The Wolf's Surrender (7 page)

“After, Jenner. Let Mia talk. Then Chase can explain.”

Jenner went very still, and Mia noted the way his expression went carefully blank. There was an order to things here, and she’d just been reminded of it. So had Jenner, whether he liked it or not. And whatever he was to the pack, he wasn’t Alpha. Still, he took his time complying. Mia watched him stretch his legs out in front of him as he leaned back in the chair, appearing to mull this over. Finally, he looked at Mia.

“Go ahead.”

As gruff as he was, there was something about the tone of his voice that bolstered her. She took a deep breath, then began.

“I met Jeff about a month ago.”

Bane tilted his head, an action she’d seen from Jenner when he was interested in something.

“Work?” he asked. Mia shook her head.

“No. Bookstore. It was just one of those things. I was thumbing through the new Stephen King, and he struck up a conversation. He was a fan, too, so we started talking...”

“Go figure,” Jenner muttered. Mia ignored him, though she supposed it
was
fitting. Just as she knew she had to sound very naive. The chances that their meeting had just been “one of those things” were slim to none. She knew that now. How long had Jeff been stalking her, waiting to make a move? How had he known about her at all?

“It really isn’t very interesting,” Mia continued. “We exchanged numbers. Went out a few times. He said he came from money but was trying to make his own. He has a financial consulting firm. At least...that’s what he said. I believed him. He was comfortable throwing money around, but he...seemed to have some issues with it too.”

“Issues?” Bane murmured.

Mia nodded, suddenly embarrassed. Her cheeks flushed despite her best efforts to stop it. “He depended on the family money, but he talked a lot about wanting to prove himself. About not being thought good enough to take over the company one day. There had been problems between him and his father before he died, and Jeff wanted to build something great on his own. He wanted...” She trailed off and sighed, remembering those conversations. Jeff had been more than determined. He’d been angry. She’d chalked it up to being raised indifferently and with far too much, but she knew now that at least some of the problem had been within Jeff himself.

“He wanted lots of things. He could be charming. He could also be moody.”

Jenner was looking at her strangely. “You liked that? Charming and moody?”

Mia shrugged while Jenner ignored Bane’s glare. “Everyone has baggage. I liked him. Obviously, I didn’t really know him. This weekend would have been the most time we’d spent together at once. Maybe I would have noticed more was wrong if it had worked out that way, but he saved me the trouble.” She looked away, remembering. “He surprised me with this. I thought the whole whirlwind getaway thing was kind of romantic. That’ll teach me.”

“No,” Kenyon said, drawing her attention back to his earnest expression. “This was just him, Mia.
Is
him. He was just the same before he left the Silverback, and trust me, he fooled more than just you.”

“What makes you so sure this guy was a Silverback?” Jenner asked, and Mia let out the breath she didn’t even know she’d been holding. They had what they needed, or most of it. It didn’t matter why Jeff had targeted her, as long as he was caught.

Then she would be safe...and so would everyone else.

But the guilt that began to gnaw at her spoiled whatever relief she might have felt quickly enough. She’d seen no evidence that these Blackpaw wanted anything more than to catch a violent feral and protect her. Despite all her grandmother’s warnings about never getting too close to anyone, about how no one would ever want her for anything other than her magic, she felt as though she was the dangerous one here.

Kenyon’s lips curved into the barest hint of a smile as he watched Jenner. “Your sheriff got in touch last night after the attack. Since our territory is the closest to yours, it made sense to check. And in this case, I’m pretty sure we have a match, at least based on the description we were given.”

Jenner’s voice didn’t betray a hint of what he was thinking. “That’s a pretty rough secondhand description you would have gotten, since Mia didn’t even talk to Buddy—that’s Sheriff Stokes—last night. She was with me.”

Maybe she was imagining it, but the way he said those words gave Mia a dark little thrill. He’d sounded almost possessive. And from the way Kenyon’s blue eyes narrowed, he’d heard it too.

“I understand that. But if this is who I’m thinking, he’s going to be hard to catch.”

“If? I thought you said you were sure.”

“I’m not going to tell you I’m positive until I’ve got my teeth in his throat, but I’m about as sure as I can be otherwise.”

Bane inserted himself into the conversation then, and Mia was glad of it. She didn’t like the way Jenner and Kenyon were looking at one another. There was an unspoken challenge hanging in the air, and she swore she could feel an excess of testosterone in the atmosphere all of a sudden. She didn’t know what this was about, but she figured it had a lot to do with Kenyon encroaching on Jenner’s territory.

