Un.Bridled (Claimed Series #2) (9 page)

Hayden dropped her arms from around her chest. It was her turn to look at him blankly.

Humor vanished from Cole’s face. It was almost impressive how well he was able to put on a professional countenance. “I believe a part of the reason why human females don’t survive the initial transformation into werewolf is because their reproductive system changes so dramatically.
More so than men.”

She glanced down at her jean-clad lap before glancing up at a skeptical Cole. “I can’t say anything has changed too dramatically down there,” Hayden supplied ignorantly.

A single eyebrow twitched. “Really?” he pressed with just a sliver of amusement. “You still get your period?”

This was
a far cry from their earlier, more serious conversation. Hayden would give anything to be weighed down with morbid information than awkward revelations. She shuffled closer to the door.

“Maybe I should go to Addie about this…”

Honestly, she’d thought it was stress and trauma that caused her menstrual cycle to skip. She’d never thought there was an
explanation
behind it.

Cole ignored her inelegance and continued as if this were an everyday teaching. “Female werewolves reflect the nature of wolves in the wild, especially when it comes to their menstrual cycle. It’s why it’s so difficult for female werewolves to bear children.”

Hayden stared, wondering why he felt comfortable explaining this to her, with a straight face no less. She figured if Blake or Fergus were in the room, they’d burst into fits of giggles and crude jokes. But that was before Rachel.

“You go through heat,” Cole emphasized.

This time, it was impossible for her to suppress the blush. “Oh.”

A tiny smirk lifted Cole’s lips.
“Yes,
oh.
” His eyes glittered as he watched her. “Though it varies among females, they usually experience it once a year. That is when you are fertile. But as I mentioned earlier, it is very difficult for a female to conceive.”

Words slipped from her mouth before Hayden could sensor them. “Would you… would you be…”

“Affected?”

Hayden was going to say
tempted
but figured it wouldn’t be appropriate.

“Of course I would be affected, along with the other males,” Cole answered. “When the time comes, I have a cabin you and Addie would take refuge in.”

She inched closer to the door again, wondering at his odd usage of the word ‘refuge’. The end of the conversation couldn’t come soon enough. But just as she reached for the door, his next words stopped her in her tracks.

“Or maybe it would be best if you and I were alone at the cabin. It may cause less… problems.”

Turning around, she noticed his unfocused eyes. “Less problems?” she quipped dryly. “That’s like putting a block of cheese in a room full of mice and expecting them not to eat it.”

His eyes focused back on the present, back on to her. “Impressive analogy,” he praised in a manner that made her flush hotly. "You don't think I have proper self-control?"

She crossed her arms over her chest again. "
Oh,
I don't know. Considering you can't keep your hands off me now, it’s hard to say what the future holds." Sarcasm dripped from her tone and Cole was quick to pick it up.

He was entirely wolf as he gazed at her. "You have no idea how difficult it is for me. Watching and imagining only makes it that more difficult." The debauched tone he used was entirely rough and hungry.

She held her tongue, wanting to remind him of
who
decided on a no-hands policy. Instead, she turned for the door. This time, she was able to duck outside his office, but his voice stopped her once more.

“Hayden.”

Wary that he wanted to discuss the quirks of male anatomy next, Hayden poked her head inside but kept her body angled outside, allowing for an easy escape route. As she glanced inside his office, she was taken aback at the smoldering expression adoring Cole’s face.

“I like your haircut,” he murmured. “It suits you.”

Thrilled, but unwilling to show it, Hayden simply raised an eyebrow. “Enjoy your lasagna, Cole. And send Rachel my regards.”

“Come to dinner with me. We can go someplace in town.”

The suggestion stunned her enough to leave her mute. Quickly, she recovered, smiling sadly at him. They both knew a dinner date was not something they could truly enjoy without feeling the sting of rejection afterwards. She had to remember Cole wanted the distance and she had to support him in that decision.

“Shane and I gouged on hamburgers.” She pushed off from the doorframe.
“Maybe next time.”

They both knew there wouldn’t be a next time.

As Hayden walked down the hallway, she felt a sting of desolation when Cole didn’t call her back. It was better this way, she reminded herself.

“Werewolves usually fight with fists and brute strength.”

The dagger’s blade reflected a warped version of Hayden’s face. The weapon was held aloft by Adolf, seemingly at home in the man’s hand. Though, the more Hayden studied the weapon, the more she determined that it wasn’t a regular dagger. It was lighter, thinner, and it had no defined hilt.

“You will be at an advantage if you hold a blade.” He narrowed his eyes on her. “A blade is not meant to battle someone with. You are not participating in a fanatical duel like th
e ones you read about in medieval fantasy books.”

Her eyes refocused on his face. “I can only imagine
you’ve
read those kinds of books if you knew they had duels in them.”

Adolf promptly ignored her interruption. “It is a lethal attack intended to disable or kill your opponent. It’s an unforgiving weapon.” Grey eyes were as sharp as the blade he held. “Do you accept the consequences of using your blade against another? Will you be able to plunge your knife into your opponent with the intentions to kill?”

Hayden stopped to consider, knowing a truthful, yet thorough answer was expected.
Could
she handle the consequences? Could she use a dagger knowing that it would kill her opponent?

