Logan clenched his fist in anger. ‘Firstly, you weren’t just
something to do to pass the time, as you put it. I was caught up in the moment
and it just happened. I'm sorry about how it happened and your first time
should have been something special, but I fucked that up, too. I was too rough
and I couldn’t keep control of my darker side. Urges you don't even want to
know about. Secondly, you fucking bit me! Now everyone is going to think I’ve
got a mate every time they look at me. And thirdly...’ But he couldn’t go on as
he saw Callie’s eyes brim with tears.
‘It was special until you had your temper tantrum. And you
do
have a mate, Logan. Me. The fat, not-good-enough-for-you Callie.’ Her voice
gave out at the end as she turned around. She hated showing him how much he’d hurt
her, but her heart was aching – breaking, if that was even possible. She could
hear him breathing but she couldn’t look at him until her emotions were back in
check. Just as she was about to turn back around, there was a knock at their
door.
‘It’s Seth,’ they heard him call from outside. ‘Open up.’ With
that, Callie rushed back to the bathroom and grabbed her clothes so she could
go home.
Chapter 11
Logan stood and grabbed his T shirt, quickly putting it on
as he opened the door to be met by the bemused looks of his brother and his
mate, Sarah. Seth sniffed the air and Logan knew he could smell that they had
had sex; he also knew, as soon as Seth was able to, he was going to kick
Logan’s arse. Seth’s eyes narrowed as he looked at Logan but, before he could
say anything, Callie came out from the bathroom.
‘I’m ready to go home,’ she said flatly. ‘I need a nice bath
and lots of sleep.’ She smiled at Sarah, but the smile didn’t quite reach her
eyes. Logan noticed her red-rimmed eyes and the dark shadows beneath them; he
wished he could take back what he’d said to her. Hell, he wished he could take
back the whole day and tell Seth to get his own god damn flowers.
Callie made her way out of the door, with Sarah following
closely behind her. Seth immediately turned to Logan.
‘You fucking bastard,’ he hissed. ‘You couldn’t keep it in
your pants for one god damn day. Sarah is gonna shove your balls down your
throat once she talks to Callie.’ He ran his fingers through his hair, clearly
not finished, but knowing they needed to get back home. ‘And what the fuck is
that on your neck?’ Logan quickly turned away to grab the few bits he had and
made for the door.
‘I feel like the biggest prick in the world right now, Seth,’
he replied, exasperated. ‘I really don’t need you pulling out your pansy arse
mummy card and telling me I fucked up. I know and I promise I’ll fix it, okay?’
Quite how he was going to fix it he didn’t know, but he knew Sarah was going to
rip him to bits and, as alpha female, there was not much he could do about it. He
had to get to Callie and tell her how he felt. The problem was, he didn’t know how
he felt himself, so explaining it to her was going to be hard.
Chapter 12
Colt stared down at the three dead bodies of the human
hunters.
The dumb fucks
, he thought. His father never had any intention
of paying them their money; they were never going to live long enough, even if
they had succeeded in grabbing the girl. From the smell of the woods, they
weren’t even close. The two wolves he had taken with him had taken care of the
kill and, judging by the mutilated bodies, they had enjoyed it a little too
much.
Colt didn’t know how much longer he could stand being under
his father’s control, but he had a plan and he needed to stick to it. He needed
to know what had happened to his mother and the only way he could find out was
to keep Daddy happy until he learnt the truth. Then he was going to kill the
sick fuck and turn lone wolf, spending the last of his days never thinking
about what had happened.
The Penn Lake wolves would pay for what they’d done to him. The
scars would never heal and, if he ever found his true mate, he would always
wonder if she would look on his face with disgust. The deep gashes covered the
left side of his face, narrowly missing his eye; in his mind, his revenge would
be an eye for an eye, literally. He had dropped Maggie by the side of the road and,
as far as he was concerned, she was her own problem now. She needed to find the
information and report back. It had shocked him when his father had mentioned
another was working inside the Penn Lake pack; but then, why should he care if
one of their own turned against them?
