Chapter 16 Rey #2
It was obvious Carter had known the people he played with for a long time if he spoke to them like that.
He’d never heard Carter so angry or so forceful before.
Kind of turned him on a little to hear his little mate be so aggressive.
Maybe he could encourage that out of Carter the longer they were together.
Several more minutes passed while Rey waited for Carter to finish fighting the monster.
He rested one hip against the desk to watch them fight.
Carter’s fingers danced over the keys in a way that almost mesmerized Rey.
Shouting continued to come through the speakers from the others in the group Carter was with.
Finally, about ten minutes later, the beast collapsed to the dungeon floor, dead.
Everyone started screaming and celebrating as a notification of some type of achievement flashed across the screen.
“All right, guys, I gotta go! But brilliant run today! We’ll pick up the next boss tomorrow night at our usual time.”
There was some booing over the speakers, but everyone eventually bid Carter goodbye. When Carter shut down the laptop, he looked at Rey sheepishly. “Sorry. We get a little focused. That was the first time we’ve gotten that boss down. Usually, it’s just a wipe fest.”
Rey hadn’t a clue what Carter meant, so he just nodded. “If we didn’t have the pack run tonight, you could have kept playing, sweetheart. But we have to be there since Kasey is officially welcoming you to the pack.”
Shrugging, Carter started packing up his laptop. “It’s okay. The guild is cool. They understand real life matters, too.”
He kept up a constant string of chatter on their way back to the house, through their shower and getting dressed, and then on the short drive to Kasey and Seth’s small ranch home.
Rey knew his mate didn’t expect an answer from him, so he just hummed or threw in an “uh huh” from time to time.
Guilt at not truly listening trickled through him, but Carter didn’t seem to notice.
That ramped up the shame, considering he knew how his mate had been dismissed his whole life practically.
He’d address the feeling later though, keeping his head on a swivel during the short drive.
If Darryl showed himself, he didn’t want the human to get away.
Pulling the truck to a stop in front of the ranch-style home, Rey noted more than a handful of vehicles already parked on the grass and along the side.
Their alpha kept a few horses, and his house was a little more offset from the rest of the pack.
Rey figured Kasey had done it for privacy reasons rather than anything else.
The pack could be rather intrusive, so the separation didn’t surprise Rey.
They could reach Kasey by phone at any time, day or night.
Rey turned off the truck and exited it, swiftly moving around to the passenger side to open the door for Carter.
The murmur of voices guided them to the back of the house, where torches lined the backyard, providing some light for everyone to see by.
He waved at several pack members, smiling.
The ones who’d already met Carter during their forays into the diner in town greeted Carter warmly, hugging him or shaking his hand.
Carter bounced at his side, a bright smile on his face as he returned their hellos.
Happiness radiated from his mate, soothing Rey’s wolf over so many people touching Carter.
Such simple acceptance by everyone pleased Rey to no end.
By the time Kasey stepped out of his home and onto the back deck overlooking the yard, almost the entire pack milled around, the air rife with anticipation.
Everyone looked forward to the run together.
It strengthened their bonds as a pack and gave them a sense of family. “Good evening, everyone,” Kasey called.
The return greeting seemed deafening with the volume of members there.
Rey guided Carter up the stairs to stand close to Kasey, his hand never leaving Carter’s lower back.
Kasey set his palm on the back of Carter’s neck, urging him to stand closer to him and more in front of him.
“Tonight, we welcome a new pack member. Another true mate found by the discovery of the Emerald Lake Hills pack!”
A cheer rose from the crowd of shifters. “I know many of you were hesitant to open the pack to outsiders, but we’ve seen many bring home their true mates. Enforcer Featherstone is now blessed to have found his own by attending the summit.
“I hope you’ll all join me in welcoming Carter Wilkes to the Senaka pack and showing him the acceptance you have the others who’ve joined us before now.”
More cheers, calls of welcome, and cries of joy rippled through the crowd.
Kasey gently squeezed Carter’s nape and released him.
Carter scurried to return to Rey’s side, instantly burying his face against Rey’s shoulder.
Rey bussed a kiss to Carter’s temple. “See, mate? They are so happy you’re here. It gives many of them hope.”
Carter smiled at him and gave a small wave to the others watching from the yard.
“I have another announcement.” Kasey threw Rey an apologetic glance.
He lowered his voice in an aside to Rey.
“You’ve been a little bit busy, so I haven’t had the chance to inform you yet, Rey, but”—he raised his voice again—“with agreement from Cole Ferris, the alpha of the Emerald Lake Hills pack, I’ve invited our brothers from the Westerly pack in New York to attend the next summit. ”
Surprise met Kasey’s statement. Many knew the Westerly pack to be a little more reclusive and selective about mingling with those from outside of their pack.
“Alpha Highborn wishes to see his pack members locate their own true mates after seeing our high success rate.
I know some of you have family members in that pack, so I ask those of you who do to help impress upon them how important these summits are and to act with diplomacy and not aggression.
“They were as wary as us at the idea of the summit. But Alpha Highborn has agreed to give this a chance. I also believe this will increase the chances of our unmated in finding their own mates, as we’ve never truly come together with the Westerly pack either.”
It reminded Rey of needing to speak with Kasey about Nevada’s cousin. He made a mental note to talk to Kasey about Stone. “I will hear any concerns any of you have between now and the next summit, but tonight, we enjoy our run as a pack and come together as one,” Kasey boomed.
Several howls rose as those in the crowd began to shift.
