Page 8 of The Night Wolf
“Traitor,” Gareth muttered.
For all the years that Gareth had been Alpha of the Lydon pack, he’d never brooked anyone challenging his leadership. But instead of fighting, he removed them from the pack. Most people would kill—not literally, though there had been a few close calls—to be a part of Lydon. They were one of the two richest packs in the country, with lands blessed by Mother Moon to be fertile and rich in resources. And Gareth took the challenge of maintaining them very seriously.
He deliberately kept the pack small, figuring that although the pack didn’t have many members, it was still strong. Gareth accepted people who had a talent the pack needed, a skill that would be useful. And there was never a shortage of people who wanted to be part of Lydon. Gareth’s wolf had already decided it was going to keep Sean, and Gareth was almost in agreement, but what could he bring to the pack? His wolf didn’t like that line of questioning and made its annoyance known by doing a little pacing of its own.
“You do know I get the final say, right?” Gareth muttered.
His wolf snarled at him.Himof all people! He wondered, not for the first time, at Mother Moon’s sense of humor. Taking two creatures, man and wolf, and merging them into one body, each with their own wants and desires. Usually they reached an agreement, and the man held sway. Sometimes, though, a wolf could become the dominant force in the body. Those people became vicious, preferring to conquer rather than negotiate. He’d run into many of those types, the ones who thought might made right. Fortunately he’d found the best way to deal with a situation was to simply buy the pack out, remove the Alpha, then put someone in charge that he could trust, who would then be a powerful ally.
“I wish you would tell me what you want. It would be much easier for me to understand.”
Images flashed through Gareth’s mind. All of them Sean. He could feel the wolf’s need to have the man close by, but beyond the pictures, he had no idea why. Perhaps if he meditated, he could commune with his animal and figure it out from there.
A light rap at the door, followed by a whispered “Alpha?” caught Gareth’s attention.
Gareth sighed at the sound of Caleb’s voice. It wasn’t as though he didn’t like the boy, but Caleb was… persistent in trying to curry his favor. More than once, Lyram had said he thought the pup had a crush on Gareth, but he knew better. “Yes, Caleb?”
The door opened and in walked his housekeeper’s son. At seventeen, he was small for his age. His birthday would be just before the next full moon, and the change would soon be upon him. Gareth made a mental note that he needed to be there for the boy’s first shift, because it wasn’t something to be faced alone.
Caleb favored his mother, and Daniella was a beautiful woman. She had startling deep brown eyes and long dark hair that she kept pinned back with a brooch given to her by her late husband three weeks before he died. Micah had gone snowboarding after the first snowfall six years ago. His body had been discovered at the bottom of a ravine, half-shifted. Gareth had found him when he sensed the intense pain. He rushed to the spot, but he was too late to help. Micah was already dead. Gareth hadn’t let Dani see her husband’s body, instead telling her that he’d been buried in accordance with their laws. No one should have to see the horrifying tableau Gareth had come across.
Caleb entered hesitantly, as he always did when he approached Gareth. He should have felt bad that any of his pack should be nervous around him, but he was pleased that it kept the boy from asking too many questions.
“That man you brought here. Is he… dangerous? You know, the guy in Dr. Frank’s infirmary.”
Gareth sat, then motioned to Caleb to take the other chair. “Why do you ask?”
The soft whoosh of the wheels across the hardwood floor of the Alpha’s home was the only sound. Caleb kept his gaze lowered, his breathing slow and steady. Though he tried to hide his nervousness, Gareth could hear the boy’s heart hammering.
“Is something bothering you, Caleb? Has someone said something?”
He glanced up quickly. “No, it’s not that. Just….” His gaze slipped toward the floor again. “I got a weird feeling when I was in the clinic. It’s dark and angry, but I don’t know if it’s coming from him or his wolf. I didn’t want to say anything to my mom because she worries when I get these… flashes, I guess.”
