Page 1 of Doubly Claimed

Prologue

Misha ground his teeth as Ross instructed their pilot to circle until the runway was cleared for landing. Like most Shifters, especially Alphas, he hated commercial flights. Unable to control the beast inside him for the fifteen-hour trip from their small Alaskan home to Moongate Island, they opted for their own private jet instead.

“Do you think the others have arrived yet?” he asked his best friend. The Omega to his Alpha.

“I don’t know, Misha, but apparently Callan has big news,” Ross grunted his reply. “I received word from one of our friends from the Sea Cove Coven that Callan and Landry have kept some of their brethren busy on a new project the last few weeks.”

“Is that so?” Misha grunted. “I hope like hell they know what they are doing.”

“I’m sure they’ve done their homework, my friend.” Ross smirked. “Besides, if there are Witches on Moongate Island, at least we know it will be fun.”

“I’m not looking for fun, Ross. I want our mate.”

“I know,” the Elk Shifter grunted, all seriousness. “Me too.”

The two men knew each other well enough that they had no secrets. Shifters worked with Witches often. Of all the Supernatural groups, they were perhaps the most willing to cooperate, since they needed specific elements only Shifters could provide to perform certain rites and rituals. Their relationship was symbiotic.

Mikhail Orson was groomed for this life since birth. But no one, other than Ross, called the Alpha male Misha. At least, not unless they were family. It had been that way for as long as he could remember, anyway. And that was long.

Shifters lived supernaturally enhanced lifespans, and as the Alpha, his was even longer. The pair of them created two-thirds of the Triad necessary to rule their home on Kodiak Island. Constantine Ross was technically a Roosevelt Elk, but he was the brother Misha’s parents never gave him. The two of them had been inseparable ever since they were just cubs.

They’d been searching for their third for most of their adult lives, but none of the females from the variety of Shifters on their island, or near it, was the one.

Other Alpha Omega pairs were having the same difficulty. The modern age was ruled by smart phones and stupid people. The supernatural world was finding it almost impossible to stay hidden. But it was a necessity. Unmated pairs were volatile. Unable to fully control their Packs or Clans. It was frustrating as fuck.

Living in a world where everything was being recorded and the truth could be twisted and turned with a few images and words sucked balls. Worse was the fact without their mates, any Alpha Omega pair was liable to turn rogue. Regular Shifters could wreak havoc on normals on any given day, but a rogue Alpha Omega pair could mean catastrophic fatalities and a strong probability that Shifters would be introduced to the world at large.

Hence this meeting of the Council of Triads. The Shifter secret must be kept. To do that, changes had to be made. They needed mates. And not just any mates. Only their fated mates would do.

Fate was a fickle bitch sometimes, but Misha firmly believed the only way he and his Omega could be whole was with the one female the universe destined to be theirs. Some thought it fiction, but he knew better.

After all, his parents had had such a mating. Their passing within days of each other had been one of the worst experiences of his life, but such was their bond. Once his mother had succumbed to illness, his fathers soon followed. They’d loved her for all their long lives, and his childhood had been peaceful. Misha remembered his three parents fondly.

They’d loved him equally and raised him best they could. Each of his fathers was a Kodiak Bear Shifter, and he took after them, not his mother, who was a Wolf Shifter. Their island was not big enough for several Packs or Clans to live in peace, and so his parents had worked to bring them together. The result was a Clan like no other.

Misha grinned. Kodiak Island was a special place, and he and Ross were going to need an exceptional woman to help them rule it. His Bear surged forward at the thought and he had to work to quiet the beast.

“Will there be a solution?” Ross interrupted his thoughts, and Misha was grateful, not for the first time, for his Omega’s uncanny ability to read him.

“I don’t see how, but I have to believe,” Misha replied carefully.

“We’ve searched high and low for Shifter females to complete our Triad, but none of them was ours.” Ross smirked. “Still, I will say I enjoyed some of them.”

Misha rolled his eyes. The two men had known for decades they would one day rule Kodiak Island together, sharing a mate as his parents before them had. To prepare, they regularly shared women. Had done so since they were old enough to fuck. No sword crossing, no hands, lips, or eyes. For an Alpha Omega pair, sex was about pleasuring the female. Of course, they had a good time too.

Not all Shifters could do such a thing, possessiveness and dominance were part of the beasts within, and those traits did not lend themselves to sharing. Misha had more control than that. As the Alpha of the pair, he was naturally the more dominant of the two. Fuck, he was the most dominant force on Kodiak Island. His inner Bear was a great, big, growly fucking monster. But that also meant he could provide protection, security, and control to those lesser dominant Shifters.

As Omega, Ross was equally important to him and their Clan. Omegas were exceedingly rare and were highly valued. They were the only Shifters impervious to the Alpha’s command, which was why they tended to be paired with one. If they could not be dominated, they would be seen as a threat if not for their entirely empathic natures. If Alphas were the strength of a Clan, Omegas were its heart. Together they provided stability unlike any other.

“Yes, but we cannot ascend to our positions completely without our third. We need her to create the right balance,” Misha completed his thoughts aloud.

He felt his Kodiak Bear pace and growl beneath his skin. The behemoth animal was angry and quick to rage these days. He needed a female’s touch, his mate’s love, to keep him sated and calm. Otherwise, the worst would happen. The deep growl that filled his chest reverberated in the small cabin, and Ross’ eyes glowed green while he worked to quiet Misha’s fury.

“She is out there.” Ross nodded at his best friend. “I believe that with every fiber of my being.”

“I hope you are right,” said Misha.

“I am, brother.” Ross clapped him on the shoulder. “We will listen to what the ruling Alpha Omega say, then we will find her.”

Misha returned the platonic gesture and nodded. Yes, they would find their mate before the winter came to their part of the world. Their Clan was depending on them. And if he was being honest with himself, he was too. They needed her. Needed to claim their third to secure their position and sate their beasts.

“Yes,” Misha agreed, “we will find her and claim her.”

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