She felt strangely included in that at the moment.

“Kenyon has recently been chosen as Tomas’s future successor, Jenner,” Bane said, a warning in his voice. “It’s appropriate that he learn to deal with situations like this.”

“I suppose,” Jenner grumbled. “
If
this is their guy. But even if it is, this is our territory. We don’t need the Silverback to catch this dirtbag.” His gaze sharpened and pinned Bane to the spot. “Would have been nice if you’d given me a heads up, too. I’m the Lunari, remember? You’re the one who insisted I take this position. You ought to know the protocol.”

“I barely had any warning, so you got none,” Bane replied with a shrug. “Anyway, I figured you had enough on your hands without having to get pissed off about this in advance. Little did I know you were hiding under the hood of that damn car. Again.”

Something about the way Bane said it struck Mia as funny despite everything, and she couldn’t quite hide her amused snort. Bane’s quick sidelong glance, prickly and disgruntled, did nothing to dampen her sudden amusement. And in a way, it was nice to know that it didn’t take much to send him to his preferred hidey hole. That it wasn’t just her.

And right about now, she was grateful
something
could make her chuckle.

“If he
was
one of ours,” Kenyon said pointedly, turning the subject back to the matter at hand, “you’ll want our help catching him, especially if it’s who we suspect. And if it is, then the Silverback have more than one interest to protect...it’s our right.” He paused, a small muscle in his jaw twitching as he looked straight at Jenner. “Unless you feel like going against the Pack Laws.”

Mia watched the way Jenner’s eyes went to gold flames at that statement, the way Bane was watching the two men with a look on his face that clearly said he wasn’t going to tolerate much more posturing. Her amusement faded as quickly as it had appeared. She didn’t have a clue what they were talking about, but she was fairly sure they were now only seconds away from someone throwing a fist into someone else’s face. With that in mind, she decided she ought to speak up. Kenyon’s assertion that he knew Jeff had piqued her interest. And she wasn’t going to get to hear any more about it if he and Jenner decided to sprout fur and have it out right there in the great room.

“I’m assuming you brought a picture?” Mia asked Kenyon, and as she’d hoped, both pairs of hot, glowing eyes fixed on her. The sudden and intense focus on her made her feel slightly lightheaded. It was hard not to appreciate the bizarre position she found herself in. It had never occurred to her that she would ever be one of those women who was actively sought after by the opposite sex.

Apparently, all she’d needed to do was be bitten by a werewolf.

It was a hell of a way for her luck to change.

Kenyon’s voice sounded slightly strangled. “Ah, yeah. I brought it with me.” From an inside pocket of the wool peacoat he hadn’t yet taken off, Kenyon produced a photo and handed it to Mia. He let his fingers brush against hers when he handed it off. His eyes, very blue, caught hers and tried to hold her gaze, but it didn’t take much for her to look away.

The sensation of Kenyon’s skin against hers was pleasant, but still, nothing like what she’d felt when Jenner had touched her. She could have tried to let her magic call to him if she’d wanted, to let her blood sing and see how his responded, but Mia had no interest in the uncomfortable aftermath that might provoke. All she got was the faintest impression of a sweet Highland tune before she drew her hand away. She glanced at Jenner quickly, catching his gaze for only the barest of seconds before he turned his attention elsewhere. Instantly, heat raced over her skin, making her flush.

With Jenner, her problem went far beyond touch. And she was way too interested. He could be a fascinating distraction if she let him, Mia knew. Fascinating, and ultimately painful. She didn’t know enough, have enough experience, to even think about playing with a man like him.

With an inward sigh, Mia looked down at the picture to examine it. Instantly, she was floored. It was a candid shot at what looked like a summer barbecue, with a trio of laughing people in the foreground. There was a grinning, dark-haired man holding a spatula. A pretty woman with curly dark blond hair. And there, with his arms wrapped around the woman, looking as though he was having the time of his life, was Jeff.

Mia hadn’t anticipated the reaction she would have to seeing his face again. Her heart kicked into an uneven staccato, and a clammy chill slithered over her skin. Her fingers shook as she shoved the picture back at Kenyon, wanting it away from her. Jeff’s voice echoed in her head.

Come back here, you stupid bitch...you can’t run from me forever!

“Here. I don’t need to look at it anymore.” She knew her voice sounded clipped, strained. And to his credit, Kenyon took the photo back quickly, without any more playful brushes of his hand. He looked more concerned than anything.