It was understandable that Dani worried. Raising a pup alone was hard, even though everyone in the pack stood ready to help. The thing of it was, Caleb’s father had been a seer. He got visions, usually at night while asleep. Everything he ever shared with Gareth came true with unerring accuracy. Dani worried that her son would never live a normal life if he’d received his father’s gift. Still, Micah hadn’t come into his abilities until he was well into his late twenties. Caleb had begun having visions the day his father died. Where most seers had no problems controlling their premonitions, Caleb’s manifested in nightmares. He woke up screaming, and more than once he’d had to be given a sedative by Franklin.
“Tell me what you saw.”
Caleb closed his eyes and took a deep breath. “I saw fire erupting from the ground, and he was walking out of it. Or maybe the fire was coming from him. His mouth dripped with blood.” Caleb scratched the back of his neck. “Well, I’m not really sure it was him. I couldn’t see his face because it was pitch-black. He stepped out, cinders and ash swirling around him. The sounds—shrieks and pleading—were so loud, I had to cover my ears, but then he roared and everything else was drowned out. I’ve never been so scared, Alpha.”
Caleb whimpered when Gareth pulled him close. Wolves, by nature, were social animals. As a pup, Caleb needed more socialization than adults, but he also had to be shown his Alpha cared about him.
Gareth touched foreheads with Caleb. “Shh. It’s all right. Everything will be fine. I promise.” They sat there, Gareth holding Caleb, until his packmate’s heart rate returned to normal. He stood and held out a hand. “What say we head over to the house and I’ll make us a sandwich?”
Gareth couldn’t help but chuckle as Caleb’s jaw dropped.
“But, Alpha… if you’re hungry, I can wake Mom. She’ll be happy to cook for you, and I—”
Gareth squinted at Caleb. “I’m not completely helpless, you know. Before I became Alpha, I learned to cook from two generations of my family. My mother and grandmother taught me how to make plenty of things, including Gran’s famous grilled ham and cheese. Thick slices of ham oozing with melted cheddar on toasted sourdough bread. As for the rest?” Gareth shrugged. “I’m pretty sure I’m capable of opening a can of tomato soup.” When he saw the dubious expression on Caleb’s face, Gareth clapped him on the shoulder. “I promise not to poison you.” He grinned. “Well, even if I do, you’ll heal.”
He wrapped an arm around Caleb’s shoulder and guided him to the kitchen. He did his best to keep his tone light, but worry plagued him. Caleb’s predictions had been mostly accurate. Was Sean, the man Gareth had told he could stay, a threat to the pack? And when Caleb had described what he’d seen, it triggered a memory for Gareth. One night, not long before his ascension to Alpha, his mother had sat him down and told him a tale of the night wolf. What she described—fangs larger than a man’s arm, with a face hidden beneath a dark shroud and a roar that would send any wolf’s heart skittering in fear—were very similar to what Caleb had seen.
He shook his head and tightened his grip a little. There was no such thing as the night wolf, and Gareth was letting his imagination run away with him.
SEAN LAYin the clinic, staring up at the ceiling. As beds went, the one he found himself in wasn’t the most comfortable, but it was a damned sight better than sleeping under a tree during a thunderstorm, or when the ice and sleet left him shivering.
He tried to sit up, but a wave of nausea rolled over him. He couldn’t recall ever feeling so weak. If Gareth hadn’t shared his energy, Sean had little doubt that he wouldn’t have survived his injuries. The question on his mind was, why had Gareth done it? Alphas didn’t help—they only took. Sean had seen enough of them to know the truth. They fucked females who were meant to be mated, claiming it to be their right to take the woman’s virginity. They hoarded the choicest of foods, ensuring they remained fat and healthy, even if their pack had next to nothing.
Gareth hadn’t seemed like that at all. His energy had been warm, joining with Sean’s own, enabling him to finally begin to heal. There’d been no force on Gareth’s part. He offered; Sean took. There wasn’t an effort to overwhelm him, but to work in cooperation. Sean had never experienced that before. What surprised him the most, though, was the power Gareth held. With as much as he gave Sean, there was still more—a deep wellspring that Sean could feel was untapped.
