Hidden Alpha [Alpha Mates] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour) (14 page)

He took the towel and left the house, hoping he found her in time. He had no idea how long she could wait before being claimed by him if the other male had already claimed her. What he did know was that it had probably been two weeks since the other wolf claimed her. He had to hurry.

After Devlin had claimed Amalya, she had seemed to be feeling much better. She had her energy back and seemed happy and healthy. But after five days, that had changed. She was tired again and complained that her whole body ached. She told Devlin that maybe she had the flu and started staying in the spare bedroom on the second floor so that he and Chase didn’t get it. They had explained to her that they couldn’t catch human viruses, but she still insisted that she should stay away from them. She was also staying away from all the children, which meant Devlin and Chase had to take care of them by themselves. Devlin didn’t mind, though. He would do anything he could to help Amalya feel better. He had called the doctor that morning, and both he and Chase were sitting in the living room, waiting for him to come out of the guest room.

When he emerged from the room twenty minutes later, Devlin noticed the look of worry on his face and tried to prepare himself for the bad news he was sure to come.

“What’s wrong with her, doc?”

The doctor shook his head as he answered, “I have no idea. Some of her symptoms sound like the flu, but others just don’t add up. I took some blood and am going to go run some tests. I won’t have the results until at least tomorrow, but I will call you as soon as I know something. Until then, just keep her hydrated and comfortable. And since I don’t know what the problem is, you better keep all the children away from her, too.”

As if on cue, one of the babies started crying. Chase headed toward the nursery, telling Devlin that he would check on her while he walked the doctor out. Devlin led the doctor out the front door and stopped him on the porch.

“Doc. I know you said you don’t know for sure what is going on, but can you give me at least a guess?”

“I really have no idea. The tiredness and aching body sound like the flu, but there is no fever or anything else that points to it being that. That is why I drew blood. Hopefully the tests will show something. I’m sorry, Alpha. I wish I could give you an answer, but I just don’t have one.”

While the doctor was been talking, a strange car pulled into the driveway, and a male got out and was walking toward them like he was on a mission. He stepped up on the porch and got in Devlin’s face. With a growl, he said, “Where is she?”

Devlin knew as soon as the words left the other man’s mouth who he was and who he was looking for.
Gavin.
Devlin growled back as his canines extended. “She is not your concern. Leave now!”

Gavin showed no signs of backing down, and Devlin knew this was going to go to hell in a hand basket quickly. He had to get the doctor out of there before anything happened to hurt him. Without taking his eyes off the other alpha, he said, “Doc, thank you for coming. Please call me as soon as you know something.”

The doctor voice quivered, “Yes, Alpha. I will call you as soon as I can.”

When he knew that the doctor was safely in his car, Devlin repeated, “Leave now!” He knew Gavin wasn’t going to listen, but he needed to make sure the other alpha knew he was serious and that he wasn’t welcome in his home or on his land. Gavin inhaled deeply and stumbled backward a few steps. Devlin had the sudden urge to catch him and make sure he was alright but didn’t act on it. He wasn’t sure if it was a trick so Gavin could get the upper hand on him. He watched as Gavin raised his hand and ran his fingers through his hair, making it stand on end. There was a moment of silence before Gavin spoke up.

“You claimed her, didn’t you?”

“Of course I did. She’s my mate. I have every right to claim her.”

“How long ago? And how sick is she?” Gavin asked.

“Not that’s it’s any of your business, but a few days ago. I have my pack doctor working on figuring out what is wrong with her. She will be fine. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have a mate to tend to, and you have a long drive ahead of you back to your own land. Where I suggest you stay.” Devlin turned and took a step toward the door.

He froze with his hand on the doorknob when Gavin asked, “What do you know about half-breeds?”

He spun around and glared at the other alpha. “What do you mean, half-breeds?”

“I mean someone that is half human and half shifter.”

“I know what a half-breed is, asshole. What I don’t know is why you are asking me about them.”

Gavin took a deep breath and studied him before answering, “Amalya is a half-breed.”

Devlin shook his head in denial. “She can’t be. She would have told me if she was. I don’t know what your game is, but I
do
know you’re lying. She would never keep something like that from us. She didn’t even know that shifters existed before she met us.”

“She didn’t know. We kept it from her to keep her safe. I was going to explain everything to her after I found her other mate. That is where I have been for the last five years. I have been searching for her other mate. Guess I should have just waited, and you would have come to us,” he said with a smirk.

Devlin had had enough of Gavin’s bullshit and got in his face, poking him in the chest. “I have heard enough. You are
not
her mate.
I
am. And I want you to leave right now.”

Gavin didn’t even blink when he said, “Smell me.”

Devlin shook his head, confused. “What do you mean ‘smell me’?”

Gavin tilted his head to the side and offered his neck to Devlin before saying, “Smell me, and you will know that I am her other mate. I scented you on a towel at our house and knew from the scent that you were her other mate. I’m sure you will come to the same conclusion.”

Before Devlin could respond, he felt a large hand on the back of his neck pulling him backward and watched Gavin sail through the air and land with a thud at the bottom of the porch steps.

* * * *

Chase had gotten Katrya changed and in her playpen in the living room. Dmytri and Adryk were awake from their nap, too, and were playing in the living room also. He told them to leave Katrya alone and to call for him if she started crying. He knew they would listen to him, and the baby would be fine for a few minutes while he checked on Amalya and went looking for Devlin. He should have been back in the house, but Chase thought maybe he was still talking with the doctor. When he opened the front door to find him chest to chest with another male who was baring his neck to him and telling him to smell him, he lost control. He grabbed Devlin and yanked him back while shoving the other male off the porch. He wrapped one arm around Devlin’s waist and the other around his shoulders. Holding him to his body, he growled in his ear.

