1302 The Alpha (The 13th Floor) (7 page)

When the others came, they encouraged Scott and it got worse. Stefanie wasn’t there when his dad was killed, but she wanted to believe that Scott had nothing to do with it. He loved his dad no matter the friction between them.

“I can help you.” Stefanie inched closer to him. Maybe she couldn’t help Starr, but she could do something for Scott. She ached to do something, anything, her protective Alpha instincts kicking in. “Let me help you.”

Scott was silent, staring at his shoes. A light breeze ruffled his hair. Her nose twitched, and she immediately stood. Body tense, she turned to the right.

A few seconds later, Wyatt walked out from behind the trees and grinned.

Damn him. Damn them all. She’d been too caught up in Scott’s troubles and her own emotions to notice any others in the area.

“I never thought you’d come to me, babe.” Wyatt still smiled, but there was no humor in his eyes. “Sweet of you trying to help this worthless little bastard, but he dug his own grave. And I’m sorry to say that you did too.”

“Yes, I see you’re terribly disappointed that you have to kill me.” Stefanie’s body thrummed with the tension in the air. “I’m not going to make it easy for you.”

“I hope not.” Wyatt chuckled, walking closer to her.

Scott crawled back, half behind the tree. Stefanie smelled the others before they revealed themselves. June, face raw and red with her grief and anger, glared at her from the left. Matt silent and unreadable just to Stefanie’s right behind her.

“I’m not going to run,” Stefanie said stiffly.

“Oh, I know you say it, but your past record has proved otherwise.” Wyatt slowly circled her and stopped when he was nearest to Matt. “Where’s your bitch? I told you to bring her.”

“Starr’s not feeling well.” Matt folded his arms. “Besides, she doesn’t need to see this. The stress is hard enough on her already.”

“You’ll do what I say.” Wyatt snapped and grabbed the front of his brother’s shirt. “The bitch needs to see who’s in charge here. She needs to see what happens when someone doesn’t do what I want. I should make an example of you first. Ever since you knocked her up, you’ve been acting like you’re too good for the rest of us.”

Matt didn’t fight back. When Wyatt shook him, he took it with a hardening of his jaw. The brothers looked a lot alike in the face, but whereas Wyatt was broad with bulky muscles, Matt was taller and leaner.

“Do what you need to do, Wyatt. I never questioned who was in charge. I’m just looking out for my mate.”

Stefanie noted that Matt didn’t lower his eyes. When a wolf submitted to another, they always dropped their gaze. She wondered if Matt had the strength if he would’ve challenged Wyatt himself. Wyatt’s hold on the pack was faltering. Colin was dead, Scott was a junkie, and June was nowhere near as big of a threat as her mate had been. If Matt was pulling away along with Starr, Wyatt wouldn’t have the power of the pack behind him.

Her stomach quivered. A flare of hope tickling it. Maybe her odds weren’t so bad after all.

Wyatt released his brother and spun around to face Stefanie. He stalked toward her with teeth bared and murder in his eyes.

Then again, maybe she was screwed.

CHAPTER 8

Stefanie wanted to stand tall, hold her chin up, and meet him head on. Two things happened to shatter the proud image she wanted to portray.

As Wyatt came at her, she flashed back to when he had defeated her the first time. She had stood proud before that fight, but as she lay bleeding and near death at the end of it in her human form, he’d bent over her with his hand in a fist. She’d been certain he was going to finish her off, but he snatched her hair instead and dragged her into the house. He locked her in the cellar and left her for two days.

She healed, but every time she felt some strength returning, Wyatt would come down and beat her again. That wasn’t the worst of it, but she only relived the other bits in nightmares. That was horrible enough itself.

Anguish enveloped her. She could barely catch her breath, and her heart felt like it was beating too fast. The world grew hazy around the edges. Focus. She needed to focus, but her mind and body weren’t listening.

Stefanie drew into a defensive stance, making herself smaller rather than more intimidating. Wyatt towered over her, skin flushed with anger.

A black blur raced out from between the trees and pounced on Wyatt. They rolled to the ground, and Wyatt transformed, tangling in his clothes, but still the more powerful of the two. He pinned James to the ground with his jaws locked around his neck.

