Page 4 of The Night Wolf
THE ANTISEPTICsmell stung Sean’s nose. He knew immediately it meant he’d been captured again. His heart sank. He had no chance of escape this time. Whoever had him would force him to submit, and he no longer had the strength to resist. His life was over. Freedom had become a dream. Sean wished he could die, so no one could ever hurt him again.
“I know you’re awake,” said a deep voice to his right. It rolled over Sean like a caress. Soft, gentle, human. Not a wolf’s demand for him to obey.
Sean opened his eyes. A tall, beefy man stood before him. The power that radiated from him shook Sean to his core. There was no doubt in his mind that this man could force him to submit, and the thought terrified Sean. He’d tried so hard to stay away from other wolves since he’d fought off his parents when they tried to sell him into servitude to Ryker Desmond. The Alpha had fucking been drooling when he laid eyes on Sean. He’d dragged him into his home by the arm, then threw him on the bed. Never mind Sean had only been fourteen at the time.
“I told you before that one day you’d be mine,” he’d snarled. He tethered Sean tothe bed by a collar wrapped so tight around his throat, Sean could scarcely draw a breath. “Such a pretty thing,” he murmured, and he walked around Sean,letting his fingers skim over Sean’s back.
“Please, let me go,” Sean had begged. Not that it mattered. He had nowhere to go. His parents had fucking given him up to this pervert in exchange for money and power. His father was now Ryker’s Beta.
“This is your home now, little pup, and I am your Alpha. Never forget that.”
Sean could feel the wash of power flow over him, and the urge to show his submission pressed down hard on him. Still, he had refused to be weak. Not to this pretender.
He hadn’t even seen the blow coming. It snapped his head back, forcing the collar to tighten even more.
He gripped Sean’s hair and yanked hard, forcing Sean to look him in the eyes. “When the full moon rises, I’m going to take you in front of the pack. They’re going to know that I am the ultimate Alpha and you’re my pet.”
Pet? Oh fuck no. Sean might have been the low man on the wolf totem pole, but that didn’t mean he was giving his life over to anyone. After Ryker left to ensure all was ready for their joining ceremony, Sean set to work, doing anything he could to loosen the collar. By the time he was able to slip it off, blood had caked around it, his neck rubbed raw.
Cautiously he made his way out of the camp. He glanced at his house, could hear his parents inside talking about what they’d gained, never once mentioning having given Sean up. Well fuck them.
Ryker’s voice from behind him caused Sean to sink to his knees. “Did you really think you could get away?” He wrapped his big hand around Sean’s neck and squeezed, the pain nearly overwhelming as sharp nails gouged the wounds that scarred Sean’s flesh. Ryker pulled his hand back and licked his fingers, which were coated in Sean’s blood.
“Even this taste has me hungry for more,” he growled. He reached for Sean again, but this time Sean did the only thing he could think of. He kicked Ryker, shocking him into dropping Sean. Then he ran, despite Ryker ordering him to stop. Though his wolf wanted to obey, Sean would have none of it.
“Are you hungry?” the man asked, pulling Sean’s thoughts back to the present. “I’ll have them prepare you something light so you don’t upset your stomach. After you get your strength back, we’ll give you some proper food. If you shift, you can tell me what your favorite thing to eat is. I’ll make sure you have an unlimited supply.”
There wasn’t a command there. Whoever this man was, he wasn’t trying to force Sean to shift. He… actually seemed to care.
“My name is Gareth Blackthorn,” he continued as he reached out a hand to stroke Sean’s muzzle. “I brought you to the Lydon compound last night after I found you in our forest.”
Sean had to force himself not to cringe. He didn’t realize he’d wandered so close to someone’s territory. He hadn’t even noticed the signs through the haze of pain. Forget forcing him to submit, this Alpha was within his rights to kill Sean. He struggled to sit up. Maybe if he moved quickly enough, he’d be allowed to leave. Gareth stopped him with a firm but gentle hand to his shoulder.
