Page 25 of Bullied Alpha Bride (Wolfshade Brides-for-Hire #2)

The soft chirping of a bird traces across my consciousness, bringing me out of the darkness. At first, I don’t know where I am. The first thing I expect to see is Kit.

Then I hear rough voices around me, and pain lances through my skull, making my stomach lurch. I try to force myself back into the comforting darkness, but a sharp blow to my guts stuns me and makes my eyes snap open.

“Wakey, wakey, princess.”

“If you do that again,” I gasp, “I’m gonna barf.”

“I’d rather you didn’t,” Father says, leaning over to glare into my eyes. “But by all means, do what you gotta do.”

As I look up into his pale, silvery eyes, it strikes me that our eyes are exactly the same color but absolutely nothing alike.

I glare right back at him, my lips pressed together to stop myself from screaming. I know he thrives on fear, and I refuse to give it to him.

“Going quiet, hey?” he says. “I don’t much care. I didn’t miss your whining a single bit.”

I know he’s baiting me, so I still don’t speak. He grins down at me, and I keep my face impassive, determined to keep my cool.

That’s when someone touches me from behind. To my shock, I realize I’m not restrained, and I try to leap up from my feet so I can run. The person behind me grabs my shoulders and yanks me back to the ground.

“Hey, baby,” a rough voice growls in my ear. “I missed you, honey.”

“Vince,” I hiss, struggling against him. He grips my upper arms, digging his fingers painfully into my flesh. Panic floods through me, destroying my resolve to stay calm. I thrash against him, kicking wildly, but he holds me down with ease.

Kneeling behind me, he tugs me closer and puts his chin on my shoulder to whisper against my neck.

“Even though it hurt me real bad that you ran away, it just made me hungrier. I’ve got a powerful need now, pretty thing, and I’m going to rip you up. I’m practically in a frenzy already.”

He licks my neck, making me squirm. I hear his soft chuckle as he runs his lips up and down my shoulder, biting me gently.

“This is just the preshow, babe. I can’t wait to sink my teeth in.”

“You can’t!” I gasp, struggling uselessly. “I’m married to an alpha! If you try to claim me, it will be an insult to the whole pack. He’ll kill you all.”

“I’m aware of the law,” Father says, looking down at me with a cruel smile. “I could argue a case that you ran from a previous commitment and have to face your punishment with us. That won’t be necessary, though.”

“Why?” I cry, still struggling against Vince as he licks my neck and nibbles on my earlobe.

“Because you’re fair game if you’re a widow,” he says with amusement. “Anyone can claim you.”

My body goes completely numb and still as I stare up at him, trying to process his words. The fear that rises in me then is a terrible thing, worse than any terror he’s ever visited on me before.

“Hmm, good, you’re going to stay still for a while,” Vince mutters. “I like it when you take it with grace. Don’t worry, though, I’ve got some moves that’ll make you fucking scream for me.”

I try as hard as I can to keep them down, but sobs burst out of me, making my chest heave. Vince and Father have a good laugh about it, and Vince yanks me back against him so he can wrap an arm around me to squeeze my breast.

“Don’t worry, darlin',” he mutters. “I’ll keep you occupied when your pretty boy is gone. You won’t have a spare second to think about him, I promise.”

Vince runs his hands down further, trying to get under my coat. His hands on my naked skin disgust me, and I don’t know if my stomach is lurching from the head injury or the thought of what he’s going to do to me.

Both.

“I can smell him all over you,” Vince says, taking a deep breath. “It’s going to be fun covering that scent with mine. I’m going to fuck you until our sweat blends, coating both our bodies, and my seed washes his right out of you.”

His words bring a new wave of terror, and I struggle against him, thrashing and kicking, desperate to get free. Father and his pack of wolves all laugh at me, forming a close ring around us.

I really can’t get away!

“So, what happens next?” I mutter, forcing the words through my tears. “Are you going to drag me through the woods back to Grace’s Fall?”

It’s a long way, and I’ll probably have to shift to make the distance. I might be able to get away.

“We’re just going to stand here a while and wait for your pretty boy to show up,” Father drawls.

“Then we’re going to take him out and leave his body here for the pack to find.

They’ll know we reclaimed our property, and there’s no sense in coming after us.

I think they’ll be too busy choosing a new alpha to worry about us. ”

An icy shard of fear pierces through me as I realize he’s absolutely right. The Cyan Lock pack doesn’t care about me; they want me gone. Without Kit, they can choose a new alpha and luna and forget about me.

And Kit, my love, you’re walking straight into a trap!

I know for certain that he will come after me. I don’t doubt it for a second, and the worst thing is, he’ll know it’s a trap, and he’ll still do it, not realizing that the odds are so stacked against him.

He’ll be expecting a few wolves, top henchmen only. Not twenty of the meanest damn wolves to ever walk the earth.

Tears trickle down my cheeks, and my body goes so numb, I can barely feel Vince touching me. Their laughter and bullying don’t even register as I think about Kit walking straight into this and getting torn apart right in front of me.

