Page 60 of In the Mouth of the Wolf (Of Wolves and Kings #1)

60

JULIAN

I pulled out of the grocery store parking lot, glancing down at the bouquet of flowers and bottle of wine on the front seat.

Females liked flowers. At least, I thought they did.

My mom had always seemed happy when my dad had given her flowers, at least. Before they died.

But Marlowe wasn’t a typical shifter female, and so far every move I’d made felt like the wrong one.

She was an omega – the first one I’d ever met. And she’d been raised as a human. Cam had talked to me yesterday after she had left the office, and had explained that she didn’t like a lot of typical alpha behavior. She didn’t like being told what to do. She also didn’t like aggression or violence, especially towards other females, and wasn’t afraid to argue or fight back.

I hadn’t even been trying to court her when I first saw her at Cam’s desk. Despite having never met one before, I clocked her as an omega immediately from her sweet perfume. I had also sensed the bonds and could smell the sex in the air. All I had been able to think was that Cam was a lucky bastard, and I had just wanted to flirt a little bit. Who didn’t want to flirt with a cute female?

But then she rebuffed me. Got angry, even, flipping the power between us. The fact that she had been able to order me , the alpha, to get her , the omega, a coffee, confused the hell outta me. The worst of it was, I hadn’t been able to tell if I was ashamed or turned on.

And when Cam let us check each other’s scents, the way packs made matches, it was like something had clicked in my brain. Some override system that took over and redirected all my thoughts, my hopes, my dreams, and my goals towards her.

I didn’t think there’d be any going back now. I needed tonight to go well.

Cam had also given me the lowdown on the rest of the pack – the alphas had been bonded for fifteen years, and half of them were dead set against me. That was a hard group to join, even without the extra complication of an omega. But apparently, Marlowe was the swing vote. If I could convince her, I was in.

So… flowers.

To be honest, it wasn’t just the prospect of Marlowe that made me nervous. I also really did want a pack. I felt untethered most of the time without one, craving the support of bonded alphas.

I’d grown up in a small shifter town like Maiingan Hollow up in Montana. Only unlike here, we weren’t a thriving community. The only things we had in abundance were poverty and free time – the perfect ingredients for nothing good.

Packs there operated more like gangs. I’d almost been bonded into one against my will before my mom had given me all her savings and told me to run.

I had found my way here and started working for Cam as a general laborer. He had taken a liking to me and started giving me more and more responsibilities.

Now I had people working under me. I was making six-figures with bonuses. I had friends. Hobbies. A life.

Last year, I bought a three-bedroom house, and was going to move my mom in but…

The doctors called it Shifter Repression Syndrome.

In any case, I was alone now. I didn’t think I could take it if this pack rejected me.

I pulled up to a red light and stopped, drumming my fingers on the steering wheel nervously, ignoring the little voice inside my head telling me I was going to screw this up.

It felt like I couldn’t trust any of my instincts on this one, not with a headstrong omega and half a pack against my bonding in the mix, and that scared the crap out of me.

Biting back my fear, I looked ahead, concentrating on the traffic. A car to my right pulled into the intersection, waiting to turn left, and my adrenaline spiked.

That looks like Marlowe…

There was a female in the back seat - small, with strawberry blonde hair. A dark-haired male was on top of her, holding her down, and she was fighting him back.

A vicious growl ripped through me as I watched the male grab her wrists to keep her from defending herself. Even if that wasn’t Marlowe, that female was being attacked and taken somewhere against her will.

I reacted on instinct, making a quick U-turn to follow them. I might be late to the dinner, but I wouldn’t be able to concentrate or even sleep at night if I let this go. Whoever she was, she needed help, and that was more important.

I held my anger in check and made sure to keep a safe distance. I didn’t want to alert the driver that I was following them.

I watched helplessly through the car’s back window as the female attempted to fight the attacker off, but she was so small against him. Every fiber of my being was screaming to help. To protect.

I clenched my teeth, my knuckles turning white on the wheel. I didn’t know how much longer I could watch this go on.

Oncoming headlights highlighted his figure, and I saw the fangs clearly in his mouth as he plunged himself into her neck, her limbs flailing in response.

Vampyrs ? In my city? Oh, hell no.

I turned on my high beams and floored it, quickly making up the distance between our cars. I’d never tried it before, but I watched enough cop shows to try a PIT maneuver. By the time they noticed, it was too late.

I pulled alongside and hit the back corner of the car, then slowed down as it spun out of control and off the road, skidding to a stop on the snowy ground.

After I slammed on my brakes, I dashed out of my truck to confront them. The driver came out first while the male in the back tried to subdue the female. He swore at me under his breath, touching a gash on his forehead. His eyes narrowed at the blood on his fingers and he brandished a silver blade.

“You’re going to pay for that, you fucking mutt,” he hissed, his voice dripping with venom.

