Page 7 of Unbelievable Faith
Chapter 4
Michael Hudson was rarely shocked.He was a planner, a thinker. He didn’t jump into situations where he hadn’t calculated the odds and known all the potentialoutcomes.
He didn’t like surprises. He’d had plenty of those in his life. He didn’t need any more. Surprises were never a good thing in his world. The few times he hadn’t been able to plan, to foresee the outcome, he’d been blind-sided.
The first time he’d been surprised, he lost his entirefamily.
He’d been a teenage boy then. A whiny, teenage boy that hadn’t wanted to go on a stupid camping trip with him parents. He’d wanted to stay home, spend the weekend with his best friend, and yeah maybe he’d been hoping that with some time alone he and Zoey would become more thanfriends.
It had been against the rules. They weren’t mates. He was a born Alpha from the Hudson bloodline that ruled over the Moirae pack and she’d been human. He should have known better than to fall in love with her but he had, long before they’d known she wasn’t meant to be his. He’d just turned eighteen and he’d been so sure that when Zoey followed him into adulthood in just a few months time that she would be his forever. So he’d whined about being left alone since he was technically an adult and eventually, after his older brother Gabe had spoken on his behalf, his parents hadrelented.
It was a decision that had saved his life, but also changed itforever.
His parents had been killed on that camping trip. Rogue hunters had tracked them in their wolf form and slaughtered them. Gabe too. And Rafe, his other brother, Gabe’s twin, was the only one that hadsurvived.
Though, that’s all he’d done. Survived. Remainedbreathing.
Rafe had been scarred that day, him and his wolf, both mentally and physically. So instead of staying and taking over the Moirae pack, which was his birthright as the eldest Hudson, Rafe had left. He’d left everything behind. Noir. The pack. Michael. He’d run away and responsibility that never should have been left to the youngest member of the family had fallen on Michael’sshoulders.
He’d become a true adult that day. The day his world fell apart. He’d become a Pack Alpha at eighteen years old and he’d spent the past four years putting the pack ahead of himself and what he wanted in everyway.
The last time he’d been surprised, he’d lost Zoeyforever.
He should have let her go before. He should have let her go as soon as she came of age and he realized they weren’t fated. He knew that. He’d always known that. But something inside of him had clung to her. She’d been his anchor for so long. He hadn’t known how to let her go. And then she’d turned eighteen too and his wolf had gotten involved. His wolf had twisted up everything that he felt for her because he’d had a bond with her, even if it wasn’tthebond. His wolf had refused to let her go. He’d wanted to protect her, keep her safe, keep her close. Even if they’d both known it was ultimately a crutch that would cripplethem.
It had. It had swiped his legs right out from under him just last week. Because he hadn’t seen itcoming.
Rafe had come home. After four years away, his brother had come back to Noir. It had happened fast. A phone call, a message that they needed to talk, and then Rafe had been there, in Michael’s house, and their happy reunion had imploded within minutes because Rafe had scented his mate and Michael had known there was only one female in the pack that it couldbe.
Zoey.HisZoey. Only, she’d never really been his. As much as he’d wanted her to be, she wasn’t meant to be his mate. She was meant to be his sister. Rafe’s mate. The bond between them had always felt familial and with Rafe coming home, claiming Zoey, marking her and turning her, it had all finally started to makesense.
Michael knew he hadn’t really lost Zoey. She was still his best friend. She was family now. No longer just part of the pack in name only, she bore a Moirae wolf thanks to his brother’s bite. But he didn’t accept change easily and he and Rafe were still trying to find their footing as two born Alpha’s on the same packland.
And now there wasthis.
He’d thought his urge to attack the Crescent pack had been understandable. They’d attacked his pack first. They’d attacked him just last night and left many of his own injured. Leo DeLuca had come to him, as an old friend, and asked for the help of the Moirae pack in taking back what was rightfully his from a crazed wolf that had murdered his parents and kidnapped his sisters. It was a noble cause, one that Michael had been unable to deny. But now he knew exactly why his wolf his insisted he go now, tonight. No waiting. No plotting. No planning. His wolf had felt called here, he’d thought to help, but now he saw the truth. He’d been called here by a force bigger thanhimself.
Fate. Fate had wanted him here tonight. And she was the reasonwhy.
Surprise of surprises, he’d found his truemate.
It had hit him like a punch in the chest as soon as he stepped into the room. He’d scented her before he’d even seen her. Had felt the heat unfurl in his veins. The first flash of the bond when he’d seen her had nearly taken him to his knees but something had told him it wasn’t as strong as it should be. Something was wrong. Something was wrong withher.
His mate washurt.
A growl worked its way into his chest as he looked around. His mate had been locked in a dark, cold basement. His mate was lying on the grimy, dust-covered floor. His mate was dirty and bruised, weak and injured. Bleeding! And his wolf saw red when he scented it, wanted to find the person responsible and rip them toshreds.
Michael had to force himself to take a deep breath and push his wolf back down beneath his skin where he belonged. This wasn’t the place for more violence. Not when she was already hurting. She needed him and from the looks of it, he’d found her just in time. He made sure his claws were sheathed and his fangs were put away before he moved towards her cautiously and felt more heat fill his veins, felt the pull intensify as he gave in to it and moved to herside.
She was unconscious and his guts twisted as he brushed her dark hair back from her blood-streaked face. The spark of electricity that flowed between them filled his lungs with even more anger when she didn’t respond at all. She didn’t wake, didn’t curve towards him or reach for him like she should have. If he couldn’t hear her heart beating in her chest, he would have thought she was dead and the thought alone sent bile rising in histhroat.
Jesus, what had they done toher?
Her hair was matted with dirt and blood. There was so much blood. It was everywhere. He scowled as he searched her for the sources and found too many. A slice on her forehead, multiple cuts on her hands, a deep, sharp slice across her arm and more small cuts on her knees were just the start of it. They were all open wounds. Unhealed. Which meant she was too weak to heal herself, which meant that slow, erratic heartbeat he could hear was nearing the point of noreturn.
“Baby?” He murmured softly, stroking his hands over her, hoping to transfer whatever power he could to her through the bond that was only just beginning to form, “Baby, I need you to wake up. I’m here but I need you to wakeup.”
Her lashes fluttered sending relief pouring into him, but she didn’t open her eyes. Michael grimaced as he stroked her cheek. It was bruised . Swollen. Had someone hit her? Hit his mate? He couldn’t contain his growl this time and it seethed out of him. His wolf was snapping at the end of the leash Michael had put him on, wanting out, wanting to wreak havoc on everyone in this Godforsaken pack that had let this happen toher.
