Page 15 of Defiant
“Just found my mate.”
That news startles me. Stone’s been married for nearly fifteen years. As far as I know, his wife hasn’t kicked the bucket. But I speak smoothly, not missing a beat. “Congratulations.”
“Well, thank you twice.”
“Twice?” Is he going senile? New mates, thanking me? He was literally just threatening me. I feel like a kite yanked in every damned direction, someone else pulling my string.
“Thank you once for the congratulations. The other time for finding her.”
Finding her? What the hell is he talking about?I stay silent, waiting.
“I’ll send a car around to pick up that delectable little wolf from the forest tomorrow. But don’t fuck with me, Black.”
Click.
Stone hangs up on me.
It takes a second for me to register what he means but my wolf snarls when I do.
Is he talking aboutElena?
6
Black
What isit about this girl?I toss on boxers and a pair of sweatpants and hurry downstairs in bare feet to my office, hardly noticing the change from carpet to hardwood when I cross the threshold. I lean down and press the button to power up my desktop and my hair sweeps down in front of my shoulders. I brush it back, annoyed. I didn’t even comb it after Stone hung up on me. His declaration made me tense. He knows something about Elena that I don’t.
There’s nothing more uncomfortable than that—someone having one up on you.
As an alpha, there’s nothing more dangerous.
I drum my fingers on the wood of my carved desk, eyes scanning the white, floor-to-ceiling bookshelves to my left that is filled with expensive first editions I never touch anymore. Those books are full of pack knowledge and hold the wisdom of centuries. But now it’s all been transcribed and put into searchable databases. Those books are just a decoration, a remnant of what was—a link to our past.
My phone vibrates in my pocket and I pick it up, this time checking to ensure I’m not surprised by the caller.
“Pluto,” I greet him gruffly as I log into my computer, the screen saver blinking on to display a pack of wolves racing across a frozen tundra.
“Just got to the hospital. Cody got hurt. We had a tussle with the Dark Nights.” Pluto’s voice is tired, I can hear the strain in it.
“Fuck. He okay?” I ask, even though the word “hospital” implies he’s not.
“Broken arm and a couple broken ribs. Concussion.”
“Bring him here after,” I tell my second. If Cody’s that out of commission, he needs to recuperate somewhere safe. And I’ve reinforced this place to the nines.
“Will do. Maddox—Stone came with them.” Pluto’s voice turns questioning, though he doesn’t pry outright.
“He called me. Arrogant prick. Said he’s sending a car tomorrow for the girl.”
Pluto immediately growls through the phone. “Like hell.”
This gets my curiosity going, as I use my mouse to click the icon and open up our pack database. With nearly five hundred alphas and nearly two thousand betas spread out over fifteen thousand square miles—a territory nearly half the size of the state of Maine—I didn’t know a lot of members of the pack personally. Locals in the Durango area, I might recognize by face. But not Elena. Curiosity and a dangerous burning need fill my chest. Who is she? Why does Stone want her? Why is Pluto getting aggressive in response to this threat? I don’t ask, I simply wait. My second’s smart enough to know I’m waiting for him to explain himself.
“Look, Maddox, I know … this isn’t a challenge alright?”
My hackles rise, I can feel the hair on the back of my neck stand up, and I slide my tongue along teeth that have suddenly become quite dangerously sharp. Wolf-like. Even though Pluto literally just prefaced his statement with acquiescence, something has me shooting to my feet, gripping the phone tightly—I barely contain a growl.
I can hear Pluto swallow, and I know he’s picturing my reaction right now. “Let me just get to a better spot, okay? Let me go outside.”