‘We’ve covered the whole area,’ one of the wolves had said, ‘but
couldn’t scent the other wolves. Think your mole was right and it was really
them in the car?’
Colt was sure he could smell the scent of one of the Penn
Lake wolves and the girl faintly around the woods, but couldn’t be sure. This
was one time he really didn’t want to tell his father they had lost them. Why
was this girl so important to him and why the fuck was he sent out like a
lackey dog searching for her?
‘It’s them, but they are long gone,’ he said. ‘Let’s drive
to the nearest village and see if they booked in to a motel there. They should
have made it there, at least.’ Colt changed into his wolf and ran deeper into
the forest, hoping to pick up their scent and finally locate the girl his dad
was after.
After running for a few more hours, they finally made it to
the edge of the small town. Their scent was stronger here, which confirmed they
had headed this way. Changing back to his human form, he instructed one wolf to
stay at the border of the forest in case their prey decided to re-enter the
wood. However, if they were anything like him, he would have sought out food
and somewhere to rest before he called for transport home.
The scents led him to a crappy motel with peeling paint and
a faint smell of piss. He really didn’t relish the idea of sniffing around here
to find them. He was about to open the door to the reception area when he heard
a familiar voice. Spinning around, he saw the two females walking toward a
large black truck. One clearly had been crying and her scent told him this was
definitely the girl they were after.
‘Callie, wait up. You okay?’ said the thin blonde woman. ‘Shit,
did he hurt you?’ She had spun the girl called Callie around to face her,
unaware he was watching. ‘What happened?’ the woman asked.
He smelt alpha on her and knew this must be Seth’s mate.
Hmm,
interesting
, he thought.
Two
birds with one stone
. Taking the
girls now would please his father no end and he could seek the revenge he
wanted. He was just about to pounce when he saw the huge fucker Logan. His eyes
narrowed and he knew the man meant business. He was one mean mother fucker and
had the body and build to prove it. Colt knew that, with both Seth and Logan
there, he wouldn’t be able to take both girls as he had first planned. He would
have to grab the bigger girl, Callie, as he couldn’t go home without her. He
turned to talk to the other wolf – Ben, or Brad, he couldn’t remember his name.
Not that it mattered; the prick would probably soon be dead by the hand of
either of the Penn wolves.
‘That’s the one Daddy dearest wants,’ he said. ‘Hope you’re
ready for a showdown, as this won’t be pretty.’ With that, he ran towards
Callie quicker than she could react, even with her wolf senses. He charged and
snatched her round the throat, pulling her safely away from the other woman.
‘Callie!’ the woman screamed, but was held back by Seth.
He turned back to warn them.
‘I’ll break her pretty little neck if you get any closer,
you understand?’ He heard Logan’s growl as he grabbed the girl’s throat tighter.
She was trying to fight against him, but he was far stronger than her younger
wolf. ‘Hold still, or I’ll end this now.’ He felt her go still and he released
his hold, just enough for her to suck in a lungful of air. It wouldn’t please Daddy
if she came home dead, for he wouldn’t get the answers he needed.
Logan’s eyes had changed to his wolf and he looked ready to
rip Colt in half. Colt noticed the two bite marks on his neck and he could
suddenly smell the sex oozing from Callie.
‘You mated this bitch, Logan. Not really your type, is she?’
Logan looked even angrier now, but Colt could understand the
need to save one’s mate. The bond was so deep, you’d be willing to die before
they got hurt. He pulled Callie’s neck to the side, looking for Logan’s marks, but
found none.
‘Interesting that she doesn’t have the same marks,’ he said
sarcastically. ‘So it would seem she was eager to bind you, but you didn’t feel
the same.’ Colt laughed out loud. He knew the rumours about Logan and his love
of all things blonde, tall and shaped like gym bunnies. No way was he going to
tie himself to someone who looked like Callie. He laughed again. ‘Fate can be
so cruel sometimes though, don’t you think, Seth?’
