Gavin (Northern Ohio Shifters #3)

Chapter 5

Chapter

Five

Saturday afternoon, Sadie rode with Alli to the wolf pack presided over by Alpha Adam Beaumont and his mate Cinder. Her stomach was a bundle of nerves, like a thousand butterflies were trapped in her belly, twisting and tangling together until she felt like she was halfway between barfing all over Alli’s cute convertible or having a nervous breakdown.

“It’ll be fine,” Alli said, her hair tucked back in a pretty green scarf to keep the wind from whipping it everywhere.

Sadie was wishing she’d agreed to a scarf as well, since her own hair was all over the place.

“Tell that to my stomach.”

Alli smiled at her. “Adam and Cinder said you’re welcome to join them for the full moon. If they didn’t want you there, they wouldn’t have invited you, period. And it doesn’t mean that you have to join the pack, you know.”

She’d been thinking about that ever since she’d run away from her own pack. She hadn’t been exiled from her pack by the alpha so she was still a member, which meant she couldn’t actually join a pack if she wanted to. But she was pretty sure after running away like she did that if she did try to go back to Ironwood, Alpha Holloway would pop her into a cell so fast her head would swim. Just because he could.

“That’s not what’s worrying me.”

“Okay, so what is? You look like you’re going to hurl all over my car.”

“I just don’t know where to go now.”

Alli didn’t say anything for a moment, then said, “You mean in general or like right now?”

“In general.”

Earlier that day, Sadie had used Alli’s email to reach out to her mom and let her know she’d arrived safely and was going to hunt with a local pack. Her mom had replied a few hours later that Alpha Holloway had been angry at first that she’d left the pack without his authorization but had decided he’d deal with her if she ever returned to town. Her mom suggested that Sadie focus on making a life for herself without the pack, because she didn’t think it would be good for her to come home. Her mom’s email had left her feeling strangely hollow.

“I’m just a packless wolf right now, but I’ve actually got a pack. I just can’t go back to it.”

“I’m sorry you’re going through this. Your alpha is an asshole.”

Neither of them said anything for a few minutes. The roar of the wind as they rode to the Thorn Hollow pack’s territory was only slightly louder than the voice in her head that was telling her that this pack wouldn’t be any different than her own, that they’d take one look at her albino fur and run her out of town. Just because their alpha female had gold fur and magical powers didn’t mean they’d automatically accept her.

When they arrived at the alphas’ home, neither of them had said anything more. Sadie wasn’t feeling much like small talk, and Alli clearly was okay with giving her space to think.

The problem was that all Sadie could think about was that this wasn’t the place she was supposed to be. But what the heck did that even mean? If she didn’t belong in her home pack and she didn’t belong here, then where would her wolf feel at home? Would she ever?

Rubbing the space between her eyes with her thumb, Sadie said, “Maybe I should have just taken you up on your offer to shift and run around in the woods at the apartment complex.”

“We can do that next month,” Alli said confidently as she put the top up on the car and then turned off the engine.

“You make it sound so easy,” she said.

“Isn’t it? If your wolf isn’t happy here, we’ll find another place next month. There’s no shortage of woods to hunt in. The vampires have a tract of land for hunting that I could get you an invite to, and there are also other shifter groups around. You’re a unique wolf because you have white fur, but that doesn’t mean that you don’t deserve to have a place to call home.”

Sadie looked out the windshield at the big home. Her wolf was yearning for something, but she didn’t think it was this place.

Shaking her head, she plastered a smile on her face and said, “Let’s go meet the alphas. I’m sure they have stuff to do to get ready for the full moon hunt and I don’t want to be in the way.”

Alli nodded, and they got out of the car and headed into the home to meet with Adam and Cinder.

Once inside the grand two-story house, Alli went right to a female standing near the stove in the kitchen and hugged her.

“You’re looking as gorgeous as ever,” Alli gushed.

“Me? I swear you look younger every time I see you.” The female smiled. “You must be Sadie. Hi, I’m Cinder, alpha female. Welcome.”

Sadie shook her hand and smiled. “It’s nice to meet you. Thanks for letting me hang out with you all tonight.”

“Happy to have you. Especially considering your situation with your home pack. Let me introduce you to my mate, and we’ll find some females for you to hunt with. Alli, would you be willing to hang out here and help keep an eye on the non-shifting mates and the young kids?”

“I’d love to.”

Their trio walked out into the backyard and straight to a good-looking male with dark hair who was speaking with a handful of males. Cinder kissed him on the cheek and introduced Sadie. Adam shook her hand. “Welcome. Where are you from?”

“Ironwood.”

Adam rocked back on his heels and said, “Really? I’ve heard of Alpha Holloway. He’s a dick.”

She sputtered out a laugh. “Yeah.”

Adam grimaced. “Sorry, I don’t normally shit-talk other alphas, but he’s the worst. I’m not surprised he didn’t want to have you as part of his pack. He’s got a god complex when it comes to his people.”

“Sounds like you dodged a bullet coming here,” Cinder said.

