Enemy Mine

Chapter Nine

Mary blinked several times as she opened her eyes, trying to figure out why she was so warm and comfortable. Her bed wasn’t nearly this soft, and her comforter didn’t radiate heat like an electric blanket. Her answer appeared when her vision cleared.

Emory.

He was resting directly in front of her, his chest mere inches away. His arm was wrapped around her side, keeping her close. He smelled good, enticing her in a way she’d started to expect, as though his scent called to her on some primal level. It was as if an aphrodisiac were smoothed over his flesh, daring her to lean forward and indulge in a little taste.

“Hey there,” he murmured in a voice thick with sleep, pulling her out of her sexual musings. A dark lock of hair rested on his forehead, his ruffled appearance as delicious as sin.

She knew she was turning red, could feel the heated blush on her cheeks. Last night she’d had Emory in one of the many ways she’d dreamed about him. It had been explosive, hot and a little bit scary. She frowned when she remembered the climax that started out so dizzying but quickly turned into nothing but pain. Sex wasn’t supposed to be like that. Even with her limited knowledge, she wasn’t stupid.

“Last night…” She swallowed back her panic, trying to be honest. “What happened between us wasn’t entirely normal. Something else happened.”

“It was the bloodbonding.” Emory rose up on one elbow and brushed strands of hair away from her face. “It’s not a pleasant experience.” His fingers stopped on her cheek and he looked torn. “I should have warned you but I was afraid you’d prolong things if you feared what was to come. I’ve been told that it’s best not to warn human mates, so that the expectation of pain doesn’t ruin the first pairing between a couple.”

Isn’t that nice? She narrowed her eyes. “An omission of truth to avoid a lie?”

To his credit, he appeared remorseful, eyes darkening as he sighed. “I’m sorry,” he said, skimming his knuckles along her jaw, the caress gentle. “I should have told you.”

“So it’s over now?” Although the memory of what occurred had faded, the recollection of pain hadn’t. There were no words to adequately describe it, no way to formulate precisely how horrible the sensations had felt.

“There are three stages,” he said slowly, cautiously. “The first is the physical stage, when we make love.”

A lightbulb moment had her freaking out. Yes, she was turned-on when they got hot and heavy, but how could she have been so reckless? So stupid?

You weren’t thinking clearly, that’s how.

“We didn’t use a condom.” Her mouth opened and closed as she tried to think. A baby? Right now? With the way things were? It was too dangerous, too complicated. It wouldn’t be fair to bring a child into their lives.

“Shh.” He took her hand in his. “Pregnancies can occur between a human and a shifter, but it’s extremely rare. It’s only after the final stage of the bloodbond that you’d conceive and carry to term.”

“When can I expect that to happen?” She started thinking about the various ways to protect herself from pregnancy. She wouldn’t have a child suffering what she had. It wasn’t that she didn’t want a family. She simply wouldn’t put a child in danger. She knew only too well where that road led.

Maybe they could put off the bloodbonding?

No, she immediately corrected herself, you won’t be safe. Emory said pregnancies were rare, not that they didn’t happen. There were other ways to prevent conception. Perhaps Emory could wear condoms until she could get on a reliable form of birth control.

“I was hoping soon,” Emory said with a look of hurt on his face. “Do you not want children?”

“No,” she answered without thinking, entangled in her thoughts. What if she had a son? What if her family somehow got their hands on him and turned him into a killer with no remorse?

“Because of who their father is? Because of what they’ll be?”

It took a couple of seconds for his words to register and when they did guilt assailed her, causing her stomach to sink. The misery in Emory’s gaze was her fault. Not only did it sound like she was judging him, it also seemed she was judging the children they might have in the future.

She shook her head, quickly sharing her reasoning. “It’s not that. I would love to have children with you.” At the doubtful look he gave her she explained, “It’s my family. If we have children, they’ll always be in danger. I don’t want any child of mine to end up with them. Thinking about it makes me sick.”

