AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Atlas turned his attention back to Lauren, lifting up her chin and looking deep into her eyes. “I can smell your smugness,” he growled. “I suppose this is just what you wanted, isn’t it? You’d better hope we find her.”
Colt growled, his anger coming to the fore. Was there anything this woman wouldn’t do to get what she wanted? “You’ve really done it this time, huh?” he murmured. Any other time he might feel some pity for her, but not now. Not where Harlow was concerned.
“Tell us the truth now, and you might just come away from this with everything intact!” Atlas snarled. “And don’t play me for a fool for a second longer.”
Obviously sensing his intentions, Lauren swallowed. “Okay, it was me,” she admitted. “But I didn’t think it would go this far. I’m sorry. I really am.”
“Meaning?” asked Atlas.
Colt stepped forward, drawn in by her words and wondering why she’d do such a thing.
“I got in contact with Hollow Grove pack. I told them she was here.” Neither he nor Atlas said a word, leaving her to fill the void with the rest of her sordid story. “They asked me to drive Harlow off our territory so they could take her.”
“And the reason?” Atlas asked coldly. “Why would you do this?”
She closed her eyes, knowing she was beat. “I didn’t want Colt to be with Harlow.”
All Colt could hear was the collective breathing of the pack, his own breath now deep and heavy. He waited, hoping Atlas wasn’t going to lose it completely, all the while thinking this happened because of him—because Lauren didn’t seem to want him but didn’t want Harlow to have him either. Her selfishness and narcissism really did know no bounds.
“You’re a disgrace to this pack, d’you know that? If you weren’t a woman, you’d be in shreds by now,” growled Atlas. He looked over at Colt, the person who usually helped cool him down when things got this tense, but Colt couldn’t disguise the fact that he felt the same way, despite this being so unlike him.
“Maybe that’s a good idea,” Colt said. “A wolf who can’t be trusted has no place in any pack.” The look on her face was enough to know he’d just gotten his own back for everything she’d put him through. Now however, he was taking revenge for Harlow too.
“You serious?” asked Atlas, also surprised at hearing Colt behave this way.
“About not belonging in a pack,” Colt said, his eyes cold. “How does that sound, Lauren?”
“What?” she said, her voice laced with fear.
“What do you say, Atlas?”
Atlas pulled his hand over his beard, his nostrils flared. “I think you’re right.” He stepped forward and took Lauren’s arm as she screamed in shock. Sinking his teeth into her forearm, Colt heard the growl that came from his alpha, and knew what this meant.
“You’re outta here, Lauren.” Atlas wiped her blood from his mouth. “From now on you’re no longer a member of the Gravecrest pack.”
“No,” she sobbed and folded in on herself.
Atlas snarled, any sympathy or patience he had for her obviously having left for good, and Colt couldn’t blame him. “You’re banished. Never set foot on my territory again or you’ll be dealt with properly.”
Colt felt the relief of never having to set eyes on her again, despite knowing she was never likely to find a place in a pack after now being marked as a traitor. The wound that Atlas had just inflicted on her would heal, but the scar would always be visible as a silent reminder that she was excommunicated and packless.
He watched on as she shifted, yelping as she dropped to the floor and slipped away silently. The only female he had concerns for was Harlow, and he needed to know she was okay. Both he and Atlas should’ve realized she would never have started that fight, and now she was out there alone and in the hands of people who never deserved her.
“Come on,” said Atlas. “We need to figure out how we’re gonna get Harlow back. We need a plan—a fucking good one!”
Chapter 24
Atlas
“Drink,” Atlas said, handing his beta a tumbler containing a generous shot of bourbon. His head was already throbbing with the stress of the day’s events, but it was nothing some hard liquor couldn’t deal with.
“Cheers, bro,” Colt held up his glass. “Think we both need one of these.”
“What we need is to get her back,” snapped Atlas. “One drink, that’s all. We gotta have our head in the game when we do this.” He was already five steps ahead, thinking about implementing the plan for retrieving Harlow they’d just spent two hours working through.
“Think there’s more than one drink in here,” Colt swirled the glass, as usual trying to lift the mood. His long, lean legs were stretched out ahead of him as he sat on Atlas’s living room chair, and Atlas could tell even he was feeling apprehensive about this, despite his more optimistic and rational take most of the time.
Colt had made this all happen—made Harlow believe she could trust them and give this a go. He knew how much his beta felt for her, just the way he did too. They were both into this too deeply to just let her go without a fight.
