get it once a month. When I was younger it was more frequent. Once a week. But now my body is better able to hold the nutrients.”

This didn’t sound right. Not any of it. He wasn’t a science person; back before life had imploded he’d been a teacher of English and History.

He needed to speak to Azriel immediately. His brother was the go-to guy when it came to this kind of thing. He’d been working on finding a cure for the miscreant wolves for months. The man seemed to know everything.

Letting Scarlett go, he stalked to the other side of the room and picked up the phone he saw there. He’d left his cell phone at the hotel earlier by mistake when he’d been so annoyed at Todd, Barge and Seamus. He supposed he could send one of them to get it, but he didn’t want to encourage whatever this newfound hero-worshiping from them was.

Dialing Az’s number, he decided he didn’t care about making long distance phone calls on Cole’s line. Paying for it could be part of Cole’s punishment.

After two rings someone answered, but it wasn’t the voice he’d expected to hear. It was Theo, not Az.

“Theo, why are you picking up Az’s phone?”

Usually Az was buried in a below ground lab away from any other shifters. “Good to speak to you too, Michael.” Theo paused. “Whose number is this?”

“It’s the phone of this shifter name Cole. Never mind. I need Az.”

“Yeah … that’s going to prove to be a problem.”

Michael didn’t like the sound of that. He put his hand on the wall in front of him.

“Why not?”

“Az is unconscious.”

“What?”

Realizing he yelled, he tried to cool down his nerves. Behind him, he heard Scarlett move closer to the door. Great, he’d raised his voice and now she contemplated escape.

He really had to find a way to keep it together.

“He took on Dad all by himself.” He could hear the awe in Theo’s voice.

“Azriel did?” Az was Mister Brains, not Mister Brawn.

“To protect his mate. Actually, he saved all of us. Tristan is in an uproar because the pack didn’t allow him, as Alpha, join in the fight. Az was practically dead before we got there, but it looks as if he’s going to survive thanks to his mate’s powers. Anyway, it’s a long story. We could have used you, my brother.”

Michael closed his eyes around the lump that had formed in his throat. That was pretty standard. He was always letting his family down when it counted the most.

Opening them, he tried for nonchalance. “Sorry, I’m here on Tristan’s orders looking for Angel. Didn’t find her, but I found my beautiful mate instead.”

“Really? That’s great. When are you bringing her home?”

“Soon. I just have a few things to finish up here first.”

Like finding out what they’d given her to make her itchy and feverish and killing the bastard who had raped her. Then he’d bring her home and keep her in his room until she was sure of him. Or something like that. He’d figure it out when he got there.

“What did you need Az for?”

No point in telling Theo and getting him worked up. “I’ll handle it on my own.

When he wakes up tell him good work on holding off Dad.”

Damn, Michael needed to get home and fast.

“It’s just a temporary fix, big brother. Some other things have happened. I can explain when you get here, but we’ve had a bit of an inside look into Dad’s operation through Dad’s own brain—”

Michael interrupted. “Theo, what?”

“I know it sounds odd. I promise to give you the rundown when you get here, but right now it looks like even if we can get control of the magic situation, find ourselves a witch who will work against Dad, and get someone to tell us what Dad is planning, we’re still going to lose.”

That was a blunt statement from his younger brother. In all their years fighting their father no one had ever said that. Not ever.

“Why do you say that?”

Things must really be dire. Michael tapped his foot on the floor, nervous energy pressing on his insides. He wanted to go, needed to go, and couldn’t.

“Because Dad has hundreds of wolves, maybe more. Just from sheer power of numbers there is very little chance we can ever win this. We may have to make some kind of arrangement.”

“What do you mean?” Michael could hardly get the words out.

Theo was silent for a few seconds. “We might have to split up, hide our mates, leave here.”

“Tell Tristan I’ll be home as soon as I can.”

There really wasn’t anymore to say. He hung up the phone. When he turned around, he was shocked to see Scarlett standing right behind him. He’d been so preoccupied with his conversation he hadn’t even heard her approach.

“What happened?”

That was right. She couldn’t hear the other half of the conversation. She wasn’t enhanced in her hearing.

“I just got some really bad news from my brother.” He ran a hand through his hair, suddenly exhausted. “I was hoping one of my other brothers could help me figure out what is in the vitamin concoction they’re giving you, but he’s out of commission for a while.”

Scarlett wrapped her arms around her body in a protective gesture. “Is he okay?”

He nodded. “He’ll be fine. He got into a one-on-one battle with my father, not something he should have done. Somehow he survived. That’s really an accomplishment.”

“I’m glad to hear it, that he’ll be fine, not that he had the fight.”

“Thank you.”

She was pretty. He reached out to run his hand down her perky nose. She smiled, but her eyes looked wary.

“I’m sorry I yelled while I was on the phone. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

She shrugged. “It’s okay. Do you think there is something in the vitamins making me sick or something?”

As if to illustrate his worry, she scratched her arm.

“Maybe.”

“What do you think it is?”

He shook his head. “The only way to find out is to go see your pack wielder—a term I have never heard before in two hundred years—and take a look at it.”

“He’s very secretive.”

“Is he a wolf?”

“No.” She coughed. “But he’s magical.”

“Don’t worry, sweetheart, he’ll tell us what we want to know.”

“How can you be so sure?”

“In this arena, I’m completely confident in my ability to get the job done.” In other ways, he was not and that she needed to hear about.