“I think that you underestimate the power of the pack, Mary.” The hurt and doubt in his expression vanished, replaced by a possessive and lethal glint in his eyes. “No one will hurt you here. Since the last attack Diskant has changed everything. All of the shifters—from cats to wolves to birds of prey—have a part to play to keep the city safe. We have moles in the police force now, members of a pride who keep us up to date on anything strange going on in the area. Diskant’s city is the safest one to live in if you’re a shifter.” He smiled. “Or a shifter’s female.”

He stopped talking and sat up, gazing around the room. Sliding the linens aside, he climbed from the bed in all his naked glory, the globes of his ass and the muscles in his thighs flexing. He retrieved her bag, brought it to the bed and took a seat beside her.

“I have to ask you something, and I need you to be honest with me.”

Damn. She was never good at poker. She couldn’t lie if he asked her about the money or the map, and she had a pretty good hunch he was going to ask about both.

“Where did you get the money?”

The first question wasn’t difficult to answer. “From my parents. I have an account in Florida I withdraw funds from when I need to.”

He arched a brow, unzipped the duffel and rummaged through the contents and brought out a wad of bills. “I’m guessing there’s several thousand dollars here. If you have an account, why make that kind of withdrawal?”

“Because I never knew when I needed money and I wanted to make sure I wouldn’t have to make a stop at the bank. Living on the edge means you think ahead.” The question awakened demons from her past, things she wanted to forget—of living in squalor, of working for the biggest asshole in the world…

Oh shit!

“Mr. Montrose,” she choked, feeling sick. “They killed him.”

“Who killed who, sweetheart?” Emory dropped the money and rested a large palm on her thigh.

“My boss!” Oh God, he was dead. She’d always known the old coot would die at the Food Town, but not in the manner he had. “Some of my distant relatives came into the Food Town and shot him.” Alarm bells sounded, magnifying her dread. “If the police search the scene, they might find traces of me.” She looked at Emory, terrified of the danger she brought to him. “They could come here.”

“All of that was taken care of when we found you.” Emory’s cool composure eased a bit of her tension. No one could pretend to be that comfortable discussing murder and a possible visit from the police unless they were telling the truth. “Any evidence is gone. We made sure of that.”

“It won’t stop them.” The admission saddened her but it also made her angry. Like cockroaches surviving a nuclear holocaust, her family would stand the test of time. “They’ll keep searching for me.”

“It’s not a question of stopping them.” Emory pulled his hand away, making a large fist. “It’s a matter of teaching them we’re not people they want to fuck with. Not anymore.”

“You’re going to fight them?”

“Yes, we are.” He didn’t seem the least apologetic, telling her straight. “Those who lost people closest to them have already started visiting compounds to let them know we won’t tolerate any more of their cruelty. Before we gave them a wide berth, since most Alphas felt it was too risky to get involved. If the world finds out we exist, things could get nasty. Now the policy has changed. If our presence is revealed we’ll deal with it. Diskant has the backing of every Alpha and Omega from every pack and pride in the United States. They agree it’s time to take a stand. This problem won’t go away unless we force the issue.”

She was pretty sure that if she wasn’t sitting down she would have fallen over. Her entire body was trembling, each beat of her heart crashing inside her chest. “You’re serious?”

“Completely.” He smiled, relaxed again, his eyes their usual amber color. “Which means you don’t have to run anymore. You’re safe. Your uncle made threats when he had a level of control over the situation. He’s lost that.”

“I noticed he left the farm more often,” she said, thinking aloud, “but I didn’t know why.”

“It’s because he knows his number is up. The last I heard several of the Shepherd farms that were investigated were vacant and the premises were completely empty. More than likely they’re moving around but we’ll find them eventually. If they can’t stay in one place, they can’t capture shifters. They have to be smart.”

“What else did you want to ask me?” It was hard not to grin now that she knew she had something he’d want, a way to repay him for saving her life.

He hesitated, creases forming around his mouth, worry etching across his features. “We saw the map in your bag.” Without looking at her, he removed it from the duffel. “Is there a reason there are so many marks?” He didn’t open the map fully, leaving it so that only the large circle around New York showed. “Is there a reason for this?” He pointed at the circle, the one she’d drawn with her own pen.

“Well, you see…” She tried to hide a grin. “My parents didn’t just leave me money. They left me this too. If you open it,” she unfolded the map, stretching it out, “you’ll see all of these.”

