Fated for the Alphas: The Complete Collection (Nine Book Paranormal Romance Box Set) (15 page)

Lia screamed. She threw herself to the side as the boar’s tusks sliced by. They were wickedly long. She had the feeling that they had seen many battles.

The boar wheeled around for a second pass. Lia stood, her legs shaking. Nettles grew around the boar, but it didn’t seem to care. She needed to think of something else, but it was too late. The boar was already charging.

His tusks glittered, and she knew this time they would gore her. The boar lowered its head, aiming for the soft flesh of her belly. Lia closed her eyes, bracing for the blow.

The boar squealed. She looked in time to see it locked in battle with a white wolf. Kane or Ronan, she couldn’t tell which, had thrown himself in front of her.

Claws clashed with tusks. Teeth sank into flesh. They rolled down the hill, locked together, fighting all the way. They hit a rock near the bottom, and the boar popped free of the wolf’s grasp. It kicked the wolf with its hind legs, then raced off into the night.

“Lia.” Ronan was beside her. He scooped her off her feet. “Are you okay?”

She let out a shuddering breath. The beast had wanted to kill her, just as the wolves had wanted to kill the buck. “I’m fine.”

He gave her a look like he could tell she was lying.

“Kane,” Ronan called, “all good?”

The white wolf rolled over, shifting to human. Huck bent to lend a hand, but Kane ignored him.

“I’ve never seen a boar that large,” Ronan said. He looked Kane up and down. “Did he get you?”

“I told you,” Kane said quietly.

“Told me what?” Ronan set Lia down, letting her lean against him.

“I told you she could get hurt!” Kane practically blazed with anger.

Ronan stepped back, stunned. “You never said that.”

“That’s because you should have known. You put Lia in danger.”

“Kane, I’m all right.” Lia’s voice shook, though she didn’t know whether it was from the boar or his outburst.

With one last glare at his brother, Kane stormed off into the woods.

“Did you at least get the buck?” Lia asked.

Ronan shook his head. “We lost the buck and the boar. We’ll have to try again some other night.”

Lia decided not to ask if she could watch that hunt. She wasn’t entirely sure she wanted to.

The wolves were quiet as they made their way back to the den. An air of defeat seemed to hang around them. They broke into the meadow, where a circle of shifters awaited them. Lia’s stomach sank as she saw Sequoia out in front.

“Where’s the kill?” she asked.

Ronan let Lia dismount, then he shifted. “Nothing tonight.”

Sequoia pinned Lia with a steely stare. “They take
her
hunting and return with no meat? Forgive me if I don’t believe that’s a coincidence.”

“A wild boar spoiled the hunt,” Huck said, “not Lia.”

Sequoia opened her mouth to argue, but Ronan cut her off. “There are still five turkeys hanging in the kitchen. Get some jerky from the stores. We won’t starve in one night.”

Sequoia turned toward the den, but not before casting one last baleful look at Lia. Ivy and Clove followed. Lia shivered. Their distaste was palpable.

Ronan put an arm around her. “All hunts aren’t successful,” he said. “This wasn’t your fault.”

Lia huddled against him. The night had grown cold without her noticing. She wished Kane had returned with them.

Ronan led her to the bonfire, which the shifters had roaring. Everyone gathered around, warming themselves by the flames. Sequoia and her minions brought out turkey legs, which some of the pack put on sticks and toasted over the flames. Others, like the older wolf called Gaunt, were content to eat their meat raw.

Someone sat next to Lia, shoving another shifter aside for space.

“Kane,” she said. “You came back.”

“Don’t act so surprised.”

She was, actually. She thought he might have run off for another week.

“Here.” He handed her a turkey leg, already impaled on a stick. “You’ll want this. Dodging wild boars takes a lot of energy, or so I’ve heard.”

“That’s the second time you’ve saved my life,” she said quietly.

He shrugged, like wrestling wild boars was something he’d do whether or not she was in danger. Lia roasted her turkey leg, glancing at Kane out of the corner of her eye. He’d placed his hand on the log behind her, like he wasn’t going to let any boars sneak up on them. She had to suppress a smile.

Something glistened on his ribcage. It was a shallow gash, oozing blood.

“You’re hurt!” Lia said. “Do you want me to get some bandages? I can rip up my shirt if I need to.”

