Chapter 1
The Shrewd Wolves (H&HP Series #3)
Chapter 1 is here and this chapter is dedicated to @GreenLaVerde :)
OMG! I am super happy because in the first week, the book got ranked 26th in Action. I love you so much for that. You guys are amazing :D
Hottie Bernardo Velasco on the side as Quillon>>>
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âYouâre some freaky shit, my
brother. You really areâ
-J. R. Ward, Lover Eternal (Black
Dagger Brotherhood, #2)
QUILLON P.O.V
âWhy do you even challenge Quillon for a fight when you know that it is impossible to defeat him?â Harvey asked Nevin, who just shrugged as a reply.
Stepping inside the circle, I smirked at Nevin, my beta and my good friend who, in return, rolled his eyes.
âReady?â Harvey, my third-in-command asked loudly and both of us nodded without looking at him. âAttackâ he directed and we both lunged at each other.
I knew Nevin would raise his fist to attack me and that is why, I lunged high in the air and kneed him in the chest. He went flying and hit the nearest tree.
âAnyone else?â I asked staring at my pack members. Ram took a step forward with a smirk and I laughed.
They know. They know they cannot defeat me yet they like to fight with me.
Ram rushed towards me and I punched him direct in the stomach. He skid backwards and accidently crossed the circle.
âWho is next?â I demanded and once again Nevin stepped forward. I cocked an eyebrow and Nevin smirked and looked at Harvey.
âGo ahead. Cheating is allowed. Even I will join youâ Harvey said and I smirked once again.
âAttackâ Nevin screamed and twenty of my pack members, who were watching us play, attacked me at once.
Even though I wanted to laugh, I didnât because they were all rushing towards me. Since Ram was closer to me, I caught the collar of his shirt, picked him up and threw him like a Frisbee. Â He collided against five pack wolves. They all fell on the ground and groaned.
Not paying any attention to them, I kneeled and punched two others on the stomach, quickly stood up and shoved one and then turned and punched three others in the face. When I sensed Isaac raising rushing towards me from behind, I turned to face him. As soon as Isaac saw me looking at him, he ran past me, without fighting me. I looked at his retreating figure and cocked an eyebrow amusedly.
Two more tried to hit me. I punched one before throwing him out of the boundary. Seeing that, the other one jumped out of the circle and raised his hands in surrender.
I elbowed the next one on his chin and the one after him flew in the air and hit against a tree. Unfortunately for him, the back of his shirt got hooked with a branch. I kicked Allan in the stomach and turned to face my beta and third-in-command who were the only two guys left.
âReady?â I asked them and they nodded.
âCan someone help me get down first?â Clay, who was trapped on the branch pleaded and everyone ignored him.
Harvey was the first one who rushed towards me. He held my shoulders and meant to punch me in the stomach but I quickly knocked my head against his. As he bent down holding his head, I held his waist and threw him at Nevin who let out a high pitch scream.
âGet your ass of my faceâ Nevin yelled pushing Harvey.
Before Nevin could attack me, I rushed towards him, leapt high in the air and punched him in the face.
The fight got over as soon as Nevin fell on the ground.
âWhen will you learn?â I asked extending my hand to my friend to help him stand up.
âQ, you could have at least taken one hit. I lost my money nowâ Nevin said taking my hand and I stiffened.
Bet?
I pursed my lips to form a thin line because I knew who made them take the bet. Let me get hold of that little jackass.
âGuysâ Clay called and now everyone started laughing at him. Harvey clicked a picture of wriggling Clay with his cellphone.
âHow much did you bet?â I questioned Nevin.
âTogether our total is one thousandâ Nevin answered twisting his neck.
âMan, I should have supported Quinnâ Ram said gloomily.
âIf anybody sees Quinn you inform me immediatelyâ I commanded and they all nodded.
âRemind me to never bet against Quinnâ Clay said gazing at the hole in his shirt.
âLittle buggerâ I spat. I am waiting for him to come home!
âShouldnât he be home by now?â Harvey asked checking the time.
I stopped in my tracks and frowned. âYes. Yes he should beâ I said. âIs your brother home?â I inquired Isaac who nodded in confusion. âAsk him if he saw Quinn.â
âQ, David said Quinn skipped all the classes after lunchâ Isaac told me and I growled ferociously.
âI am going to kill himâ I spat and tried connecting with my little brother. I frowned when I realized that his mind link was blocked.
âSearch for him and no one will inform my parentsâ I ordered and everyone nodded with furrowed brows.
