Saved By The Alpha: (M/F Backdoor Dominant Erotica) (Werewolf's Harem Book 5) Read online

  “How could this situation be the same? Forced mating bites carry a death penalty now, in most places,” Lucas said. Despite the sensitive subject and his reluctance to get into mischief with Garrett, he was curious now.

  “They’d have to catch the bastard first. He’s the top dog in a motorcycle club pack. The whole group roams the U.S., so they’re not under any one authority. Plus, someone would have to track them down.”

  “What about the female’s pack? They’re not protecting her?”

  “Her brother is the head of the pack, and he’s weak. A heroin addict, if my sources are correct. He’s trying to fight the biker, but the leader of the pack has fifty vicious wolves at his back, ready to make war. The female is caught between them, and it doesn’t look good for her no matter who wins.”

  Lucas sorted the situation out in his head. He imagined it as a chess game, trying to see the whole board, the positions of all the pieces. Garrett was quiet, but watchful, knowing him well enough to let him work through the issue internally first.

  “Why aren’t you doing this one, Garrett?” Lucas asked after a full minute of silence. “Just go in and take out the biker. You’re a former Army Ranger, so I doubt that you’d so much as blink at killing him.”

  Garrett nodded.

  “The biker isn’t the issue. Or, he is an issue; his whole pack needs to be disassembled. It’s on my to-do list, believe me.”

  “And…” Lucas prompted. “You’re here in my house, asking me for a favor. I know it’s not something you’d do under normal circumstances.”

  “The female’s brother is as bad as the biker. He beats the shit out of the girl, I’m pretty sure. He’s got a jealous streak a mile wide, and he never forgets a slight.”

  Lucas groaned, closing his eyes. He didn’t even have to ask, he already knew what Garrett was saying.

  “—And I stole a female from him once. She was lonely, I was horny, she’d never seen Fiji… I swept her off on an island adventure. I didn’t know she’d be stupid enough to go back to the guy later,” Garrett said, his last words growing defensive.

  “You are a very special kind of idiot, Garrett. Your dick gets you into so much trouble, it’s astounding.”

  Garrett reddened, changing the topic.

  “Here are the facts. The female needs someone with influence and resources, someone who can pull her out of the fight without fear of retribution. She’s gonna have to leave Florida, and she’ll need a safe place and some money and some people she can trust. Who else can offer that?” Garrett asked.

  Lucas shrugged, noncommittal.

  “I’m not the only rich wolf in the world. You have plenty of money stacked in the bank, you just don’t want to spend it on a female.”

  “Fine. How about this: there are a lot of big, bad alphas involved, and I need you to do your dominance trick. I need a rich, powerful werewolf who can walk into a room and bring every other wolf to heel, without so much as waving a gun. Is that specific enough for you, brother?”

  “I don’t like anyone to know about my abilities,” Lucas said.

  “You care more about what a pack of abusive rednecks might say to the wrong people than you care about the life of this female?”

  Pulling a 3x5 photo from his back pocket, Garrett tossed the photo onto Lucas’s desk. The female’s big, ice-blue eyes struck him first. They were rimmed with thick, dark lashes, her face framed in hair of the same color, somewhere between mahogany and ink black. She had a strong, proud jaw, a small nose dappled with freckles, and sinful lips curled into a wicked smile.

  “This looks like someone you’d date,” Lucas said. “Are you planning for me to rescue her so you can swoop in and seduce her?”

  Garrett chuckled, shaking his head.

  “No way, not this one. She’s not for me.”

  “I’m sorry, did I mishear? I thought you just told me that there was a female that you didn’t want to fuck. It can’t be her, because she’s gorgeous. Are you feeling all right, Garrett?” Lucas teased, surprised.

  “She’s got a pretty strong personality,” Garrett said with a shrug. “I don’t like to work too hard for sex.”

  The office door burst open, bringing Lucas and Garrett to their feet like twin toy soldiers. Walker and Ella backed into the room, arms wrapped around each other, tongues twining.

  Walker froze, turning to find Lucas and Garrett staring him down. Walker pulled Ella behind his body, so close that she was pressed into his back.

  “Ah. You’re back,” Walker said to Lucas.