“Are you all right, Mia?” he asked, his voice echoing strangely in her head. The room seemed to shift beneath her feet, and she felt herself wobble. She couldn’t seem to get enough air.

Then Jenner was right in front of her, filling up her vision. It was a relief...Mia felt like she was sliding down into a black hole. Her vision started to waver. All she could think of were yellow eyes staring wildly at her in the darkness, of the sensation of a mouthful of teeth sinking into her skin.

“Of course she’s not all right,” Jenner said, his voice sounding to her as though he were shouting at her from very far away. “Mia? Hell, Bane, she’s going to pass out...”

She felt his hands on her, but then the floor dropped out from beneath her, and she was floating, floating in darkness.

Chapter 6

S
he was still very much aware of herself, and of the sensation of movement, but she was body-less, weightless. Mia felt like she was flying in the dark, headed somewhere very quickly. The sound of masculine voices drew her, growing louder as she sped toward them. It wasn’t long before she was surrounded by those voices, men arguing over the best way to go about...something.

Need to go back and get the girl...

Full moon on Tuesday, going to be a problem if it doesn’t happen soon...

Don’t care if I have to kill twenty wolves to get to her, I will...

Then she was surrounded by another voice, one she knew all too well.

Mia. I can feel you. I’m coming back to get you, sweetheart. Nothing will keep me from you. I know where you are. The shadows are waiting. You’re the key...the key...the key...

A pair of red eyes opened in the darkness, not Jeff’s, but something far older, and infinitely more dangerous. When they fixed on her, she felt as though she’d been plunged into ice water.

“No!” She cried out as her body bowed upward, slamming back into reality with incredible force. It reminded her of the times she’d awakened from dreams when she’d felt like she was falling, except that this time was far more frightening, and she actually hit bottom.

Though her eyes had opened, it took Mia a few seconds to process what she was seeing. She was on her back on the floor, three very pale faces hovering over her. Something was gripping her hand so tightly that it was cutting off the circulation. And she was freezing.

Mia flexed her own hand gently, and Jenner’s grip relaxed, though not much. She began to shiver as warmth slowly returned.

“What happened?” he demanded. “Jesus, Mia, you’re like ice!”

Mia blinked, trying to organize her scattered thoughts and impressions into something coherent. Finally, she said, “I guess seeing him triggered...something. I heard Jeff. In my head.” She looked into Jenner’s eyes, and the anger she saw there steadied her. He had promised to keep her safe. In the midst of all the madness, she believed he would at least try his best to honor his word.

“More than one voice, though Jeff’s was the strongest. They were talking about looking for me, getting me before the full moon. And then there were red eyes...” She trailed off, shaking her head. “That was when I got cold.”

“Gaines had red eyes?” Kenyon asked, obviously confused.

“Son of a bitch,” Jenner said flatly. He turned an accusing look on Kenyon. “What kind of a picture did you show her?”

Kenyon glowered back. “This isn’t my fault. Her link to him is obviously strong. He’s out there thinking about her, she saw his face, and that’s all it took.”

Feeling slightly woozy, Mia sat up. As though he had only just realized he’d been hanging on to it, Jenner quickly withdrew his hand. Still, he stayed on one knee beside her, close enough that Mia could feel the warmth radiating from him. It was welcome...right now, she felt as though she would never be warm again.

“What is it? What just happened to me?” she asked.

It was Kenyon who answered her, getting to his feet and sparing Jenner a single, scathing glance before focusing back on her with eyes that warmed instantly with worry and compassion.

“A werewolf bite is a powerful thing, Mia. It links people together, just as the initiation ritual links the bitten to a pack. Usually both things happen at the same time, since we take pains to ensure those who join us are willing and understand the process. But Jeff Gaines only got halfway. You’re linked to him mentally, just as wolf packs are able to communicate telepathically...and through him, to others he’s bitten. But if he doesn’t finish what he started by the full moon, that bond will be broken.”

“I want it broken now,” Mia said with a shudder. “And whatever you mean about finishing what he started, I think you’re all still assuming he wants to keep me alive.
He doesn’t.
He just wants to be the one who kills me.”

“He won’t,” Jenner said flatly. “No matter what happens, and whether you’re right or not, you’ll be part of a pack by the full moon.”

“That’s when I’m supposed to, um, turn into a werewolf, right?” she asked, trying not to grimace at how odd the words felt rolling off of her tongue. “I understand why I have to join a pack, but not how. Is there some kind of ceremony?”

