Page 37 of Blood Pack Beginning

“Obey.” A single vibrating word uttered by Roderick, an alpha Lycan who was also part vampire. A hybrid created by the queen via a method I’d yet to fully figure out.

The bitch flattened herself and whined. A new recruit ready to obey. As for the male… He hovered close to death.

Roderick saw me eyeing him. “You can have him if you want.”

I did want, because our queen wasn’t the only one who liked to play games with dogs.

Sasha snapped out of the memory with a gasp. Thaddeus hadn’t been kidding about the memories.

Memories that haunted her dreams, the nightmares displaying a depravity she’d never imagined. So was it any wonder when a hand dared to shake her and a voice yelled, “Wake up!” her first instinct was to grab them by the throat and bare her fangs.

CHAPTER TEN

Cyrus couldn’t shake an itch.Not the kind he could scratch but the version that nagged the mind. It started a few hours ago, waking him from a nightmare. What he’d dreamed slipped elusively from memory but left him agitated and ready to fight. Probably some leftover adrenaline from the battle in the subway tunnel.

Hunting actual monsters and eliminating them had been satisfying on a level he’d not expected. Used to hiding his true self from the world, for the first time, Cyrus bad been able to unleash the beast and be a hero. An unsung hero, but he had the satisfaction of knowing he’d helped save lives, and it felt damned good.

So why the agitation coursing through him now?

He tried working it off in the training yard, exchanging punches with Amir until his friend huffed, “Jeezus fucking Christ. What’s gotten into you?”

For some reason, that question brought to mind Sasha, a woman who confused the fuck out of him, mostly because, despite knowing his buddies had the hots for her and that she was an actual goddamned vampire who drank blood and had a mouth like a trucker, he wanted her.

Wanted her so bad his balls ached.

The first woman to ever have him panting like a dog in heat, and he didn’t know what to do about it. Well, other than fuck her in the hopes of getting her out of his system.

“Earth to fucking, Cyrus. What’s up with you today?”

“I don’t know.” He rubbed at his jaw, freshly shaven during his shower. It hadn’t been the hair from his stubble that clogged the drain, though. He’d been a mess after the fight.

“Waiting to see who gets to be with Shorty first?”

Cyrus snorted. “She’s going to beat us for that nickname.”

“She can beat me anytime she likes,” Amir drawled.

“I’m not sure what’s wrong with me today,” Cyrus admitted. “Feeling a little out of sorts.”

“Full moon is coming in a few days, and it’s supposed to be a blue one. Could be what’s making you antsy.”

“Maybe. I’m going for a run. Coming with?”

Amir shook his head. “Nah. I gotta go deal with Omar. Time to let him know I’m sticking around so he can figure out his next move.”

“Good luck with that.”

“More like give me fucking patience. I know he’s gonna bitch about it, but if he’s not happy, then he can leave. To my surprise, I like it here. It’s nice feeling like I belong and being able to do something about the evil in the world.”

“Is that the only reason you want to stay?” Cyrus not so subtly poked.

“One of them. There’s also Sasha.” Amir paused before adding, “I never thought I’d be able to find a woman who could handle me. With the human chicks I’ve dated, I’ve always had to hold back lest I hurt them or scare them without meaning to.”

“I get the impression Sasha would encourage vigorousness.” It was one of the things that appealed to Cyrus, too.

“Yeah, I get that as well, and she seems keen on following the old pack law of multiple mates.”

“Mates?” Cyrus’ brows rose at the odd choice of word. “She’s not Lycan.”

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