“No one here is going to hurt you, I give you my word,” he said as he stepped back, apparently sensing Sean’s discomfort.
Sean had heard that before. More than one Alpha had tried to lull him in with false promises of safety, of protection, of family. It got to the point where Sean could smell a lie. But the Alpha who stood beside him with worry in his gaze? As far as Sean could tell, he wasn’t lying. When Gareth knelt down next to where Sean lay, the only thing Sean could see in those icy blue depths was concern.
“Can you shift? I know how badly you were hurt.” He continued to stroke a hand over Sean’s fur. “You have to be a very brave wolf to withstand such pain. Our doctor stitched your head and cleaned out your wolf’s pads. He was worried you might not make it. But he’s old and prone to exaggeration. Not a good combination.” Gareth winked. Actually winked! Did Alphas wink? Already Gareth was unlike anyone Sean had met before. “It would help if you could shift so he can check you out. You know, ease his mind. If you need help, you can draw on my power.”
No one ever offered to share their power with Sean. Everyone he’d ever met was about what Sean could do for them. They refused to give willingly of themselves, wanting only to take. Ryker had been the worst of the lot. What he couldn’t convince Sean to give him, he was determined to acquire by force. If Sean hadn’t—
Gareth placed a hand atop Sean’s head, pulling Sean away from the dark morass of thoughts. The slightest push of energy surged through him; it wound around his body, invigorating him. Sean had no doubt that as weak as he was, Gareth could have forced him to shift, then collared him, binding him to the Alpha. But this was different. It wasn’t like the others, who’d always attempted to force Sean to bend to their wills. There was a softness to the sharp edge of Gareth’s power. He didn’t force Sean to accept it—he just offered it. Tentatively, Sean’s wolf reached out for the energy, gratefully accepting whatever was offered.
The tiredness that had clung to Sean vanished, though it wouldn’t stay gone for long. Every last iota of energy was going to the parts of his body most in need of healing. He could feel strength returning to his aching limbs, the incessant headache he’d had since the beating by Ryker’s enforcer easing. He almost felt human again.
“That’s it,” Gareth encouraged. “Shift for me. You can do it.”
As his body began to morph, intense pain came with it. There hadn’t been agony like this since Sean’s first time. Even with Gareth passing still more energy to him, it hurt like hell. Broken bones had to reknit, bruised organs throbbed as they reformed, becoming human once again. Sean’s stomach lurched at the pain. He tried to sit up, determined to go in search of a bathroom where he’d expel all the nothing that was in his stomach, but Gareth held him in place with one hand on his chest.
“Relax. You’re almost there. Trust in me.”
Trust an Alpha? Ridiculous.But he had no real choice. He needed Gareth to help him or he’d die. He had a snowball’s chance in hell of completing this shift on his own. Already a crushing exhaustion sapped any energy he had felt earlier. Sean knew if not for Gareth, the transition would be unsuccessful, and it would kill him.
Gareth put his other hand atop Sean’s head and stroked his hair. He kept encouraging Sean, assuring him that he could do it. Thattheycould do it together. It took several minutes of intense agony, but finally the nausea receded and Sean found himself being wrapped in a thick blanket. Wolves rarely slept with anything but the lightest of covers, even in human form, as their body temperature ran hot. Oddly, Sean found himself shivering.
“I know you’re probably wondering why you’re so cold,” Gareth said softly, as he tucked the ends under Sean. “You’re sick. A high fever, Franklin says. He’s never seen a wolf get ill before. That’s one of the reasons he’s so worried.”
Sean’s skin hurt, as though shards of glass were being dragged along it. He knew beyond a shadow of a doubt, at least part of this was Ryker’s work. He’d done something to weaken Sean, to make him more pliable. There were no depths he would not stoop to so he could possess—no, Sean needed to stop thinking like that. If Gareth found out the truth, then he would take Sean, lock him away, and never allow him to see the sun or Mother Moon again.
