Chapter 4

Ryka backed up and growled, teeth flashing, as she lowered her head in warning.

Wren’s pack formed a half circle in front of her as their Apex shifted. Apex. Now it made sense. She shouldn’t have come. Her pack was in trouble now, because it was clear that mountain lions and wolves were compatible as mates. They had to be, or Wren would never have been stricken.

Mates! Over my dead body! Ryka lunged forward, snapping her teeth at the giant mountain lion before jerking back. He didn’t even flinch. Instead, he shifted and she finally got her first real look at him.

If Liddick had been sexy, then Wren was a God. A golden, glowing, sun-kissed, exquisite, God. Glistening strands the color of honey and gold hung just past his shoulders. He was tall, Ryka guessed at least two feet taller than herself, and like Liddick, his body was thick with corded muscle. Clear gray eyes watched her with serious intent over a savagely hewn jaw that held what looked like a day’s worth of stubble. When he finally spoke, his voice was deep and carried the weight of his authority.

“Shift.”

Fuck you! She growled louder, leaning lower on her front legs to show him that she refused to back down from him, and she wouldn’t take his orders. His authority had no weight on her.

The trees rustled and the men tensed as Ryka’s she-wolves stepped into the clearing behind her. Relief and pride surged through her. Her females were showing their solidarity. They were her pack, and as her pack they’d back her, win or lose.

Ryka felt a surge of power and knew her females had shifted. She heard one of them step closer to her, but didn’t dare take her eyes off Wren.

“Ryka?” Ash’s voice was steady. She wanted answers, guidance, but the tone also told Ryka that whatever happened, Ash was there.

Suddenly, Liddick—standing beside his Apex—dropped to his knees and hissed as he clutched at his abdomen.

Fuck! Ryka’s eyes sliced quickly from Wren to his second. What in the…. Oh, HELL no! Another mating? One of Ryka’s she-wolves was Liddick’s mate!

God, what is happening? Ryka wanted to turn, knowing she’d be able to tell by their face which one of her girls had just found her mate, but she was too afraid to take her eyes off Wren, who was still watching her intently.

She felt another surge of power and heard a crash. Whichever one of her girls was Liddick’s mate was making a break for it.

The huge Second’s head snapped up and he snarled, staring behind Ryka. It took mere seconds for him to shift before he was gone, chasing his prey…his mate.

Run, sister! Ryka implored silently as her eyes cut to where Liddick had disappeared.

“Shift!” Wren commanded a second time, drawing Ryka’s attention back to the Apex.

She flicked a quick glance over her shoulder, and her heart stalled. Kenna was there looking terrified, Seven was trying to hold onto a brave face, and Ash was missing! Ash was the second’s mate? Seven stood her ground, but stared only at Wren, as if afraid to meet the eyes of his pack for fear that she too would find her mate. Behind her, Kenna clutched Seven’s arm with trembling fingers and stared at the ground.

Swallowing hard, Ryka knew she had no choice. Ash was on the run and she, Kenna, and Seven were surrounded. She let a ripple of power shuttle through her, and she shifted. Black fur receded into creamy mocha skin, and the clothing she’d been wearing earlier regenerated covering her in worn, form-fitting jeans, a loose-knit cream-colored sweater, and hiking boots. She’d intentionally dressed to look soft and feminine, and was cursing the decision now as Wren ran his eyes slowly down her petite frame and just as leisurely back up.

His roving eyes had her backing up a step, and she knew it was a mistake the instant she’d done it. His eyes jerked to hers and she forced herself to still. Alphas didn’t back down…ever! And females didn’t run from interested shifters. Prey wasn’t supposed to run from predators. It incited their primal urge to give chase.

“We’re leaving your territory.” It was all she could manage. She knew she should have addressed him by title and asked forgiveness for entering his territory uninvited, but under the circumstances, fuck formality.

Wren kept his eyes on her. “They can leave. You stay.”

NO! Ryka worked her jaw, and swallowed her pride. “Apologies, Alpha…” she quickly amended, “Apex Prime. We shouldn’t have come. We meant no disrespect.” She forced herself to lower her head slightly, but she couldn’t bring herself to lower her eyes or to show throat.

Wren took a step closer, his brows spearing down. “You are not leaving!”

Ryka’s head jerked up. “Why? We haven’t done anything wr…”

He cut her off. “Because you’re mine!”

“I belong to no man,” she hissed, earning her a smile. He truly was a magnificent specimen, and when he smiled he was downright unfair. A man shouldn’t be so good looking.

His smile triggered something among his pack. They fidgeted nervously beside him.

“You,” Wren took another step closer, “belong to me.”

This was it. Could she accept her fate, and become the property of a dominant she didn’t even know? Of course she couldn’t. It’s why she and her group of females had left their last pack. They didn’t want to be property.

“Battle.” The word was out before she could check it, and by the look on the Apex and his pride’s faces, and from the gasps behind her, she knew no one had expected it. She’d fight to be free of the claiming. She’d fight to stay with her pack.

The challenge had Wren’s smile vanishing.

