Cat's Howl: A Macconwood Pack Novel (The Macconwood Pack Series Book 2) (13 page)

After eating some surprisingly awesome peanut butter and
strawberry jelly crackers made by Cat herself, she stretched out on the soft
carpet in front of the fire. Every dream she had ever had from the time she was
in junior high had been culminated that night. Tate was in a word, amazing.

He didn’t mention love or commitment, but she felt
something, some strong emotion, radiating from him in waves like rays from the
sun. She didn’t care what it was as long as it was something.

She didn’t know if that made her stupid or weak. Cat just
knew that she finally had what she had always wanted.
Tate.
And if she
was really being honest with herself, she’d admit it. She loved him and her
Wolf had accepted him as mate. Heck, she demanded he be her one and only mate.

The only problem was Tate. He didn’t say one word about it. Maybe
it was just a matter of formalities, or maybe he didn’t want commitment. She’d
deal with that when the time came.
Enjoy this time however long it lasts
,
she told herself.

For her, it could only ever be Tate. She felt energy
coursing through her veins in a sort of frenzied contentment at being near him.
She couldn’t imagine herself feeling that way with anyone else.

A crash sounded outside and Tate vaulted up from his place
beside her, a growl deep in his throat. Cat was right behind him fully awake
and alert. His hand was stretched out in front of her. An act of protection. It
should have antagonized her feminist nature.

But she didn’t feel upset or angry. She rather liked the
idea that he thought of her as his to protect. Besides if she was honest, she
thought of him the same way. It was a Werewolf thing.

“Wait here,” his brisk command, however, did rub her the
wrong way.

She yanked on his shirt and her still damp pair of leggings.
As he buttoned up his jeans and went for his weapon. She walked over to the
backpack she had hauled through the woods and pulled out her semi-automatic.

“Not on your life,” was her response.

His black eyes glowed as he turned to her then he tilted his
head. His Wolf was speaking to him in a way he had never communicated before. Tate
felt his connection to his Wolf rush through him as strongly as it did on any
full moon. His heart pounded through his Wolf’s words.
She is strong. She is
a warrior. Protect her, but do not hinder.

He nodded gruffly. Struggling slightly with the loss of that
connection, but also reeling from the fact that it had happened at all. What
did this mean? He didn’t know. He had no words for it, but he was feeling
anxious now. He hardly noticed as Cat nodded back.

She moved behind him and her scent filled his nostrils. Refocusing
him.
Mine. Protect. Honor.
Together they quietly exited the cabin through
the side door. They stepped barefooted onto the snow laden floor. It must have
started hours ago. A few inches had already accumulated on the frozen ground.

It had been too cold most of the winter for snow. But the
last few weeks the temperature had evened out. Ever since Rafe had them fight
alongside the teenage Werewolf against the Scarred Sisters, a coven of Dark Witches
who had been dealing with demons and in doing so they had a severe effect on
the weather. But the snow was finally here. And in full force. Heavy flakes
fell from the air and the entire forest was whited out.

Cat imagined for a second that she was trapped inside a snow
globe. The entire world seemed to be covered in white. The pale glow of the moonlight
made it even brighter than usual for that time of night. But her Wolf eyes
needed little light to see. She crouched beside Tate as he examined a broken
branch.

“Someone was here. Watching us through the window. This
branch has been cut,” his voice was tense.

Cat knew what this meant. They were here and they did this
deliberately.
Bastards!
They thought they could frighten them with
stick? They didn’t know them.

She turned around to guard his rear. Back to back they
squatted behind a large oak tree as Tate closed his eyes. He needed to focus so
that his senses could tell him where danger lurked.

It took longer than usual. His focus was not as clear as it
should be. That brief communion with his Wolf left him a little raw. And he was
too concerned with Cat’s well-being. That was not something he was used to or that
he necessarily liked. Doubts and old fears crept into his mind.
Not good
enough. A nobody.

He felt the pressure from her body as she leaned into him.
It was as if she knew what he was thinking. Whatever the reason, the heaviness of
her body felt good. His Wolf was reassured and Tate let his senses take over.

