The Omega's Heart (Wilde Creek Four) Read online

  “Mine!”

  * * * * *

  The hands tearing at Honey’s clothes were rough. They gouged her skin with their nails. They leered at her as they ripped the shirt away from her body, gripping her tender flesh, squeezing and pinching, holding her bound wrists over her head. She struggled, but couldn’t move much with the rope binding her. She saw her father turn toward Jeremiah, and knew that he was going to kill him.

  She wanted to tell him that she was sorry she’d gotten him into this, that the last two days with him had been heaven, but when she opened her mouth, all that came from her were pain-filled cries. The males began to tug on the knotted string holding her sweats up, and she knew then that it wouldn’t only be the older male who would take her tonight. He would let the males with him have her, too.

  Something snapped loudly, and the males stilled and looked over their shoulders. Honey’s gaze swept the area and landed on Jeremiah, who stood slowly from where he’d been kneeling on the ground. His body looked different. Taller, bulkier. Thick fur covered his arms, and his fingers were long and tipped with claws. His face had changed the most, his dark hair replaced by a mane of fur, his nose and mouth elongated into a wolfish muzzle. He roared, and his razor-sharp teeth glinted in the light.

  “Mine!”

  He howled the word gutturally. Honey shivered at the possessive tone.

  No one moved, and then Jeremiah grabbed her father by the throat and threw him at the van. His body hit the windshield, which shattered. Jeremiah moved so fast that he was a furry, dark blur. The males who had been stripping her were ripped from her, their arms dislocating as Jeremiah jerked them upright viciously. He swung them around like ragdolls, letting them go so their bodies arced into the air and then landed hard. Neither male moved again.

  The males from her old pack advanced on him as a group. Honey scrambled to her knees and shouted for Jeremiah to watch out, but he didn’t need her advice. He seemed to be hyper-aware of their movements, missing their flying fists and dodging their lunges. One of them brandished a knife.

  He swung it at Jeremiah, who caught his wrist in his exceptionally large hand and squeezed until the bones shattered and he dropped the knife with a shrill scream. Jeremiah’s hand wrapped around his throat and squeezed. Honey closed her eyes as the sound of his choking filled the air. There was a crushing sound and then nothing, except the dull thud as the body dropped to the ground.

  She curled her bound hands in front of her body, tuning out the sound of Jeremiah’s rampage. Wiggling to her feet, she hopped over to the van, where her father’s body lay half in and half out of the windshield. She couldn’t see his injuries, but she could smell the blood, and from the heavy amount she knew he’d been gravely wounded, the glass in the windshield cutting him severely.

  “Did you kill Stacy?” she asked.

  She saw the glint of her father’s eyes and knew he saw her. He was alive, but too injured to shift and slowly bleeding to death.

  His mouth opened and nothing came out but a garbled squeak at first. Then he finally hissed, “Yes.”

  “She was your mom. How could you?”

  He didn’t answer.

  “Did she figure out you were trying to sell me to another alpha?”

  He grunted.

  “If I’m not your daughter, why did you keep me? Why not send me away?”

  “Worth trade.”

  Her stomach rolled. Her only value to him was what he could trade her for. She replayed the conversation in her mind she’d overheard before she ran away, and the word ‘pure’ which had confused her. She looked over her shoulder to see Jeremiah slamming the head of the other alpha into a tree with a sickening crunch.

  “He had a virgin pack member he was going to give to you in exchange for me? You’re a sick fuck. I’m sorry I ever called you dad.”

  She leaned heavily against the van as fatigue blanketed her. Even though her body temperature ran warm, she was still half-naked in the snow, and she was starting to become chilled.

  “Hon-ey,” Jeremiah’s deep, growly voice spoke disjointedly from behind her.

