Page 1 of The Alpha's Mates

CHAPTER 1

Reese

My heart tried to pound its way out of my chest as I followed my pack of terrified females. We raced through the woods, running desperately toward our only hope for escape. The howls and barks were gaining on us. If we couldn’t make it to the tunnel we’d all be captured. Looking over my shoulder, I tried to catch a glimpse of our pursuers, but they were just out of sight. That was only a vague relief.

I’d worked too hard for a year and a half to keep them safe only to lose them now. All the omegas living with me and my beta best friend were here because they had either been abused or didn’t want to be a part of a pack of alphas. Life for omegas was perilous, to say the least. At least it had proven to be so with the seaside wolves we’d been born to. And no other males of our species had managed to gain my trust enough to make me think I’d judged them wrong. I couldn’t fail my pack now.

These woods had been our home for months and we’d managed to avoid the pack of mountain wolves who’d marked it as their own. We’d stayed too long. But game had been plentiful and I’d started to relax in the little space we’d carved out for ourselves. No one telling me what to do. That females couldn’t have a pack. I wanted to rest and hide away from the world. We were paying for that complacency now. I snarled in frustration at the reminder that I’d screwed up.

The Venat Pack had a brutal reputation and I’d known, in the back of my mind, that if we were found I’d be killed and all the omegas would be split up and enslaved amongst the alphas living in the pack. Emma was a beta, so she’d end up as a servant and might be able to one day choose beta mates to marry. She’d been my best friend from the moment we were old enough to walk and I was comforted—though only the tiniest bit—that she’d be spared. The rest of us would have no choice as to our fates. Me especially. I should have moved us on after we’d had the chance to catch our breaths. My arrogance and the overwhelming desire to slow down had been our downfall.

A yip spilled from my muzzle as I directed Emma. She was leading my pack of females and made an immediate left at my order. All nine omega wolves followed her, with me at the rear so I could confront the threats that were bearing down on us. My eyes were on Clover, making sure she didn’t fall behind. She was the youngest of us and as a teen omega her wolf was tiny. Her small legs nearly blurred as she fought to keep up with the pack. She had the heart of a lion and didn’t complain once about the speed. She just ducked her shaggy head down and ran as hard as she could.

Love nearly overwhelmed the worry and fear. I’d grown to care for each of these women. They deserved everything kind and decent. All I could offer was freedom. It had to be enough even if it came with a life on the run.

I’d never meant to start collecting females who needed help. It just sort of happened and now I had my own little pack of omegas who looked to me to guide them. I’d never asked for this responsibility. Life as a female alpha wasn’t easy. Short would be the only real descriptor. There had only been a few of us throughout history, and none had lived long.

The fact that Emma stayed with me was dangerous enough for her, but then one day an omega appeared, needing help, and we hadn’t been able to turn her away. She’d been out in the pouring rain, being beaten by the pack of seaside alphas that were supposed to love and adore her. Her pleading eyes had met mine through the storm and I’d answered the call. From that point on, we took in any who sought us out. I feared my ability to protect them might be coming to an end.

A brown blur slammed into me from the side. I hadn’t even seen the alpha coming. His speed was damn impressive. Picking myself up, I spun, baring my teeth as I blocked the path between him and my pack. Letting out a bark, I ordered Emma and the others to continue on.

The wolf in front of me snarled as he paced back and forth. He didn’t seem thrilled to be facing a female, but what could he do when one was confronting him? It was so far out of the realm for most of our women to act this way he wasn’t sure what to do. He was used to submissive omegas and obedient betas.

I didn’t give him a chance to ponder it too long. I attacked. Seeing an opening, I hit the enemy in the side, knocking him to the ground. He tumbled, a mess of scratching claws and biting wildly at the air. I lunged straight through, ignoring his attempts to defend himself, and covered his throat with my teeth.

The wolf below me froze, stunned that he’d been beaten and awaiting his death. A howl sounded, causing the scruff at the back of my neck to rise. They were too close. Though short, thefight had given them time to make up distance and they were closing in.

I shifted to human form, grabbing the wolf by the scruff of his neck and his tail, and tossed him bodily through the air into the brush. He landed with a thump and whimper, but I was already back in wolf form, racing away. I knew exactly where my girls were going and it didn’t take me long to catch up. No more brown shadows showed up to impede our path.