Her fingertip guided him to the small stars etched on the paper. She stopped, waiting for him to look at her. When he did, she smiled.

“That’s where Shepherds are,” she said, relieved she could share this with Emory. “My parents wanted me to have this so I wouldn’t go anywhere near them. They knew they would probably be found and it would be impossible to save me, so they put aside money and the map so I stood a chance of living a normal life when I was old enough to get away.”

“And this?” He indicated the big circle around New York.

“It was where I was going to hide next. I figured it would be harder to find me in a big city.” She blushed and bowed her head. “I didn’t realize you lived here, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“No?”

She peered up at him, seeing his grin, and a giggle escaped. “Absolutely not.”

Emory folded the map, his fingers almost useless as he studied her. She was about to ask him what was wrong when he tossed the bag off the bed, placed the map on top of it and turned to face her.

Oh my.

His eyes were almost yellow, breathtaking and brilliant. Her body responded in a way she didn’t expect, making her nipples sensitive in the open air, the sheets beneath her bare ass almost chafing. She’d totally forgotten she was naked—she hadn’t even given it much thought if she was being honest with herself. Her gaze slid down Emory’s torso, stopping when it reached his cock. He was completely erect, the skin a dark pink, veins visible along the shaft.

“Do you like what you see?”

She shook at the question, her pussy becoming wet, clit pulsing. His voice sounded like pure sexual enticement—raw, deep…animal. Breathing became difficult as everything vanished but Emory. The scent she’d noticed earlier seemed heavier, tempting her to do things she’d never have considered in the past. Embarrassment took a trip out the window, replaced by lust.

The sheet slid from her body as she crawled toward him, hands roaming over the firm contours of his chest, fingernails scraping his hot skin. His eyes continued to glow, his full lips pressing together. He growled as he put his hands on her waist and lifted her over him so that she straddled his legs. His cock brushed the seam of her ass, rock-hard but soft as satin. The length slid along the crease, venturing along the edge without pressing between her cheeks.

Their lips came together in a similar motion, sliding from side to side before she opened her mouth and Emory pressed his tongue inside. She moaned at the sensation, blanketed in unfamiliar smells and sensations. Her skin felt electrified, tingling all over. His hands felt as though they left ghostly imprints as he abandoned her waist and cupped her breasts. He stroked his calloused thumbs over her nipples and she pulled away from the kiss, arching her back in ecstasy. His thumbs feathered across the hard points, around and around.

“That’s right.” Emory sounded different, the words gruff. “Just like that. I love watching you like this.” She cried out when he pinched the sensitive buds and rolled them between his fingers. “Open your eyes and look at me.”

Glowing yellow met chocolate brown as she complied, staring him in the eye. Meeting his gaze was more intimate than what they were doing together physically, as though they were sharing something far deeper. She bit her lip when he pinched her nipples again, the sharp sting making her wetter. Her pussy clenched and released. Touching wasn’t enough. She wanted him inside her, to feel him buried deep.

As though he read her mind, he growled, “Tell me what you want, Mary.”

“You,” she breathed, gasping when he squeezed her breasts.

He brought his wicked hands down, placing them on her hips and lifting her. The head of his cock slid along the crease of her pussy, nudging her clit. She reached down, taking the length in her hand, guiding it to her center. He was long, thick and heavy, the skin warm and smooth. She was so wet the broad tip slid into her with ease, the fullness stretching her in the most wicked of ways. No pain or resistance. Now her body welcomed him happily, taking all he had to give and wanting more.

“Put your hands on my shoulders.”

She did what he asked, using him as an anchor as his cock parted her like a whisper. He invaded her inch by inch until she was seated on him fully. There was no discomfort this time, only the give of her pussy as she surrounded him. The dull throb inside her didn’t lessen, so she did what came naturally. Lifting up, she groaned at the loss of pressure, feeling him ease from her body. When he was nearly free she came back down in a fast motion, impaling herself on his cock, throwing her head back as she cried out.

“Again,” Emory growled, lifting her away, bring her back down. “Fuck yes. Exactly like that, sweetheart. Ride me.”

