Destined Mate

2

CHAPTER TWO

BLOOD LEAKED from my shoulders down my arms, the warm liquid coating my fingers as I took in the sight before me.

Pearl had lowered her head to the point it was almost touching the ground. She was cowering as Charles and the others had tried to make me do.

Charles and Bryson swayed on their feet. Josh and Fred were slumped at the bottom of the two trees closest to me where they’d been tossed.

I quivered as the adrenaline wore off and the reality of the situation washed over me.

I wasn’t sure how far Charles and the others would’ve taken this attack. I understood they had wanted to make me cower, and I’d refused. But to what end? My death? And why the hell hadn’t I submitted? Why had I fought back, making the problem worse? I had to be a glutton for punishment, but the thought of giving them more power over me didn’t sit right.

The blond and the two darkest-furred wolves hunkered down in front of me. They watched Fred and Josh get back on all fours and kept an eye on Pearl and the others. They bared their teeth, revealing they were fine with attacking again if needed.

The chestnut-furred wolf trotted over to me, his warm and somehow familiar indigo eyes examining me. They captivated me as I struggled to place where I’d seen them, but I came up blank. Despite Zeke leading the Oregon territory, I rarely associated with wolves outside my pack members. Of the few I had met, I would’ve remembered eyes like those.

He huffed and shook his head as if completely disgusted by what he saw.

Now that was a look I recognized. Everyone in my pack looked at me that same way. Like they couldn’t believe someone could have such weak magic.

He sniffed me, then gently nudged me with his head. Pain rocketed through my ribs, and I gasped and jerked away.

Flinching, he hurriedly moved back and flicked his head up, trying to communicate with me. He wanted me to stand.

Sitting here all night wasn’t an option, so I gritted my teeth and slowly climbed to my feet. More suffering enveloped me, but somehow, someway, I got onto two legs, each breath labored.

I looked down, cataloging the injuries I could see. As I’d suspected, my shirt was in shreds and drenched in crimson. The bites on my shoulders were deeper than I’d imagined and would take a couple days to heal, even with my shifter magic. My body stung and ached, a combination I’d never experienced before, and my suffering increased as the adrenaline wore off.

Charles whimpered and stepped toward me, and even though I wanted to flinch, my body remained still. I locked eyes with him again. I had to stop doing that, but I physically couldn’t force my gaze away. It was as if something inside me had taken control, and I was at its mercy.

Charles emanated a strangled, angry noise—a warning.

The blond wolf sidestepped between us and growled at Charles, forcing him to drop to all fours and submit again.

The chestnut wolf huffed, and now that I wasn’t locked in some demented power struggle with Charles, I turned my attention to him. The wolf jerked his head behind us in the direction from which we’d all come.

“Do you want me to head that way?” I asked.

He nodded and jerked his head again.

I wondered if these wolves were from the Southwest pack, but I didn’t care. Even if they were, they’d helped me, which was more than my own pack had ever done, and they were trying to communicate with me with growls and barks, showing me some respect.

I would use them for help as long as they were willing, though once I got home, I’d be on my own. But Theo, my best friend and the alpha heir would be there and have some influence, so things might not be quite so dire.

My knife had fallen to the ground during the attack. There was a little blood on the tip, confirming I’d hit someone before they’d teamed up and jumped me. I bent down to retrieve it, and blood rushed to my head, causing the world to spin. My ribs screamed in protest, and bile inched up my throat.

The chestnut wolf grunted as he ran to me and picked up the knife with his mouth. He then trotted toward our pack neighborhood.

Standing upright, I bit the inside of my cheek, trying to focus so that I wouldn’t vomit. Taking a small step forward, I closed my eyes and waited for the discomfort to intensify, but the movement wasn’t as bad as bending over. Nothing below my waist hurt, so there was that.

I took slow and steady steps, following the chestnut wolf.

The three strong wolves formed a barricade behind me, growling softly as if they expected Charles and the others to attack. My pack wolves stood in place while I shuffled away, the chestnut wolf slowing to walk by my side.

An owl hooted close by while a larger animal—I guessed a bobcat from the sound—stalked around near us. Nature was back in full swing as if nothing almost life-altering had occurred.

I couldn’t deny that things were getting worse between me and my pack. That was why I was determined to maintain a job outside of pack life—so I could save up and get the hell out of there. The more I refused to submit, the more determined they were to break me. The cycle was becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy—as if I had a death wish.

I didn’t. I wouldn’t fight against them nearly as hard if I did.

