Page 41 of Wolf Revealed

“Everett is our older brother. Our very protective older brother,” Lark explained. “He’s also the top beta of our pack and our dad’s—our alpha’s—lieutenant.”

“Huh.” From where she sat on the other end of the couch, Khaki’s brow furrowed in confusion. “Being a beta werewolf must be different for you than for us.”

“How so?”

“For us, alphas aren’t simply a werewolf in charge of a pack,” Khaki explained. “They’re a different kind of werewolf. They’re stronger, faster, and typically more aggressive. It’s actually unusual to find more than one alpha in one place. Our pack is unique that way. Everyone but Carter is an alpha. Betas are smaller werewolves who depend more on their pack for protection than on their strength, fangs, or claws.”

Now, it was Lark’s turn to say, “Huh.”

On the other couch where she was sitting, Violet looked equally stunned.

The things Khaki just told them defied everything Lark knew about werewolves. Clearly, she needed to reconfigure her way of thinking.

“You said everyone in your pack is an alpha except for Carter,” Lark said. “Does that mean he’s a beta?”

Since Carter was outside at the moment, she couldn’t ask him.

Khaki laughed. “Definitely not. Carter’s an omega. He’s strong and fast like an alpha, but has a few pesky control and anger management issues. Or he used to. Thanks to his soul mate, he’s come to grips with his omega werewolf.”

If Lark thought she was baffled before, it was nothing compared to how fast her head was spinning now. In her world, omegas were loners and would have been exiled from a pack. They were dangerous and unpredictable, and they certainly didn’t have soul mates. Well, as far as she knew, anyway.

“So, when you say Everett is overprotective, does that mean there could be friction between him and Mike?” Connor asked with a frown. “Do we have to worry about them getting into a fight?”

“I hope not, especially since Mike was the one who rescued Kal,” Lark said with a sigh. She loved her older brother, but sometimes he could be a pain in the butt. “I’m not sure what he’s going to say about me trying to rebuild a relationship with Mike, though.”

“Everett will come around as soon as he sees how good you and Mike are for each other,” Violet promised. “And how much Kal loves having his father in his life.”

“I hope you’re right,” Lark murmured. “We already have enough to deal with at the moment without stressing about that, too.”

“You shouldn’t worry so much,” Jasper interrupted as he came back from the kitchen with yet another sandwich piled high with fresh-sliced turkey and cheese, and sat down on the other couch with Violet. “If Everett causes trouble, Mom will set him straight. She’s still fond of Mike, even after all this time, and everything that happened.”

Khaki looked at her in surprise. “Your parents knew Mike back when you were dating?”

She nodded and sipped her iced tea. “Mike and I talked to my parents and FaceTimed, too. Of course, my parents couldn’t reveal we were werewolves, which didn’t make my father very happy. But Mom liked Mike immediately. It was really hard on both of them when Mike called to tell them what he believed happened to Kal and me. They hated going along with the lie.”

The memory of Mike contacting her parents so he could tell them their daughter and grandson were dead was heartbreaking, even if it hadn’t been true, and Lark swallowed hard.

She was trying to come up with something to say to fill the silence filling the room when Connor’s phone rang. He thumbed the button and held it to his ear as Carter walked into the house. Lark resisted the urge to listen in on Connor’s conversation even as she wondered if it was Mike on the other end of the line. Even without eavesdropping, she could tell something was wrong from the way Connor tensed.

“What is it?” Lark asked worriedly, frustrated when Connor held up a finger to wait until he was finished. She forced herself to be patient and not listen in on the conversation. Just because a werewolf could hear everything didn’t mean they should. In her pack, it was considered rude to do that. Besides, what if Connor were talking to his fiancée or something?

After what seemed like an eternity, Connor finally hung up and looked at her. “Mike and the other guys ran into some trouble, but they’re all okay. They’re also pretty beat up, so they might look a little rough. They’ll be here in a few minutes, and he wanted you to know so Kal doesn’t freak out.”

Lark’s heart began to pound even as she tried to remind herself Mike was okay. Still, the idea that he’d been hurt at all was hard to handle.

The next few minutes of waiting were agony, and when Lark finally heard a vehicle pull into the mansion’s driveway, it was all she could do not to run outside. But just as she reached the front door, Kal came bounding down from upstairs with Tuffie, eyes wide with excitement.

“Dad’s home!”

Lark picked up Mike’s scent—and his blood—the moment Khaki opened the front door. Carter and Connor were out the door like a shot, and Lark caught Kal’s hand before he could go after them.

“I want you to stay in the house with Violet until I tell you otherwise,” she told him, then turned to hurry outside after everyone else. Inside, Kal was calling for an explanation, but she ignored him, trusting her sister to help.

Lark slowed in confusion when she caught sight of Carter and Connor helping Mike, Xander, and Hale out of a DPD police SUV. Where was Trey, and why hadn’t Mike and the others come back in the SWAT SUV they’d left in?

The moment she got a better look at Mike she stopped worrying about details. He looked bruised, bloody, and exhausted. Xander and Hale didn’t look much better.

“I’m fine,” Mike promised as Lark moved over to slip under his right shoulder to help him walk while Khaki did the same for Xander.