Slowly he felt peace and a supernatural hum of power settle
over him. He drew strength from his Pack bonds as he reached out with his mind.

Suddenly he opened his eyes.

“Cat, there are at least three of them. I can smell them.
They are Wolves, males, but not Pack. You need to get back to the cabin. There
is a room, a root cellar really, underneath the floorboards of the kitchen. Go
and lock yourself in.”

“No. I want to stay with you.”

“Look, I can’t do my job if I am worried about you. And I
can’t help but worry about you, Cat. Please.”

It was the please that silenced her. She nodded her head and
Tate left her with a gruff shake of his head. He thought she’d be safest in the
cabin. But Cat had no intention of going back there. She needed to prove to him
she could be an asset. She could be a Wolf Guard.

Lost in her own reverie, Cat didn’t catch the scent before it
was too late. He came out of nowhere. His greasy hand cupped over her mouth and
the putrid stink of his foul breath entered her nostrils as he hissed in her
ear.

“I knew you’d be easy to catch, bitch. Skoll will be so
happy when I bring you to him.”

Tate roared in the distance and she heard the sounds of his
fight from where she stood. She thought of every maneuver she knew but it was
useless. The grip he had her in was too tight. She’d never be able to get
loose.

“I’m going to ask for some time with you before the boss
slits that pretty throat! What do you say sugar, a little thrill before you die?
Ha ha ha
,” he squeezed her ass as he wrapped her legs and wrists in
shackles and heavy chains.

Cat had to work hard not to puke all over him. She spat
right in his face when he squeezed her left breast with his greasy hand. She
didn’t even flinch when he backhanded her.

“Don’t touch me, you bastard!”

“Goddamn, bitch, you’ll pay, but first, we see Skoll,” he
sat down and revved the engine of an ATV that was hidden nearby. Cat bit back a
whimper. He was going to take her away!

She’d need to bide her time. She allowed herself to be pulled
down behind him. She could never run away with the shackles and chains. They
were just too heavy and he had locked them to the ATV. But she had to do
something! Without him seeing, she ripped the hem of her shirt and dropped it
on the floor. The white blended in so her captor didn’t notice it. But Tate
would! She’d lead him right to them.

Tate circled the pair of Wolves who had invaded his property
with barely contained rage. Werewolves were highly territorial and his Wolf was
growling for their deaths. They trespassed on what was his and he’d make them
pay.

The sound of a motor made him pause. His heart pounded
heavily in his chest.
Danger.
Cat. She was in danger!
All his restraint
left in that single moment.

There was no time for subtlety or to think about tactics. He
called on all his inner strength and with a mighty roar form his lips he attacked.
The younger man was easy to take down. He was careless and cocky.

A roundhouse kick. A few punches to his stomach, then his
face. The third punch broke his nose. Blood spurted everywhere and as the young
Wolf looked at it on his hands his eyes rolled into the top of his head and
boom
.
He crashed to the ground.

The second Wolf was not so easy. He had watched Tate defeat
his companion from the sidelines. He understood Tate’s urgency and he used it
against him.

“So, you wanna play with me now, Injun Joe? Let’s go! In my
day we killed fuckers like you for breakfast and pushed the rest of you into
places none of us wanted! I was there, I fought alongside Custer! You won’t get
the best of me,” Tate listened to the insults and let them slide right off of
him. He meant to make Tate careless. To waste his time. But Tate knew better.  

“You’re all talk, son, and I don’t have time right now,”
Tate advanced and with an old boxing one two punch the old Wolf with the bad
attitude went down.

Tate didn’t bother tying either of them up.
Cat.
He
needed to find Cat. He searched near the house for a trace of her. Tate bit back
a string of curses when he found none. He couldn’t afford to lose focus. Of
course she wouldn’t have done as he said! Not her. No his Cat.

He circled back to the oak where they had last been together
and he sniffed around. Literally. His Wolf bond was coming and going in waves.
It would come in strong then abruptly fade. Like bad satellite TV or a screwy
WIFI connection.

Tate stopped pacing. He was getting nowhere. He needed to
refocus. Okay, he last saw her here. What happened next? That’s what he needed to
find out.