The chestnut wolf padded leisurely beside me, keeping my pace and not pushing me to move faster. Judging by the way he held the knife in his mouth and scanned the area for threats, I guessed he was a skilled fighter.

When the trail I normally took home appeared, I moved to the right, but the wolf swiftly moved in front of me and pointed his snout to the left.

Fuck me. My blood cooled as the enormity of the situation settled over me. He was leading me toward Idaho. The territory of a royal-advising alpha whom my alpha couldn’t stand.

“Uh…my pack is this way.” I tried to lift my arm, but I’d barely shifted it off my chest before my ribs panged as if someone had kicked me. I placed my hand back on my shoulders, covering my bare chest.

The wolves probably thought I was stupid for protecting my modesty. Shifters usually weren’t bothered by nudity, but I was, mainly because I’d never shifted.

He shook his head and motioned in the opposite direction.

When I didn’t move, he planted himself in my way, making it clear he wouldn’t allow me to go the way I wanted.

Normally, I’d be willing to fight him, but not after what I’d gone through. He’d have me down within seconds. Begrudgingly, I turned left and set out again, with him following close behind me.

I didn’t know this trail since I’d never ventured to this side of the recreation area. The river ran through it, and it was most definitely too close to the Idaho state line. I had to watch my steps more closely, although my wolf side was strong enough to make me agile.

As we moved farther from my pack lands, cold tendrils of fear unfurled throughout my body. Even though these wolves had saved me from my pack, the closer we came to the state border, the more I’d pay for this misadventure when I finally went home. Charles, Pearl, and the others would surely tell our alpha their version of what had happened.

There was little I could do now, and I continued to force one foot in front of the other, playing Kelly Clarkson’s “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You)” in my head, focusing on the lyrics. I had to believe they were true. I wasn’t dead, so I’d survive. I had to.

As soon as we were close enough to hear the rush of the Snake River, the distant pounding of wolf paws hurried toward us. My heart clenched, and I glanced at the wolf beside me, trying to gauge whether he was alarmed. When he didn’t tense or glance behind him, I took a slightly deeper breath. “Are those friends of yours?” I didn’t know what to call his companions. They all emanated strong power like an alpha, but they were together. I wasn’t sure if they had a superstrong pack or if four packs were close enough for all their alphas to be friends. That would be rare.

He nodded, not breaking his leisurely pace.

I couldn’t figure out why these four wolves were helping me. Normally, wolves minded their own business, but for whatever reason, they had come to my rescue.

We stepped through the trees and walked down to the rocky embankment. A canoe had been pulled onto the shore, and four sets of clothes were scattered around it, indicating the place where they had stripped to shift.

The chestnut wolf brushed my leg, then dropped my knife at my feet. If they were planning to hurt me, he wouldn’t have given me back the weapon. Although, considering how strong they were, I didn’t stand a chance against them even with it.

When the other three wolves ran between sagebrush bushes and toward me, the chestnut wolf gently picked up a shirt, jeans, and underwear with his teeth before rushing back into the tree line.

I raised my brows. Shifting in private was definitely not the norm in my pack.

The ebony-furred wolf trotted over to me and sat beside me with his body turned toward the tree line, keeping watch as the other two shifters followed the chestnut wolf, grabbing their clothes and running in the same direction.

With his attention diverted, I examined the ebony wolf. He was larger than any wolf in my pack, including Zeke. Beside my five-foot-ten-inch frame, he came to my waist, and his fur was gorgeous, the color of the night sky.

Twigs snapped, and I glanced back to where the wolves had disappeared. My jaw dropped.

The most handsome man I’d ever seen was marching toward me.

He was tall, even by shifter standards, coming in at perhaps six and a half feet. I knew exactly which wolf he was from the messy chestnut hair that fell over his forehead and his indigo eyes, which appeared lighter against his sun-kissed complexion. My eyes lowered, taking in his scruff, and dropped further to his shirtless body. His lean, muscular form was stunning…not too muscular, but definitely not fat, and I wanted to touch the curves of his muscles. Jeans hugged his body, but I had no doubt the lower half was just as enticing as the top portion was.

“You can go and shift, Miles,” he said as he strolled over, his white shirt in hand.

Miles gingerly took his clothes and ran off to join the others. My focus, though, stayed on the sexy man standing in front of me.

His forehead lined as he scanned me. “How much pain are you in?” The concern was foreign to me, especially coming from someone as strong as he was.

I glanced down at my injuries. My hands were covered with drying blood, and soon, they’d be sticky. “I’ve had better days,” I replied dryly. “But it would’ve been worse if you and your friends hadn’t helped me, so thank you.” I swallowed, my throat suddenly parched. “I really need to get back to my pack. I’m sure Charles and the others are already telling my alpha everything, and, well, he won’t be happy with me.”

