Chapter 14

Chief shoved Alise behind him as Briggs, the BlackBird pack Beta, demanded from the front porch of the compound, “The fuck you doing here, Chief?”

Chief knew that bringing Alise around other wolves was going to be a problem, but he didn’t anticipate feeling the feral possessiveness that was tearing through him.  His steely response was clipped.  “I need to see Dell.”

“He ain’t here.”  Briggs’ eyes narrowed, and he leaned to the side.  “Whatcha hiding?”

Chief’s lip ticked up in a snarl.  He and his wolf both knew that Briggs was mated, but neither one cared.  Just the mere fact that another male wanted to lay eyes on their prize had them ready for battle.  Fuck, this was a bad idea!

“H-hi.”  Alise stepped around Chief and hurried forward.

Chief lunged for Alise, but she parried with a slap at his hands. 

Damn woman!

“I’m Alise,” she continued, stopping at the bottom of the stairs just as Chief caught her around the waist and pulled her body back into the solid wall of his chest.  “I’m Chief’s…Chief’s,” she stammered and then fell silent as Chief filled in, “She’s mine.  We’re stricken.  We need to talk to Dell.”

A broad grin split Briggs’ features.  “Stricken?”  Crossing thick arms over an equally impressive chest, the Beta stared down his nose at Chief and Alise.  “Bout fucking time, man.”  Lowering his arms, he gestured toward the house.  “Dell’s not here, but you can wait.  He and the Phena will be home soon.”

Hesitating, Chief considered his options.  If Monroe arrived with the Alpha absent, things could be bad.  If they ran though, the odds of the Skin Walkers catching up with them was practically guaranteed.  Staring at Briggs, he decided honesty was best.

“We left StoneCrow against Monroe’s wishes.  We’ve got trouble coming.”

Briggs’ brows dipped down as he lifted his eyes and frowned at the road.  “Walkers know better than to come here looking for trouble.”  He growled low, “Still, best to call in the boys.”

For long minutes, Briggs stared quietly at the forest.  Chief knew he was contacting his brethren through their pack ties.  When Briggs finally blinked out of his reverie, Chief offered, “We don’t mean to cause trouble, it’s just that…” 

His words died off as the front screen door creaked open.  The short figure that stepped slowly from the shadows of the house was instantaneously recognizable, and not just because of her slight stature.  No, it was the pulse of power that filled the air as the BlackBird matriarch stepped onto the porch. 

Hair twisted into two, long, silver braids beneath a red bandana, Mama greeted him. 

“Mighty Chieftain.  Welcome back.  I’m surprised to see you again so soon.”  Her eyes narrowed on him.  “Why so glum, my boy?  What’s got you so riled?”  When her eyes slid from Chief to Alise, her lips curled up in a smile as her eyes crinkled nearly closed in merriment.  With a nod, she muttered, “Oh!  I see.”

Chief responded, “Good to see you again, ma’am.  Alise and I have just come from StoneCrow.  We need to speak to Dell.”

Pursing her lips, Mama studied Chief.  She stared at him so long that Chief fidgeted under her intense scrutiny, his hold on Alise tightening involuntarily.

“You don’t think she’s yours,” Mama accused.

Reluctant to admit her words as truth, Chief struggled to find a suitable explanation.  “I’d just come from the pack battles.  I’d only been at StoneCrow a few days when it happened.”

With a tisk, Mama flapped her hand at him dismissively, effectively quieting him.  Angry now, she pointed a crooked finger at him.  “You boys and your time wasting.”

Pony and Raiden rounded the corner, and without even looking at them, Mama ordered, “Boys, bring me the woman.”

Without a moment’s hesitation, Chief released Alise and stepped in front of her.  Lip ticking up in a snarl, he lowered his chin and fisted his hands, ready for battle. 

Behind him, Alise gasped and gripped his bicep.  “Chief?”

“See!” Mama boasted triumphantly.  “There’s your answer, boy.”  Nodding knowingly, she declared, “She’s yours.”

Pony and Raiden stilled halfway to Chief, and Briggs, who’d gone tense, relaxed as he looked from Chief to Mama. 

“You tell her the truth, Chief,” Mama ordered.  “You’re not here to find out if she’s really yours.  You know she is.  The stricken is true.  You’re here because of your mother.”

Chief felt all the blood drain from his face.  How in the hell this woman knew about his mother, he had no idea, and it certainly wasn’t anything he was discussing right now in front of everyone.

“You’ve been fighting that disappointment all your life,” Mama continued.  “And now you’re risking the loss of your mate because of it.  You need to…”  Suddenly, and with a speed none of them expected, Mama’s head snapped up as her words died off.  With a delicate growl to her voice, she sounded more resigned than angry as she grunted, “Walkers.”  Eyes sliding to Chief, she ordered, “Get your mate inside.”  Slowly crossing the porch, Mama leaned heavily on the rail as she slowly descended the steps.  Halfway down, she lifted her head and sniffed at the air before she slammed to a halt.  Eyes going hard, she snarled, “Briggs, tell Dell to get home now.”  She pointed at Chief without looking at him.  “They’re not here for this one.”  Her expression turned almost sad as she muttered, “They’ve come for Sha, and they’ve brought an army.  Call in all the packs.  She won’t be leaving unless she chooses to.”  She turned her head and stared pointedly at Briggs.  “You understand?”

