Chapter Three

WOLF

And just like that, I find myself sandwiched in the back of a grey Ford pickup truck with Don in the driver’s seat and little Miss Princess riding shotgun. We’ve been driving for about fifteen minutes, give or take, and the deafening silence is suffocating. I’m sandwiched between the one guy who came into the diner with the alpha pup and some other guy. They’re all still kids; at least, I’ve got two years on all three of these guys, easy.

Of all the stupid things I’ve ever gotten myself into, this is one of the dumbest and most idiotic things to date. Getting involved with an alpha’s daughter, being hauled off by the alpha in training, to meet the significant bad alpha of... wait, where the fuck are they taking me anyway? Which pack is this?

“So, Don is it. Your pack. Does it have a name?” I see his knuckles turn white when he tightens his hands around the handlebar, but he doesn’t respond; instead, he huffs irritably.

I must remind myself that I’m about to die just because I decided to cave and have lunch with an alpha’s daughter. In twenty years, not once have I done something this stupid, and I’ve done a lot of stupid shit.

My beast is restless inside of me; even though we’re probably being driven to our death, his main focus is on her, and it’s as if she senses my wolf; she’s just as restless as she continues fidgeting with her fingers in her lap.

Don suddenly breaks the silence when he turns the steering wheel to the left, veering right off the main road and onto an overgrown, narrow forest road. Oh great, at least now, no one will hear me scream, not that I plan on doing so.

“So, Wolf,” he smirks, “You’ve met Bryce, on your right, back in the diner; he’ll be my beta once I become alpha. Chandler on your left, he’s meant to become my gamma when the time comes, that’s if he can keep his nose out of trouble.” Scoffing, Chandler rolls his eyes at Don’s snarky comment; his beta and gamma keep their eyes shifted away from me and stuck on the road ahead. I’m sitting here wondering why the fuck I need to know all of this if they plan on ending my life anyway?

“So, where exactly are you from, Wolf?” Clenching my jaw, I suddenly focus on the back of Don’s head; this little alpha is trying to dig for answers. It must run in the family, I think, with a smirk and eye roll.

“Nowhere,” I respond dryly.

“Well, that’s bullshit if ever I heard one; everyone comes from somewhere.” Little princess, who’s been dead silent this whole time, crosses her arms over her chest as she looks out the window to her right. I can feel her irritation suddenly bounce off her like a pissed-off ping-pong ball. Huh, what’s got her panties all in a twist?

“You see,” Don begins, drawing those two words out, “Sam is an alpha’s daughter, and you are a rogue, a mutt. I’m sure you know that mingling with an alpha’s daughter for someone like you, who comes from nowhere, as you put it, is against the rules.”

He lets that linger before continuing, “Normally, I would have just let you go right out of that diner booth and walked out the door, you know, willing to overlook the obvious fact that you might have forgotten your place. But then, you growled at me, in my town, in that diner in front of my beta, my sister, and a whole bunch of our people. You growled at me, Wolf, and see, I can’t let that slide, man; it would look really bad in my father’s eyes.”

“Can you just quit it, Don, please? I asked him if he would like to sit down for lunch; he looked like he hadn’t eaten for days. I mean, just look at him...” Scoffing, Don shakes his head in distaste.

“Yeah, trust me, I have. And that’s what’s even more confusing to me: for someone to look like that means that they’ve been living in the wild for a long time. That means he’s got something to hide, maybe something he’s done, and yet you would still offer him a meal. I don’t get you, Sam. You’ve never done something like this before.”

“That’s not fair.” She snaps irritably, and the more annoyed she gets, the more pissed off my beast gets; he doesn’t like her getting upset. “You can’t judge someone based on their appearance, Don; that’s bullshit.”

“Enough!” He snaps back at her, and she visually jumps, which immediately has another low growl rumbling through my chest,

“Don’t speak to her like that,” I grumble, and it’s taking every bit of self-restraint not to lose it on this guy; the thing is, I don’t fucking get it; no girl has ever had me jumping in and defending her like this, it makes no sense, and my beast needs to reel it in and stop this before he ends up getting us both killed. Don accelerates, suddenly the wheels spinning around a corner as gravel shoots up to the back of the truck, everyone visually tensing in response.

“What’s up with you growling at me, Wolf? Have you got a death wish or something? Do you like my sister? Is that it?” He scoffs sarcastically when he shakes his head, “You’re a rogue, Wolf; she’s pack and alpha blood; whatever you’re thinking, I suggest you stop thinking it because it’s not going to work out for you.” My eyes narrow as I stare hard at the back of his head. The two other guys on either side of me are tense, but don’t dare look at me. My entire body has gone rigid; I wish I could just put it down to my wolf liking this girl like Don is implying, but it’s a little bit more complicated than that; it’s like he’s fucking obsessed with her, and that’s why I need to get the hell out of here and away from her now.