Relief poured over me as I saw the tunnel ahead. I could run like this all day, but my omegas were going to tire out far sooner than the wolves pursuing us. It was imperative that I gave them time to get to safety.

Emma skidded to the side, dirt showering over the tunnel entrance, as the others scrambled into the tight space and ran through. It was a natural dug out in the earth that would protect them as they continued their escape.

Emma and I watched as the last bushy wolf tail disappeared inside. Her golden brown eyes turned to me. We weren’t male wolves. I didn’t have the ability to bond any of these females to me, or to each other, so we couldn’t speak directly into each other’s minds, but I’d known her most of my life. We didn’t need telepathy to know each other’s thoughts. Our wolves were currently handling the communication. Posture, scent and a direct stare told us volumes in an instant. There was worry and fear in her gaze. I acknowledged it with a quick bob of my head. She was able to read the command in my own eyes. She had to leave with them.

We’d gone over this escape plan time and time again. Since we’d moved into the mountains and decided to stay and rest in the comfort of the forest, she’d known that if we were discovered she was to take my pack and run while I stayed behind to defend them.

Sadness filtered into her eyes and her muzzle dipped once in agreement. I watched as she bolted into the tunnel, her chocolate coat flashing in the last ray of light before disappearing.

Giving the opening my back, I turned and waited. Nerves fluttered in my belly. Seaside wolves were inherently smaller than the huge shifters who lived up here in the mountains, so I knew what I was going to be facing. The pack’s area we were in now had the worst reputation, by far. But when we’d stopped and seen the beautiful glades and forest paths, I hadn’t been able to resist. My heart had insisted we stop.

Our packs from back home weren’t filled with kind, understanding males. They’d been fucking terrible. I was about to find out whether the mountain wolves were worse.

It didn’t take long before the woods were filled with wolves. Males.Alphas. Flashes of brown, gray, and black began to slink into view. So many, a dozen? Maybe two dozen? Too many scents to sort out. I couldn’t count them all right now. They’d slowed now that they could smell that I was here.

They appeared from behind trees as they moved to surround me. The ground sloped upward from the little valley I was standing in, so most of them had the high ground. The dugout was at the lowest point in the earth and I was defending it.

I took a step back, making sure none could slip between me and the hollowed out ground that formed this tunnel. I had to give my friends as much of a head start as possible. If that meant laying down my life, so be it. I was dead anyway once these wolves figured out what I was. There was no way I could fight an entire pack’s alpha population. Alphas didn’t tolerate an alpha from outside their pack. They certainly weren’t friendly towards anomalies like myself.

Slowly they crept in, one directly in front of me, the rest fanning out until they were at ninety degree angles to my left andright. It was impossible to keep all of them in sight at the same time. I kept my head swaying back and forth quickly, trying not to give any of them a chance to creep in. My fangs were bared and I was ready as I could be. My legs shook with anticipation. The fight was about to start. Then things got really interesting.

My lip lifted in a snarl as three massive gray wolves appeared out of the forest like specters. They were twice the size of the alpha wolves surrounding me. Their authority forced my hackles to rise. Their power crackled through the air, electrifying everything around me. Thrown off balance by the trio, I looked around to see if there was any hope of escape once enough time had expired.

This isn’t good.I was completely surrounded. Every other wolf was watching them, waiting for commands. Most of the other shifters surrounding me were closer to my size, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t shred me to pieces. They had me outnumbered. One on one, I had some hope, but not with so many here.

This wasn’t some weak—or newly formed—pack. There’d be no tricking them into making a mistake. Which meant no escape for me. Swallowing hard, I watched—head and tail held high—as the three gray wolves approached.

The wolf in the middle was clearly the leader and moved with a fluid grace that belied his size. The beast to his right was the biggest of the three, while the other on the leader’s left was only slightly smaller than the leader in the middle. Their size was only relative to each other. Compared to any other wolf, they were massive. Their coats shone in the light that filtered through the trees as though they were basking in the moon’s iridescent glow. If my death wasn’t imminent I would be fascinated by them. Their size and the differing color of their eyes told me they weren’t triplets, yet they were clearly bonded. It was rare for wolves to so closely resemble one another, even siblings.

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