Rising slightly on her knees, she started to move, riding the length of his cock. She rotated her hips as she descended, rubbing her clit on his pelvis when she felt the heaviness of his sac against her ass. He mirrored her motions, plunging into her when she started the trip back down.

“I’ve dreamed of the way you’d feel around my cock.” Emory urged her forward, licking a line from the arch of her neck to her ear. He blew a steady stream of air inside, nuzzling the outer shell. “You’re so hot and tight, Mary. Squeezing me like a second skin. I love the way you feel, how wet you are for me.”

The explicit way he spoke made her skin heat and her insides ripple, the warmth in her abdomen building with each thrust of his cock. She balanced herself with her hands and looked him in the eye again, taking in the pleasure on his face. Desperate to see him in the grips of desire, she rose up and moved down, raking her fingers into his shoulders. His lips pulled back and she stared at the pointed canines in his mouth, the tips sharper and more elongated than usual.

Bite him.

She didn’t know where the compulsion came from, why she suddenly ran her tongue along her teeth and her eyes drifted from his mouth to his neck. The fleshy portion of his shoulder that met the wide column of his throat beckoned, calling to her in a way she didn’t understand. She wanted to mark him, proclaim him as hers, so that everyone would know he was taken. She needed to know he was out of any other female’s reach. Moving her hand to his head, she wrapped her fingers in his hair, tugging on the strands as she brought her head down.

“Mary.” Emory groaned, the tips of his fingers brutally pressing into her skin. “Wait.”

It was too late. She refused to listen. She lapped at his skin, reveling in the salty taste and the way he smelled so close to her nose. When she struck she didn’t go easy, biting him hard enough that she tasted the metallic bitterness of his blood on her tongue. The hand at her waist moved to her sex. She gasped when he pushed the tips of his fingers against her clit, rubbing the sensitive nub in a practiced motion.

It felt as though flames spread throughout her body, from her nipples to her stomach all the way down to her pussy. She moved against his hand, finding just the right spot, rotating her hips to make sure the contact continued. The width of his cock allowed him to hit a place deep inside her that caused her to whimper, so good she thought she couldn’t take the pleasure.

“Let go, sweetheart. Come for me.”

It felt as though she detonated into a million particles, her body thrashing with the intensity of an orgasm that turned her insides to jelly. Liquid fire spread from her sex to her stomach, expanding outward. Screaming, she writhed on Emory’s lap, the plunges of his cock and exploration of his fingers extending her orgasm. Nothing had ever felt so good, sending her soaring, her wings eagerly extended as she took flight.

She dimly perceived Emory’s fingers in her hair, using enough force that her scalp burned. The pleasure turned to pain when his teeth sank into her throat, holding her in place as he started pounding into her hard and fast. Agony swiftly took over, yanking her from the floating height of climax, blinding in its ferocity. Her eyes and ears started to burn as if a poker had been jabbed into the orifices and her cries of bliss turned to those of misery. Her bones felt like they were being hollowed out with a spoon, aching worse than if they’d been broken. Fire sped through her veins, blistering her from the inside out.

Emory’s skin was no longer soft or smooth, it felt rough and piercing in every place they touched. He wouldn’t let her go when she tried to push him away, holding her tight when she struggled. Panic hit, an alarm she knew only too well.

Would her life end like this? Right here and now in Emory’s arms? Had he tricked her? Was this some form of punishment?

“Stop. Please stop.” She hated begging. Doing so dredged up memories she wanted to forget, of things she never wanted to witness again. But she didn’t care, wanting to put an end to what was occurring, thinking she might die if she was forced to endure it much longer.

“I have you.” Emory sounded so torn, so guilty. “It’s going to be all right. I promise. I’m here, angel eyes. I’m here.”

She wanted to tell him she didn’t want his comfort and closeness but the pain robbed her of speech, her tongue suddenly heavy and thick in her mouth. It was as if knives were plunging into her skin, the edges sharp and relentless. Like the night before, odd smells invaded her nose—woods, earth, grass, water and pine. The molten waves crashing through her intensified, multiplying and spreading as licks of flame seemed to eat her alive. Tears streamed down her face, a river that wouldn’t stop, then a strange sensation startled her. Something smooth and sleek teased the inside of her skin, brushing against her as though it could somehow break through the barrier of her flesh.

