Lyric's Accidental Mate (Iron Wolves MC 1 ~ Bite of the Moon) (10 page)

“We were told where to find this hidden place. Our job was just to come and see if it was really here. You shocked us all when you came out of there.”

No change in his scent. Either the guy was a good liar or he was telling the truth. A sudden rush of power washed over him, making him smile. Kellen wasn’t one for subtlety, although Rowan didn’t hear the other man until he was almost on top of them. Something not many people could do.

“What’s doin boys?” Kellen’s deep rumble filled the night air. The young kid dropped to his knees. Even non-shifters couldn’t fight an alpha’s power.

Kellen’s right brow lifted as Rowan stood his ground. “I felt something was off and went to investigate. What I found was these yahoos.” Rowan explained what had happened after he’d opened the door. Had the men he’d tasered still been conscious, Kellen would have probably beat them down. His fingernails lengthened to deadly black claws, igniting fear in the only man who could give the answers they needed.

“What’s your name, and if you lie, or do anything I don’t like, I will cut you.” Kellen brought his claws up for him to see.

Audibly swallowing, sweat dripping down his brow, he opened his mouth then shut it.

“You think I won’t?” Kellen lifted his arm that had shifted into more wolf than man.

“They weren’t lying. You’re really a wolfman?”

“Oh, yeah. Wanna see how big my teeth are?” Kellen smiled, flashing fangs much larger than humans’.

“Mike. My name is Mike. I thought this was a recon, not a capture or whatever, man. I swear. I didn’t sign up for this, and they promised us backup.”

“Who promised you these things, Mike?” Kellen asked, his wolf back under the skin. Rowan was impressed with how easily the alpha shifted seamlessly.

“My fraternity.”

Rowan looked at the downed men and then at Mike. “That doesn’t make sense, Kellen. This kid looks young enough, but these guys...” he said, thinking about waking one of them. “They are too old to be in college.”

“Listen you little fuck, I’m done playing games. Do you know you can live without a dick? They’ll call you a eunuch, or a chick, but I don’t give two fucks what you’re called. Last chance.” Kellen grabbed the kid by the throat, easily lifting him off the ground.

Rowan’s ears picked up the sound of approaching men. His body stilled as he half shifted. “Kellen we got company coming at us from the east.”

“That would be Xan and the boys.”

He wondered how Kellen knew but assumed it had to do with their sense of smell. Yeah, he was still getting used to the whole wolf thing.

“Please tell me you aren’t swinging for our team now, Alpha.” Xan came up like a silent wraith. Rowan was sure he was with the men he’d heard coming from the east, only he spoke right next to the downed men, coming out of the woods from the west.

“When I drop this kid, I’ll shove something up your ass if you want, Xan.” There was no heat to either of their words, letting Rowan know they joked with each other all the time.

“Guys, I really don’t want anything up my ass. I’m sorry I came here. I swear it. I don’t know what’s real or fake. I feel like pieces are missing.”

Truth. Rowan could hear it and wasn’t sure what to make of it.

“The guys who tried to take Lyric were very organized. I’d say they had the ability to wash these guys. That’s what this seems like to me.” He stopped at the questioning looks on the men’s faces. “That means they are dispensable.”

“Ah, shit. You’re military. Have you seen this before?” Xan asked, and pulled up the larger man who had started to wake. “I think you killed this one.”

“Coti, did you go to medical school?” Kellen asked.

“Does fucking a chick while she was in nursing school count?”

Xan punched the man named Coti. “If it worked that way, I’d be every fucking profession known to man, and some that haven’t even been created yet.”

The bald man had a few inches on both the alpha and Xan, yet he tilted his head as if thinking. “So you’re saying you are a manwhore.”

“I’m saying you’re a dumbass. However, I won’t deny having my fair share of women.”

“Can we get back to the matter at hand, children? Namely, who wants to kill the boy here for lying to me? I’ve met my quota for the week, and I’ve got two women waiting on me back at my place. I don’t need blood on my hands when I slide between them.” Kellen held the young man out as if in offering.

“Fine, give him to me. I’ll do it.” Coti held his hand out. Rowan wondered if they were seriously going to kill the kid and the other guys. He’d skated the line in the military, but here at home, he wasn’t sure he could turn a blind eye. Insta-wolf didn’t make him lose his values.

