Mated

Mated

Devlin Beach Wolves 1

H.M. McQueen

Devlin Beach Wolves

Mated

H.M. McQueen

Copyright H.M. McQueen 2015

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The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental and not intended by the author
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Other Titles by H.M. McQueen

Devlin Beach Pack Series

Mated

Taken

Claimed

Chosen

Atlandia Chronicles

Ruling Esland

Protector Series

Choices

Betrayal

Surrender*

Possession*

*2016 Publication

Chapter One

Madison flattened herself against the wall in a hallway just outside a room being used by the pack as a makeshift office. In the darkness she did her best to eavesdrop without being discovered by the group of wolves. Although they spoke in hushed tones, her hearing was keen allowing her to hear over the hard beats of her heart.

"I will have to get most of the merchandise out of the house."  The grumbling of deep voices made it hard to hear the Damiel's next sentence.  Finally the males quieted and she could make out what he said.  "Give me a couple days to extract it.  I'll leave enough for him to get busted.  I will call the council and turn the bastard in.  Meet me in Miami. Our customer will be there in three days."

Two long months had passed since she'd left with Damiel, and what seemed like an eternity away from Raythe.  Madison did her best to ignore the pain in her chest. The main reason he'd not found her, was his fault, not hers.  Even if he'd tried, there was no bond between them because they'd never mated.

A year and a half living together and Raythe never committed to their union.  There was no doubt in her mind they were meant to be mates, but according to Lycan law, it was the male who determined when the mating was to be.  Females had a choice of whom to date, but not whom they mated with.  As a matter of fact, it was strictly forbidden for a woman to ever broach the subject to a wolf.  Most women were surprised when during the act of making love, the bite that bound them together happened.

The room became quiet. She strained to hear from her hiding place.  Finally Damiel spoke again.  "Take the woman when you leave for Miami.  She's good insurance if by some chance the Devlin Beach pack catch up with us."

The men gave some sort of replies and it sounded like they moved around.  Madison sprinted back to the room where they kept her and closed the door being careful not to make a sound.  With luck they'd not come to check on her.  The last sentry stopped by an hour ago. 

After days of hard work, she'd managed to finally force the bathroom window up high enough to be able to squeeze through.  All she needed was a few minutes, and it had to be tonight.  One way or another, she'd beat Damiel to Raythe's house.

Footsteps outside her door made her heart jump.  Madison sat on the bed and picked up a book, opening it.  Creaks sounded as the door slid open.  Damiel strolled in.

The wolf was attractive, with the sleek look of a predator.  His eyes always seemed to drill into hers with not quite hatred, something else she would put closer to disgust in his expression.  His top lip curled when he spoke.  "I find it amusing that Raythe never mated with you.  Yet you remain loyal to him.  Some women are fatally ignorant."

"I don't see anyone following you around blindly.  None of the wolves trust you.  You betrayed your own pack." Madison glanced at him and lowered her gaze to the book.  "You wouldn't understand loyalty if it slapped you in the ass."

Damiel grabbed her so fast, she didn't get a chance to scream.  His fingers dug into her arms as he lifted her above the floor.  "Shut up, bitch. I can't wait until your usefulness is over and I can kill you."

No longer afraid of him, she met his eyes.  "Whatever happens, I'll make sure you don't get away with hurting my pack."

"Your pack hasn't come for you in all these weeks. Don't you find it sad?" Damiel smiled. It didn't reach his hard gaze. "Probably too wrapped up in the club and such." 

"Go away, Damiel.  You are a traitor."

The slap confused her, stars were bright behind her eyelids as she felt herself pushed back onto the bed. 

He fumbled with her pajamas.  Without untying the drawstring, he tried to pull them down.  Madison punched and kicked at him, but the Lycan was too strong. He threw himself on top of her, leaving her winded.

His mouth covered her and he tore at the waistband of her pants.

"No." Madison hissed and attempted to buck him off.  "Get off me, you bastard."

