Inevitably Yours

MICHAEL

I left Q sitting outside the back of the packhouse with Courtney. It was time for the little warriors class. Q liked to watch, but Courtney had come by the packhouse, so she decided to relax with her instead. Courtney was integrating well into the pack, which made me happy. Q connecting with pack members as the Luna was also very beneficial for us; with how shy she was, interactions with small groups were best.

All the pups were in a massive group talking over each other as I arrived at the training ground. They were all talking too fast and animatedly for me to figure out what they were discussing or for them to notice my arrival. I went to the side and waited. Eventually, Adi noticed me from the center of the group.

“Alpha!” she yipped.

“Good afternoon, Miss Adi,” I greeted her. The group converged on me. “Are we all ready to begin today?”

“Alpha, tell them I’m not lying! You have two swords, and they glow, and you slashed the dirty rogues away like swahh swahh,” she ranted, making cutting motions. I had to bite back my laughter.

“Wolves don’t need swords, Adi!” one of her classmates insisted. “We have claws and teeth!” He bared his profoundly dull teeth at her.

“But our Alpha does! And Beta Nic has little knives that she throws ultra fast!” Adi insisted. They all began arguing again.

“Alright, alright,” I called, calming them. “Adi is correct. I am a weapons expert and generally fight with my swords, Safir and Diagne.” Oohs and aahs filled the air. Another pup shot their hand in the air; I pointed at him to acknowledge him.

“Will you teach us to use weapons?” he asked bravely. I smirked.

“Maybe when you can survive a match with me. Now, you are all far from that, so shall we start class?”

–

We were almost through our round of crazy horse, a game that taught the pups how to stay on someone’s back during a fight when Nic linked me. “Michael, you need to get to the packhouse now!”

“What’s going on?” I immediately replied. I stilled, grabbing ahold of the pup on my back. I tried to feel for Quinn, but all I got was unease.

“Wild Paws Beta is here,” she informed me. I slowly let the pup down and stood.

“Alright, class is over. You all need to get back home quickly. Do not go toward the packhouse,” I announced. Grumbles followed. “Class,” I warned.

“Ay!” they all yelled, bowing. Twenty or so little bodies took off into the trees, merging into groups as they headed home. I didn’t stay to watch; I turned and sprinted back to the packhouse.

I charged through the back door, hearing commotion in the front. I inhaled deeply, trying to scent everyone. Nic, Quinn, and one other were the strongest, but not Courtney.

“I am sorry, but we don’t know anything!” Quinn’s quivering voice insisted.

“You will give her to me, or I will rip every blue hair from your head, b***h!” a male voice roared.

“You will not touch her!” Nic yelled as I let out a thundering roar. I rounded the corner to see Quinn and Nic standing shoulder to shoulder in from of the Wild Paws Beta. His eyes snapped to me. Quinn looked like she was shrinking away from the wolf, while Nic looked ready to remove his head.

“I suggest you reconsider threatening my mate in my packhouse, Beta,” I said, pushing both girls behind me. Quinn gripped the bottom of my t-shirt while Nic tried to keep her eyes on Tyson.

“If your blue-haired dwarf is going to refuse me my mate, then I will do as I promised and more!” he snarled.NôvelD(ram)a.ôrg owns this content.

“You’re very close to crossing a line you don’t want to, Beta. I suggest you leave my pack before you do something you’ll regret,” I threatened him. Quinn’s hand left my shirt, and I felt her move away; Nic stayed put, one of her karambits in a white-knuckled grip.

“I know she is here. I am not leaving without Courtney and the pup in her belly!” Tyson asserted.

As if by magic, I felt the hilt of Safir hit my lower back. I reached back and gripped it firmly. Quinn used the distraction of retrieving my sword to duck around me.

“Please, we don’t have Courtney here. We have our own problems to sort out here. If we come across your mate in our pack, we will be sure to contact you,” Quinn tried to placate him.

His eyes almost bulged from his head as they turned black. I knew what was happening and barely had time to react. I grabbed Quinn by her waist and spun around, shielding her from the danger of Tyson’s claws slashing down as he shifted in our front hallway. Nic jumped back, producing her other knife.

“Go!” I yelled at Quinn as I pushed her further into the packhouse. She stumbled back, and I turned my attention to the poor excuse of wolf in front of me. His fur was slightly matted, thin for our kind for sure. Drool dripped from his maw as he growled at Nic and me.

“You don’t stand a chance here,” I gave him one final warning. “Leave now with your life.”

“f**k him!” Nic linked, her voice furious. He shouldn’t have tried to hurt Quinn; now Nic would want to flay him alive. I could probably step back and let her kill him, but I was too angry at what he’d just tried to do to my mate, in front of me, no less.

He snarled in answer to my warning, telling me everything I needed to know. He didn’t intend to leave, and I no longer cared about what he wanted. I was tired of giving people chance after chance and being ignored. This one came into my home and attacked my wife, and against my better judgment, I tried to let him live anyways. f**k him. f**k them all, Wilkes too.

