White Knight (Blackwood Pack #8)

Chapter 1

A breeze swirled around them; his nostrils flared as he caught a faint scent that caused his cock to harden instantly. What the fuck? Breaking off eye contact with his cousin, Hunter glanced over Jackson’s shoulder, his eyes zeroing in on…my mate! — Serpent’s Teardrop

Fuckingbedamned! Jackson’s eyes narrowed as he saw the flaring of Hunter’s nose.

No fucking way! Flicking his gaze down at his cousin’s crotch, he found the telltale bulge confirming his suspicions.

His cousin’s mate was one of his pack members.

What the fuck do I do now? Jackson’s worries about the reason for Hunter’s visit suddenly seemed trivial compared to what he was now facing.

Not wanting to see who his cousin was staring at, he rolled out his Alpha power, just enough to bring Hunter’s attention back to him. “It’s been a long time, Cousin.”

Holy Fuck! How did Jackie do that? Forced to look at his cousin, Hunter found himself unable to move. “Yes, it has,” he replied. “I understand congratulations are in order.”

“Congratulations? What for?” asked Jackson.

“Becoming Alpha of the Blackwood Pack, of course,” Hunter answered.

Wondering how much his cousin knew, Jackson decided to ignore it. Instead, he asked, “Are you going to introduce your brothers to me?”

“Sure,” Hunter replied, but anxious to know the name of his mate, he continued, “but that’s quite a welcoming group you have for us, considering you didn’t know we were arriving today. Do you mind introducing them to me first?”

Standing next to Logan on the porch, Kieran watched the two posturing Alphas with amusement. Suddenly, his spirit spoke to him. Breaking away from his mate, he bolted down the steps.

“Babe! Wait! What are you doing?” called Logan, torn between following his mate and obeying Jackson’s orders to remain where he was. Fuck, fuck, fuck!

“Macushla, I’m needed! Don’t worry!” Kieran yelled, sprinting towards the motorhome.

Asking their spirit what his mate was doing, Logan gasped, his jaw dropping. Not believing what he heard, he leapt off the porch, shouting, “Wait babe, wait! Jackson, stop Kieran!”

Breaking eye contact with Hunter, Jackson looked over his cousin’s shoulder, catching sight of Kieran opening the motorhome door. “Kieran, stop!” he commanded, upping his Alpha power to force his brother’s mate to obey.

Hunter, following his cousin’s gaze, saw a slender figure about to climb up the steps leading to the inside. What the fuck is going on here? Not knowing who it was, he threw out his Alpha power and ordered, “Stop now!”

Frozen in his tracks as the power from both Alphas temporarily stunned him, Kieran’s spirit took over, breaking him free of their hold, allowing him to scramble up the steps.

Once inside, he came face to face with three pairs of eyes staring at him in astonishment.

“Hi cousins, nice to meet you but if you don’t mind, can we talk later because I’m needed.

” Hurrying to the first door he found, Kieran popped it open.

“Hi there, don’t you look fabulous! I love your dress, but can we talk later?

Thanks.” Closing the door, he hurried to the next one.

Placing his hand on it, he knew this was where he was supposed to be.

Quietly slipping inside, he said, “Hi, don’t worry, I’m here to help. ”

“Who the fuck was that?” asked Sawyer.

“How did he know?” Robin asked.

“Oh, shit,” Mason said, looking at the big shifter who’d just joined Jackson and Hunter. “This doesn’t look good.”

Stopping next to Jackson, Logan asked, “Why didn’t you stop Kieran?”

“Who’s Kieran?” asked Hunter, “And why did he break into my motorhome?”

“Fuck you, asshole!” Logan snarled.

“Logan, stop,” Jackson ordered.

“Logan?” Hunter asked, astounded at how big his cousin’s twin was. The last time he’d seen Logan, he was a skinny, short kid.

“Logan, meet Hunter, our cousin,” Jackson said.

Giving his cousin an angry glance, Logan turned back to his brother. “Bro, I need to speak to you…alone!”

At a loss for what was going on, Hunter decided to retreat. “I understand. I’ll just be in there, finding out about who decided to invite himself into my motorhome… without permission, I might add.”

“You touch my mate and it’ll be the last thing you ever do,” snarled Logan.

“Your mate? That twink is your mate?” asked Hunter, incredulously.

Seeing red at the implied insult, Logan began to shift, having had enough of his cousin’s attitude towards Kieran.

Glancing at the motorhome, Jackson saw fear and anger in the faces staring back at him.

Instantly aware of what would happen if he didn’t put a stop to the brewing conflict, he sent out his Alpha power a bit stronger, waiting until his brother and cousin tilted their heads in submission.

