Enemies In The Shadows

Quinn

The blinding glare of headlights interrupted our almost-kiss. Alex came sprinting from the woods.

“Alpha!” he shouted.

“WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING HERE?!” Jax bellowed back.

“I’m sorry, but you’re needed at the border. There’s been another incident.”

“Fuck!” Jax spat out. “Where?”

“Near the stone bridge.”

Jax glanced at me, clearly torn.

“Take Quinn back to the pack house. Meet me at the bridge afterward,” he instructed, already heading for his car.

“Wait!” I called after him. “What happened? What’s going on?”

“Don’t worry about it. Everything’s going to be fine,” Jax assured me.

“'Don’t worry about it?’ After the night we’ve had, and you’re just going to leave?”

“I know, and I’m sorry,” he said, climbing into his car. “I’ll see you back at the pack house.”

“No, don’t do that. I’m not some child, I’m your Luna. I have a right to know what’s going on.”

“Quinn, I don’t have time for your bullshit right now. I need to—”

“EXCUSE ME?!”

He stopped.

“Fuck… That’s not what I—”

“I’m just ‘bullshit’ to you?”

“I didn’t mean it that way. I was just saying—”

“No, no…you made yourself perfectly clear,” I cut him off. “At least I know where I stand with you.”

I stormed off to Alex’s SUV.

“Goddammit—wait!” he yelled. But I was already in the vehicle, slamming the door shut. I was seething.

Through the window, I saw Jax cursing and flipping his car around before speeding off down the mountain.

“Quinn, I’m sorry,” Alex said as he climbed in, “I didn’t mean to—”

“Shut up, Alex!”

Alex didn’t utter another word for the rest of the drive home.

Jaxon

Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK.

Quinn

Sky and I had been sparring all afternoon. For once, it felt therapeutic.

“He said that to you?” Sky gasped.

She looked genuinely upset that the date hadn’t gone well. She’d put so much effort into making sure I had the perfect night, so its failure felt like a reflection on her.

Normally, I would have found her reaction selfish, but I was too angry with Jaxon to care. Plus, Sky could be kind of clueless, I’d come to realize.

I remembered reading about a place in California where you could pay to smash plates and glassware to vent your anger… I wondered if I should start something like that here.

“And you didn’t even kiss?”

“Seriously, that’s what you’re focusing on?”

“Just saying—”

“I told him from the start that if we were going to make this work, he needed to treat me as his equal. He said he would, but then he barks at me like I’m one of his subordinates and refuses to tell me what’s going on. Like he’s protecting me from something.”

I started punching harder at Sky, who struggled to keep up.

“I’m not some fragile porcelain doll. I’m not going to shatter at the slightest touch.”

“I believe you,” she said, wincing at my palm punches.

Alex approached. He seemed distant…probably because I’d nearly bitten his head off the night before.

“Jaxon sent me to tell you he requests an audience with his Luna.”

“Oh, so now I’m ~his~ Luna?”

“Umm…” Alex stammered.

“What does he want?” I asked, trying to keep my anger in check.

“He didn’t say… His orders were that he needed to see you immediately.”

“His orders?” I echoed, followed by a string of curses. I’d never sworn so much in my life. “And please tell him that word for word. If he’s so desperate to chat, he can come to me.”

“He’s not going to like hearing that,” Alex said, clearly rattled by my tirade. “Where should I say he can find you?”

I just glared at him.

“Got it. I’ll pass the word.”

Jaxon

“She said that?! What the hell did you say to her, exactly?”

“Look, I’ve had enough verbal abuse in the last twenty-four hours…maybe you ~should~ just go talk to her. You did shut her out, after all…”

I shot him a glare. I didn’t mind his advice every now and then, but he was starting to annoy me.

“I’m not going to reward her bad behavior by giving in to her demands.”

“Well, then, things probably aren’t going to improve anytime soon. She’s really pissed.”

“You don’t say.”

I thought about it and sighed.

~Fuck!~

“Did she at least hint at where she was going to be?”

Alex shrugged.

~Of course not.~

So, I left my private study and went searching for her.

***

Three hours later, near sunset, I found her curled up in the library reading a book titled, ~Cunt: A Declaration of Independence~.

~Well, this was shaping up to be just fucking fantastic…~

“There you are,” I said, trying to sound casual. “I figured I’d find you here. You’re a reader.”