He turned his attention to the alpha, who was shielding his
mate with his body. The little blonde thing, though, looked like she could hold
her own, but not against Colt. He sensed she was newly made and didn’t have the
strength of his 440-year-old wolf. ‘I think sweet Callie and I are going to go
visit my father and see why she is so important to him. Unless you have any
ideas?’ Logan hurled himself towards Colt, but he was too full of rage, making
him clumsy. ‘Tut tut, Logan. You move again and I’ll kill her, right here in
front of you.’ He snatched her tighter to his body so she couldn’t struggle.
‘You fucking dog,’ shouted Sarah. ‘I’m going to rip your
insides out if you touch one hair on her head.’ The small blonde one certainly
had a sharp tongue on her and clearly cared for this Callie.
‘You might want to leash your new little mate, Seth, before
I decide this one’s not worth the hassle of taking to my father.’ Colt let out
another laugh as he saw Seth’s eyes change to amber.
‘Sarah, stop,’ said Callie. ‘Please. It’s all right. I’m
going to be okay. Please don’t do anything stupid.’ Colt could feel her shaking
and the scent of her fear was turning his stomach. Something about her seemed
familiar; he could feel it in his gut that he didn’t want to really hurt her,
but his focus had to be on finding his mother. He had a feeling that, if he
could take her back to his father, he might trust him enough to learn where she
was.
‘Oh, now, you can’t promise that,’ he replied, ‘but I do
promise that once my father is done with her I’ll send her home. Although, what
condition she’ll be in, who knows?’ Shit, he didn’t think Logan could get any
bigger, but he had puffed to almost a foot taller as his eyes glowed bright
amber. He was clearly trying to stop the change and challenge him. Colt knew
that changing in front of humans was risky, as any exposure would mean an end
to the freedom they currently had.
‘I want you to slowly pass you truck keys to him.’ Colt
motioned with his head to the other wolf. ‘Slowly, mind. Any trouble and I will
kill her.’ He lengthened his claws and pushed them against Callie’s throat. She
winced in pain and he heard another deep growl from Logan. ‘I’m going to take
her back...’
Logan snapped at him before he could finish. ‘If you fucking
think I’m going to let you leave with my mate, then you’re mistaken, Colt. I’ll
fucking rip your arm off before that happens.’ He was inching forward towards
them while he spoke.
‘Now now, Logan,’ said Colt. ‘Do you really want to see how
easily your mate’s head can be detached from her body in front of you?’
‘Please Logan, stop! Callie, I love you. You will be fine.’
Seth’s mate was clearly using her alpha power to stop Logan being the cause of
Callie’s pain.
‘Please Logan, enough,’ Callie called out. ‘Please. I love
you too, Sarah…’ He could feel her hot tears on the back of his hand, knowing
the shaking of her body was from her crying. Shit, he hated crying women, but
he knew she loved the alpha female and was willing to sacrifice herself to stop
them getting hurt. Luckily for him, that was included in his plan.
‘Keys, Seth. Now!’ ordered Colt as he dug in his claws,
drawing the first blood. The other wolf caught the keys and started the engine
on the truck. ‘Don’t do anything stupid, or I won’t hesitate to kill her.’ With
that, he was in the car driving away with Logan’s prize.
Chapter 13
Logan fell to his knees and, for the first time in his adult
life, he cried.
‘What have I done?’ He had looked right into her eyes and
saw her love for him, clear as day, and he had let her be taken, right from
under his nose. Marcus was a sick fucker who liked to torment women judging by
what Brandon had brought up on the Internet search, and he had let Colt take
her straight to him.
‘You fucking, low-life scum!’ screamed Sarah. ‘You let him
take her, you bastard. I’m going to kill you if anything happens to her.’ She
was crying hysterically in Seth’s arms as her mate tried to comfort her.