Mia looked at the three men surrounding her, saw the light blush on Kenyon’s cheeks and the way he suddenly refused to meet her eyes. Jenner still looked angry. And Bane...well, Bane’s handsome face was tinged with regret. That bothered her more than anything. Apparently, what she’d already been through hadn’t been enough. There was more.

“What aren’t you telling me?” Mia asked, keeping her voice even, though she wanted to shout. She looked at each man in turn. “What do I have to do to get him out of my head?”

Bane cleared his throat. She hadn’t thought he was capable of looking embarrassed until now.

“Linking in, making a bond to another wolf or wolves permanent, isn’t just symbolic. It’s...ah...physical. The bite is just part of it.”

It was hard to miss the gist, especially when Bane dropped his eyes. Mia’s stomach did a slow roll, and she felt all the blood drain from her face. Still, she kept focused on Bane. She couldn’t look at the other two without suffering mortification so intense that she worried it would cause her to simply melt through the floor. “Are you saying,” she asked, her voice sounding hoarse and strange to her own ears, “that by the full moon I’m going to have to...to have to...”

Oh, God, she couldn’t even say it. It was the smallest of blessings that Bane didn’t make her. All he did was nod.

“I’m sorry, Mia. I know you didn’t ask for this. But that doesn’t change things. There’s no other way. It’s not—it doesn’t have to mean anything. It’s not marriage.”

“No, it’s just a mandatory one-night stand,” Mia replied, knowing her face was glowing some shade of volcanic red right now and barely caring. It was so ridiculous, in an awful sort of way. Having her pick of hot werewolves for one night sounded great in fantasyland. In reality, this was more than a little gross.

“Don’t think of it that way,” Bane replied. “Please. No one will force himself on you, Mia. Someone
must
initiate you by the full moon...but that choice is yours. Before that, though, we’d like to try and use your connection to Gaines to find him. We know that his connection to you will draw him here eventually, but it would be better for everyone if we could find him first.”

Mia nodded slowly, wearily. The thought of Jeff coming here, of him finding her and dragging her off, was nothing short of terrifying. It was the only thing that made the thought of having to sleep with a relative stranger manageable.

Jenner’s gruff rumble of a voice drew her attention away from her troubled thoughts, and she immediately flushed when their eyes met. If she had to choose, right this second, there would be no contest...

“I don’t like that you heard other voices. Ferals usually run alone. Smacks of throwing together a pack, which is forbidden.” His eyes darkened. “You can’t think of any reason why he’s hunting you in particular, Mia? He’s going to an awful lot of trouble just to catch and kill you.”

Mia simply shook her head, feeling miserable. What was she supposed to say? She doubted these wolves even knew about the shadows drawn to blood like hers.
She
didn’t even know if they were real. All she had to go on were a bunch of old warnings and stories...and the fact that one crazy feral werewolf had decided it was all true.

Trusting strangers went against everything she knew. Hiding her secret was too deeply ingrained. As was the belief, impossible to shake, that if these men knew the truth, they’d throw her out so quickly her head would spin.

Tainted,
her grandmother’s voice whispered.

Jenner’s expression was full of doubt, but he was silent as he watched her. She could feel his gaze on her, warm as the sun, could smell the wonderful earthy scent he carried with him. They centered her in a way that nothing else ever had. It was wonderful...and worrying. Her intense awareness of Jenner was beginning to make her realize just how alone she’d been...and how little she wanted to return to being that way. But letting her guard down, letting herself crave his company, would leave her with nothing good. He’d pushed her away once already.

Jenner didn’t need her, Mia thought. And it was just as well.

“He was one of yours. Why did you cut him loose?” Jenner snapped out the question at Kenyon, who frowned and looked away.

“He was going by Jeff Markham then.” Kenyon sighed and ran a hand absently through his hair. “He made a play for Alpha. Fought dirty, too, but Tomas shut him down.”

Bane looked sharply at Kenyon. “The penalty to challenge and lose is death.”

Kenyon hissed out a sigh, and Mia couldn’t tell where his exasperation was directed.

“The ultimate choice falls to the Alpha, and Tomas chose mercy. Not that exile is such a mercy. Jeff’s link to the pack was severed. Tomas made it clear that if he ever saw his face again, he
would
kill him.” Kenyon shook his head. “Exiles aren’t the same as regular ferals. Much saner, just alone, which I guess can do things to you. But he hasn’t been gone from us long. The madness must have been there to begin with. You’re right, we should have just ended it. But it wasn’t my decision.”

