Page 1 of Fated To The Wolf (Bay Harbor Wolves #10)

A man came into the room and stared at him in an oddly penetrating fashion and then had two men hold him while he placed his hand on Aidan’s forehead.

He then left, and another man looking similar tall, dark, and mysterious came into his room and did the same.

They acted insane and refused to answer any questions or react to any of Aidan's curses.

It was robotic, methodical, and made no sense and gave Aidan the fucking creeps.

The Bay Harbor community was a cult, a violent, kidnapping, off-the-rails cult, and they had Jake.

Jake wasn't one to buy into crazy talk, so it must have been Hayes Castian who lured him in with his muscles and model good looks.

He wondered how long it would be before Hayes moved on to the next recruit and left Jake in his dust. Bastards like him never looked back, only forward while satisfying their own needs.

Aidan had been locked up and alone for several hours, but no one had explained why they were keeping him or why they separated him from Barlow.

Aidan started pacing the room. It had a bed or rather what looked like a gurney and a metal chair by the wall.

There was also an attached bathroom, just the bare minimum, with a toilet and sink.

Looking around, he found nothing that he could use to try and extricate himself from this room.

They had emptied his pockets and taken his watch, his belt, and his shoes.

The door was metal and locked from the outside.

He tested it several times and checked for any weaknesses, but it was solid.

He was trapped there until such time that they decided to let him out.

Anger started welling up in him again, and he desperately wanted to hit something.

Aidan continued to pace the room and then suddenly punched the wall a couple of times, leaving him in considerable pain.

“He’s like a caged animal," Zayn commented as he and Alpha Henrik observed Aidan on a monitor in the surveillance room. The infirmary had cameras, which Aidan had already spotted.

“What are we doing to find his mate? The sooner we locate his match; the sooner we can give him relief.” Henrik asked while staring at the agitated man on the monitor.

“Not sure how to go about it without having a line of eligible members file past him, essentially checking him out." Zayn was not confident in his suggestion, especially when Henrik gave him a swift and sardonic side-eye.

"Find a way to bring him out into the population," Henrik stated.

“He’ll try to run.”

"He won't leave his brother. As long as Jake is here, Aidan will not leave."

"I feel like I betrayed him, and it's eating me up.

" Jake shared his anxiety with his mate Hayes as they had breakfast in the kitchen of the Pack House.

They still occupied the bedroom on the second floor because Jake did not want to be too far from his brother, who was still being held in the infirmary.

It had been a rough night for Jake, not being allowed to go to him and desperately wanting to explain himself and beg him to understand.

Hayes told him that Aidan was enraged, and it was necessary that he calm and gather himself before anyone would be allowed in to see him. Jake made it clear that he would be the first to see him, and Hayes agreed. Alpha Henrik then joined them in the kitchen.

The Alpha poured a cup of coffee before taking a seat opposite them at the table. “Did Hayes tell you that your brother is mate to someone in the pack?” Alpha Henrik began.

"Yes, sir," Jake responded. “He told me that Aidan’s mind could not be cleared because of his connection to the pack.”

“We need to get Aidan out into the population so we can find his connection, his mate. We would like to do that with as little suspicion as possible and just let nature take its course. Do you understand?”

Jake nodded. "If you or I tell him he is mate to a wolf, he will think we're crazy.

He needs to meet them and feel the pull for it to be real to him.

I know my brother, and I'm sure he is going to fight this, but the pull is something that cannot be denied.

Aidan will come around." Jake assured them, and the Alpha smiled as if relieved.

“Good.” He stated and stood and headed out, taking his coffee with him. He turned back to the archway and spoke to Jake. "He's being served his breakfast, and in an hour, you may go speak with him. Be careful what you say, and try not to overwhelm him."

"Thank you," Jake said, and Henrik nodded and left the room.

The Alpha seemed stressed, but Jake wasn't sure if it was regarding Aidan or the land deal that he was trying to put together. Hayes had told him about the two hundred acres that the pack was seeking to obtain. Jake knew that Aidan worked for the company handling the sale, but he wasn’t sure if the Alpha had made that connection yet.

Aidan was new on the job with Sensor Properties.

He has a business degree emphasizing real estate, finance, and marketing and had worked for a local company in Detroit before getting the offer from Sensor Properties.

Jake wasn’t sure if Aidan was involved with the property that Henrik was interested in.