Kane held up a hand. “Keep your shirt. You can’t go tearing them all up, or you’ll run out. He just grazed me with his tusk is all. I’ll be fine. This isn’t my first battle, you know.” Kane twisted, letting the fire illuminate the patchwork of scars on his back.

Lia wondered what kind of monster had been able to maul an Alpha. She was about to ask when Ronan laid a hand on her leg. He shook his head.

She looked through the flames and was startled to find Della watching her. The light danced over her gray-streaked hair, though her twinkling eyes made her seem much younger. She gave Lia a small smile.

“There are some among us,” she said, “who do not know the stories of our beginnings.”

At her words, the shifters fell silent.

“Who will tell them?” Della asked the gathered pack. “Who will speak of the days of old?”

“Tell us, Della,” Lark said.

“Yes, speak,” said another shifter Lia couldn’t name.

Murmurings for Della to tell her tales rippled around the fire. Even Sequoia sat back to listen, her eyes wistful.

“Once, long ago, all people were shifters,” Della said. “They ran under the stars when the moon was full, they hunted and howled together. But some lost the ways of the wild. They left their caves, preferring to till the earth rather than chase prey. They traded claws for hands that could thresh wheat. Choosing to stand on two legs, they trudged behind their oxen.

“They looked at the ones they had left in the mountains and forests and called them savages. They tried to forget the part of them that was ever animal. They denied their urges to stare at the moon, to sniff the wind for game, to sprint with four paws beating against the earth’s breast.

“Soon they lost their ability to shift entirely. They like to think of themselves as above us, more cultured, more civilized, but their teeth tell the lie of that.” Della showed her own canines, extremely sharp even in her human form. “Their teeth may be short and dull, but they can still tear flesh. Humans wouldn’t have fangs if they hadn’t been wild animals once. Most of them still are, though they’ve gotten good at hiding it.”

Della poked the fire, sending up sparks. “They are our cousins, humans. They’ve chosen the safe path, away from claw and wood. They sit in their various concrete boxes and wait for death to claim them. They think that they are superior to us, with their weapons and technology, but they could never hope to win against us in battle in our mountains.

“We are an ancient race. This world belongs to us, as it has since the beginning. We share it with our cousins, out of respect for old family ties. But the wild places… the wild places are ours. Whether Born or Bitten, we are wolves of the Twin River pack.”

Throwing back her head, Della let out a low howl. She was joined by Kane and Ronan, the deep notes of their howls rising and falling in eerie harmony. One by one, the pack joined in. They all had their eyes closed, chins pointed toward the stars. Though they each howled separately, it seemed to Lia like they were all singing parts of the same song, one with no beginning and no end. It sent chills up her spine. Though wordless, the song seemed to tell of the pack’s unity, its strength, its power.

Nestled between Kane and Ronan, lulled by the pack’s chorus, Lia gave in to sleep.

Chapter Five

Lia stood in the meadow, watching Lark, Dove, and Cricket butcher a buck. The hunters had made their kill without her, but Lia hadn’t protested. She didn’t want to meet the boar again.

“Lark?”

“Mmm?” Expertly, the shifter thrust her knife into the buck’s ankle, cutting through the ligaments and snapping the foot off at the joint.

Lia couldn’t help but flinch. “The other night, around the fire, Della said something about wolves being Born or Bitten. What did she mean by that?”

Dove and Cricket exchanged a worried look as Lark snapped off the buck’s other knee.

Lark gazed down at her bloody hands. “Those are the only two ways to become a wolf shifter.”

“And?” Lia felt a bit queasy, and it wasn’t because of the buck. “Obviously I can’t be born a shifter, so how does being Bitten work?”

“It’s not so bad,” Lark said. “At least that’s what I’ve heard.”

“So you’re Born shifters?” Lia asked. “All of you?”

Dove and Cricket nodded miserably. Lia wished they’d stop looking so morose. She felt like she was about to attend her own funeral.

“It’ll be fast,” Lark said. “One bite and it’s over.”

Lia had a terrible feeling about this. “How many of the pack are Bitten wolves?”

They hung the buck by its antlers on a lone tree.

“There are a fair few,” Lark said. “Um, there’s Duke. He’s the most recently Turned.”

“And Cage,” Cricket offered.

“That’s it?” Lia asked.

Dove sliced her knife down the buck’s belly, neatly separating skin from flesh. “You’re forgetting Della.”

