Fenella walked up to Willow, watching her with a smile. The strong scent of her perfume was sickening and made Willow nauseous. She glared at the blonde werewolf. "I'm not coming with you. I'd rather die than go with you."
"Well," the blonde grinned. "That can be arranged." She muttered under her breath.
"Fenella," Lowell snapped, giving her another warning look. "Don't engage her. Just do your job."
Fenella nodded with a scowl on her face. "Well, all right. This half-breed isn't that important to me anyway."
"Lowell." Luke suddenly interrupted. He tried to step forward, but was held back by the two werewolves who stood flanking him left and right. "Let him go. This is wrong and you know it."
Lowell watched Luke. "Ah, the traitor has finally spoken. Tell me, what lies did you tell to sway our little Willow, hmm? Were you so busy demonizing me that she thinks I'm that bad?"
Casually, Luke shrugged. "I didn't tell her anything but the truth."
Lowell chuckled. "The truth? And what was the truth? Did you tell her how you were kicked out of the group eight years ago for killing another member in cold blood? Is that the truth you mean?"
Luke said nothing.
Willow glanced at him and then back at Lowell. "You must be lying. Luke wouldn't do that."
Lowell's laughter grew louder. "Oh, look at little Willow not believing it. Well then, ask him yourself. He should have been executed for his crimes, but your father was merciful. Still, Luke showed his true colors. He's not loyal to anything. To anyone."
"I'm loyal to her," Luke said, pointing at Willow.
"Really?" Lowell grinned. "And that's why you brought her back to her father? Because of your loyalty to him? I think it was for your own self-interest. You want to regain his favor so he'll let you be his lapdog again."
"Just believe whatever you want," Luke said. "Your words mean nothing."
"Gee, are you trying to bully me?"
Lowell approached Luke. His eyes locked on Luke's gaze. Willow could only watch anxiously and wonder what would happen next. Contempt was evident in the eyes of both werewolves. But Lowell had all the cards in his hands.
"What do you think, Willow dear?" Lowell asked without taking his eyes off Luke. "Do you really believe this traitor has your interests at heart?"
"Yes," Willow replied without hesitation. "Yes, I trust him."
Lowell grinned. "Well, that's a shame." With inhuman speed, he punched Luke in the midsection, sending him sprawling on the ground, gasping for air.
"No!" Willow screamed. She tried to get to Luke, but Boris held her back. She thrashed, but was helpless in the giant's grip.
Lowell turned around. His expression was emotionlessly blank. "Finish him," he ordered the other werewolves.
"No, don't kill him," Willow cried out.
Lowell raised his hand and the horde stood up. "He's a murderer and a traitor, Willow. He deserves to die."
Tears welled up in her eyes, but she refused to burst into tears. She watched as Luke writhed on the ground, trying to stand. Four werewolves stood nearby, all wanting to tear him apart.
She could not let Luke die. Then, in her desperation, an idea formed. She hated it, but it was the only way to save Luke. "Let him go," she said to Lowell, "and I'll go with you to be your mate. I won't fight you anymore."
"Willow, no," Luke voiced his disagreement, but that only earned him a kick to his stomach from one of the werewolves.
"You'll go with me willingly?" asked Lowell.
"Yes. I promise. But please let Luke live."
Lowell stroked his chin, contemplating the idea before finally speaking in a tone that reflected his satisfaction. "You're smarter than I thought, and I like that. Very well. We'll spare the traitor. Consider it my first gift to my beautiful new mate."
He turned to the wolves surrounding Luke. "Leave him, but make sure he can't follow us."
One of the most scruffy-looking werewolves chuckled at the order and then stomped hard on Luke's cloth-wrapped calf, making him cry out in pain.
"Stop it," Willow pleaded.
Lowell appeared in front of her, blocking her from seeing Luke. "I said I'd spare his life, but I can't let him follow us. He'll try to ruin all my plans."
"But you don't have to torture him like this."
"He'll be fine. He's strong. It'll take more than that to kill him." He placed a hand on Willow's shoulder while also gesturing for Boris to let go. "You made the right decision, Willow. Now come with me. Your future awaits."
Lowell began to lead her away. The rest of the group followed, leaving Luke alone, covered in blood and bruises.
Willow allowed Lowell to walk ahead of her, leading her. Of course she didn't want to go with the pack, but she had to make this sacrifice. They would take her at any cost, at least this way Luke wouldn't be killed.
"Willow...."
She heard Luke calling her name in a hoarse voice, but she didn't look back.
She was forced to ignore him, and would not look back and see his face. A face that she honestly believed she would never see again. And if she looked back now, she was afraid she wouldn't be able to keep her promise to Lowell, which would definitely endanger Luke's life.
I'm sorry, I can't let you die, she whispered to herself. Tears welled up in her eyes again, and she let them fall this time.
