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

  At Brynn’s urging, Honey went to sit down on a plush chair in front of a coffee table.

  “I’m Zander,” the male said as he unloaded several Styrofoam boxes from two large bags. “I’m sorry your car broke down. It’s a good thing that Mia and Nila were on the road, or you might have been in real trouble.”

  “Thanks, Zander. I’m Honey.”

  She watched as he opened the boxes and then folded the bags, tucking them under the table. He left for a moment, going behind the large reception desk and returning with sodas. She figured there was a mini-fridge back there.

  Acksel and Brynn joined them and Acksel said, “Ren is letting you stay in a small apartment here in the garage. He’ll be back in the morning to take a look at your car.” He gave her a calculating look. “I expect to know the full story tomorrow, Honey. Are we clear?”

  “Yes, sir,” she said, dropping her gaze to the floor. Her stomach roiled with unease as she felt him staring at her.

  Brynn dropped into the seat across from her and said, “We’ll be fine, go away. You’re making her nervous and you’re giving me a headache.”

  Immediately the male went into protective mode, dropping to his knees next to the seat. “Are you sick? Is something wrong?”

  “Oh good grief, Acksel! Would you take a pill? I want to talk to Honey for a little while and then you can take me home. Okay?”

  He made a snarling sound but stood and walked away, leaving her and the alpha female alone in the room.

  “Ah, let’s see here. Ooh, Zander’s mom makes the best meatloaf. If I could marry food, I’d marry her meatloaf. Yum.”

  Honey snorted a laugh and Brynn grinned as she lifted the box containing meatloaf and mashed potatoes. “Thank you, Brynn, but I don’t want you to get into trouble with your mate on my behalf.”

  “Who, him? Don’t worry. He’s suspicious of everyone, especially new people, but not me. I like to give everyone the benefit of the doubt. Help yourself.” She gestured with her fork to the table and Honey’s stomach took that moment to growl loudly.

  She looked over the open boxes and decided on a box with pot roast with a side of roasted potatoes and carrots. She loaded the plastic fork with meat and potatoes and sighed in contentment at the wonderful flavor. She’d been eating fast food for the last two days; real home-cooked food tasted amazing.

  They ate in silence. Brynn finished her box and picked up another one, with a club sandwich and fries, and started to eat.

  “Monday’s the full moon. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you that,” Brynn said, taking a long drink of soda.

  “I know.” Honey swirled her fork through the gravy, her stomach tightening in worry.

  “If there’s a problem… I mean, if something is wrong or you’re in trouble, then tell me and we can help.”

  Honey looked across the table at Brynn, her green eyes shining with compassion. She wasn’t sure why she trusted the human woman, but she did. Maybe because she hadn’t had any women in her life she could trust aside from her grandma. Or maybe because she seemed to earnestly want to help.

  “My father is the alpha of the Wyling River Pack.”

  “I don’t know that name. How far away is it?”

  “I don’t know the mileage, but I’ve been on the road since Thursday night, just driving to get away. I slept in my car, I’ve used only cash.”

  “Why did you leave?”

  Honey put her box down and pressed her hands against her knees. “My dad has never been a compassionate male. He’s always looked at me more like an inconvenience than a daughter. I think he wished I’d been born a boy or not at all. My mom took off when I was little, and my grandma raised me. She died six months ago, and after that he started to act really strange. I don’t… I don’t know how to explain it but I felt like a noose was slowly tightening around my neck. I overheard him talking about something happening two days after the full moon, and I panicked. I can’t say what makes me believe that something bad is going to happen; it’s just a feeling in my gut. I knew I needed to leave.

  “I told him I wanted to go to my friend’s bachelorette party, in the hopes of using it as an excuse to miss the full moon and stay away for a while, but he said no. I snuck out instead.”

  “What about his guards? Didn’t anyone try to stop you?”

  “He doesn’t believe in guards. He’s pretty badass. Only an idiot would try to attack him in his house, or anywhere else. I left my cell phone because he kept installing tracking software on it, but I didn’t have a chance to buy another one on the road.”

