Page 2 of Forced By the Alpha

“Drive safe,” Killian said as he shut the trunk lid.

“I will,” I said. “See you both soon!”

With one last hug for each of them, I hopped into the car and drove out of town. It would take a few hours to get back to Sparkle Hollow, so I queued up my favorite playlist and lost myself in the music.

Everything was peaceful and calm, with surprisingly little traffic. The road between Pinedale and Sparkle Hollow wasn’t heavily traveled, but I was used to seeing at least a few other vehicles on the road.

I had been traveling for nearly an hour and had started to space out when I felt my wheel jerk suddenly.

“What the—” I exclaimed.

I looked in my rearview mirror and saw a dark mass on the road behind me.

“Must have hit something,” I muttered to myself.

A moment later, my car became unbalanced, and I could hear my wheel rumbling loudly on the street.

A flat? Seriously?I thought to myself, pulling over on the side of the road so that I could assess the damage.I should have accepted Leah’s offer. Then, at least, I wouldn’t have to change my own tire.

I put the car in park and turned my hazard lights on before getting out onto the shoulder. As I expected, the right rear wheel had gone flat. Whatever I had hit had left a big gash in the rubber.

It had been a while since I changed a tire, but I knew I could do it. I opened the trunk and shifted my luggage out of the way so I could grab the jack and spare.

As I lifted it out, I heard twigs snapping from the tree line behind me.

“Hello?” I called uncertainly. “Who’s there?”

Within moments, dozens of eyes shined out from the darkness as they reflected the setting sun. My heart dropped as I realized what was happening. Whatever I had hit on the road had been placed there deliberately to give me a flat tire. Leah had been right in thinking I should have an escort back to Sparkle Hollow, but my stubbornness had won out. Now, I was going to pay the price for my foolishness.

“Shifters,” I whispered.

I turned to sprint around to the driver’s side, but I knew my attempts were futile. Within moments, they were on me, and I felt the hotness of large paws on my back as I was tackled to the ground. I screamed as I attempted to cushion my fall with my hands, but I miscalculated, and my arms shot out above my head.

The asphalt road came hurtling up toward me—the last thing I saw before my forehead connected with the ground and I was left in darkness.

Chapter 2 - Franco

The Forsaken Shadows pack had done an exceptional job setting the trap that captured the creature we had brought back to our territory. My wolves had done my bidding well. I was glad that I had allowed them to help me instead of doing everything on my own. It had taken far less time with their assistance.

If I had been forced to bring her in on my own, it would have been possible, but the logistics went so much more smoothly this way. She had been forced into submission, tied up in a sack, and tossed into the trunk of her own car within moments. All that remained was for me to change her tire and drive her back to my cabin as my wolves followed on foot behind us.

There weren’t many times that I felt successful in life anymore, but the feeling of taking down this woman had lit a fire within me that I refused to have quenched. But my fear of failure was strong. A part of me worried that even though my plan had already been put in place, something would go wrong. Some strange circumstance would halt the progress I had made tonight and make my goals untenable.

After the fight with the Pinedale packs a few months ago, I had begun to lose hope. The loss of my beta had been tough. Even though I had known going into the night that his sacrifice might be necessary, I hadn’t been fully prepared for the work that would follow his death. My pack was loyal to me, of course, but a beta needed to be in sync with their alpha in all aspects. Training a replacement wasn’t something any alpha ever wanted to do.

And it was all because of my uppity half-brother Killian and his so-called “allies.”

I scoffed at the word. It was ridiculous for werewolf packs to join forces. Alphas were meant to be alone at the top of the pecking order, not subservient to the whims and wishes of other alphas. The packs of Pinedale and Sparkle Hollow were skating on thin ice by going against the conventions of our kind. Nothing but bad luck followed them. It spelled doom for anyone who crossed their paths.

Unfortunately, we had crossed their paths. But I intended to change my fate and that of my pack, even if it was the last thing I did.

Kidnapping this dark being was the first step toward making things right.

I lifted the sack out of the trunk and slung the limp form over my shoulder, carrying it inside my cabin. The sun had nearly set, and a hush had fallen over the forest around us. The only sounds were those made by the pack as they went about their usual pursuits.

“Make sure no one bothers me,” I ordered my second, Dylan, as I shut the door.

After setting the bag roughly on the floor, I pulled a long knife from my pocket, cut the burlap with one quick stroke, and dumped its contents onto the floor.

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