Chapter 20
Lucas
As I walked around to the driver's side, I took a deep breath of the night air, trying to clear my head. I needed to focus on driving, not on how badly I wanted to kiss her again.
"The restaurant was lovely," Alison said as I started the car. "Thank you for tonight."
"The pleasure was all mine," I assured her. We drove in comfortable silence for a few minutes before she spoke again.
"I see a lot of you in Leo," she said softly. "Not just his looks, but his mannerisms. The way he tilts his head when he's thinking hard about something. The way he furrows his brow when he's concentrating."
Pride swelled in my chest at her words. "He's extraordinary," I said. "You've done an amazing job raising him."
"I did my best," she said, and I heard the echo of old hardships in her voice. As we approached the turn that would take us back to the Black estate, I made a split-second decision. "Do you mind if we take a slight detour?" I asked. "There's something I'd like to show you."
Alison looked surprised but nodded. "Alright. But not too long—it's getting late."
I turned the car down a side road that led deeper into the hills surrounding the city. The road became narrower, winding through thick forest. Alison looked out the window curiously, but didn't question where we were going.
Finally, I pulled over at a small clearing with a spectacular view of the city lights below.
"Where are we?" Alison asked as I turned off the engine.
"Moonshadow territory," I told her. "This is the eastern boundary of pack lands."
Her eyes widened. "I didn't realize we were so close to it."
"The territory extends for miles," I explained, "encompassing most of these hills. The main pack house is about twenty minutes from here."
"It's beautiful," she said, looking out at the view.
"Come on," I said, getting out of the car and walking around to open her door. "I want you to see something."
I led her to the edge of the clearing, where a natural stone outcropping formed a kind of bench. The view from here was even more spectacular—the city lights twinkling below, the river a ribbon of silver in the moonlight.
"Wow," Alison breathed, sitting down on the smooth stone. "This is incredible."
I sat beside her, close enough that our shoulders touched. "I used to come here as a teenager when I needed to think. It's a good place to clear your head."
"I can see why," she said, leaning slightly against me.
We sat in silence for a moment, taking in the view and the peace of the night. An owl hooted somewhere in the forest behind us, and a gentle breeze stirred the leaves.
"We should have Leo's first shift ceremony here," I said, the thought occurring to me suddenly. "It's tradition to hold it in a place that has meaning to the family."
Alison turned to look at me, her expression thoughtful. "You really want him to embrace this part of himself, don't you?"
"It's who he is," I said simply. "Denying it would only cause him pain in the long run."
She nodded slowly. "I know. I'm just... I worry about what it will mean for his life. Will he be able to have a normal childhood? Go to college? Have a career?"
"Of course," I assured her. "Look at me. I run a multinational corporation and lead a pack of wolves. Being a werewolf doesn't limit him—it just gives him more options."
"And what about the secrecy?" she pressed. "Always having to hide who he really is from the world?"
I sighed, understanding her concern. "It's a burden," I admitted. "But it's also protection. The world isn't ready to know about us, Alison. Not yet."
"I want him to be proud of who he is," she said quietly. "All of who he is."
"He will be," I promised. "We'll make sure of it."
We fell into a comfortable silence again, and I found myself marveling at how far we'd come. From that disastrous morning in my apartment, through years of separation and misunderstanding, to this moment of quiet connection.
"We should probably head back," Alison said eventually, though she made no move to get up.
"Probably," I agreed, equally reluctant to end the moment.
Neither of us moved for another minute until finally Alison sighed and stood. "Leo will be wondering where we are."
I stood as well, but before she could turn toward the car, I caught her hand. "Alison, wait."
She looked up at me, a question in her eyes.
"I meant what I said earlier. You and Leo are everything to me. I know we've had a complicated past, but I want us to have a future together. A real future."
Her expression softened. "I want that too, Lucas. But we need to take it slow. For Leo's sake, if nothing else."
"I understand," I said, bringing her hand to my lips. "We have time."
She smiled, and in the moonlight she looked almost ethereal. My wolf howled within me, desperate to claim her fully as our mate, but I tamped down the urge. She was right—we needed to take this slowly, to build something solid.
We walked back to the car hand in hand, and I opened the door for her once again. As I walked around to the driver's side, I caught movement in the shadows at the edge of the clearing. My wolf senses immediately went on high alert, my nostrils flaring as I tried to catch a scent.