  She looked over her shoulder and saw him standing in the light. His shirt had been ripped off while he fought, and she could see that his upper body was entirely covered with gray fur. It reminded her of the old wolf-man horror movies, where a man didn’t shift into a complete wolf but instead into a fur-covered human. His broad chest heaved as he breathed hard. Blood glinted on the fur on his chest and abdomen where he’d been injured, and she was pretty sure he was even taller and more muscular. His jeans were in tatters, too.

  She looked at the man she’d called ‘dad’ her whole life. His eyes were closed and she could hear him breathing shallowly. They couldn’t drive the van with a half-dead male hanging out of the windshield. She walked to the side of the van and opened the door. She stepped up into it, leaning on the seat with her shoulder. She scanned the interior and found what she was looking for — a cell phone.

  Taking it with her, she wiggled out of the van and hopped her way over to Jeremiah. “I don’t know Acksel’s number.”

  She showed him the phone and he spoke the number to her as she dialed. His voice was raspy and deep, and it seemed like it took effort for him to form words. He reached out and cut the rope binding her wrists and went to his knees, cutting her ankles free as well. She connected the call and waited for Acksel to answer. Jeremiah seemed to be waiting, sitting on his knees in the snow, his hands on his thighs and his head down.

  “Moore.”

  “Alpha Acksel, it’s Honey Williams.”

  “Where the fuck are you two? What happened? Are you both all right?”

  “I don’t know for sure, but I think we’re in a town called Kenote. My former pack alpha tried to trade me to another alpha. Jeremiah and I are okay.”

  He muffled the phone as he talked to someone else. She peered at Jeremiah. He looked like a statue, kneeling perfectly still aside from his heaving chest. In the headlights she could see that he really did have a mane of fur on his head, his dark hair replaced by what looked like the gray fur of a wolf. His ears were pointed and they twitched every now and then, as if listening intently. The clawed hands had long fingers, almost like an extra joint had been added, and judging from how tall he was even kneeling, she knew he had definitely partially shifted. She’d never seen anything like it.

  “Can you get to a vehicle?” Acksel asked.

  “Not really. We’re in the woods and there are… a lot of dead wolves.”

  “Fuck. Damn it.” He growled the words.

  “I’ll find out where we are and send the location to you,” she said.

  “Do that. We’re on the way, but I have no idea how long it will take to get there. Just stay out of sight and wait for us.”

  He ended the call, and she pulled the phone away from her ear, switching to a map program. It pulled up their location and she took a screen shot and texted the picture to Acksel.

  She put the phone in her pocket and looked around. Dawn was still a few hours away. She counted the bodies, finding all but one.

  “Shred’s gone.”

  Jeremiah shook his head. “Ran.”

  She focused her hearing, and found silence. The two of them were the only ones alive, and Shred was nowhere nearby. The man she had called dad her whole life was motionless, sprawled halfway in and out of the van. She didn’t feel any remorse for him. Maybe because he’d never shown her any love growing up, or because he’d tried to kill Jeremiah and trade her like a sack of potatoes. His behavior growing up made sense now, because he hadn’t been her father in the first place. She would never know who her real father was, and had no memory of her mom. Dexter had stolen every precious thing from her, and nearly took the only man in her life who’d ever stood up for her.

  She saw her top on the ground and she went to it, picking up the shredded garment and shrugging into it. She had to tie the torn pieces of the front together to cover her breasts, but it was bett
er than being half-naked. Moving back to her mate, she went to her knees in front of Jeremiah. His eyes were bright, golden and shining; she reached for him, and he pulled her into his lap and curled his arms around her. The strength and warmth emanating from him made the last bit of her defenses crumble. The tears that had been held back by shock and fear now fell freely, and she cried into his furry shoulder as he held her in the snow.

  She was aware of him moving them slowly away from the headlights and into the darkness of the woods. He stopped when they were blanketed in darkness and leaned back against a tree, settling her in his lap.

  “I won’t hurt you,” he spoke slowly in that guttural tone.

  She looked up at him. “I know you won’t. You’re my mate and I’m yours and all we have in the world is each other.” She pressed a kiss to his misshapen mouth and he growled lightly, a happy tone.

