Mate of a Wild Wolf (SAMPLE)

Part One. Chapter Two. David

"Hey mum, what's for dinner?" I asked as I came in the kitchen.

It was officially the summer holidays and I'd been mostly hanging out in the pack house and pack gym. I, like my friends, wanted to be one of Marcus' Betas once he became Alpha on his twenty fifth birthday. To do that, I needed to be strong, strong enough to win the challenges of others that also coveted the position. Marcus too had to train, less he found he was challenged and lost his place as Alpha.

"Sirloin steaks," mum replied as she checked the contents of the oven, "with jacket potatoes. We are just waiting on your brothers."

My older brothers were actually only eighteen months and four years older than me. I also had an older sister, Lisa, who was six years my senior. But she was the only one of us to have found their mate and left home. Antony and Eddie hadn't left the den yet.

"I saw Eddie at the gym earlier," I mentioned. Like me, Ed wanted to rise to becoming a Beta or a warrior at least. My wolf and I couldn't see ourselves settling for becoming less than a Beta. We would rather seek our fortunes elsewhere than settle. We were too proud and too dominant to be ordered about by others.

Antony, on the other hand, had already taken a position in the hunter ranks, seeking to supplement our diets with the fresh game that our wolves desired. It might sound cruel to outsiders, but just as vampires needed blood, we needed to hunt. The hunters could be likened to game wardens as well as hunters; they would guide the pack to places we could hunt and warn us away from places game was too sparse. They would aid in repopulation of rabbits and rodents, while watching the wild herds and ensuring we didn't go overboard.

My wolf and I loved the hunt, whether it be with others or alone, but it was hard to hold back and allow others to eat our prey, so we tended to opt for the latter more often these days. We were definitely too selfish to become a hunter and too greedy as well.

It didn't take long for my brothers to show up at the dinner table, we were growing wolves and dinner was calling to our stomachs. And besides, mum's cooking was the best. There was not a scrap left on any dinner plate by the time we were sated, our dishes could be placed in the dishwasher without any extra care. Each of us, my brothers, myself and my dad were very obedient in performing this task. My mum hated it when we left dirty dishes in the sink to 'soak.'

"I heard Mrs Benson say that her niece met her mate in her sister-in-law's pack," Mum suddenly mentioned. "Perhaps I ought to send you boys to visit. You might find your mates there."

Antony and Eddie glanced at each other. I always got the impression that they were really not that bothered about finding their mates. They just didn't realise what they were missing out on. "Which pack?" Eddie asked.

"Hockins pack," mum replied.

"We are allies with that pack," dad mentioned. "I'm sure it would not be a problem if either of you boys chose to visit."

Antony face fell, his whole demeanour one of a dominant wolf having lost in battle to another. "Mum, dad," he said, his shoulder slumped heavily downwards, "there's something I need to tell you. A-about eighteen months ago, I met my mate."

My parents froze, shit, so did I! This was the first any of us had heard about this! Eddie though was looking at our older brother with a face filled with sympathy. Clearly, he already knew about this and whatever else Antony had yet to tell us.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Mum's eyes had a hidden sparkle in them, her hopes already high. Mum was always thinking of things in a positive light, I bet right now she was thinking along the lines of 'his mate can't be with him right now, but soon! Perhaps she's a university student, studying far from home. Perhaps she happens to have obstacles preventing her from being with Antony, but we can help her overcome them!' Dad placed his hand upon her shoulder and shook his head, her smile wavered.