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Mason barely slept after kissing Ash. It likely wasn’t the best idea, but he couldn’t help himself. He had met many attractive women in his life, but there was surely nothing like the mate attraction. It was a lot like a possession, a kind of magical occurrence.
He knew all about fated mates, of course. All shifters grew up with the idea in their heads, but it was only through complete random chance that a mate showed up in a shifter’s life. Many shifters ended up with mates who had not been ordained by fate since the odds of finding that person were probably one in a million.
He mulled it over the night after the kiss. She tasted like fresh fruit and jellybeans, sending a lightning bolt through his very soul. For that brief moment, it was like nothing else existed in his life, including all the bullshit accusations.
It was distracting. There was no doubt about that. Pleasantly almost, but Mason knew as an alpha that he couldn’t let anyone, even his fated mate, get in the way of the pressing issues. And those pressing issues barely waited for him to take his first sip of coffee early the next morning.
He grumbled in response to the knock on his office door, standing by the window that looked over the sweeping hillsides of the forest beyond.
Derek entered, a disgruntled look on his face. Mason sighed.
“Lay it on me,” Mason said, raising his mug to his lips.
“There’s been another attack,” he said curtly, leaning his head against the doorframe. “This time, there were humans there, Mason.”
“Fuck,” Mason said. “Where? When?”
“Just this morning, early. It happened in town. Shifter witnesses are saying they are from our pack.”
Mason began to grind his teeth. Ever since the rumors of his toxic leadership began to swirl, he had developed the nasty habit. That had led to some soreness in his jaw and, subsequently, his neck and shoulders.
The attacks were, quite literally, a pain in his fucking neck.
“I’m guessing the council is already on the scene?” he asked, finishing off his coffee and brushing past Derek.
“Yes, they have been for an hour now. I only just got word.”
“Do you know who?"
“Which agent?” Derek replied, following Mason.
“Yes.”
“No idea. Not anyone you have dealt with.”
They headed out together, with Mason driving. The local town wasn’t far from the shifter community. In fact, there were many businesses that shifters from Mason’s pack ran, generally in harmony with the humans. The shifters had experience keeping their secrets without having to completely disappear from the humans, but that was why they preferred having their own community where they could relax and be their authentic selves.
The sun was hidden behind a polished blanket of chrome-like clouds that morning. Mason parked right outside a forestedpathway a few yards from the town where the supposed attack had taken place.
“I need you to be my eyes and ears on this one,” Mason said, hopping out of the car. “Pay attention to how people respond when I’m not talking to them. People will reveal themselves quite quickly when they think they’ve gotten away with something.”
“Ten-four.”
Mason and his beta approached a swarm of people, some human, some shifters. His keen shifter nose could tell the difference. He could see the brown grass stained with blood.
He squared his shoulders and went toward the group. It was natural for him to lead, but that didn’t mean that he always wanted to. The issue with the attacks was grating on him, and then there was the whole Ash-Mate situation to deal with. He tried to center himself as he weaved through the collection of shifters and humans.
“Clear, clear the way,” Derek said, parting the sea of observers.
Some of the faces Mason knew from his pack. There wasn't anyone from the rival pack present despite the victim being one of their own. Mason hoped that wasn’t a sign they were formulating a plan to fight back.
“Where is he?” Mason asked Joshua, a member of his pack who had arrived at the scene first.
“He’s in the hospital right now. Critical condition. His throat was slashed, Mason.”
His gray-green eyes looked mournful. Mason didn’t pick up anything sinister there. Joshua was in his twenties, a sensitive lad. That was what he liked about him. There was trust and vulnerability there.
He stood at the center of the circle, avoiding the splashes of blood at his feet. Multiple sets of eyes bore into him. He took a deep breath and moved into alpha mode.
