Page 11 of Clawless

More than one omega gasped at this idea, and a few started crying. I’d anticipated this, but it was the stricken look on Vail’s face that had a growl rising in my chest. I swallowed it down, but Liam must have sensed my struggle because he stepped forward to assure them it would occur on site, and in stages over the rest of the day. I’d wanted to herd them all into the gym and get it done en masse, but the head doctor had looked so appalled, I’d left the logistics in Liam’s hands.

I took a step back as he now answered other questions, thankful once again I’d inherited the enforcer with the job. I knew there was a lot of speculation about where I’d been recently, and the answer was simple. Buried under mountains of paperwork and politics. I’d delegated the non-urgent stuff, but the politics I’d had to handle personally. Which resulted in three blood claw challenges from my dad’s old buddies, all of which had been revoked when they realized they were about to follow him to the grave. Two I’d exiled and the third was now doing scut work for the pack in the frozen north. I figured he’d try again when he thawed out, but that was an annoyance for another day.

What spare time I had was spent trying to clean up the mess at the pack lab. As Michael Warren had promised, he’d become a ghost once he left the Black Denner diner. Liam figured he’d found the tracker on his car, but I didn’t really care. We had agreed a plan, and that’s all that mattered. And without him around to manage the general operations of the lab, I’d been able to convince the other Pack Alphas to temporarily shut down the facility while we conducted a thorough investigation. Some of Liam’s guys were handling it, and the early report I’d received had sent my wolf on a rampage.

Vail had never told me everything that happened to her there. But now I’d read the case notes, and they were enough to make my blood boil. Testing of any kind roused my beast, but the things Vail had been subjected to, sent him into a rage. She’d fucked with me and mine on Hunter Moon, and while I planned to punish her for it, the idea of someone hurting her brought me to the edge of a feral state.

And now she was pale and shaky, not quite believing Liam’s reassurances. She thought this was her punishment. Me carting her to the lab, and back into the hands of a sadist like Klein.

“Marshall pack is first,” I said abruptly, the beast in my voice giving it a ruthless edge. “Follow me.”

“No fucking way,” Reed grunted, while the other omegas fled, happy for the reprieve. He pushed me back a step and I let him steer us to the rear of the stage. Fighting in front of frightened omegas was not going to make them feel safe. But Reed stuck his fat chin in my face, oblivious to their stares. “This is about Vail. And you’re going way over the top with this bullshit.”

I tilted my head, knowing my wolf was staring back at him. “Vail Marrow was the trigger. But only because the Black Denners targeted her this time.”

“More bullshit. This is you trying to control her. So she can’t ever make a move you don’t know about.”

I sneered at him, but only because he was stating the fucking obvious. Of course, it was about her. She’d slipped through my fingers the night of the Hunter Moon Formal. Michael Warren might have engineered a way to get her back to the academy, but for a while she was on the loose. Helpless prey for fuckers like Trey Barakat and the Black Denners. And now she was in Marrow’s sights, her freedom – and possibly her life – were on the line. I didn’t just plan to monitor her every move; when I was finished with her, I’d be in control of her every thought. “If you object, take it to your Alpha, Reed.”

“You think I haven’t already discussed your new rules with my dad in detail? He called me straight after you started swinging your dick at him. But while you’re pretending this is about establishing your new status, I know what’s really got you all obsessed with the omegas.” He leaned towards me. “You can’t stand the fact she’s my omega now. Marshall pack. And just so we’re clear, you try to tag her, or any of my other females, and I’m claiming her.”

“What?” My wolf went so still, I felt my skin ripple in reaction.

Reed saw it and gave a slow nod. “Even you can’t deny a claiming mark. And if I do it properly, and she accepts it, there’s no need for a tracker. Our bond will let me know where she is at all times.” A flicker of amusement lit his gaze. “Don’t like that, do you? Well, you have a choice, Alpha. Push for the trackers, and I offer her the claiming mark. Let it go, and I’ll do the same.”

I knew my eyes must have been burning like the fucking sun, because my wolf was half-ready to push a shift and tear that smirk off his face. But I swallowed back his howl and shook my head. “She hates you almost as much as she hates me. She won’t go for it.”

“No? Because the idea of getting tagged by you nearly made her faint.”

I studied him for a moment, trying to scent a lie on the air. Would he really claim her if I pushed for the tracker? As far as I was aware, Reed had never sampled any of the females in his pack. While the rest of us were running around like moon-drunk horndogs, he was doing background checks on his potential mates. The stupid fucker no doubt had a hundred-point list the lucky lady had to satisfy before she got to ride his dick. Which meant he was probably a virgin. I wanted to laugh in his face, but if there was one thing the male was good at, it was reading the play and working the angles. And I wasn’t sure the whole claiming thing wouldn’t appeal to Vail if he presented it the right way.

Something sour bloomed in my belly.

If I called his bluff right now, he’d happily tell me he hadn’t claimed anyone because he was picky. Waiting for the best mate. The strongest wolf.

My goddamn wolf.

My gaze slid to Vail, and I cleared my throat. “Omegas, you’re dismissed.”

Behind me, Callum started a mocking slow clap, but I barely heard him, because Reed leaned in to punch my shoulder. “Get your shit under control, Alpha. A pack is only as strong as its weakest link.”

Ten – Vail

I didn’t understand what had happened.

One moment Jasper was going to drag us off to the pack lab and plant tracking devices in our heads, and the next we were being sent back to Omega House. As we hurried out of the auditorium, my stomach was churning, my limbs shaking as if I’d just run a marathon. I was looking around for the other girls when a heavy hand landed on my arm. I immediately lifted my fists, but blushed when I saw it was Reed. He frowned at my reaction. “You okay?”

“Yes.” I caught sight of Nadia and Jasmine over his shoulder. “Can I help you with something, Reed?”

“Penny told me what the guys said about your parents. That bullshit won’t happen again.”

I blinked. I could barely focus on anything that happened before Jasper took the stage. But then I remembered the Marshall alpha calling me a Marrow princess, and I wrinkled my nose. “I get it. It’s out of the blue. Even I’m struggling with it.”

He studied me for a moment, then shook his head. “It’s not okay. You’ll sit with me at dinner tonight.” Before I could shut my gaping mouth, he said, “It’ll put to rest any questions about your bloodline.”

I doubted that, but the issue was the logistics. The only place I’d ever seen Reed eat was at the High Table. The obnoxiously fancy section of the dining hall, set on a dais above the lower ranked wolves. Since my last assigned seating had been firmly in the dud section, I could just imagine the backlash this would cause. It would also mean eating with Jasper, which was enough to make my stomach try to crawl out of my mouth. “Do you think we could do that tomorrow night instead? I’m really beat from the drive here. And I’d prefer to spend some time settling in with the other omegas.”

Those guarded brown eyes of his watched me a little longer, before he gave me a solemn nod. “Sure. That’s a good way to make a statement. Remember, the only way to get people to play in the lines, is to show them what they lose by crossing them.”

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