Page 47 of Cruel Alpha

No attack came, only a request: a plea for Caleb to follow.

The battlefield disappeared behind them, replaced by the stone of the town. Where was Leonard taking him? Forward, forward, further and further from the sounds of snapping and tearing. Too quiet. The town was too quiet. This was a trap.

Dark shapes, hidden from Caleb’s view by stone and shadow. Five. Ten. Twenty fighting wolves stepping out of the darkness and into the town square. Surrounded. He was surrounded.

The other Alpha was stepping forward. Older. Smaller. Angry. He snapped at Caleb, teasing him into a fight that would never be fair. Caleb was too fast, too strong. He would win easily. He should win. He had the upper hand, and then he didn’t. A howl. An order.

Twenty wolves attacked.

My vision went black.

I came to, naked on the freezing ground, human and gasping for breath. The vision had spared me the sight of Arbor’s wolves tearing my mate limb from limb, but I knew in my bones that death waited for him in the town square. It might be hours from now or minutes, but I had to get to him.

It was only as I tried and failed to scramble to my feet that I became fully aware of my surroundings. We were at the edge of the forest, barely sheltered from the wind by the gathered trees; Ethan and Julia had both shifted back to human form, too; Julia held the twins close to her, whispering consolation to them. A shock of guilt went through me: they must have been terrified when I shifted mid-stride, sending them tumbling to the ground. I scanned them for any injuries, but they only looked shaken, not hurt.

I wanted to go to them, but Ethan’s voice kept me in place.

“Don’t get up,” he said. There was Alpha authority in his voice, and while I wasn’t of his Pack, I couldn’t quite bring myself to go against him. “What happened?”

“A vision,” I panted. “Caleb. Caleb’s in danger. I have to go back.”

Ethan only shook his head.

“He’s tough, Alyssa. He can take whatever you think—”

“Can he take twenty fighters at once?” Ethan didn’t understand. He hadn’t seen the vision. He didn’t know what lay in wait for Caleb in the town square.

“Well, no,” Ethan said. “That’s ridiculous, but—”

“That’s what I saw. Leonard’s in league with the Arbor Wolves. He’s going to lead Caleb away from the battlefield to get ambushed by twenty Arbor hunters. I saw it happen. He’s going to die if I don’t go back there.”

Out of the corner of my eye, Julia tensed. In her arms, the twins started whining afresh, and she fell back to shushing them gently.

“And what willyoudo against twenty Arbor hunters?” Ethan asked, pointed. I hadn’t thought that far ahead, but I didn’t care. I would figure it out on the way. I had to leavenow.

“It doesn’t matter,” I insisted, scrambling to my feet. I should have been cold, but the adrenaline pumping through my veins prevented me from feeling the chill in the air and the ice on the ground.

“You’re not going anywhere.” Ethan’s hand was like a steel vice around my arm, and I knew he must be desperate to have resorted to physically restraining me. Ferris was even more old-fashioned than Lapine: if he was touching another male’s mate, he must be desperate.

“He’s your friend, too, Ethan,” I pleaded. “Don’t you care?”

“Of course I care,” Ethan said, loosening his grip slightly. “I also understand him better than either of you—don’t try to argue with me. If I was in his place, I’d rather die than let my mate run into danger like that.”

Julia snorted, and Ethan shot her a poisonous look.

“He’ll kill me if I let you go back,” he continued, which wasn’t much of a deterrent.

“Great,” I replied. “No offense, but if it’s him or you, I’m picking him.”

“Me too,” said Julia, and Ethan’s jaw tensed.

“Stay out of this,” he snapped. It was a mistake, and he knew it just as well as I did.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Julia retorted. “Do I not get a say in what happens to my own brother?”

I could see a vein bulging on Ethan’s forehead as he fought to keep control of his temper. I understood his reticence—he’d promised Caleb he would keep me safe—but if he wanted me to go to Ferris, he’d have to drag me there himself.

“Your brother wants you and his mate and his children to be safe,” Ethan growled at Julia, and Jack started to cry in earnest. Julia fell back to comforting him—not before glaring daggers at Ethan—and I took back control of the conversation.

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