Page 10 of M.A.Y.A
Just as he began to rehearse his speech to Maya about mating and shifters, his Betas arrived. One by one, they appeared through the tree line and crossed the clearing in front of the safe house. All of them looked different, but they carried the scent of a dominant wolf. They were the most powerful in his pack, and they met each of the challenges required to achieve Beta status. They were loyal his people, and more importantly, loyal to him.
Alex came first, a small cooler slung over his shoulders with what smelled like meat and a variety of cheese. As Isaiah’s oldest, most trusted friend and pack member, Alex had always been the first to stand at his side.
Then there was Drayden with his ever-present backpack filled with his computer and security equipment. His long hair skimmed his collarbone and matched his vintage T-shirts that he always seemed to wear.
Sonya was next, and although it looked like she’d arrived empty handed, Isaiah knew she had more knives strapped to her body than an artillery. Her parents came from Egypt by way of Georgia, which made her one beautiful and deadly Southern Belle.
Lastly there was Nako, Sergei, and Cindy. Nako moved into his territory from Japan when he was thirteen, while Sergei’s parents were Russian scholars. Cindy on the other hand, was adopted from Taiwan by her distant relatives who were members of the pack.
“What’s with the five-alarm fire, boss?” Sonya asked.
He motioned for all of them to come closer, and they moved as a unit until they stood a few feet away from him.
Nako was the first to recognize the scent. His eyes went wide, and his fingers pushed back his jet-black hair. “Mated? Alpha, you’ve found your mate?”
Isaiah nodded, as the realization hit them one by one.
“Who’s the lucky wolf?” Cindy asked. She was the smallest of his Betas, but her voice was as commanding as the rest of his leadership team.
Alex chuckled. “I can’t wait until you explain this to them, Alpha,” he said.
Isaiah growled, low in his chest. He didn’t need anyone giving his new mate shit for being different. “Maya isn’t a wolf. She’s half human.”
“Half?” Sergei asked. He looked at Alex, then back at Isaiah. “What type ofhalfshifter is she then?”
“She’s half…robot. Cyborg? Automaton. Shit, I don’t know.”
There was a long pause, then his Betas burst out in laughter. All except Alex, who had a shit-eating grin on his face as if he was enjoying every moment of Isaiah’s unease. He hadn’t known until now that Maya was robotic, but he’d seen enough to guess something was different about her.
Sonya wiped a fake tear from her cheek. “Good one, Alpha. That’s hilarious. I didn’t know you were so imaginative that you’d come up with something like halfcyborg. Have you been watching theTerminatormovies or something?”
When he didn’t laugh in response, his Betas quieted. Their humorous expressions morphed into confusion.
“Wait, you’re not serious…” Nako said.
Isaiah looked back at the safe house. He wondered if his mate’s hearing would be able to catch this conversation out in the open field. Hell, there was so much he still had to learn about her. She was clearly superhuman to be able to fight against an Alpha wolf, but other than her beauty, intelligence and strength, she was a mystery. There was also the pull that already had him aching to go back to her.
He turned away from the safe house and faced his six pack members—the friends and fighters who stood by his side as he ascended into his position as Alpha of one of the largest and strongest packs in the U.S.
“Drayden found an intruder on our lands,” he said. “Alex and I went out to see if it was a hiker or a hostile entry. We found Maya. She was unconscious, without any clothes or provisions. The mating bond was instantaneous. Shit, it nearly drove me to my knees. I brought her here, and when she woke, we had…a conversation.”
He relayed the information about her journey through some mysterious portal. The world she claimed to come from. The torture she must have endured to be torn apart and built back together with mechanical parts. When he finished, his Betas were no longer smiling or laughing at him. Their expressions were hard.
“I can go back to the clearing to see if we can find any bunker or portal door that she mentioned and ensure its closed,” Drayden said. “If her story is true?—”
“It is,” Isaiah said. “At least she believes it. I didn’t smell any lie.”
“She’s part robot, Alpha,” Cindy said quietly. “She could probably lie, and you wouldn’t be able to tell.”
“She’s also my mate, whether you like it or not,” Isaiah said, snarling. “She has no reason to deceive me. Hell, shecan’t.” He turned towards Drayden. “Go. Take Nako. See if you find anything. If there is some sort of door, we want to hold off anyone else trying to get through.”
Drayden nodded. Then without another word, he and Nako turned on their heels and ran through the clearing into the tree line.
“Alpha,” Alex said slowly. “Isaiah. Look, I know she’s your mate, but you also have to think about the possibility that she’s a double agent. She claims she wants to destroy the bunker portal to protect or world, but we should still be wary.”
Isaiah recoiled at the thought of his mate being used as a tool to harm him. Logically he knew there was a strong possibility that she was a danger to his people, or to herself, but if that was the case and she was in trouble, then he’d do whatever he could to protect her.
“I’m still stuck on this alternate dimension business,” Cindy said. “I feel like we’re talking make-believe here.”