Fur.

Then everything clicked as she grasped the significance of what was happening. Emory’s wolf had somehow made its way inside of her as he’d told her it would, leaving behind an imprint of itself. The rusty flavor lingering in her mouth allowed her to put the pieces together. When she’d bitten Emory she must have started the second stage of the bloodbond. He’d told her to wait but she didn’t listen. It was her fault she was suffering, her misery a consequence of her own actions.

She stopped fighting, any remaining strength draining away. Slumping forward, she rested against Emory’s sweat-slicked chest, panting for breath. As abruptly as the pain started, it was gone. She waited for the lethargy to send her into a deep sleep as it had the night before, but exhaustion didn’t arrive.

“It’s over,” Emory said hoarsely and slowly withdrew his cock from her, flipping her over so that she was nestled against the pillows at her back.

She was going to ask him what he was doing when he made his intentions clear. He took her nipple between his lips, sending a different, more welcome kind of heat racing through her blood. Pain was forgotten, sent scattering to nothing when he scraped his teeth against skin that felt alive and new, flicking his tongue against the flesh he’d trapped between them. When she twined her fingers in his hair he moved to the other breast, lavishing her aching nipple with the same attention.

His hands gripped her hips, holding her steady as his cock glided along her folds and found the entrance to her pussy. One thrust and he was lodged completely inside her, so deep she felt the head nudge her cervix. The connection was impossible to miss, the newfound bond washing over her like warm rays of the sun. Two people inexplicably became one, knit closely together.

Emory lifted his head from her breast, gazing up at her. It wasn’t his glowing eyes that captivated her, it was what he was able to express silently with one single expression. Hope flared in her chest, bringing her from caged darkness and into freeing light. She hadn’t had that emotion directed toward her in so long she’d almost forgotten how easy it was to see if you were looking for it, how wonderful it could be to have it aimed right at you.

Reaching out, she touched his temple, fingers shaking. He didn’t have to say the words, not when he could communicate in this way, in a manner that shook her to her very soul. Emory might be an alpha male, capable of tearing men apart with his bare hands if they pissed him off, but he felt something entirely different for her. And God help her, she felt it too. She’d felt it from the moment she first laid eyes on him.

Adoration, attraction…

Love.

Emory couldn’t move, couldn’t breathe—not with his mate staring at him as she was. The way he felt about her evolved with each passing second, the second bloodbonding mark reaffirming and intensifying their connection. He’d known he wanted Mary from the moment they first met, in the animalistic way of his kind. Yet when he’d spoken to her, had spent time with her and had gotten to know her he’d fallen head over heels in love with the woman. Whereas he was hard, she was soft. When he was forceful, she was gentle. They were a perfect match, their opposite traits balancing each other.

“Emory,” she whispered, her fingertips flittering over his hair.

He caught her hand, brought it to his mouth and placed a kiss in her palm. Then he started moving, dragging his cock along her vaginal walls and sinking back into her heat with each return. She was so tight he had to push his way inside her, so hot he thought she’d burn him alive. With a snap of his hips he had her whimpering, his cock roughly spearing into her. He loved the sounds that she made, from her soft cries to her heavy moans to her ear-piercing screams.

The wolf wanted him to turn her around, pin her in place and fuck her from behind. It was the ultimate act of mating, the preferred way for a male to assert his dominance over his female. He fought the urge, making love to Mary as she deserved. She’d done something he’d never anticipated, accepting two of the bloodbonding phases in less than twenty-four hours. It wasn’t unheard of but it was rare. The pain was too much, the fear too difficult to overcome for many females.

Not my female, he thought with an enormous surge of pride. My beautiful, courageous mate.

When she’d bitten him he’d tried to stop from doing the same, but it hadn’t been possible with the need to possess her taunting him like a devil on his shoulder. He’d reacted despite his reservations, taking them beyond that first step and bringing her deeper into his world. The pain was something he hated—something he continued to dread—but now that it was over he was already thinking about the third mark. When their bloodbonding was completed, Mary would be more than his mate. She would finally be safe. The physical changes that came with being mated to a shifter would ensure she wouldn’t be harmed as easily, able to heal wounds that would kill a normal person.