  Brynn frowned in thought, the silence stretching between them. “Did your car really break down or did you do something to it?”

  “I pulled some wires.”

  “Someone needs to tell Ren that so he doesn’t waste his time messing around looking for the solution and can just fix it.”

  Panic tightened Honey’s chest as she realized the mechanic could probably fix her car in an hour, and then she’d have to leave. She wasn’t a pack member and she was basically on the run.

  “Hey, hey, calm down,” Brynn was suddenly sitting on the arm of the chair, wrapping her arms around Honey as she struggled not to cry. “It’ll be okay. You don’t have to go home if you don’t want to.”

  “Brynn!” Acksel snarled her name so loudly that Honey’s heart stopped beating for a moment.

  Brynn bared blunt teeth at her mate. “Don’t be an asshole. She’s in trouble and she needs help.”

  “She’s a stranger on the run from her alpha. Don’t invite danger into our pack.”

  Brynn stood up and crossed the room to Acksel. She placed her hands on his chest and looked up at him. “Can’t she stay through the full moon? You can call her alpha and tell him that we’ll look after her until then. It’s not our fault if she keeps running instead of going back home after the full moon, is it?”

  Acksel frowned deeply. “You expect me to believe that you would just let her leave? That you wouldn’t want to let her stay as long as she likes?”

  Honey stood slowly. “I won’t. If you let me stay for the full moon, I’ll leave Tuesday morning, I swear.”

  Acksel’s eyes narrowed and she felt like she was staring into a laser beam. Dropping her gaze to the floor, she folded her hands in front of her and debated going to her knees to assume the completely submissive stance her father expected of females.

  “Tuesday at dawn, you’re a ghost, do you get me? I will call your father and let him know you’re under our protection and that you’ll be leaving on Tuesday. Brynn’s correct. I can’t be held responsible if you decide to go in a different direction.”

  Honey lifted her head in surprise. “Really? You’ll let me stay?”

  Acksel wrapped his arms around his mate and said, “What can I say? My mate has a soft heart, and I wouldn’t change that about her for anything. You’ll stay here at the garage. I’ll make arrangements to call your father on Monday before we go hunt. I’ll expect you to stay with guards during the hunt and to leave town when I say. Do you agree to those terms?”

  “Yes, thank you, Alpha.”

  “You’re welcome.” He said the words stiffly and stifled an aggravated sigh.

  “Thank you, Alpha,” Brynn whispered coyly, and Acksel’s aggravated sigh turned into a sultry growl.

  Honey returned to the table and packed up the remainder of the food. Zander appeared and said, “I’ll do it, Honey.”

  “Thanks,” she said.

  Ren, the mechanic, walked into the room. “If you’re done eating, Honey, I can show you the apartment.” He turned to Acksel. “I called Sam and asked him to send two guards to watch over the shop tonight so she’ll feel safer.”

  Acksel nodded.

  Honey walked up to the alphas and Brynn hugged her. “Goodnight, Honey.”

  “Thank you for dinner and for your kindness.”

  “Everyone needs a little kindness.”

  Wasn’t that the damn truth?

  *
* * * *

  The apartment was up a set of metal stairs on the far side of the garage, with two windows that overlooked the interior. Ren opened the door and followed her in. The lights were already on, and she saw that he’d brought her bag and purse from her car and set them on the couch.

  “I overheard what Acksel said. You can stay here until the full moon. The fridge isn’t stocked, but I’ll have an omega bring breakfast and a few groceries over tomorrow. I’ll get your car ready so you can leave on Tuesday morning. I wrote my cell on the notepad by the phone; you can call if you need anything.”

  “Thank you, Ren.”

  He looked down at her, light brown eyes sweeping over her with a hint of lust. He was handsome and well-built, with short, dark blond hair. Her wolf snored in disinterest, which was probably for the best. Any tumbling between the sheets with the handsome mechanic wouldn’t delay her inevitable leaving on Tuesday. It was probably better to just keep her legs closed and a lid on her libido.