He hadn't mentioned it, and Aidan usually mentioned larger projects he was involved in.

Jake was torn as to whether he should mention any of this to the Alpha.

He didn’t want to go against his brother or make anything more difficult for him.

He thought about talking it over with Hayes, but he feared Hayes would be honor-bound to mention it to the Alpha.

They would discover this information eventually anyway, so Jake decided to keep it to himself.

“Did you want me to go with you?” Hayes asked.

"No, I should talk to him alone first and try to convince him that I'm here because I want to be, not because I've been brainwashed." He smiled ruefully, and Hayes reached out and took his shoulder, pulling him a little closer.

“You’ll do fine.” He reassured him. "You're brothers, and he knows you and will recognize the truth. He trusts you, sweetheart.”

Jake leaned into the hug, loving the contact. Nothing felt as good as Hayes’ arms. “I hope they find his mate soon, so he’ll start to understand and feel the reality of what’s around him.”

“They’re working on it. Everyone in the house has been checked, and so it’s up to you to get him out into the membership at large." Hayes laughed at Jake's wide-eyed expression.

“That sounds easy, but Aidan is not a pushover and stubborn as hell. He's going to want me to run with him, and it's going to break my heart to say no." Hayes’ demeanor changed immediately, and he drew his mate into his arms, holding him tightly.

“It’s only until he finds his mate. Once he makes that connection, he will understand. Please don’t be sad.”

“I know.” Jake pulled himself together. “It’ll be okay.”

"Be strong, my love."

“I will for you and for Aidan.”

Isaiah LaBlanc, security specialist, had just returned to Bay Harbor two days ago after receiving extensive training in border security from Master Emmanuel Cabot at the Coven on Old Mission Peninsula.

The Coven was on the cutting edge of current equipment and techniques.

They also leaned into magics where traditional methods didn’t meet their need, which was not something Henrik wanted to use.

The Alpha had never trusted magic, but still, Isaiah learned what he could about the protections the Mage had set up for the Coven.

One of the Pack Enforcers, Javiar, was mated to Sasha, a mage who was well able to set similar protections.

Isaiah would present it along with other improvements and enhancements to the Alpha.

The Bay was the Alpha's greatest weakness in terms of border protection, and a little magic would make it secure without running afoul of the humans and their laws.

But that was up to the Alpha, and magic had its own downside, which needed to be factored in whenever including it in any process or endeavor.

“Come in.” The Alpha called for him to enter, and Isaiah walked in with his formalized report in hand.

He’d spent a week with the specialist at the Coven, and he had some interesting points to share.

Javier was also present, which made discussing the possibility of magic a little easier.

Javiar’s mate, Sasha, had the ability to give the pack what his grandfather gave the Coven.

He ran through the variety of sensors and systems available and those used by the Coven and in which capacity.

He also discussed how they’ve customized systems for their own needs and enhanced surveillance abilities.

"Trigger cameras and lights can be customized to react to more than just movement; they can respond to smoke, water, extreme temperatures, and also energies.”

“They can identify the presence of the supernatural and distinguish the species?” Javiar questioned skeptically.

“Yes, the coven can identify who is at their borders with a simple alert.”

“I like it.” The Alpha thumbed casually through Isaiah’s report. “You mention magics.” The Alpha narrowed his eyes as he spoke. “I know the coven uses it extensively, and the system that Sasha’s grandfather set up for them was said to be foolproof, but I’ve never been comfortable with it.”

“It would give the added security to the Bay that we currently lack without having to constantly confront the rules regarding waterfront and the public at large.” Isaiah began his pitch.

“I know that a form of mage magic was used in the past to try to protect the border, but it was extremely low level and ultimately did not perform as needed.”

“I discontinued the use, believing that patrols were the better option. When magics go awry, the outcome can be devastating.” The Alpha was still not sold.

“I investigated the process thoroughly and included the data in the report," Isaiah said, giving him the information without appearing to pressure.

"I'll read it and let you know." That was as good as he was going to get, so Isaiah left it there. The Alpha then turned to Javiar.

“This is not a slight to your amazing mate. I respect Sasha’s presence in this pack, and I value his skills.” The Alpha spoke to Javiar. “Let’s revisit this tomorrow and bring Sasha with you.”

"Yes, sir," Javiar responded with a warmth that indicated no offense was taken.