EnemyMine (23 page)

Chapter Eighteen

Emory watched Mary as she slept, entranced by the
peacefulness of her face. Gone was the fear and anxiety, replaced by the world
of dreams. He wanted to remain beside her but he had other things to worry
about—other people to worry about.

Trey was back but his brother was confused and disoriented.
Ever since he’d come to complete awareness he’d been snappy and on edge. Oddly
enough, so was Nathan. The Beta refused to tell the pack much about his
brother’s reappearance, aside from the fact an anonymous female had brought
Trey home and then promptly took off. Neither of the males wanted to impart
what they knew, dodging questions with vague responses, which meant they both
had something to hide. Since Diskant had called a meeting and everyone had
arrived to listen to the Alpha and Omega, asking important questions would have
to wait. Emory could hear the pack talking quietly upstairs, waiting for the
hammer to drop. He turned his hand and skimmed his knuckles over Mary’s cheek.
She didn’t stir, breathing slow and even.

He rose from his chair and walked to the door. In case she
woke, he left it cracked. With the second stage of the bloodbond, he’d feel her
distress if she jolted awake or if she became alarmed. Hopefully she’d realize
she was safe and know his promise to make things right wasn’t offered as a
simple way to ease her fears. If not, he’d have to find some way to convince
her that what had occurred hours before would never happen again.

Diskant had better have figured this shit out.

As he walked upstairs he saw the members of the pack in
front of him. Many of the males had brought their mates, and a few of the
females held small children in their arms. Emory shouldered his way through
until he could see Diskant and Ava standing at the entranceway to the kitchen.
Shifters surrounded them. Trey stood at the couple’s side and appeared a hell
of a lot calmer. Kinsley stood at Diskant’s back, his emerald gaze combing over
the room.

The moment Diskant noticed Emory he started talking. “Let’s
get started. I’d like to thank you all for coming. I know a lot has happened in
the last few months and I appreciate the support you’ve shown. I’ve done my
best for the good of the pack, even if what transpired recently indicates
otherwise.”

Diskant lowered his head and took a deep breath before he
lifted his chin and met the stares of the shifters around him. “Unfortunately,
after thinking the matter over, I realize that being your Alpha could
potentially cause more harm than good. It’s too dangerous to have an Alpha and
Omega leader when Shepherds have changed the game. If something happens to me,
males would fight for pecking order while our enemies destroyed us one by one.
For that reason, I’ve decided to step down.”

Alarmed whispers echoed down the hall and blended together.
Ava peered up at Diskant, touched his arm and offered him a weak smile. He caught
her hand and brought it to his lips for a quick kiss. When he let her go, she
moved closer, pressing against his side. He moved his arm to give her room but
his focus was on the crowd and not his mate.

“Let it be known that I hereby reinstate the status of pack
Alpha to Trey Veznor,” Diskant said. “Effective immediately.”

“What?” Trey snapped and lowered the arms he had crossed
over his chest.

“This is your pack,” Diskant explained. “It always has been.
When I took your position, I never intended for it to be permanent. I knew
you’d eventually get your head on straight. My position was only temporary.”

Emory knew Trey wanted to say something—to argue about the
reversal of authority, perhaps—but his brother held back. Diskant had just
honored him in an enormous way. By handing over his authority, Diskant had
effectively shown all the shifters in the room that he trusted Trey with his
and Ava’s lives. Throwing it back into Diskant’s face would cause dissension
among the pack, and there would probably be more bloodshed when Alpha males
started lining up to fight for the position.

“Traipsing around for Shepherd heads isn’t an option
anymore,” Diskant added quietly. “The pack needs you here. We need you here.
Once I explain everything you’ll understand. But first I need to know if you
accept. Will you take on the pack? Will you guide them and make them your first
priority above everything else?”

Trey opened his mouth, his eyes flashing amber. For a moment
Emory felt a flash of anger—as well as an emotion he couldn’t place—coming from
the man. It was as though his brother was stunned and locked in the grips of
some sort of grief. The shifters around him started to growl, agitated by the
Alpha’s response. Then Emory saw Nathan. The Beta walked from the kitchen and
took his place by Trey’s side, placing his hand on Trey’s shoulder.