“Hunter, stay where you are while I speak to my brother alone. Understand?”

“Yes, Alpha,” Hunter said. Feeling Jackson’s control, he stood still, watching his cousins walk away from him, smirking at their attempt to keep him from listening with his wolf hearing.

Shifting his gaze, Hunter sought out the man on the porch who was now tied to him by the Fates, wondering how his cousin would react when he took his mate back east.

Once Jackson felt he and Logan were far enough away from Hunter, he stopped and said, “Okay, what’s Kieran up to now?”

Glancing over his brother’s shoulder to make sure Hunter wasn’t heading for the motorhome, Logan leaned in and whispered into his brother’s ear.

Jerking back, Jackson stared at Logan. “That’s fucking impossible!”

Shaking his head, Logan leaned in again and repeated himself.

The color drained from Jackson’s face as the implications of Logan’s news sank in. Looking toward the porch and zeroing in on his brothers, he thought about how this news would hit them. Then, turning back to Logan, Jackson murmured, “Are you absolutely positive?”

“Yes.”

“Is Kieran okay?”

Logan asked their spirit before answering, “Yes, he’s doing what he can.”

“Get Ian and Colton here but don’t let them know why.”

“Will do, but please protect my mate,” Logan said, before heading for the porch.

Nodding, Jackson strode over to Hunter, blocking his view of the porch and snarled, “What the fuck are you trying to pull? Why didn’t you tell me about this in the first email you sent?”

Waves of powerful anger emanated from Jackson, nearly pushing Hunter to his knees. Forcing himself to stand his ground, he answered, “I did what my mother wanted.”

~/~/~/~/~

“Who are you?” asked Mac after Kieran entered the bedroom, wondering how this powerful Shaman found out about his patient.

“I’m Kieran,” he said softly, walking to the side of the bed, looking down at the person his spirit told him about. “I can help, do not worry.” Sitting on the edge of the bed, he placed his hands on the frail arm resting on top of the covers and began drawing out the darkness smothering the heart.

Keeping an eye on the Shaman, Mac checked his patient’s vitals, surprised to see them improving. “What are you doing?” he asked, moving to the other side of the bed.

“Removing the darkness that’s killing her,” Kieran whispered, absorbing the grief, despair, and hopelessness inside and replacing them with love.

It was an arduous task to peel back each layer and, as he removed years of crippling blackness, his aura slowly began to darken.

He knew many repetitions would be necessary before she’d show any improvement but his determination to give her a fighting chance kept him stripping away as much as he could this time.

~/~/~/~/~

Giving Hunter one last dirty look, Logan headed over to the porch, hoping no one asked questions about why Kieran disappeared into the motorhome because he had no answers to give.

Stopping at the foot of the steps, he looked up, zeroing in on the duo Jackson wanted.

“Ian, Colton, Jackson needs you right away,” Logan said quietly, not wanting to reveal his agitation.

“Is someone sick?” asked Ian, squeezing through the crowd. “Do I need my bag?”

“Yeah, you might need it,” Logan answered.

“I have it, babe,” Colton said, taking his mate’s hand as they descended the front steps.

“Is there a problem?” asked Slate, wrapping his arms around Dakota who was holding Daniel.

Cursing to himself, Logan debated what to say; any lie would be detected. Not able to come up with anything, he glanced at Steel, knowing Jackson had already told him what was happening and, seeing him silently mouth “no,” said nothing.

Steel then answered Slate’s question. “Someone is sick in the motorhome and Jackson wants Ian and Colton to see if they can help.” Turning toward Dakota, he reached for Daniel.

Giving a quick nod of assent, Logan said, “Ian, Colton. C’mon, Jackson wants to talk to you first.” Then, abruptly leaving with them, he was able to dodge answering any questions.

~/~/~/~/~

“What the fuck do you mean, Hunter…you ‘did what your mother wanted’?” growled Jackson, pissed at his cousin’s explanation.

“What does your mother have to do with this? Why didn’t she contact me?

Don’t you think I…hell…my brothers have the right to know?

” He was getting worked up, now, trying to control his raging wolf.

“Don’t you think we might have helped? You didn’t think about that?

Fuck…you’re an Alpha! You could have simply called me, and no one would’ve stopped you.

” Jackson averted his gaze, unable to look at the man he’d spent his youth admiring.

Now those fond memories evaporated when he found out the real reason his cousin had contacted him.

Stepping away, Jackson fought to keep his power under control, knowing he’d regret any action taken in the heat of anger. Clenching and unclenching his fists, he stared at the ground, searching for his Omega part to help cool his Alpha half. Inhaling deeply, Jackson began to calm down.