Page 36 of The Secret Mate Society

Chapter16

Calder

"So Ethan's been hunting us," I said, my voice barely audible."All this time."

Patrick shook his head."Not exactly.According to what we found, he became obsessed with proving his father was killed by something supernatural.Got committed to a psychiatric facility when he was twenty-two after a breakdown.Lost his job at a newspaper in New York for pursuing 'monster stories' too aggressively."

"And now he's here," Trevor added grimly."In our territory, investigating attacks with the exact same signature as his father's murder."

The implications hit me like a physical blow.Ethan wasn't just some curious journalist.He was a traumatized survivor, hunting the creature that had destroyed his life.The same kind of creature that had just kissed him.

"Calder," Patrick's voice was uncharacteristically gentle."If he finds out what you are… what we are?—"

"I know," I cut him off, unable to bear hearing it spoken aloud.

Trevor placed a hand on my shoulder."The Council's already watching him.If he gets too close to the truth, they'll eliminate the threat.You know that."

My wolf snarled at the thought, a possessive rage surging through me that I barely managed to contain."They won'tfuckingtouch him!"The fierceness in my voice made both men step back.Trevor's eyes widened in fear and confusion.

“Boss?”he asked tentatively.“You okay?”

Fuck.They didn’t know Ethan was my mate and I sure as fuck wasn’t going to tell them now.But having an outburst like that wasn’t normal for me.Usually I was cool and collected, sometimes to my own detriment.Now both my Beta and Gamma were staring at me like they were trying to figure out if I’d gone rabid.I forced myself to take a deep breath, tamping down the protective fury that had nearly exposed everything.

"I'm fine," I said, carefully modulating my tone."Just concerned about Council overreach.They've gotten trigger-happy lately.You know how they like to make people disappear and ask questions later.It doesn’t seem right."

Trevor and Patrick exchanged glances, clearly not buying my explanation but unwilling to challenge their Alpha directly.

"It's just that..."Trevor hesitated, choosing his words carefully."You've been spending a lot of time with him.The pack is starting to talk."

Of course they were.Wolves were worse than high school gossips when it came to their Alpha's business.

"I've been gathering information," I said firmly."And so far, I've learned more than any of our patrols."

"And what exactly have you learned?"Patrick asked, his usual easy going manner replaced by something harder, more suspicious.

I moved to the workbench, needing to put space between us before my scent betrayed my inner turmoil."That he’s trying to start a new life here.It seems like he’s trying to get away from his past.But it keeps popping up at his job, so I’m assuming he can’t leave it alone completely."I turned to face them."And I know that he has information that could help us find the rogue."

"Or he could expose us all," Trevor countered."He's dangerous, Calder."

"To the rogue, maybe," I shot back."Not to us."

Patrick's eyebrows rose."You sound awfully confident about that for someone who's supposedly just gathering intelligence."

The implication hung in the air between us.They weren't stupid.They could sense something had changed."What I'm confident about," I said, choosing my words with extreme care, "is that I know how to handle this situation without the Council's heavy-handed tactics or a mutiny from my own pack."

“We’re not trying to mutiny on you,” Trevor said.“But that won’t stop us from being worried.”He stepped forward, lowering his voice."Calder, as your Beta, I have to ask...is there something more going on with this human?"

The direct question caught me off guard.My wolf surged forward, wanting to snarl, to defend my claim on Ethan and to punish my Beta for questioning my leadership.I gripped the edge of the workbench, my knuckles turning white."Nothing that will compromise the pack," I managed.

"That's not an answer," Patrick said quietly.

I met their gazes, seeing the concern there.These weren't just my subordinates, they were my closest friends, the brothers I'd chosen.They deserved some truth, even if I couldn't give them all of it."I'm...drawn to him," I admitted, the words feeling like they were being torn from my throat."More than I should be.But I have it under control."

The silence that followed was deafening.Trevor and Patrick looked at each other again, having one of those silent conversations that only lifelong friends could manage.

"You know what this sounds like," Trevor finally said.

"It's not that," I lied, the words burning my tongue."It can't be that."