The second slap stung Cat’s left cheek and she tasted blood
inside her mouth. Her head pounded and she knew she wouldn’t stay conscious
much longer. That would be a relief in ways. Cold water forced her eyes open
and she gasped through her pain.

“Oh no, no sleep for you bitch. The boss says you’s all mine
to play with just after you tell him the security codes to that cocksucker
brother of yours’ house! Now what’s the codes? Hmm? Sweet pie! What are they?”

Spit flew from his lips as Cat’s abductor screeched in her
face. She could see his madness peeking out through his muddy brown eyes. This
Wolf had been without a proper Pack for too long. He was not in his right mind.
Probably would never be again.

“I want to speak to Skoll.”

“You ain’t fit to speak to him, bitch! I says when you can
and can’t. Tell me the codes and I’ll tell him and then you and me gonna have
us a party!”

“I’d rather die!”

“Oh, you will, sweet pie, that you will. But not till I
stick you good! I’ll have you squealing like a little piggy,” he growled the
last word and a long string of saliva spilled from his crooked teeth.

Cat had to force herself to not back up in her chair. No,
not in front of him. She needed to maintain some control if only for her
self-preservation. Inside she was beginning to lose her nerve.

It was a relief when he walked outside of the broken down
wooden shack where he was holding her in order to take a phone call. Stupid old
Wolf. Didn’t he know she could hear through the thin wood walls? She knew
Skoll. She didn’t quite get his endgame, but she knew he wouldn’t want this
cretin to rape her. Not if he planned on using her to get to Rafe.

She stilled herself to better hear the conversation. A well
timed yell might be her only chance to stop this guy. It didn’t matter though.
He was on the phone with another lackey. Not Skoll. She pictured the cruel Wolf
with his slicked back black hair in a low pony tail, his black shirt paired
with black pants. Like some pseudo
Miami Vice
villain. Sure, he gave Cat
the creeps, but he played by rules. This guy, not so much.

Dammit!
Cat knew from her police training that her
captor had no control. Added to that, her Werewolf senses told her that he had
lost his mind years ago. Some Wolves did. It was one of the side effects of the
curse of St. Natalis. The one that kept them from changing but once a month.

Without his boss to tell him what to do Cat knew that he
wouldn’t be able to resist his baser instincts to rape and maim. He was an
animal. Not Pack. He had no structure, limits, support, or laws. An anarchist.
Rogue
.
Her Wolf snarled in her mind. And she called out to her mate with all her
might.

Cat hoped to God that Tate was okay. She knew he would come
for her. In time. It was in his nature. A Wolf Guard was loyal, brave, and
determined, He would not leave her to her fate. She knew that as sure as she
was still breathing. But right now, she needed a plan.

She ground her teeth and nearly gasped at the pain in her
cheek. The bastard might have fractured her jaw with that last smack. No
matter. She was Wolf, she would heal. Right now she needed to focus.

Tate picked up the torn piece of white cotton and nearly
whooped aloud. Cat had left him a trail to follow! Damn he loved that woman!
And then he stopped stone still.

He loved that woman.
Yes. He did. And he would get
her back and rip the throat out of the son of a bitch that dared take her from
him.

Suddenly Tate’s chest seemed to implode with a burst of
feeling and a rush of energy unlike any he had every felt. In his mind’s eye he
saw a cord. Thin like thread, but pulsating with golden silvery light. Like
magic. It felt like love. It was warm and kind. It came from the center of his
soul and in his heart he knew where it would lead. Home. To Cat.
Mine.

He loosed a short howl and took off on his bare feet through
the snow laden ground in the direction his heart was telling him to go. Rocks
and tree roots cut at his feet and seemed to try and stop him. Tate trampled
them and forged ahead. Strength coursed through him. The kind of which he felt
once a month at most. During the full moon.

After nearly fifteen minutes of strenuous running uphill
Tate found the trail had ended. An ATV was parked behind a tree and Cat’s scent
was all over it. So was a splatter of something red.

He reached down and touched it. Blood. One sniff and he knew
it was hers. He snarled and turned in every direction trying to find her. But
it was as if she had disappeared.

