Chapter 8: Out of Control

Lynne's POV

The moment I heard the voice, my body started shaking without any control. Nina stopped crying. I felt the arms she had around me slowly tighten. Julian took two cautious steps forward, his brow creasing hard as he looked toward the entrance. "That sounds like Alpha Wyatt." My eyes went wide — but somewhere inside me, something unclenched. Good. At least it wasn't the Crimson Howl Pack. "You really are a curse. All you do is bring chaos down on us!" Mrs. Hathaway hissed, keeping her voice low. I looked at her, helpless and guilt-ridden. Nina started to speak up in my defense, but I stopped her.

"Julian, let me handle it. I'll go out now. Trust me — I won't let anything happen to you." I stepped forward and looked him straight in the eye, saying each word with care. In the faint, flickering light of the cave, Julian's expression reminded me, in a strange and hazy way, of my father's face on the night the Moonshadow Pack fell. But this time, it was my turn to protect them. Even without full certainty, I knew — this time, whatever it cost me, even my life, I could not let anything happen to my Pack.

I met Nina's eyes for a moment, then turned and walked quickly toward the cave entrance. Outside, I could hear voices: "Alpha, there's no Pack scent here at all. Going in without warning could be dangerous." I didn't slow down. I kept walking. The path grew narrower and narrower until I had to curl inward, bent at the waist, head lowered. The light from outside grew brighter with every step. When I was about a meter from the entrance, still inside, Wyatt suddenly ducked his head in. It startled me. "Alpha, what are you doing?"

"That's exactly what I should be asking you. Why are you here?" Wyatt's eyes were cold — the eyes of a dangerous hunter. A tall man stood beside him, probably his future Beta. Wyatt glanced past me into the cave. I instinctively stepped in front of the entrance.

"Alpha Wyatt, I got lost. Could you take me back to the Sterling villa?" I softened my voice as much as I could, trying to sound like a helpless, wandering Omega who had simply lost her way.

"You got lost from the Sterling villa all the way out to this wilderness?"

"I was chasing a rabbit."

"Were you? You haven't shifted yet, so you were chasing a rabbit in a maid's uniform?"

"Well..." I looked down at the six full inches of mud caked onto my skirt. "Alpha, that's my own business." Wyatt's eyes narrowed into a thin line — and then, surprisingly, he said in an easy tone: "Fine." And took a casual step forward past my side. My heart nearly jumped out of my chest. I blocked him fast. "Alpha, what are you doing? There's nothing in there."

"Move. I'll see for myself." Wyatt's entire presence radiated Alpha authority. My body felt a faint tremor run through it — but I steadied myself quickly and stepped forward again to cut him off. He moved left, I moved left. He moved right, I moved right. Alpha Wyatt must have been furious. He glared at me and shot out a hand, grabbing my collar. But the instant his skin touched mine, a current shot through my entire body. The sensation was so strange. My legs went soft beneath me. Something inside me — I didn't understand what — was pushing me, and I had the overwhelming urge to fall straight into his arms. Only the last shred of my rational mind kept me from doing it.

"I'll take you back." Wyatt said suddenly. Even his Beta looked surprised. But Wyatt's own expression was strange too — like an animal desperately trying to hide that someone had stepped on its tail. None of that mattered to me right now, though. Whatever had made him change his mind, it didn't matter. Thank God — as long as he stayed away from that cave entrance, that was enough.

"Thank you, Alpha, but there's no need. I'm sure you have other things to attend to. I can manage on my own." I met those faintly luminous eyes of his, and the strange feeling welled up again. I dropped my gaze immediately and said: "It's just full of rats and snakes and cockroaches in there. You wouldn't like it. Besides, it would be strange for you to escort me back. I'm only a Sterling family maid." Alpha Wyatt said nothing, but I could feel a gaze resting on the top of my head. Then, from just above me, came a quiet, cool laugh. And then he turned and walked away with his Beta, without a word. I figured the two of them were probably exchanging something through Mind Link. I stood frozen, watching their figures grow smaller in the distance. I wasn't sure why, but whenever Alpha Wyatt was near me, my body did strange things — like it was reaching for something, though I couldn't name what. Only that when he was close, I felt a little less out of place.

I glanced back at the cave. It was completely still inside — as if nothing were there at all. Julian had just told me through Mind Link that he'd positioned several Gamma wolves in ambush at the cave entrance. If anyone tried to force their way in, the Gammas would move immediately. At least Wyatt had left. Though I still didn't understand why he had changed his mind — and just as that thought settled, I stopped dead. No. Wait. That was bad. What if he had sensed the Gamma wolves? What if he was going to arrange guards to come back? The thought hit me like cold water. Without hesitating for a second, I turned and went after Alpha Wyatt.

In the dark of night, Alpha Wyatt and his Beta had shifted into two black wolves and were moving at an unhurried pace through the moonlight. I was relieved they weren't running — I'd never have kept up. I slipped behind a tree to catch my breath, and just as I turned to go, I walked straight into a solid chest. I looked up. Alpha Wyatt. His dark green eyes caught the moonlight, glinting with something dangerous. "You were following me." His breath pressed down toward me, and a wave of cedar hit my nose. I flinched.

Alpha Wyatt didn't give me time to react. He grabbed my arm — and the instant his skin met mine, a wolf's howl exploded in my mind. "Mate!"

I went rigid. Wyatt yanked me off balance and swung me into the back seat of a jeep hidden in the trees. The moment the door shut, his presence flooded the enclosed space, thick and overwhelming. I couldn't hold it back — a snarl tore from my throat. A wolf's voice. "No — Lynne, you're about to shift." Wyatt's fury turned to shock in an instant. He stared at me hard, the way a predator watches something it has cornered. In the tight space, his gaze only made the pull worse. A sound escaped my throat before I could stop it. "Control your scent, Lynne!" Wyatt said, his voice low and rough. But I was past thinking. I felt my wolf throwing herself against the walls of my mind — more vivid and immediate than I had ever felt her before. In all the time since she had first stirred in me, she had said only one thing. "Mate!" My gaze drifted toward Wyatt without my meaning to let it — and he lunged forward, pressing his entire weight down over me.