ROMANCE: Awakened by the Alpha Bear (Werebear Fantasy Billionaire Romance) (New Adult Contemporary Alpha Male Bear Shapeshifter Paranormal Romance Short Stories)) (44 page)

Meant
for the Alpha Wolf

Chapter One

The road ahead was dark and
Summer moved along with the moonlight.  The sounds of her pack faded in the
distance. The night time rituals had not changed in years, and she found them
boring and antiquated. The young woman left with blessings and peace, although
some said she would return. They told her it was in her blood, the old ways are
not that easily forgotten. Still, with a couple of hundred dollars and a new
outlook, she walked the nightly path into a new beginning. It was her hope she
could put the past behind her. Any bloody evening under the full moon or
strange ritualistic practice she’d participated in, she needed it gone.

A younger wolf, the night was
welcomed, and its sounds and dance made her feel alive. Thoughts of her friends
and family swirled through her head as she took one last look back. Her long
dark hair stuck to her face as sweat beaded on her brow. The warm, humid summer
night was uncomfortable in some ways. Her thickened blood kept her eternally
fevered like an oven walking around at all times. This would only get worse
when she was in season. For now, the droplets would be wiped away with her palm
and she moved on.

The next town over was slightly
bigger but still small compared to the bigger cities near the capital. Florida
towns splayed out in all directions. Small, quaint, and still the kind of place
where one could raise kids, Summer moved through them quickly. Not really
wanting to make friends, the lone wolf kept to herself. Unsure of who to trust,
there were so many things to learn. Cues from mortals were often hard to
determine. Most of the time, she would use a wolf sense to figure out what
people really meant. Smells, changes in blood flow, and other body cues often
gave way to man's true nature. It gave her a sense of comfort that she found
she knew what people were thinking before they made a move.

The next town up ahead would be
McAlpin. There wasn’t a lot there besides some chicken coops, cows, and pigs.
People kept to themselves and strangers stayed strangers unless they welcomed
you. Summer drifted on through in the night. She would need to keep a low
profile here. Wolves were not welcomed, and she didn’t really want to be ran
out of town on a rail. She would have to plan her kill and hide the evidence.
With a ruling ache in her belly, Summer let the beast run free that night.
Before she came to a town, she needed to let the wolf stretch its muscles.

Just as before, she disrobed by
a lake. Her scent hidden by the fresh cool of the night and water, she could
return with no detection. The crunch of dried summer leaves underneath her paws
and the smell of fresh honeysuckle exhilarated her. It was the instinct to play
that took over, and she splashed in the lake and ran back and forth like an
excited pup. Shaking the water off, she moved away from the lake and tilted her
head to listen. The warm breeze in her black pelt felt good as she bounced
about in the night. The coop was up ahead. She would take one, maybe two, and
be swift about it. No need to draw attention. Her stomach growled its approval
and she moved towards her meal. The wolf took over and zoned in on the scent.

Chapter
Two

With the moon high in the sky,
its glow leading the way, she could feel the tension of her prey. The chicks
began to squirm and coo. They knew death walked among them. On swift feet, she
pounced. She was always quick and didn’t allow her pray to suffer. It wasn’t in
her nature as a human or a wolf.

Summer took her kill of two fat
hens and moved into the wooded field just beyond the lake. Sitting in a thicket
of trees and brush, the wolf tore through the flesh and feathers. Fresh warm
streams of blood splattered about her face and snout. When there was nothing
but bones, she tossed the remains in the lake and watched as they sank. She was
about to rest back into her human form when another presence caught her
attention.  With a whiff on the wind, her thick coarse pelt stood on end.
Another wolf was present. Summer turned to see a large grey pelt move in the
distance. The rival caught her scent but made no move.  He was a male, a stray
male, which meant he could be dangerous. Funny, she was now known as a stray
female. She hadn’t thought of that before. But this one moved along with ease
without a care. He turned and eyed the young female. Sniffed the air and stood
firm. He didn’t move, didn’t bolt, and didn’t make a sound.

Lethal predators with fangs and
claws meant for the kill, neither of them moved for a moment. Within moments,
the male tossed his head and moved away. She was relieved as her stomach was
full and she didn’t want to engage in a fight so close to bedtime. Summer
backed away and moved to her quiet space changing back into her human form and
wrapping her clothes around her. She slept peacefully content with the
sustenance she provided herself.

