Page 18 of Savage Games

She's been through enough.I can’t be the one who brings a council interrogation down on her head.Not when I have a chance here to get her life back.

I left my pack to help her deal with her abusive mate, to support her while she got brave enough to leave Rowan.I never realised that his alpha brother was just as bad.Maybe not physically violent, but just as much of a coward for turning a blind eye.

I’d assumed that once Rowan was gone, Maddie would be free to move home, and that Brad wouldn't want us under his feet anymore.

But I was wrong.This bully is enjoying keeping us both trapped within his territory, Maddie, by not allowing her to transfer packs, and me, because he knows I won’t leave without her.

"You don't really want to mate with me," I say to him, attempting a different tack."Your fated mate is out there somewhere.If we were together, you'd never find her.She'd be lost to you forever.Surely, you don’t want some extra land that badly?"

He stares at me like I’m an idiot.“Every alpha wants the strongest female around.It’s in our DNA.But if you’re still concerned, we could agree that our mating would only be temporary.”

My heart skips a beat."What do you mean, temporary?Mating is for life."

Fear grips me as he smiles, slow and predatory.Could he really be suggesting what I think he is?

A mating isn't just a ceremony or a mark, it's a soul bond, a joining that can't be undone without catastrophic consequences.The only way to make a mating "temporary" without causing grave injury to his own wolf would be...

Is he going to kill me?

Does he think I'd go along with this plan, knowing that he plans to off me as soon as he gets what he wants, a strong heir?

"What if in, say, a year's time, we agree to dissolve the bond if you still miss your home pack?Though it would be painful, you and your sister would be free to go wherever you desired."

I blink at him.He really has thought of every angle.Except wolves don’t leave their mates because of a little homesickness.Once marked, I’d develop an attraction to him, a bond.Like Stockholm syndrome times a thousand.And once the bond is formed, and our fates are intertwined, alphas, especially ones as self-centred as Brad, don’t voluntarily put themselves through the torture of separation.Shifters can die from the pain of a broken mate bond.

He’ll never let me go.Even more horrifying to contemplate, the bond might make me want to stay, and that’s what he’s banking on.

"It's not as easy as that, and you know it."

Without being true fated mates, it might not be as bad.But I have a mate now.As much as this would hurt me, I couldn’t do it to Wyatt.He doesn’t deserve it.

Maybe I should tell Brad that Wyatt’s mine, but something in my gut tells me to wait.

Who knows what he’d do?

"No, it wouldn’t be easy," he says thoughtfully, rubbing his chin as he stares around, also conscious that we’re out in the open."But I'll have power, money, and it’s the first step in getting back some of the land that my father lost in the last war.Land that Steel should be returning to us rather than hosting this farce of a competition to find a new alpha.Losing a Luna would be painful, but I’m sure I could manage."

The flippant way he says it is pretty unconvincing.

No alpha gives up power willingly, or the potential to have strong pups.But I’m not stupid enough to challenge him on it.Not now anyway.

I stare at the people milling around, enjoying the competition and the sunshine, unaware of the dilemma I’m in.None of their worlds are falling apart.It’s not fair.I should be cheering for Wyatt and celebrating my mating, not listening to this arrogant wolf and his despicable schemes.

"This is a pointless discussion.I'm not going to make it through anyway," I say, throwing my hands up and feeling defeated.Immediately, I’m contemplating forfeiting the whole competition and walking away.Or maybe feigning an injury, because that’s probably the only way Wyatt will let me bow out without asking too many questions.“Get someone else to do it.There are lots of ladies here looking for a mate.”

Brad rolls his eyes.“No.”His gaze locks on to mine, like a predator stalking their prey.“I need somebody who has an excellent incentive for sticking to our agreement."

Maddie.He’ll have her thrown in jail if I don’t go along with his plan.Or worse, and right now, she’s not strong enough and too scared to put up a fight.She can barely get out of bed and get dressed.How the hell is she supposed to battle an alpha who’s trying to ruin her life?

"There’s no way it would work, Brad."

Callum lifts his eyes from the clipboard in his hands, a she-wolf beside him running through a checklist with him, and glances in our direction.

A pit opens up in my belly as the world around me spins.

"You never know unless you try.And I really recommend you do.It’s what’s best for Maddie."

Brad follows my gaze into the trees.I can no longer hear Wyatt, but I can hear shouting and roaring in the distance.He must be close to finishing his race.

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