“Look, I haven’t done anything wrong; I keep my head down, and that’s why I look the way I do. I’ve spent the past few months living in my wolf form up in the mountains. You’ve taken me against my own will, forcing me to come back with you to your pack, and on what grounds because I growled at you?” I shake my head with a smug smile. “Are you that insecure, Don?” I lay emphasis on his name because, honestly, I can’t stand the sound of his voice anymore. Knowing that you’re being driven to your death is one thing. But having to listen to his annoying voice all the way there as he shits on the girl my wolf seems to be infatuated with, I would rather choose death right here and now over that.

Snickering, Don shrugs,

“If keeping your head down was what you were after, then having lunch with my sister should have definitely been the last thing you would have wanted to do.”

“As I said, she showed a passing stranger some kindness with a warm meal; that’s all it was; you’re blowing this way out of proportion.”

“Well, we’ll let my father, the alpha, decide on that, Wolf.” He says in annoyance. As the words leave his mouth, we pull up to a set of insanely large gates; the whole place is fenced in and looks like Fort Knox. How the hell will I ever get out of here?

As intoxicating as this girl smells, I don’t want to be here; I don’t want to have anything to do with her pack, her alpha, or her.

I watch as the large gates open on their own; driving in, they quickly close behind us, and now I’m sure I won’t be able to easily escape this place; this gate, these fences, are so high, it’s impossible to jump them, even in my wolf form.

What the fuck are they trying to keep out, or are they trying to keep something in, I wonder?

The truck stops in a big open parking lot, and my jaw slips when my eyes trail up to a sizeable mansion-looking building. I can’t help but roll my eyes. So the girl’s family is loaded; I should have figured as much. A large, wide-open door catches my attention, and a big man immediately makes his presence known as he steps outside just as we climb out of the truck. The loose gravel stones crunch under my bare feet, and I wonder for a second, what am I meant to say to him exactly? I’m sorry I had lunch with your daughter, or I’m sorry I growled at your son. Which one is going to piss him off the least, I wonder?

It’s clear the man standing a few feet away is the alpha; he looks the part. Just by the way he’s looking me up and down, I’m willing to bet he’s already made up his mind. He crosses his arms over his broad chest and glares at me. Fuck, great, yeah, he already hates me, and I haven’t even opened my mouth yet; same shit, different day, I guess.

His hair is black, and his eyes don’t seem too far off from that color right now, either. He doesn’t seem happy to see someone like me getting out of a vehicle and stepping onto his pack territory; that makes two of us.

“Alpha,” Don addresses him, and the man before us narrows his eyes as his jaw clenches tightly; the thing with alphas is their egos make them think that they’re special somehow.

Looking between the two of them, it’s clear that they are related; it’s only little Miss Princess, who seems to not look anything like her father or brother. She must take after her mother, I think to myself.

“Who’s this?” The alpha grumbles as he turns his attention towards Don; he’s staring his son down, clearly pissed off. Maybe old Don should have just let me go instead of bringing me here to meet dear old dad.

“Sam picked up a stray this morning, decided to feed it, and then the damn thing growled at me.” He retorts with a smirk; right then, the other two guys with us smirk like it’s the funniest goddamn thing they’ve ever heard.

I want to glare at him, maybe even punch Don square in the face for that comment, but what would be the point? I am on death’s doorstep now, in the middle of a fucking packhouse surrounded by an alpha and his pack; how many times can I say I’m fucked before my head hits the ground, I wonder? The alpha narrows his eyes when he sighs,

“So why didn’t you deal with it? Why bring him here?” He grumbles irritably.

“I couldn’t exactly deal with him right there in the diner in front of all those people now, could I? Besides, you’re alpha; it’s your decision in what you want to do with him.”

What a good little boy Don is, or maybe he’s trying to compensate for something he’s lacking, like a fucking backbone. “You’re the alpha; it’s your decision.” Give me a break, I think, rolling my eyes heavily.

“Are you asking permission to kill it?” The alpha barks at Don, and I see the poor guy wince. Fuck, is he scared of his old man? I’m grinding my teeth, narrowing my eyes as I keep my eyes trained on the ground. First off, I’m not an “it” asshole, and second, you haven’t even heard the accusations against me, but you’re ready to sign off on my execution? This is just another reason I can’t stand alphas.

“Only if you want me to.” Don retorts, and I raise an amused brow at him. I want to laugh, which, by all means, bring it, alpha pup; if we’re promised a fair fight, I will kick your ass.

Staring long and hard at his son, the alpha slowly shifts his attention towards his daughter, narrowing his eyes as he sighs.