He continued. “Scarlett…”

“Yes?”

“Here’s the deal. My brother just told me we are likely to lose the war against my father. If that happens we will either have to hide or,” it was so hard to say the words. “Or I may die and the truth of our mating is that you will feel compelled to follow me to the other side.”

She narrowed her eyes. “Oh.”

“So if you want to get out of our mating—and this wielder person can do that—I wouldn’t blame you for running away.”

Although it might kill him. He’d understand. It was cruel to tie her to him without giving her all the facts. Right now, he’d defeated Cole and he took care of her. In no way should she be forced to have a future with him without knowing what she was getting into.

“I thought that part of this whole mating deal was that the universe picked the person who was supposed to stand by you for life.”

He nodded. “That’s right.”

“I’m not strong. I’m not brave. I’m always going to be flawed because I don’t have a wolf. But I’m loyal to a fault and I’d like to stand with you on this journey. Even if it means I hide behind your back half the time.”

“Really?” He tried to ignore the choked sound of his voce. “You mean that?”

“I do.”

In two steps he was next to her. Picking her up off the ground he held her close to him, hugging her as tight as he dared without hurting her or making her injuries act up.

“I’ve been alone such a long time.” He had to get control of his emotions before they overwhelmed him and his wolf, usually so calm and steady, was not helping him. “You are brave. Most people couldn’t have survived what you did here. You’re not broken.

Don’t ever say that again. If I am nothing else, I’m strong. I’ll be strong for both of us if you need it. But you’re stronger than me in most of the ways that really count.”

He had to put her down before he gave into the urge pulsating through his veins to lie her down on the bed and make love to her until they both couldn’t see straight. Besides, he was two seconds away from blubbering and then she’d think that not only was she mated to a shifter almost guaranteed to get her killed, but that he was also a wimp.

Men might get to be emotional and touchy-feely these days, but when he was raised you didn’t do that.

With a sigh, he put her back on her feet. She looked up at him as she scratched at her left her hand with her right one. Damn, he had to get control of himself. Scarlett needed his attention right now.

“Come on, let’s go see this pack wielder.”

Hand in hand, they walked from the room into the hallway. Turning down the stairs, he stopped abruptly. The thirty-some-odd wolves he’d left downstairs stood lined up in the front hallway of Cole’s house.

He raised an eyebrow to stare at Todd. “What’s going on?”

“I did what you said. I told them what a pack is supposed to be like.”

Okay. He glanced at Scarlett and she raised her shoulders in a shrug. It seemed as if she was as confused as he was.

“That’s good.” He paused. “Why is everyone still standing here?”

Seamus spoke. “Where are y’all going now?”

“To see the pack wielder.” He might as well be completely truthful with all of them.

“I think there’s something wrong with what he’s doing to your women. This vitamin shot he gives them might actually be making them sick. Where I’m from, there is no such thing as a pack wielder.”

Seamus furrowed his brow. “Really? You think he’s hurting the women?”

There was some grumbling in the room. “I do. I want to know what’s in this so-called ‘vitamin’ injection.”

Barge spoke up. “It’s supposed to make them potent.”

“Do you mean fertile?”

Barge nodded. Well, at least that was a little more information than he had. It still didn’t make sense. Why give it to Scarlett if none of them wanted to mate with her because of fear of her latency?

“How many babies were born this year?”

A wolf he didn’t know stepped forward. He couldn’t be more than twenty-five years old with brown hair and dark eyes. “I was the last baby born. I’m Marvin, by the way.”

Michael tried to make note of that name. As a rule, he had a hard time remembering names. “You were?” He looked around the room. “Seems to me, guys, that the shot isn’t working that well.”

Marvin spoke again. “Nero said it was going to take a while to work, but that ultimately it would double our numbers.”

“See, that’s the problem.” Michael felt as if he could write a book on this subject at this point. “When you have a bad leader, things tend to go askew. That’s why we all have to make sure we always have a good one.”

“Do you have a good one?” Barge’s face was so eager when he asked that question it made Michael grin. What must it be like to still view the world so brightly?

“The best. My brother, Tristan, is a great leader.”

Todd scratched his head. “How can you not be supreme Alpha?”

“Believe it or not, Tristan makes my power seem like it’s nothing.”

Next to him he saw Scarlett scowl. He’d have to ask her later what bothered her.

“Okay, well Scarlett and I are going.” This was getting awkward and he wanted out of Cole’s house immediately.

Todd smiled. “Then we’ll all go to the pack wielder.”

Scarlett laughed and then covered her mouth with her hand. Still, her amber eyes danced with amusement.

“You think this is funny?”

She nodded, still keeping her hand over her mouth.

It would be funny if it was happening to someone else. Only the fact that he had to deal with it kept his amusement factor down.

“None of you work, is that correct?”

Seamus spoke up. “No. As Scarlett said, the Betas and the latent wolves work. We now know that is not okay. But that’s how it’s worked before you came.”

“So all of those folks are presumably at their jobs and the women are at this pack wielder’s, which means that the thirty of you want to come with me.”

A thought occurred to him. “Anyone who apologizes to my mate can come. She’ll be waiting on the front steps.”

Scarlett dropped her hand from her mouth. “Michael, I…”

He tugged on her hand. “Humor me, Scarlett, it’ll make me feel better.”

“They’re all going to apologize?”

Every last one of them.