A deep voice awakened her and
she squinted into the sun to see who hovered near her.

"Rough night huh? Get up,
you can't sleep all day."

“I will sleep all day if I
wish. No one tells me what to do.” She yawned and glared at the man who
disturbed her. He came into focus, a silver haired, thin lipped handsome man.
He had dark, gorgeous eyes, but she was still angry.

"You were beautiful last
night. Not greedy. I like that."

"You know who I am, what I
am?" She sat up quickly and scooted back from him.

"Of course I do, it's in
your scent. Even as a human, it permeates the air. Didn’t they teach you
that?"

“I didn’t really pay attention
to what they taught.” She sat up and stretched, “just to know the wolf
form."

“Where are you from then?” He
tilted his head curiously.

“All over the place doll,” she
said, “I’m from all over.” It was always better to be ambiguous with strangers.

“Come on, get up, and come with
me. I have something to show you.”

“Why should I go anywhere with
you?"

"You’ve got a point, but
something tells me you need me. You really need me. Come along young one, time
for your lesson. We need to make good time. The next town over is much
better."

"Who are you?  Where are
you from? Don’t call me young one!"

"My name is Gotham and my
pack is full of members from the original clan of this area. We have been
around for a very long time, and you’ll be safe with us.”

"Why wouldn’t I be safe
without you? Where are you taking me?"

"Nice little town called
Live Oak. It's quiet and there's a guy there that always has a good breakfast
ready. Let's run."

Gotham started with a light
charge, and soon, he was out of sight. From up ahead, she heard him call. It
astonished her how fast he was in human form.

"Come on slow poke,” he
yelled, “let’s go."

"I don't know how to do
that." She called back and started trotting towards him. As soon as she
let go, her speed increased and she could feel the blood race through her
veins.

“Let the wolf flow and you'll
be okay.”

She could hear him speaking in
her head, which was another thing she didn’t know was possible. Perhaps she did
have a lot to learn. She felt light as she moved and followed him to the
nearest town. The smell of bacon and eggs filled the air and he held up his
hand to have her stop.

“Time to act human now,” he
winked and strolled out of the woods in front of a little Ma and Pa diner. The
smells were intoxicating and she realized she was hungry again.

“Well pup, I see you’re a fast
learner." They stepped up onto the wooden porch of the diner.

Where did you learn to do that,
and who taught you?” She was full of questions. The things her clan taught her
she could count on one paw. This was a whole new world for Summer.

“I told you. I’m from an older
clan and I know more that I can teach you.”

“Hello Gotham, I see you’ve
brought a guest. Show your manners and invite the lady in.” A withered old man
had exited and now smiled up at her.

“My lady." Gotham bowed a
strange comical motion while sticking out his tongue. Summer chuckled and
sauntered past the clown.

“What will the wolves have for
breakfast?” The man was so nonchalant about it and Summer gasped.

"Now, don't you be afraid,
old Jake been a tending to your kind for years. My father married a pack woman.
Loved her dearly."

Jake was a dried up chubby
fella with a twinkle. He reminded her of Santa, well a drunk Santa.

He continued to talk and she
smiled. "No, I'm not one of you. Seems my dad's human genes were stronger.
I didn't get the gift. Mama would threaten to bite me when he pissed her off
though." It was funny. Since she was born a wolf and not changed, she had
never heard it referred to as a gift.

Summer hadn’t realized he’d
been leading them to an outdoor seating area and was surprised when they
stopped in front of a large table of men and women eating. They all stared at
her and some smiled while others looked confused. There were people of all
different ages and appearances surrounding the table. An old hound came up and
sniffed her but growled and backed away when she went to pet it. The table of
strangers all smiled and Gotham said, “This is Summer, she’s joining us for a
meal.”

Chapter
Three

A large man stood up from the
table and walked up to them. “Well boy, a night out in the moon and you finally
brought something decent home." He clapped a hand on Gotham’s back and
Summer wrinkled up her face. She wasn’t sure what that meant. “My name’s Alton,
and you’re welcome to join our merry band of misfits.” The old man left them
and it was just the group of wolves while he grabbed some more bacon and
breakfast food for the table.

The hungry pack waited for
Summer and Gotham to take their seats. Alton chuckled and said. "Well,
let’s eat."