“Deal with your personal shit later,” Nathan whispered.
“Don’t fuck this up.”

The tension in the air lifted as Trey’s eyes returned to
their normal color. He glanced at Diskant and gave him a pained nod. “I
accept,” he replied hoarsely, as though he’d walked through the desert and
desperately needed a glass of water.

Slowly the shifters calmed. Then they moved forward, pushing
Diskant and Ava aside as they welcomed Trey back to his official position with
softly spoken words and relieved smiles. Emory frowned as he watched, noting
the way Trey’s shoulders sank and his irises dimmed. Although Trey responded to
each person who approached, Emory could tell his heart wasn’t in it. This
should be a moment of celebration, of happiness. So why did Trey look like the
world had just crumbled into ash around him?

Diskant relaxed and wrapped his arm around Ava’s waist. “If
you don’t mind,” Diskant said to Trey, “I’d like to continue.”

“Since you asked so nicely, I’ll allow it. But when this is
over you and me are going to have a little chat. Tell Ava not to wait up. We’ll
be awhile.” Trey sounded as confident as he always had, as though he’d never
relinquished his place in the pack.

Diskant grinned. “I kind of figured that.”

“Listen up,” Trey yelled. “The Omega isn’t finished.”

“Due to recent events, I’ve decided it’s no longer safe to
remain inside the city,” Diskant said, eyes darting over the shifters who were
studying him. “I’ve acquired a property that isn’t too far away and I’ll be
moving in the next few days.”

“You’d leave us here to clean up your mess?” one pack member
snarled.

“I’ll continue doing my job but I can’t risk my mate’s
safety by remaining out in the open.” Emory could see Diskant was trying to
remain calm, even though his eyes flashed gold in anger. “My first obligation
is to see to her well-being and care. “

“So that’s why you stepped down,” someone muttered.

Diskant started to take a step forward, fists knotted, then
a man with his wife and young child interrupted his progression. “What about
us? What would you have us do?”

The fight left the Omega as he looked at the family. “I
would suggest if you live away from the pack you consider relocating.”

“Is that all you can offer?” The man didn’t make eye
contact, trying to be as respectful as possible.

“I’m still the Omega of the city. That hasn’t changed. I’m
moving, not leaving. And I’ll also be taking a couple of people with me, if
they’re willing to go.” Diskant looked at Emory. “Ava’s attached to your
female. She wants you and Mary to come with us. The house is more than large
enough and property is secure. Your mate will be safe.”

Emory was taken off guard by the offer. Two Alpha males
under one roof? Would they kill each other? Maybe Diskant needed something he
hadn’t mentioned yet. Emory found it hard to believe he’d make such an offer
without thinking everything over. Or perhaps Ava really did want Mary around.
Everyone knew the shifter females didn’t extend her offers of friendship.
Despite being mated to Diskant, she was still human in many ways.

Emory glanced at Ava, who was so small next to her partner.
When she saw him watching, she started fidgeting. The way she lowered her hand
and placed her palm over her flat abdomen told him all he needed to know.

Oh hell.

“That’s right. My mate told me this morning.” Diskant tugged
Ava closer. “That’s my final announcement. The pack will continue to grow and
thrive with new life. In a few months, we’ll be adding to our family. Ava’s
expecting.”

More whispers, this time excited. The men and women swarmed
Diskant and Ava to extend their well wishes. A birth in the pack was always met
with happiness. Ava blushed as the women fussed over her—something Emory was
certain had never happened before. Since she was carrying a shifter child, the
icy walls the pack bitches had erected would start to fall. But where would
that leave Mary? She would still need support and understanding.

“If Mary agrees, I’ll gladly accept your offer,” Emory
called over the crowd and met Diskant’s gaze.

Ava shoved aside the women and hurried to Emory, a soft pink
glow in her face. “You will? Really?” She reached for his hands and took them.
“I’d really like to have another woman around for this. There is so much to
plan for and I don’t know what to do. I don’t want to be alone.”

Emory smiled and squeezed her hands. “I’m sure Mary will
feel the same way.”

Suddenly the room went quiet. All the shifters stopped
talking and all the attention in the room shifted from Diskant and Ava to the
person standing at Emory’s back. He couldn’t believe he’d missed her waking and
could only attribute it to all the news he’d just received. Releasing Ava, he
spun around.