Adam nodded. “Onto our pack rules, we don’t have a lot when it comes to our full moon hunts. One, don’t steal anyone’s game and two, stick with your buddies. Since you don’t know the territory and it’s not safe to hunt alone, we’ll get some females to hunt with you.”

She was going to nod in agreement but paused. “Why wouldn’t it be safe to hunt alone?” She’d been hunting on her own for years. Her mom used to hunt with her, but Sadie had eventually encouraged her to hunt with her friends because she was missing out on camaraderie with the pack to be with her.

“There’s an anti-shifter group that we’re keeping an eye out for,” he said gravely. “They were going after the tigers until a few months ago, and they’ve disappeared, but we don’t believe they’ve left Northern Ohio. And that means we’re keeping our guard up and making sure that no one who hunts in our woods is alone.”

“I didn’t know there were anti-shifter groups,” Sadie said. “I know there are humans who don’t like us, but a whole group?”

“They’re called Humans Against Shifters,” Cinder said.

“The asshole who runs the group is named Brent Foley,” Alli said. “He’s dangerous and unhinged. Hopefully he’s left Ohio, but it’s always best to be safe instead of sorry.”

“I understand,” Sadie said. “Thanks for letting me hunt with you.”

Adam nodded. “If you’d like to come back here tomorrow evening, Cinder and I want to invite you for dinner so we can talk about your situation.”

“Seven o’clock,” Cinder said. “I make an awesome fried chicken. And Alli can come too of course.”

“Woo-hoo,” Alli said.

Sadie smiled. “That would be great, thanks.”

Cinder’s eyes suddenly glowed gold and she inhaled and rolled her neck. Putting her hand on Adam’s shoulder, she said with a voice that had a distinctive ethereal quality, “It’s time, my mate.”

Adam let out a sharp growl and clapped his hands. “To the clearing! It’s time to hunt.”

Sadie stayed with Alli as the people made their way into the woods.

“I’m going to stay here at the house. You go to the clearing and find your hunting buddies. When you’re done, head back here and we’ll go home to my place. Good luck.”

“Thanks, Alli. Have fun!”

Sadie walked into the woods and followed the pack members to the clearing where a bonfire roared in a fire pit.

“Hi, I’m Harper,” a female said, coming to stand next to Sadie. She turned away from the bonfire and greeted her.

“I’m Sadie. Nice to meet you.”

“You too. This is my sister Brooke.” She gestured to a petite blond next to her.

“Man, did you see Brick? He’s looking so freaking yummy tonight.”

“Ew, dude, he’s like thirty years older than you,” Harper said, wrinkling her nose.

“Age doesn’t matter when you have long life,” Brooke said.

“It does when you’re only eighteen plus two.”

“Meh,” Brooke said. She smiled at Sadie. “Nice to meet you. I heard you have white fur. That’s freaking awesome.”

“Yeah, I do. Which one is Brick?” she asked.

“He’s second of the pack, the big guy taking off his shirt,” Brooke said. “He’s waiting for his truemate, so he’s only interested in casual hookups.”

“Aren’t you?” Harper asked.

“Only if they casually lead to something more serious.”

“That’s the opposite of what casual sex is.”

Sadie chuckled at their banter. “So you’re my escorts?”

“Yep. We know where all the good game is. Are you ready to hunt,” Harper asked.

“I’m ready.”

The females led her away from the clearing and deeper into the woods. Sadie rubbed her chest as they stopped to strip and shift.

“Are you okay? You keep rubbing your chest and your eyes are flashing red,” Harper asked.

“I don’t know, I feel weird.” She looked around, wondering if there was something other in the woods that was making her feel strangely. A boogey man or someone who didn’t belong.

“Weird good or weird bad?” Brooke asked.

“When is weird good?” Harper asked.

“I’m okay. I just have a strange feeling in my chest. My wolf is acting up.”

“Probably because you’re new here and it’s all unfamiliar. Once you shift, I bet your wolf feels right at home,” Harper said.

The females shifted first into what Sadie had always thought of as classic timber wolf colors, soft grays, browns, and whites. When Sadie had set her folded clothes at the base of a big pine tree, she had a momentary rush of sadness. She looked up at the full moon. Her mom would be hunting right now, chasing bunnies and other small game with her friends and communing with the pack.

It would be better for Sadie to stay gone, to not ever think about going back. Not only because Alpha Holloway was an ass and would certainly punish her for leaving even if he was probably also glad she was gone, but because she’d never really belonged there, never quite fit in.

She wasn’t sure she fit in here either.

But her wolf was ready to try anything for a chance at a normal life. To find a place where no one cared what color her fur was.

She let herself go into her shift, letting out a low, grumbling sigh as she stretched and her claws dug into the ground. Her tail whipped back and forth a few times and she lifted her muzzle to look up at the dark sky.

Brooke and Harper yipped a challenge to follow, and Sadie raced off into the night with them.

As the trees whipped by her, she had the strangest urge to change course. Her wolf howled in her head, demanding she follow that urge, so she did.

She didn’t know where she was going as she hung a left and raced off, she was just following her heart to wherever it would lead.