The breakfast party dug into
mounds of meat, eggs, biscuits, and gravy.

They all ate in silence but one
person kept getting her attention. Summer had never met anyone like Gotham. His
blue eyes had a rare sparkle in them that she has never seen before. Something
about the group made her comfortable, but she still wanted to keep up her
guard. She began to ask questions.

"Do you always feed
strays?"

Alton laughed and crunched on
another piece of bacon. The old man had rejoined them and sat eating quietly.
“Jake, do you always feed strays?”

"Heck no.  I found Gotham
about ten years ago. Got caught in a bear trap. I brought him home and cleaned
him up. I could tell by the way he let me he was gentle. Knew he was more than
just a wolf. I earned his trust and we been here ever since. No one bothers me,
so no one cares."

“I was young when I got caught
in the bear trap, being dumb and not paying attention.” He looked embarrassed.

"What’s your story besides
new wolf yearning for life?" Alton asked Summer and all the wolves paid
attention.

"My pack is mostly
clinging to the old ways. They remain isolated and work as a team. Most of them
see the fact that we are different as an entitlement and do their best to stay
away from mankind. But I don't see things that way. I think we are just as much
mankind as we are wolf so I don’t think they act right. "

"It’s a wonder they let
you leave.”

“It took a tribunal to allow my
freedom. Some of the elders were not pleased, but the younger generation stood
up for me."

Gotham raised his head and eyed
his companions raising a brow at Alton. He knew they hadn't let her go
completely.  He caught the scent of an invader miles back. He figured it was
her shadow, and she was unaware. The fact that she said some of the elders
weren’t happy made him wary.

"How about we teach you
some skills little wolf. Starting after breakfast."

"Skills?"

"Yes, you have no idea of
the power you possess."

After breakfast, they decided
it would be the best time to start her training. The tribe had kept what weres
were actually capable of a complete secret from the pack. It was easier to
control them when they didn’t know what they could do. The younger wolves were
so much stronger than they even realized. Summer was about to find out how
strong.

Chapter
Four

The elders were in an uproar. 
No youth had ever been allowed their freedom ever. Slad, the oldest wolf,
expressed his negative concern. He knew there were bands of outlaws in the woods.
Those that had left their own packs and traveled alone.

"To be placed among the
humans is an outrage. They are beneath us in every way. In the old days, we
hunted them and they paid offerings to keep things still. Now, we send our kind
amongst them!" Kenya was not pleased.

An elder male quickly rebutted
her thoughts. He was slightly older than her and starting to come around on
some of their beliefs.

"It is time for a change.
We are no longer the mindless killers of the days past. We must adapt. This
camp is all we have, and it provides us nothing of the real world. It is as old
as we are and our legends. Allow the responsibilities you have the chance to
grow and let those out there do as they please."

Some cheered in agreement while
others scoffed. Slad had been around since the early days. Wrinkled only
slightly at the nose, the senior appeared in his 60s in human years, but he was
way older. In fact, some of the early horror stories of wolves dispatching
small children were linked to his early years. Now as a council elder, he
refrained from such, but often relished the days where he let the wolf run
free.

Kenya, the senior female, came
along much later. She was actually the product of another senior's sloppy
feeding. But she proved herself to be a wise leader and understood the issues
with the younger wolves of the clan. A number of them were restless, tired of
the camp, and needed to see more. She had been the same, and once her creator
knew of her existence, he prepared her in every way and showed her the world.
That was what she wanted for Summer as well. She had great plans for Summer to
help her lead the new wolves in an even stricter regimen of wolf tradition and
discipline. She was her departed sister’s daughter and a very strong wolf.
Unfortunately, Summer had left and outraged her aunt who had such big plans for
her. She had one of the pack tailing her, but she needed someone who could get
closer to her and really see what was happening.

Kenya contacted a dear friend
that she knew would watch over Summer until she could decide what to do about
the whole situation. It was someone she trusted for many years.  He lived not
too far away and would keep her informed of her nieces’ actions.

***

It had been two days since
Summer left her pack to try life out as a lone wolf. Of course, she had
suddenly become a member of a new group, wasn’t that the way life went
sometimes. Summer certainly wasn’t looking for another pack, and certainly
wasn’t looking for a man like Gotham. But Gotham had this aura of power, and
his presence made Summer feel something no one had ever made her feel before.
She had planned to move on as soon as she felt they had given her some good
information and breakfast, but she’d stayed and soaked in being with wolves
that thought differently than her own tribe had.

