Alpha Conspiracy: Alpha Blood, Book 2 E-Book

Mac Flynn

• Herausgeber: Crescent Moon Studios, Inc.
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2017

Beschreibung

Becky doesn’t have much time to enjoy her new werewolf lifestyle before Luke and she are up to their snouts in adventure and intrigue. They are pursued by their enemies from their quiet home in the country through the quaint farms of the werewolf world to the wilderness of one of its largest cities. Their travels pick up old friends and make new ones as they try to stay one step ahead of Lance’s ambitions to control the werewolf world and invade the human one. Becky has to master her werewolf skills quickly or risk being culled from the pack.

Leseprobe

Alpha Conspiracy

Alpha Blood, Book2

Mac Flynn

Copyright © 2017 by Mac Flynn

All rights reserved.

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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Contents

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Continue the adventure

Other Series By Mac Flynn

1

My heart pounded furiously in my chest and my breathing came out in sharp, short rasps. I writhed and squirmed, trying to free myself from this torture. Above me was a world of dazzling stars, beautiful forests, and wet, stinking fur. Yeah, that last part really stank, and it was all Luke’s fault. He was my Creator, my mate, and right then he was a thorn in my side. We weren’t haven’t the wild and rowdy sex I desperately wanted at that moment. Actually, I wanted to be doing practically anything else than what we were doing at that moment.

Luke and I were out on his property along the creek practicing my tracking skills, speed, and werewolf transformation, and how to control all that raw power that rippled beneath my lovely, modest exterior. But enough about me, back to the heinous torture Luke was afflicting on me that led to my getting soaked.

“I’m not going to do it,” I refused.

“You have to. All wolves do,” Luke insisted.

I turned away from him and crossed my arms. “Well, maybe I’ve decided to go vegan.”

“As I’ve told you twenty times before, you can’t go vegan. The Beast won’t let you,” he reminded me. The Beast was the wolf within us, a lustful, blood-thirsty creature who craved violence and the hunt. Kind of like a tax collector with fangs.

“Maybe my Beast is nicer than yours,” I argued.

Luke snorted, but kept his serious expression. “You have to hunt rabbits, Becky. The deer in this area might be too large for you to take without getting yourselfhurt.”

I glared at him. “Do you know what you’re asking me to do?” I wondered.

He sighed and rolled his eyes. “No, what am I asking you todo?”

“You’re asking me to kill Thumper.”

“I’m asking you to satiate your Beast’s desire to hunt andeat-”

“-a harmless bunny,” I finished.

“Have you ever been bitten by a rabbit?” he askedme.

“No, why?”

“They’re not harmless, and they have some very large claws,” he told me. “These are dangerous creatures. You may not even make it out alive after capturing your firstone.”

I rolled my eyes. “You’re just trying to make me think they’re vicious monster rabbits so I’ll hunt one, but there’s no way-” Luke stepped up to me and wrapped his arms around me. He leaned in and I shivered when I felt his warm breath against myneck.

“If you catch one we can go back to the house. Don’t you hear our bed calling?” he whispered.

“W-why can’t we go back now?” I suggested.

Luke chuckled and leaned down to plant a soft kiss against the quivering flesh of my neck. His voice was low and sultry. “Because you haven’t caught a rabbit yet,” he teased.

“T-this is cheating,” I protested.

“But don’t you smell the delicious scent of rabbit? Doesn’t it make your mouth water?” he cooed. At his bidding my nostrils flared and my nose picked up on the fresh trail of an innocent bunny. My heart rate picked up as my sniffer tracked the smell to a mess of bushes along the creek bed. Meanwhile, Luke blazed a trail of hot kisses down my neck while his hands slid in teasing circles around my hips. I squirmed and bit my lip, trying desperately not to whimper and failing to keep my body temperature below a feverish level.

“Y-you know you’re evil, don’t you?” I askedhim.

There was that creepy, evil chuckle of his. “Yep, and you know you want to get that-” Before he finished the said rabbit darted out from the bushes.