“Alpha, I found their vehicle. They’ve got a tracker, too.”

“Good job, Wyck.”

Rowan was having a hard time keeping track of all the men coming out of the woods. He hadn’t even sensed the huge African American man Kellen called Wyck. His ghost team would kick him out without a backward glance.

“Don’t beat yourself up, bro. Nobody can hear Wyck except for the alpha,” Coti explained. “Am I killing the kid or what? I need pussy, and I don’t see any here, so let’s get this done.” The man shook his head, and, in moments he’d shifted to the thing of nightmares. Half man, half wolf.

“Fuck, I hate when he does that. You know that’s what they based the movie
An American Werewolf in London
off of right?” Wyck crossed his arms over his chest.

Kellen growled. “Coti, you got babysitting duty for the kid. Wyck carry the douche nozzles back to their vehicles. Let’s see what happens when they get back inside. Any word on Taya?”

“Wait. There was a woman. I remember a woman with long red hair and tattoos. They had her chained to a bed. I asked about her, but the boss said she was into BDSM and not to worry about it. Only she looked scared and her screams didn’t sound like one of pleasure.”

Like this kid knew anything about giving a woman pleasure.

At his words Xan knocked the boy out of Kellen’s hands, falling to the ground with a thud. The ferocity of the act startled the alpha so much, he fell on his back as Xan wrapped his hands around the throat of the kid.

Rowan feared his mate’s brother would kill him before they could find out what the hell was going on. Who Taya was to Xan was a mystery to him as well. Shit, this was a clusterfuck. He needed his own team that he trusted.

A big hand landed on his shoulder. “You can trust us. I know this is a lot to take in, but we are your family now.” Wyck nodded toward the men on the ground.

Kellen grunted then jerked Xan up and off the kid. “We need him alive, jack-off.”

“If he knows where Taya is then I’ll beat it out of him.” Xan’s voice sounded more wolf than human.

“If you kill the little fucker, he won’t be able to tell us shit, so get control, or I will.” Kellen’s power lashed out—even Rowan turned his neck along with Xan. The other wolves dropped down to one knee until Kellen pulled back.

“Fuck me running. I hate when you do that shit, man,” Wyck complained.

“Taya’s not my mate, so get that outta your head. She’s seeing a dude whose family isn’t all that accepting of her. I was just an ear these last few months. Yes, I’ve fucked her a few times, but it’s been a very long time. Now, let’s move this circus along.” Xan brushed the dirt and leaves off his clothes.

“I know where the house is. I’ll show you,” Mike said.

“Kid, you tell us, and we will go there. If you’re screwing around, I’ll let Coti kill you slowly.” Kellen spoke as if he was saying the sky was blue.

With chattering teeth, the young man held out his hands. “I only know how to get there, not how to tell you how to get there. I mean, that doesn’t make sense, but I can see it in my head, I just can’t...I don’t know how to tell you.”

Kellen looked up through the towering trees, looking for what? Rowan wasn’t sure, but he wished they’d figure this out because he wanted to get back to his mate.

Chapter Six

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L
yric had moved past worried to freak the fuck out. She’d expected someone to come back and tell her all was okay. Or have her mate come sauntering through the door so she could kick his ass and then kiss his boo boo. As the minutes turned to a half hour and then an hour, she became even more worried. Their location had been compromised, and her mate was out there bleeding.

She thought about calling out to Kellen, or her brother Xan, but fear for their safety if they were in the middle of a battle kept her in check. Knowing her friends were locked up in their own safe spots, she had nothing better to do than pace back and forth. Rowan’s scent still clinging to her body made her ache for him.

Mr. McCartney eyed her with a look she couldn’t decipher. His wife sat behind him, chewing on her thumbnail.

Several of the high-ranking wolves had taken up residence in the lower levels under the club. She could see the McCartney’s didn’t care to have that much testosterone in one space without their attention directed elsewhere. All unmated females had been accounted for, except for Taya, and steps taken to ensure the weaker were safe until the threat was taken care of. So why then was Lyric feeling as if something was off in one of the safest places?