  “Mine. My Honey.”

  Burrowing against him, she closed her eyes and let the steady beat of his heart soothe her to sleep.

  * * * * *

  Jeremiah’s body felt strangely free. He’d never shifted in such a bizarre way before. Even when he’d been furious and the partial change happened, it didn’t happen quite like this. He’d only ever grown claws and a light dusting of fur on his arms and legs. This was a complete metamorphosis. He could feel the strange shape of his mouth, and his eyesight and hearing were sharper. Lifting one hand, he wiggled his extra-long fingers. His wolf was content in his mind. He’d been able to protect himself and Honey with the odds stacked against them. He felt stronger and more powerful than he’d ever felt before, and even now, he felt amazing because his mate was snuggled up in his lap asleep. He would have understood if she’d been afraid of him, but she didn’t ask him to try to change back to his completely human form or act as if she was frightened. She was one amazing woman, and he was thankful to have her in his life.

  Closing his eyes, he rested his head back on the thick tree trunk, but he didn’t sleep. His wolf was on high alert. Even though they were away from the carnage the headlights illuminated, one wolf had escaped, and although Jeremiah didn’t sense anyone near them, he refused to leave her unprotected. He wasn’t entirely sure he could make himself shift back right now, even if he wanted to. For the moment, staying extra strong and slightly terrifying-looking was the best thing.

  Time passed slowly while he waited for his pack. Honey slept soundly, snuggled against his chest, and he nuzzled her from time to time and inhaled her sweet scent. Eventually, after the sun had risen and bathed the woods in ambers and oranges, he heard the sound of vehicles following the path that the van had taken, and he recognized the SUVs from his pack.

  Honey stirred as he nudged her awake and she blinked up at him. “Are we home yet?”

  “No my mate,” he spoke slowly, finding it hard to speak clearly with his mouth elongated slightly like a muzzle.

  He stood fluidly with her in his arms and trekked the short distance to meet his pack members.

  Everyone froze when he came into view. He grimaced internally. If his pack thought he was a freak of nature before, what would they think now?

  “Holy shit,” Acksel said.

  Ren stared with wide eyes, his mouth opening and closing like a fish.

  “Damn, we’ve got our very own wolfman,” Dade said, smiling broadly. Putting his hands on his hips, Dade glanced around at the destruction and then met Jeremiah’s gaze. “Can you shift back? I don’t think you’ll fit in the SUVs.”

  Honey gripped his neck tighter and said, “I’ll help him. Thank you for coming for us.”

  Acksel said, “Zander will take you back to town. We’ll take care of the cleanup here.”

  Honey wiggled a bit in his arms and then tossed the cell phone she’d used to Acksel, who caught it.

  She nuzzled under his twitching ear and whispered, “Can you shift back?”

  “Don’t know,” he said truthfully.

  “Take me back into the woods.”

  He turned and carried her away, back to the place where he’d held her for hours. He put her on her feet. She glanced around and, finding them entirely alone, she slowly pulled apart the torn pieces of her top. His eyes widened as heat blazed through him at the sight of her beautiful breasts, nipples hard from the cold.

  “I love your hands and the way your lips feel on me, Jeremiah,” she whispered, looking up at him coyly. “I know you’d never hurt me with those sharp teeth and claws, but it’s time to go home now.”

  It took only a moment for Jeremiah to reach out to his wolf, and then the change came over his body swiftly. His joints cracked and popped, his muscles tightening and flexing back into their original shape. The thick fur slid smoothly back to firm skin. With normal hands, he reached for his mate and pulled her close, her nipples brushing against his chest as he lowered his mouth to hers. She melted against him with a sigh, and he smiled inwardly. He had one amazing mate.

  They separated after kissing thoroughly. She tied the scraps of her top together again so her breasts were covered, and they walked back to the pack. Zander was waiting by his SUV. “There’s a blanket on the back seat, and you can have my coat if you want, too, Honey.”