Don’t focus on that now. She’s been through enough.

Lowering his head, he captured her mouth, pouring all of the emotions he felt into the kiss and his movements. He cupped her ass, lifting her so that her clit brushed his pelvis with each thrust of his hips, timing it so the motions matched the dips of his tongue. Back and forth he moved, until the tingle in his spine worked its way to his balls. He felt his sac tighten, a hard jerk of his cock warning him he wouldn’t be able to hold off for long.

Tearing his lips away, he stared down at his female, continuing to plunge into her deep and fast. Her pupils dilated as he watched her, leaving nothing more than a ring of brown. He altered his position slightly so that he held her buttock in one hand and the headboard in the other, leveraging his body to maintain friction against her clit. The shift accomplished what he wanted. She wrapped her hands around his arms, moaning when he rolled his hips.

“You’re so fucking perfect, Mary. Come hard. I want to feel you shatter.”

After three hard thrusts she put her face in the crook of his shoulder, digging her fingers into his arms. Her sultry cry carried through the room as her pussy rippled around his cock, her hot, weeping flesh shredding his self-control. He let himself go, no longer holding back, fucking her as forcefully as the wolf demanded. She didn’t fight, biting her lip as her cunt continued clasping his dick, sending him over the precipice.

He snarled as he came, the fist on the headboard cracking the wood, his hand on her ass forming claws. Mary shuddered with each jerk of his cock, his semen exiting his sac and jetting into his mate. He continued moving, drawing it out, until the prickly feeling in his spine vanished and Mary relaxed beneath him. Due to the damage he’d caused to the headboard, he had to shake his hand free of slivers of wood before he eased over her, bringing them chest to chest.

“That was incredible,” she said with a sigh, snaking her arms around his waist.

“Just wait,” he murmured against her neck, awash in the feeling of her skin against his, of the pounding of her pulse.

Peace surrounded them. The house was remarkably silent as they rested against each other.

Every day for the rest of their lives should be started exactly like this.

The slamming of a door downstairs made them both jump. It was immediately followed by a guttural roar, one that sent electric needles of alarm shooting up the back of Emory’s neck.

“Ava!”

Emory waited, listening for Ava’s response. When one didn’t come he moved away from Mary, driven by the panic in Diskant’s voice. The Omega and his mate shared an extremely close connection, one that allowed them to communicate in a way the pack didn’t fully understand but respected. Knowing that, it didn’t make sense that Diskant would be searching for Ava when he could use their special link to find her.

Where the hell had Ava gone? Had something happened to her?

Mary sat up, watching as Emory rotated in a circle, cursing when he saw his pants were unsalvageable.

“What’s wrong?”

He shook his head, trying to think. “I don’t know, but it’s not good.”

Diskant continued yelling, and Emory could tell the Alpha was running from room to room calling Ava’s name. The yells became louder, meaning Diskant was steadily approaching. Worry quickly turned to dread. Diskant was searching the house like Ava was a human, not his bloodbonded mate.

Fuck.

“Don’t be alarmed, sweetheart.” Emory gave up on trying to dress, striding toward the door. “Diskant’s about to make an appearance.”

“He’s coming in here? Right now?” She shriveled beneath the covers until Emory could only see her face, the edge of the comforter and sheet yanked firmly to her chin.

He didn’t answer, stopping between the door and the bed, standing between Mary and their oncoming visitor. D’s strange behavior had to be due to Ava but Emory wasn’t taking any chances with a shifter who had apparently just lost the bonded connection with his female. Pounding footsteps raced up the stairs and stormed down the hall. Then the bedroom door crashed open.

Diskant rushed into the room, eyes wild, hair tangled around his shoulders and face. His right side was bloody, his leather pants missing in places. Judging by the way the cloth fell—revealing skinned and oozing pieces of raw flesh—Diskant had probably wrecked his motorcycle, suffering road rash as a result.

“Calm down, D,” Emory said smoothly, keeping his composure. “Tell me what happened.”

Diskant’s eyes changed colors, his face a mixture of pain and disbelief. “She was there and then she wasn’t.”