She dare not yell.  It would be the nature of the other fuckers to join in, not defend her, once witnessing what was happening.

When he tore the fabric and was distracted by the sight of her nudity, Madison reached under her pillow and wrapped her fingers around her only weapon. A sharpened butter knife felt cold in her grasp.

She sliced clean across his throat, her action focused and swift. Damiel fell off,  grabbing his neck with both hands. The silence was broken with his wheezing gurgling sounds. 

As if in a daze, separated from reality, her actions mechanical and precise, she pulled him up and arranged the blankets over him to make it look like someone slept in the bed. After one last look into his desperate stare, Madison flipped the blankets to ensure the blood didn't show right away.

He would die within minutes, thankfully with his throat severed, he could not call for help.  This was not the time for guilt or breaking down at what she'd done.  Madison undressed. It proved, difficult because her hands shook and the reality of what she'd just done sunk in.

Damiel was still now, she looked at the bed and her legs threatened to give out.

It was escape or die. The thought spurned her to act.

She rushed and stuffed a towel under the door to keep the smell of blood from the rest of the building.

Afterwards, she sprinted to bathroom and washed off the blood refusing to look in the mirror. From the closet she yanked on a pair of tight fitting jeans, a black long sleeve t-shirt and boots.  With only the butter knife she'd managed to hide and sharpen as a weapon, she was prepared to escape.

Outside the bathroom window, tall bushes kept her hidden from view while she crawled through the opening. She pushed the window and bars back, her entire body on high alert. Every scraping sound was loud to her ears and she hoped none of the wolves' keener hearing would pick it up.

Finally she squeezed through and slipped to the ground.  Madison crouched and looked through the branches towards the open field, then past to the woods.

The wolves that shifted often ran into the woods at night, she'd not go that way, but the opposite.  If she remembered correctly it was about three miles to a main road.

Madison kept a good pace as she jogged.  It wouldn't do to sprint, then become too exhausted to continue.  Finally as the moon crested, she saw the road. 

Behind her a loud howl made her skin prickle and heartbeat faster.  Had they discovered Damiel's body? It was possible, although they never checked on her until morning, the smell of blood may have alerted them. 

No, it was paranoia. 

Madison reached the asphalt and jogged, constantly looking behind her for headlights while praying someone would drive up and save her.  Finally the unmistakable sound of a car engine followed by lights appeared in the horizon.

A second howl sounded, this one closer.  They were after her.

The car stopped when Madison stood in the middle of the road and waved.  The older man waved her over.  "You shouldn't be out here alone.  I hear there are wolves in the area." He motioned with both hands for her to hurry.  "Come on, lady, let's get you somewhere safe."

"Where exactly is this place?" she asked buckling her seatbelt.  "I got in a fight with my boyfriend and he left me on the side of the road."

"Outskirts of Panama City," her rescuer replied.

Two in the morning, Madison finally collapsed into a bed at a motel just outside Tallahassee.  The man who'd given her a ride, Mr. Costas, had given her sixty dollars, all the money in his wallet. She was lucky to find a cheap room for thirty-five a night.  She'd stolen an outfit from the department store down the street.  Once she slept a couple hours, she'd shower, change and manage to find a way to contact her bank.  She had to beat her captures to Raythe's house. 

Thankfully, she doubted the wolves would be able to pick up her scent once she got in the car.  What a nice man, her faith was restored in humankind.  Once she got her hands on her cash stash, she'd mail Mr. Costas the money he gave her.

Three days, that's how long she had to get things done and connect with her friend off the coast of Devlin Beach.

The customer for the drugs would be in Miami in three days.  She could get the stash from Raythe's house and meet him herself. Madison knew exactly where they'd hidden the drugs by what she'd overheard.  The money from the sale with whoever the customer was would mean being set for life.

Then again, what if something went wrong?  Her savings were not much, but she'd come by the money honestly and it would be enough to get her to Puerto Rico.  Her mother's small house was still there, empty, and only a few knew about it.  