  “I’ve got Jeremiah to keep me warm,” she said, smiling up at him.

  Jeremiah grinned like an idiot. He couldn’t help it. Acksel called for him; he opened the back door of the SUV and helped Honey in and then strode to his alpha.

  “Give me a quick overview of what happened, and then you can get back home.”

  He told them what he knew, although he admitted that Honey had more knowledge than he did since he was knocked out and then drugged, not coming awake until they arrived. The simple explanation was that the man she’d called father had tried to trade her to another alpha in exchange for a young female for himself. He was a twisted fuck, and Honey was very lucky that he’d never turned his attentions to her, considering she wasn’t his blood relation.

  “Did you do all this?” Acksel gestured to the bodies.

  Jeremiah nodded. “One male escaped – Shred, the beta from Honey’s former pack. He ran as soon as the others from his pack advanced on me after I threw her dad at the van.”

  Jeremiah wished he’d been able to kill everyone who had come for her, but the alpha was dead and Shred was most likely on his way back to Wyling River to take over.

  Acksel said, “We’ll continue to be vigilant to ensure that he doesn’t come back for you two.”

  “He’d be an idiot with a death wish if he did,” Dade said, smiling.

  “True.” Acksel said. “You know, I don’t know a whole lot of males who could take on so many opponents at once, but you did. You protected your mate in her time of need, and that’s the most important thing a wolf can do for his mate. Do you think you can shift into that big fucker you were when we arrived again? The wolfman?”

  Jeremiah’s eyes narrowed. “Why?”

  “Because if you can, then that tells me that you’re a true shifter, and things can be different for you in the pack.”

  Elation rose inside him. He reached for his wolf in his mind and his body swiftly morphed again.

  “Damn, that’s scary as hell,” Dade said, grinning.

  The shift flowed away from him just as quickly, which made Acksel whistle in appreciation. “A fully shifted wolf can’t switch forms so quickly, so you have an advantage. I need to talk to the elders, but I see good things for you in the future, Jeremiah. For now, though, go take your mate home.”

  “Isn’t my home destroyed?”

  “Oh shit, right. Yes, it’s pretty bad. Brynn is the one that noticed your house was on fire. The fire department put it out. There may be some things that are salvageable, but the house is toast. The protectors who were assigned to watch your home were unconscious and tied up in the woods. Judging from what you told us, they’re lucky to be alive.”

  He nodded, grateful that his fellow packmates were okay.

  “You and Honey can stay in the ap
artment in the garage until you find a place to rent in town,” Ren said. “I’ll call Kammie and ask her to stock the fridge and make sure there are fresh linens for you.”

  “Thank you,” Jeremiah said.

  Ren, who had always looked down on Jeremiah for his lack of shifting abilities, said, “We’re pack, and pack sticks together.”

  “Go take your mate home. That’s an order,” Acksel said, clapping Jeremiah on the back and giving him a gentle nudge toward the SUV, where Honey and Zander were waiting.

  Zander stood outside the SUV and Honey sat in the backseat. “You ready?”

  “Thanks, Zander.”

  As soon as Jeremiah sat down in the backseat and pulled the door shut, Honey crawled into his lap. Jeremiah grabbed the blanket and pulled it over her. Zander backed the SUV away from the others and swung out onto a dirt road.

  “Where will we go?” Honey asked.

  “Ren’s letting us stay in the garage apartment. There are some houses to rent in town; we can check them out. How does that sound?”

  “As long as we’re together, it’ll always be home for me.”

  He hugged her a little closer. “Me, too.”

  Chapter 11

  Honey looked around the apartment and smiled. Kammie had certainly made the place sparkle. A bowl of fruit sat in the center of the kitchen counter, and the scent of lemon cleanser permeated the air.

  “I’m sorry about your house.” She yawned. Even though she’d slept for several hours, exhaustion still pulled at her. She hadn’t slept well since she’d left Wyling River.

  “It’s just a house,” he answered stiffly.