“Wild werewolves attack humans all the time,” Everett said.
“They do so less than you think they do,” James retorted. Apparently he’d decided that the conversation was over because he walked right by Everett without any other word or explanation.
The other werewolves followed him.
Cole took Everett by the hand and pulled him along. “Come on. You should get back on the four-wheeler. We’ve still got a long way to go.”
That probably meant that Cole felt comfortable running in his wolf form the rest of the way and wouldn’t be sharing the backseat of the four-wheeler with him. Magnificent.
* * * *
James had the pack running until well into nightfall. That human that Cole had mated with, who James was still watching carefully, could bitch and complain all he wanted about not going after his former ally, but the fact of the matter was that the last time nearly every alpha had left pack land like this, they’d returned to find that their omegas were under attack.
That, and Phillip’s pack had been nearly wiped out entirely, including his wife and mate, Helen.
That was what he needed to speak to the man about now. Phillip didn’t look like he was entirely in there, maybe he’d gone half-wild while he’d been out on his own for all this time, and James wanted to prepare the man.
He made sure to also keep an eye on him as they all traveled, but Nick was also sticking close to his former alpha, and when they stopped for the night, James called out to him.
“Hey, Phil, can you come with me for a minute?”
The man just stared at him blankly, but he did come forward. James wasn’t surprised when Nick followed him.
The blind werewolf was a former alpha under Phillip’s command. He was going to want to make sure the man was all right. James respected that and didn’t say anything to him.
The three men walked several feet away from the pack of wolves who were settling down for the night. Everyone was hungry, but no one had the energy to hunt just now. They were tired and sore. Food could wait until morning.
“What did you want to speak to me about?” Phillip asked.
When the man looked at James, he got the feeling that Phillip was staring past him. That couldn’t be a good thing.
James sighed and rubbed his face. “You know you’ve been gone a long time. Are you okay to come back into pack life? If you’re even partially wild right now, then I don’t want to risk that you…allow what happened to you to make you fall even further into depression. I’ve got the pups and the omegas to think about.”
A partially wild werewolf, and even fully wild werewolves, could always be brought back into society. They just had to want it enough.
Thankfully, Phillip only looked like he fell into the partial category. Cole was once partially wild, as was Trevor. Maybe James could get one or both of them to help ease Phillip back into some semblance of a normal life. Cole just found his mate and would likely be wanting to spend more time with him, but Trevor had been looking for some way to prove himself.
That, and the man had been staring at Phillip for quite a long time as they ran. James was inclined to think that there was something going on there.
Phillip frowned at him, and then he looked down at his hands and then back at Nick.
“I’ve been having trouble putting my thoughts into words lately,” he said, speaking slowly. “Everything that goes through my head does seem to be instinctual. Food, rest, that kind of thing, but I believe I will be all right. I would never hurt a pup.”
The thing that worried James the most was the way Phillip’s bottom lip and arms trembled when he said that.
James put his hands on Phillip’s shoulders. “Corey and I have been taking care of your pup, so you don’t have to worry about him. He’s safe.”
Phillip’s head whipped up at those words, and his hazel eyes went as wide as golf balls.
“What…what are you talking about?”
James frowned. He looked over at Nick, and there was a similar look on the blind wolf’s face, too.
Nick decided to be the one to explain this. “Sammy is alive, sir. Didn’t you know that?”
Phillip shook his head. “Sammy…that’s what we were going to name our pup.” His eyes were desperate now as he looked up into James’s eyes. “She was still pregnant when she died. How could the baby have survived?”
Now James’s eyes went wide, and his mouth dropped.
How was he expected to respond to something like that? Phillip had basically just let James know that he’d lost the last year of his memories.
* * * *
Everett didn’t know how he was expected to sleep with all of the wolf bodies lying around him. Many had their golden eyes open, and they were staring at him as though they expected him to get up from his spot under a tree and stab them all in their sleep.
He was just hoping they wouldn’t stab him.
At least the cold and hard ground he was lying on was dry. There was always that one little upside.
Though he fought against it and his stomach rumbled, he was nearly asleep when he felt something moving beside him. He jerked awake, not expecting to see Cole there at all.
“Sorry, did I wake you?”
“Wasn’t exactly having the best sleep in the world right now anyway,” Everett grumbled. “Where were you?”
“James wanted to ask me about something.”
“Something?”
“About you,” Cole admitted. “I think I’ve got him convinced that you’re not a threat, but you’ll still get watched for a little while.”
That was to be expected, and really, Everett didn’t mind.
“Are you okay?”
Clearly Cole could tell that Everett wasn’t just in a pissy mood because he was tired and hungry.
“Just come here,” Everett grumbled, putting his hands on Cole’s naked waist and pulling him down to
