The Mystic Wolves

Chapter Three

We hadn’t been in town long when I realized someone was following us. I’d brushed it off as my imagination getting the best of me, but when Jasmine started getting nervous as well, we abandoned our plans, and started heading home.

But whoever was stalking us hadn’t given up, and now we were trapped.

The loud click of a gun being cocked stopped me cold. I didn’t need to turn around to see death had finally caught us. I closed my eyes for a brief moment and grimaced.

I dug deep for courage as my hand was squeezed. Jasmine would be terrified enough without seeing fear in my eyes and if we were going to get out of this, I needed to keep her calm-or at least calmer than I felt.

Giving her a look I hoped conveyed confidence, I motioned for her to stay quiet as I positioned her behind me and turned to look at our attacker.

I saw the gun, aimed straight at me. The finger poised over the trigger ready to shoot. The hand holding it was steady and trained to adjust to every movement. I shied to the left and back again. Without hesitation, the gun’s motion mimicked mine.

Damn. Judging from the precise actions-whoever was holding the gun knew what they were doing. If they took a shot, they wouldn’t miss and out running a bullet was too risky.

A quick sniff at the air and drawing on my other senses told me I was dealing with a human male and I couldn’t help but grin at the bitter scent of fear mixed in with the sweetness of his excitement. It was intoxicating

My body began to relax. As long as I paid attention to the gun still pointed at me, and made no crazy moves, our chances of escape had just increased.

I looked beyond the weapon and recognized the determined face staring back at me. The emotions rolling off his body caused my wolf to raise her head and howl. This wasn’t a pack mate or dominant wolf to play submissive with by showing my throat. Looking at our attacker, I could feel my hackles rise as she growled, desperate to take over.

I sent a silent command to the wolf inside me to stand down. I explained there would be no need for her to come forward because I had everything under control. She whined impatiently at being refused.

Something didn’t seem right about the situation. The man standing before me was Gary, and although it caused a slight disturbance in the Pack, he had been declared an official friend.

Without a doubt, Gary knew who Jasmine and I were and our importance. He’d been warned any act of aggression towards the Alpha’s intended mate and sister was an instant death sentence – regardless of the person.

My wolf stepped forward again, this time nudging me harder. She sensed the disturbance and it unsettled her. She could smell the danger in the air and begged for permission to take control – to protect us. I could deal with the situation as a wolf, but I was serious when I told Mason to try reasoning before violence.

I remembered the last heated discussion between us. He’d laughed when I said we should try to take more peaceful approaches when dealing with conflicts. I didn’t always agree with the werewolf mentality of bite first-ask questions later. I’d told him I’d seen too much violence in my life, and was tired of it. When I showed I wouldn’t back down, he nodded his approval. I think he got a kick out of the way I stood up to him because our debates always ended up with me pressed up against a surface, Mason kissing me as though he was hungry.

“You don’t want to do this, Gary” I spoke, putting as much compulsion in my voice as I could without triggering him. I stepped forward, only to stop when I noticed his eyes darting toward Jasmine. He held a crazed look, and I needed his focus away from her.

“Don’t assume to know what I want,” he spat out, spittle flying from his lips.

My mind raced. Mentally cringing, I remembered my last words to Mason. “You don’t need to come with us every time we leave the house. There’s no threat. We’ll be back soon.” That had been my intention, but when I sensed someone following, I’d tried to evade them, but with no luck, unable to leave and get back to pack property. Searching for somewhere private to hide until the danger had passed, I wanted to laugh because my brilliant plan had clearly bitten us in the butt. I hadn’t saved us at all. We were now trapped between freedom and a madman with a gun.

Mentally I crossed my fingers as I assessed the situation, hoping this would be another case of me escaping by the skin of my teeth with no harm done.

Jasmine’s exhale of breath drove home the seriousness of the moment. I knew she was scared, and I needed to get us out of here.

I took in Gary’s expression and noticed the trickle of sweat rolling down the sides of his cheek. The man may have nerves of steel when it came to handling weapons, but he wasn’t as unaffected as he let on. Judging by the slight tick in his right eye and the way he kept licking his lips, he was nervous and I could use that to my advantage.

My brain scrambled for what I knew of him. Mason had asked Gary last summer to help with the home renovations he’d planned. Even though they had little in common, there was something about the human which endeared him to the Alpha, and he started including Gary in certain Pack activities.

I wondered what triggered him. Something had pushed him over the edge and made him lose control. I wasn’t sure how to handle the situation because causing Gary to freak out would make him fire the gun. If I launched myself at him, my werewolf strength might overpower him and knock him out. Or I could be patient and see if talking my way out this helped. Either choice was a gamble. Right now he called all the shots and that left very little wiggle room for me to act.

I knew there was two sure fire ways to get a response out of a man – turn him on or piss him off, and judging by how my pack brothers carried on, I figured turning Gary on would be the easiest way to resolve this.

My plan was I’d bat my eyelids, toss in a pouty smile, and flirt the gun right out of his grip. I knew the effect I had on men when I turned on the charm, the way they became putty in my hands. People joked how Mason governed the Pack with an iron fist but all I had to do was crook my little finger and he’d come running. I would need all my confidence to pull this off because the very thought I’d have to touch him made my skin crawl. My stomach tossed about as I offered a silent prayer.

Men respond to a third thing, my wolf growled as she paced beneath the surface. Violence.

She craved to be let loose so she could pounce on Gary and eliminate him. She was blood thirsty and enraged, and I struggled to control the feral energy she gave off. I needed to keep her restrained because there wasn’t a chance in hell he’d survive her attack.

I took in a deep breath, desperate to release the tension in my muscles. I had to move with grace if I was to play the role of the seductress.

I felt my lips curve into a smile as I lifted my arm to touch him. I forced my hands to look soft and not curl into claws to rip out his throat. Lowering my voice, I whispered, “Come now Gary, there must be something we can do to move past this. You don’t want to hurt me.” I let my other hand roll down the length of my body, hoping to keep his attention.

His focus remained on my face, and panic flickered in his eyes before he hid it. But I’d caught it. He didn’t like what I was doing. He was becoming anxious and I could work with that.

“You need to stop whatever it is you’re doing,” his voice came out in a rushed puff.

I closed the distance between us, never taking my eyes off him. Digging deep to steady my hands, I caressed the side of his cheek, making sure I continued to breath in and out. He hadn’t shaved, the stubble feeling coarse under my fingertips.

My wolf growled, fighting hard for dominance. She didn't like this, but I couldn't let her out. She nipped at me, showing her displeasure and I struggled to ignore her.

Bile rose up into my mouth as my fingers traced over his cheekbones. 'See, we can work this out, Gary. There's no need for violence.' I wanted to add he could put the gun down, but I didn’t want to remind him he had it.

I pressed my body against his. His eyes instantly widened, pupils dilating.

Leaning in, I purred into his ear. 'Is there somewhere we can go? Maybe a little more