‘Shh, Sarah,’ he said, trying to calm her. ‘We will get her
back. We won’t let one of our own be taken by that sick bastard. I promise. Logan,
we need to get home, get some back-up and go find her. You understand?’ Seth
looked at Logan with half anger and half regret in his eyes.
Logan couldn’t have felt any lower. He had let his mate be
taken before he could get his mixed-up emotions in check. He hadn’t mated her
so he couldn’t feel the bond; he knew from her scent and the look in her eyes
she was scared but, without the bond, he couldn’t locate her. A mated pair
could sense where the other was and would always find each other, but he didn’t
have that with Callie. Her bite marks meant they were only part mated and it
wasn’t strong enough for him to feel her. The pain in his chest told him that
his feelings for Callie ran deeper than he realised, and now she was taken from
him he knew he wouldn’t survive if anything happened to her.
‘I’m sorry, Sarah,’ he said. ‘I fucked up. We
will
get her back, even if I die trying. She is my mate and I swear to you I’ll get
her back safely.’ He so wanted to believe she was going to be okay.
‘You don’t deserve her as your mate, you scum,’ hissed Sarah.
‘You never have. When she gets home I’m going to make sure you stay away from
her. Do you understand me? Too right you fucked up and now you have to fix it.’
They all stood looking at each other.
‘I’ll call for a cab to take us back to the ferry,’ said
Seth, breaking the hostile silence. ‘Hopefully, Brandon has found out where
they’re staying and we’ll head out tonight. Come on, it’s getting dark.’
***
No one spoke the entire journey home. Sarah was pulled tight
against Seth the whole way, crying into his chest, as he comforted her with
gentle kisses and soft words. Logan was sitting in the front of the cab, his
eyes fixed straight ahead. His heart ached to have Callie back in his arms,
away from harm. He knew at that moment that, without a shadow of doubt, when
she came home he would do everything in his power to make it up to her. He was
starting to realise that he needed his mate and, without her, he would be a
broken shell not worthy of anyone’s love.
Once they were back on the island they became caught up in a
hive of activity. Brandon had discovered where Marcus had been living. What he
had learned from their Internet search was making Logan feel sick. Dead bodies,
mainly women, were turning up every few years, having been beaten and broken
beyond recognition; some of the women had been identified by dental records as
missing persons, spanning forty years or more. Marcus, it seemed, had been
keeping women locked up for years at his home before their bodies turned up,
but the police had no lead suspects on any of the cases as the time frame was
too far apart to make any connection to a serial killer.
They all knew Marcus was an old wolf, but couldn’t begin to understand
why or how he was taking and killing women over such a long period. Logan felt
sick at the thought of Callie being there with him now, but without the mate
bond he couldn’t sense her pain or fear. Brandon was the pack’s omega, which
meant he could feel any of her emotions through the pack bond; but, right now,
he didn’t want to think about what was happening to her, while the only time
Brandon spoke to him was to discuss strategies of getting Callie home.
ANGELS
Brandon and Callie had formed a strong bond; they were like
brother and sister and he knew Brandon was pissed at him for the way he had
treated Callie these last few months. Logan had often got the sharp edge of
Brandon’s tongue when he had got home from an evening in with Callie and had
often told him he was not fit to be Callie’s mate. Suddenly, he felt a wash of
jealousy come over him and, before he could stop himself, he let out a snarl
directed at Brandon.
He
, Logan, was the one who wanted to be snuggled
against Callie while watching films on the sofa, eating popcorn and talking
about pack life. She was his mate.
‘Snuggled? Really, Logan. I didn’t peg you for the snugly
type.’ Seth’s words made Logan realise he’d spoken his thoughts. Fuck, did he
really say that out loud?