Mary had managed to find a pair of oversized sweatpants to
go with the T-shirt Emory had given her. Her enormous blue eyes were shadowed
by pain, her blonde hair cascading down her shoulders. A small spot of blood
had seeped through the shirt, over the area that was bandaged on her shoulder.
She seemed so fucking calm—too fucking calm. Something was wrong, he just
wasn’t sure what it was. Her emotions were there but there was a sadness that
made them hazy, so he was unable to locate the source of her despair.

Finally, she spoke. “My name is Mary Shepherd.”

Growls greeted the proclamation, the happy members of the
pack becoming hostile. Several of the female shifters moved toward her when she
took a step forward, baring their teeth, growls turning to snarls.

Damn it.
Mary’s innocent movement was a display of
aggression even though she wasn’t aware of the danger behind the action. The
pack males wouldn’t attack, but the women would.

“If you want to kill me,” Mary announced, keeping her head
high, “now’s your chance.”

Foolish and brave fucking female.

Emory growled and started for Mary but Ava pushed him aside.
He regained his balance but before he could reach his female the petite blonde
had stormed to Mary’s side. Ava took Mary’s hand and faced the furious crowd.

“Don’t you dare threaten the godmother of my child,” Ava
snarled at the advancing females, her irises changing color.

“
Your what?”
Mary gasped and tried to pull away.

“Not now,” Ava grumbled, beneath her breath. “We’ll discuss
the details later. I’m just getting started. Someone has to put them in their
place.” When Mary stopped talking, Ava lashed out again. “Mary’s mated to
Emory, a member of our pack. Her loyalty to us has been proven on many
occasions. In fact, she’s saved our kind and put her own life at risk.”

Ava gave Mary a small smile and said, “Someone traveled a
long way to see you.” Peering past Mary’s shoulder, Ava looked at Diskant.
“Would you let them in?”

Diskant nodded and waved at Kinsley, who opened the door to
the garage and stepped back. Emory watched a pride walk in—tigers. They were
obviously shifters who thrived outside the city, as they weren’t garbed in
outrageous or expensive clothing, choosing blue jeans and T-shirts instead of
leather and silk. A large male—the Alpha—stepped forward and moved aside. He
was almost as large as Diskant, his reddish-colored hair cut short. Then Emory
saw the girl behind him.

She was a tiny thing, almost coltish, and the same age as
Mary. Her bronze-colored hair was long with locks of black buried within the
strands. When she lifted her head her golden gaze glided across the distance to
Mary. The two stared at each other for several seconds, as though they were
communicating silently.

Then the girl moved closer, her steps cautious. “Mary,” she
said softly.

If it wasn’t for Ava, Mary would have collapsed. Emory
rushed for his mate, placed his arm around her waist and prepared to take her
downstairs when Mary stopped him. She reached out, her arm shaking.

“Dara,” she murmured. “You made it home.”

Dara started crying and grasped Mary’s hand. Emory let Mary
go and the women wrapped their arms around each other, crying in
heart-wrenching sobs. It was then that Emory realized the identity of the girl.

The shifter Mary saved when she’d left hell behind. The
woman Mary refused to kill as a sacrifice to prove herself to her family.

The females had been through hell and survived it, forming a
connection only the two of them could fully understand. And apparently the
women had made strong impressions on each other. A few of the pack grumbled
disapprovingly, continuing to glare hatefully at Mary, and the tiger Alpha
stepped forward.

“Heed me,” the man said, his voice menacing, the word
vibrating as his vocal cords started to change. “My name is Harrison Garner,
and Mary Shepherd is under the protection of my pride. She bound herself to us
when she saved my daughter’s life. If you don’t want her here, make your
intentions clear. She is welcome in our home. We’ll gladly take her and leave.”

More chaos came from the pack, as well as the members of the
pride who started to surround Mary protectively. Dara and Mary separated, the
male with Dara pulled her behind him and sent her to the group at his back and
Emory rushed to his female’s side. To Emory’s shock, Kinsley had vanished into
thin air. Kinsley never left when he was needed. Why did he ditch the pack when
they needed his guidance most?