The Wolf's Surrender

CHAPTER 6



She was still very much aware of herself, and of the sensation of movement, but she was body-less, weightless. Mia felt like she was flying in the dark, headed somewhere very quickly. The sound of masculine voices drew her, growing louder as she sped toward them. It wasn’t long before she was surrounded by those voices, men arguing over the best way to go about...something.

Need to go back and get the girl...

Full moon on Tuesday, going to be a problem if it doesn’t happen soon...

Don’t care if I have to kill twenty wolves to get to her, I will...

Then she was surrounded by another voice, one she knew all too well.

Mia. I can feel you. I’m coming back to get you, sweetheart. Nothing will keep me from you. I know where you are. The shadows are waiting. You’re the key...the key...the key...

A pair of red eyes opened in the darkness, not Jeff’s, but something far older, and infinitely more dangerous. When they fixed on her, she felt as though she’d been plunged into ice water.

“No!” She cried out as her body bowed upward, slamming back into reality with incredible force. It reminded her of the times she’d awakened from dreams when she’d felt like she was falling, except that this time was far more frightening, and she actually hit bottom.

Though her eyes had opened, it took Mia a few seconds to process what she was seeing. She was on her back on the floor, three very pale faces hovering over her. Something was gripping her hand so tightly that it was cutting off the circulation. And she was freezing.

Mia flexed her own hand gently, and Jenner’s grip relaxed, though not much. She began to shiver as warmth slowly returned.

“What happened?” he demanded. “Jesus, Mia, you’re like ice!”

Mia blinked, trying to organize her scattered thoughts and impressions into something coherent. Finally, she said, “I guess seeing him triggered...something. I heard Jeff. In my head.” She looked into Jenner’s eyes, and the anger she saw there steadied her. He had promised to keep her safe. In the midst of all the madness, she believed he would at least try his best to honor his word.

“More than one voice, though Jeff’s was the strongest. They were talking about looking for me, getting me before the full moon. And then there were red eyes...” She trailed off, shaking her head. “That was when I got cold.”

“Gaines had red eyes?” Kenyon asked, obviously confused.

“Son of a bitch,” Jenner said flatly. He turned an accusing look on Kenyon. “What kind of a picture did you show her?”

Kenyon glowered back. “This isn’t my fault. Her link to him is obviously strong. He’s out there thinking about her, she saw his face, and that’s all it took.”

Feeling slightly woozy, Mia sat up. As though he had only just realized he’d been hanging on to it, Jenner quickly withdrew his hand. Still, he stayed on one knee beside her, close enough that Mia could feel the warmth radiating from him. It was welcome...right now, she felt as though she would never be warm again.

“What is it? What just happened to me?” she asked.

It was Kenyon who answered her, getting to his feet and sparing Jenner a single, scathing glance before focusing back on her with eyes that warmed instantly with worry and compassion.

“A werewolf bite is a powerful thing, Mia. It links people together, just as the initiation ritual links the bitten to a pack. Usually both things happen at the same time, since we take pains to ensure those who join us are willing and understand the process. But Jeff Gaines only got halfway. You’re linked to him mentally, just as wolf packs are able to communicate telepathically...and through him, to others he’s bitten. But if he doesn’t finish what he started by the full moon, that bond will be broken.”

“I want it broken now,” Mia said with a shudder. “And whatever you mean about finishing what he started, I think you’re all still assuming he wants to keep me alive. He doesn’t. He just wants to be the one who kills me.”

“He won’t,” Jenner said flatly. “No matter what happens, and whether you’re right or not, you’ll be part of a pack by the full moon.”

“That’s when I’m supposed to, um, turn into a werewolf, right?” she asked, trying not to grimace at how odd the words felt rolling off of her tongue. “I understand why I have to join a pack, but not how. Is there some kind of ceremony?”

Mia looked at the three men surrounding her, saw the light blush on Kenyon’s cheeks and the way he suddenly refused to meet her eyes. Jenner still looked angry. And Bane...well, Bane’s handsome face was tinged with regret. That bothered her more than anything. Apparently, what she’d already been through hadn’t been enough. There was more.

“What aren’t you telling me?” Mia asked, keeping her voice even, though she wanted to shout. She looked at each man in turn. “What do I have to do to get him out of my head?”

Bane cleared his throat. She hadn’t thought he was capable of looking embarrassed until now.

“Linking in, making a bond to another wolf or wolves permanent, isn’t just symbolic. It’s...ah...physical. The bite is just part of it.”

