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My three most trusted men and I moved in perfect sync, scattering out in four directions. Getting hemmed in was the worst move when outnumbered like we were.
Garrett and I took out the two on the ends, slamming into them and knocking them back hard enough to render them unconscious.
Nice one, Holden. It was our oldest trick in the book, eliminating the easy targets fast so we could focus on the real challenge.
Incoming, to your left, I warned Garrett as I circled back around to where the other four wolves descended on Jax and Cal.
This was not part of my plan, but I was always ready for the unexpected. From the corner of my eye, I saw Garrett pin a gray wolf to the ground, giving him the option of surrender. The wolf snarled and snapped a Garrett, who swiftly responded, bending and ripping out the challenger’s throat.
That’s the way it was going to be, then. These wolves had initiated a challenge, and they weren’t backing down. While killing was often the last resort, I wasn’t afraid of it. It came with the territory. An alpha who couldn’t kill to defend and protect his own was no alpha at all.
I dove into the fight, claws ripping, teeth snapping, and Garrett joined the fray as well. We were evenly matched, four on four now, but it really was no match. I had a dark red wolf pinned in no time, canines bared and ready to kill if he didn’t submit.
Dark eyes full of anger and fear stared back at me. I pushed my paw into his throat and growled—my final warning.
He hesitated, then relaxed his body, whimpering and whining as a sign of submission before shifting into human form. The other wolves followed suit; their naked bodies curled up beneath our massive wolf forms.
Garrett, Jax, and Cal backed up, giving them space, but they didn’t shift and remained alert.
I shifted back, hovering over the redheaded male on the ground. “Take me to your alpha.”
His eyes widened as he stared at me, and I didn’t wait for an answer. I grabbed his wrists and tied them behind his back with a strip of dried vines that Jax tossed my way. He was busy tying up the other three to the base of a tree. They wouldn’t be going anywhere until we told someone where to find them.
“Don’t give me any trouble,” I told the kid—he couldn’t be much more than eighteen, “and maybe I won’t kill you.”
“I won’t,” he said, panic flashing in his eyes. “We didn’t know who you were.” I wasn’t entirely sure I believed him, but the kid started marching forward, leading the way. He wasn’t a complete idiot then, even if he took orders from Branson.
I narrowed my eyes, trying to think this through. They might have been patrolling the border, protecting their territory. Perhaps they hadn’t recognized us in wolf form, but there was no denying they’d attacked with the intent to kill first and ask questions later.
My advisors had been right. Branson was someone to watch out for. Instinct told me he was up to something. I just had to figure out what.
* * *
The sun had just fully appearedover the horizon when my men and I padded out of the woods into a large clearing at the center of the territory’s pack lands. Like most packs, the alpha’s land comprised hundreds of private acres. There was a tiny town in the clearing, with several homes, some small shops, and a large central office building—the alpha’s headquarters.
I’d returned to wolf form, wanting to be ready for anything. As we walked toward the office building, the doors swung open. Four men in black combat gear walked out, followed by a tall black-haired shifter I recognized as Branson’s beta.
He walked down the stone steps and narrowed his eyes at the kid who’d led us here, his jaw ticking. “Sam? Where are the rest?”
“Tied up in the woods,” the redhead—Sam—said.
“Alive?”
Sam shook his head. “Not all. Two are dead.”
The beta turned toward us, his scent catching on the breeze. I could scent the beta bond on him, though it wasn’t very strong, meaning he was relatively new to his position.
“Why are you here unannounced?” He narrowed his dark eyes.
I shifted back, ignoring his question. “Where’s Branson?” I was tired of these games. Time to get to the point. “He owes me some answers.”
“The way I see it, it’s the other way around,” a smooth voice drawled from the top of the stairs. I turned to see Branson walking slowly down the steps, his black hair slicked back, a look of distaste on his pale face. “In fact, I’d like to know why two of my wolves are dead. An unprovoked attack after sneaking into someone else’s territory?” Branson studied his fingernails for a moment before meeting my eyes and sneering. “How will the other alphas feel about such unruly behavior? It’s not becoming of a future alpha.”
Turning my back on Branson, I walked toward Cal, who carried a pack of spare clothes tied around his neck.
I could feel the shift in the air, the tension that spread through the beta and soldiers at my dismissal. Taking my time, I pulled on a pair of combat pants and a t-shirt. I wouldn’t be having this discussion naked.
When I turned back to Branson, I folded my arms over my chest. “I’m here on official business, soyourattack was unprovoked. It was strikingly similar to the challenge you issued last month.” I cocked my head. “Which you didn’t have the balls to participate in either.”