‘If he didn’t have his head so far up his arse, he would
have seen Callie for what she is.’ Now it was Hope’s turn to lay into him. ‘A
perfect mate for my stupid, idiotic brother.’
‘Now, Hope,’ said Christopher reproachfully. ‘We all make
mistakes and Logan has got to live with the ones he has made. When Callie comes
home, I suggest we let her lead. I mean it, Logan. She has got to be the one to
make the move. If you really feel for her as a mate should, you will give her
the space to recover from whatever has happened to her.’ His dad was right. He
needed to let her forgive him before he could forgive himself. Shit, all this
hanging around Seth and Sarah’s wedding crap was making him go soft, but if
that’s what Callie needed he was willing to change his gruff attitude to get
her.
Hope turned to look directly at Logan. ‘Well,’ she said
angrily, ‘I think we should let Sarah ram his head up his arse so he can see
how far up there he was in the first place.’
‘Hope Penn! I taught you better than that. Your brother’s
been through enough without you having a go.’ Mamma wolf had spoken as Hope
turned a very bright shade of red.
‘I only meant that he’s been...’
‘ENOUGH!’ Seth roared. ‘I am the alpha of this pack and all
this bickering is not helping Callie’s situation. We know Logan's an arse, he
always has been, but I have to believe he will make it right with Callie. This
is her pack and we will always save our own. Brandon, you stay here with Dad to
protect the others in case it’s a trap. They might try to lure us all away from
the island. I’ll keep Alex and Greg on the ferry. Logan, Sal will head six
other wolves from the pack to Marcus’s home. They have to know we will try and
get her, but I can’t risk my whole family to do it.’ Seth’s powers were getting
stronger each day now he had his mate by his side.
‘I’m coming too,’ said Sarah, ready for a showdown with
Seth. ‘Don’t try to change my mind. She’s my family too.’
‘Sweetness, I am not prepared to send you into a maniac’s
home to rescue your best friend,’ he replied firmly. ‘I love you with all my
heart and if anything happens to you I’d die. No, sweetness, you’re not coming.’
Logan couldn’t help thinking Seth was a brave man. He
wouldn’t want to stand against Sarah with her alpha powers swirling around her
at full force. Although Seth was the ultimate alpha of the pack, he knew Sarah
could make his life hell if she didn’t get her own way, but he wouldn’t change
her for the world.
‘Don’t you sweetness me!’ she replied angrily. ‘I’m not
going to sit here twiddling my thumbs wondering if you’re coming back or not.
No. I won’t do it!’
Logan watched Seth cup Sarah’s cheek as the love swirled
around them. ‘My sweetness, I won’t be able to fight if I have to worry about
you and keep Callie safe. I hate it enough that I have to take family and pack
members into his house with the risk of them not coming home. I can’t do it, not
if I have to worry about you. Please don’t ask me.’ Sarah’s eyes filled with
tears as she threw her arms around his neck.
‘If you don’t come home alive,’ she replied, ‘I’m going to
hunt you into the next life and kill you again. You understand? I love you so
much.’ She kissed him for a long moment before their mother cleared her throat.
Sarah turned red, but just shrugged in her direction before turning to Logan. ‘And
you,’ she said, pointing at him. ‘If anything happens to either one of them, I’ll
rip you apart…’
‘Sarah!’ Their mother had stopped her before she could continue,
but Logan got the idea.
‘I’m sorry, Mary,’ said Sarah. ‘Just protect what’s mine,
Logan, you understand?’ Logan nodded at Sarah, but didn’t risk opening his
mouth to say anything that would get him another tongue-lashing. Their dad
moved to put his hand on Logan's shoulder.
‘It’ll all work itself out, my son. You are a strong wolf,
Logan. Strongest possibly in this whole pack, but together you will have more
power and strength than before. Go bring home your mate.’
His mate.
For
the first time ever, that thought didn’t send him into a spiral of panic and he
caught a glimpse of his future with Callie by his side. Strong and surrounded
by love and family.