Page 27 of Alpha Bond

Chapter 11

Jagger

“Take a seat.” Greyson Titer indicates a chair across his desk as I hover before it.

“I prefer to stand.” I resist the urge to rest a hip on the desktop. Instead, I stand taller. I prefer the formality of addressing him this way – mainly as a reminder to myself that he is my superior.

“Suit yourself.” He shrugs. “What has the female told you about herself so far?” Now that we’re in the privacy of his office, he gets straight to the point.

“Not much more than what I relayed to you the day she got here.” I frown a little. “She was snatched by a group of rogues but managed to escape. She hid out in the old warehouses near the dumps in the Western quadrant – doused herself in alpha piss to mask her scent.”

Titer’s features twist in distaste. “Well, I gotta give her credit for ingenuity. Where the hell did she get it from?”

“Claims she spotted one of them taking a leak.”

He rubs the gray bristles on his chin. “Think she’s telling the truth?”

“A version of it. It’s all sounded fishy to me while she’s been drip-feeding me details, but I don’t think it would help to interrogate her.” I widen my stance and clasp my hands behind my back.

“How’re you planning to get more out of her?” He leans back in his chair.

I shrug. “Not sure. She spooks easy. Closed-lipped. She doesn’t trust me.”

“Makes sense.” Titer nods. “She’s afraid. But it’s up to you to show her that she’s safe now. Nothing can touch her here.”

I purse my lips because I don’t agree with him on that front. “I’m not so sure of that.”

“If you’re concerned about our other males, I’m confident we can keep that under control. They may be eager, but they’re not dangerous. They know the rules. Overstep the boundaries, and they’re out.”

“That’s not what I’m worrying about – I can keep a handle on it.” And we all know what exile would mean for any transgressions: beyond Steel Lakes, there’s no place for those who are forced out, aside from banding with one of the rogue packs, going lone wolf, or hoping to integrate into human society. None of those options is ideal. “What I’m afraid of is that those rogues may come looking for her.”

“I doubt that will be an issue. Nobody would come looking for trouble here.”

“How can you be so sure? We’re not invulnerable.” I should be surprised at his answer, but I’m not. My alpha has become complacent.

Be respectful, Law.

“What are we dealing with? A bunch of joy riders, probably young males who stumbled across a helpless female.” He cocks his head. “Sure, that makes them motherfuckers, but are they a threat to us? I doubt it.”

“But what if they’re not just joy riders? What if they’re something more organized than that?” I try not to stiffen my stance.

“Why the hell would they be?” His brows pull together. “We haven’t had any real issues with outsiders in years.”

“That’s because we’ve kept threats at bay with the patrols, sir.”

Do I have to remind him of this?

“Jagger, I hate to tell you this, but the security patrols are just a precautionary measure. Your main role is actually to pick out stuff we can salvage so we don’t need to go into the cities. If you happen to be a deterrent to any opportunistic would-be attackers while you’re out, so much the better.” He splays his hands. “But let’s face it, nobody would be that stupid.”

“You’re saying Steel Lakes doesn’t need protection?” I stare at him in astonishment. “I can tell you right now that there’s an entire garrison of good troops who would disagree with you.” I can’t believe that he feels this way. Pack security has been my life for as long as I can remember. Is our alpha really trying to tell me that it’s not important?

He’s lost his edge…

Titer holds up his hand. “I’m not saying that at all. I know the importance of security, and I appreciate all the hard work you and your patrol put in to keep us safe. But we also have to be realistic. Our pack has been peaceful for years, and I see no reason to believe that will change.”

“But it only takes one incident,” I argue back. “One attack and our people could be in danger…our young.” The thought of our pups going through what I did… I can’t think about it.

“Jagger, I understand your concern,” he says calmly. “But we can’t live in fear of what you think might happen. Under my leadership, we’ve shown the rest of our realm that we’re not to be messed with.”