“I wouldn’t trust anyone else,” Diskant said. “You’re who they need.”
“Tell me that after I speak to them.” Turning his head slightly, he gazed at Sadie. “Someone needs to stay with her in case she wakes up. I don’t want her alone.”
“I’ll stay.” Ava walked to a chair on the other side of the bed. “I won’t leave until you come back.”
At least he had that small consolation. Ava wouldn’t let anyone near Sadie. He actually felt sorry for anyone who tried to get into the bedroom. Ava—even in her condition—would likely throw them out by their ears. Then they’d have to deal with Diskant.
Anyone with half a brain would know better.
“I’m going to speak with Zach.” Swiveling around, Trey faced Diskant. “It won’t take long. You’ll need to take care of the females. I want them gone before I address the pack.”
“Consider it done. Ava mine,” his voice softened as he spoke to his female, “be ready.”
“I don’t want them near Sadie.” Hell no.
“Trust me,” Diskant said, a menacing glint in his eye, “they won’t be.”
It took all of his will to walk out of the room. He detested the distance, hated each step he took away from his mate. Sadie’s request, “Be fierce,” kept him going. This was what she’d wanted, for him to be the man she admired. He could do no less. Not after what she’d sacrificed. He’d be the Alpha the pack needed, commanding their respect. Trust would be slower to achieve but eventually it would come as well.
Zach was where Diskant had said he’d be, seated on the couch. The male had changed drastically since Katie had died. Physically he was thinner, his frame no longer as wide or muscular. His hair was long and unkempt, dark blue eyes constantly brooding. Once Zach had been a consummate joker, easy to laugh and exchange witty barbs. Those days were gone, leaving behind a shell of Zach’s former self.
How in the hell he’d survived the loss, Trey had no idea.
Perhaps it was his need for revenge.
Maybe Zach couldn’t rest until he’d made the Shepherds pay for what they’d done.
“I need to be clear,” Trey said, striding into the room. “If you want the position, you have to be ready for what comes with being a Beta. It can’t be done half-assed.”
“I don’t do half-assed,” Zach grumbled, rising from the couch.
“Are you sure you’re up to this?” To keep the pack balanced Zach would have to cage his grief. It was all about stability and management. “Can you honestly tell me you won’t buckle under pressure?”
The male’s intense gaze didn’t falter. “I need this,” he rasped through clenched teeth. “I have to have a reason to wake up each day. I…” He exhaled through his nose, a tic visible in his jaw. “Katie wouldn’t want me to follow her to the grave. My existence—her memory—keeps her alive. I won’t let her be forgotten.”
“Is that how you do it?” Trey didn’t want to be cruel by asking but he was curious. Most males would have withered and died after the loss of their mate. “Is that what’s kept you going?”
“I’m not sure.” A bit of the tension left Zach’s face. “I ask myself the same question. I can’t explain it.”
There has to be another mate for him.
Such a thing was rare but it had been known to happen with shifters and humans if the third stage of the bloodbond hadn’t been established. Zach had to know it. The male wasn’t a young cub.
He’d been around, seen a lot of things.
And he’d endured the worst loss imaginable.
Zachery Taylor didn’t appreciate the way Trey looked at him. Hell, he didn’t appreciate the way the pack did. He loathed their sympathetic glances, hated the way they whispered behind his back. He knew what they were thinking and it pissed him off.
Katie couldn’t have been his mate. He’d have died if she had been.
So far from the fucking truth.
A familiar pain lanced his chest. He thought about Katie every minute, longing for her touch, wishing for a trace of her sweet scent. He’d gone through the second bloodbonding stage with her, had been ready to put a permanent stamp on their union. If he’d been smart he’d have pushed for the third as well. She wouldn’t have survived the explosion but at least he could have joined her in the afterlife.
He hated memories, especially when they took him back to the night she’d been killed. Yet they rose unbidden, plaguing him with torment. The moment her life had been taken he’d felt it. The sensation had been like an amputation of his heart, an invisible enemy punching through his torso and ripping away the most vital part of his soul. He’d fallen to his knees, stricken by the blow.
But somehow—someway—he’d managed to make it to his feet.
At first his pain had kept him strong.
He’d wrapped the feeling around him like a blanket, using it as a weapon. He wasn’t sure when things had changed, failed to notice the shift in his beast. The animal was the reason shifters dwindled away and died following the death of a mate. At first his wolf wanted to do just that. It told him to find a place to rest and never get up again. The man, however, had wanted to kill the people who’d taken Katie from him. Over time the wolf’s gloom had eased.
Why? He didn’t understand it.
Even worse? Each day became a little easier.
He wasn’t sure he liked that.
“I stayed after you left,” Zach said. Instead of lingering on Katie’s memory, he got to work. Trey wanted to see what he was made of as a Beta. This was his opportunity to show the Alpha what he could do. “The pack has calmed substantially. They’re mystified by what they saw, which is why they’re willing to listen. Most of them have never seen anything like Aldon before.”
“Did Diskant tell you everything?” Trey questioned.
“Yes.” Zach hadn’t wanted to believe it but he’d seen Aldon with his own eyes. With a creature that powerful Diskant didn’t have to sugarcoat the issues the pack faced. “I know what’s coming.”
“And you still want to be my Beta?”
“I do.”
As the second wolf in charge he’d be privy to information. He wanted to be the first in line to kill Shepherds when they returned. And they would return, coming back to New York with reinforcements. To him Aldon was merely an afterthought. He didn’t care about Trey’s mating or any of the rest. He wanted to feast on the blood of his enemies, watch the life drain from their eyes.
“Nathan will eventually return.” Trey rubbed the back of his neck. “When that happens you’ll have to step down. Are you willing to do that?”
Oh yeah, he was willing. But not for the reasons Trey expected. “Yes.”
“Then I guess…” Trey lowered his arm, crossing to him. “It’s official.”
Zach took the hand Trey offered, shaking firmly.
He’d do what he had to, be the Beta the pack needed. In the meantime he’d continue collecting all the information he could, storing it away. The wolf snapped its teeth, squirming under his skin. With effort he made the beast subside. That was his ability, his gift. Like a mask that never slipped out of place. He could control emotion, use it to his advantage. Trey didn’t know what Zach had in mind. The Alpha wouldn’t, either, until Zach let him in on his secret.
A vision of Katie’s face floated before him—beautiful, sweet. Perfect.
He wanted to growl but didn’t. He’d gotten what he needed.
With addresses and names he’d finally be able to leave New York and start hunting.