“James!” Stefanie didn’t bother with her clothes either. What was the fool thinking? A dumb question because she knew the answer. But it was a stupid thing to do. James was going to get himself killed.

As a wolf, her lower half easily slid out of her jeans and panties. Her shoes were left on the ground. The shirt was still caught on her, but no matter how ridiculous it must’ve look, she jumped on Wyatt and pulled him off James.

They growled and bit and smashed into each other. Teeth and claws drawing blood and matting their fur. Their remaining clothes ripped to shreds. Stefanie wasn’t fighting for herself now. Why couldn’t James have slept through the morning? Damn creaking door. He was too good to die.

None of the pack interfered in the fight. This was between Alphas. If any of them jumped in, she wouldn’t hesitate to tear them to shreds and neither would Wyatt.

She and Wyatt circled each other, testing one another’s strengths. He might’ve made a handsome wolf. Dark gray spots on his fluffy white fur. But there was nothing pretty about his face. Muzzle too big, brow too heavy, and teeth crooked.

Her leg was still bothering her, but she hid any sign of it. June would’ve told Wyatt everything that happened, but how badly did she think she’d hurt Stefanie? Wyatt hadn’t gone for her leg yet. Or he could just be arrogant enough to believe he could beat her without going for a wounded limb.

Off to the side, there was a yelp. Stefanie glanced over to see Scott had transformed and was attempting to take James. It must’ve infuriated the pack they couldn’t get his scent, and without it they’d have no idea he was a Beta. She didn’t know how badly Wyatt had hurt James, but he was able to throw Scott down with little effort. June, now in wolf form, leapt in snarling and rolled with James. It was more of a struggle, but he gained the dominant position.

If it was just June and Scott, Stefanie was confident James could take them, but Matt?

Matt was still standing to the side in human form. He hadn’t moved, but watched James intently.

Distracted by the others, Stefanie was bulled over by Wyatt. He smashed her head against the ground twice. Just like so many times before. Panic grappled with her control. She kicked up at him with her hind legs, scratching his belly. He didn’t budge, and with a third slam, the world spun.

Wyatt gave her a growled order. One she knew meant to stay down. Like she’d listen, but when she tried to get up, the ground tilted and she fell.

James had knocked June and Scott back again. They were having as much trouble standing as Stefanie was.

Turning swiftly, James’ upper lip pulled back as Wyatt approached. The bigger wolf didn’t hurry.  He strode forward slow and with malicious purpose. James held his ground, readying himself, but his tail had sagged down and started to curl between his legs.

Stefanie barked. Not as a warning. It was pointless, but to try to draw Wyatt’s attention back to her. She forced herself up and stumbled. Dirt stuck to her nose. She sneezed, feeling as pathetic as she likely looked.

Wyatt glanced at her and gave a wee sniff. He turned his attention back to James.

Shit. He knew. Or at least made as educated of a guess as the bastard could make.

Growling, Wyatt’s fur bristled, but he didn’t attack. He came almost until he was standing nose to nose with James. Neither gave ground.

Finally regaining her balance, Stefanie barked again. Wyatt had turned his back to her. He no longer considered her a threat. The bastard’s ego knew no bounds.

Of course, his instincts were driving him to do something else now. Another male had bonded with a female Wyatt had claimed for his own. Not that Stefanie accepted Wyatt’s pairing, but in Wyatt’s mind, it didn’t matter. James was a bigger threat to his manhood, or rather, wolfhood than she was.

And James stood no chance of beating Wyatt in a fight.

Shaking herself, Stefanie couldn’t rid the ache in her head. It didn’t matter. She could still fight. As Wyatt struck at James, she bit into his haunches. June yipped a warning, but they were already moving by the time she did.

James dodged and twisted as he did so, countering with a donkey kick. His claws raked over Wyatt’s left eye as Stefanie bit deep into the meat of the big wolf’s hindquarters. Wyatt yelped and went into a frenzy. He bowled James over with his head and turned to bite Stefanie.

Ready for him, she let go and hopped back. Her mouth dripped with his blood.

Wyatt barked, motioning at Matt and then nodding his head once to James. Commands were easily understood when you were a wolf, but even in human form, they were simple enough to interpret.

Stefanie’s pounding heart was nearly deafening. She couldn’t defend James and fight at the same time. To top it off, it was her fault he was here. She’d brought him in on it. All she’d wanted to do was learn how to hide her scent. A case of asking a superhero to do something small and not expecting him to go all the way with it.