“What do you mean she was there then she wasn’t?”

“She was there and then she wasn’t!” Diskant thundered, hands clenched, breathing hard.

“You need to calm—”

“If you tell me to calm down again, I’ll rip out your goddamn throat.” Diskant’s teeth lengthened, his fists unraveling so the tips of his claws could drop from his fingers.

Fucking shit.

Emory maintained a distance but allowed the Alpha wolf in him to rise. The calm, determined animal reached out to Diskant—an invisible thread extending outward, seeking correlation, attempting to bring the bestial halves of the men together. Although Emory couldn’t appeal to the other beasts inside Diskant—who, as an Omega, could change into any of the shifter races—he could communicate with the wolf inside the man. Since Diskant had been born inside of Trey’s pack centuries ago, there was a chance Emory could use their link to get Diskant to listen to reason. Wolves were united by history and ancestry, but the relationships created in childhood—when young males grew up together—were the hardest to break.

Remember who you are.

Diskant’s eyes changed colors—going from silver to green to gold—informing Emory the wolf was responding, rising above the others to heed Emory’s call.

Thank God.

“Did Ava have anywhere to go today?” he asked softly. “Do you know?”

“No.” The hard edge to Diskant’s voice was absent. “She should be here.”

“Here’s what we’re going to do.” Emory made sure it wasn’t an order, knowing he had to walk a tight fucking line as he moved toward Diskant and rested a hand on his shoulder. “You’re going to phone the guards posted around your building. If Ava went anywhere they’d have to have seen her, right?”

To Emory’s relief Diskant’s eyes became coherent, meaning the man was finally taking control from the feral creatures who attacked first and asked questions later. “Yes,” he said, pulling out his phone, “they would.” He glanced at the screen and cursed. “The fucking thing is off! I forgot to turn it on before I left the house. Son of a bitch!”

“While you call, I’m going to get dressed.” Emory hiked his chin in Mary’s direction. “Why don’t we leave the room and give my mate a bit of privacy?”

Diskant glanced at Mary, frowning as he realized where he was and what he’d done. He started to say something but must have decided against it, spinning on his heel to leave. Emory didn’t immediately follow, waiting until the Omega disappeared around the corner to look at his mate.

Emory walked to the nearby dresser to retrieve the clothing he’d stored inside. He yanked out a pair of jeans and a T-shirt, pulled them on and retrieved a matching pair of socks.

“Why don’t you get a bath and relax?” he suggested as he sat at the edge of the bed and yanked on his boots. “I’ll be back as soon as I can.”

“Why don’t you tell me what’s going on first?” She moved close, touching his back.

“I’m not sure.” He sighed, closing his eyes as her fingers breezed over his neck. “But something must have happened to Ava.”

“I kind of figured that.” She rested her hand on his shoulder. “Where do you think she went? Do you think she’s been hurt?”

“For Diskant’s sake I hope not. If something happens to her, there’s no telling what he’ll do.”

She glanced at the door. “He does seem to be a few sandwiches short of a picnic.”

He wanted to smile or laugh but the circumstances prevented him from doing so. The more he thought about it, the more his intuition warned him Ava had gotten herself into some serious trouble—trouble she might not survive or escape. If something happened to Diskant’s mate, the male probably wouldn’t last. They were bloodbonded, after all.

Connected in life and death…

As if the pack hadn’t already suffered enough.

He shook off what he wasn’t ready to consider. “I won’t be long.”

“I could come with you. Maybe I can help.”

He turned, staring at his mate. Even now she continued to amaze him. She’d been through so much but continued to worry for others.

He shook his head. “I want you to stay here. Calls have to be made and I need to find out what’s going on.” When she frowned at him he winked. “Don’t worry, sweetheart. That’s my job.”

He nuzzled her hand, breathing in her scent. If something happened to her he’d be as crazed as Diskant. She was his other half, the only person who would ever complete him. He wouldn’t survive the loss—he didn’t want to. He rose from the bed, pulling away from her grasp. As he walked from the room he braced himself. Until the pack arrived, he’d have to make sure Diskant didn’t lose his collective shit.

So much easier said than done.