Page 28 of In the Mouth of the Wolf (Of Wolves and Kings #1)

28

ARCHER

W e felt it immediately.

The true power of a pack bond, the one that linked shifters telepathically, had disappeared along with our ability to fully shift. But we could still sense each other. And the feeling of a fifth soul, the bonding of a new member in our pack, rippled through us like a wave of electric shocks.

We’d been standing around the kitchen island, discussing the logistics of Marlowe’s move from San Francisco to Maiingan Hollow when it happened, the impact buckling our knees.

Camden recovered the fastest.

“That son of a bitch!” he yelled, slamming his fist on the granite countertop. “He had no right!”

He raced towards the door, but Nolan chased after him and tackled him to the ground before he could slip his boots on.

“Wait a minute, you idiot!” he seethed, trying to pin Camden on his back. “If you bust in there, guns blazing, you’re going to make her think they did something wrong.”

Camden struggled to push Nolan off him. “ He did something wrong. As pack leader I get dibs when it comes to bonding new members, especially an omega! Archer, back me up!”

I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose. “I understand how you feel, but Nolan’s right. You’re going to ruin what is likely a really special moment for her. And while I would have preferred waiting a bit until she was more comfortable with pack life, if she’s fine with this, we should be, too.”

Camden growled, kneeing Nolan in the groin and shoving him away. “Fuck you and your logic. Elias disrespected my position, and as pack leader, I need to put him back in his place.”

Position . I rolled my eyes. Every pack needed a leader, and some packs adhered to that kind of hierarchy more than others. Strength wise, we were more or less at the same level, although I had to admit that Camden had the most fighting skills and could use those to beat any of us in a fight if it came to it.

But that wasn’t why he was our leader. Camden had been chosen for two simple reasons – one, because it was his idea. And two - the Wolcotts were one of the most powerful families in our community. Wolfcrest Construction employed a lot of the town, including my own father when he and my mom had first moved here from Korea. Socially speaking, it made the most sense for us to be under him.

Until now, he’d never really mentioned it unless he was joking. He might have had no problem acting like a cocky bastard when it came to impressing females, but truthfully, he was a pretty humble guy. Put the four of us in a line, and no one would guess he was our pack’s leader or that his net worth was in the millions.

It was actually amusing to see him so spitting mad about pack rank right now.

“Well, whatever you do, make sure Marlowe doesn’t see. She’s going to think you don’t want her,” Nolan groaned, recovering from Camden’s cheap shot.

Camden roared his frustration, getting up, stomping over to the couch, and flopping down. “She knows I want her. More than anything.”

“Then show it,” Nolan offered. “Next time you have the chance, bond her yourself. Archer and I will even refrain until you’ve done it, right?”

He gave me a look, and I raised my eyebrow. I hadn’t planned how to exchange a bond with her yet, thinking I’d probably just play it by ear. Now that I was being asked, I ran through the various positions we could find ourselves in when I finally sunk my teeth into her soft skin, but coughed and cleared my throat before my cock got too excited.

“Right, we’ll wait for you.”

Camden played with the zipper on his hoodie and grumbled. “You fucking better.”

For being our supposed leader, he really was such a child sometimes.

He sulked a bit longer, until Elias and Marlowe finally returned a few hours later. Camden did his best to put on a happy face… well, a neutral face, but Marlowe made a beeline for him once her shoes were off, giving him a big hug.

“You’re upset. I can feel it, now.”

Elias mouthed a silent, sorry-not-sorry apology, and made a quick escape upstairs. I would question him on the details of the bonding later, but for now, I wanted to watch our omega in action.

Omegas were meant to be the glue that held packs together, that neutralized our aggression. Today was her first test, and I was riveted already.

Camden slumped his shoulders, wrapping his arms back around her and kissing her on the head. “I’m not mad you’re bonded, baby. I’m mad because Elias beat me to the punch.”

She tilted her head up, batting her eyelashes. “But you got to knot me first, right?”

He started a growl but it petered out pretty quickly, and his hand dropped to grab her ass. “Damn right, I did.”

With a yelp and a giggle, she kissed him on the cheek and then we all heaved a sigh of collective relief as calm cleared the hostile atmosphere.

We’d met her only about a week ago, and she already knew how to soothe Camden. Would Marlowe employ the same techniques if another alpha of our pack needed talking down? While doe eyes and hugs were perfect for our ‘intrepid leader,’ that certainly wasn’t the most effective way to reach me when I was angry.

I was curious to find out if omega skills were intrinsic or learned.

She cleared her throat. “Hey, so Elias and I found some interesting stuff at my dad’s, and I really want to talk to you all about it.”

“Oh?” Nolan asked. “Like what? Some skeletons in the Linden family closet?”

Her face paled slightly, and Camden bared his teeth back at Nolan.

“Wait, for real?” he asked.

She reached out towards Camden, bringing his arm around her waist. His face lit up, clearly thrilled that our omega found comfort in his touch.