He’ll die without ever knowing how much I want him and that I’ll be his forever. Even if he dies and Vince takes me, I’ll never be his.

I’ll always belong to Kit.

A thin, echoing howl sounds from a nearby ridge. Father looks up towards the tree line and waves.

“That’s Earl,” Father says. “Do a perimeter check, boys.”

Three of his henchmen shift and run into the woods, and that’s when I realize Father has pack members scattered through the woods to make sure Kit comes alone.

And to make sure he doesn’t get out alive.

I hear the drumming of paws on the ground, and a wiry old wolf paces into the clearing with Kit right behind him.

I want to scream and tell him to run from this place, but I know he won’t go. He’d rather die right here than leave me. Through my pain, I feel a glow in my heart, a sense of value that I’ve never really had before.

Knowing I’m worth fighting for, maybe even dying for, makes me want to fight for myself.

Kit paces into the circle of wolves, looking around at them with a relaxed expression. His eyes are calm, and he’s not even showing his teeth.

What the fuck is he doing?

“Here he is!” Father yells like he’s announcing a test match. “The fabled alpha of Cyan Lock. I heard you were scary, young’un.”

Kit doesn’t bother to shift back so he can speak. He just keeps watching Father with a calm, steady gaze.

Father tries not to show it, but I can tell he’s unnerved.

Even though my fear is rising, there is a trickle of hope cutting through it.

Kit doesn’t look worried at all.

“Alright then, son, if you want to get down to it, then let’s go!” Father says. “I appreciate a wolf who doesn’t fuck around. Larry!”

Father gestures to the circle, and a big black wolf comes through the crowd. He carries his head low, teeth bared. A string of drool hangs from his bottom jaw. He paces back and forth in front of Kit. Kit barely moves, following him with his eyes.

Larry slows, growling at Kit. He feints to the left, then pounces back the other way, hurling himself at his opponent.

Kit barely moves. He bounces off the ground with his front paws, closes his jaws on Larry’s throat with a sharp snap, and hurls him to the ground.

The whole thing happens in less than a split second. There is a shocked silence from the surrounding wolves, and even Father takes a step back.

Kit cocks his head, growling low in his throat. He stands steadily on all fours, his eyes sweeping each side of him as he waits for the next attack.

This time, two wolves jump at him from separate directions. He leaps away from one, shoving the other out of his way with a massive shoulder. He rolls low, grabbing the first one by a leg and wrenching him down, crunching his teeth through the wolf’s paw.

While one howls and staggers away, Kit lunges at the other, getting caught in a vicious tangle of snapping jaws and flashing teeth. There is a horrible crack and a sharp cry, then Kit emerges victorious once more.

He returns to the middle of the circle, calmly staring at Father as he waits for the next attack.

For the first time in his life, Father looks anxious. I’m sure he wasn’t expecting to lose so many pack members, especially so quickly.

My husband is a fucking machine.

Father whistles, and five wolves come racing from the forest, launching themselves at Kit. He goes down under them, and I can’t see anything except flying fur and thrashing limbs.

The growls and yelps are terrifying to hear. When I hear bone crunching and smell the sharp tang of fresh blood, I struggle against Vince, desperate to get into the circle. Vince chuckles and yanks me back against him, still tightly holding on to my arms.

“It doesn’t matter how tough he is,” Vince murmurs. “They’re just going to keep coming until he’s done, then I’ll finish him off.”

“Coward,” I hiss, gasping for breath as I keep struggling against him. “You’re afraid to take him on yourself!”

Vince laughs softly. “Call me a coward if you want, princess. I don’t much care what you think. The only thing that matters is that your husband dies today, and then I claim you.”

Even though he’s trying to sound confident, I can detect a hint of fear in his voice.

Vince might be scared to jump in with Kit even if Kit is half-dead.

There is a horrible wail from the pile of fighting wolves, and I struggle against Vince again. He laughs, enjoying the press of my body against his while I squirm.

“This is it!” Vince yells with glee. “There’s no way he survived that!”

Three more wolves lay dead in the circle, and I can see Kit still fighting the other two.

One is latched onto his ruff, the other has a firm grip on his haunches.

He struggles against them, growling and thrashing as he tries to get free.

I can see his flesh being torn open, and his blood splattering across the ground as he whips back and forth, trying to get out of their grip.

Suddenly, Kit collapses between them, going completely limp. The other two are so surprised that they let go, and Kit shifts back to his human form, reaching for the nearest wolf and grabbing its head. With a sharp movement of his hands, he snaps the wolf’s neck, then turns on the other.

It lunges at him, locking its jaws around his leg. I see the teeth pierce through his skin, but Kit doesn’t even cry out. He just pulls back his fist and punches down with all his strength, breaking the wolf’s spine.

Kit returns to the center of the circle, glaring at my father. He’s bleeding in several places and badly bruised, but his breathing is slow and purposeful, and his eyes are calm.

Father glares back. Even though I can still see tension in him, there is also triumph.

Kit might be magnificent, but even he can’t fight forever. Sooner or later, they are going to kill him.