“Sam. Sneaking out again, I see. I thought we talked about that already; your place is inside the pack’s protection.” He murmurs irritably; looking up in her direction, her body language tells me everything I need to know. Her fists are tightly balled by her sides, and she’s clenching her jaw so tightly that she could easily chip a tooth. She’s looking down, and the tension rolling off her has my beast feeling on edge; he wants to console her for some reason.

“Sam!” He suddenly snaps at her, and she visually flinches, “I asked you a question; I expect my only daughter to give me an answer.” Slowly looking up at him, she swallows hard,

“I...” Her voice trails off as her chest rises and falls heavily. “I’m sorry, alpha. I won’t do it again.” My brows furrow as I focus all my attention on her now. Did she just apologize for leaving the premises? What, is she a prisoner here or something? I don’t know much about dads and daughters, but something seems way off between these two.

Narrowing his eyes, the alpha blows out a heavy breath,

“Our border lines are here for your protection, Sam; need I remind you why?” Her eyes snap to him and widen when she blinks; shaking her head, she swallows down hard when she mutters, “No.”

“So, what’s the story with this rogue then? You know the rules of our pack.” She begins fidgeting with her fingers, and I immediately notice her nervousness.

“I- I just wanted to show him some Sitka hospitality; I didn’t mean to disobey our pack laws; he seemed like he needed something to eat; he’s no threat to me; I mean, just look at him.” Turning her head in my direction, she shrugs sympathetically; the moment our eyes meet, mine narrow in irritation. I know I look like shit, but I didn’t need rescuing; I was perfectly fine.

There’s a moment of silence when the alpha shifts his attention towards me, his eyes giving me a hardened, questioning look,

“What is your name, boy?”

Well, that’s one sure way of pissing my beast off, now, isn’t it? Calling me boy will only result in this all going south quickly.

“It’s Wolf,” I grumble when I look him dead in the eye without blinking. I am not afraid of this alpha or any other alpha. Rogue or not, I will not bow down to them. I usually run from them, but that’s only because packs don’t fight fair; they come at you in groups, and where is the fairness in that? But being face to face with an alpha like this, if I’m going to die anyway, I might as well be on my feet, facing the threat head-on.

Blinking, his brows furrow in response,

“Wolf, you’re name is Wolf?” He says, sounding somewhat surprised, and I feel like eye-rolling at this old man when I retort with,

“Yes, Wolf, that’s it, no middle name, no last name, just Wolf.” Scoffing, he shrugs,

“Well, Wolf. My name is Fenris, and this is the Erebus tribe. An almighty ancient tribe who have ruled over this whole Alaskan territory for the past hundred generations. If you can tell me where you come from and why you were passing through my lands, I might consider letting you go.” Clenching my jaw, I stare him straight in the eye,

“I’m afraid I can’t do that.” Scowling, he shakes his head,

“And why not?”

My beast swirls around in my eyes as he makes his presence known; I have to physically force him back down because right now isn’t the time to act impulsively. I might be reckless at times, but I’m not an idiot; one wrong move and his entire pack will undoubtedly descend on me like a pack of fleas on a dog’s back.

“I was merely passing through your territory; I didn’t intend on sticking around any longer than finding something to eat,” I grumble,

“If that’s true, then why can’t you tell me where you are from?” He asks with keen interest as he eyes me suspiciously. Clenching my jaw tightly, I instantly feel my entire body tense up in response,

“Because I don’t know where I’m from.” Skepticism reaches Fenris’s eyes as he stares curiously at me,

“You don’t know where you are from?” He drawls out, and it’s clear he’s having a hard time with this answer,

“No,” I answer flatly. Scoffing, Fenris narrows his eyes at me as he tilts his head,

“You honestly want me to believe that, Wolf?” Smirking, I shrug,

“You can believe what you want; I’m telling you the truth; what you decide to do with that is up to you.” I retort irritably. That’s when he narrows his eyes, staring me down hard as his jaw clenches,

“Well, maybe a few days in a cage will help you to remember. Because Wolf, I can’t let you go if you don’t tell me exactly who you are and where you come from.” My jaw slips, my eyes blinking as I try to come to terms with what he just said, but I can’t; he wants to put me in a cage because I can’t tell him where I come from?

“That’s fucking bullshit!” I snap at him, “You want to shove me in a cage all for not remembering where I come from; who the hell do you think you are?” I growl, which instantly has his eyes widening in response, and just like that, a few more men seem to appear beside him; surprise, surprise, here comes the cavalry.

“I am the alpha of this pack, and you are on my territory. I have every right to ask you whatever I want; best you remember that.” He growls, his eyes ablaze with his wolf as he stares at me.