“If I win,” she continued before she lost her resolve, the challenge already issued. “When I win,” she began again, “my pack and I go free.”

Wren didn’t move or respond, he simply frowned down at her.

“All of my pack!” If she was going to make the sacrifice, then she’d try to save Ash as well.

Wren challenged, “And if you lose?”

Blood was pounding in her veins and thundering in her ears, making it hard to hear and making the whole scene feel surreal. She knew what he was asking, what he wanted. Submission. Regret swamped her for ever having brought her pack here. Why had they trusted her? Why had they followed her? She blinked once and her dark eyes met Wren’s. “To the death.”

Kenna gasped and grabbed her arm, but she pulled free. Wren’s eyes lit with something she couldn’t immediately place.

“I’m not going to kill you. You’re my mate.”

“Female wolves have the right to challenge any claim made on them. Is it not the same for your lions?”

When he cut his gaze to his pack, she knew it was.

“I challenge your right to claim me. If it’s to the death, then we each have the right to make a final request should we fall.” She swallowed hard. “If I go down, I want you to let my girls leave.” Thoughts of Ash out there, running for all she was worth, flashed through her mind. “All of my girls.” There was no way she could win, and they both knew it, but to admit it openly as she just had by making her request upon the result of her demise was mortifying. Still, it’d save her girls, and if by some miracle she won, it’d be the same. If Wren accepted her terms, then no matter what, her girls would be safe.

He jerked his head in a nod. “If you win, you’re free. If you die,” he backed up and ripped his shirt over his head, then jerked his chin toward Seven and Kenna. “They’re free. But know this, little mate, you can’t win.”

Of course I can’t win. But it wasn’t about winning. She’d lose, but at least she’d secured the safety of her pack, and had just ensured that she wouldn’t spend her life in a torturous existence, mated to an Apex who clearly was not as just as she’d been led to believe.

She mimicked him and backed up. At her side, Seven stepped closer. “Don’t do this, Ryka! Please!”

“Ryka.” Wren growled, drawing her attention as he rolled her name around his mouth and nodded, eyes crinkling as if he liked the taste of it.

Kenna was sniffling. “Please, Phena, please don’t!”

She wanted to console Kenna and Seven, and at least say good-bye, but if she looked at them she’d lose it and start begging Apex Prime for things he clearly wasn’t prepared to give. Plus, Ash was out there somewhere, running. This had to end quickly.

Watching Wren, she sprang when he turned to say something to one of his pride. One of Ryka’s booted feet found a tree behind her. She shoved off of it with all her strength, sending her body flying into the air. She shifted and came down in wolf form, her teeth going for Wren’s throat.

The Apex was fast. He spun and caught her weight, shifting as they fell and rolled, he in mountain lion form and her in wolf. She landed on top of him, his body taking the brunt of the impact, which was odd. He could have used her own momentum to slam her body to the ground, but he hadn’t. Ryka was back on her feet in a flash, circling the lion as he got to his feet and squared off against her. God he was huge! She pinned her ears flat and her lips trembled as she snarled. Wren’s lion form was much larger than that of her she-wolf, and certainly more deadly. Her eyes dipped to the thick, three inch long claws on his paws.

Glowing yellow eyes rimmed with black followed her every move, but there was no aggressive behavior by the lion. No hackles up, no ears flat, no claws swiping at her, no flash of those fangs that had to be at least two inches longer than Ryka’s own. He was watching her and waiting. He wasn’t fighting her, and it pissed her off. They were supposed to be battling to the death, and he clearly had no intention of actually engaging her.

She lunged for his throat and he ducked his head, rolling gracefully until he was back on his feet without even the slightest hitch in his breath. Bastard! Ryka ran at him, lifting on her back legs at the last second, hoping to get an advantage from the top. Wren met her and rose up, wrapping paws around her shoulders as her teeth bit at his throat. She missed her mark, her teeth sinking into the strong muscle of his shoulder. They both hit the ground, and the air left her in a whoosh, forcing her to release her bite with a high-pitched whine.

The sound triggered something in Wren, because his paws pinned her down expertly as he quickly lowered his head to her throat and opened his jaws.

This is it! Ryka’s eyes met Kenna’s as the young she-wolf dropped to her knees and sobbed, gripping Seven’s hand. “RYKA!”

Seven pulled her hand free and rushed forward. “NOOOOO!” One of Wren’s men stopped her, holding her back from her friend.

Ryka closed her eyes when she felt Wren’s teeth sink into the flesh of her throat. He applied pressure, and she prayed it would end quickly. She didn’t fight or make a sound as he applied even more pressure until she couldn’t breathe. When he stopped and eased back just a mere fraction, her eyes slammed open. He isn’t! Realization dawned. He wasn’t putting her down. He was putting her out!

The hold was one that would render her unconscious, but not kill her. She jerked and began to struggle, but he pinned her with the weight of his body and kept even pressure on her throat. This wasn’t the deal! Her vision swam, and pinpoints of light exploded in her sight before everything started to dim. She struggled to her last, until she went out with one last whine.