Endangered Species

I felt a little better at lunch. I filled Cole in on everything we were doing to integrate the Pack, even though I was sure Melanie was keeping him up to date using their link. Still, he openly supported me and encouraged the changes. “I even like the nametag thing,” he told me. He proudly displayed an ’Alpha Cole Chapman’ badge on his chest, while mine said ’Future Luna Angela Summers.’ He was always touching me, and before leaving, he lifted me off my feet and let me slide down his chest until I was on the ground again. We kissed goodbye, and I let out a low moan as his hand ran down my back. His teeth went to the junction of my neck and shoulder after we kissed goodbye, and I froze. Cole bit down with human teeth while sucking hard on my skin. It was only hard enough to leave indents with the hickie.

I was more annoyed by all the saliva than the love nibble. Possessive males! EVERYONE in his Pack knows I’m his mate, so what was he so worried about? I rolled my eyes as he turned to leave to take care of urgent ‘alpha business’ somewhere outside the gates. “Males,” I muttered to myself.

The females at the table just laughed. “You’re driving his wolf insane,” Melanie told me. “As long as you refuse his claim on you, this will go on.”

“Does it get any better?”

The girls laughed at this, too. “When you’re pregnant, he won’t be so jealous, but he’ll be three times as possessive,” Lois replied. “You’re the only one who can get a rise out of him.” At this, all of us girls started laughing.

“Very funny,” I said as I sat back down. I touched the tooth indentations on my shoulder. “I thought Cole was going to bite me for a second.”

“He knows the Law, but your little moans have him ready to blow,” Melanie replied. “The longer you hold out, the harder it will be.”

“Literally,” Lois added to more laughter.

“Give the Alpha permission to mate and change you, and you won’t leave your bedroom until your shift is complete,” Doctor Pine said.

“I’m going to be so sore,” I mumbled.

“Werewolf healing, Luna. Thirty or so hours of near-constant sex before the fevers finally stop you,” she replied. “Then you get your wolf, and the next marathon begins.”

“That seems a little excessive.”

“It grows the bond and gives the new pair their first shot at pups,” Doc replied. “It seems like a lot now, but the mating bond will drive you both to continue.”

“And Alphas feel everything stronger than lower ranked wolves,” Melanie added.

“Well, his human Luna has strong feelings too. If he wants me, he needs to start treating me more like an equal and less like a subject.” I stood up, and Lois stood with me. “I need to continue the interviews. Thank you, ladies.”

I stopped by the tables where the bitten women sat together. A few were starting to feel hot, but most of the conversation revolved around the healings they’d already experienced. Scars and aches disappeared, tattoos faded, wrinkled skin tightened up, and old injuries no longer bothered them. Some of the women healed from radiation exposure or diminished vision in hours. “That’s amazing,” I said to Nurse Theresa. “How much of a recovery is possible?”

“We don’t know,” she replied. “None of us had significant exposure-related injuries when we arrived.” Left unsaid was the reason for that; the wolves had killed any females with severe medical conditions. Why bring breeders in who might not make it?

“Make sure the Alpha and the men out there know this is happening,” I ordered Lois, who could link him. “It changes the dynamic if they find survivors with exposure symptoms. We might be able to save them if they agree to the bite.”

“And dying people will willingly accept it to survive,” Nurse Theresa agreed.

Lois looked at us. “The Alpha acknowledges your information but says they are finding few suitable survivors to bring in. It appears the survivors in the Silverdale area are in the middle of a disease outbreak. The ones they have seen are in bad shape. Severe vomiting, diarrhea, and dehydration.”

Nurse Theresa paled, and I looked at her for more information. “Gastroenteritis, even cholera? It’s not unexpected. The sewer and water systems have failed, and people are shitting everywhere. It’s common for more people to die of dehydration following a natural disaster than from the disaster itself.”

“More reason to get people here that we can help,” I said. “Every day, there are fewer out there to find.” I was disappointed we hadn’t returned with any recruits during my night out with the guys. Maybe tonight would be different?

I spent most of the afternoon doing interviews with my women, learning their names and backgrounds. We were a diverse group, mainly military wives and civilian employees at the base when the solar event occurred. As Bangor was a nuclear submarine base, the commanders identified the radiation danger and escorted people to shelters underground.

It was in these shelters where the invading werewolves found them.