It was hard to miss the gist, especially when Bane dropped his eyes. Mia’s stomach did a slow roll, and she felt all the blood drain from her face. Still, she kept focused on Bane. She couldn’t look at the other two without suffering mortification so intense that she worried it would cause her to simply melt through the floor. “Are you saying,” she asked, her voice sounding hoarse and strange to her own ears, “that by the full moon I’m going to have to...to have to...”

Oh, God, she couldn’t even say it. It was the smallest of blessings that Bane didn’t make her. All he did was nod.

“I’m sorry, Mia. I know you didn’t ask for this. But that doesn’t change things. There’s no other way. It’s not—it doesn’t have to mean anything. It’s not marriage.”

“No, it’s just a mandatory one-night stand,” Mia replied, knowing her face was glowing some shade of volcanic red right now and barely caring. It was so ridiculous, in an awful sort of way. Having her pick of hot werewolves for one night sounded great in fantasyland. In reality, this was more than a little gross.

“Don’t think of it that way,” Bane replied. “Please. No one will force himself on you, Mia. Someone must initiate you by the full moon...but that choice is yours. Before that, though, we’d like to try and use your connection to Gaines to find him. We know that his connection to you will draw him here eventually, but it would be better for everyone if we could find him first.”

Mia nodded slowly, wearily. The thought of Jeff coming here, of him finding her and dragging her off, was nothing short of terrifying. It was the only thing that made the thought of having to sleep with a relative stranger manageable.

Jenner’s gruff rumble of a voice drew her attention away from her troubled thoughts, and she immediately flushed when their eyes met. If she had to choose, right this second, there would be no contest...

“I don’t like that you heard other voices. Ferals usually run alone. Smacks of throwing together a pack, which is forbidden.” His eyes darkened. “You can’t think of any reason why he’s hunting you in particular, Mia? He’s going to an awful lot of trouble just to catch and kill you.”

Mia simply shook her head, feeling miserable. What was she supposed to say? She doubted these wolves even knew about the shadows drawn to blood like hers. She didn’t even know if they were real. All she had to go on were a bunch of old warnings and stories...and the fact that one crazy feral werewolf had decided it was all true.

Trusting strangers went against everything she knew. Hiding her secret was too deeply ingrained. As was the belief, impossible to shake, that if these men knew the truth, they’d throw her out so quickly her head would spin.

Tainted, her grandmother’s voice whispered.

Jenner’s expression was full of doubt, but he was silent as he watched her. She could feel his gaze on her, warm as the sun, could smell the wonderful earthy scent he carried with him. They centered her in a way that nothing else ever had. It was wonderful...and worrying. Her intense awareness of Jenner was beginning to make her realize just how alone she’d been...and how little she wanted to return to being that way. But letting her guard down, letting herself crave his company, would leave her with nothing good. He’d pushed her away once already.

Jenner didn’t need her, Mia thought. And it was just as well.

“He was one of yours. Why did you cut him loose?” Jenner snapped out the question at Kenyon, who frowned and looked away.

“He was going by Jeff Markham then.” Kenyon sighed and ran a hand absently through his hair. “He made a play for Alpha. Fought dirty, too, but Tomas shut him down.”

Bane looked sharply at Kenyon. “The penalty to challenge and lose is death.”

Kenyon hissed out a sigh, and Mia couldn’t tell where his exasperation was directed.

“The ultimate choice falls to the Alpha, and Tomas chose mercy. Not that exile is such a mercy. Jeff’s link to the pack was severed. Tomas made it clear that if he ever saw his face again, he would kill him.” Kenyon shook his head. “Exiles aren’t the same as regular ferals. Much saner, just alone, which I guess can do things to you. But he hasn’t been gone from us long. The madness must have been there to begin with. You’re right, we should have just ended it. But it wasn’t my decision.”

“Those laws are there for a reason,” Jenner growled. “And now you’ve unleashed this on us. A feral with a makeshift pack loose on our territory, and an innocent woman being hunted to ground.” He slid an unreadable look at Mia. “He must think—”

Kenyon bared his teeth and growled, cutting him off. “It doesn’t matter what he thinks. He’s insane. The Silverback will take responsibility. And we’ll protect our own. She’ll be safe.”

Jenner’s lips curled. “Mia is not the Silverback’s responsibility.”

“Enough!” Bane’s sharp command made Mia jump. But his tone seemed to be enough, barely, to keep Jenner and Kenyon from ripping into one another. The Alpha’s eyes flashed as he looked between them.

