Chapter Five

Evan saw stars as he gasped for breath. He’d heard a crack when he hit the wall and he just hoped it was the wall that had broken, and not a rib.

The door slammed. Evan blinked through the stars in his eyes to see Alphonse tower over him. The male grabbed him by the shirt again and dragged him down the hall to the office at the back of the double-wide.

Alphonse dropped him, and Evan heard a gasp of worry. He shook his head and levered himself up. Tris cowered in the corner of the room, specks of dried blood on her face.

It took him a minute to scan the room and find Bernard’s body in a pool of blood, his throat torn out. Alphonse sat on the edge of the desk, and two males joined him. They were Stavrik and Bellar, two of Alphonse’s cronies.

“So,” Alphonse said, “I came to talk to Bernard this morning about the direction I thought the pack should go in. We’re all a little tired of living in the trailer park.”

Evan blinked, and his world shifted out of focus for a moment as his accelerated healing took care of the minor aches that the toss across the room had garnered him. He didn’t get to his feet because he didn’t want to be seen as a threat when he had no clue what was going on. Or why Alphonse had brought him into the room to see the alpha’s body.

He looked at Tris. “Are you okay?”

She shook her head rapidly.

“Oh, she’s fine,” Alphonse said, waving his hand. “For now. She just got caught with a little arterial spray when I took out Bernard because he was a short-sighted, old-fashioned idiot.”

Evan didn’t particularly like the “for now” that Alphonse tossed out. “Why did you bring me in here?”

“Because you’re going to help us get a new place to live.”

“What?”

“You’re going to call your alpha for me. I want to talk to him about joining our packs.” Alphonse cracked his knuckles. “We know your pack has a cushy place to live within the park that they use for cover from humans, and we want to...share it.”

The way that Alphonse said the word “share” told Evan that he didn’t really mean share in the traditional sense. “I can call Joss for you, but you should let Tris go. This really doesn’t have anything to do with her.”

“Oh, I think it has everything to do with her, actually.” Alphonse jerked his head toward her. Belar stalked over to her, grabbed her by one arm, and lifted her up. She shrieked in pain, and it was then that Evan saw she had a deep purple welt on her arm.

“Wait, wait, you don’t have to hurt her! I said I’d call Joss for you.”

There was no way in hell that Joss would bring a whole pack into the park, but Evan would leave that to Joss to tell the delusional Alphonse. Well, he wasn’t just Alphonse anymore—he’d killed Bernard which made him the new alpha.

“Just making sure you understand how things are going to go,” Alphonse said. He waved his hand, and Belar dropped Tris to the floor. She winced but kept the sound of pain she made to a bare minimum. Her eyes were glittering with unshed tears, and Evan’s heart went out to her.

“I’m sorry,” he mouthed.

She nodded and leaned back against the wall, holding her bruised arm.

“Now, about this call,” Alphonse said. “I’m going to tell you exactly what to say. If you try to warn Joss about what happened here, Belar is going to hurt Tris. And then I’m going to hurt you. Do you understand?”

“Yes.” Evan’s wolf snarled in his mind, but he didn’t let the sound creep out of his throat. He didn’t want to make Alphonse react violently.

Evan would call Joss, Joss would tell Alphonse to take a hike, and then Evan could get Tris and leave town.

“Let’s call your alpha, shall we?” Alphonse said, his voice taking an odd, cheerful tone.

 

* * *

 

Joss looked at the screen and entered a number into the spreadsheet. His phone buzzed, and he assumed it was about the upcoming finance meeting, which was what the spreadsheet was for. They were thinking about opening the petting zoo again, so he and his staff were responsible for estimating the costs to get it up and running and projecting the income. The park had one years ago, but it hadn’t been a big draw with the crowds, so they’d shuttered it.

He picked up his phone and was surprised to see Evan James’ number. The young wolf had been gone for several months with a pack in Virginia, hoping to find a female to mate. At the last news from his family, he’d heard the male had found a female he liked and was taking the steps to enter into a mating with her.

“Hello, Evan.”

“Hi, Alpha.”

Immediately, Joss picked up the tension in Evan’s voice. He was upset and stressed.

“Is everything all right?”

“Y-yes.” Evan cleared his throat. “Sure. The alpha asked me to get in touch with you. Are you free to talk to him?”

Joss didn’t know Bernard well at all. They’d met at a wolf gathering years ago and had kept in touch in a general sort of way. When Evan had expressed a desire to find a mate—without waiting for his soulmate like so many young shifters wanted to do—Joss had reached out to Bernard to see if there were any unmated males and females in his pack who would like to do an exchange for a while. A few had agreed to the switch but had changed their minds at the last minute, so Evan was the only one who had been part of the exchange.

“I suppose,” Joss said.

He leaned back in his chair and wondered why the hell Bernard wouldn’t just call him himself. Why use Evan as an intermediary?

“Hello, Alpha Joss.” A male that Joss didn’t recognize came on the phone.

“Who is this?”

“Alpha Alphonse.”

“I don’t know you. What happened to Bernard?” Joss’s hackles went up. Was Evan in danger?

“I’m the new alpha. My name is Alphonse. Bernard took a leave of absence.”

“I want to speak to Evan.”

“Certainly, but first I have a request.” Before Joss could tell him to fuck off and put Evan on the line, Alphonse continued. “Our pack needs a change of scenery. I wanted to discuss coming to New Jersey and joining our packs.”