  “Yeah. Thanks for nothing,” Lucas said, glaring at his friend.

  “I called Garrett, at least,” Walker said.

  A muffled sound came from his back, and all the men turned their gazes to Ella. She was a tiny blonde with big blue eyes, the opposite of Walker’s tall, dark, and threatening vibe. Pulling her mouth from Walker’s sweatshirt, she gave Lucas a serious look.

  “He meant well. He has been worried sick over you,” she said. Her accent had a thick Southern twang, and Lucas would have been hard pressed not to find her endearing.

  “We’ll talk about this another time. I’m leaving with Garrett,” Lucas said, resigning himself to fate.

  Garrett just grinned, as if he’d known Lucas wouldn’t refuse.

  “You need help?” Walker asked, his gaze darting from Lucas to Ella, and back again.

  “Nope. Keep your sorry mated ass here and watch over your female,” Lucas said with a shake of his head.

  “All right,” Walker said, turning and herding Ella out of the room.

  “Nice to meet you!” Ella called over Walker’s shoulder.

  “Walker, one more thing,” Lucas called. The other wolf turned, curious. “Don’t fuck on my desk, okay? Faulkner once owned this desk, and it deserves better than supporting your bare ass.”

  Walker frowned, shrugging, and headed down the hall with his mate.

  “This is gonna be great,” Garrett chuckled. “I love you when you’re grouchy and disapproving. To others, that is.”

  “Shut up and sit down. We need to lay some ground rules if we’re going to work together,” Lucas said, returning to the wingback chair.

  Garrett sat down and stretched, kicking back.

  “Whatever you say, brother,” he grinned.

  “First rule is that if you put your feet on my desk again, I’m going to gut you top to bottom.”

  “You’d have to catch me first,” Garrett laughed.

  “I’ll unleash my dominance on you, Garrett. I’ve been saving it for a special occasion.”

  “We both know that I’m immune to your dominance. Me, Ben, your redhead… the people you truly cherish, we’re all immune. Your little trick doesn’t work unless you are willing to carry out the threat,” Garrett said.

  Lucas watched him for a moment before nodding.

  “I was wondering when you would figure that part out,” he admitted.

  “Twenty years ago, the night we had that fist fight over Alaina. I think you would have done it then, if you could have. You were so angry.”

  Lucas sighed, ready to move on from the past and into their upcoming mission.

  “Start from the beginning, and tell me everything. Let’s run down the plan from top to bottom before we make our first move. And Garrett, don’t leave anything out, for any reason,” he commanded. His brother was wily, and only followed the most direct of orders. The lie of omission was Garrett’s lifeblood.

  Garrett nodded, and they began to hatch a plan.

  Chapter Two

  Scarlett Ward tilted her chin up in silent defiance, refusing to wilt under her brother’s malevolent glare. She shifted in place, flipping her long, dark hair back over one shoulder, and sighed as she looked around. She stood in the large, bombed-out basement of the abandoned apartment building where their pack was now living. It was a far cry from the safe, quiet neighborhood where she and her brother Redd had grown up.

  Redd stood before Scarlett, a sneer on
his face. He was a Shifter male in his prime; tall, a thickly muscled body from head to toe. Dark hair and deep blue eyes that drew a certain kind of Shifter female. The kind that appreciated strength and good looks over sense or compassion, it seemed.

  “Now Scarlett, just because we’re kin don’t mean I won’t hurt ya,” Redd said. He directed his words at Scarlett, but they weren’t meant for her. Redd was preaching to his ragtag little band of Shifters. They were all the same type: big, muscular, dumb as rocks. Junkies, bullies, redneck assholes with barbed-wire tattoos and tiny intellects. Redd had twenty two followers now, two-thirds of them thick-headed, short-tempered males. The pack lounged now, laying on mattresses or sleeping bags, watching Redd scold his ‘wayward sister’.

  “I know,” Scarlett said, crossing her arms over her breasts, hating the way that some of the males looked at her. Fearing Redd, none of them had made a move yet, but it was only a matter of time before her brother lost her temper and gave her over to his pack.

  “I need that money that Mama left us, Scarlett,” Redd said, unashamed. All the men in Scarlett’s romance novels were proud, too proud to tell the women they loved their feelings. Redd had plenty of pride, but none of that applied when it came to asking for things from Scarlett. Redd said that they were blood, and what was hers was his, too.