“I think we’ve found out as much as we can from Mia right now, so you two can postpone your pissing match for when I don’t have to watch it.” He looked at Mia, gentling visibly. “I’d like to try to guide you in connecting with Gaines again, to see if we can find out where he is.”

She didn’t want to say yes. But she also knew that if she wanted him caught, there was little choice.

“When?” she asked.

“The sooner we can get him the better. Tonight.”

Mia nodded, though the thought left her cold. Still, the sooner the better. She now had no doubt he would come for her if she didn’t do something, and on her own there was no way she could fight him. He knew his own abilities. She was nowhere near comfortable with her own. At least, in working with the Blackpaw to find Jeff, she wouldn’t just be the damsel in distress on the sidelines.

He needed to be caught. She needed to stay sane and alive. Right now, that was all that mattered.

Feeling strangely better now that her situation had been laid out so plainly, Mia accepted Bane’s hand and got to her feet, then watched him issue his orders with the brutal efficiency of a general. Jenner hovered close by, even more intimidating than Bane because of his silence and the steely glint in his eyes. He had called himself a Lunari. She wondered what that was, though she had a feeling knowing might make his presence more unnerving than it already was.

“Go ahead and call Tomas,” Bane said to Kenyon. “Tell him what we know.”

Kenyon gave a quick nod. “He should be here himself before long. We’ll need to discuss Mia’s protection. She should be under constant watch.”

Jenner shifted and crossed his arms over his chest, fixing Kenyon with a piercing stare. “She is now. Are you questioning my ability to ensure her safety?”

The Silverback hesitated. “No, of course not,” he allowed. “I just wondered where you intend to keep her—”

“Keep me?” Mia interrupted, looking between the two angry werewolves. “Okay, one, I’m standing right here, so you might want to take that into consideration when you’re talking about me. Two, nobody is keeping me anywhere. Believe it or not, I can handle myself pretty well when I’m not alone in the woods with a guy who hasn’t mentioned he can grow fur and fangs. I appreciate the offer of protection, but if it’s going to turn into some kind of weird house arrest thing, then I’ll find somewhere to stay that’s less—”

“Intense?” Bane asked, a hint of a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

“Exactly,” Mia agreed. Bane’s grin, handsome though it was, did exactly nothing for her frayed nerves.

“Good luck finding that around here,” he said. “And I’m afraid that these two are your best bets. You don’t know all the things Gaines might pull. We do. A wolf will need to be with you here, Mia, whether you like it or not.”

“She stays with me,” Jenner said flatly. Mia looked sharply at him. His words surprised her. But more than that, his expression, which was nothing short of deadly, filled her with a strange combination of nerves and pleasure. Despite the fact that he’d already shown himself to be surly, difficult, and rude, a part of her was glad he seemed determined to keep up his role of protector.

She felt safe with him. And right now, with everything in her life shifting beneath her feet, that counted for a lot.

Kenyon opened his mouth to say something, but Bane cut him off neatly before he began. “She’ll be protected,” Bane said, eyes fixed on Kenyon. “The details will be worked out today. But this is our pack, our people’s territory. Careful how much you question a Lunari, Kenyon. He’s hunted far more frightening things than you.”

Kenyon didn’t look happy about it, but he didn’t argue. Instead, he stepped forward to take Mia’s hand and, to her surprise, give a small bow. “It was nice meeting you, Mia. Anything you need, I’m at your service. I won’t be far.”

She smiled at him, charmed, despite what sounded a lot like a low growl from Jenner’s direction. Kenyon seemed genuinely sweet, Mia decided as she watched dimples wink in his cheeks, and there was no question he was handsome. Unfortunately, he was nowhere near as interesting to her as the werewolf who glared daggers at him all the way out the door.

An awkward silence descended over the room as the door shut behind Kenyon.

“A*shole,” muttered Jenner. Mia widened her eyes at him.

“What is wrong with you?” she said. “He seemed nice enough.”

When neither Jenner nor Bane bothered to answer her, she decided it was time to remove herself from the raging testosterone still filling the room, lingering in the air like invisible fog...or a foul odor.

“Okay,” she said. “I’m going to go sit on the porch and get some air. If I scream, I’d appreciate it if one of you came out to check on me. Thanks.”

Shaking her head over the idiocy of men, which supernatural powers apparently did nothing to cure, Mia headed out the door.