She followed the directions on the pregnancy test and then placed the stick on the counter. Fifteen minutes seemed like a long time to wait, so she tidied up her room and set the timer on her phone. Her mind was oddly calm the whole time, probably because she wasn’t pregnant. She felt like she would know. When her phone alarm blared out a happy tune that sounded like windchimes in a slight breeze, she took another deep breath, walked into the bathroom, and looked at the stick.
The entire planet ground to a halt. There were two lines in the little window. Two very clear and dark lines.
She was pregnant.
Chapter15
Seth could feel the threat on the wind as he finished up at the mine and headed home. Darkness was already falling, so he texted Mia that he would see her in the morning. He wanted to be alone at home to meet any attack, and he needed her to remain safely out of harm’s way.
She texted back that she needed to speak with him, and he promised they’d meet for breakfast. Or rather, he’d pick her up for breakfast. For now, he had to take care of whatever squad the Copper Pack was sending to kill him.
His phone rang, and he pressed the button on his dash. “Volk.”
“Hey, it’s Erik.” His brother’s voice was slightly higher than normal.
“What’s wrong?” Seth asked. Had they already come? He would’ve sensed them, even if they were capable of masking their scents in the storm. He glanced at the bulging clouds just as rain started splattering against his windshield.
“I don’t have details yet, but Emily’s been attacked. I think it was an attempted kidnapping in her pack territory,” Erik said, the sound of movement coming over the line. “I don’t know what to do. I’m covering Mia right now, but...”
“Is Emily all right?” Seth weighed the need to assist his brother against the necessity of dealing with the threat first.
Erik growled. “It sounds like it. She’s a fighter, and she’s safe now. But I don’t know any details yet, and I haven’t spoken with her. Em’s dad called to keep me up to date out of courtesy. I think he’s still fighting our engagement, to be honest. He doesn’t want Emily or me to rise as Alpha of the Slate Pack.”
“You have to go and see for yourself,” Seth said, flipping on his windshield wipers. “She’s your fiancée, and if there’s still a viable threat, you need to take care of it. Hard and fast.” Even though Erik and Em had agreed to an arranged marriage, and Erik had done so to clear the path for Seth to become Alpha of their pack, the woman was still his fiancée, and he needed to be there. “Put three guys on Mia’s cabin for the night.”
“Seth, what are you doing?” Erik snapped.
What he needed to do, and his brother should understand that. “I’m going home, where any attacker can come atmeand stay away from you and Mia.”
“But I’m your Enforcer.” Fury and frustration rode Erik’s low tone.
“You’re also Emily’s fiancé and the future Alpha of her pack—even if you have to take out her dad to do it.” Now wasn’t the time to waffle on Erik’s future. If Seth survived the oncoming year, he’d figure out what to do with his brother. The guy should mate for love and not convenience, and so should Emily. Right now, Seth had bigger problems to handle. “You have to go and make your presence known.”
Erik groaned. “All right. I already have a team in place here at Mia’s.”
“Who’s there?” Seth asked.
“Todd Fulsome, Josh Jacobs, and Mitchell Stark.”
The three were among the pack’s best fighters and their senses were impeccable. “Good. Just tell them to keep her safe for the night. I’ll be there in the morning.” The new development eased his mind. Those three would cover Mia, and Erik would be out of the line of fire for now. The animal at Seth’s core stretched awake, brutal and ready. Anticipation lit within him.
“You can’t handle an entire squad by yourself.” Frustration darkened Erik’s tone.
“Of course I can,” Seth said. “If I can’t, I have no business being Alpha, and you know it.” His brother was silent because it was true. “Don’t even think of sending backup,” Seth muttered. “They’ll only get in the way, and I don’t want to lose anybody right now.”
Erik sighed heavily as the sound of an engine roared to life over the phone. “All right. I’m going to check on Emily and make sure I don’t need to kill anybody, and then I’ll come back as soon as I can.”
“Understood. If you do deem it necessary to kill somebody, give me a heads-up afterward. If we’re going to war, we’ll need to act fast.” Seth disconnected. Good. He’d actually wanted his brother out of the way for this. Erik was too eager to jump in front of Seth to combat any danger, and while it was the Enforcer’s job, Seth had just become Alpha and still needed to prove that he could do things on his own. It was the only way to keep the pack safe. This was the first of what would likely be many challenges from those in the Stope Packs Coalition and outside packs wanting to take him out. He needed to make a statement and make it bloody.
His phone buzzed again, and he swiped the screen. “Erik?” He wasn’t going to argue about it.
“No, it’s Mia,” she said softly.
“Oh.” Something inside him calmed. It figured she wouldn’t settle for a text. “I need you to stay at your cabin tonight. All right?”
“What’s going on?” she asked, her tone concerned.
He could be honest with her because she was a smart woman. She understood enough of his world that she’d get it. “Just a problem I have to deal with, and I need you out of the way.”
