Out of the Darkness (The Cloven Pack Series: Book Two) Read online

  If these two mated females aren’t going to be the death of me, then surely the unmated one in the other car will. Maybe when Bre’s sober, I can convince her to come to my bed, just to get her out of my system. I’m usually not the kind of guy to count the notches on my bedpost—not like Flint—but this is one female I wouldn’t mind fucking.

  No, I tell myself. Bre had refused me earlier, and I’m sure there’s a reason for it. I need to put my bruised ego aside, leave her alone, and respect her wishes. That’s going to be easier said than done.

  Brenna Johnson

  Rough nails dig into my skin as I’m dragged down the stairs. I try to yank the hand off while I plead with the man who pulls me along. “Daddy, please. Please don’t do this.”

  “No daughter of mine will be caught sneaking off the territory past curfew,” my father growls.

  Tears trickle down my face in steady streams. “I promise, Daddy, I won’t do it again.”

  My father stops in his tracks and painfully grips my jaw. “Don’t think that I don’t know what you were doing off the territory. I know you were fucking that human. If you think for one second that I’ll let any of this slide, I’ll beat your ass so black and blue that you won’t be able to sit for a week. No one, not even my flesh and blood, will get away with disobeying me.”

  More tears stream down my face as I accept my fate.

  My father pulls me out the front door to the waiting Pack on the lawn. Many of my Pack mates refuse to look at me while I silently plead with them. A young Ben stands off to the side, his body rigid as he watches my punishment unfold.

  My father grabs both of my wrists and ties them to the deck’s support beam.

  “This bitch has disobeyed my direct order. She will be punished as I see fit. If any of you object, you’ll get the same treatment.”

  Before I can turn my head and plead once more, I cry out in pain at the whip ripping into my back.

  My breaths are ragged when my eyes fly open. I force myself to take deeper breaths, reassuring myself and my wolf that it’s just a dream. A memory, but still a dream.

  It was a memory of one of my many punishments at the hands of my father. He had loved to use me as an example of what would happen if his rules were broken. When I was younger, I used to sneak off the property and visit my human boyfriend. At that age, I didn’t fully understand why we couldn’t date humans. Instead of taking the time to explain it to me, my father used his whip instead.

  When my father was Alpha, he was a cruel leader. It’s why Evo came back from the FBI and killed him. My father, Craig Johnson, liked to rule with a heavy hand. He drained the Pack funds, dished out public punishments, and wasn’t afraid to use his daughter to teach the Pack a lesson. If the lashing scars on my back are anything to go by, I’d say that lesson was learned a long time ago. At least for me.

  He created inner demons inside me. Demons that aren’t so easy to tame and remind me of my past at inconvenient times. Demons that make me seek comfort and love just so I can get a break from their torment.

  Dreams like the one I just had have been frequent. They’re reminders of the past that I try desperately to squash and bury deep. But, as the years have gone by, their torment worsens. I believe it’s because the more I fight going to my mate, the more mentally weak I become. Mates aren’t meant to exist in each other’s presence without actually mating. The walls I’ve built to protect myself have become weak and the memories now invade my dreams.

  My phone’s alarm begins to sound. I groan and search for it on my end table. When I don’t find it, I scan the floor and snatch the loud offending object that’s telling me I need to rise and shine. With this headache and that dream, there will be no shining today. Unfortunately, the ‘rising’ part isn’t a choice.

  I shut it off and plop my head back on the pillow. These sheets are so soft, so warm and cozy. Wait, why do they feel softer than normal …? My eyes fly open. I lift the sheets and confirm that I am indeed, naked as the day I was born.

  Soft snoring sounds come from beside me, making me freeze in fear. Slowly, I turn my head to see who I brought home with me last night. A familiar face comes into my sight—Flint.

  Oh my fucking God, what have I done?

  Leaving the sheet on my bed, I carefully slip out from under them. I move as slow as possible to not disturb the very naked Flint next to me. Quickly tiptoeing to my walk-in closet, I grab the first set of work-out clothes I put my hands on, and tiptoe out of my bedroom.