“I can,” she admitted finally. “If it’s self-defense, I can live with the consequences.”

Adolf stared at her as if he didn’t believe her. He kept the blade poised midair, waiting for something
more
. Hayden tried not to roll her eyes. It was a very delicate situation, she understood, but since training started almost two weeks ago, Adolf never stopped being suspicious.

The first step in their training regime had been physical conditioning with a few hand-to-hand combat lessons strewn in between. Hayden had struggled the first few days, but her wolf had helped build her stamina. The endurance exercises became tolerable and her reflexes had sharpened, so much so that Adolf had actually complimented her.

Though the compliment had been modest at best, Adolf had offset his praise by making a snide remark, questioning what underhanded trick she was doing to aid her in their exercises. He said werewolves were prone to learn quickly and efficiently, but not as quickly as Hayden was accomplishing.

Ever since then, he watched her with suspicion. She didn’t understand the root of his doubts. It was her determination that drove her success in their lessons. She even felt
natural
when she fought.

Besides determination, what else could be aiding her success? 

Recognizing she’d been quiet for far too long, Hayden cleared her throat. “It does make me… a bit queasy to imagine stabbing someone. But I’d rather stab then be stabbed.”

“A bit queasy,” he repeated, giving her another narrow-eyed stare. “If it didn’t make you queasy, I would be concerned for your sanity.”

Above all else, Adolf had a vindictive sense of humor. Hayden appreciated it. At times. “Does this mean we get to move on to daggers?” She wondered if she veiled her excitement well enough. Judging from the skepticism across Adolf’s face, she had not succeeded.

“You are not done with hand-to-hand combat.” He frowned, flustered that they had gone off topic. “Back to our earlier subject, you will either kill an unarmed enemy or you will come across an opponent who also wields a blade. In which case, you may find yourself in knife combat.

“It is not necessarily a graceful art, certainly not as graceful as swordplay. It is aggressive and it relies on extreme physical and mental strength. Despite your knack of learning quickly, I am still leery of teaching you the dagger, simply because it
is
close rage. Males will take advantage of your proximity.”

Her initial reaction was to protest, but she’d grown accustomed to Adolf these past few days to know he had an alternative up his sleeve. “What do you have in mind?”

Adolf hurriedly concealed his astonishment at her controlled response, least she suspect it was another compliment. One did not excel quite as well as Adolf when it came to avoiding intentional praise.

“You have passable reflexes and you’re of average speed.” In Adolf terms, one had to assume Hayden had excellent reflexes and quick speed. “Those assets will help you with knife combat. I still intend to teach you, but I’d also like to introduce the throwing knife.” 

Hayden fell in love the moment the words left his mouth. She focused on the unique blade, marveling at its beauty. “It sounds incredible. I hadn’t even thought about throwing knives.”

Adolf finally lowered the blade and held it out to her. “It takes a great deal to kill a werewolf. One way to kill them is by burning them entirely. Or, your Alpha’s personal favorite, decapitation.”

Hayden recalled the night Tracer found his way into the pack house. A rogue had snuck up behind her and Cole had tackled him to the ground before gnawing straight through his neck. She supposed snapping a neck would not effectively kill a werewolf, otherwise decapitation would not be Cole’s preferred method.

“Of course, there is always the more traditional method.
Silver. However, with healing tonics available, it is becoming increasingly difficult to kill werewolves with blades and even bullets, though the latter is more difficult to heal and has a higher chance of killing the victim.”

Hayden accepted the throwing knife. While it had no hilt, one of the ends wasn’t sharpened. It was a comfortable weight, not heavy but not lightweight either. It was pure silver, she realized with awe.

“Throwing knives aren’t necessarily meant to kill, but if you excel at the art, you may be able to catch your opponent through the heart or through the eyeball and into the brain. In such cases, they will automatically drop.”

At the mention of piercing an eyeball, Hayden grimaced in abhorrence. “And what if you aren’t that good?”

Adolf inclined his head, a small smile gracing his lips. It was gone before she could take proper note. “Throwing knives slow down your opponent. Depending if
you’re fast enough to hit them, and depending on
where
you hit them, they will be in pain and you’ll have an advantage.”  

The silver-haired Alpha stopped abruptly and gazed over Hayden’s head. At first, Hayden thought it was a member of Adolf’s pack. Throughout their training exercises, a few had approached out of mild curiosity and a need to see if she hadn’t bitten off their Alpha’s head.

When she glanced over her shoulder, she was surprised to see the other Alphas and their betas enter Adolf’s property. Fortunate for her, tonight was the full moon and Cole was away on his business trip. Still, she shifted under their curious gazes. Nathan, in particular, looked ready to object at her presence, but Blake quickly intervened with a few whispered words.

“Stay,” Adolf ordered before gliding toward the other Alphas.

Something big must have happened for the Alphas to cross into another Alpha’s territory without permission. She tried to catch their words, but they intentionally lowered their voices several octaves.

Just as she thought she wouldn’t discover any inside information, Hayden noticed Asher amongst the group. Her hopes soared when the blond beta snuck away from the others to approach her.

