Page 31 of Unforeseen Mate
One of Oslo’s strengths as Hayden’s beta was his ability to play the devil’s advocate—so to speak—and to raise questions and objections to Hayden’s decisions. Hayden had always believed an alpha was only as strong as his beta.
Hayden put his hand on Oslo’s shoulder. “Perhaps. But in the end, the fact remains that Fallon is my mate, and I will not abandon her. To do so would be cruel.”
“But by taking on the dragon-shifter…”
“Taking on? I didn’t even see the old bastard. That, however, will change. He will answer to me for his treatment of my mate.”
Oslo nodded. “And in doing so, you allow the hellhounds to be drawn into the fight between the Shadow League and the Resistance.”
“It is a fight we should always have been involved with. Caye has been trying to tell me, but I didn’t want to hear.”
“Is there anything I can say to dissuade you?” Oslo asked, defeatedly.
Hayden shook his head. “Nothing at all. I will not compel the hellhounds to fight as a unit. Instead, those who wish to fight alongside my mate and me will be welcome. Those who wish to remain aloof and separate, as we always have been, are free to do nothing to help. But let me be clear—any hellhound siding with the Shadow League will answer to me. I will not suffer a traitor in our midst.”
“She’ll need time above ground more as she transitions.”
“I’m aware of that. I have several places where I believe she will be safe. Don’t look so glum, Oslo. Your alpha has a mate, which means all the best remaining females are left for you to pursue.”
It was Oslo’s turn to snort. “You’re impossible, but if it is your choice, then I will stand beside you to defend that claim.”
“Tell the others I will remain with my mate until she is fully recovered. You have command in my absence unless you need me.”
Oslo nodded and took his leave. Hayden was about to rejoin his mate in their bed when his phone indicated he had received a text. Hayden had tasked his best tech people to figure out a way that mobile phones could work in the Hollow. They had made that happen. They still didn’t work in the rest of the Underworld, and you couldn’t make or receive a phone call, per se, but they had at least mastered the technology for texting.
Looking down at the screen, he groaned. It was Colby. Specifically, it was Colby wanting to know where Fallon was and wanting an update on her condition. Hayden replied with a brief response that Fallon had been injured but was recovering rapidly. When Colby pressed him for details, Hayden simply growled before texting Colby that Fallon was now his mate and neither Colby nor Nora needed to be concerned for her safety.
As another text started to come through, Hayden turned the damn thing off and tossed it across the room.
“You can break them doing that,” said Fallon as she sat up in bed, eyeing him warily and pulling the covers up around her.
“It’s a little late for modesty.”
“Yeah, about that.” She reached up and lightly touched the mark from his claiming bite. “You bit me?”
“Yes; we talked about that.”
“No, we didn’t.”
“You were feverish.”
Fallon shook her head. “I don’t care how out of it I was; I would remember a discussion about you tearing a chunk out of my neck.:
“It is part of our claiming ritual and transitioned you from human to hellhound. The transition is what saved you.”
“Wouldn’t it have been easier to take me to an emergency room or hospital?”
“Not necessarily. Strode would not be inclined to relinquish his hostage. Besides, I’m not convinced that the bullets weren’t poisoned, and if they were I doubt they would have had time to find an antidote if one even existed.”
“Oh shit. That wasn’t some weird dream?”
“Should I take some comfort in the fact that you didn’t refer to it as a nightmare?”
She held up the covers and glanced at the bullet wound. “That looks a lot better than I remember. How long have I beenout and how did I get here? For that matter, where the hell is here?”
“Here is the Hollow. It is the home of the hellhounds. It lies in a kind of buffer zone between Earth and the Underworld, or Hell as some refer to it. How long you have been out is a relative question. Time moves differently here than it does above ground. What seems like hours to someone used to living on the surface is actually a matter of days or weeks. The deeper you go, the slower time crawls. As to how you got here, my sister and I made a travois for you, and I brought you down.”
“Was there some weird floating thing that looked like a cheap Halloween prop in a monk’s robe?”