Human. Multiple humans. And the metallic scent of weapons.
I slid into the driver's seat, my body tense.
"What's wrong?" Alison asked immediately, picking up on my change in mood.
"We need to go," I said, starting the car. "Now."
But before I could put the car in gear, a figure stepped out of the shadows and into the beam of the headlights. A man in a black ski mask, holding a gun.
"Don't move," I said to Alison, my voice low and calm despite the adrenaline surging through my veins. "Stay in the car."
"Lucas—" she began, but I silenced her with a look.
"Trust me," I said, and then I opened the door and stepped out.
The man with the gun wasn't alone. Two more emerged from the shadows, similarly masked and armed. This part of the woods was always safe. They shouldn't be here. Looking at the group before me, though, something told me they were sent here.
"Nice car," the first one said, his voice muffled by the mask. "Hand over the keys and your wallet, and the lady's purse too."
The idea was to probably make it look like a robbery gone wrong.
I smiled, but there was no warmth in it. My wolf was close to the surface now, eager for a fight. "I don't think so."
The men looked at each other, clearly not expecting resistance. The first one raised his gun higher, pointing it directly at my chest. "Don't be stupid, man. We're not asking."
I moved before he could react, crossing the distance between us in a blur of speed no human could match.
I grabbed his wrist, twisting until I heard the satisfying crack of bone, and the gun fell to the ground.
The man screamed in pain, but I was already turning to the second attacker, who was fumbling with his own weapon.
A quick jab to his throat had him gasping for air, and I followed it with a kick that sent him flying backward into a tree. He hit with a sickening thud and slumped to the ground, unconscious.
The third man was quicker on the draw, and I heard the deafening crack of a gunshot. Pain exploded in my shoulder, but it only fueled my rage. My wolf was in control now, and I let out a growl that was more animal than human as I lunged for him.
I caught him by the neck, lifting him off his feet. He struggled, his eyes wide with terror above the mask. I could smell his fear, sharp and acrid in the night air. It would be so easy to crush his windpipe, to eliminate the threat permanently.
"Lucas!" Alison's voice cut through the red haze of my anger. "Lucas, stop!"
I turned my head to see her standing by the car, her face pale in the moonlight. The sight of her brought me back to myself, and I let the man drop to the ground, gasping and clutching his throat.
"Get out of here," I snarled at him. "Take your friends and go, before I change my mind."
He scrambled to his feet, dragging the first man with him. The second was still unconscious by the tree. I watched as they disappeared into the darkness, the first man still whimpering about his broken wrist. Only when I was sure they were gone did I turn back to Alison.
She was staring at me, her eyes wide. "You're hurt," she said, rushing to my side. "He shot you."
I looked down at my shoulder, where blood was seeping through my shirt. "It's nothing," I assured her. "It'll heal by morning."
"Nothing?" she echoed incredulously. "Lucas, you've been shot!"
"Werewolf, remember?" I said with a wry smile. "Accelerated healing is part of the package."
She shook her head, but I could see the relief in her eyes. "We need to get you home and clean that wound."
"What about him?" she asked, gesturing to the unconscious man by the tree.
I walked over and checked his pulse. "He'll live," I said grimly. "But he'll have a hell of a headache when he wakes up."
"Shouldn't we call the police?" Alison asked, looking around nervously as if expecting the other two to return.
"And tell them what?" I asked. "That I single-handedly took down three armed men? That I can move faster than a human eye can track? That would raise too many questions."
She bit her lip, clearly conflicted. "But what if they come back? What if they hurt someone else?"
I sighed, understanding her concern. "I'll send some of my pack members to deal with them. They won't be a problem again."
Alison's eyes widened slightly. "You're not going to... kill them, are you?"
"No," I said firmly. "But I will make sure they understand the consequences of setting foot on pack territory again. We have ways of making sure they don't return."
She nodded slowly, still looking unsettled. I reached out and took her hand, wincing slightly as the movement pulled at my wounded shoulder.
"I'm sorry," I said softly. "This isn't how I wanted our evening to end."
"It's not your fault," she replied, squeezing my hand. "But we should get that wound looked at."
I shook my head. "It'll heal on its own. The bullet went straight through."