He wanted to run to her. To find her and crush her close to
him. But she was nowhere. He closed his eyes, the magic rope that bound them
together insisted this was the spot. Then why couldn’t he see her? He paced.
Full of rage at his impotence.

Cat squirmed in her seat the shackles that bound her seemed
to be draining her strength. She pulled against them, but that only made her
weaker.
Odd.
She was a Werewolf and was stronger than she looked. A simple
metal chain would have broken under her strength, but this. This was no simple
chain. The mad Wolf that was her captor came back into the dirty room where she
was being held. Only this time he wasn’t alone.

The woman was rank with rot. She smelled like decay and ash
to Cat’s sensitive nose. Immediately she knew what this was. She understood why
the chains were making her weak. 
Magic. A Dark Witch.

“Here she is. Now Skoll promised me a boon and I want first
dibs at this bitch so don’t mess her up too much.”

“Quiet, fool! This
bitch
is not your toy. Not yet. Do
you hear that she-Wolf? I am happy to keep you safe from this one, but only if
you tell me the security codes to the Manor.”

“No. I don’t care what you do. I won’t tell you a damn
thing.”

“Really? Well, how about I tell you in excruciating detail
just how it will feel when he pulls down those leggings and rapes you raw, dog!
Now tell me what I need to know. I promise, we won’t harm your brother. Just
his mate. That normal isn’t one of you anyway. Rafe will be spared, but she
must die. Now the codes,” the Witch wore layer upon layer of black tattered
skirts and matching gauzy top. She looked like something out of a nightmare
with her missing left ear and large scars that ran down her cheeks.

Cat knew that kind of self-mutilation was done by Dark
Witches who communed with Demons.
Shit.
This was not good. She wished
she had a chance to tell Tate she loved him before dying. But she would die
before she would tell this Witch anything!

“
Hm
, a stubborn one. I do not admire martyrs. It is
easy to sacrifice yourself. Tell me are you willing to sacrifice another? Maybe
one other in particular?”

“What are you talking about?,” Cat felt as if her stomach
dropped into her feet. What did she mean?
God no. Please no.

“Show her!”

“My pleasure, lookee here, bitch, this the guy you think
will save you? Ha, he don’t even know you’re hear! Ha ha ha,” his evil chuckled
made Cat shiver with fury.

She wanted out of that chair so she could scratch his damn
eyes out.
Not Tate. No not him.

“Go ahead scream, he can’t hear ya!”

Cat narrowed her gaze. Her heart thundered inside of her and
she felt a pull she had never felt before. Her Wolf was strong inside of her. A
feeling she couldn’t mistake for anything else. Only this couldn’t happen. Not
yet. Could it?

“Oh shit! Her eyes! What the hell?”

Cat blocked out the noise around her. A hurricane of emotion
welled up inside her. A storm like no other. Cat saw inside of herself and
coming from her chest was a silvery gold thread. A rope, if you will, and it
bound her to the bearer of the other end. Her mate. Her heart’s desire.
Tate
Nighthawk
.
Mine.

Cat smiled, her white teeth sharp and glistening. She tossed
her head back as the full force of her emotions ran through her and she howled.
Cat howled and howled. She barely heard the roar of her mate as he burst
through the magical barrier that kept him from being able to see or scent her.

His Wolf was visible through his eyes and she doubted much
of the man was in control at that moment. He went right for the Dark Witch.

When Tate heard Cat’s howl he nearly screamed for joy. She
was alive. But instinct took over and he found himself running full speed at a
magic barrier. His Wolf was at the forefront of his mind and he wanted blood.
So, Tate let him out.

He broke through the front door and took in everything in a
split second. Cat was in chains and bleeding from her lip. Her beautiful face
bruised and battered. A Werewolf huddled in the corner. Scared and mad, that
one. And a Witch stood shocked and still. Her scars making her more horrific a
site than anything he had seen in a while.

He went straight for her throat. In two seconds he ripped
out her carotid artery and snapped both of her arms in two. When he turned for
the other pride made him halt his steps.

Cat was out of her chains and she had the man’s head in her
hands. She snarled and twisted with all her might. Snapping his neck before he
could raise another hand or say another vile word to her.   