“Let’s get this over with then,” I growled at him, stepping back and letting Saphir come out from behind me into the light. He hesitated for a moment but lunged at Nic first, probably thinking she was a small female, and the knife would hurt less. He immediately lost an eye for that mistake in thought. I could have ended him right there with his attention diverted to Nic; I was standing beside him with a sword and his neck an open target. He would have deserved it; he was simply a coward who thought women were beneath him. It was clear from his treatment of Courtney, Quinn, and now choosing to fight Nic instead of me.

I sighed, tossing Saphir onto a table nearby, and walked over to Tyson, who was struggling with Nic as he tried to find an opening while she repeatedly stabbed him. She opened him up in multiple places, his b***d leaking out onto the clean floor of the entryway. I briskly walked over, grabbed him by the scruff of the neck, and dragged him beside me toward the door. I stepped through it, but he was too big to fit. So, I ripped him through the entryway, destroying the door entirely. I winced as I thought of how Quinn would react to that, but I was pretty sure I could frame a door. How hard could it be?

He growled and sputtered in my grip, trying to bite and scratch me. My firm grip on his neck and outstretched arm kept him from achieving his goal. Irritation simmered in me as I headed toward the nearest border of Wild Paws. Pack members stopped and took notice of his embarrassing departure as I drug him along with me through the pack. I waived them all down, letting them know there was nothing to worry about. Adi poked her head out of the woods as I passed her to smile and wave at me. She made choping motions with her hands, like she wanted me to get him with my sword; I bit back my smile and shook my head at her.

“Get home now,” I demanded in my best Alpha voice.

“Yes, Alpha,” she squeaked, turning and sprinting toward her temporary residence.

Tyson was furious, but I was unrelenting. He thought he wasn’t leaving without his mate, but I wasn’t giving him a choice. I was going to put him back where he belonged. If he tried to come back, I’d be well within my right to kill him outright. I also thought that he deserved a little embarrassment in his life after what he did to Courtney. An idea was beginning to form in my head, and although I thought this sack of s**t deserved death, I wanted him alive for it.

As we neared the Wild Paws border, I pulled my cell phone out of my pocket and dialed Wilkes. He answered, and I could hear his breath on the other side, “I seem to have something that belongs to you in my territory.”

“So, you’re going to give her back?” Wilkes spat, sounding surprised.

“I don’t know which ‘her’ you’re speaking of, but first, it was a band of rogues. Now, I have a Beta who not only walked into my packhouse but threatened my mate and then attempted to attack her in front of me. I was going to kill him, but I thought it best I return him to his own Alpha for punishment,” I explained.

“He will be dealt with accordingly,” Wilkes said, his voice robotic now. He almost sounded as if he didn’t condone this little mission. “Will you put him on?”

“He decided to shift and attack my mate and Beta, so I have him collared in wolf, but I’d be happy to place the phone to his ear,” I answered honestly.

“That will do,” he returned, his tone simmering. He was getting angrier by the second. I placed the phone to his Beta’s ear, pausing to let them finish their interaction. As soon as I heard, “What do you think you’re doing?” from the other end of the line, Tyson went slack in my hand, no longer fighting me. After Wilkes berated him, Tyson shifted back to his human form. I returned the phone to my ear.

“I’d ask that you let my Beta go now. I will handle it from here,” Wilkes said a bit more calmly.

“I will be happy to do that once he is off my land,” I answered, hanging up immediately. Wilkes thought he was in charge of our interactions, and I was going to stop letting him think he had any control here. I resumed dragging the now naked human toward the border with much protest from him until his shoulders slumped, and he finally fell quiet.

I was met by several angry-looking warriors where Stary touched Wild Paws and some of my own, standing resolutely waiting for my arrival. I unceremoniously tossed Tyson across the line.

I ignored the protests at my treatment of the Beta, looking him directly in the eyes, “If you come here again, I will kill you slowly. Do you understand?” He just ignored me and refused to answer.

“Fine, you were warned,” I pressed. They started to walk away, but I stopped them for one last point. “Tyson!”

“Yea?” he asked, his voice wavering.

“If you even look at my mate wrong again, whatever you imagine being the worst torture possible in your mind, double it. It still won’t be enough to describe the pain that I will inflict, and when I’m done, I will give you to my Beta to finish off. I know how much you respect women, so I wouldn’t want you to deprive you of death at the hands of one.”

His growl as he left was the only response that I received. He may not have been in his wolf form, but he definitely walked away with his tail between his legs.

–

When I returned to the packhouse, Quinn and Nic were waiting for me. After double-checking that they were both unharmed, I had Quinn retrieve Courtney. Quinn had her hide when Tyson arrived so he wouldn’t take her forcefully. Quinn brought her to the dining room, where Nic and I waited for them, both girls wearing tight smiles. Courtney took a seat across from me, and Quinn came to my side. Her hand brushed my shoulder as she passed behind me, letting a calm wave wash over me immediately.

“You wanted to see me, Alpha?” Courtney asked nervously, fidgeting in her seat.

I cleared my throat, trying to find the words, “After what just happened, I think we need some answers.”