One call to her friend with a charter boat, hire him to get her to the island and she would be free of all this mess.  Free of the wolves and their war over territory and free of facing the consequences of killing Damiel.

Killing a Lycon was punishable by death.  No one would believe she did it in self-defense, not after it appeared she left of her own free will.

Her plan was to retrieve her savings from the safety deposit box at the bank, get the drugs from Raythe's house and dispose of them before the other wolves arrived, or worse--called the Lycan council and turn him in for drug trafficking.  Then somehow without him or anyone discovering her, she'd meet with her contact and escape.

Simple plan.

God help her.

Chapter Two

Nightfall combined with a full moon, brought lots of activity in Devlin Beach, a small beach community near Tampa, Florida.

Raythe, a black wolf ran, his heart pounding with the exhilaration of competing against others.

Regular runs were planned through the wooded wildlife preserve, where they allowed their animal free rein.  The wolf's strong muscles burned with the exertion of the race.  Although Raythe could still communicate mentally with the others in human language, the freedom of his wilder side meant loss of power over the human part of him. What his inner beast did, whether kill, eat, or fuck was not in the human’s control.  At least that's what the wolf wanted to believe. 

Both knew Raythe, the human, was always in charge.

The pack raced on, darting and dashing around trees, toward a predestinated spot. The first one to arrive did not get any prize, per se.  The bragging rights alone with these guys was a trophy in itself.

Muscles released and contracted as Raythe pushed his beast forward.  A black wolf, he was amongst the largest in the pack, of mostly timber wolves. 

The pack's leader another rare kind, had welcomed him without reservation when he arrived from the northwest. Taden, an Artic wolf and the pack leader, was by far the biggest and strongest. 

A flash of white zoomed past and Raythe picked up his speed.  He'd be damned if Snow White would beat him again.

Nose and nose, mere inches from the marker, another wolf nudged Raythe aside, bumped into Taden and streaked past them to win.

"What the hell?"
Raythe threw the thought at the timber wolf whose tongue lolled out of the side of its mouth. 
"Isen, did you take a short cut?"

"
No, he didn't.
The fucker is just fast
," Taden, ever the peacemaker admitted rounding them both before digging his shoulder into Isen's back.

They slowed to a stop, the beasts barely winded.  Taden growled at Isen who, both wolves snarled still hyped from the race.

Isen bowed his head in respect toward the alpha male and both animals moved away from each other.

Once the others caught up, everyone shifted to human form. With wide grins and out of breath, every member congratulated Isen on his win. The tall athletic male stood out, with cropped hair in several shades of browns and auburn, the werewolf enjoyed the attention.

The full moon combined with clear sky, made it easy to see.  Not exactly a good thing when they stood nude under said moonlight, no clothes in sight.

Thankfully, Taden didn't deliver any kind of goofy pep talk to the pack like some leaders tended to do after a run.  Instead he looked to where a mixture of trucks and sports cars were parked a hundred yards away in a lot next to the wood line.  "Let's hope no humans are nearby.  We'll have to explain why fifteen grown men are walking out of the woods naked."

"We can always say it's one of those initiations," someone suggested and they all laughed.

Raythe glanced at Isen's cock when a flash of shimmer caught his eye.  "What the fuck? You pierced your pecker?"

Never a shy one, Isen held up his cock.  "Yep, it's supposed to feel good for my bed partner and shit like that.  Plus it looks cool, right? Chicks dig pierced cocks."

Several others circled Isen with a chorus of "Ah, shits" and "Ouches."

"Let's go," Taden ordered, and glanced at Isen's new piercing.  "You are one crazy fuck."

"Don't hate Snow White." Isen laughed and jogged away before Taden could beat his ass.

"Nice ink." The woman leaned into Raythe, her eyes glued to the wolf face tattooed on the side of his neck, her entire body pressed against his side.  "What's your name?"

"Raythe Wolfe." He looked down at her. Plump and curvy just like he preferred.  He considered whether to take what she offered.  Like most nights, he worked at Sanctum, the most popular club in beachside city of Devlin Beach, Florida, where he was part owner.