A look around at all the familiar faces didn’t turn up anything out of place. Her wolf itched to get out and protect her. Lyric had learned early on to listen to the other half of herself, and allowed a partial shift, one that would go unnoticed. Her brown eyes became those of the wolf, and beneath her blonde hair she allowed her ears to shift along with her nails. The men may be a lot bigger and stronger, but she was faster and smarter. If there was a threat amongst them, she would not be an easy target.

Her ears twitched at the sound of static coming from the office of the older couple. The noise reminded her of the walkie talkies she and Syn had played with as children. Why they would have such archaic devices, Lyric had no clue.

Not wanting to alert them to her plans, but needing to find out if they had betrayed the pack, Lyric entered their space. The static was even louder now that she was in there. Most of the wolves had no reason to enter where the McCartney’s spent their time, and Lyric could count on one hand the occasions she’d come inside. The sound came from Mrs. McCartney’s purse. Lyric looked around, hating to snoop through another woman’s personal belongings, but saw no way around it. As she stood there contemplating what to do, she noticed several other disturbing things. A picture of a man who looked very similar to one of the men who had attacked her outside of the club, was tucked away in the corner, almost hidden. Any bit of guilt evaporated. Knocking over the plaid bag, and watching the contents spill out, Lyric bent to pick it back up.

The walkie talkie had been turned down too low for most to hear. With a small adjustment, the device beeped, and then a man’s voice came across.

“We are five minutes out. How many are there? Just push the button if you can’t speak with the number.”

Anger threatened to overwhelm her good sense. They had five minutes to get out or prepare to defend themselves against an attack against who knew how many. In the tunnels, they were sitting ducks, but if they got back up to the club, they at least had a fighting chance.

Grabbing the little black walkie talkie, Lyric stepped out of the office. Arynn the omega was there along with Bodhi the beta. She walked up to the beta, and, in as few words as possible told him in a whisper, too low for the others to hear. The immediate change in Bodhi had her stepping back.

“You two, over here now.” Bodhi pointed at the McCartney’s.

The other pack members formed a band around them, making sure the elder couple couldn’t escape. They didn’t need to know why Bodhi was ordering them to him, only that he’d taken the place of Kellen in his absence.

Mr. McCartney was the first to comply, while his wife’s face contorted into one of loathing. “You and your filth use this pack and this club like a whorehouse with a swinging door. Your alpha is a sadist who takes pleasure in hurting the females of the pack, and yet they can’t wait to come crawling back. I would never allow my family to become part of such depravity, and when my nephew and his pack wipe the likes of you from here, I’ll be revered, instead of used as a gatekeeper of a whorehouse,” Mrs. McCartney spat.

The depth of her hate resounded around the space.

“The man on the other end said they were five minutes out about a minute ago. We’re sitting ducks down here, not knowing how many he’s bringing, especially not knowing where he’ll come at us. I suggest we go up to the club, and change the master lock key code. Kellen can still override it, but I’m assuming they gave their nephew access. If we change it now, it may buy us a few extra minutes.” Bodhi’s voice came out more like a growl.

Arynn nodded before taking off at a jog toward the computer room.

“Since I don’t have the authority to kill you, yet, you are both coming with us, but I do have the right to do this,” Bodhi said, knocking Mr. McCartney unconscious in one swift move. The look he gave Mrs. McCartney said he’d like to do a lot worse to her. The older woman’s scent had changed from defiance to fear the moment Lyric had produced her way of contacting the other pack. It increased even more at the hate coming off of Bodhi.

Lyric stepped up to the older woman. “You’ve betrayed the pack and will be sentenced as such. You know Kellen will not let you go just because you are a woman and an elder. Bodhi is clearly too much of a gentlemen to do it, but I don’t share his problem.” With a flash of her fangs, Lyric hauled her arm back and punched the older woman.

“Damn, girl, I knew I loved you.” Bodhi eyed her up and down. “Too bad you done mated another. Now, let’s head up. Time’s a-ticking. Bring the traitors with and tie them up; use extreme force.”

“Kellen and the boys are on their way back. Bad news, their time frame is longer than five minutes. They were taken on a wild goose chase, it seems.” Arynn growled. Being the omega, he could communicate with all the members without disrupting them because he was attuned to their well-being.