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It was almost impossible to get this close. If they hadn’t been expecting someone from Cupid’s Pack, it would have taken weeks, maybe even months, to figure out the rotating guard schedule. The Sovereign Pack works hard to keep everyone away, which only makes me suspicious.
And drives home the fact that I can’t trust them with my mate.
“Fine,” I concede. “I have someone else in mind to help me.” She won’t like it, but she owes me. It’s time I pay my sister a visit.
* * *
I explode out of the tall grass and into the center of the makeshift campground that exists on the edge of Ohio. I’ve been running for too long without enough breaks.
“Callie! Delivery for you,” someone jokes as I plop down under the nearest tree. I should have taken another break about an hour back, but I was too close to stop. If anyone is going to be on my side, it’s Callie. I can only hope she’ll have a better idea than my current one.
There’s not going to be a better plan. Mark her and she’s ours. No one questions a mark.
At this rate, I’m starting to think my wolf is right.
Usually, there’s no question of the fated bond between two wolves and the marking is inevitable. There’s technically nothing stopping a male from marking his female regardless of how she feels about it. The mate bond makes the decision, not the wolves. An unmated pair has to choose to mark each other to form a bond. I always thought it was kind of bullshit that it didn’t work that way for all mates, but now I’m rethinking my stance.
For once, the outdated bullshit traditions of our ancestors might be the only way for me to take my mate properly. The Sovereign Pack won’t just let me walk away with her. If she were anywhere else, that’s exactly what I would do. Lock her down somewhere and rid her of all the distractions obviously keeping her from acknowledging our bond.
But no. Of course my mate has to be under the protection of the one pack no shifter would dare touch.
“Based on the way you’re scowling, I’m guessing it didn’t go as smoothly as you hoped with your mate.” My eyes jerk open to see Callie in human form smirking down at me. Her hair falls in loose curls around her shoulders, her dark eyes identical to mine. She continues, “Of course, I’ve also heard the announcement about the new Luna Sovereign. I’m guessing that might have put a dent into your plans too.”
Even though it feels like it drains me of the last of my energy, I shift into human form to talk. Callie has a strange aversion to talking via mind link. Thinks it’s impersonal or something, and I don’t dare make fun of her for thinking it, considering some of my own opinions about the ways of our people.
“Oh, it gets better,” I tell her dryly.
“Oh no.”
“She already had a mate. A Beta from a smaller pack that got killed by rogues.” It makes my jaw clench to even say the words aloud. I found out everything I could about her original mate, Jimmy Law, and the guy was a freaking saint.
The opposite of me in every way.
“Shit, Pax.” If anyone can understand the pain of losing a mate, it’s Callie. I don’t think she’s ever healed from the accident that took her mate.
“And the best part of all of it? I managed to get face-to-face with her, and she stared at me like I was nothing. Like I showed up to kidnap her or something.”
Callie barks out a laugh. “If I recall correctly, that pretty much is exactly what you were planning to do. Even before you found her, you were talking about taking her.”
She’s got me there.
“It’s about context,” I grumble.
“Well it looks like the context is that things didn’t go so well. You’re here, and she’s not.” Callie’s eyebrows wiggle on her forehead, taunting me. “What did you do?”
My jaw clenches. “I didn’t do anything. I barely got the chance to see her before she ran away from me.”
“Do you think it’s because you’re a rogue? She’s not the only one who’s lost a mate to a rogue attack. There have been more and more stories reaching our ears. And they’re getting closer and closer to home. If she’s really meant to be the Luna Sovereign, maybe her instincts for safety just overrode your mate bond?”
My shoulders relax for a second before tensing up again. “What do you mean closer to home? Are you safe here?”
I’ve never liked her insistence on shacking up with other rogues. If I wanted a pack, I would live with one. To me, being rogue means not answering to anyone else. But Callie has always felt safer with others, so I’ve begrudgingly accepted her place among her little clique of rogues.
The fact that Callie hesitates to answer tells me everything I need to know.
“You’ll leave with me.”
She shakes her head sharply, sending dark curls bouncing around her face. “I’m not like you, Pax. I like being surrounded by the people here. If it wasn’t for your feelings on packs…” She trails off, knowing this is an argument that neither of us ever wins.