Hands on both sides of his face she pulled him down until her lips were against his ear.  "I can handle you by myself. I want you to be my first wolf."

"Can you now?" He held up a brow flirting with her.  Another wolf groupie. Human women flocked to Sanctum in an effort to experience wolf-shifters' prowess in bed.  Yes, it was true, they could fuck for hours nonstop, able to get hard again and again. But that didn't mean they'd sleep with anyone who offered.  That assumption annoyed Raythe.

Since, the nightspot was across the strip from Devlin Beach, it attracted tourists and human groupies looking to get lucky with a wolf-shifter.

Unless he was horny and bored, he rarely slept with women who came to the club.  He preferred the hunt, finding women who didn't know what he was.   Most shifters preferred the pursuit opposed to being pursued.

However, when he did sleep with women who came to Sanctum, it was two or three at a time since a single woman could rarely last an entire night with a tireless were who could climax up to four times without needing a break. Shit sometimes he had to get off a couple times just to take the edge off.

A high-pitched squeal only shifters could hear came over the loudspeakers.  A threat of some sort had been received. Whether bomb or other type of possible assault, Raythe wasn't sure.  Alert, he narrowed his eyes and scanned the jam-packed dance floor.

In his ear pierce, Taden's deep voice boomed. "Phone call from a female stating someone is here with a gun. Planning to shoot wolves."  He let out a ripe curse.  "Door staff, pat down all males." The pack leader paused.  "The rest of you do a check.  Put those sniffers to good use."

Although threats from other packs or shifter hater groups were a weekly occurrence, they took each one seriously.  After all they were responsible for the patrons inside.

"I see something."
He heard another male's voice in his earpiece. 

Raythe glanced across the crowded dance floor. He could not make out Isen.  Although the male was six four with multi-colored hair, he had a way of melding into a crowd. 
"Where are you?"

"Across the room from you by the door. Going blind buddy?  I see you clearly."

Isen was in a chair, his long legs stretched in front of him, one of the club's dancers on his lap.  The male's hand was between her legs and from the way the woman's head was thrown back he was taking care of business while scanning the room from behind his wraparounds. 

A wolf's vision in the darkness was sharp, so they wore sunglasses to keep the glare of the flashing strobe lights from rendering them almost blind.

"Honey, you wanna go somewhere?" The woman rubbed her tits against his arm again. He'd forgotten about her.  It would be great to sink his dick into that one, her pouty lips were made for cock sucking.

"I'll have to pass. Not that I don’t want to." The truth. He bent toward her and kissed her. If the threat were real, the night would end with a sight of her round ass running the hell out of Dodge.

"
What you see?"
  Raythe replied back scanning the crowd.

"
Your three o'clock.  Too hot for a leather jacket no?
"

From both sides, they moved in unison towards a guy who stood looking at the dance floor, not dancing, no drink in his hand.  When Isen reached the guy on the left and Raythe on the right, the guy swallowed.

"Is there a problem?" He looked to Isen who lifted a brow.

"You tell me."

"I don't want any trouble.  Just came to check on my girl...my ex." Once again he looked to the dance floor, his gaze locking on a small blonde who danced with two men.  "She's a whore."

"Come over to the bar. I'll buy you a drink." Raythe nudged him to let him know it wasn't a request.

The trio reached the bar and Isen pushed the guy against a side wall and frisked him.  "He's clean," he told Raythe and then looked to the man who remained against the wall thanks to Isen wrenching an arm behind his back.  "Why you wearing a jacket?"

"I rode my bike.  Damn, what the hell is up with this place?"

Seconds later, they leaned against the bar and watched the guy walk out.  Neither giving a care they'd probably lost a customer for life.

