Page 32 of Don't Cheat Me (Nora Jacobs 2)

Tears stream down her face, but still she stands, back straight, chin up like a good soldier. She glares at her luna with pure hatred, while Luna Marie looks back at her with disappointment and heartbreak.

“I’m sorry, Maya,” Alpha Toth says. “The punishment was harsh, but so were the crimes. You’ve made our pack weak. Others will hear of this and think I am incapable of keeping control of my wolves. Your actions will make our pack vulnerable to attack. Even still, enough blood has been shed this night. If you can pay back the money, every cent, then I will spare your life. You will have to leave my territory and never return, but you will live. Do you understand?”

Maya clenches her jaw, and her entire body shakes with rage. “I understand this pack’s true weakness,” she growls. Her bloodshot, tear-filled, rage-filled eyes turn to her luna again. “Luna Marie,” she calls out loud and clear. “I challenge you! I challenge you for the position of luna.”

Cries of outrage and shock ring out in the crowd, but Luna Marie quiets them all. “Very well,” she says with a strange smile that makes me wonder if this wasn’t her plan all along. “But you’ll have to kill me, because I will never submit to you.”

Maya growls. Her eyes glow, and her body shakes, ready for the change. “I’m going to enjoy ripping you apart.”

The change is fast. Maya gets a head start, but Luna Marie’s change is almost instantaneous, and she’s a bigger wolf. The two crash together at the same time, each taking swipes from the other that draws blood.

That’s all I see before Rook whisks me away from Jeffrey and throws me up onto the stage. He hops up with me and stands in front of me like it would take a bulldozer to move him. I have to peek around his shoulder in order to see what’s happening.

The fight doesn’t take long. It’s a brutal frenzy of claws and teeth. These women aren’t fighting like Jeffrey and Wulf had been. Wulf toyed with Jeffrey until he got bored, and then he quickly subdued him. These wolves are much more evenly matched, and they aren’t messing around. They’re trying to kill each other. Both are bloody messes, but Maya’s wolf is losing too much blood from her right hind leg, and she’s limping badly.

She slows down just enough for Luna Marie to get a good jump on her. The luna slams into her side, knocking her over, and jumps on her. I look away just as she goes for Maya’s throat. I don’t need to see that. But I still hear the sound of ripping flesh. My entire body stiffens, and Rook pulls me into a tight hug just as Luna Marie releases a long howl, declaring herself the victor. His arms touch mine, and so I hear his foremost thoughts before I can pull myself from his grip.Poor woman. She’s only seeing the worst parts of our culture. I wanted her to love wolves, not think us savage.

I scramble out of his hug and force a smile. I want to tell him that I don’t consider their culture savage, but the words don’t come. Knowing what I do about the mate challenges, and now seeing the swift and harsh justice done tonight, I understand that’s how wolves are, and that they need a bit of strong discipline to be kept in line, but two women just fought to the death in front of me and no one tried to stop them. If that’s not savage, I don’t know what is. I don’t hate Rook and Wulf, and I don’t blame Alpha Toth, but I definitely have no desire to ever join the pack.

“If you don’t mind, Rook,” I say quietly into the solemn atmosphere, “I think I’d like to go home now.”

Rook nods his head in both answer to my request and understanding of my feelings. His small smile is sympathetic with a hint of disappointment. I hate to let him down, but I can’t help it. I feel like Daniel’s and Maya’s deaths are my fault.

“I’ll walk you to your car.”

He jumps down from the stage and once again offers to help me down. All eyes in the room are on me as I hop down. I wonder if I’m not the only one who holds me responsible for what happened. I’ve been getting glares from the single women all night, but now there are a few from mated women as well. And there are plenty from the men, too. Mostly the men I’d danced with.

“Hold on, Nora,” Jeffrey calls, approaching Rook and me with a smug grin on his face. “Just what was your part in all of this?”

I feign innocence. “I don’t know what you mean. I just danced with Daniel and Maya freaked out, that’s all.”

The room erupts into growls. Rook responds with a louder one and shoves me behind him, pressing my back against the stage. At the same time, that prickling sensation of impending danger crawls up my neck. My gift is telling me that someone close to me means me harm. Looking at the few dozen snarling werewolves, I want to laugh.Someone wants to harm me? Really? You think?

There’s only one way out of this, even though I really don’t want to do it. I’m going to have to come clean and give up my anonymity. I sigh and murmur into Rook’s back. “So…that bit about werewolves smelling lies is true, then?”

Again, wrong thing to say. The pissed off wolves not only hear my mumbled comment, they move closer. Rook’s body begins to shake as he resists the change. My intuition is screaming at me now. My body explodes into goose bumps, and I gasp at the rolling sensation in my stomach.

“Nora?” Rook asks over his shoulder, his eyes never leaving the threat in front of him.

“It’s nothing. I’m okay. It’s just my gift warning me that someone nearby means me harm.”

Rook snorts. “Multiple someones, and they mean to kill you, most likely. Don’t move. No matter what happens.” He raises his voice and says, “Nora has my protection. I will kill anyone who attacks.”

Alpha Toth steps in before there’s a bloodbath. “Now, hold on. Everyone calm down. There is no need for anyone to attack. It’s not what you think.” He looks at me again. I’m surprised to see he’s asking permission to tell the truth, and then I remember that I was the one who sworehimto secrecy. I give him a small nod.Yes. Please tell them, and stop them from ripping me to shreds.“Nora is here at my request. I asked her to help me figure out who was stealing money from the pack.”

Gasps sweep through the crowd, but the feeling that I’m about to be psychic toast calms down fromyour-death-is-imminentmode to the less severesomeone-means-you-harmsetting. It’s a start.

Jeffrey glowers at Alpha Toth. “You involved an outsider in pack business?”

Several grumbles of agreement ring out in the crowd. Alpha Toth holds his hands up, trying to settle everyone down. “It was with great consideration and reluctance, but yes, I went to an outsider for help. Daniel and Maya have been stealing from the pack for over a year, that we know of. We’ve been trying to discover them for months and found nothing leading us to the thieves. Nora has unique gifts that help her in these specific situations and had already proven herself a friend to this pack.”

Most of the pack calms down at this and even looks on me with approval, though there are a few scowls still, and my intuition hasn’t quit warning me of danger yet.

“What gifts does she have?” one of the men I danced with calls out.

Jeffrey—who has gone from scowling to calculating—smiles at me. “Yes, Nora, what power do you have? You’re such a dominant female. What else are you capable of?”

His leer makes me feel dirty enough that if Rook weren’t standing in front of me, blocking my way, I might just march over and punch him in the face. “Sorry. I like to keep my gifts secret—safer for me that way.” I give him a saccharine smile, batting my eyelashes. “You understand.”

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