Page 16 of And Omega Makes Four
"Who are you?" I demand, trying to sound braver than I feel.
"My name is Charles." The man is staring right at me, almost through me. "I'm the Alpha of this pack. And you're trespassing on my land."
"We're outside your boundary." I glance back to where the boundary line was.
"Yes, but not by much." He shrugs as if that detail isn’t of his concern. "And I can't have you sniffing around here. Not when your scent was clinging so thickly to my son when we recovered him this morning."
"Your son?" I frown, glancing at Kyle. "You mean River?"
Charles doesn't answer my question, but it's obvious that I'm right.
"Drifters like you have no place here," Charles continues. "And you certainly have no business with my son. I’ll give you one chance to leave. Go back to town, stay there if you like, but if I catch your scent within a mile of our compound again, you will not like what happens next."
The wolves around us bare their teeth and growl, adding menace to Charles's threat.
"We're not leaving without River," I say, holding my ground.
Kyle's hackles are raised, his fangs bared as he snarls beside me. He's not backing down either.
"I think you'll find that you don't have a choice," Charles says, narrowing his eyes at me. "Either comply or die. It's as simple as that."
I swallow hard, unsure what to do. I've never been in a fight in my life, and I'm not sure I can take on even one of these wolves, let alone six of them.
Beside me, Kyle nudges my hand with his muzzle. His expression is still agitated, but he's dropped his tail and some of the fire has gone from his eyes. He's giving up.
I close my eyes and exhale slowly. I know he's right. We can't win this fight. We have to retreat. For now.
"Fine." I open my eyes and glare at Charles. "We'll leave."
"Good." Charles smiles, nodding once. "I'm glad we could come to an understanding."
I turn away and start walking toward the road. Kyle follows after me, his head hanging low. I can tell he's not happy about this, but we both know he's right. This is our only option.
The pack of wolves shadow us all the way back to the station wagon. I open the door so Kyle can hop in the back seat, then I climb into the driver's seat. As I start the engine and turn the car back onto the road, a wave of nausea passes through me.
I can't believe we're just giving up on River.
It feels like I'm leaving part of myself behind.
After about a quarter mile, Kyle slowly shifts back into his human form. I can see his reflection in the rearview mirror, and he looks just as upset as I feel.
"We're not giving up." His voice is hoarse from the shift as he gathers up his clothes and gets dressed in the cramped space. "We're gonna figure out a way to get him back."
"How?" I want those words to be true, but I can’t imagine a way back in. Not after they have our scent on their radar. "We barely even noticed them before they were on top of us. There's too many of them for us to fight. Even if I were a better fighter, we're outnumbered. We can't get him out."
"We'll find a way," Kyle insists. "We're not leaving him there."
"What if we can't?" I ask, my voice cracking as I speak. "What if we can't get him out?"
"Stop it," he snaps at me, forcing me out of my spiral of despair. "You don't give up, remember? We never give up."
"He's not one of us, though." It’s true but doesn’t feel honest. "I thought for sure you'd be the one telling me we need to let this go. Keep out of something that doesn't involve us."
"I know, but I can't just walk away from him. I don't know why, but...I can't."
"You like him." I raise a brow at him in the mirror, finally feeling like we’re on the same page here. "Don't you?"
"I..." Kyle hesitates, then sighs heavily. "I don't know. I don't know what it is. But after what you said, before the pack found us, I know you feel it too."
