Page 10 of His Wild Mate

He was a good kid, but he was still green. I didn't want to be responsible for him, but if what he said was true, then he might just be the only one who could help if things went south out there. I didn't plan to get close enough to let that happen though.

“Do you remember where you were when you encountered her?”

“I pinned it on my GPS.”

“Smart thinking. Okay, lead the way then, but I don't want to get too close.”

“When we're within half a mile of her, you'll know it,” he assured me.

I didn't like the sound of that.

For the most part, we rode out on the range in silence. I had been a little concerned that the kid would talk the whole time, but to my surprise, he seemed perfectly content to just ride. I couldn't help but notice that he had the same look of awe and wonder on his face that I felt every time I was out here too.

There was nothing like it and no words to properly describe the feeling of remoteness and peace out here. Looking in all directions, there was nothing of civilization to see. No power lines, no houses, no people. To me it was pretty damn close to perfect, but then I'd always had my lone wolf tendencies.

I loved being with my family and the Six Pack. But I also cherished my time alone and the peaceful quiet of the great outdoors.

As we rode along companionably while I thought about things, a sudden scent assaulted me, nearly knocking me off my horse. He bucked and revved back on his hind legs.

“Woah, boy. It's okay. Settle down.”

It took a bit of coaxing, but he finally did.

Will had full control of his.

“I was ready for it. The horses don't like the scent of a wolf in heat.”

“You could have warned me,” I muttered as I dismounted and found a small tree to tie him to.

Without me having to tell him, Will followed my lead and secured his horse as well.

“No point in spooking them any further. We'll go in on foot from here.”

“Brady was attacked about two hundred yards in this direction.”

“I guess we'll start there. Can you tell me exactly what happened?”

“Sure. At first the horses started bucking like you just experienced. Jerron was thrown from his, so we all got off and tied them up, just like we just did. But the guys were sort of in a trance, like they couldn't stop themselves from pressing on. I tried to stop them, but they wouldn't listen.”

“A trance?”

“Yeah. I don't know how else to explain it. It was as if they weren't fully in control of themselves, like she was calling them to her.”

“But it was just a wolf, right?”

“Yeah, yeah. Just a wolf.”

“Will, we aren't affected by wolves like that. If we were, every stray dog in the area that went into heat would have a line of shifters ready to hump her. It doesn't work that way. Even if we're aware an animal is in heat, we aren't attracted to it. If anything, it's a warning to stay the hell away.”

“Then why are you walking right towards her?”

I froze and looked around.

“What?”

“The whole time we've been talking, you've been honing in on her. Look.”

He pointed and about fifty yards in front of us, there she stood. She was a gray wolf, larger than most she-wolves but painfully skinny. It broke my heart to see an animal like that.

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