  I don’t remember bringing him back to my quarters. I can’t remember much from last night after Ben and I … well … after I turned him away. I drank a Long Island iced tea and then ordered … what did I order? Shit. I don’t remember. I must have blacked out. Shit, shit, shit!

  “Fucking damn it, Bre!” I quietly scold myself.

  My wolf is thoroughly pissed. If it were possible, she’d tear me a new asshole. In my heavily intoxicated state last night, she must’ve been subdued after that Long Island iced tea. To her, I betrayed my mate, the one person we’re supposed to depend on. I remind her that he isn’t so dependable. He isn’t here for our comfort or protection. He isn’t here for us at all. Ben has no interest in us. He may have shown attraction for the first time last night, but I brought it on myself.

  Though I can easily take care of myself, my wolf isn’t so sure; she never understood why I didn’t fight back against my father. Fighting back against your Alpha could mean death. I had been trying to keep us alive. But she’d rather die than be forced to endure such punishment again. Having a mate makes a wolf stronger—that’s what she keeps reminding me. I know she’s right but this situation isn’t so black and white.

  My father never loved me. A part of me still wonders if he blamed me for the death of my mother, who had died while giving birth to me. To explain to my wolf that love isn’t so cut and dry—so simple—is fruitless. I never got to love my mother, I never received love from my father, and my own mate doesn’t know I’m the one he’s supposed to love. She couldn’t come to terms with this. Distractions are my thing, denial is hers.

  Hearing Flint beginning to stir, I quickly shoot across my living room, stumble over a hoard of shoes, and slip out the front door. I have no idea how this is going to go later, but I’m damn sure that I just made a big fucking mistake. I don’t even remember having sex with him. Oh God, what have I done?

  Heading into the Alpha’s quarters, I step through the sliding door. Most of the Pack should already be in the Pack gym. I’m not ready to face them yet. I’m sure Evo will pick up on my guilt and question me endlessly. He doesn’t possess Kenna’s discretion—he’s blunt when he questions someone’s emotions. How am I going explain that I feel whorish without telling him the details of all my extra-circular activities last night?

  Rounding the corner to the kitchen, I stop dead in my tracks when Kenna glances up from her coffee mug. She frowns when my guilt reaches her.

  Ignoring her frown, I make my way to the sink, grab the Tylenol, and swallow two pills with a large glass of water. “Is the coffee fresh?” I ask Kenna, my back still turned from her.

  “Yes,” she replies.

  Grabbing a mug, I fill it to the brim and then slowly turn around to face the music.

  Kenna sets her mug aside. “Stop avoiding and spit it out.”

  I sink myself onto the nearest stool and lay my head against the counter’s clean, cool surface. “Flint and I had sex last night.”

  “Come again?”

  Lifting my head, I turn and look at her. “Well, I don’t exactly remember the sex, but if his very naked body in my bed is anything to go by, I’d say I’m pretty accurate with my assessment.”

  She covers her mouth with her hand. “Shit, Bre.”

  I groan. “I know. I don’t know what to do. I don’t even know how it happened. What do I do, Kenna? Tell me what to do.” My eyes plead with her for advice on this mess I made.

  Kenna stares
at me while she thinks it over. “Ignore it? Hope it goes away? I don’t know. I’ve never slept with a guy who had some sort of fascination with me while my mate slept in the same building.”

  I cover my face with my hands. “Oh God. I’m a slut, aren’t I?”

  “No, pumpkin. You’re just desperately trying to work through your shit.” She pats my shoulder and I groan again. “If you didn’t want to sleep with him, why did you?”

  “I don’t remember a thing after Ben and I … well … after I came back to the bar. I remember ordering another drink but that’s it. I don’t remember the ride home, I don’t remember going into my quarter, and I don’t remember bringing Flint with me.”

  “What exactly happened between you and Ben last night?” She lifts an eyebrow, brings her mug to her lips, and takes a sip.

  I sigh miserably. “We almost had sex, but I stopped him. He was just looking to get laid like I was. We can’t have sex.”

  Understanding dawns on Kenna’s face. “Ah. Having sex would start the mating so you pushed him away. I can’t believe he still doesn’t know you’re his mate. I mean, there had to be a lot of heat between you two last night. I remember feeling that the first time. It was pretty intense.”

