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TATTERED LOYALTIES
When the great war between the Redwoods and the Centrals occurred three decades ago, the Talon Pack risked their lives for the side of good. After tragedy struck, Gideon Brentwood became the Alpha of the Talons. But the Pack’s stability is threatened, and he’s forced to take mate—only the one fate puts in his path is the woman he shouldn’t want.
Though the daughter of the Redwood Pack’s Beta, Brie Jamenson has known peace for most of her life. When she finds the man who could be her mate, she’s shocked to discover Gideon is the Alpha wolf of the Talon Pack. As a submissive, her strength lies in her heart, not her claws. But if her new Pack disagrees or disapproves of fate’s choice, the consequences could be fatal.
As the worlds Brie and Gideon have always known begin to shift, they must face their challenges together in order to help their Pack and seal their bond. But when the Pack is threatened from the inside, Gideon doesn’t know who he can trust and Brie’s life could be forfeit in the crossfire. It will take the strength of an Alpha and the courage of his mate to realize where true loyalties lie.
CHAPTER1
He really needed to kill this bastard.
Gideon Brentwood rolled his neck, enjoying the slight crack that came when he stretched it just right. He had enough tension in his shoulders to make him feel as though the world rested on his shoulders. He didn’t feel like killing today, although the prospect of the fight slid through his veins and pumped adrenaline into his system.
His wolf craved the fight, the dominance.
The man just wanted this to end so he could get on with his day.
He was so freaking tired of doing this over and over again. They never seemed to learn.
The lone wolf in front of him had tried to lay claim to the Talon land and had challenged Gideon’s role as Alpha.
Stupid wolf.
The moon goddess gave him his title, but he had been fighting to keep it every day since.
The slice on his chest burned, but he shrugged it off. He was the Alpha, and this lone wolf couldn’t hurt him if Gideon put his head in the game. The fact that his headwasn’tin the game told him how tired he was of all the challenges.
He smelled the rotten odor coming from his opponent and heard his labored breathing. The wolf had been rangy and dying before he’d set his first paw on Talon land, and Gideon would be forced to end his life if the intruder didn’t back down. Goddess, he hated his duty, hated this role he’d been forced to take, but if he didn’t do it, who else would?
His cousin Mitchell and his brother Ryder stood back, their gazes on the fight. They wouldn’t be jumping in and helping unless the lone wolf pulled a trick or dark magic out of the air. He didn’t need them there and this wasn’t their fight, but his wolf appreciated their presence anyway.
The taste of blood was seconds away, and he knew, without a doubt, that he could either kill or maim the intruder—challenge or no, this wolfwasa coward—in front of him.
The first possibility weighed heavily on his mind.
The second would be par for the course.
“Yield,” Gideon growled, low, deadly.
The wolf yipped at him but didn’t lower his head fully, nor did he meet Gideon’s eyes or challenge him in that respect. Gideon wasn’t sure the wolf had enough energy to do so in the first place.
He let out a breath. “If you don’t yield, I’m going to have to kill you. You get that, right? You’re not strong enough to beat me, and I can’t let a wolf who challenges me go without punishment. You know our ways. If you yield, I won’t have to kill you.” It was a technicality, but one he’d greedily use if he needed to.
He was tired of the death, the pain, and the loss of the little parts of his soul that were stripped away with each kill, eachjustifieddeath. He’d killed the one man who should have protected him, and now he had to deal with the day-to-day responsibilities and consequences that came from that one decision.
It haunted him with each breath, each step he took, even though thirty years had passed since he killed the wolf who’d tried to kill them all.
Now Gideon was once again faced with a decision that might ultimately take the last piece of his soul away. It wasn’t as if he truly needed it. He was Alpha. He could function and rule without those facets of his psyche he’d once relied on and had thought were the most important parts of him.
Through absolute necessity, he had become a man who would not hesitate to kill and would make any sacrifice in order to keep his people safe.
The wolf in front of him growled again, and Gideon sighed.
There would be no retribution this day. No healing and forgiveness. He would do what he had to do in order to protect his family and his Pack.
He’d deal with the consequences later.
He always did.
