The Midnight Prince

County Road 150

(Flint)

Chance pinches the back of my arm, snapping me out of my daze. “Hi-um, I’m Flint. It’s nice to meet you.” I stumble, and Drago immediately starts belittling me. Really Flint? You’re making us sound like a damn fool! Okay, take a deep breath. Remember, you’re the Alpha. I’m the Alpha.

Natalie looks me up and down like I’m a piece of meat, amber eyes burning my silhouette into her memory. “Yeah, my brother just said that.” She bites her lip. Fuuck, I’d kill a whole damn army for one taste of that lip. Drago breaths, his lust making it terribly difficult to keep from getting hard in front of everyone. “I’m Nat. Aren’t you hot in those clothes? I mean where did you think they were sending you? The White House?” She uses a filthy hand and creates a sun visor to see better. The blood caked onto her knuckles is already scabbing over, a wound so small it will be healed by the end of the day.

My eyes narrow at her. Does she really think just because we’re mates she can talk to me like that? She doesn’t have the slightest respect. “And what would you have me dressed in? Leather chaps and a cowboy hat?”

Nat smirks, much to her brother’s obvious irritation and embarrassment. “Only if you don’t wear anything under the chaps.” She winks seductively, flicking her tongue over the cut on that bottom lip, and it’s an effort to fight the flush threatening to show on my cheeks.

Chance covers her mouth to hide a laugh, sparking even more anger from me. “So what made your cousin so upset with you that she’d put a snake out there?” The quip is supposed to be a question but sounds more like a sneer.

Natalie leans against the fence and her horse comes up to affectionately nuzzle the back of her arm. “She’s jealous that I’m better at riding than her.”

“And what makes you so sure you are better than her?”

“Well I could show you how good I am if you’d like?” She gyrates her hips slightly, letting me know she’s not talking about horses. Her arrogance is annoying. If she’s so annoying, why are you turned on right now? Drago points out, laughing at my confliction.

“Jesus Christ Nat, do you have any idea who that is you’re messing with? I mean honestly have you lost your f*****g mind?” Dylan continues scolding her but she never breaks her gaze away from me, those molten eyes exploring my frame. I do the same with her. Natalie’s tall compared to the average woman, taller than Kaylee. Her figure resembles an hour glass whose bottom is just slightly wider than the top, a tight army green tank top not leaving much to the imagination as her cleavage spills out of the top. I want to be buried between those two mountains, a panted voice echo’s from within and I beg Drago to stop drooling.

My eyes move past her chest and fall on the narrow waist below that turns out into wide hips. Thick thighs lay under those seemingly painted-on jeans, and finally finishing my exploration at her tan cowgirl boots.

Going back up, Natalie’s face isn’t soft feminine curves, it’s sharply defined cheek bones are crowned with highly arched brows, as if in a perpetual state of “f**k off please.” She’s got an excellent resting b***h face. Drago snickers. Long, black hair rolls in messy waves down just past the peak of her breasts. Dirt and twigs are tangled throughout and my fingers twitch with the desire to pull them out for her.

Natalie gives me a a questionable look and turns abruptly to climb over the fence. “Of course I know who he is, that’s the guy that’s going to watch me get rid of the rogues for him.” She drops down onto the arena ground with a poof of dirt around her feet. The horse that had been waiting for her moves with her, keeping right next to its rider. The animal is a rich gold, similar to Kaylee’s honey colored hair, with a white mane and tail. “Good girl Tilly, that’s a good horse.” Nat praises, giving her a few hard pats to her long, muscular neck.

Tilly seems to find great comfort in the presence of her rider, which is odd. Usually prey animals can smell the wolf on us and react negatively out of fear. I wonder how Natalie and her pack have found a way to create bonds with them.

A young man comes jogging up the path towards us. “Dylan! We have a situation over on County Road 150 by Rodgers creek. They reported an injury over the radio. Sounds like it was another attack.”

Dylan bounces into action, immediately moving to the nearest dirty pick up truck. “Wes, give me your radio. I’m heading there now send some patrols to search the area. Is that 150 N or south?” He jumps into the driver’s seat, revving it to life with a key already left inside the ignition. “Flint, can you send your men that way? Tell them head out the main drive and follow the road west down to the first four way, then follow 150 N until they see a bus and some trucks.”

Without skipping a beat, I whip my phone and call Tyler, giving him those exact instructions. I climb into the truck with Dylan, adrenaline pumping as my mind and body tense, readying for a fight. “Chance let’s go!.” I turn around to find a window pane and.. there’s no backseat. “Um-“ I start but Chance tosses herself over the metal bed wall and pats the side without hesitation.

“Wait, what the f**k?” Nat shouts as we take off down the driveway without her.