Seconds later she found herself enveloped in Tate’s arms.
She was panting. Out of breath and high on adrenaline. Hot tears poured down
her bruised face as she sobbed in his arms.

“Oh Tate! God, I’m sorry, I’m crying, this isn’t like me, I
don’t want you to think I’m weak or spoiled or,-”

“Cat! Shhhh! It’s okay, you are okay. My God, I could never
think that of you! You are so brave! So unspoiled! Cat you are the best person
I know. I love you, Cat.”

“What?”

“I love you! Don’t you know that?”

Cat threw her arms and legs around Tate. He caught her
easily and squeezed her murmuring words of love. She had never heard anything
so beautiful in her entire life. She hardly noticed when he sat down on the ATV
with her still wrapped around him and sped towards the cabin.

Once they were there Tate brought her inside. He took her
straight to the bathroom and ministered to her wounds.

Tate took his time, intent on looking over every inch of
her. He turned the faucet on the large claw foot bath tub. Steaming water began
to pour. Cat sat on the cushioned stool and watched as he added two scoops of
bath salts.

“Sherry sent me these too. They should speed up healing.”

“
Mmmm
. It smells like vanilla and orange and lemon
zest. Ow, it hurts when I talk.”

“Then don’t talk, baby.”

Tate undressed Cat carefully. He scooped her up and placed her
inside of the tub before removing his own clothing. Once inside the warm water
Cat felt her aches and pains immediately leave. She was shocked as more tears
fell silently down her face. Tate reached a hand out towards her chin and lifted.

“Don’t be ashamed, Catriona. Look, I am crying too. I am
crying because my heart is so relieved to have you back. I went damn near out
of my mind when you were gone. But do you know how I found you? Do you know
why?”

Cat shook her head and stared at him in wonder as she traced
the tears that fell form his softly glowing eyes.

“Because you are my mate, Cat, my true mate. And I am yours.
We have a
matebond
. I saw it! It’s gold and silver and beautiful and it
led me to you. But you weren’t there. I wanted to run, to keep looking, but my
Wolf demanded I stay there. Then do you know what happened?”

Cat still couldn’t talk. She curled up on his lap in the
water and shook her head.

“You
howled
. Cat you howled! And it was like a wall
came down and my Wolf jumped right through the rubble to get to you. My Cat, my
mate, my love.”

“Oh Tate, I love you too.”

He hugged her fiercely then. It was the first time she had
said it out loud. And damn it sounded good to his ears. It felt good too.

She sat up straight and Tate’s entire body took notice. Her
lips found his in a kiss unlike any other they had shared.

“Will it hurt you if we make love?,” Cat loved him so much
especially after he asked her that question.

“Oh no, Tate, that’s one thing that will never ever hurt me.”

She turned her body so that she straddled him, sloshing
water over the side as she did so.

“I need you, Tate, right now,” she guided the head of his
swollen shaft and she thrust down with all her might.

Tate groaned and suckled her breasts as she rode him. Hard
and hot and fast. She was so tight, so torturously sweet as she pumped him for
all he was worth. They groaned together in a chorus of ecstasy as his hot seed
filled her.

They had just finished drying each other off when Tate’s
cell rang. He picked it up without hesitation.

“Yes,” Tate’s answers were clipped, his tone respectful. But
Cat didn’t need to listen to Tate’s responses to know who was on the other end
of the call. She heard her brother’s voice quite clearly.

What puzzled her was the sound of Lt. Matt Larentia’s voice.
What on earth was he doing there? And why was he furiously demanding to know
where Cat was?

“We will be home in a few hours. Rafe? There is something
you should know,” Tate didn’t get a chance to finish his sentence. Cat was glad.
She wasn’t exactly sure it was a good idea to advertise their new relationship
status just yet.

Tate must have felt her hesitation. He turned the full force
of his midnight stare on her and lifted her chin till she was forced to meet
his eyes.

“Cat? Just so you know, the first thing I intend to do when
we get back to the Manor is tell your brother that you and I are mated. That
is, if you’re okay with that.”

“I am so okay with that,” Cat smiled and grabbed the nape of
Tate’s neck. Pulling him down in a lip searing kiss.