I feel like I am losing it, my beast showing in my irises; if this fucking alpha plans to shove me in a cage like some animal, I might as well fight my way out of this. I feel my beast rippling right beneath the surface of my skin when I turn to look at her; I’m immediately deflated where I stand. Only then does my wolf pull back, all on his own. Her eyes are soft and apologetic as she stares at me, tears shimmering behind her eyes; it immediately has my wolf wanting to comfort her; my wolf wants to hold her and make her feel better. What the fuck is wrong with him? She’s the reason I’m in this mess.

I want to lash out, shift into my beast, and go down fighting if that’s what it will end in. I want to tell this alpha exactly where to shove his ego, but I’m smack dab in the middle of his pack. I’m already caged in. And all the while, my wolf wants to console the girl who’s solely responsible. Fuck.

The next thing I know, Bryce and Don appear on either side of me, grabbing both my shoulders as they start shoving me forward. Damn this girl for getting me into this; I was minding my own goddamn business when I walked into this town. She just had to come and mess it up. Fuck.

“Come on, Wolf. Our cages aren’t so bad; there’s a comfy bed inside and everything, definitely an upgrade from the places you’ve been staying in.” Don says sarcastically. Turning my head to glare at him, a low growl rumbles through my chest,

“I would rather be out there sleeping in a cave than here; you pack wolves are all the same,” I grumble, which only has Don and Bryce snigger in response,

“Yeah, well, you should have thought about that when you decided sitting down with an alpha’s daughter was a good idea. Then you went ahead and growled at a future alpha; bet you won’t do that again, huh?” Scoffing, I shake my head at how pathetic that sounds,

“I’m sorry, Your Highness, I didn’t realize one growl would bruise your ego beyond repair; it must be what happens when you’re born with a silver spoon in your mouth.”

Still grinning, he clenches his jaw; I can see his wolf shimmering in his eyes. He wants to lose control of me, but something’s stopping him- daddy’s orders, no doubt, I think, rolling my eyes.

~

“Here you go; I hope this will be satisfactory. What am I saying? Of course it will; you’ve been sleeping in a cave all this time.” Don scoffs before shoving me into a room with metal bars around it.” I’ll get one of the maids to bring you some clean clothes and whatever else you might need; we’ve got to try and get rid of the rogue stench surrounding you, right?” Shutting the gate, Don turns the key to lock it. Spinning around, I glare at him before my hands fly up against the metal bars,

“What’s the point in cleaning me up if you plan on killing me?”

“Let’s call it common courtesy; I don’t like touching anything with my mouth that’s unclean, nor does my wolf.” A low growl reverberates through my chest as I stare him down,

“If I was promised a fair fight against you, little alpha pup, I would kick your ass. But unfortunately, your kind doesn’t know a damn thing about morals or honor; killing a confined wolf just because he growled at you, how fucking insecure are you, Don?” My question suddenly sends him over the edge; Don lunges forward at the metal cage, baring his teeth, growling as his wolf shimmers behind his eyes. And there it is, my angle with this kid; it’s definitely his ego, just like every other alpha I’ve ever met- no surprise there.

“Talk shit all you like, Wolf. By tomorrow morning, your head will be on a stake if you can’t tell my dad exactly what he wants to know.” Scoffing, I eye him in curious fascination.

“Do you always do what daddy tells you, little pup?” Baring his teeth, he snarls at me,

“I’m not a fucking pup.” He snaps.

“Hmm, maybe you’re right,” I say teasingly. “You remind me more of a lap dog.” Lunging forward again, he begins clawing at me through the bars, and I can’t help chuckling. This kid is way too easy to rile up; he’s like a ticking time bomb when it comes to his bruised ego.

“Come on, Don, don’t let him get to you like this. He’s just trying to push your buttons, don’t let him.” Bryce pleads before grabbing his arm and pulling him back and away from the cage. I can’t help the wide, sarcastic smile I give Don; the poor kid needs his beta to calm him down. Clearly, he’s never had to fend for himself. Pathetic, I almost feel sorry for him.

“You know, your beta isn’t always going to be there to keep you in line, little pup.” Another growl reverberates from him, but he doesn’t come at me this time; instead, he turns on his heel and storms away with Bryce right behind him.

“Oh, by the way, Wolf, I’m twenty years old. I’m not a pup.” He mutters when he stops short of the door. Raising my brows in surprise, I can only stare at him in disbelief. It’s because I can’t believe he just told me his age, like it would make a difference somehow, or because we’re both the same age, and he has no life experience at all, as it would seem. I fold my arms across my chest, my brows furrowed as I smirk,

“I suppose maturity comes with experience and not age, Don.” Bryce pulls him out of the basement before shutting the door. Letting out a deep sigh, I slowly turn to get a better look at my surroundings; now, it seems like even the cages in Erebus are designed to pamper instead of torture their prisoners. These guys seriously have no real-life experience of how fucking hard the world is out there, do they?