  He cleared his throat and said, “You’re welcome, Honey. Goodnight.”

  She locked the door when he was gone and leaned against the cold steel door. Relief flooded through her. Things could have gone from bad to worse in a heartbeat. Acksel could’ve had Ren tow her car to the next town to get her out of his hair. If not for his compassionate mate, that’s probably what he would have done. Honey had acted very foolishly when she’d stranded herself. It had been the stupidest thing she’d done in a long while.

  Leaving was the right thing, she was sure of it. Her father was planning something after the full moon, and she was certain it involved her. An inkling of impending doom had caused her to run without too much thought. She could have gone to Heidi and Trixie for help, but they were human, and humans didn’t understand pack behavior. They would tell her to move out and start her life over, but it wasn’t that simple. She’d left without her alpha’s permission and she was purposely missing the full moon. That alone, coupled with his express denial of her leaving, meant he could punish her severely. She’d seen her father attack pack males for far lesser crimes. Her grandma had shielded her from her father’s wrath as a child, but she was alone now.

  Very alone.

  She missed Stacy. Stacy would’ve had a better plan for leaving than just disabling her car and hoping for the best. Planning was clearly not in Honey’s wheelhouse.

  She hadn’t taken a shower in two days, so she hoped like hell there was a shower in the efficiency apartment. She moved to the couch and opened her bag, pulling out pajamas and toiletries. The large main room held a couch, an old television on a stand, and a desk. The kitchenette had a small refrigerator, a two burner stove, and a sink along one wall, with a tiny round table and two chairs. Three wooden doors stood ajar. One was a large closet, full of dusty old clothes and shoes. She quickly shut the door and then sneezed twice. The second door was a laundry closet with a stackable washer and dryer. The third door, thankfully, was the bathroom. A tiny bathroom, but with a stall shower, toilet, and sink, so she wouldn’t complain.

  It took five minutes for the water to go from freezing cold to warm, and she ducked under the almost too chilly spray and cleaned up. It felt good to rinse off the last two days, to scrub her skin and wash her hair until she felt thoroughly clean. It took her a moment to realize she hadn’t looked for towels before she got wet. Stepping from the shower, she saw there weren’t any on the rack on the wall. She shook out her limbs and wrung her hair out, her skin goosebumping with the chill in the air. There weren’t any towels in the laundry closet, either. She tapped her fingernails on the washer lid. She didn’t want to put on her pajamas when she was soaking wet, so she’d do the next best thing.

  Walking over to her bag, she pulled out her travel hair dryer and plugged it into the outlet in the bathroom. When she turned it on, the lights dimmed for a second and she worried she was going to blow a fuse, but nothing happened. She dried her body and then her hair, her long tresses taking a while to dry with the low-powered travel dryer.

  After dressing in her pajamas, she went to the couch and put her duffel on the floor. She knew the couch probably pulled out, but since there weren’t towels in the bathroom, she was betting there weren’t sheets on the mattress. Even if there were, she most likely wouldn’t want to sleep on them anyway. Unpacking her grandma’s quilt from the duffel, she unfolded it and found the items she’d taken out of her bedroom.

  In all the months since Stacy had passed, she’d never opened the diary. It had been a private recording of her grandma’s thoughts, and it had felt intrusive. But now, sitting in a stranger’s apartment in a strange town, she thought it would help her feel better to connect with Stacy through the diary. It would make her feel a little less alone, at least for a little while.

  Wrapping up in the quilt, she settled on the couch and opened the leather-bound book. As she started to read the first entry, dated over a year ago, she pushed away the thoughts of what the dawn would bring.

  Honey was angry at herself for not picking up the diary before now. In the months since Stacy’s death, she’d had plenty of opportunities to read it, but she’d never taken the time. The pages of the diary were filled with Stacy’s fears and suspicions, and Honey knew if she’d read the diary months ago she would have bolted from her father sooner.