With a nod, a shift exploded from Briggs, and his wolf was on the move.

***

Alise felt sick with confusion and worry.  Something big was happening.  Chief was acting so strange.  He kept vacillating between being almost conciliatory to being extremely overprotective.  One second he was seeking sanctuary and the next he was ready to battle the very people he was requesting it from.  And when the old woman had said something about Chief’s mother, she’d felt him tense so hard in front of her that she was worried he was going to attack outright.  His mother?  She wondered what the old woman was talking about, but it’d have to wait because Monroe had found them, and if the woman was right, he’d brought an army with him.

Taking her hand, Chief pulled Alise up the stairs, stopping beside the old woman to offer, “Is there a safe place I can hide her?  If shit goes south, I’d like to help.”

“This isn’t your battle, Chief.”

“The hell it’s not.  They’re here because of me.”

Mama eyed the road.  “No, they’re here for something much bigger.”

“I’d still like to help.”

Turning to look at him, Mama dipped her chin.  “The girls inside will hide your mate.  You’ve got about ten minutes.”

Alise jerked as Chief pulled her up the rest of the stairs and through the front door.  Inside people bustled down a set of stairs that led from the second floor as even more people rushed from a side hall.  There were people everywhere, mostly women, which worried Alise.

Chief caught the arm of a fierce looking woman, who snarled up at Chief.

“Cindy, Mama said someone could hide Alise for me, keep her safe.  She’s my mate.  She’s human.”

The woman’s expression softened a fraction as she slid her eyes from Chief to Alise.  “Hailey, take this woman to the basement.  You and the rest of the girls stay there until I come for you.”

A fair-haired teenager grabbed Alise’s hand, and the second their skin touched, Alise hissed and jerked away as acid instantly filled her belly. 

“She’s stricken,” Chief thundered, instantly grabbing Alise’s hand and rubbing his palm against her own to alleviate the ache. 

Looking up at him, Alise blinked back the pain-filled tears in her eyes.  “I don’t wanna hide.  I wanna help.”

It was the teenager who responded with fear quaking her tone.  “You can’t help.  You don’t have sharp teeth.  Come on, lady.”

Chief tore his gaze from Alise to eye the girl before he bent and scooped Alise into his arms before nodding and then following Hailey as she took off at a sprint.

“Chief!  Don’t!”  Alise slapped at his chest and struggled in his hold.  “I am not hiding with the kids!  We brought this trouble here, we should face it together.”

His response was a clipped, “No,” that bounced off the walls with such decided finality that it felt like her feet had just been encased in cement blocks.

She didn’t know what was going to happen and she was terrified that this would be the last time she’d hear the velvety cadence of Chief’s voice.  She’d grown accustomed to it, to him.  The sharp bite of his tone when he grew demanding, the soft rasp when he grew contrite, they both felt like hers.  She hadn’t realized how she’d grown to rely on him so much in such a short time.  Surprisingly, he made her feel safe, and the thought of him going to battle right now without any resolution to this thing between them felt so damn unfair.

His feet pounded down a set of stairs that led to a darkened basement and all the while Alise fought him. 

“I’m not going!”

“Damn it, Alessandra!” 

In the basement, Chief set her on her feet and had her pushed up against a wall so fast that her belly dipped.  There were at least four other girls in the basement that Alise could make out in her periphery as she glared up at Chief, but she ignored them as she hissed quietly, “Don’t you do this to me.  Don’t you leave me down here with children like I’m some damn liability.  I am a grown ass woman, and I demand to be a part of whatever’s gonna happen out there.”

With a pained look, Chief fumed, “You’re human.  You are a liability.”

His words gutted her because she realized at that moment that no matter how hard she fought, he’d never see her as anything other than the pathetic human that he was inexplicably bound to.  It was a bind that she was just now realizing was the reason for his visit to the wolves.  Mama’s words made sense now.  “You’re risking the loss of your mate.”  It wasn’t because he was blind to what was happening between them.  It was because he didn’t want was happening between them.  He’d come to the wolves to see if they could fix it, end it.  Chief wanted his tie to her to be severed.

Lowering her hands from where they pushed at his chest, Alise angled her face away from him.  “Human,” she muttered and then huffed a humorless sound.  “You’re right.  I am.  And it’s something I can’t fix.  It’s something I don’t want to fix.”  Then more quietly, “Something I shouldn’t have to.” 

Wrapping her arms around herself, she brushed against him as she gave him her back.  Pacing to a dark corner, she turned and slid down the wall ducking her head low as she braced her elbows on her upraised knees.  When she finally spoke, her voice was rough with tears.  “Go fight your war, shifter.  This liability wouldn’t want you getting distracted.”

“Alise.”

She kept her face angled away, refusing to look at him.  Around her, she heard the soft murmurs from the girls and ignored the sting of embarrassment that singed her cheeks.

From upstairs, someone called Chief’s name, and he hesitated only a moment before he promised, “Later,” then turned and pounded up the stairs.