Raythe and Isen went through a set of sliding glass doors to the back offices of the club.  Taden, in a tight black t-shirt with the Sanctum logo of a wolf and full moon on the right side of his chest, sat at a desk looking more like an MMF fighter than the business manager.  The Alpha looked up at them and put his cell down. A look of annoyance on his face, he let out a huff.  "A female called in a about the gun threat." His expression turned pensive. "Isen take Vane and do a recon of the area around the perimeter of the building.  I'll get another team to check out every male wearing a jacket or untucked shirt." Taden shook his head.  "The shit gets old."

"We only saw one wearing a jacket and he was clean. Want me to go outside?" Raythe asked. 

"No, I need to talk to you in private."  He waited for the door to close behind Isen then the icy blue eyes met his.  "Just got off the phone with the Alpha council. They have a death warrant out for the murder of Damiel."

His gut sank and although he knew what Taden's next words would be, he wanted to hear them said.  "Who killed him?"

"Madison."

"How can they be sure enough to order a death warrant?" When his legs sent a signal they were about to give out, he sat, his eyes locked to Taden.  "Did someone actually see it happen?"

"The pack they'd joined up with in Panama City said they had a fight.  It happened in a bedroom. She sliced his throat wide open."

He couldn't wrap his mind around this new person who had once lived with him.  Madison was willful and strong, but she always believed in what was right.  Seemed to hate cheating of any kind, never took advantage of people or situations.  How could she have changed so much?  Or maybe she'd just fooled him. Had played the part of the perfect woman for him.

Taden must have sensed where his mind was going because he waited a few moments before saying anything.

"Raythe.  I don't know what to tell you.  They want me to ask you if you have any idea where she'd go.  Madison is on the run."

"She's resourceful, but doesn't have any family that I know of.  Her parents died during the big outing of wolves.  Her brother was also killed. Then again, what the fuck do I know?  I obviously didn't know her at all."

"I get you man.  I don't believe it either. Doesn't sound like her.  Maybe she's been framed." His icy gaze was filled with concern.  "I have to tell you that if you hear from her, it’s your duty as a pack member to turn her in." Taden told him what he already knew.  "Even though they left two months ago, both of them were members of this pack. So the responsibility for the execution of her death warrant has been passed to me."

The music, when he walked out to the club, was deafening. He slipped out a side door and stood in the darkness looking across the street to the water.  Under the neon light of the building, a couple leaned against the wall, making out.  Raythe sniffed the air.  Both were human.  Once upon a time he and Madison were that way, could barely keep their hand off each other.

Raythe stalked to his Jeep.  He was done for the night, they could close without him.  A couple of wolves stood in the parking lot smoking and he pulled up alongside.  "No gun?"

Both shook their heads.  "Nope, another empty threat."

"I'm out." He didn't bother waiting for a reply.  The top of his black Jeep was down, the salty air helped clear his head.  But only a bit.  Raythe headed straight home.  A female called in the threat hoping to keep everyone there longer.  Whoever called wanted to keep them busy, at the club.

If it was Madison, why would she do that?

Unless...

If he found her, it was his duty to turn her into the pack for what she'd done.  Killed a wolf and not just that, one of their pack members.  There weren't many male wolf shifters left after the wolf outing, when war had been declared on his kind. After that, the Alpha council deemed any killing of a male wolf by another was punishable by death.  Kind of stupid, Raythe thought, since it would kill two males if the killer was male.  But what the hell, they had to do something to stop the eradication of their kind.

In the last fifty years, the huge Florida pack, which was divided into four large territories, had dwindled from thousands to about a couple hundred.  Each large territory was then broken down to packs of about twenty. Between human killings and turf wars, they neared extinction.

The panhandle packs were forever trying to extend their border by attempting to take over the western coast packs.  Regardless of countless talks overseen by the Alpha council, truces were usually short lived.

Wolves were too short tempered and territorial to live in peace, it seemed. Too many alphas, not enough betas and all that.

Raythe couldn't fathom why Madison killed Damiel. Whatever the reason for their disagreement, she should have dealt with it a different way. Why didn't she just leave?  Then again, the Panama City packs were known to be involved in drug trafficking.  Money was always a motivator for killing. They probably weren't keen on members bailing.