She didn’t respond. Didn’t even glance my way.

“Haven’t read that one yet. Is it good?”

She shot me a scowl. “You read?” she asked, her tone sharp.

“When it suits me.”

“Really…? What was the last book you read?”

Awkward silence.

“Listen…the way I acted last night, it wasn’t right. This is all new to me. Before you came, I was used to—”

“Being a jerk and always getting your way?”

“That’s not exactly how I would have put it…but yes. I was a jerk. Being the Alpha’s son comes with privilege and status—not that it’s an excuse, it’s just how I was raised. But I don’t want to be that, especially not with you… I shouldn’t have spoken to you the way I did. And I’m sorry. Really.”

Quinn’s shoulders sagged, and she lowered her book. She was starting to let her guard down, so I moved in closer.

“As hard as it may be to believe, I also reacted the way I did to keep you safe—at least, that’s how I justified it. I didn’t want you to worry. But I want that to change. You deserve to know what’s happening.”

“About what?” she asked.

I looked around and saw more people starting to come and go. Our conversation was losing its privacy. Plus, my voice tends to carry.

“Let’s go for a walk and I’ll tell you all about it,” I said, extending my hand, but she just stared at me. “Please.”

Quinn let out a deep breath before she stood up and followed me. She didn’t take my hand.

Quinn

Jax led me through the halls of the pack house. I was still angry at him, even though my body was screaming to jump him the moment I heard his voice, but I believed his apology was genuine.

“What do you know about rogues?” he asked, his voice low.

I shrugged. “Can you be more specific?”

“Rogues are werewolves without a pack. Many stay unmated, which drives them mad. We’re social creatures, so if we’re isolated for too long, some wolves tend to lose their minds.”

~Mad werewolves? Well, that didn’t sound absolutely terrifying…~

“They’re prone to violence and are incredibly dangerous.”

“Is that what pulled you away last night? The ‘incident’?”

He nodded. “At one of our outposts. Several guards were badly injured. Over the past few weeks, since you arrived, there’s been a rise in the number of attacks. And we don’t know why. It’s very unusual.”

I stopped before we entered the foyer.

These incidents had been happening since ~I~ arrived? My mind immediately went back to my dream in the forest.

Who was this ‘Carl’? And why was he after me?

I once read that in dreams we only see people we’ve met in real life, but I’d never seen that man before. I would have remembered that scarred face anywhere. I knew it was just a dream, but it felt so real.

“What is it?” he asked, looking at me curiously.

“Do you remember my nightmare from the other day?” I asked, my voice small.

“What about it?”

“I know this sounds silly, since it was all in my head, but I was chased by a man—a werewolf, I think—who called himself Carl. He was trying to kidnap me. Said he was going to take me to someone important.”

“Who?”

“He didn’t say. I mean, it was just a silly dream…”

“No, don’t dismiss what you saw. Dreams can be a way to send and receive messages.”

“Wait, are you saying someone sent me a message?”

Jax didn’t respond. I could tell he was deep in thought. He looked like he wanted to say something but couldn’t bring himself to do it. A look of dread washed over his face.

“What is it? What do you think it means?”

He stepped closer and took my hands.

“I think you might be in danger,” he said, his voice grave. Dark circles seemed to form under his eyes. I’d never seen him this worried before.

~Should I be scared?~

A shiver ran down my spine.

“I didn’t mean to scare you. I just hope you understand how serious this is. But I swear on my life, I won’t let anything happen to you,” he said, his hand on my cheek. “You’re my everything…my Lupus Paulo.”

~Lupus Paulo?~

That was the second time I’d heard that phrase. I didn’t know what it meant, but it stirred something in me.

That feeling beyond mere sexual desire was starting to take over again, as if it was calling to me.

I desperately wanted to feel his lips on mine.

My mouth moved toward his before I knew what was happening, but before our lips could meet, a siren sounded. It wailed like the warning before a tornado.

Jax’s eyes widened, as did everyone else’s. Everyone froze.

I saw Sky halfway up the stairs. She looked terrified.

Jax looked around wildly. I could feel his pulse quicken. What could make his heart race like that?

“What is it?” I asked. “What’s happening?!”

He looked directly into my eyes.

“Rogues!”