Me in my feral, lustful mindset couldn’t fight the urge to chase after the running prey. I pulled myself from Luke’s arms and raced after the spry, zig-zagging bunny. He sent me on a merry chase over the uneven, root-littered creek path and perilously close to the creek itself. One slip and I’d be done for, swallowed up by the moss-covered rocks and frigid water. My right foot decided to do that slipping, and in one fell swoop my dreams and nightmares of a rabbit stew went up with the first splash of water as I crashed into the creek.

I sputtered and swallowed about half the annual runoff of the local mountains before I pulled my head out of the water and heard a booming laugh from the bank. I whipped my head in that direction and glared at my laughing mate. He was doubled over from his cackling and was making no attempt at dragging me out of the cold water. Adding insult to injury, in my eagerness to capture the rabbit my arms, legs, and face were partially transformed, leaving me with the disgustingly wet fur of which I’d earlier mentioned.

I tried to stand, but slipped on the wet rocks beneath me and crashed back into the cold water. “I’d hate to interrupt your fun,” I called out to Luke, “but could you help me out of here before I become a pup-sicle?”

Luke choked out a few more laughs and gathered himself. “Sure thing.” He carefully stepped onto some rocks close to me and held out his hand to me. There was a smirk on his face and a mischievous look in his eyes. “But might I say, you look stunning as a drownedrat.”

I sweetly smiled at him and grabbed his hand. “And you’ll look all wet.” I yanked hard toward me, and in his precarious footing he slipped and tumbled into the drink. Unfortunately, his crash wasn’t beside me, but on top of me. I got dunked again, and our arms and legs flailed in the water, each trying to free ourselves from the grasp of the frigid creek.

After a few wild moments Luke managed to find his footing and dragged us both from the creek. We were soaked and I with my arms crossed stood shivering on the bank. “T-that’ll t-teach y-you to l-laugh at m-me,” I stuttered.

Luke bared the cold much better as he stood there letting his clothes drip on the path. We could have made a new creek with how much water dripped off us. “I think that’s enough practice tonight,” he announced.

“Or for the next year,” I grumbled. I shuffled down the path toward the house, but yelped when I was swept up into a pair of strong, wetarms.

Luke grinned down at me with that evil twinkle in his eyes. “The faster we get back the faster we can get out of these clothes,” he toldme.

“And the faster we can get into some dry ones,” I finished.

He grinned. “Who said anything about getting back into clothes?”

I smiled and leaned my head against his chest while he shot off down the trail toward home. It was nice having my own private handler, especially in the bedroom. “Be careful not to run into a tree, Jeeves,” I teased.

Luke chuckled. “I’ll try, but I have been meaning to get a crew in here to clean up some of these overgrown trees,” he returned.

I rolled my eyes and snuggled his shirt. “I’m sure you’ll dofine.”

2

Luke raced along the woodland path, and we soon burst out of the trees and onto the well-manicured back lawn of the elegant house that I now called home. Our adventures at Sanctuary were a not-so-distant memory of four weeks past, but those had been a, usually, wonderful four weeks. Lots of sleeping in after rowdy nights of love-making followed by delicious meals cooked by Alistair, Luke’s manservant. He made a mean plate of scrambled eggs and toast that I wolfed down every morning and sometimes in the evenings.

The sweet life was interrupted occasionally by Luke’s insistence on my werewolf training. To be honest I didn’t need much training. I just had a few problems with transforming that ended up with partial changes, my nose couldn’t follow a track to save my life, and on occasion during my speed practice I ran into one or five trees. All right, so I needed a lot of training, but I was trying and slowly improving. It was a good thing werewolves lived a long time because I was going to need all those centuries to get good at beingone.

