Page 101 of Rejected Mate's Baby for the Alpha King

She shook her head. “The vehicle was abandoned. I’m an elemental witch, and I sensed the fire. It couldn’t have been burning more than five minutes before I got here. No one was here.”

“Please,” a wolf wheezed.

Staring down at the young man, I released him, and he gasped for breath and pointed. Turning my head, I saw the metal spikes in the road.

Maya hadn’t gotten into a car accident. Someone caused this. Either someone was just waiting for some vehicle to dismantle and steal, or this was a targeted trap. I pulled in my power, releasing all the wolves as I walked over. Immediately, the smell of blood hit me, and my wolf keened.

“Leave,” Duke ordered. “Anyone who does not have information on what happened here needs to leave immediately.”

Everyone took off except for the young man. He slowly got to his feet. “Blonde man,” he coughed. “Shifter. Not from here. He’s been marking this territory for a few days now. Fancy clothes. Fancy phone. Often had it on speaker phone.”

I stared at Maya’s blood and fought for control of my wolf.

“He’s not a kill-the-messenger kind of wolf,” Juniper said with a friendly smile. “He only wants his woman back. Tell us what you know.”

“He reported to someone that two girls were still alive. Two important girls. Maybe they were two of yours,” the man said timidly and cleared his throat. “And whoever he was talking to called him Champ.”

Champ. My wolf ripped out of me, and the kid took off running. My own wolves took a step back. Bruce had sent his second to kill my sister.

Maya’s tormentor had her.

“I smell her blood,” Duke said in a calm voice. “We can follow it, but you know what would be better? She’s your mate, Rhyson. Accept that bond and find her.”

Whipping my head toward him, I growled. I knew that Maya was my mate, but I couldn’t bond with her.

“No, she can’t bond with you. There’s a difference. You’ve spent two years hunting down Marrow’s killer. You’ve built yourself an entire kingdom with you at the helm just so you could avenge him, but you were born to be king, Rhyson. You were born to protect. You need to accept that this isn’t just a crown you’re using. It’s a crown that you deserve. And Maya is the queen to be by your side.”

Opening my mouth, I roared. I let my wolf unleash everything and gave him complete control, and then, as I focused completely on Maya, I felt the warmth spread through my chest.

My mate bond.

It was there all along. I just had to fucking accept it. Snapping it into place, I ignored the fact that it didn’t seem to go anywhere. I knew it wouldn’t connect me to Maya.

But her wolf was a different matter. I was her king, and her wolf was mine, bond or no.

Duke cleared his throat. “Got it?” I chuffed. “Good. You follow your bond. We’ll follow our noses. Let’s go get our queen.”

55

Maya

My lungs burned, but I knew what was waiting for me if I stopped or dared to look back. I had no idea how long I’d been running. It didn’t matter. I was going to burn out soon, and there was no chance I could fight off Champ. He had enough power to be an alpha of his own pack.

I finally came upon a stream. The water only came up to my knees, but it was enough. I turned and headed upstream, knowing that the water would hide my scent. Eventually, I would need to shift. I’d fight better as my wolf, but if he caught me mid-shift, I was dead.

There was no point in berating myself. I’d made a good plan. I could not have foreseen Champ. That my father had sent him to kill Emily and Gemma filled me with hatred. Bruce Callahan’s days were numbered. He just didn’t know it.

The water stung against my wounds, and it ran red with my blood. They weren’t life-threatening wounds, but they were still bleeding. If I didn’t shift soon, they would get infected.

I couldn’t stay in the stream for long. My head start wouldn’t last long, and the banks along the stream were too wide. He could break through the tree line any minute, and it wouldn’t matter if I’d hidden my scent or not.

Taking a precious moment to cup my hand and drink some of the water, I pulled myself out on the other side and started running. I was heading up the mountain, with no idea if I was nearing another pack.

Rhyson. Tears blurred my vision as I ran. God, I’d promised him that I would be safe. That I’d keep our baby safe. Champ was never going to let it live. Never.

After some time, I crossed the stream again, hoping to confuse him, and took refuge behind a fallen tree. Closing my eyes, I called to my wolf. Called her to take over.

She didn’t come.

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