“Yeah, I want to talk about it with Elias here too, but I have a feeling he’s hiding from you all for the moment.”

We exchanged a knowing glance. “Can’t imagine why…” I murmured.

Nolan checked his watch. “I’m sure we’ll get this resolved by dinner. We can talk then.”

She nodded her thanks, and I switched the subject to something I’d wanted to ask her earlier.

Ever since she’d fully shifted, the scientist in me had been dying to run some tests. We hadn’t really addressed it much, due to what had happened, but now that she was bonded, her wolf should have had a better sense of home and safety.

“Marlowe, would you be interested in coming with me to my lab tomorrow? I have a little work to catch up on, but I also wanted to take the opportunity to get some blood samples from you. If that’s okay, of course.”

Her eyes lit up. “Yeah, sure. I’d love to learn more about what you do, and I’m curious to learn why I can shift into a wolf when most of you can’t.”

“None of us can,” Nolan corrected. “The last full shifter died an old man over thirty years ago.”

“Damn, so I’m the only omega and the only full shifter? What are the chances?”

“Astronomical,” I replied. “I hate to turn you into a guinea pig, but if you’re open to testing, it could lead to the answers we’ve been looking for.”

Marlowe nodded, chewing her lip while her eyes fixated on some spot across the room, the true scope and gravity of her uniqueness settling in. “No, yeah, I get it. I’m happy to help, however I can.”

Camden pointed a finger at me. “Just don’t go turning her into a pin cushion or anything.”

I gave him a mock salute. “Yes, alpha.”

He flipped me off and then turned Marlowe around, leading her to the basement. “So, we watched your K-drama yesterday, which means today we’re going to watch one of my favorite movies. Do you know Die Hard ?”

Marlowe scoffed, flipping her hair. “Excuse me, do you think I lived under a rock before I came here? Of course I know the greatest Christmas movie ever made.”

Camden pretended to stumble and clutched his heart. “Babe… where have you been all my life?” He threw her over his shoulder amid a flurry of shrieks and laughter.

“Not a Christmas movie,” Nolan half-heartedly called from his spot at the island, eyes now glued to his laptop screen.

“Quit being such a Gruber!” Marlowe yelled back.

Camden howled as he barreled down the stairs.

I chuckled to myself, feeling at peace with how our omega not only fit seamlessly into our pack, but how she had brought us back together. Eau Claire wasn’t that far away, but I had bought a house there a few years ago and rarely found any reason to come back to Maiingan Hollow anymore – aside from seeing my sister and her pups. And Elias stopped coming regularly after his parents died.

He now peeked over the balcony, calling to us from the upstairs walkway. “Cam still pissed?”

I growled in response. “We’re all pissed. That was reckless.”

He sighed, running his hand sheepishly through his hair. “I know, I’m sorry. It’s not like I planned it or anything. I had my knot in her, totally blissed out, when suddenly all I could think of was her piece-of-shit, blood-sucking–”

“We get it,” Nolan interrupted. “The bond certainly protects her now, and we all wanted it anyway. Best to just move forward, especially since we still need to deal with the vamp in some capacity when we help Marlowe get her stuff from California. Also, I don’t want to alarm anyone, but if she truly was his Lunessa, he might not be willing to let her go that easily. We need to be prepared in case he returns.”

Elias cracked his knuckles and rolled his shoulders. “I’d like to see him try. What’s one vampyr going to do against four alpha shifters?”

“Well, Elias Faulkner Esquire , perhaps this is more your purview than mine, but I’ve been researching vampyr laws and there is some precedent for the ex to get assistance from his council to retrieve her.” Nolan slammed his laptop shut and crossed his arms. “I have an omega and a town to think about, you know.”

Elias leapt over the railing, landing on the first floor with a large thud. He rushed Nolan and grabbed him by the collar. “And what is that supposed to mean?”

“Everything good?”

We all turned towards the basement stairs where Marlowe now stood. “There’s just a lot of tension I can feel right now.”

Elias released Nolan’s shirt, then stormed passed us and headed back up stairs. Marlowe came over first to Nolan. “Hey, why don’t you grab some snacks and watch the movie with us? I’d love to point out all the ways you’re wrong.”

He snorted. “Okay sugar, except for the fact that Bruce Willis himself said…”

She stuck her fingers in her ears. “La la la, can’t hear you! See you down there in a minute. Don’t forget the Red Vines!”

The frustration radiating off Nolan dissipated as we watched her skip towards the staircase, making her way to Elias next. He chuckled to himself, grabbing the movie candy from the pantry and going downstairs to wait for her return.

I desperately wanted to observe how Marlowe dealt with Elias, but it was already clear she knew exactly what she was doing.

Nolan loved to feel needed, so she gave him a job. Elias required a few moments to himself when he was upset, which was why she didn’t go to him first.

A round of laughter from Elias’s room and the easing of the bond told me she’d succeeded there, too.

“Well done, Marlowe,” I whispered to myself. I threw a bag of popcorn in the microwave. Life was definitely about to get much more entertaining .