Page 89 of A Lesson in Obedience

Audible gasps settled around us and then silence. I heard human breathing and just over a car or two, Mateo’s head popped up. They turned in my direction and their face was covered in blood. Their eyes were also…red.

Pack members that were still wolves focused solely on Mateo, while one of the members came bursting out of the bar with a towel. Mateo became clearer in my view, wrapping the towel around their naked body.

The bar patrons looked on, stunned, and Mateo’s chest rose and fell as they examined their pack members. They licked their lips, instantly wiping their mouth and seeing the blood. “This pack does not make deals with people who threaten to hurt the ones we care about! Is that clear?!”

The wolves and non-shifted pack members looked at one another. One by one they all nodded and lowered their heads.

I eyed Ike who had his eyebrows raised. “What’s happening?”

Ike delicately touched the wounds on his palms. “Mateo killed Dante. They’re the alpha now.” He whistled. “Corrin is goingto be even more insufferable now.”

Mateo started to walk over towards us and my phone buzzed in my pocket. I was surprised it had survived this fight. I pulled it out of my pocket slowly, seeing Riley’s name on my screen.

I hissed when I brought it to my ear, the movement creating pain in my side. “Hey, gorgeous.” I tried to sound normal, like a giant wolf hadn’t just tried to kill me or that I wasn’t bleeding out of my side.

The other line was silent.

“Hello?”

I heard sniffles and then a small cry. Deep breathing filled my ear and then another tiny cry.

“Riley? What’s wrong? Answer me, baby.”

Grayson swiveled his head to look at me, leaning in so he could try to hear.

Silence again and then her voice sent my heart into a spiral. “R-river, can y-you please….” She started and then stopped, her voice becoming too shaky for her to continue. She tried again. “I-I don’t know w-what I d-did. R-river please. I n-need you.”

33

Riley

EARLIER

“Did we really have to leave Beau at the hotel?” Jade asked, continuing to look at the back window, even though we were miles away from the hotel.

“Yes, Jade. We are already bombarding the woman, we don’t need to also surprise her with a dog,” Corrin explained, laughing.

I watched the houses go by, trying to clear my head and consider what I planned on saying. This was probably making the top three wildest things I’ve ever done, right alongside having a foursome. I would much rather be in the middle of a foursome right now than doing this if I was honest. I’m sure the boys would love that as well.

Corrin looked at the GPS on her car’s screen and then back at the road, turning on her blinker to make a right.

All the houses looked relatively normal, though I didn’t really know what I was expecting. I didn’t know anything about this woman. I didn’t know how she lived or what her day-to-day activitieswere. She could slam the door in my face and I couldn’t say much about it. Fuck, now I really wished I was back in the foursome.

“Is it this one?” Corrin asked no one in particular, driving slower.

Trees covered a good portion of my vision, but a medium-sized one-story home stared back at me. The front yard was massive and looked like it was being well taken care of. There was a stone path that led to the front door and simple rectangular windows that would have let me see inside if the curtains weren’t closed.

Corrin pulled into the driveway and I swiveled my head towards her. “Park on the street.”

“Why would I do that? There is a perfectly good driveway right here.” She rolled her eyes, putting her car in park.

“I don’t know. Parking in the driveway seems way too comfortable.”

She shrugged, opening her door. “Too late. Already did it.”

I groaned, getting out and shaking out my nerves.

I pulled on the sleeves of my shirt, cupping the ends with my fingers. Once the front door was the only thing in front of me, gathering up the courage to knock was proving difficult.