Rushing towards my house, I quickly went for a shower because I was sweating. While showering I sensed and unwelcome guest step into my house.
Gritting my teeth and muttering a curse, I stepped out of the shower and quickly hauled on my boxers and pulled up my dark jeans.
I stepped into the room just as the unwelcome guest, clad in lacy lingerie, which concealed nothing of her body, entered my room.
Lust! Lust was radiating from her.
âGet out of my room Leahâ I snapped glaring at the brunette. Leah was my dadâs betaâs only daughter whose only dream in life is to become my Luna.
âI heard you are quite stressedâ Leah said walking towards me while I stood leaning against the closet door. âI can make you feel relaxedâ she purred caressing her fingers on my abs.
I held her wrist and growled in warning. She flinched but she still managed to keep the seductive smile on her face. âYou can make me feel relaxed by leaving this room right nowâ I commanded dropping her hand. âNow get out of here before I ask someone to throw youâ I snapped walking towards the closet shelf to pick a t-shirt.
âYou wouldnât do thatâ she said confidently. âYou might pretend otherwise but you know we are meant to be togetherâ Leah said while I was pulling down my t-shirt.
âYou are delusionalâ I stated and she giggled.
âYou have no mate and neither do I. So whatâs wrong if we mate?â she asked chewing her lower lip. If she was trying to be seductive, then she definitely failed.
âMaybe I donât have a mate, but you doâ I retorted and then tried to connect with Quinn. His mind link was blocked and I frowned because something didnât feel right.
Quinn might block everyone but not me. He never blocks me.
âEven if I have one, I will still choose youâ Leah said shrugging her shoulders and I closed my eyes. I was worried about my brother and this girlâ¦
âGet out of my room Leahâ I spat furiously. âYou dream of being my Luna but do you even know what is going on in the pack?â I snarled.
âWhatâs going on?â she questioned uninterestedly.
âI said get outâ I snarled using my Alpha tone and Leah stiffened.
âSooner or later, you will come to me Qâ I let her have the last word because I wanted her out of my house.
âQâ I stiffened when I heard my momâs voice coming from downstairs.
All color drained from Leahâs face and she muttered a curse. Shaking my head, I went downstairs where my mom was waiting for me. âWhere is Quinn?â she questioned, her blue-green eyes flooded with tears.
âMa, he just told me that he got a punishment to arrange the library books. Thatâs why he is lateâ I lied. I didnât want my mom stressing over anything. She had faced quite a lot in her life and I will not give her anymore trouble.
âBut⦠but I heard David sayingâ¦â she mumbled in confusion.
âI know. I know he skipped classes which is why he got punishedâ I added with a small smile locking gaze with mom.
I looked away when she let out a sigh. âOh that stupid, stupid boy! Very good they punished him. When he is home tell him he is grounded this entire week.â
âWill doâ I said faking a small smile for momâs sake.
As mom turned to leave, I felt Nevin connecting with me through the link, âQ, we found something near the eastern border.â
âWhat is it?â I demanded to know.
âItâs a big trunkâ
I was about to reply but paused when mom growled loudly and turned to glare at me.
âStay there. I will join you soonâ I said and blocked Nevin.
âWhatâs wrong?â I asked mom in confusion.
âWhat is that?â she demanded through gritted teeth, pointing her index at a discarded green dress. âI didnât know you brothers owned dressesâ mom said sarcastically and I raised my brows.
âThatâs not mineâ I replied calmly.
âWhen will that girl ever learn?â mom growled out in anger.
Mom never liked Leah. She always thought Leah was a sly. âShe is just like her motherâ mom spat and then turned to leave.
I followed after her but stopped and turned to face Leah, who finally had the courage to come downstairs, âI want you and your dress gone while I returnâ I warned and then rushed towards the Eastern border of my pack, which we share with the Emperor Pack.
There Nevin, Harvey and few other pack fighters were standing in a circle around the trunk, which had a ribbon going round it in a classic look of cross and bow at the top.
âAnyone saw who kept this?â I demanded walking towards the trunk.
âFucking Emperorâsâ Nevin growled out and soon everyone stiffened and looked ready to fight.
Emperor Pack, sworn enemy of the Serene Pack. Everyone from my pack hates the wolves from that pack. Our pack would constantly get into a fight with them from years but ever since Duncan Rhoades took over as the Alpha of Emperor and I took over as the Alpha of Serene, the fights have decreased.
âThey attached this on the topâ Nevin said handing me an A4 sheet.
