Aline Hunter: Vampire Mine

“Get your fucking hands off me.”

“No,” Nathan snapped, pushing Trey back, getting in his face. “Go for her and there’ll be blood. I’m a Beta by choice. I don’t fight battles. Not because I can’t but because I choose not to. Don’t forget that.”

Trey’s wolf howled—in pain, anguish and fury—and tried to push past his defenses. Too long denied what it needed, the beast sought an outlet. Trey was aware this would happen eventually. The animal could only take so much for so long. He’d been afraid he’d frighten Sadie when they met again, consumed by the desire of man and beast.

“Listen, Trey. That’s my female you’re threatening.” Nathan snarled in warning, nails forming claws that broke the surface of Trey’s skin. “Calm. The fuck. Down.”

Calm down? Is he serious?

Wolf and man came together, wanting to slam the female who was staring—eyes wide in terror no less—at him from across the room. The words computed but the meaning wasn’t entirely clear. Why should he care who the fuck she was? The female was a means to an end, a way to get what he needed most. He’d been denied for so fucking long—too fucking long.

Sadie.

“Let go of me, pup,” he ordered, words garbled.

“You will calm down.” Nathan’s eyes changed color, becoming an unrecognizable shade of neon green. “Right fucking now!”

Power slammed into Trey’s body with the force of a train. Anger, frustration and need bled together, collected into a fireball of anguish. In an instant the feelings slid from his skin, taken from him before he could prevent it, there one second and gone the next. The wolf went silent, no longer snarling in his head, forced to retreat.

Nathan let go, wincing as though pained. Trey watched the Beta sway from side to side, spreading his arms for balance. Nathan almost toppled over but landed against the counter, using his arms to remain in an upright position. He bowed his head, taking deep breaths, his face no longer tan and healthy but sickly pale.

“Oh Goddess,” the small female pressed into a corner whispered, her fear so potent the smell burned his nostrils. “I shouldn’t have come here.”

“Don’t be afraid,” Nathan said, sounding as weak as he looked. He tried to move to her. “I won’t let anyone hurt you.”

Trey knew the Beta wasn’t in any shape to get to the woman. Until Nathan regained some of the power he’d used to subdue Trey’s wolf he’d be weak as a newborn. He took a step back, knowing better than to approach the girl. Even in his current state Nathan wouldn’t allow anyone anywhere near his female.

“He needs your help.” Trey commanded quietly, “Go to him.”

“I don’t think that’s such a good idea.” She glanced between the men and then stared frantically around the room, as though she was pondering the best way to escape. “Neither of you seem stable.”

Nathan eased his head upward, pivoting just enough to see his mate. “Leigh.”

“Help him,” Trey said, keeping his tone light. “He won’t hurt you.”

“You don’t know that,” she countered, her sapphire eyes almost too large for her face.

“Yes, I do. He can’t hurt you. Not ever. It goes against our very nature to harm our mates.” Nodding at Nathan, he informed her, “From now on you have that man by the balls. There’s nothing he wouldn’t do for you.”

“Y-Your mates? What the hell is that supposed to mean?” she squeaked and squirmed out of the corner, moving toward the door, keeping as much distance between herself and the men in the room as possible.

The human reaction coming from a vampire confused him.

Sadie had phased with ease. He’d seen it with his own eyes.

Why isn’t she using her ability if she’s so afraid?

Nathan moved—his body graceful, muscles flexing with the motion—faster than Trey anticipated. The Beta trapped Leigh against the wall and wrapped his arms around her waist. Then he bent so his head nestled at the crook of her throat. She tried to fight her way free, slapping weakly at his arms.

“What’s wrong?” Nathan’s words were strained but steady. “You’re sick. I want to know why.”

“I’m not sick,” she snapped, as though his observation pissed her off. Despite that, it was obvious the vampire was weak. Her struggles didn’t gain her an inch of freedom. “I just…I’m fine. Let go!”

The Beta slid one hand up her side and twined his fingers in the hair at her nape. He forced her to look at him, tilting her head back, examining her face. After several seconds he found what he was looking for. It was impossible to keep secrets from Nathan. The male excelled—and was a master—at reading people.

“No, you’re not.” Nathan growled. “You’re fucking starving. I scent your hunger. I sense your pain.”

Shit.

Shifters experienced shame and outrage when they didn’t see to the needs of their mates. It was instilled from the moment of conception. Then, to make sure the message hit home, the males of a pack always led by example. A female was to be cared for. The male provided shelter, comfort and nourishment.

Unexpectedly, Leigh’s fear faded and she narrowed her eyes. “I didn’t come here to discuss my eating habits, thank you very much.” She whipped her head around and looked at Trey. “I came because Sadie’s in trouble. I’m not sure what she’s gotten herself into but it’s got to be bad. She hasn’t returned to the coven and she’s not been to our healing caverns.”

Terror lanced Trey’s chest and he stopped giving a shit about Nathan’s reactions or how terrified the woman in his Beta’s arms might be. “How long has she been missing?”

“Almost a week.”

Normally Nathan’s influence kept the wolf in a tranquil state for a few hours. Trey hadn’t thought it was possible for the beast to go from zero to sixty following the sapping of emotion. The transfer of hate and animosity to understanding and tranquility was stunning. Some wolves put their tails between their legs for months after Nathan gave them an ample shot of his mojo.

So much for that.

The wolf roared in his head, returning with a vengeance, causing his vision to change. Crimson tinted the objects in the room, making Leigh’s eyes appear pink instead of blue. He wanted to rage at the female, to ask her why in the fuck Sadie had put herself in harm’s way. Afraid he might do just that, he grasped a nearby chair and sent it soaring across the room. Wood splintered, breaking into pieces. The tips of his fingers prickled, his nails lengthening to claws.

“That’s why I came.” To her credit, Leigh didn’t sound scared. Even if he could smell her horror at his behavior, she was attempting to hide it. “I can find her.”

“How?” The question came out a snarl, the man and wolf asking at the same time.

“The same way we found you after you went and got yourself in trouble,” she muttered, her gaze turning to a glare. He scented her hostility then, as though she viewed him as an absolute piece of shit and detested being in his presence. He wasn’t sure why. What reason did she have to dislike him? “I have something that belongs to her,” she went on. “I can trace her with it.”

“Why not go to your coven?” Nathan interrupted. “Why come to us?”

“They don’t know she’s missing.” Leigh lowered her head and fidgeted. “I’ve…uh…” Forming her hands into tiny fists, she continued, “I’ve been covering for her.”

“Why?” Trey asked, grateful he’d started gaining ground over his bestial half. The wolf was still there, pissed as ever, but at least it was listening.

The sound of a door opening was the most unwelcome noise Trey had ever heard. He spun on his heel, braced for his unexpected guest. He immediately identified the visitor’s scent—a combination of leather and Dial soap. Just great. Anyone else he could boss around and order to get the fuck out. This one, however, would smile in his face and take a seat at his table.