  * * *

  December 29th — A young male named Bruno came to me two days ago to ask if I would approve of him taking Honey on a date. He was very timid and sweet, and although Honey doesn’t seem interested in dating anyone in particular, I told him that he should ask her and see what she says. I haven’t seen him since. I spoke to his mother this morning, and she told me that Bruno was asked by the beta to go on a special hunting trip. A bad feeling has settled over me. I believe that Dexter sent the young male away to be killed in a way that would make it look like an accident. It wouldn’t be the first time that he’s done such a thing.

  * * *

  February 2nd — I can’t shake the worry that Dexter is planning something. I know he’s my son, but he’s not the man I raised. Being alpha changed him, for the worse. When he was little, he would sit on my lap and I’d read him stories about heroes who always did the right thing. The male who runs the pack is not a boy anymore. He hasn’t really been the same since Vicky left. I write that she left, but in my heart I know she didn’t leave voluntarily. She loved Honey. She lived for her daughter. There’s no way on earth that she would have willingly walked away. She was the best daughter-in-law a woman could ask for. It wasn’t her fault that her father agreed to the mating that Dexter demanded. Vicky was so unhappy in the mating, until she had Honey. Then she seemed to have hope. I suspect that she’s not really off ‘whoring around’ as Dexter says. I don’t know what happened to her, but I believe she’s not on this earth any longer. The more time that passes, the more certain I become.

  * * *

  May 23rd — I can feel I’m being watched constantly. I want to tell Honey to pack up her things and leave, but I can’t find a time to be alone with her. Every time we’re in a room together, just the two of us, one of Dexter’s friends barges in. Yesterday I dropped my keys as I was getting into my car and when I bent down to retrieve them I saw a dark puddle underneath the car. I’m no mechanic, but I think someone cut the brake line. I can’t explain the fear that coiled through me. I’ve been cooking my own food for the last two weeks. After I had that bout of food poisoning, I began to believe that Dexter was trying to poison me. The time has come for me to take Honey and go. I should have left with her years ago, before Dexter became such a twisted, evil menace. He’s planning something for Honey. He’s never once shown a fatherly love toward her, and I’ve seen the way he looks at her — as if he could just as easily kill her as smile at her. I’m afraid for my life, and I’m afraid for Honey’s future. There is no love there. How will she ever be safe?

  * * *

  Honey looked at the date of the last entry as chills ran down her spine. It was just a few days be
fore Stacy died. She closed the diary and held it against her chest, her mind racing with all that she’d read. She hadn’t meant to read the entire diary, but she’d been unable to put it down as Stacy chronicled her fears and suspicions for the last year of her life. She didn’t know why Stacy was never able to tell her what she worried about, but she was certain that her father made very sure that her grandmother didn’t have the opportunity.

  Honey had done what Stacy had wanted — she’d left Wyling River. She just wished that Stacy had been able to be with her. Her mind spun as she thought about all that she’d learned. Was Stacy right? Had her mother been harmed by her father instead of running off as she’d always been told?

  Tucked into the pages of the diary were a few family photos; Stacy on her mating day, flowers tucked into her curly hair. Honey’s mother, holding her pregnant belly and smiling. Her mom holding her when she was just a baby. She cherished the photos, all she had left of her family. Knowing that Stacy believed her father had done something to her mother, and possibly killed Stacy herself, made Honey grateful she’d been able to get away. After the full moon, she would leave Wilde Creek and keep on going, as far away from Wyling River and the male who destroyed her family as she could possibly get.

  Chapter 4

  Sunday morning, Honey was woken up by gentle knocking on the door. A young woman who identified herself as Kammie stood with another male, with scars on his neck and cheek. The man, who said his name was Adam, had two grocery sacks, and Kammie held what looked like a restaurant take-out bag.

  Honey wrapped the quilt around herself more, since she was still in her pajamas, and invited the two inside.

  “Did you sleep well?” Kammie asked, eyeing the apartment with a critical eye. “I would’ve had to scrub the whole place down with bleach before I fell asleep.”