Flashes of light briefly lightened the area.
Rey reached out and touched Kasey’s shoulder.
“I think it’s a great idea, Alpha. I was thinking of suggesting engaging the other known packs for the same reason.
There’s also something else I’ve been meaning to discuss with you.
Nevada’s cousin Stone is in the Westerly pack.
He’s looking to move here and join Nevada, join our pack. ”
Kasey tipped his head in a brief nod. “Give me his full name and details. I’ll do a background check at the station, make sure there’re no red flags, but I have no objections if he checks out. What will he do for work?”
Rey told him what Nevada had explained, and Kasey nodded again. “Sounds like an excellent addition to the pack. Get me his information and I’ll let you know by Monday.”
“Thank you, Alpha.”
Carter didn’t leave Rey’s side as they descended the stairs to the yard. Most of the pack had already shifted and milled around close to the forest. “Shift, little wolf,” Rey said, encouraging his mate.
When Carter stood in his wolf form, the sandy blond wolf looked up at him before rubbing against Rey’s legs.
Rey patted his mate on the head and quickly shifted as well, immediately twining around Carter to saturate him with his scent.
The others in the pack were aware of Carter being his mate, but few had seen him in his true wolf form.
He didn’t want any accidents or unwarranted aggression toward Carter.
The full moon rose overhead, high in the sky, as the wolves streamed out of the yard and into the trees.
More than one howl rose into the air to encourage the others.
The human residents of Senaka may not be entirely in the know about shifters, but they knew to avoid the woods on the full moon.
Rey didn’t believe all the town’s residents were na?ve enough to have missed some goings-on, but the pack didn’t acknowledge any of the rumors and tried to squash them whenever they came up.
Even the wildlife was scarcer on full moon nights, but Rey caught a rabbit, which he promptly brought to Carter.
A small whine of thanks left Carter as he devoured the meal.
Rey stood sentry, watching the trees and bushes around them.
He could hear several of the others nearby doing their own thing.
He wasn’t concerned about the pack. They wouldn’t come close with Rey’s mate eating.
No, he worried about Darryl. Though he knew it was unlikely Darryl would even be in the forest to begin with, he still couldn’t drop his guard.
Once Carter had eaten his fill, Rey subtly drove Carter back toward the other shifters, encouraging him to interact and play.
He recognized Seth’s dark fur and bright blue eyes when Seth approached Carter, bowing down playfully.
Carter glanced at Rey, and Rey gave a small nod of his lupine head.
With a light yip, Carter mirrored Seth’s pose, wagging his tail hard.
If Rey could have smiled in his wolf form, he’d have grinned at the puppylike actions of his mate.
He’s settling in nicely. Kasey’s voice rang in his head. Rey glanced at his alpha, who lay on a small outcropping of rocks, watching over the pack and his own mate.
Thank you for making him feel like part of the pack. From what he’s told me, he hasn’t really had that before now. Nick was the only one who seemed to care about him.
I had a chat with Cole about Carter and the disturbing things I saw about his treatment while at the summit.
If that is how their packmates treat each other, I don’t wish to subject ours to the same treatment.
Cole assured me it wasn’t the norm. The behavior wasn’t something he or his father were aware of until recently.
Rey growled. If the alpha is too busy to notice those things, then maybe he shouldn’t be alpha.
Kasey turned his head toward Rey and, if he’d been human, Rey knew Kasey’s brow would have been raised. Are you challenging Cole?
No. I am not an alpha. But it’s an alpha’s job to watch over and care for their pack.
A hum rumbled through Rey’s head. It is. Though I have been told Cole’s own mate led him on a merry chase recently. I don’t know the details, but it wasn’t easy for Cole to get his mate to accept him.
The conversation came to a halt when a small fight broke out between two pack members, forcing Rey to intervene.
His loud growl rang through the clearing, drawing the attention of many of the pack.
Rey pounced and pinned the more aggressive of the two wolves.
He clamped his jaws around the throat of the one he’d restrained, teeth digging in just enough to show his dominance.
The wolf whined and went lax, showing his acceptance of Rey’s silent order.
After the fight, the pack knew the night was ending, and they all started back toward Kasey’s ranch.
Rey bid Kasey and Seth good night before leading Carter to his truck.
When they were on the road again toward their home, Rey glanced at Carter, who leaned against the door, his eyes closed. “Tired, sweetheart?”
Carter blinked open his eyes and smiled sweetly at him. “A little. I had fun though. It’s been a long time since I played during a pack run.”
Heart clenching at his mate’s obvious bullying, Rey took hold of Carter’s hand, squeezing gently. “I’m glad you had fun, Carter.”
“I like Seth. He’s nice.” Carter yawned widely, his jaw cracking. “I think we could be friends.”
Rey smiled warmly at him. “I’m sure you already are. Maybe you could ask him to have lunch one day.”
Carter nodded, yawning again and closing his eyes.
Before Rey pulled the truck into the driveway in front of his house, Carter had passed out completely.
Rey got out and went around to Carter’s side.
A tight feeling settled between Rey’s shoulder blades, and he discreetly scented the air, but nothing seemed out of place.
He grabbed the handle to open Carter’s door when a heavy object slammed into the back of his head, sending pain radiating down his spine and him to his knees.
Just before the object landed again, Rey turned his head and saw Darryl standing there, rage clear on his face.
“He’s mine,” Darryl shouted, swinging the bat he held and connecting with Rey’s temple, rendering him unconscious.