“Those laws are there for a reason,” Jenner growled. “And now you’ve unleashed
this
on us. A feral with a makeshift pack loose on our territory, and an innocent woman being hunted to ground.” He slid an unreadable look at Mia. “He must think—”

Kenyon bared his teeth and growled, cutting him off. “It doesn’t matter what he thinks. He’s insane. The Silverback will take responsibility. And we’ll protect our own. She’ll be safe.”

Jenner’s lips curled. “Mia is
not
the Silverback’s responsibility.”

“Enough!” Bane’s sharp command made Mia jump. But his tone seemed to be enough, barely, to keep Jenner and Kenyon from ripping into one another. The Alpha’s eyes flashed as he looked between them.

“I think we’ve found out as much as we can from Mia right now, so you two can postpone your pissing match for when I don’t have to watch it.” He looked at Mia, gentling visibly. “I’d like to try to guide you in connecting with Gaines again, to see if we can find out where he is.”

She didn’t want to say yes. But she also knew that if she wanted him caught, there was little choice.

“When?” she asked.

“The sooner we can get him the better. Tonight.”

Mia nodded, though the thought left her cold. Still, the sooner the better. She now had no doubt he would come for her if she didn’t do something, and on her own there was no way she could fight him. He knew his own abilities. She was nowhere near comfortable with her own. At least, in working with the Blackpaw to find Jeff, she wouldn’t just be the damsel in distress on the sidelines.

He needed to be caught. She needed to stay sane and alive. Right now, that was all that mattered.

Feeling strangely better now that her situation had been laid out so plainly, Mia accepted Bane’s hand and got to her feet, then watched him issue his orders with the brutal efficiency of a general. Jenner hovered close by, even more intimidating than Bane because of his silence and the steely glint in his eyes. He had called himself a Lunari. She wondered what that was, though she had a feeling knowing might make his presence more unnerving than it already was.

“Go ahead and call Tomas,” Bane said to Kenyon. “Tell him what we know.”

Kenyon gave a quick nod. “He should be here himself before long. We’ll need to discuss Mia’s protection. She should be under constant watch.”

Jenner shifted and crossed his arms over his chest, fixing Kenyon with a piercing stare. “She is now. Are you questioning my ability to ensure her safety?”

The Silverback hesitated. “No, of course not,” he allowed. “I just wondered where you intend to keep her—”

“
Keep
me?” Mia interrupted, looking between the two angry werewolves. “Okay, one, I’m standing right here, so you might want to take that into consideration when you’re talking about me. Two, nobody is
keeping
me anywhere. Believe it or not, I can handle myself pretty well when I’m not alone in the woods with a guy who hasn’t mentioned he can grow fur and fangs. I appreciate the offer of protection, but if it’s going to turn into some kind of weird house arrest thing, then I’ll find somewhere to stay that’s less—”

“Intense?” Bane asked, a hint of a smile playing at the corners of his mouth.

“Exactly,” Mia agreed. Bane’s grin, handsome though it was, did exactly nothing for her frayed nerves.

“Good luck finding that around here,” he said. “And I’m afraid that these two are your best bets. You don’t know all the things Gaines might pull. We do. A wolf will need to be with you here, Mia, whether you like it or not.”

“She stays with me,” Jenner said flatly. Mia looked sharply at him. His words surprised her. But more than that, his expression, which was nothing short of deadly, filled her with a strange combination of nerves and pleasure. Despite the fact that he’d already shown himself to be surly, difficult, and rude, a part of her was glad he seemed determined to keep up his role of protector.

She felt safe with him. And right now, with everything in her life shifting beneath her feet, that counted for a lot.

Kenyon opened his mouth to say something, but Bane cut him off neatly before he began. “She’ll be protected,” Bane said, eyes fixed on Kenyon. “The details will be worked out today. But this is our pack, our people’s territory. Careful how much you question a Lunari, Kenyon. He’s hunted far more frightening things than you.”

Kenyon didn’t look happy about it, but he didn’t argue. Instead, he stepped forward to take Mia’s hand and, to her surprise, give a small bow. “It was nice meeting you, Mia. Anything you need, I’m at your service. I won’t be far.”

She smiled at him, charmed, despite what sounded a lot like a low growl from Jenner’s direction. Kenyon seemed genuinely sweet, Mia decided as she watched dimples wink in his cheeks, and there was no question he was handsome. Unfortunately, he was nowhere near as interesting to her as the werewolf who glared daggers at him all the way out the door.