Page 4 of Wishes in the Moonlight (Rocky Mountain Wolves #4)

~Troy~

With sleep out of the question, I volunteered to take over the night shift from my counterpart, Devon.

He gratefully headed home to his bed and family while I shifted and let Hunter take control as we headed to the territory’s southern border.

Clouds blowing in over the mountains obscured the light of the moon, making it darker than usual.

Through our pack mind-link, I checked in with the wolves leading the teams on each of the other borders and they all reported quiet and calm.

Most nights on patrol were uneventful, even boring at times. That didn’t bother me. I would take boredom over the alternative of an attack any day.

At the southern border, I found a new recruit, Shaun, pacing along the small creek that marked the edge of our land.

Something wrong? I asked through our link as Hunter came up behind him. Shaun’s shoulders looked tense, his ears twitching as they strained to hear something.

I think there’s something in the trees on the other side. The wind’s blowing in the other direction but every now and then, I can smell something strange.

With a deep sniff, Hunter inhaled. He didn’t smell anything but as Shaun said, the wind came from the northwest, carrying any scents south of the creek away from us. Have you alerted the others?

I reported it to Lily, my team leader, he confirmed. She’s on her way.

Sure enough, something rustled in the trees to our left, and a moment later, the smaller wolf appeared.

Captain. Her spine straightened at the sight of me. I didn’t realize you were coming this way too.

Why didn’t you call in Shaun’s report? My tone, though non-confrontational, still demanded an answer. We had protocol for these kinds of situations, especially after all the trouble we had with rogues recently.

I wanted to confirm it for myself first before bothering anyone, she explained, her wolf bowing its head in apology. I’m sorry.

Well, we’re all here now, so let’s check it out.

The three of us split up, moving as quietly as possible along the waterway, eyes and ears trained on the dark forest outside our territory. After five minutes, I was ready to call an all-clear when the wind shifted and a new scent drifted over to me.

Definitely a wolf. Not one of ours and not a rogue either.

Before I could act, a howl sounded from the opposite direction, the way Lily had gone, and I set off at a sprint back towards her. A moment later, I got the alert that someone had crossed into our territory, a buzzing vibration that rumbled through me and all wolves on the border team.

As the senior officer on duty, the others would all wait to hear from me, but first, I needed to see what we were dealing with.

Shaun reached Lily’s position a few steps before I did, and we found her backed into a defensive position, three unknown wolves closing in on her, their legs still wet from crossing the creek.

Shaun, you have the one on the left with the grey face. Lily, you take the one in the centre. I’ve got the big brown one. Move in now!

They obeyed without question, Lily switching from defense to attack as Shaun and I sprang into action as her back-up.

My target was a wolf a little smaller than Hunter, brown fur interrupted by a bald patch near its hindquarters.

I aimed for that spot, charging straight into him as he reacted too slowly to my approach.

With a thud, we both hit the forest floor, grappling for the upper hand until I managed to sink my teeth into his shoulder in warning, a deep growl accompanying the action.

Get the fuck off our land, my actions said in no uncertain terms.

Lily had her opponent in a similar position, but Shaun’s target had seen him coming and had the young wolf pinned on the ground. Snarling at the brown wolf one more time, I dashed over to assist my teammate, knocking the other wolf off-balance and giving Shaun a chance to scramble back to his feet.

I howled in warning and, thankfully, the three turned tail and ran back across the creek, into the forest.

What the fuck was the point of that?

You both okay? I checked in with my team members and when they confirmed they were, I sent out a message to the whole team. The intruders are gone. Keep your position in case it was a distraction. Someone check on the Alpha.

My chest tightened at the idea of anyone going after Amanda, but she should be asleep in her bed, safe and sound. Unless I heard otherwise, I would take comfort in that fact.

As I debated my next move, a voice called out from the distant forest, a deep, male human voice that must have belonged to one of the werewolves we just chased off.

“You won’t be able to keep us out for long with that weak woman as your Alpha. Consider this a warning.”

Rage boiled in my blood and every instinct of the mating bond urged me to chase after the son of a bitch and force him into submission for insulting my mate. Before I could do anything, though, another voice echoed in my head.

This is Ewan at the pack house. The Alpha is secure and wants to see you in ten minutes in her office.