After the trio finished their
breakfast, they made their way to a secluded patch of the forest off the hiking
trail. The back woods of Live Oak provided a lot of cover for what they needed
to do. Gotham watched Summer move reluctantly to the spot. She had reservations
about the new wolf. She overheard a conversation earlier that gave her pause
and she wanted answers.

“Since the past few mornings
have been so humid, we made sure to prepare for the training. Summer may have
just joined us but we’ve had this training morning planned for the better part
of a month. It’s important we train her to be prepared.”

She had to wonder what she
needed to be prepared for.

Gotham led Summer over to the
clearing and leaned in to speak quietly with her.

“When you’re trying to channel
your inner wolf to speak to others of our kind, all you need to do is project
yourself and define your target. Sometimes, the stronger wolves can send out a
mass message of sorts, to the whole pack. But that is usually only done when
they’re in trouble.” Summer stared at Gotham as if he had two heads but nodded
in agreement.

“But how exactly do I direct it
at a specific wolf?” Summer asked. She tried to act calm so he wouldn’t know
how cool she thought it was she could talk to people in her mind. That would
have come in handy growing up as a gossiping teenager with her friends in the
pack. She had a brief moment of sadness as she remembered them fondly.

Gotham rubbed his temples in
response and thought before he finally answered Summer’s question. “Think of
me. Basically picture me in your head, then think of what you want to say and
it should come to me.”

Summer nodded, closed her eyes
to think, and tried to communicate with Gotham. It wasn’t difficult to see his
handsome face and beautiful form in her mind. A few moments passed and a smile
spread across Gotham’s face. Gotham quickly closed his eyes to respond to
Summer. The silence of the small group was shattered as Summer gasped then
burst out laughing apparently in response to Gotham’s response. Gotham looked
amused with himself and glanced towards Alton as if he knew what was happening.
Alton looked reluctant to do anything and stared at the ground.

“Now that you understand that
Summer, we can move on. You need to know how to not only protect yourself in
wolf form, but you also need to know how to protect yourself in human form as
well. For instance, if I come up to you like this, and start to try to grab you
to abduct you, what are you supposed to do?”  Gotham said as he stood in front
of Summer and grabbed her shoulders and started to pull.

Summer immediately pushed her
arms skyward which broke his grasp. But instead of stopping there she grabbed
his arm and proceeded to flip him over her back. Gotham was shocked by her
understanding and narrowed his eyes at Summer before he finally spoke.

“Exactly like that. I can
honestly say you surprised me Summer, and that doesn’t happen often. Let’s
continue. We’re going to go through some drills.” Gotham said with a smirk.

Gotham lunged without warning
at Summer, and without the least bit of understanding, Summer threw her feet in
the air, and kicked off Gotham’s shoulders before she landed on her feet.
Summer looked just as surprised as Alton and Gotham were by her skills.

“I don’t understand what’s
going on Summer. I thought you didn’t know what the hell you were doing and
that’s why we’re out here this morning.” Gotham said with a voice that boomed
through the forest all around them. Summer winced as if his words had struck
her. Gotham watched her expression change when he raised his voice and tried to
bring clarity to the strange situation. “Some weres have the ability to do
things that no one can explain. It might just be as simple as your blood line
is that elite. Do you know where you come from?”

Summer nodded at Gotham then
responded. “Yes, I was born this way, but my lineage is basically royalty. In
my pack, I really was basically ignored because I was so young, which is one of
the main reasons I ended up leaving. I am kin to Kenya, elder of the tribunal
and strong wolf sister of my mother. I am honestly just as shocked as you are
over my own skills. I never knew what I really could do. But now I’m wondering
how much can I do?”

Gotham’s eyes narrowed for a
second while he took it all in. “Well, you and I can work together and figure
all of that out. Right now though, I need to work with Alton. You can go for a
run or do whatever you’d like. And hey Summer, if you need to rest after, you
can stay at my place. I live in Live Oak cabins right down there, its number
239.  Summer smiled and nodded at Gotham and Alton. The group of ten started
sparring with each other and practicing their skills. She wondered if she would
become friends with the other wolves. She didn’t know if they were reluctant to
trust strangers, but none of them had introduced themselves.