Chapter 95

Art POV

Moonglow Pack - Outside Visitor's Cabin

"You're a complete idiot, Wright. What were you thinking? Marking her on foreign territory? Mating her when she's in contention for the Alpha House of another pack?"

I knew Wright most likely hadn't been thinking at all. His emotions were all over the place which was easy enough to see without any kind of extrasensory perception. I wanted to yell at someone though and he was convenient as well as deserving.

"She's my fated mate. I have every right to---"

"To be a fucking moron? Get over yourself, Wright. Lewis screwed up because he couldn't handle his thirst for her and you're no better just because you can lay the blame on the Moon Goddess. The Goddess supposedly gave you enough sense to think before you act or did you conveniently forget that particular gift at the first sniff of your female?"

All the women I'd bedded haunted my thoughts. I knew I would carry my regrets for the rest of my existence -who knew how long that would be thanks to Justice's curse- but I also knew I would never regret my children.

If Wright had truly been doing all he claimed out of worry for his child, I would have been able to forgive him. Letting things slide was easy when it was in consideration of a father protecting his young. A mother's protective instincts made sense to me, too. I wasn't sexist.

Wright was the epitome of everything negative about an Alpha though. He embodied brute strength, obstinate thinking, and a refusal to consider any perspective other than his own even when confronted with obvious proof of his own faulty logic. Knowing House Wright had a history of manipulation and shady dealings didn't endear him to me either.

"I admit I may have gotten carried away in the heat of the moment. Are you saying you wouldn't have?"

If Wright considered lifting his chin at me a threat, he was deeply confused about his own intimidation factor.

"Yes. I'm saying I wouldn't have marked a mate on enemy territory after a rival nearly killed her while in a Lycan rage. I'm not a boy led around by my dick, Wright. Try to think with your upstairs brain. Go with Justice and do exactly what she tells you to do so we don't wind up sparking the first open war between major packs in our lifetime."

I summoned Justice with my mind, knowing she'd come when I called for her out of courtesy if not any concern for possibly provoking my anger.

Justice and I exchanged a few words as we agreed to keep the story as simple as possible. Lies were always risky among wolfen because a nervous liar could give off a scent which tipped off the other party. We had no experience with Wright's ability to lie so we were going to have to go it on faith, experience, and sheer nerve.

Willing myself back to the cabin I'd been assigned, I stopped in front of the door and called out, "Art."

I knocked then and waited on Rachel to open the door for me.

"Good girl," I praised as she threw the bar to let me inside, "I'll do it like that every time: call out for ID, knock, wait. You don't open the door unless it happens in that order. Keep it at the front of your mind. Can you focus on anything other than Wright?"

I knew the theory behind mating bonds even if I had never experienced one myself. The blending of one mind with another could be disorienting in the early days; who knew how Rachel would react after being mated a second time to the same Alpha?

Given he was her fated mate, I knew she might be doubly confused by the new bond. I couldn't hinge my investigation on her ability to remain mentally focused with so much evidence pointing to her mental state being thrust out of its usual orbit.

"I'm worried about my baby. Not just Tyler. What happens if this pack wants to claim me the way you suggested? They could lock me up and bleed me to mate me to another male of their choosing. They'd claim my daughter, too, wouldn't they?"

Rachel had a macabre mind. Forced mating was something frowned on by the Alpha Council though they didn't always rule in favor of breaking the bond. Sometimes the politics influenced the decision to forgive or if not forgive at least collectively forget.

Sitting in one of the chairs, I slumped down under the weight of exhaustion. I hadn't been resting nearly enough after pushing my body to use abilities it shouldn't have alongside abilities not meant to be stressed so much.

I was a brute, but I had my limits, too.

"You're forgetting something important in that plan, aren't you?"

Rachel looked confused and annoyed. She wrung her hands as she paced in front of me. I wanted to get her a new set of clothes, but I wasn't going to leave her to go into the Modesty Cabin for her luggage.

"What? They might want to mate me to someone with my bloodline? I thought about House bonds. Didn't some Alpha Houses choose to strengthen their lines by interbreeding?"

"If you mean 'inbreeding', then yes. That's something to consider, but no. In order to mate you to someone, they'll have to kill your current mate first."

Rachel froze in place with a look of dawning horror on her face. I knew she hadn't thought out her situation until this moment.

If we weren't careful, Tyler Wright would be assassinated in favor of mating Rachel Flores -now proven to be Rachel Campbell- to someone of Alpha Richard Campbell's choosing.

I knew Richard was her father, too. I didn't need the DNA findings back to prove it to myself, only to the Alpha Council who demanded proof, proof, and more proof in every inquiry.

"That's right: they might kill Tyler to get to you. It's not unthinkable or even all that much of a stretch. I've got Justice running him through the guardhouse using the usual channels. You've got to play this cool. Pretend he came because of your baby. You were both terrified for the sake of the child. You mated for the baby. You got it?"

Rachel was nodding hard enough to make me dizzy.

"Alright, you stink of blood. I can't take it. Follow close behind me. We're going to go get you a change of clothes."

I didn't want to take her outside the cabin and risk exposure, but I knew if I stayed cooped up with her while she reeked of blood---things could get even more messy than they already were.

"How far are we from the nearest running water?"

"The closest bath house is just over the rise. It's not far at all. Now keep quiet. I'm afraid your voice might wake Lewis. We don't need that either."

I felt as if I were navigating a minefield on this assignment. Everywhere I turned a potential bomb lurked just out of sight waiting on me to make one mistake and boom! I blew up along with my investigation.

The Alpha Council would mourn the investigation more than me, but my children needed me in their lives even if the wolves I worked for thought they'd be better off.

Grabbing Rachel's wrist, I drew her close to me and placed her hand on the hem of my shirt, instructing, "Hold on. Don't let go unless we get attacked and I tell you to duck and cover."

She nodded some more to show she understood and I opened the cabin door to lead us the short distance between my visitor lodgings and the Modesty Cabin where Nathan Lewis was sleeping off the effects of a vampire bite and a Lycan rampage.

Lewis slept quietly, no snoring, and I spared a moment to think Rachel would have done better in his bed than Wright's since I knew he sounded like a clan of bears in winter with his snoring.

Easing the door closed, I led her into the room holding her belongings.

No signs of a struggle remained. Justice had done a good job using her magic to wind back the hands of time to before Lewis lost it. I was glad she had plenty of power to spare because I knew another witch might have been drained dry doing this much alone and I still needed her help to get through this night.

I gestured to the rolling suitcase to indicate Rachel should gather herself a clean outfit. I didn't care what she dressed in as long as she wasn't covered in blood any longer. My life was hard enough without the added temptation of her life's essence.

Lewis wasn't sleeping very restfully from what I could sense. He let out a faint growl as Rachel unzipped her bag, making both of us freeze for a moment until I waved for Rachel to continue.

The less time we spent in the cabin? The better.

I really didn't want to have to take Lewis out a second time in the same night.

"Do I need to bring my own soap?" she asked and the quiet sounds of breathing---stopped.

The Alpha who wanted her was awake.