Anyway, Luke sprinted across the lawn and we met Alistair at the back door. Above us the sun cast its last rays and was replaced with the darkness of night. Luke set me down, and by this time I was a mass of quivering flesh and chattering teeth. The corners of Alistair’s mouth twitched and beneath his stoic exterior I detected a hint of humor. When I first came into Luke’s life Alistair hadn’t approved of me, but now we were at least chummy. He’d torture me and I’d try to torture him, but it was hard to tease someone as impassive as a statue. “Problems?” Alistair askedus.

“Just a few, but could you make some cocoa for Becky?” Luke asked his servant.

“Very well, sir,” Alistair replied. He bowed and left to attend to the new duties.

“Let’s get you upstairs and out of those things,” Luke told me. He led me inside the house and along the hardwood floors upstairs to our shared bedroom. No more white room for me, I’d upgraded to the master suite with the master included in the package deal. Speaking of packages, I was looking forward to watching Luke strip off his wet clothes and show off his wet, strong muscles. It made me wet just thinking about it. Well, wetter than I alreadywas.

We slipped into the bedroom, and I hurriedly slipped out of my clinging clothes. Luke watched me from a few yards off with the patience of a saint and the intentions of an incubus. His eyes heated up every part of my body that was revealed to him which was most every part of me as I pulled off my damp shirt and pants. All that remained was my bra, underwear, and soggy socks, all of which were white and very much transparent. I paused in my undressing and glared at him. “Aren’t you going to join me?” I scoldedhim.

He shrugged and grinned. “I was just enjoying the show,” he replied.

I crossed my arms and tapped my foot on the floor. “This isn’t a spectator’s sport. We’re both supposed to be participating,” I argued.

Luke stepped over to me and wrapped his arms around me so he could pin my nearly naked body against his damp clothes. His chilled lips captured mine in a deep, lustful kiss that took my breath away along with the chill in my bones. He broke our pleasurable contact and grinned down at my red cheeks. “I have just the sport we can play, but you have to take off all your clothes,” he teased. The Beast inside me yipped for joy, and the human part of me was squealing like a fangirl. I was fully prepared to take him up on his offer and strip, but something interrupted our funtime.

That something was a blast from a horn. The noise came from the woods in back of the house. Luke let me go and rushed out of the room, leaving me flustered and mostly naked. I grabbed his favorite bathrobe and hurried after him, but fell behind. His speed was a lot better than mine, and by the time I made it to the back door Alistair and he were far out on the lawn near the edge of the forest. I was in time to see a large gray wolf burst from the trees with two smaller ones close behind.

Alistair and Luke rushed the pursuers who, seeing the tables turned on them and they now being the pursued, turned tail and ran back into the woods. Luke looked like wanted to run after them, but Alistair grabbed his shoulder and stopped him before he dove into the trees. Alistair nodded over his shoulder at the gray wolf who had collapsed on the lawn. The pair hurried over to it, and I rushed out barefoot tothem.

Luke knelt by the side of the wolf who lay on the ground panting heavily with its eyes closed. He lay a hand on the thick matting of fur on the wolf’s side, and cringed when his fingers dipped into a thick, red liquid. The poor beast was injured and bleeding. Luke leaned forward and looked the creature in the face. “Zeke? Zeke, can you hearme?”

“Zeke?” I repeated. That name was the same for the guy who lived in a hut in the woods and watched over the house.

The wolf’s eyes fluttered open and it groaned. Luke smiled grimly and looked him over. “Can you change back or do we have to carry you likethis?”

The wolf growled, then closed its eyes again and ground its teeth together. I stepped back when its body began to change. The fur slipped into pale skin and the sharp claws became short, bony fingers. I slipped off my bathrobe and covered their wrinkled old body. The long snout pulled back into the gruff old face of Zeke the grounds keeper who grimaced in pain. “Damn that hurt,” he growled. I could see why. There was a long, deep gash along his side that coated his rags and the ground with blood.

“Alistair, help me get him inside,” Luke commanded. Alistair and Luke each took a side and hefted him into their arms. They were as careful as possible, but Zeke still winced and glared atthem.

