Page 6 of Alpha Bond
Jagger
The place reeks. Even though I should be used to the city smells by now, I’ve never been good with the places humans use to dispose of their waste. I move quietly through the old buildings that flank the area, grateful for the thick jacket I’ve brought along. Between the wind and the rain, it’s not fit for man or beast out here. Even my own beast agrees with it.
And it’s probably the bad weather that has my senses dulled out here. Almost too dull to pick it up.
Alpha spoor.
The scent is weak but unmistakable. Big alpha male. Virile, too. He’s been on the hunt for something – and from the levels of testosterone I’m detecting, that something would be trouble.
I stop, letting my nostrils flare, then moving back into the shadows. It’s an unnecessary evasive tactic. If the fucker was still here, he’d be on me by now. But from the faintness of the smell, it’s been a while since he was around. A day, at best. Probably longer.
That doesn’t mean I shouldn’t let my guard down. In fact, if Casey was here, she’d be telling me to call for backup.
I run a hand over the comms device that’s attached to my webbing belt.
Should I?
Nah.
It’ll take so long for them to reach me that it would be pointless anyhow. If Titer’s team were scheduled to leave hours after me, I’m way ahead of them. And that’s if they even came in the same direction as me. Besides, the scent is telling me this male is no longer near. I’m pretty sure I can protect myself from whatever I encounter – that’s if there’s even anything left out here.
I keep my steps smooth and easy, moving silently through the shadows. The buildings here were once warehouses similar to the ones we converted into our own homes. Except these are long abandoned. Windows have been shattered, leaving gaping frames with just the remnants of jagged glass. Most of the siding is rusted and pitted with corrosion. Several doors dangle open, some of them creaking eerily in the gusting wind.
It’s a far cry from my own home. Our small haven has been lovingly tended. Here, the paving is cracked and dotted with struggling weeds. Back home, we have small gardens created in the spaces between buildings. Even those who live on the upper levels have decorated their housing units with bright colors and window boxes filled with plants. Most of what we grow is edible. The less often we have to go into the human settlements for food or provisions, the better.
My pack is resilient and resourceful. And I’ll defend that with my life to protect the family they are to me – the family who took me in when every other pack around here rejected me. Even though Greyson Titer doesn’t understand the anxiety I feel when he doesn’t take that responsibility seriously. It makes my blood boil.
That anger pulls my attention back into focus, and soon, I’m following a clear spoor into one of the nearby buildings. The door swings open smoothly as if it’s been used recently. My hackles rise, and I prowl in, my wolf instincts switching to high alert. Under different circumstances, I might shift and trot in, but somehow, that feels like the wrong thing to do right now.
I continue to move silently, sucking in air, letting it roll over my tongue as I try to make sense of it.
It’s alpha wolf, I’m certain of it. Nobody I recognize, which means there’s been a strange pack moving through our territories. But there’s something more. Something…something I can’t put my finger on. Something that has my gut clenching strangely. I have to find it. The compulsion is unfamiliar and unsettling. I can only imagine that it’s my urge to defend my pack from whatever threat lies out here because something electric is tingling beneath my skin. Something—
Bam!
A huge chunk of metal swings from a heavy chain overhead, and before I know it, I’ve been smashed in the side of the head by what feels like a fucking anvil. Though it’s more than likely an old engine block, from the looks of the space I’m in. I drop to one knee, clapping a hand to my temple, just as a figure shoots out past me. Whoever it is doesn’t stop to attack. Thank fuck because they rang my bell pretty good.
Rookie mistake, Law!
Lucky for me, there doesn’t appear to be an immediate threat. The shape is small, not the looming male I’d expected. Watery moonlight trickles through the smashed windows and lights the room just enough for me to make it out. Slight shoulders, rounded hips, curves hugged by clinging scarlet.
Female.
I get a vague sense of dark hair and pale features, along with that foul stench. Then she bolts across the wide expanse of empty warehouse and shoots out the door, thighs pumping, calf muscles flexing. She kicks the door closed behind her, probably in the hopes of slowing me down.
I’m on my feet and surging after her before I can take a moment to think it through. I feel my claws begin to extend, my teeth sharpening as I give chase.
Run…
I have to catch her! Whatever’s going on here, she can’t get away. That clenching sensation happens in my gut again, and I feel an unfamiliar wave of excitement. The thrill of the chase. My veins feel like my blood is steaming as I put on a turn of speed that I’m pretty sure she’ll never match. The door is no match for me – one powerful kick takes it off its hinges, and I’m through. Though it’s dark outside, I scarcely have to scent the air to know the direction she’s taken. I see a flash of pale skin and dark hair in the moonlight, and then I’m bounding after her.
Catch her!
My skin practically burns as I feel myself gaining on her. She’s barely moving fast enough to make me breathe hard, yet I’m panting as I pull closer, heart pounding in my ears. She shoots a glance over her shoulder, and I stare straight into huge, terrified eyes just a moment before I pounce. She goes down fast, breath rushing out as we both land hard.
“No!” she screams and tries to claw back at me as I pin her to the ground.
“Stay still,” I snarl in her ear. Though part of mewantsher to struggle. To twist and writhe against me. Without thinking, I bury my face in her hair and inhale deeply. There’s the smell of the male. And more… She-wolf. She’s definitely a shifter. Though why isn’t she shifting to defend herself?