The Alpha And His Mate (Silver Hills #1)

Chapter 8

I stood at the border of the woods, hands clenched in my dress. The summer air was chill and my blood ran cold as I peered at my doom.

"If you don't go in now blood will be shed." Genevieve was as optimistic as she usually was.

"I thought Richard was distracting the hunting party?" I muttered, my voice as fragile as I felt.

"He can't keep them talking about guns all night," Genevieve snapped. "Get on with it."

"What..." my voice trialed off.

"What?"

"What if I see him?"

Genevieve laughed cooly. "Your life depends on him being with his pack. If not they'll tear you apart. He hasn't fully accepted your mating bond yet so the pack won't know not to harm you."

"But the grey wolf," I remembered. "He acted like he knew me. Like he recognised who I was."

Genevieve's lips were pressed tightly together. "That was Blaze. He's the beta of the pack so Jax will of told him everything. But if the rest of the pack begin their hunt then only Jax will be able to stop them. So pray that he's there."

"And what then?" I asked, stalling for time. "Your precious council was so adamant that me and Jax be separated, how will they react to you forcing us together."

"This is a special circumstance. After tonight you will never see each other again."

The certainty in her voice made my heart sink. I suddenly felt desperate to see Jax, just once, so I could keep my mate in my memory. The thought pulled me forwards into the thicket of the woods. Heart racing, I shut my eyes and searched out for Jax with my heart. Save me.

No voice replied. I had quieted any external voices with the potion.

Genevieve's cold voice chased me into the dark. "Run."

I sprinted, my feet padding against the floor, moss and twigs flying behind me. The trees whirled past me, like dancers in a ballroom. I was to follow the chain that pulled me forwards. I barely had to think where I was going; Jax seemed to be pulling me forwards.

A burning desperation suddenly set aflame in my chest. My lips felt cold and barren. I needed to touch him. I needed to press my freezing lips to his and let his fire devour me. I sprinted faster, feeling feral and hardly human.

In my desperation I stumbled and tripped. I barely noticed, the world was a haze. I knew the only thing that would be clear was him. I craved him, body and soul. I felt a madness claw up inside me, the heat in my chest making it easy to ignore the scrapes and blood that covered my arms and legs.

I was getting close. I could feel it. Not so far away I heard a wolf howl.

And then a gunshot.

A small part of my mind told me that I was trying to stop the people with the guns. I batted it away with the image of my lips on my mates. My mate. My equal.

I swallowed hard, my throat parched and dry, before pushing forwards again. More wolves were howling. I could distinguish one specific howl, low and guttural. It set my heart racing and made my stomach cool tightly. I practically leapt towards the cry, bashing my face against a tree in the process. Blood began to pour down my face. I hoped it would run into my mouth and quench my thirst.

I was so close. One more step. Just another sprint.

I burst out into a clearing. Twelve men sat around one wolf, who had blood pouring from their side. I only cared about one.

Dark hair and silver eyes like moonlight. His skin was tanned and scarred and perfect. His lips formed Cupid's bow, begging me to kiss them. Thoughts in a frenzy, I flung myself at him.

I had the murmur of shock and horror as I wrapped myself around the alpha, pulling him as close to me as humanely possible. A low growl emerged from his chest as I pressed my lips against his, tasting the forest as he kissed me back.

It seemed we had both lost all sense. My blood poured over him. We stumbled, lost in each other. He collapsed on top of me and I felt blades of grass tickle my neck and legs.

And then the warmth was gone. The fire had left my chest. My ears were ringing.

I gasped, no longer crazed by desire. Jax was being restrained by another man, with dark skin and long hair, who held him back despite the growls and swearing. I could hear him saying something to him a low voice. I eventually made it out as "she's hurt Jax. She needs help."

Jax's sculpted jaw clenched, nostrils flaring. "Fine," he gritted out in a perfect, low and melodic voice. I watch the muscles in his back ripple as I felt my own face burn crimson with shame. I had thrown myself at him in front of his pack. They would never respect me now.

Jax seemed to be pulled of to the side as the long-haired man came over to offer me a hand.

"You're the mate. then?" He asked in a warm voice. "Jax is certainly lucky to have ended up with you."

I didn't know what else to do but introduce myself. "I'm Persephone," I said in a thick voice, still embarrassed by my behaviour.

"I'm Blaze," he replied, helping me stand. From the corner of my eye I saw two groups, one around the injured wolf and another around Jax, who sounded dangerously angry. "Don't worry about Jax. He's not mad at you."

"The hunters," I said. "They shot a pack member. That's what I was trying to stop."

"Well if it's any consolation, you saved lives tonight," he told me, ripping fabric from his shirt to mop up my blood.

"How? I failed at what I set out to do." Guilt began to eat at me. "And then as soon as I got into the woods all I could think about was Jax." My eyes closed in shame.

"You couldn't help that," Blaze said quietly. "And if it weren't for you we would've attacked the hunters. Jax caught your scent in the forest and madly chased after it. It meant that we could come to our senses and realise helping Marco was more important than revenge."

Relief flooded me. Not only had I saved the wolves, but I'd saved Angel's dad. Me running through the woods like an idiot wasn't for nothing after all.

"Will Marco be okay?" I asked, looking at the injured wolf in concern. He wasn't dead yet, but I knew little about wolf injuries.

"He won't be able to shift back for a while," Blaze said sadly. "But he should survive. Our brothers are strong."

"I can tell," I said, eyes wandering to their copious amount of muscle. "Where do you live? Is there somewhere warm to keep Marco?" I nearly offered my house up before thinking about how hysterical my mom would be if she saw a wolf watching tv in our living room.

"We have a house deeper in the woods," he explained. "We'll carry him there once we've got you sorted."

I blushed again, thinking about all the problems I'd caused. "It's fine. I'll just walk back to my... companion and she'll sort me out."

More like she'd laugh at me and then leave, but I didn't need to tell him that.

"No." Another voice said. I turned to see another pack member, blonde and tall, glaring at me. "You can't leave."

I opened my voice to ask why but he cut me off.

"Jax wants to speak to you."