“Watch what yer doing,” he growled.

“What we’re doing is saving your life,” Alistair shotback.

“That’s enough, both of you,” Luke scolded. I followed after them into the back hall and to the living room where they lay Zeke on the couch. Luke took another look at the wound, and the rest of Zeke’s body. “Any internals?” he asked the oldman.

Zeke should his head. “Nothing but my pride for them sneaking up onme.”

“It’s not hard to wonder why. I couldn’t smell a single scent from them,” Luke commented. “If Alistair wouldn’t have stopped me from going into the woods I might have been another victim of their sneak attack. Where’d you pick themup?”

“Along the creek. Heard ‘em splashing through the water, but they smelled me before I could hide myself. Got a few licks in, but two against an old man isn’t much of a fight. I thought I’d get some help here and ran along, but they caught me on the side,” Zeke explained tous.

“And nearly caught you on the lawn,” Luke replied. He turned to Alistair. “Bandages and antiseptics.” Alistair nodded and left to fetch the supplies.

I stepped up beside Luke and tried not to look at the horrible gash. “Is he going to be all right?” I whispered tohim.

Zeke overheard me and scoffed at my question. “Ah’ll be just fine, just gonna need some time to restup.”

I smiled. “Let me guess, just a day?” I askedhim.

Zeke grinned. “About thatlong.”

I turned to Luke and sighed. “Is anyone you know not a werewolf?” I wondered.

Not many,” he admitted.

“Enough blabbing about me, it ain’t natural for them guys not to have a scent,” Zeke grumbled.

“No, and it puts us at a disadvantage,” Luke agreed.

“How are we supposed to fight against something even werewolves can’t sense sneaking up on them?” I asked thepair.

“With superior fighting skills and a lot of luck,” Luke replied.

“So I’m doomed?” I guessed.

He grinned and patted me on the shoulder. “Not quite. Your skills as a fighter are improving.”

“So I’ll last a minute instead of a few seconds?”

“Something likethat.”

“Thanks, makes me feel a lot better,” I grumbled. He nuzzled my hair, and I playfully pushed him away. “Knock that off, I’m trying to broodhere.”

“I would rather we be doing something more productive,” he replied.

“You mean reproductive?” I guessed.

“Can’t you two get a room?” Zeke spoke up. He glanced down at my wet wardrobe and raised an eyebrow. “Or did my horn blowing interrupt somethin’?”

I looked down at myself and blushed. My clothes were still transparent. “Um, I’ll be right back,” I told them, and slipped out of Luke’s clutches so he could attend to his patient and I could attend to my wardrobe.

I passed Alistair returning with the necessary medical supplies. The boys had fun playing doctor while I played chef in the kitchen. It was past dinner time and after my chilling adventure I was hungry enough to eat the whole the rabbit I’d failed in catching, cute, fluffy tail and all. As some compensation I found a steak ready to cook and did my best to make it into a pile of burned ashes.

At the sound of the fire alarm Alistair came in and glanced through the faint wisps of smoke that wafted through the air. “Did you care for some help?” he askedme.

I turned to him with a smoking pan in one hand and an empty glass formerly filled with water. The water had been used to douse the flames in the pan. I sheepishly smiled at him. “I think I might need a little bit of a hand,” I admitted.

Alistair took charge of the food and I took charge of warming up one of the stools around the kitchen island. “So how’s the patient?” I wondered.

“Zeke will be fine,” he curtly replied.

I frowned. “I get the feeling you and him don’t get along. Is there a story behindthat?”

“Yes.”

“And?” I persisted.

“And it’s a long story,” he assuredme.

I leaned my elbows on the island, cupped my head in my hands, and smiled at him. “I think I’ve gottime.”

“I’m sure it would bore you,” he insisted.

“What would bore you?” Luke interrupted my inquisition as he stepped into theroom.

“Alistair’s long and sordid history with Zeke,” I toldhim.