Matt didn’t move, though. He stared at James, but he didn’t transform and attack. Defying his Alpha yet again.

Wyatt snarled at him, and Stefanie zipped in low to bite at one of his front legs. He yanked himself back in time with her teeth scraping over his flesh. He chomped her shoulder and attempted to use his weight to force her down.

She pushed up, and he stumbled before righting himself.

Stefanie threw him off. She had forced that tank of a wolf off her. Something had changed.

Scott had retreated to nurse his wounds under a bush. June kept back, obviously not stupid enough to try James again. And Matt was still in the same spot with his arms folded watching the scene unfold.

James barked at her, urging her to move faster.

Wyatt no longer had the support of his pack. But she had James cheering her on.

Wolves were pack animals. Sure, there were lone wolves and they live full lives on their own, but it was lonely. It had been incredibly difficult for her when she left Wisconsin. Pack life was all she’d ever known. She’d no doubt it was one of the reasons why James had been so curious about her and what was going on. He’d been taught to stay away from other wolves, but he couldn’t help himself.

As for Wyatt, he was a bastard who believed he stood above everyone else. Yet he’d never been without a pack.

Stefanie had a pack. It consisted only of her and James, but that was better than what Wyatt had at the moment.

She leapt at the bastard and bit at his side before she jumped back. He snapped at her but missed. His aim was way off. His left eye didn’t look too bad, but Wyatt was favoring his right one. He growled and slammed into her, bulldozing her into a tree.

She sunk her teeth into the shoulder and moved her head from side to side. Tufts of fur went flying and blood ran down to soak her front.

Wyatt bashed her against the tree again, but she held on. She shook her head again, tearing a bigger hole in him. One tooth hit bone. Flesh broke loose, and he slipped out of her grasp. She readied herself for another slam or a head-on charge.

Neither came. He went for her injured rear leg, caught it, and chomped on it like a turkey leg at Thanksgiving.

Stefanie cried out and fell when she tried to bite him. Bones crunched, and she kicked, front paws digging in as she yowled.

With the pain came more flashbacks. The coldness of the cellar floor when he pressed her against it. The way he’d twist her arms, popping them out of the sockets, and laughing when she had to put them right. His fist hitting her in the guts, her sides, her face. Repeatedly.

She’d never cried so much in her life. Never in front of anyone either. It was even more humiliating that person had been Wyatt.

This was a new torture. If the leg shattered, it might never heal properly. But what was one leg? The bastard was going to kill her. Then he’d kill James. Maybe Scott and Matt too. Starr. Starr and her baby.

Stefanie screamed again. She wasn’t strong enough to save them. Her pack lost again. Lost to a sadistic asshole who would go out and find another pack and do the same thing.

The only warning either of them had was a flash of black out of the corner of their eyes. James pounced on Wyatt, half on his head, and bit him several times. He snagged the skin by Wyatt’s left eye and tore the left ear.

Wyatt had to let Stefanie go to fight off James. His movements were inelegant, but nonetheless powerful. He flung James five feet away. The black wolf twisted, trying to land on his feet and failed, falling on his side instead. Wyatt darted in, ripping into his belly. James’ cry twisted her heart, hurting ten times more than her leg.

Wyatt was not going to do this. She refused to let him kill James. Things had slowly gone downhill after her father’s death, and then Wyatt had come along. He had taken everything from her. Starr, her pack, her home, her freedom. Her self-worth.

James was the one bright spot in her life. He’d saved her in the woods without even knowing who she was or why she was being chased. He’d done it because he was a good guy. A superhero.

Stefanie was no superhero. She was a failed pack leader and a runaway. At times, she felt nothing more than a selfish coward.

Now she didn’t matter. James did. He was her pack, her Beta, and oh, she wanted him to be so much more. She might not ever get a chance to make him more, but she could save him. She would take Wyatt with her kicking and howling into Hell.

Save James. And save the rest of the Nicolet pack too. For Starr and her baby.

There was no way she could put any weight on that leg. Stefanie forced herself up, holding the broken limb awkwardly with her toes dragging on the ground. Crimson pooled underneath her. It was the only thing she could smell.