Others, like Janessa, Haylee, and Kelsey, stayed off to the side. They kept their eyes turned away so they wouldn’t find themselves in Connor’s place. Catriona openly glared at Alvin until Alvin’s wife stepped up in Catriona’s face and forced the historian to divert her gaze.
A howl clawed its way up my throat, but I couldn’t let it out. No one would rally behind me.
Ryder
Ness trembled before her Alpha.The tremor that shook her shoulders didn’t look like fear. Rage simmered under her skin. I watched it roll off her in waves.
Alvin was a garbage person. He twisted his wrist just enough to nick the beaten shifter’s throat. A thin trickle of blood fell to the ground and gave off a metallic scent that made the pack restless.
Shifters were hunters. The smell of blood would get them riled up for a hunt. The only one who didn’t have a look of disgusted excitement on their face was Ness.
As badly as I wanted to step up beside her, I couldn’t risk her friend’s life. Hands tied, my beast rioted. Its growl slipped out of me and rumbled loud enough to silence the pack around me. The effect of the blood on the air faded as they turned frightened glances in my direction.
I kept my face blank despite the beast trying to claw its way out of me. If I let out even a single scale, Alvin would drag that blade across that young man’s neck. I couldn’t have another death on my hands. I refused to bear more blood for anyone.
Alvin jerked his chin in Ness’s direction. “You have two choices. Get on your knees and accept a mating bond with my son, or say your goodbyes and bare your neck.”
I surged forward. Ness stood and put a hand on my chest, stopping me. She gave me a look that I couldn’t read through the haze of my anger. My beast begged me to snap Alvin’s neck. There was no reason the world had to suffer any longer. My beast didn’t understand what it meant to live with murder on your conscience.
To the beast, it was a fact of life.
To the human part of me, it was a stain on my soul.
Torn between the two parts of myself, I was trapped.
“You can’t forge a mate bond,” Ness said, her voice surprisingly even for the situation.
Alvin shrugged. “You don’t have to love him. Just give him your ass and let him plant a few pups in you.”
Pain slammed into my chest as the beast tried to rip its way out of me. It gnashed its teeth and begged for blood. My vision went red. Ness dug her nails into my chest as I pushed forward with one desire.
Rip Alvin to pieces.
I took another step, but Ness’s hiss cleared the red from my vision. She turned her eyes upward so I could see how they wavered with tears. Her pain did nothing to help my rage. This pack was a mess. The lower ranking shifters all cowered while one of their own was being abused. I glanced at the men standing behind Alvin. Their grins disgusted me. Someone needed to fix it.
But did it have to be me?
The sound of Ness’s shaky breath told me that I might have to be the one to step up and do what needed to be done. That’s what she’d asked of me, after all. Our new agreement was that we would find evidence that might convince her pack to stand up against Alvin.
Would anything move these cowards?
Ness turned away from me. She fell back onto her knees beside the broken shifter. When she bowed her head, her hair veiled her face, so I couldn’t read her expression. What the hell was she doing?
“You can’t,” I whispered.
Alvin nodded. “Smart choice, mutt.” Alvin pulled the blade away from the broken shifter’s neck and stood, so he could look at his pack. “Everyone, clear out. My son needs to get acquainted with his new fiancée.”
I scanned the crowd for Ness’s father. He wasn’t present, though. It seemed as though Alvin had gathered only the weakest. I hoped that the bastard hadn’t sent anyone to Ness’s house while we were here. Ness’s father had attacked Alvin the night of the hunt. There was no way that Alvin would let that go unpunished.
What mess had I gotten myself tangled in here? This pack needed more help than I could provide alone. If I challenged Alvin, the pack would become mine. I couldn’t afford to stay and lead them, though. If Morgan caught up to me…
No, I couldn’t risk staying too long. Ness and I would have to dethrone Alvin soon. Morgan already knew my last phone number. I knew it was only a matter of time before he tracked me down.
Help Ness. Make her help me.
Leave.
That was the plan.