AN EXQUISITE GIFT FROM EMPERORâS TO YOU SERENAâS.
Crumpling the paper, I growled murderously which caused everyone surrounding me to take a step back. âSons of bitchesâ I spat in fury especially for the use of word âSerenaâ which the Emperorâs use to sneer at us.
My wolf wanted me to let him out so that he could go and destroy the whole pack.
Touching the dome-top trunk, I inhaled deeply and frowned when I caught the scent inside in it. Growling louder than the last time, I tore the ribbon and opened the lid.
Inside it, my younger brother, Quinton, was lying in a fetal position.
âThey kept Quinton inside a trunk and send it to us?â Nevin asked in outrage as I stared at my brother. He had a black eye, which was a proof that someone from that fucking Emperor pack knocked him out.
âQuinnâ I called patting his cheeks. When there was no response, I patted a little harder. âQuinnâ I thundered.
âBitchâ Quinn said sitting up all of a sudden. âWhat a bitchâ he repeated with a scowl and I furrowed my brows.
âYou alright?â I queried running my eyes over his body to note if those fuckers caused any other injuries to him.
âHow did I end up here?â he asked standing up and jumping out of the trunk.
âEmperorsâ I snarled.
âWill you tell me why did you go there in the first place?â I spat and Quinn gave me a sheepish grin. âQuinnâ I called through gritted teeth.
All of a sudden, he placed his hands on his eyes, âMy eye. Q, my eye hurtsâ he said and I narrowed my eyes. Drama queen!
âGet an icepackâ I ordered to one of the fighters. âAnd you-â turning to face Quinn, â-You better have a good excuse for stepping into Emperorâ I snarled.
âMy ear hurts too. I cannot hear anything you are saying. Maybe itâs a side effect of the punchâ Quinn said placing his hands on both his ears. While others started laughing, I just shook my head. I am so used to his silly games.
âI just said you won the bet.â
Immediately Quinnâs face brightened, âI knew it. Boys, give me my mone- uh-oh!â he said when he realized his mistake.
âNow that I know your ears are perfectly fine, can you tell me why did you skip classes and went to Emperor?â
âI went on a dateâ he tried and I growled. âItâs true. I really went there on a date but unfortunately I lost my dateâ he said faking sadness and I knew he ditched the girl.
âThen how did you end up with a black eye?â At that moment his eyes widened and he winced. âWhere is the icepack?â I bellowed.
âThere was this girlâ¦â he began.
âHer boyfriend hit you?â I demanded angrily.
âNo. She hit meâ he mumbled in a low voice.
âA girl from Emperor Pack hit you?â I asked in disbelief and Quinn nodded staring at the ground.
âI was minding my own business, but I suppose she realized I wasnât from her pack and that is why she hit meâ he said and my wolf snapped his jaws.
âHow did the bitch look like?â Nevin questioned with a growl.
âShe had golden blonde hair, grey eyes. She might be eighteen and she was very beautifulâ Quinn said with a mesmerized smile, which got wiped off when he saw my glare. âBut she was a bitchâ he added for my benefit.
âShe just came and hit you?â I questioned cocking an eyebrow.
âYesâ Quinn replied staring at the ground. âI was h-having lunch and⦠and she came and hit me.â
âAlone?â
âNo. There was a guy with her too. But I donât remember his face because by then she already knocked me.â
âFind this golden haired she-wolf of Emperor Packâ I ordered Nevin who nodded, before walking away with others.
âWait, wait⦠I just remembered her name is Daryaâ Quinn said excitedly and I furrowed my brows. âUh⦠the guy who was with her said, âDarya, I will take care of thisâ before she hit meâ Quinn explained and I nodded.
âGood thing you remember. It will make our work easierâ I muttered and then turned to look at Nevin, âHunt that girl downâ I decreed. âAnd install cameras on all our borders. The next time someone tries this, I will kill themâ I grounded out in exasperation.
Darya will definitely pay for punching my little brother and sending him to me in a trunk.
âIs this some kind of a sick joke?â I snarled at Mike, the agent who was hired to find about Darya. Yesterday evening the agent was hired to do a background check on Darya and today afternoon, he handed me Daryaâs file, the front page of which had a photo of some blonde haired blue eyed girl, who looked around ten-twelve years of age.
âThatâs the only photo which was availableâ he said weakly and I growled.
âThis is a kidâs photoâ I said through gritted teeth. Nevin took the file from me and stared at the photo of the blonde girl. Taking a deep breath, I calmed myself.
