“And you didn’t freaking think about telling me this beforehand?” Lizzy snapped as she opened her eyes and narrowed them on the woman.
Alice looked slightly remorseful. “I didn’t want to add to your anxiety.”
Lizzy snorted. “Right. Because you’re so concerned with my well-being. Good one, Doctor Evil.”
The scientist raised her eyebrows. “Believe it or not, I don’t want to hurt you.”
“Too late.” Lizzy tried to suck in air, but her lungs wouldn’t expand. She was suffocating while her blood boiled. “Finn!” She called out to her mate. She didn’t know what else to do. Although she didn’t want to need him, she did. She needed him more than she could have ever realized.
“LIZZY!” His voice was the last thing she heard before darkness took her under.
Finn threw himself at the door over and over, calling on every ounce of his wolf’s strength. He had to get to his mate. He had to save her. People had been letting her down her whole life. He wouldn’t be one of those people. Finn hadn’t been able to be there when she needed him most, when she’d been a vulnerable child and should have been protected above all else. Now, he was stuck in a damn cage while she suffered at the hands of a madman.
Finn's wolf wanted to reach out to his beta through their pack bond, but Finn quickly held the beast back. He had been taking precautions to keep the bond closed until he was certain that what he was doing would be of benefit to the entire pack before exposing them to the situation. Think about this, he told his beast. Our pack is small. We don’t have the numbers to take on Cain and calling them now would be a death sentence or, at best, lead to their capture, as well. The wolf inside him raged. It loathed feeling powerless. Finn was no better, but they had to be wise. They couldn't act recklessly. When Finn thought back to why he’d even really felt compelled to agree to Cain’s offer, Finn had to admit that it was partly because of what the vampire had said. Finn didn’t want to bow to another. He was dominant, an alpha, and the idea of being beholden to another didn’t sit well with his wolf or the man. He wondered now if it had been his true mate’s pull, perhaps her soul calling to his, that actually made him so willing to go without asking additional questions, not to mention without giving his pack more information about his departure. No, he could not bring his pack into his mess. He was going to have to ask for help from someone who might have a chance at rescuing him and his mate without getting themselves killed.
Finn hoped he was making the right decision as he accessed the powerful bond he and all wolves had with the alpha of his kind. A bond he had resented in the past but now found himself in desperate need of. He silently prayed his request wouldn’t be denied.
Finn's mind was filled with a commanding, deep voice that asked, "Who are you?" He could feel the authority in the words and instinctively knew that the speaker could only be Fane Lupei. He’d never felt such tremendous power in any wolf before.
“My name is Finn. I’m a rogue wolf, and I need your help.”
“I don’t remember you. You obviously didn’t fight me.” Fane didn’t sound angry, just curious, if not a little wary.
“I didn’t fight you, nor did I join the wolves that converged on your home. Me and mine remained in hiding. I’ll not deny the fact that I didn’t want to submit to your rule. I’m an alpha, and the idea of bending my knee to another doesn’t sit well with my beast.”
“I don’t fault you for that,” Fane said. “But if that’s the case, then why are you asking for my help now?”
Finn hit the door again, feeling the metal dent, taking on the shape of his shoulder. “The vampire, Cain, has my mate. She’s a dormant, and he’s just injected her with vampire and gypsy healer blood.”
Immediately rage filled the strange bond that connected Finn to the alpha of alphas. “How the hell does Cain have a gypsy healer?”
“No offense, Fane Lupei, but that’s not really my biggest concern at the moment. My mate is dying, or at least I think she is. All I know is that they have her, and Cain is attempting to—”
“Turn her into a hybrid,” Fane finished.
“Yes, but I don’t think it’s working.”
“Where are you?”
Finn growled as his wolf fought to take over. But Finn needed the man to stay in control so he could think clearly. “I’m at Area 51, the human military base. That’s where Cain is doing his little project.”
“Did he capture you?”
Finn didn’t want to chat. He wanted action. “Well, sort of.” He heard the unease in his voice and felt it in his gut. “I am his prisoner.”
“Finn, you’re going to have to level with me.” Fane snarled. “Now is not the time to try to cover your ass. What am I dealing with?”
“Dammit,” Finn yelled out loud. “I agreed to do this damn hybrid thing he’s doing because he told me it would break the connection I have with you. I didn’t want to be duty-bound to you. I had no intention of fighting you. I just wanted to be the leader of my own pack.”
He could feel Fane’s frustration, but not because he cared that Finn didn’t want to bow to him. Fane was irritated because he didn’t like the fact that Finn hadn’t trusted him not to abuse the power that had been given to him by the Great Luna.
“We can deal with that later. I don’t know if we can get you out. I’ve had one of the packs looking into what’s going on there, but the place is heavily guarded, not just by human military but by vampires, lots of vampires, and a few fae.”
“I can get myself out if you’ll just give me some of that power you’ve got coursing through your veins. I know I have no right to ask this of you, but—”
Fane stopped him. “You have every right to ask, Finn. I have no desire to lord my status over anyone. I realize it’s hard for many alphas and dominants to trust me. But all I want to do is the Great Luna’s will. I want to live out what she has called me to do, and believe it or not, that is not only to lead you but to serve you, as well. I just need the chance to prove that to you, and if this is what it takes, then I will do that.”
Finn choked on the emotion that rose inside of him at the alpha’s words, not just because of what they meant but because he could feel how genuine Fane was. The alpha truly wanted to help. He expected nothing in return other than loyalty to their cause—a cause that didn’t include having any race bow at his feet. How could Finn have been so foolish? Pride. He growled at himself. It was the downfall of even the greatest of men and wolves alike.