  “What am I going to do about Flint?” I ask, changing the subject from heated touches.

  Kenna blows out a breath. “Well, he may not say anything. You know Flint, he’s a man-whore. There’s a good possibility that his fascination with you is purely based on sex. Maybe. Hopefully. If not, we’ll figure out a plan to … let him down gently. He’s a big boy, he’ll get over it.” She gives a curt nod, satisfied with her solution.

  Kelsey enters the kitchen looking like the walking dead. “’Morning,” she croaks while heading to the fridge. Pulling out the pan of egg bake she made last night before we left, she slowly begins prepping for breakfast.

  “You look like shit,” Kenna states.

  “Drunk me and sober me are no longer on speaking terms.” Kelsey grabs a glass of water and takes a sip before returning to her task. “My liver is reminding me that I’m not a teenager anymore. I can no longer bounce back from such an assault to my system.” Putting the pans on the stovetop, she sets the preheat timer and sluggishly sinks to the floor. “I’m never drinking again.”

  Kenna makes her way over to Kelsey, hands her a cup of coffee, and holds out her hand. “Pull it together, Kels. If we ever want Evo to let us go out again, we have to pull our shit together.”

  Kelsey grunts and becomes dead weight as Kenna tries to pull her from the floor. “I’m not worried about Evo. Jeremy is the one I’m worried about. He may never let me go out again. You should have heard the lecture he gave me when I came into our quarters smelling like a liquor bottle.”

  “Sounds like we’ve all had a rough night after coming home,” I whisper, taking a sip of my hot coffee.

  Kenna smiles dreamily. “I had a rough night, but not the kind of rough you two had.”

  Kelsey turns her puffy eyes to mine. “What kind of rough night did you have, Bre?”

  I stammer for an explanation. Kenna quickly changes the subject, effectively saving me from explaining the horrors that plague my morning. “Would you look at that. It’s time to spar,” Kenna says.

  Kelsey glares at her. “How are you so chipper? Why aren’t you suffering like Bre and me?”

  Kenna puts her hands on her hips. “Because I’m a fucking badass, that’s why. Now get your tiny ass off the floor.”

  Benjamin Grobin

  Flint walks into the Pack gym. The dark circles under his eyes indicate he’s either sick or didn’t get much sleep last night. Since he’s grinning like a fool, I’m guessing it’s the latter.

  “You’re in a good mood,” Dyson comments from the treadmill. When Flint turns his grin to him, Dyson’s eyebrows shoot into his forehead. “You got laid last night, didn’t you?”

  I look at Evo and frown while spotting him as he lifts his weights. Flint didn’t bring home another shifter last night. We didn’t even run into any at the bar. Who the hell did he sleep with?

  Flint gives Dyson a smirk of confirmation, shoots me a cocky glance, and whistles his way to a lifting machine. Evo and I take in a big whiff as he walks by and we both freeze. We smell Bre on him.

  Evo’s eyes grow wide. “Shit,” he whispers. Without looking up to my enraged face, he feels my emotions and growls. Laying his Alpha Command on me, he whispers, “You will do nothing. Control yourself, Ben.”

  Working hard to compose my inner turmoil and my wolf who’s fighting to surface, I give Evo a reluctant nod. My wolf is pissed and hounding me to destroy this male that slept with Bre.

  After I got a taste of Bre last night, she had invaded my dreams with erotic fantasies. My wolf approved of these fantasies and had urged me to hunt down Bre every time I woke from one of them. He was quickly becoming obsessed with her, like she was a drug to him. It’s unlike the animal to lust after a female like this—to hound and fight me about seeking her out. It doesn’t make a lick of sense to me.

  Satisfied that I’m not going to murder Flint, Evo goes back to lifting, a frown taking over his features.

  “Are you going to share the dirty details?” Dyson asks, hopping off the treadmill and wiping the sweat from his neck with a towel.

  “Nope,” he says, popping the ‘p’ like Bre always does. I freeze again, anger shaking my body as I grip the bar of the weights I’m spotting for Evo.

  Evo takes notice of my inner turmoil and reminds me of his Command with one simple growl.

  Jeremy pauses on the leg press. “Holy shit. You slept with Bre?”