Brows furrowing, he stared into my eyes. “He won’t be happy with you? What about them?”

This was a conversation I’d never dreamed of having. “Pack hierarchy. I’m the weakest of us all, so…”

His eyes glowed, and his voice turned gravelly. “Wait. This behavior is normal? They’ve done this bullshit to you before and gotten away with it?”

More power radiated from him, and I lifted my chin, not liking the way he was speaking to me.

The blond and brown-haired men joined us.

“Bodey, chill,” the blond said. His hair was longer than Bodey’s, with waves that fell into his eyes. He had a similar build, just a bit smaller and shorter, but his cobalt eyes were jarring. “She’s been through a horrible experience at the hands of her own pack members, so back off, douche canoe, and don’t freak her out more.” He winked at me. “I’m Jack, by the way. And you are?”

My face warmed. “Callie.”

“Flirting with her won’t help.” The second dark-haired man rolled his eyes and lifted his hands as he approached me like I was a timid animal. He was almost as tall as Bodey but leaner. His dark-brown eyes matched the shade of his goatee, and they were full of concern. He gently touched my arm, my blood-streaked pale skin contrasting with his tanned hand. He sighed. “We need to clean your wounds before they get infected.”

I hated the attention and, worse, that they were treating me like a delicate flower. I didn’t know how to react, especially when my own pack treated me with malice. “I’m fine. I should head back home. I need to tell the alpha my version of tonight before he won’t listen.”

“Just link with them.” Jack tapped his head. “Tell him you’re with the royal advisers from the other four territories. We’ll back your story.”

Shit. Now it made perfect sense. These four were none other than Bodey Valor, royal adviser of Idaho, Jack Landry, royal adviser of Washington, and Miles Harper, royal adviser of Wyoming, who had just gone to change, and that meant the man trying to take care of my wounds was Lucas Barret of Montana. They were each the strongest alpha in the state they represented. I hadn’t thought all four of them could be from the same pack, but I hadn’t expected this. They were supposed to be self-absorbed troublemakers, per Zeke, but they were the only ones who’d ever helped me in my entire life.

Zeke was the fifth royal adviser, based out of Oregon, but considering how close-knit these four were, he was the outsider.

I wrapped my arms tighter around myself. “I can’t link with them.” Now the four of them would decide I wasn’t worth the effort. They’d realize how weak I was and finish what Charles had started.

Bodey tilted his head. “What do you mean, you can’t pack link? The alpha shut down his connection with you, and you can’t communicate with him?”

I wished that was the problem. I shook my head. “I’ve never been able to pack link, at least from what I can remember. I don’t remember much from before my pack took me in when I was a young girl.”

Lucas mashed his lips together. “Well, you have to submit and acknowledge the alpha as yours.”

“Dumbass.” Jack snorted, but it lacked humor. “I’m sure they made her.”

“They did, fairly soon after I came here. When I couldn’t pack link with them immediately, they thought I needed time to adjust, but it never happened. Then with my not shifting…” I trailed off and shrugged.

Bodey’s eyes widened. “That’s why you didn’t shift when they attacked you. We were wondering.”

My face flamed, and I averted my eyes to the ground in embarrassment.

Silence descended until the fourth guy—Miles—joined us. The moon shone down on him, emphasizing his gorgeous bronze complexion. He was two inches taller than me and thicker than the others. He ran a hand through his short ebony hair, and his dark-green eyes were full of kindness.

But I wasn’t foolish. These four men seemed kind, but they could take me down and anyone else who stood in their way. My wolf could feel it.

Nerves buzzed hard under my skin. The breeze picked up, and I shivered.

Bodey held out his shirt. “Here, do you want to go somewhere and put this on? Your shirt is ruined.”

“Thank you.” I had no clue why Zeke hated him so much. He was kind and helped me, even though he didn’t have to. “But I need to get back before it gets worse. They’re gonna want to know where I am.”

My cell phone dinged. Grimacing, I removed it from my back pocket and glanced at the message.

Theo: Where are you? I’m at your house, and you aren’t here. Charles is telling Dad what happened. He’s livid that you were in the canyons and attacked them. Get home now, and I’ll protect you as much as I can.

I lowered my phone and turned to the trees. “Thank you for everything, but I have to go.”

I’d taken only a few steps when a gigantic, calloused hand gripped my upper arm.

Bodey growled, “You aren’t going anywhere.”