Luke chuckled and sat himself down in the stool beside me. “That’s a long story.”

“So I’ve been told, but I’ve got time,” I replied.

He grinned and leaned toward me. “Even if that means waiting for food?” He pointed at Alistair who had already salvaged the dinner and had the meat on plates.

My eyes widened and I wiped the drool from my lips. “On second thought, it canwait.”

3

We scarfed down our dinner, and Luke took food to Zeke. I went upstairs to take a quick shower, and came back down to find the pair in the living room deep in conversation about our newest unwelcome guests. “Did you see any identifying marks on them?” Luke askedhim.

Zeke shook his head. “Not a sign. They didn’t even have a handkerchief on ‘em,” he replied.

Luke leaned back in his chair set before the couch and frowned. “And you thought they were watching the house?”

“Or at least trespassin’, but they weren’t too interested in tellin’ me their life story,” Zeke quipped.

I sat down in another chair close beside Luke. “I’d say they were more interested in ending your life story,” I spokeup.

“And I’d say even without knowing who they were we know who they’re working for,” Luke added.

“Lance?” I guessed.

“Lance,” he agreed.

“And how are ya gonna prove that to anybody?” Zeke wondered.

“We can’t, and even if we could I don’t know who we’d turn to. His accomplice Simpling controls the High Lordship and Lance has most of the other lords in his pocket,” Luke remindedus.

“Except Baker, Stevens and you, and I don’t know if those other two would help us,” I added.

“We shouldn’t count on anyone but ourselves and those we’ve agreed to communicate with,” Luke replied.

I raised three of my fingers and counted them off. “Stacy, Protector Brier and Burnbaum. Am I right?”

Luke smiled. “Exactly right.”

“Nice little group ya got there, but this ain’t helping us now,” Zeke spokeup.

“We’re tallying our resources. If those men are still around then trouble isn’t far behind them, and we’ll need all the help we can get to stay one step ahead of them,” Luke explained tohim.

Zeke scoffed. “Won’t do any good stayin’ one step ahead when they’re ahead of us with that damn lack of scent,” he grumbled.

Luke shrugged. “We don’t have much choice. We’ve heard no news from anyone about-” A knock on the door made me jump into Luke’s lap and cling tohim.

“You think it’s them again?” I askedhim.

He chuckled. “Only if they have manners now.” We heard Alistair’s footsteps walk out of the kitchen and to the front door. It was opened, a few words were exchanged and then the door was shut. Alistair’s footsteps moved toward us and he soon appeared in the living room doorway.

“Sir, a message from Miss Stacy,” Alistair announced. He had a paper in his hand that he handed to Luke, who opened the folded slip and read the contents.

“The mailmen work even after dark?” I guessed.

“You can send a post any time ya want if ya got the money,” Zeke told me. He glanced at Luke, who’s face had lost some of its color. “What ya got there?”

“Stacy says Baker’s under suspicion for the murder of a Protector,” Luke toldus.

“What was Baker doing at Sanctuary?” I wondered.

Luke shook his head. “He wasn’t at Sanctuary. Stacy says the Protector was sent as an agent of the High Lord to watch over Baker because of suspicions of treason.”

My mouth dropped open. “Treason? Baker? I can’t blame him for doing it with Simpling and Lance in charge, but I don’t think he’d do it this soon. Farmers take a while to make up their minds,” I replied.

Luke folded the paper and frowned. “I don’t believe it either, but she says Simpling intends to send more Protectors to take him into custody.”

“Is that what the Protectors are for? I mean, they protect Sanctuary, but are they really a region police force?” I askedhim.

“They’re at the bidding of the High Lord, but yes, they generally remain at Sanctuary,” Luke told me. He shook his head. “But if one of their own was murdered then like any close-knit group they’ll want revenge.”

“Maybe Brier can tell us what’s happening from the inside and get Simpling to not send his guys,” I suggested.

“Perhaps, but he has to obey the High Lord just as the other Protectors do,” Luke replied.