Joss was speechless for a moment. Was the male serious?

He let out his wolf enough to change his tone, his voice dropping low. “First, that’s not going to happen. I don’t know you and I don’t know what happened to Bernard, but I do know that it was never his intention to join our packs and there’s no way in hell I will entertain any thoughts about it. And second, put my male on the phone. Now.”

Alphonse didn’t say anything, and Joss wondered if he’d hung up. Then Evan said, “I’m here.”

“You’re to come home immediately. You’ve been gone long enough. Bring the female with you if you wish, or make arrangements to get her another time with our people, but you are to report home within twenty-four hours. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes, sir,” Evan said. The stress was still in his voice, but Joss thought he picked up a hint of relief. And guilt?

“Whatever fuckery is going on there, you’re not to be a party to it any longer. That’s a direct order from your alpha.”

“I’ll leave as soon as I’m able.”

“See that you do. Report to me when you get in.”

“Okay. Thank you.”

“Evan,” Joss said, softening his tone. “I’m not angry with you. Just come home.”

“I will.”

The call ended, and Joss stared at his phone for a minute and then rose to his feet. He called Caesar, the lion alpha. “I need to see all the alphas in the war room immediately. Something’s going on with Evan, and we need to be prepared.”

 

* * *

 

“Well, I’m not surprised,” Alphonse said. He spun Evan’s phone on the desk like a top and then stopped it with his finger. “I would’ve been more surprised if he wanted to join up.”

“Then why did you ask?” Evan asked.

“To be cordial. I always give people a chance to come to good terms with me before their destruction.”

Evan’s heart clenched. “What are you going to do? Joss called me home. I have to obey.”

“Oh, you’re going home, but not alone. We’ve got big plans for you.”

“I won’t betray my alpha or my pack,” Evan said.

“I think you will.”

Belar grabbed Tris, and she shrieked as he bent her bruised arm behind her back. He twisted her arm severely, and she struggled to keep her feet on the ground as he lifted her slowly upward.

“Okay, okay!” Evan shouted. “Don’t hurt her!”

Belar stopped but didn’t release his grip on her arm. “Let me prove a point,” the big male said to Alphonse.

“Not yet,” Alphonse said. He stared at Evan across the desk.

Evan was entirely weirded out by what was going on. The dead former alpha on the floor, the blood-splattered new alpha, Tris’s continuing agony, and now... Alphonse wanted to take over Evan’s pack?

“Your alpha isn’t fit to lead. He’s got a human for a mate. It’s absurd!” Alphonse said, spitting the words. “I told Bernard that we needed to take over that pack, join together and oust Joss from leadership. Our pack is living in squalor in this human-owned trailer park, with the landlords jacking the rent every month. Do you know those assholes have actually threatened to kick us out and take our trailers?”

“What does that have to do with my pack?” Evan asked.

“Oh, it’s got everything to do with it.” Alphonse leaned forward and smiled at Evan. “You see, your pack lives like kings, and it’s time we did as well. You’re going to help us get into the park and take over. We’ll oust Joss and his so-called mate, and that will be that. New digs for us, new leadership for them. Win-win.”

“You’re delusional if you think Joss will willingly step down.”

Stavrik, who Evan had lost sight of, was suddenly in front of him. He backhanded Evan and sent him flying, the chair breaking under his weight as he landed. The male lifted his foot to kick Evan, and he grabbed it and shoved upward, the male’s arms pinwheeling as he tried to keep his balance. Evan shot to his feet and snarled.

“Stand down,” Alphonse barked.

Stavrik planted his feet with a growl. “I’ll skin you alive, you little fuck.”

“I said stand down,” Alphonse said.

Stavrik glared at Evan but didn’t speak again.

“I don’t expect him to step down,” Alphonse said without emotion. “I expect him to die. Him and his human. Your people will go along with me as the new alpha, or I’ll kill them, plain and simple.”

Evan wanted to say that he’d never help Alphonse take over his pack, but it took only a second for him to understand that Tris’s life was literally hanging in the balance. Alphonse was going to use her as leverage to get Evan to do what he wanted.

He wasn’t the sort of male who could leave a female in distress behind, especially when she was being used against him.

Quickly, Evan decided to pretend to go along with Alphonse’s plan. Once he got to his home pack, he’d tell Joss everything. Joss would help Evan get Tris free and keep Alphonse from harming anyone in their pack. Alphonse was clearly dangerous and unhinged, but Joss could handle him.

Schooling his features, Evan righted the chair but realized it was too broken for him to sit on, so he pushed it aside and crossed his arms. “What’s the plan?”

“So willing so quickly, young one?” Alphonse asked, his head tilting.

“I want Tris safe, and I’ll do whatever I need to make that happen.”

“Even betray your alpha?”

“I don’t want my family harmed—my parents and my brother and his mate—but other than that, I just want Tris with me. Safe. If I have to turn Joss over to you to make that happen, then so be it.”

Alphonse stared at him for long enough that Evan had to be careful not to fidget. It felt like Alphonse could see right through him, could hear the lie in his voice even though he was being cautious.

“Well,” Alphonse said with a creepy smile, “isn’t that a nice change of pace? I was certain I’d have to hurt Aletris more to get you to cooperate. But it turns out you’re smarter than I thought. Pull up a chair. We have a lot to discuss before you leave for New Jersey.”