***
Lowell stared at the ceiling of his dilapidated cabin, hands interlocked behind his head and mind focused on the upcoming ceremony. It would only be a few hours before he finally took Willow as his mate. Then he could reunite the scattered remnants of the pack, and make it stronger than ever before while still under the leadership of Willow's father.
"Oh, you're awake."
Lowell turned his head next to her, seeing Fenella looking at him, her hair messy and her naked body mostly hidden under the blanket.
Lowell nodded. "I barely slept."
"You sure it wasn't just because of our play last night?"
"Maybe." Lowell grinned. "You think that little bitch is awake?"
Fenella shrugged. "Maybe."
"Most likely she's crying. I can't believe she fell in love with Luke. What does she see in him? He's a coward and a fool."
"Willow is young and stupid. Why should we be surprised? You'll take her as your mate anyway."
"We've been over this, Fenella." He threw his legs over the side of the bed, spread his hands. "I have no choice. I can never take my rightful place as alpha without her. The others won't follow me."
"I do follow you. And I always will."
"Yes, but the others are still loyal to Elliot. I don't just need you, I need all the pack members."
"If you've got your power, then what? How long are you going to keep the half-breed?"
Lowell knew what she meant, but he said nothing. He was not interested in having this conversation with Fenella who seemed to half-heartedly agree to his decision. He got up from the bed and picked up his clothes from the floor, putting on his boxers and jeans.
"You know he could have a little accident," Fenella sat on the bed, letting the blanket slip off her body. "You don't have to do anything. Boris and I can take care of it. All you have to do is...."
"Enough," he cut in. "I don't want to hear you discussing things that haven't happened yet, Fenella."
"But what about us?" Fenella's displeasure radiated from her tone of voice.
Lowell looked at her for a moment before turning away and taking a breath. He realized what Fenella wanted, but he couldn't give it to her.
"Why are you keeping quiet?" Fenella asked impatiently, seemingly suspicious that he wouldn't give her what she wanted.
Lowell sighed. "What do you want me to say?"
"I want you to tell me what you want to do. Are you really going to keep that half-breed as your mate?"
"That's exactly my plan. You know that."
"That's not what I meant. What I mean is that you seem to want to continue being with her."
The problem was Lowell hadn't really thought about that. Whether he kept Willow or not depended entirely on Willow, and how cooperative she decided to be. But Fenella would never understand that.
Lowell wasn't like Fenella who followed her emotions. He was practical, calculating all possibilities. Everything he did was aimed at serving the greater good. He never let his emotions interfere. "It's none of your business," Lowell said. "Now get dressed. We must prepare for tonight's ceremony."
Fenella lay back down and pulled the blanket around her. "I'm not sure if I'll come."
"You were going to come and that's what happened." He glared at her. "I suggest you think about your position, Fenella, and realize that you had no chance in the first place. You're just a she-wolf with no family, abandoned at birth and raised in a poor human orphanage, it's a miracle that you're with me and this pack. I could have easily cast you aside and no one would have thought to question my decision, so remember your place."
Fenella was silent, staring at the wall while biting her lower lip. The possible truth of Lowell's words seeped into her mind now. If she was smart, she would swallow her pride and keep her mouth shut from now on. Lowell liked it better when she just kept quiet and still looked pretty. Because that was exactly what Fenella was good at. Without a word to Fenella, Lowell left the cabin. The small wooden structure was erected not far from a narrow river that flowed through the forest. Lowell walked to the water's edge and stopped, crouching down to splash cold water on his face.
Further upstream was the lumber mill where the rest of the pack lived. It was old and rundown, seemingly unused for over a hundred years. The remote location served as an excellent temporary campsite for the pack.
This part of the forest was a dense forest many years ago, before the timber mill was built and all the trees were cut down. It still has a long way to go, but it is recovering. Lowell doesn't like forests. Or the outdoors in general. He would never understand why some werewolves like Luke preferred to live in the forest like beasts.
Lowell walked up a slight incline to the main building of the lumber mill. The old wooden planks creaked under his weight as he entered. He went straight to the warehouse where his future mate was locked up and found Boris guarding the door. Right where he left him.
Boris was the only one he trusted to look after Willow. Partly because the others were all afraid of the giant werewolf. In reality, it was Lowell they had to fear, but for his benefit Lowell didn't mind if Boris was feared too.
"Is she awake?" Lowell asked Boris. He stopped in front of the door.
Boris shrugged. "I don't know. I haven't checked. Just keeping watch like you told me to."
"Good. Keep it that way." Lowell opened the door and entered the warehouse. He smiled when he found Willow lying on a pile of sacks covered with an old rug in the corner of the room. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying. She looked up when Lowell entered, and fear flashed in her eyes.
"No need to be afraid," Lowell said, in his usual polite tone. "It's me-your future mate."
****