The drive is bumpy and hot, the 19-whatever model Chevy has no ac, the only relief being the hot air billowing in from the rolled down windows.

“What are we heading into Dylan? I won’t send my men into a corn maze to be murdered.”

Dylan furrows a brow and shakes his head. “There won’t be anymore blood shed today. These rogues, they attack like coyotes. Picking off my people when they’re alone or easy targets. We had a crew of teens in that field today de-tasseling the corn. They do it for a summer job. I’m guessing one of them wondered away from their line and a rogue hiding out in the corn got to him. f*****g mutts.” He growls in frustration and turns a corner sharply, sending poor Chance tumbling across the bed.

“Watch it! Young lady back here!” She yowls like an angry cat and I bite my tongue to keep from scoffing. Young lady my ass, more like feral animal.

“Sorry.” Dylan grumbles. We approach a green bus parked along the side of the road. Behind it are two more trucks and one of the SUVs we bought to drive my pack in. Dylan shuts the engine off and I can hear the agonizing screams coming from inside the line of corn.

Just as we prepare to go into the corn, a young boy is brought out, carried by three other boys and an adult male.

Dylan moves to be next to the kid and I follow, Chance at my heels.

The adult speaks first. “Alpha, Trenton was attacked. By the time we heard the screams and realized he had wandered, they had already left.”

“Go, find the scent and bring me the f*****g rogue that did this!” I shout to my pack, who without hesitation start towards the field.

“Wait! You will all get lost in there. Those rogues know the fields better than you, they’re probably already out and into the next one. Our crops go on for miles, with patches of thick woods between them. I won’t feel safe sending your men into them without gps on ‘em. We can get to that tonight.” Dylan tells me and I signal for them to wait, much to my annoyance.

“Alpha Dylan, with all respect, we live in the biggest wilderness left in the US, I think we can handle a corn field.”

Dylan tears the boy’s blood and sweat soaked shirt off, revealing three deep bite wounds on his belly. The kid screams again in horrific pain, begging someone to make it stop.

“The attacker would’ve ripped the poor kids guts out if someone hadn’t stopped them..” Chance murmurs beside me. “Flint, can you help him? Like Jade?”

I shake my head no, despair roiling in my gut like a bad meal. “You know I don’t have the ability to do it, I wish I did. He’s so young.” I was around his age when my father kidnapped me and I had to endure the worst months of my life. I’d do it ten times over if it meant I could take away this poor kid’s pain.

The wound closest to his belly button starts pouring blood and Dylan puts his hand on the bite, but blood spills between his fingers. “We need to get him to the house, now!”

I shed my shirt off and give it to Dylan. The sun instantly starts beating down onto my exposed, paled skin. “Use this for the bleeding, it’s probably the cleanest thing we’ll find. Let’s get him in the truck.” A few of the boys help Dylan and I get him laid gently in the bed of Dylan’s vehicle. “Meet back at the house, we’ll get those gps’ later and find the son of a bitch.” My crew nods and climbs back into the van, looking like a clown car.

Dylan gets into the driver’s seat and I sit in the back with Chance and Trenton. Dylan speeds down the country road, avoiding the potholes and patches of gravel with precision.

“Trenton you gotta hold on for me, please? I just got here and haven’t even got to meet anyone yet.” Chance speaks gently to the boy, and for the first time, he seems to be aware of something other than the pain.

“Are you an Angel?” He asks, reaching a bloody hand up to her face.

“That’s right Trenton, I’m the Angel that’s gonna kick your butt all the way up to heaven if you don’t don’t hold for me, okay?”

Trenton laughs once and winces. “It hurts so much, how can it hurt so much?”

Chance wipes the tears from the boys face. “It’s going to hurt a lot, but the good thing is you’re strong. You’re a wolf, and wolves don’t give into the pain, they fight it. Can we fight the pain together? Squeeze my hand as hard as you need to, we’re almost there.”

She holds his hand until we pull into the driveway of the main house, met by a doctor and three different women ready to go to work on Trenton.

They disappear into the house together while Dylan follows, barking orders and different things that need done.

Chance and I stand together in the aftermath of everything that’s happened, unsure of what our roles should be.

Clearly forgotten and left to our devices, I turn my sister, whose new outfit is ruined and her hair already attempting to rise to its original volume. Placing a bloodied hand on her shoulder, I speak softly. “Hey, you did really good with that kid back there. You kept him calm, and awake. I’m proud of you.”

She smiles weakly at my compliment and motions to the door. “Think they have air conditioning in there?” She asks sarcastically.

“I don’t know but if I stand out here much longer I’m going to fry.” I chuckle and we start towards the house together.