“When I caught you on Adolf’s property that day, you really
weren’t
sightseeing.” He appraised the knife in her hand. “There is something strangely sexy about a woman wielding a knife.”

“Sexy.” Hayden lifted her eyebrows in disbelief. “I’ll take your word for it.”

He stuffed his hands into his pockets and struck a casual pose. Looking around the clearing, he finally put the two and two together. “I can’t believe he’s training you. Does Cole know about this?” He shook his head, chuckling. “Don’t answer that, I shouldn’t have even asked.”

She tried to suppress her curiosity, at least until she could ease her way into it, but she relented. “What’s wrong with the Alphas?” Over Asher’s shoulder, the men were still whispering amongst each other.

“I shouldn’t tell you.”

Her eye twitched, but she remained calm. “You shouldn’t, but that doesn’t mean you
can’t
.”

Asher flashed a dimpled grin, though it vanished a moment later. “Remember the rogues I told you about at
The Lounge
? The ones that are settled outside of town?” At her nod of remembrance, he continued. “The Alphas, mainly Cole, decided to leave them alone.”

“Instead of executing them?”

She was shocked. Usually, Cole favored execution over sheltering, even when the rogues weren’t loyal to Nicolas. She wondered if his decision to grant immunity was an attempt to see things from her perspective. After all, Hayden had argued with him on countless occasions about his quick decision of elimination. Evidently, he
had
listened.

“Yes.” Asher glanced over his shoulder and lowered his voice. “The pack of rogues haven’t caused any trouble or entered town yet, so the Alphas decided to leave them alone. Unfortunately, the Hunters found out about them. They plan to execute them tonight during the full moon.”

“How many are there?” Shock paralyzed her senses before horror took its place. “How can they… Shane said the Hunters don’t kill werewolves unless they prove to be a menace to society.”

“They are a menace to society, a
potential
menace. They have no order, no control. Without an Alpha and a proper hierarchy, they could invade town during the full moon and prey on humans.” Asher sighed, his face weary. “I know what you’re thinking, Hayden. You can’t help them.”

“The Alphas.”
She motioned toward the counseling crowd of males. “They have to help them. I could call Cole and he could convince them to…”

Asher appeared frustrated. “I knew I shouldn’t have said anything.” His normally warm eyes were full of pity. “The Alphas don’t plan on doing anything, Hayden. No amount of persuasion from Cole will change their mind. They would be putting themselves and their packs at risk.”

“But the rogues are just
scared
.”

A few of the Alphas turned to look at Hayden after her
brash admission. Ignoring Asher’s quiet hiss for her to be silent, she continued, refusing to let the situation lie.

“I was a rogue once,” she addressed the Alphas, hoping to spur some sort of understanding from them. “I was scared and alone. I didn’t know what was happening to me. They’re just as confused.”

“You don’t know if they are newborns,” Adolf rebuffed. “They could be veteran werewolves.”

“If they weren’t newborns, they would have established a hierarchy. But you said they don’t have a hierarchy, didn’t you? There is no Alpha, no pack order. They’re newborns. They have to be. They don’t know any better.”

“Hayden, stay out of this.” Blake made a shooing motion with his hand, a sort of placating gesture. “Cole doesn’t want you in this business.”

“You were one too, Blake,” Hayden persisted. “You didn’t understand what was happening to you. What right do the Hunters have slaughtering
people
? They are vulnerable and exposed!”

Blake took an advancing step forward, his eyes hard. “That’s
enough
.” Breathing deeply, he tried to control his anger. “The discussion is over, Hayden. Our decision has been made.”

She reared up to her full height, hardly daunted over Blake’s temper. “Cole said we’re
both
in charge during his absence. I have a voice too—”

Asher abruptly interrupted her by steering her away from the Alphas’ narrowed stares. “Fighting with him in front of the others will not get you anywhere. Blake will want to establish his dominance and control.” He pressed a consoling hand against her shoulder before leaning down and whispering in her ear. “I can show you where they are.”

Hayden jerked at the confession. Uncertainly, she tightened her hold around the throwing knife. “You can?”

The blond-haired beta appeared indecisive, as if a great weight settled on his shoulders. “I know where they are, yes. Maybe…” he trailed off with a sigh but pressed onward. “Maybe we can warn them in time.”

“Asher.” Eric, Asher’s father, quickly began approaching his son.

“Meet me outside your property at four o’clock,” Asher continued in a hushed, hurried
tone. “Sunset shouldn’t be until five. The Hunters won’t move until the full moon is up, maybe a little bit before. We should get there with plenty of time.”

All she could do was nod as he was pulled away from her.

* * *

“Where are you going?”

Out of the entire pack, Hayden hadn’t expected Fergus to be the one to catch her sneaking out.

Fortunately, with Fergus, one did not need an elaborate ruse to fool him. Hayden merely used the first thing that came to mind. “To my tree house,” she bluffed weakly. As she inched closer to the backdoor, Fergus stepped boldly in front of her.

“But you don’t have a tree house.” A considering expression lined his face. “Otherwise, I’d take advantage of it.” His eyes were gloomy. “We could build one together…” he mused hopefully.