Before I could collect myself, something hit me from the side. I tumbled, my ribs suddenly throbbing from the blow. Right as I was about to leap back onto my feet, a paw shoved me back down into the earth.
The smell of pack and Alpha greeted me like a slap to the face. I whimpered and tried to roll onto my back to show submission. Alvin didn’t like that. He bit down on my throat just hard enough to make me yelp. I froze, scared of what might happen if I moved.
I’d been found out.
Alvin flipped me with his nose before biting down on the scruff of my neck. He rose on all fours and carried me like a pathetic pup. It served to remind me just how large Alvin was. His wolf was easily the size of a grizzly, meaning my paws hung about a foot off the ground.
When I realized that struggling only made him bite down harder on my scruff, I gave in and let him carry me back to his estate like a child. There, Alvin threw me to the ground and issued a low growl. I wanted to leap to my feet and run, but there was nowhere to go.
So long as I stayed in Lakesedge, I would have to answer to Alvin. There was nowhere to run because this was his territory, and he would find me anywhere I went—even if I went to the other side of Syracuse, he would be able to track me down.
If I wanted to escape Alvin altogether, I would have to leave the state. That would mean leaving Bad Moon Café and my friends there. That would mean leaving the people in the pack who weren’t like Alvin. I didn’t want to give up on my home or my family. Just because an asshole stood in a position of leadership didn’t mean that I had to give up and run.
Alvin shifted back to his human form and put his foot on my neck. I let out an embarrassing whimper and clawed the air. In this form, I could not reach his ankle to bite it. I had no hands to push him off me. I had to lie here and listen to the bullshit he wanted to spill all over me.
“What are you doing, mutt? Are you really so stupid that you would risk exposing everyone by running around by yourself?” Alvin sneered. The white streaks in his beard trembled with his rage. “You were near the road. I saw your storm cloud, so don’t try lying to me.”
When would I win? No, I didn’t even need to win. I needed a stalemate that would allow me a moment’s peace.
A female shifter named Janessa stepped forward, her hand hovering in the air as if to stop Alvin. Janessa’s brow furrowed with worry, but I watched that same expression slip into fear as Alvin pinned her with his furious gaze. His lip curled in hungry anticipation—the kind that betrayed violence and nothing else. She yanked her hand back and backpedaled.
Janessa was a good person. She deserved better than an Alpha who would scold her for doing the right thing. Catriona, the pack historian, hooked an arm around Janessa’s shoulder and led the young woman away, so they wouldn’t have to watch my punishment.
I wished they would stay if only so that their presence might soften whatever Alvin had in store for me. Without them around, Alvin was free to do whatever he wanted with no witnesses save for Harvey, who was likely watching from somewhere nearby. Harvey never missed an opportunity to belittle me.
Alvin grabbed a fistful of fur at my scruff and lifted my head so he could growl in my face. “Never defy me again, Vanessa. One more misstep, and I will be forced to take action.”
Take action?What the hell did he mean by that? Was he withholding a worse punishment? A chill raced down my spine. What could be worse than what I’d already endured?
Alvin released me. I thumped to the ground and didn’t move.
Above, a new storm cloud crackled. It issued warning rumbles and drew Alvin’s attention upward. He grumbled something before looking at me with open hatred again.
“Do something about that. Turn it off.”
I couldn’t tell him that I had no idea how to control the storm. If I could have, I would have done it long ago to hide my tracks. The storm followed me no matter where I went. There was no outrunning it, no dispelling it.
Alvin glared expectantly. Finally, after several heartbeats passed, he let out an incredulous laugh. “You don’t know how to control it! I knew you were stupid, but I didn’t know you were that stupid.”
He shook his head and stormed off, towards the house. Alone, I got to my feet. A growl vibrated the back of my throat. For a moment, I allowed myself to imagine leaping at him and tearing at his skin. The idea didn’t linger long. I wasn’t that kind of person. The violence just wasn’t in me.
Though my hound disagreed, I knew I wasn’t meant to be a fighter. There were others who were bigger and stronger than me. My hound form couldn’t go toe to toe with a wolf shifter like Alvin or Harvey.
Out of the corner of my eye, a new wolf stepped forward. Though we’d never spent much time together in our beast forms, I would always be able to recognize Connor anywhere. He had cinnamon stripes that ran down his back, all the way to the tip of his tail. The rest of his fur was a rich brown that blended in with the trees around him.
Connor approached me, his head tilted curiously. I pulled my lips back in a snarl.
We were friends once. I couldn’t count the number of nights I’d spent at his house, playing old video games and burning our tongues on pizza rolls. Yet, the moment my beast revealed herself and Alvin set his sights on me, Connor decided I was more trouble than I was worth.
He abandoned me. Ever since then, he’d followed Harvey around like a shadow. I wanted better for my pack, but Connor had betrayed me, and I couldn’t bring myself to forgive him. Not right now. Maybe not ever.
He nudged me with his nose. I snapped the air between us, my teeth making a shrill sound as they clashed. He pulled back, ears perked high.
I didn’t have time for this. Instead of sticking around, I ran. Like hell would I shift in front of Connor and let him see me naked. I was tired of being vulnerable and exposed.
Behind me, Connor howled. It wasn’t a call to hunt, but a call of return. The lonely sound nearly drew me to a stop. My feet tangled for a moment before I corrected myself. Only now, as I ran away, did I realize that Connor’s presence had stopped Alvin’s punishment from being worse. I’d gotten off with a warning because Alvin had been aware of Connor nearby.
I didn’t want to think that Connor had stayed on purpose, but there was a chance that he had. If so, then I owed him my gratitude. One of these days, Alvin wouldn’t stop. He would make sure that I never got the chance to ruin his control over the pack. I think Alvin’s control was hanging on by a thread about to break.