I threw up my arms. “So what are we going to do? Sit here and let Baker get dragged to Sanctuary where Simpling’s probably going to have him killed?”

Luke smiled and shook his head. “No, we’re going to go to Spatia and keep Baker out of their hands.”

“Spatia? Am I going to have to wear a space suit?” I wondered.

He chuckled. “No, that refers to the great expanse of farmland in Baker’s region. The founding Lords were fond of naming the seven regions after the geographical or cultural descriptions of those regions.”

“So what’s the name of this place? And Sanctuary?” I askedhim.

“Sanctuary’s an exception. The area controlled by Sanctuary is so small that the region itself is called that, but the other regions are much larger and have names different from their largest towns.” He gestured out the living room windows, and I saw the thick woods beyond the lawn. “The region I rule is called Wildlands. The main town is Townsend just down the road, and of course there’s Huntington where Abby and her family live. That’s south ofhere.”

I groaned. “First political lessons, now a geography lesson?”

“Not fond of geography?” he wondered.

“Not really. It’s never really helped me do anything because I still get lost in closets. Even the non-walk-in kind,” I replied.

“For once Ah’m with the young lady. Yer boring the hell out of me,” Zeke spoke up. He raised himself to a seated position on the couch, winced, and clutched at his side. “Ah’m gettin’ outta here while the gettin’ isgood.”

Luke stood and put his hands on Zeke’s shoulders. “You’re not going anywhere, at least not tonight. Those attackers are just waiting for a chance to get at you for ruining their spying.”

“And where in the hell am Ah supposed to stay?” Zeke askedhim.

I grinned and pointed at the ceiling. “There’s a nice white room upstairs with a great view of some boards.” Luke still hadn’t fixed the place up to be a normal room rather than the prison he’d intended forme.

“Ah’d rather stay in this room and let those strangers get me,” the old man quipped.

“Then Alistair will watch over you. Your bickering should keep you both wide awake and allow you to hear their footsteps should they enter the house,” Luke suggested. Zeke scowled, but liked that proposition better than mine. “In the meantime, Becky and I will go to bed. Try not to argue too loud with Alistair, or none of us will get any sleep.”

“Ah expect ya don’t get much sleep with yer mate around,” Zeke commented.

We didn’t argue, but we did leave him in the care of poor Alistair. Unfortunately, Zeke’s teasing turned out to be worth less than the hot air he’d used to suggest it. Luke was too distracted with the note in his hands to do much more than slip into his pajamas and sit on the end of the bed with the paper clutched in his hand. I slipped into my nightshirt and sat down beside him. I set a hand on his shoulder and gave him a little shake. “Really worried about Baker?” I wondered.

He gravely nodded. “Yeah, and those men who chased Zeke. I don’t think it’s a coincidence that they’re happening at the same time. Lance is making his move and using Simpling’s position to give their enemies something tofear.”

“You really think Baker killed this Protector?” I askedhim.

Luke sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I’m not sure, but if there is a Protector dead then God help the suspects. The Protectors are very protective of their own, and any murder of their partners is seen as a crime against all ofthem.”

“So if the Protectors think Baker killed one of their own then they might kill him, too?”

“Exactly. That’s why we need to get out of here as soon as possible and get to Baker before the Protectors do,” he toldme.

“What aboutZeke?”

“He’ll be fine by tomorrow, but as grouchy as ever after being cooped up in this house,” he replied.

I wrinkled my nose. “He thinks this place is a coop? What about that shack he lives in in the woods?” I countered.

Luke shrugged. “He’s fond of the shack, but this place. . .” He trailed off as his eyes wandered over the walls and ceilings. “This place is different forhim.”

“You mean civilized?” I teased.

He chuckled. “There’s certainly that, but I suppose we should talk about this another time.” He yawned and stretched his arms. “I’m kind of tired.”

A sly grin slipped onto my face, and I stepped off the bed to stand in front of hi [...]