  “Dude!” Dyson says, slapping Flint on his back. “Give the details.”

  “Can we not discuss the details about who fucked my sister?” Evo grunts, sitting the bar back on its ledge.

  Jeremy takes in Evo’s frown and my twisted features and wisely changes the subject. “Er … how was patrol last night, Dyson?”

  Dyson sits on a bench and takes a swig of water. “Not a peep out there. I did find one of Jazz’s lipsticks though, but I’m thinking it might be from when she was still in the Pack.” His eyes shift to Evo. “I put it on your desk last night.”

  Jeremy scratches the back of his neck. “What are we doing about Jazz?”

  “I was thinking about taking Kenna and Dyson with me in a few days. With any luck, she may have fled to the city. If that’s alright with you, Dyson—I could use your tracking skills. We may not find anything but there’s a good chance that Jazz has gone completely Rogue like Chris. We can’t let her roam around.”

  “Hell yeah. I’m always up for a field trip.” Dyson grins at Evo. The prospect of getting off the territory for a while fills Dyson with anticipation.

  “Good. I’m not sure when we’re going but I’ll let you know. It should start snowing any day now, so be sure to pack enough clothes in case we get stuck in town.” Evo stands from the bench. “Let’s go see if the girls have emerged from their drunken slumber.”

  Exiting the gym, we see the women cloud gazing in the grass. They slowly begin to peel themselves off the ground when they hear us approach. It’s cold out, so I can’t imagine why they would be lying on the frozen grass.

  I call out the sparring partners. “Kenna and Evo. Bre and Kelsey.” I refuse to spare Bre a glance and I see her frown from my peripheral vision. “Dyson and Jeremy,” I continue.

  “What about Flint?” Evo whispers.

  I spare Evo a quick glance. “Flint will be sparring with me,” I growl.

  “Ben … ” Evo warns. “Don’t kill him,” he whispers before walking over to Kenna. I spare a glance at my Alpha female. She has such a curious expression for me.

  Since Kenna and Bre are joined at the hip, I’m assuming she knows about Bre and Flint’s extra-curricular activities last night. I hold my Alpha female’s gaze and watch as her features turn into a knowing expression before I avert my eyes.
>
  You and I need to talk, she sends me telepathically.

  Never ignoring one of my Alpha’s, I nod to her once. Kenna has a nifty little gift, but at times it’s difficult for me when she reads my emotions. I’m a private person who doesn’t relish the fact that someone is aware of my inner turmoil.

  I make my way over to the male my wolf and I want to tear apart. I’m not allowed kill him, but I can sure whoop his ass.

  “Ready?” Flint asks, giving me a cocky grin. He’s being smug about sleeping with Bre and clearly privy to my displeasure. He usually never speaks to me, but it’ll be tough to keep that silence when I’m about to make him bleed.

  Without answering, I quickly strike with the first punch, my fist landing square on Flint’s jaw. Shock crosses his face before he glares and rubs his jaw. “What the fuck, man?” he asks in disbelief.

  Hitting him again, I land a blow to his ribs and he doubles over clutching his stomach. I allow myself a small smile when I hear the satisfying sound of his lungs gushing out air.

  His eyes glow wolf as he rights himself. “What? Does big bad Ben suddenly have feelings? Is our Beta hurt that Bre and I fucked last night? Or are you more upset that she fucked me and not you?” he antagonizes.

  Not intending to answer his question, I block the punch that he throws in my direction. Flint continues with a pattern of punches and lands a few blows, but not as many as I do. Seeing him bleed is giving me and my wolf the satisfaction I knew it would.

  Flint’s shoulder slams my torso, intent on tackling me to the ground. I flip us before we hit the cold grass and land on top of him. I hit him in the face before he rolls us. He quickly aims a punch while he’s towering over me. I move my head to the side and he hits the grass, a few blades are stuck to his knuckles when he brings his hand up off the ground.

  Using my legs to roll Flint back to the bottom, I throw a series of punches while Flint uses his arms to protect his face. I can still smell Bre on his skin which fuels my wolf, who’s fighting me to give him control. My eyes glow wolf and I know this fight is quickly becoming what my Alpha demanded it not to be.