  Their relation was undeniable. Though Scarlett’s frame was willowy where Redd’s was thick, they shared the same dark hair and deep blue eyes. They were both tall, and they were both stubborn.

  “Mama left that money to me, Redd. She wanted me to use it to go to school,” Scarlett said for the hundredth time.

  Redd’s pack members watched, some getting to their feet and edging closer. The pack liked Redd’s dramatic flair, attracted to his chaos.

  “And I told you, you ain’t doing that. You’re gonna settle down with the male I choose for ya, and you’re gonna breed and build up my pack. End of story. Meanwhile, that money’s just sitting there. We could be living the high life instead of living in this fucking dump,” Redd scowled.

  “Really? When I said it was a dump, you told me it was good enough for us,” Scarlett said, letting her distaste show.

  “You need to shut that smart mouth unless I ask you a question. You hear me?” Redd snarled. Reaching out and grabbing Scarlett by the arm, he gave her a hard shake. She blinked, but didn’t respond. If she cried or lashed out, he’d beat her for real, and she’d be that much weaker when she enacted her plan to run away.

  Just make it two more days, girl, she told herself.

  Two more days, and she’d be on a bus to Atlanta. Once she got on that bus, she was never looking back. She just had to hold out until then, and keep Redd away from her bank account.

  “I’m not giving you that money, Redd. It’s not even money enough to house the pack somewhere decent for more than a month. All that talk about living the high life, that’s not real,” Scarlett said, regretting the words as soon as they were out of her mouth. So much for not provoking her brother.

  Redd’s hand tightened on her arm, squeezing so hard that she knew she’d have a bruise. No matter, it would just blend in with the others, to be covered up with makeup each day. Scarlett knew how to put on a good face.

  “If Daddy were here, he’d beat you himself,” Redd spat.

  “If Daddy were here, Mama would still be alive, and you’d have better manners!” Scarlett said, her voice rising with anger.

  Redd raised his hand, palm open, and slapped her hard. Scarlett sucked in a breath, fighting off tears.

  “Give me the money, Scarlett,” Redd warned.

  “No!” she said, trying to jerk out of his hold.

  “Give me the money, or I’m gonna sell you to that biker,” Redd said, a cruel gleam in his eyes.

  Scarlett stilled, heart pounding. Several of the males closed in on her, less than an arm’s length now. They waited, hoping that this would be the time that Scarlett pushed Redd too far, the time that Redd lifted his protection and left her to be defiled by the pack.

  “You wouldn’t,” she whispered.

  “I sure as hell would,” Redd said, raising his voice so that the whole pack turned to watch them with renewed interest. “You ain’t worth nothing to me. Just another mouth to feed, and you talk too damned much. Always causing problems in the pack. Now you let that piece of shit bite you, so you’re half a step away from being a danger to the pack.”

  Her hand flew up to the bandage at her neck, the angry red bite mark that wouldn’t heal. Ray had grabbed her in the dark parking lot of the bar where she worked. Two men had held her down, forcing her to submit to his bite. Though they’d tried, she’d refused to reciprocate. Redd and his crew had showed up then, and the bikers had left, not wanting to attract the police. Redd had been on edge ever since, hating that someone wanted to take what was his.

  “You’re scared of him,” Scarlett accused, knowing where to hit Redd the hardest. If he was going to threaten her, she’d tell the whole pack what a worthless chicken shit Redd was. If they didn’t already know, they would soon.

  Redd grabbed her and gave her another shake, this time hard enough to whip her head back and forth.

  “What the hell did you just say to me?” he asked.

  “I said, you’re scared of Ray Wilson. That biker gang’s alpha’s got you about to piss your pants like a little boy,” she said.

  “Shut the fuck up, Scarlett. What the hell do you know about anything?”

  Redd released her with a disgusted glare, backing off. He looked like he wanted to fight more, but Scarlett knew that he didn’t want her running her mouth, telling his pack all his weaknesses.