“What the fuck is going on?” He didn’t care at the moment that holding his alpha the way he was and confronting him about the other male could be taken as a challenge. He also didn’t care that he just knocked another alpha onto his ass. The other man must be Gavin, but that still didn’t explain what the hell he was doing so close to Chase’s mate. Or excuse why he was saying to smell him. Gavin started to get up and Chase growled at him and flashed his canines.

“You stay right the fuck where you are and start explaining what the hell you were doing with my mate.”

Gavin scowled at him and looked confused and pissed at the same time. He asked, “What do you mean your mate? He’s not your mate. He’s Amalya’s mate.” He then glared at Devlin. “What are you doing with this man? You are Amalya’s other mate. How could you cheat on your mate with someone else? Especially a man? What the fuck is wrong with you?”

Chase wouldn’t accept anyone speaking to his mate and alpha the way Gavin was and spoke before Devlin had a chance to answer. “We are both her mates and each other’s. This doesn’t concern you. You are nothing to her and need to leave now.” He started to walk backward, half dragging Devlin with him.

He stopped in the threshold when Gavin said, “I know why she’s sick and can help you make her better.”

Chase took another step into the house and reached to shut the door. “We don’t need your help. We will take care of her.
Leave!
And don’t come back.”

Devlin, who had been compliant to Chase until then, raised his hand and placed it on the door, preventing him from closing it. He cleared his throat and said, “I think we need to listen to him, Chase. He may really know what’s wrong with her. I’m not sure how he thinks he can help, but I will do anything to make her better. Let’s just hear him out, and then if we don’t like what he has to say, you can kick him out and send him on his way.”

Chase disagreed. “She is our mate. We can take care of her. He is nothing to her. All he ever did was hurt her and us by pulling the bullshit with marking her.”

Devlin turned around in his arms and whispered, “He says she is a half-breed. If it’s true, we may need his help. We have never met a half-breed, and I don’t know a lot about them. Let’s let him explain and go from there.”

Chase shook his head. “No, she would have told us if she was a half-breed. We know she isn’t. She didn’t even know that shifters existed until Dmytri shifted in front of her. She can’t be.”

Devlin rubbed his hand up Chase’s chest. “My love. Please, if he knows of anything that may help her get better, we should at least try. The doctor didn’t have clue as to what was wrong. We owe it to her to listen to him and find out if he can help.”

Chase knew he was outvoted on this. It didn’t matter that Devlin had worded it as a request, he knew an order from his alpha when he heard one. “Okay, but not in the house. We will talk to him outside. He isn’t getting anywhere near her or the kids.”

Chase walked back out the door and stood at the top of the steps. Gavin sat up but didn’t move any further.
Good, the bastard does have some brains after all.
He pointed down at the sitting man. “Talk. And know that if you make one move toward Devlin or try to get into the cabin I will take you down. I don’t care whether you’re an alpha or not. My mates’ and children’s safety comes first. Understand?”

Gavin nodded. “Can I at least get up so we can talk like civilized beings without getting knocked on my ass again?”

Chase nodded and took a step back, blocking Gavin’s access to Devlin and the door to the house.

* * * *

Gavin rose to stand at the bottom of the steps. He wasn’t sure what was going on. He knew that Devlin was the alpha and Amalya’s other mate, but he wasn’t sure where the wolf that had shoved him off the porch fit in. That was, until the wind shifted and he caught a whiff of him. He had to clutch the railing when he scented the other wolf. He blinked up at the two standing on the porch watching him suspiciously. “How could this happen?” he asked no one in particular.

The male whom he assumed was Devlin’s beta responded with his own question, “How could what happen?”

“You’re both her mates.”

“No shit, Sherlock. That’s what we told you. Now get on with what you know about why she’s sick and tell us how to help her.”

Gavin shook his head in confusion. “No, you don’t understand. I knew she had another mate, but I never imagined in a million years that I would have to share her with
two
other males.”

Chase pointed down at him. “Get this straight right now. She is
our
mate. Not
yours. You
won’t be sharing her with anyone. And we sure as shit won’t be sharing her with you.”

Gavin smirked. “You
will
share her with me if you want her to get better.” Maybe that wasn’t the smartest comment for him to make, because Chase took the four steps down in one leap and had his hand wrapped around Gavin’s throat with his feet lifted off the ground before Gavin could duck out of the way. He could feel Chase’s claws extend and puncture the skin near his carotid artery. The beta brought them face-to-face and bared his canines again, nostrils flaring in anger. He knew Chase could end his life in seconds, and there wasn’t anything he could do about it. He was shocked when Chase released him as if his hand was on fire, dropped him to the ground, and stumbled backward. He reached his hand up to the wounds on his neck, making sure he wasn’t bleeding too badly.

He watched as Devlin rushed down the steps to Chase’s side. “What’s wrong? What did he do to you?” Devlin bent down over Gavin. “What the fuck did you do? If you hurt him, you will pay with your life.”

Chase laid his hand on Devlin’s shoulder, and when he was paying attention to him again, Chase said with what sounded like bewilderment, “He didn’t hurt me. I was just shocked is all. He’s our mate.”

Devlin looked between the two of them. “What? How? What?”

Chase nodded his head. “I don’t know how, but he is. Smell him. He’s our mate.”

Now it was Gavin’s turn to be pissed. He jumped to his feet and pointed his finger at the two of them. “Now wait right there. I’m not your mate. I’m Amalya’s mate. So, whatever your little game is, you can stop playing it right now. I have no interest in either of you. I’m not gay. I only came here to claim Amalya. I know I have to share her with you two, but that doesn’t mean that I have to be with you, too.”