I couldn’t stop the chuckle that escaped me as I looked at his miserable excuse for a weapon. Rolling my shoulders and squaring up, I took a deep breath and pointed my chin at him. “Let’s go then, Sparkles.”

He rushed towards me without hesitation, and I easily dodged his attack, rolling out of his reach and clocking him on the side of his head with a satisfying thud . He dropped like a rock, out cold.

“Pathetic,” I muttered. I made quick work of his neck, snapping it with brutal efficiency. There was no time for guilt.

I stood back up and turned my head to the real target.

The back door of the car creaked open, and a large figure shot out like a coiled spring, his fanged mouth wide in a vicious snarl. He slammed into me, another knife in his grip. The force pushed me back a few steps, but I dug in my heels, holding my ground as I grunted from the effort.

A high-pitched whine from the female inside made my stomach churn.

“Marlowe?” I asked, leaning down and looking around the vamp that was struggling against me.

“Julian?” she whimpered back, her face pale. She clutched at the wound at her neck, crimson drops trickling down her skin.

Her sweet perfume was laced with fear, and combined with the sound of her shaky voice saying my name, I filled with rage and purpose. I refocused on the bloodsucker in front of me. That was her blood on his unworthy lips.

“She’s mine!” he screamed, his violet eyes blazing. “You won’t touch my Lunessa!”

Lunessa … This vamp really thought he could have an omega shifter? Really thought he could take her away from her own pack?

Where was her pack? How had he managed to get her away from Cam? There was no way two vamps could subdue four alpha males protecting their omega.

But I had no time to consider what had happened at Cam’s house. The vamp swung wildly with his weapon, and I sidestepped before the blade could slice through my coat. He snarled and lunged at me again, but I pushed his elbow up and got him with an uppercut to the jaw. His fangs pierced through his lips and he screamed, blood spraying across the snow.

“You’ll pay for that,” he lisped, wiping his chin. His eyes turned red in the moonlight, and he took a running jump ten feet in the air, floating impossibly and defying all laws of gravity as he pointed at me. “You’re dead!”

“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” I growled, trying to brace myself. We definitely never went over how to defend against flying opponents in my boxing classes.

The vamp grabbed the hilt of his knife with two hands and plummeted towards me. I managed to grab hold of his wrists when he landed, but the force sent me backwards and I landed hard on the ground, my lungs straining for air.

He jabbed a knee into my stomach and lowered himself towards me, the knife inching closer and closer to my chest as I struggled to push him back. The blood from his mouth dripped on my face and he smiled. “It seems the Moon favors me tonight, mutt.”

I braced for death, cursing myself for not being strong enough to defend my people. To save Marlowe.

But before he could plunge the blade into my heart, he gasped in pain.

“Think again.”

Marlowe stood behind him in triumph, the moonlight outlining her glorious halo of wavy hair, her hazel eyes focused and strong. The driver’s silver knife was sticking straight out of the vamp’s back.

He hissed in pain as he tried to reach around and grab it, and in his distraction I saw my victory. I wrenched the weapon from his hands and then shoved it through his ribcage.

He fell back, clutching his chest and gasping for air. When he turned towards Marlowe, the fury faded to violet in his eyes and he whispered hoarsely, “Lunessa?”

Marlowe trembled with anger, her small hands balled into fists at her sides. “I’m not your Lunessa,” she spat.

He closed his eyes in defeat, dropping onto the ground. Warm blood stained and melted the snow around him, forming dark, demented wings.

I exhaled steaming clouds from the exertion of the battle, and I focused my gaze on Marlowe. All at once, her resolve shattered and she gasped, about to crumble when I leapt up and caught her before she hit the ground.

“I’ve got you, it’s okay,” I said, hushing her burgeoning sobs. “You’re safe now.”

“My pack… my pack…” she cried.

I led her back to my truck. “We’re going there right now. I’ll get you back to your alphas.”

“No,” she screamed, grabbing me by the shoulders. “They’re under attack, he said he’d kill them!”

Shit. Were we too late? How many bloodsuckers were in town, and how many did it take to subdue Cam and the others?

I took a deep breath, trying to be calm for her. “Close your eyes and reach through your bonds. Do you feel them?”

She did as I instructed, her eyelids fluttering and lips quivering. “Yes,” she whispered. “Yes, they’re alive!” Her eyes shot open and she scrambled towards my truck, pulling me along. “Come on, we’ve got to hurry. They need your help!”

We got back in the cab and raced to Cam’s house. I ignored the stop signs and honks, flashing my hazards as I wove in and out of traffic. We weren’t far, but every second counted.

Especially if those fuckers could fly.

“Thank you, Julian.”

She held her trembling hands in front of the heating vents. Dried blood streaked down her neck, bruises covered her wrists. My heart ached as she smiled at me.

“You have my vote.”