  In the next moment, their argument was forgotten as the basement’s double doors burst open. Scarlett squinted against the bright sunlight, and then her heart dropped into her stomach. Ray Wilson strode in, his eyes finding her in the gloom of the basement. When he turned his gaze to Redd, Scarlett almost sighed aloud in relief.

  Ray Wilson was bad news. He was bigger than Redd, his body taller and thicker. He had light red hair, cruel dark eyes, and a vicious streak a mile long. Flanked by five of his goons, all dressed in leather from head to foot, Ray scared the shit out of Scarlett. He’d already tried to take her by force once, and she had no illusions about the way she’d be treated as his mate.

  “Alright, Ward,” Ray said, coming closer. He tossed a briefcase down in the space between himself and Redd, cocking a brow. “There’s your money. Ten thousand, take it or leave it. It’s your choice, but I’d be careful. One of those roads means you leave here alive, the other means that this shit hole is the last place you’ll ever see.”

  Ray threw his arms wide, indicating the dark, dingy basement.

  “No need to add insult,” Redd said. Turning his head, he motioned to one of his pack members to grab the suitcase.

  Scarlett stopped gaping, finding her voice at last.

  “What the fuck is going on here?” she demanded.

  “Your brother made me an offer that I liked, sweetheart. He gets some cash, I get you. Only time will tell who got the better end of the deal. I hope you last longer than my last girl,” Ray said, grinning.

  Icy fingers slid down Scarlett’s spine. Her gaze snapped to Redd.

  “Redd, you can’t do this,” she said, trying to talk some sense into him.

  “I just did. Maybe you shoulda been nicer to me,” her brother said, shrugging.

  “I won’t do it,” she said, licking her lips. She was growing desperate now.

  “Yes, you will. Ray’s gonna hurt you until you do,” Redd said, his tone bland. “It that all? Cause I have some money to spend, so I’m gonna get out of here. You boys feel free to use our space. Got mattresses and all here.”

  Scarlett’s jaw dropped. Her brother was a lot of things, but he’d never done something this low.

  “Redd, don’t do this,” she said, her throat tight. “You’re signing my death warrant.”

  “Like I care about s
ome dumb bitch who thinks she’s better than me?” Redd laughed.

  Scarlett looked at him, looked at his eyes. His pupils were huge, his eyes reddened. He was high, the heroin probably a little down payment from Ray. Scarlett knew her brother, and she knew the junkie inside him. There was no use talking to him now.

  “Nothing to say now, smart girl?” Redd asked, giving her a look. He whistled to his pack and they all rose, heading out of the basement. Leaving her alone with the bikers, who kept looking back and forth between her and the dirty mattresses.

  Ray stepped forward, grabbing her arm in just the spot where Redd had gripped her earlier. With that one touch, she knew she was lost. There was no way to win, and she wasn’t leaving this basement with her soul intact.

  Scarlett sank to her knees. Her head dipped, a sob tearing from her chest. She was already mourning her freedom, her identity. Maybe even her own life.

  Ray stepped forward, his expression somber.

  “The bite first,” he commanded. “Stand up, let’s do this the easy way.”

  Her heart was so heavy, it took all her will to shake her head, to deny him.

  Let him kill me, she thought.

  Ray’s hand came down, fingers digging into her hair. He pulled her head to the side, baring her neck. She saw the syringe in his hand, but she couldn’t move in time. Ray brought it down, plunging the needle into her neck, depressing the contents into her blood stream. She whimpered, both in pain and fear.

  Scarlett looked up and saw movement behind Ray and his men. Before he could drag her to her feet, his attention was drawn to the doorway. Redd and two of his lieutenants stumbled back inside the room, anxiety and hatred splashed across their faces. Ray and his men stared them down. Redd’s eyes connected with Scarlett’s, and she saw the wild fear there.

  Ray opened his mouth to tell Redd to leave, but two more males stepped into the room behind Redd and his crew. Everyone in the room went still, staring at the newcomers.

  They were big, bulky males, totally unkown to Scarlett. One look at their clothes, their demeanor, and their take-no-shit body language, and Scarlett knew they weren’t some redneck idiots from the next town over. Each of the two men held a heavy black submachine gun, one aiming at Redd’s group and the other at Ray, Scarlett, and Ray’s goons. Their expressions said that they meant business, and didn’t understand the concept of fear.