Unable to refuse a direct summons, I turned to Lily and Shaun.

I have to go report to the Alpha. If there’s any sign of further trouble, report it immediately.

Yes, Captain. They both bowed their heads in acknowledgement as I set off at full speed back towards the pack house. At the back door, I helped myself to one of the spare sets of clothes left out for such occasions and made my way to the Alpha’s office for the second time that night.

The door stood open, and again, I knocked out of politeness.

“Come in.”

Amanda sat at her desk, just like before, but instead of the business-casual clothes she’d been wearing earlier, the stretchy fabric of her workout clothes hugged every curve of her body.

My heart began to thump so loudly she must have been able to hear it as I stepped closer.

I went to swallow, realized my mouth was hanging open and quickly closed it as I took my usual military stance.

“What happened out there tonight?” she asked briskly, her mind clearly focused only on business.

I kept my report as factual as if I were reporting it to her father or any other Alpha. “Three wolves from another pack tried to intimidate one of our guards. We were able to chase them off. No injuries.”

Amanda absorbed all of that with a nod. “What did they want?”

There, I couldn’t keep myself quite as detached. My lips twisting into a grimace, I repeated the words the wolf had yelled into the night.

She sighed but said nothing, the silence stretching between us until I felt compelled to speak again.

“If it was a test to see if we were ready, we proved we are. The team is well-trained and ready to defend our territory against any threat. They’re loyal to you.”

Her brown eyes snapped up to meet mine. “Are they? Some people in the pack aren’t happy about having a female Alpha.

There’s been grumbling, and apparently, someone has been leaking information too.

How did these wolves even know about me?

No formal announcement of the change in leadership has gone out. ”

I hadn’t been aware of any grumbling. In our pack, internal and external security were separate. My team defended our borders while the other team, our pack’s equivalent of the police, dealt with problems within our ranks.

“You think people are plotting against you inside the pack?”

“I think it’s a possibility,” she confirmed grimly. “I need more information but I’m not sure who I can trust. Savannah and Jasper, for sure, but beyond that it’s…”

“And me,” I interrupted, unable to help myself. “You can trust me completely.”

The wariness in her eyes stabbed at my chest. Obviously, the past seven years had taken their toll on her, as they had on me, but deep down, she must have known that I had always had her best interests at heart?

Relaxing my posture, I took a seat across the desk from her, speaking to her not as the captain reporting to his Alpha but as the mate she refused to acknowledge.

“You might not believe it, not yet, but I’ve never done anything to intentionally hurt you.

I didn’t reveal our bond when it might have made things difficult for you.

I didn’t interfere when you agreed to take Alpha Vaughan as your mate.

Every time you left pack land and took an escort, I made sure I was on that team to keep you safe.

I would have laid down my life for you then and I still will. Anything you ask of me, I’ll do.”

She opened her mouth to object and I held up my hand in acknowledgement before she said the words.

“Anything except rejecting you. There isn’t a person on this earth who is more loyal to you than I am, Amanda. That’s the truth.”

For a long moment, she held my gaze, the world around us fading into the background until all I knew was the light in her pretty brown eyes and the sweet wild rose scent of her.

Finally, her eyes dropped to her lap.

“Alpha,” she said softly. “Please call me Alpha.”

The words stung, as she must have known they would. They were intended to keep distance between us where I wanted to erase it, but since she was my Alpha, I wouldn’t argue. “Of course, Alpha.”

Exhaling a slow breath, she looked over her shoulder at the large windows overlooking the lake, the mountains, and the night sky. “I’m going to try to get some sleep, but in the morning, I’ll convene a small working group to come up with a plan on how to deal with… all of this.”

My lips parted, ready to beg her to include me, but it turned out to be unnecessary. She said the words before I had to.

“There’s a spot for you on that team if you want it.”

“It would be my honour, Alpha.”

With her dismissal clear, I rose to my feet and bowed my head before taking my leave. At the door, I paused a moment, glancing back just in case she had anything she wanted to add, but her eyes remained fixed on the world outside.

I’d give anything to know the thoughts in her head, to know all her hopes and fears and dreams, but I understood that the trust I’d asked her to put in me would have to be earned.

At least she would give me a chance to prove my loyalty to her. For now, that would have to be enough.