I was surprised at the number of college degrees and the depth of skill. It would suck to have degreed women cleaning floors, but life had changed. The Pack didn’t care about degrees in journalism, women’s studies, or political science. We had plenty of women skilled in cooking, child care, and education. What we needed were mechanics, machine operators, and building trades. I made notes for those who might show aptitude and went on.

Just after three in the morning, Lois stopped talking and began linking. A minute later, two female guards appeared at the door, rifles at the ready. They looked nervous. “What is going on?”

“Visitors. An Alpha and his delegation. Our Alpha isn’t here, so the Beta will meet them at the gate. He will bring them to the conference room.”

I looked down at my clothes. “I should get changed. Is Melanie meeting me in the conference room?” Lois didn’t reply. I got up and walked to the door, but the guards blocked my way out. “Seriously? I’m the Alpha’s mate. It is my job to host them until my mate returns.”

“Our Alpha does not agree. He wants you out of the way and under guard until he returns.”

That pissed me off. “What? Is he afraid I’ll find someone better than him?”

Lois paled. “Do not even joke about such things, my future Luna. Alpha Cole would kill anyone you showed interest in, regardless of the cost.”

“Then what is his problem, Lois? Is he embarrassed I am his mate? Is he afraid I’ll do something that will embarrass him?”

Lois took my hand and led me back to the table. “You have not accepted the change or his claim,” she said as we sat down again. “Yes, you are his mate, but without that, you have no official position in the Pack. Let him bite you, and Melanie will step aside so you can rule by his side. Until then, you are both human and vulnerable. Cole will not allow outsiders to be near you unless he can personally see to your safety.”

I sat back and thought about it for a moment. It made more sense now, given how protective my mate was. Another Alpha wanting to harm the Pack would find me the easiest target. “Who is our guest, and what do you know about him?”

“It’s the Quinalt Pack, Future Luna.” Shit. That was the group that had visited a few days ago. Two males found human mates and took them back. We’d talked about the threat posed, and they wouldn’t know of the deal I’d made about the human females. “Alpha Edward Winters, his Lead Warrior, and ten warriors.”

“Twelve isn’t enough to take over,” I said.

“It’s enough to take you out,” she replied. “I don’t think that is why they brought this particular group, though. Only the Alpha is mated.”

That could be fun. “We should segregate the human females until we can do introductions in a controlled manner,” I ordered.

“Luna Melanie already ordered that, and the rooms are all guarded now. We wait here,” she replied.

“Great. Can we continue the interviews?”

“Not a good idea to have the humans walking around,” Lois replied. She walked to the door just in time for it to open. A guard handed her a small bag and a slab of wood, maybe three feet long and almost that wide. She set the wood by the wall and sat by me, removing and untying a leather roll. Inside were a dozen throwing knives. “Have you done any knife training?”

“I played around with knife and hatchet throwing as a camp counselor,” I replied.

“These are my mating present for you, my future Luna. The blades are silver-plated. Any werewolf skin that touches them will burn, and any stab wounds will be slow to heal. The handles are stainless steel.”

She motioned for me to take one out. The knife was slightly longer than my hand, with the front half a double-sided blade. Thin linen cord wrapped the handles between the ring at the end and the ridge of the handguard. “Not much of a blade guard. Well-balanced. Heavier than I expected.”

“All throwing knives have to balance the throw and the thrust,” Lois instructed. “These knives lean towards throwing. I’ll speak to the Alpha about letting you carry a concealed pistol outside your quarters. That isn’t always practical in meetings, but these knives hide well under your clothing. I expect you to wear at least four at all times until you have shifted.” She helped me put on the matching sheaths. Two went on my forearms, one on my thigh, and each could hold two knives. “We’ve got an hour, so let’s see what you know.”

She had me throw the twelve knives at the target board from ten feet. I was glad the walls were gypsum board and the floor carpeted; I only stuck two into the wood. Lois began to coach me on my form. When the hour finished, my arm was exhausted, but I had that up to nine. “Not bad for a beginner,” she told me. “One hour of throwing practice and one hour of knife fighting training every day until your fevers hit.”

“Then we stop training?”

“We’ll pause for your mating,” she replied. An evil grin crossed her face. “Then it goes to four hours per day until I’m satisfied you can defend yourself against multiple werewolves. We’ll fit that in between your shooting and wolf-fighting lessons.”

Great. Getting my wolf was going to get my ass kicked.