“So, three?” Lia asked. “Out of the whole pack? Why are there so few?”

“Well, not everyone survives the Bite, do they,” Cricket said.

Dove elbowed her in the ribs.

Lia had to sit down. It felt like the world was spinning off its axis. Blood rushed in her ears. She liked Ronan and Kane. She liked the pack. But was she ready to risk death for them?

“Nice,” Dove muttered. “Real nice, Cricket.”

“What?” Cricket peeled off the buck’s skin. It looked like she was removing its furry sweater. “Lia will be fine.”

If she died, would they butcher her like the buck and feed her to the pack? Lia lay back, staring into the bright blue sky. Was any of this worth it?

“You’ll be okay,” Lark said. “Remember the prophecy? Della wouldn’t have seen what she did if you died right after being Bitten.”

Lia focused on trying to breathe. It felt like her lungs had shrunk and couldn’t process as much air. Blood trickled down the buck’s back legs, falling to the grass in a steady drip.

“Anyway,” Lark said, as though they were having a picnic and not pulling a deer’s organs out of its chest, “one thing you should know is that the one to Turn you will have the greatest claim on you. They’ll most likely be your mate.”

Lia tried to sit up, and immediately regretted it. “So I have to decide whether to let Ronan or Kane bite me?”

“Oh, no.” Lark munched on the buck’s liver. “They’ll decide for you. That is, if they don’t kill each other first.”

“Thanks,” Lia muttered. “Very reassuring.”

“You still have three days,” Lark said. “That’s plenty of time to prepare.”

Lia looked up at the buck’s flayed skull. Its empty eye sockets stared back. It seemed to be grinning at her.

***

A day flew by, and the next, with unsettling speed. Ronan tried to reassure her with stolen kisses, soft pecks on the cheek and forehead when no one was looking. She caught Kane staring at her hungrily, but he always disappeared moments after. The Alphas grew more unpredictable as the moon grew fat. Over dinner one night, they fought over a haunch of venison, ignoring the fact that there were three others to choose from. Delirium would begin tomorrow at sundown, and the pack was on edge.

Lia sat in the warm meadow grass, the hum of insects all around, and tried not to panic. A tiny white butterfly lighted on her knee.

“Am I insane to still be here?” she asked it. Lia sighed. “Probably, if I’m talking to a bug.”

The butterfly cleaned its antennae.

“Maybe I should have left when I had the chance. I’m not sure Ronan or Kane would let me leave now.”

Plucking a blade of grass, Lia tied it into knots. Their fates would be decided tomorrow, and she felt nowhere near ready. Right now, with only a few feeble hours separating her from the descent of Delirium, she found it difficult to trust Della’s dream that everything would turn out fine. She glanced toward the den. Shifters worked not too far away, preparing dinner and building the fire. It was busy enough that she could slip away without being noticed.

But her heart twisted when she thought of the Alphas, alone. She couldn’t abandon them. But could she possibly keep both of them? Someone like her? Lia pulled her knees to her chest, making the butterfly take flight. She watched as it disappeared into the purpling sky.

She had this chance to join the pack as the mate of two Alphas only because fate was on her side. If that were true, wouldn’t it be a shame to waste the opportunity? If the prophecy was right, she wouldn’t be able to stop it anyway.

Her stomach turned. Lark had told her that she wouldn’t become a part of the pack just by surviving Delirium and the Bite. She also had to be bound to the pack. Lark wouldn’t go into the details, but it sounded an awful lot like the witches’ initiation. Lia couldn’t forget how she’d failed the tests. She could still hear Magda’s cold, cruel words as the old crone cast Lia out.

What if she couldn’t pass the shifters’ tests? Lia couldn’t hunt. Not large game, anyway. She didn’t know the first thing about tracking, or fighting. Maybe she could promise to cook and clean, and beg the Alphas to let her stay. She’d have to hope they wouldn’t find out until later that most of her cooking turned to a substance resembling blackened rocks.

Lia plucked more blades of grass, not noticing that new shoots sprouted in their place. All of the pack members might not like her, but she loved the pack. They had a camaraderie, a joy in being together that she’d never known. With the witches, Lia had always feared stepping out of line and being ridiculed. The shifters might argue or even fight, but in the end they seemed to have each other’s backs. It would be nice to be part of the pack. To belong.