âHey, Q, you both were born on 26th Novemberâ Nevin remarked and I raised my brows. âBut she is two years younger than youâ he said and then clearing his throat, âAccording to her birthday, she must be twenty years old now. Then why did you keep a little girlâs photo?â Nevin asked the agent.
âThatâs the only photo I could get. The next step was to follow her and take the pictures but it was difficult. The Emperor Pack wolves would have come to know about it and I heard-â the agent gulped and said, â- everyone who has asked about Darya so far has been dead. Itâs like Darya equal to deathâ he whispered and I stiffened.
âSo you did see her?â I asked cocking an eyebrow and the agent nodded.
âFrom far. No one can go near her. Whenever she is at home, she has one guard but when she goes out she has four guardsâ he imparted and I cocked an eyebrow. âAll wolves from Emperor are discreet about her and are unwilling to share any information about her even for any sum of moneyâ he added and I leaned against the hood of my Lamborghini.
âIs that so?â I asked interestedly.
âTheir Alphaâs ordersâ the agent mumbled.
âHow did you find out?â Nevin probed.
âHumans. Her clients and few pupsâ he said in a barely audible voice. Pups? They sure say everything they know when asked.
âClients?â Nevin asked.
âYes. Ms. Darya is a horticulturist. She owns Elegance Enclave, a farm extending up to 3 acres of land, which carries on the horticulture business. It also has vegetable display, a flo-â he went on and on, but I barely heard it because one certain word had caught my attention.
âElegance?â I asked unsurely, cutting him off and Mike nodded.
Elegance was my momâs former pack. Her brother, Victor Burke, who was the Alpha of that pack, got killed when the pack got destroyed. There was nothing left of that pack now.
âHer father died when she was ten and her mother when she was fifteen. Her father was the former third-in-command of Regal Packâ Mike continued and I cocked an eyebrow.
âSo she is a wolf with a title?â I muttered lowly.
âAfter her fatherâs death, she moved to Emperor Pack with her mother and Orseline Rhoades, present Luna of Emperor Pack.â
âThe Emperor Luna, she is the daughter of the former Alpha of Regal Pack, isnât she?â I asked and the agent nodded. âSo Darya came with her to Emperor Pack?â I inquired and got another nod as a reply.
âMs. Darya Kenrick is an only child. She studied in Hamptonâs Boarding Schoolâ I narrowed my eyes when I heard the name of that school. A wolf that I am hunting for, who once belonged to my pack, studied in that school. âI enquired the school authorities but they too werenât ready to provide any information. Alphaâs ordersâ he said and I frowned.
Granel Hampton? Why would he order against providing Daryaâs information? I then realized that Duncan Rhoades and Granel Hampton were childhood friends.
âWhen I hacked into the system, there werenât any file of Daryaâs name. It was deleted. Ms. Darya is well guarded and no wolves from both the packs were ready to share anything about her. Instead, they were about to attack meâ he said with a scared look and I scowled.
âWhere the fuck did you find this coward from?â I demanded with Nevin, through the link.
âHe was the one who provided the information the last time too. He was good but this time he looked shaken.â
Sighing, I called Quinton through the link and asked him to come meet me in the store. My family has been involved in wood and furniture business for about decades and, at the moment, I was standing in front of one of our showrooms.
âHer classmates said that she was a very quiet and shy girl, but she shocked everyone in the school when she won the best outgoing student of the year in her senior year.â
âI am not interested in those stuffs. I donât even know if the Darya, who punched Quinn and this girl are sameâ I said with a scowl. But I was curious because the girl Mike was talking about seemed well guarded by two pack Alphas. Why?
âYo bro, you called me?â Quinn asked climbing out of his Porsche.
âIs she the girl?â I demanded pointing at the little girlâs photo. Quinn took the photo from Nevin and stared at it with interest.
He stared at the photo for a whole minute before saying, âYesâ Quinn confirmed and I clenched my fists, while my wolf bared his fangs. âThe facial features are same but this girlâs eyes are blue.â
âHunt that girl from Emperor and bring her hereâ I commanded.
âItâs not possibleâ the agent mumbled and I glared at him.
âWhat did you just say?â I asked him through gritted teeth. The audacity of this mutt to defy my orders!
âThere is one more thingâ Mike said in a whisper and I cocked my eyebrow. âI donât know if itâs true or not because her last name is Kenrick, but the pups said that she is Alpha Duncan Rhoades sister.â
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I really hope you liked it :)
Next chapter, the mates are going to meet and it will be posted on 15th.
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