Siege

ALLIE

I look out the bedroom window to see Ryan standing there surrounded by forty wolves. Jason is by his side.

I feel sick, horrified by his betrayal. He was the first wolf I met when I came to Linton, the one who had helped me more than anyone else, and there he was standing side by side with my enemy.

“Come outside, Allie,” Ryan called. “Your friends don’t need to suffer if you come to me willingly. I’m not an unreasonable wolf, despite whatever stories you may have heard about me.”

I move to go to him. I’m not going to let my friends suffer to protect me.

“Don’t,” Danielle tells me. “He won’t keep his word. This is what he does. Promises that if the ranking wolves surrender he’ll spare the rest, but he doesn’t.

“If they surrender, he kills them and then attacks the rest of the pack, who are weakened without their leaders to fight for them.

“And if the ranking wolves ~don’t~ surrender, he’s sown the seed in all the wolves’ minds that their leaders aren’t prepared to sacrifice themselves for the rest of the pack.

“But that won’t work with us,” she promises me. “It can’t. We know how he operates. We are stronger with you here.”

“But…”

“No ‘buts.’ We fight together. Ignore him and we will use the time he has given us to plan our defense.”

“How secure are your doors and windows?” David asks. “Can they be locked? Will they hold when he attacks?”

“The front door is strong,” Danielle replies. “The windows in the kitchen can’t be broken. The rest of the house is not in such good shape, though.”

“We need to join the others downstairs and get to the kitchen,” I suggest. “If we barricade ourselves in, our best hope is to defend that position until James can come and rescue us.”

“Do you think he will get here in time?” I ask.

“He has wolves watching the house. He didn’t want you to know, because he knew you’d be angry that he was being so overprotective. But they’ll have reported back to him by now that we’re in trouble.”

I sigh with relief, but I know we can’t just sit here and wait for James to save us.

“Okay, so we don’t have time to waste. Let’s go downstairs and inform the others of the plan.”

We move quickly down the stairs.

While we were upstairs, Clara had been getting Adam and Toby to lock the doors and push heavy furniture in front of the windows.

“To the kitchen,” David barks. “It’s the most secure place in the house.”

We run into the kitchen and shut the door behind us, then Toby and Adam drag a wooden cabinet in front of the door.

It’s only just in position when bodies slam against the door, making it shake. The cabinet doesn’t budge, though.

Ryan snarls from behind the door. “I know you think you’re being clever, Allie, running from me, trying to prevent me from taking you, but it won’t work.

“You’re mine, and I have forty wolves with me who will break this door down and carry you out by force if necessary.”

“I’m not yours,” I shout back defiantly. “I’m James’s mate. He will be here before you manage to get into this room.”

“I don’t think so. We’ll be long gone before he realizes what’s happening. The wolves he had following you were easy to spot. I killed them before they even realized that they were in danger.”

I start to panic. No one knows Ryan is here. Will we be able to hold him off long enough for James to realize that we’re in danger?

“Forget about him. You’re mine, not his.”

“There’s a mark on my neck that says differently. I’ll never be yours.”

“He marked you?” he snarls. “Well marks can be removed, and mates can be killed. It won’t change the fact that you’ll soon belong to me.

“I can make you into the person you’re meant to be, and it isn’t luna to the Silver Fang Pack. You can be so much more if you join me. I’m taking over the werewolf world and you will be by my side.”

“You’re delusional,” I snap. “All I want is to be luna to the Silver Fang and Red Moon Packs. Not the unwilling mate of a rogue alpha. I would rather die than be with you.”

“That can be arranged. If I can’t have you then I’ll make sure that no one can have you. Don’t make me do something that you’ll regret.”

“Why are you so obsessed with me? What is it that makes you think that I’m the one you want, the one you have been searching for?”

“Don’t you see how special you are? A lone wolf who can challenge an alpha, able to bring down trained warriors single-handedly even when outnumbered?

“Does that not give you a hint of what you can become? With my direction, you’ll be the perfect mate.”

Is that all it comes down to for him? Taking what he sees as my strengths and molding me into the person he wants me to be for his benefit.

“All we need to do is hold on and wait for James to arrive,” David whispers. “He’ll soon realize that something is wrong and he’ll move heaven and earth to get here. He won’t let Ryan hurt you.”

I smile. “I know.”

“Allie,” a familiar voice calls through the door. “It’s me. Your friend, Jason.”

“You’re not my friend,” I fume. “You’re a traitor who has betrayed all of us.”

“I know it might seem like that to you now, but it isn’t true. Ryan is going to be the savior of loners like us. He respects us. He wants us to join him.

“If you listen to him, you’ll realize that he can do so much more for you than that ruthless alpha you think is your mate.”

“Are you that stupid that you believe his lies?” Danielle shouts at him. “How many times have you heard me tell you about how he destroyed my whole pack and everyone I loved.”

“I know you’re upset, but Ryan has explained it to me. It was necessary to sacrifice some wolves in order to build a better future for the rest of us.”

“When this is over, I’m going to gut you, Jason. You’ll die a slow death for betraying all your friends,” Danielle promises.

I’m horrified that I ever thought of Jason as a friend. How could I have not realized what a weak and callous wolf he really was?

At this moment I hate him as much as I hate Ryan. At least Ryan has never pretended to be anything other than he is, a violent and cruel rogue.

Jason masqueraded for months as our friend.

Behind me, I hear the door to the cellar open quietly. I turn and see two wolves stroll in: Callum and the scary-looking wolf he had been drinking with in Raffles.

I gasp, but Callum puts his fingers to his lips and whispers.

“Keep quiet. They can’t know that we are here. They have to keep believing you’re alone.”