Chapter 1

My name is Sydney, and this might be the story of the most interesting decade of my life.

My mate and I have been settled and content for 3 years or so. He is Alpha of Saranac pack, deep in upstate new york. True, he is a very old wolf and is slowly going insane, but I am able to support him very much through the mating bond. Our pack is stable and healthy. I only regret that I did not meet him sooner, then I would have been able to preserve his sanity longer. Unfortunately, a few weeks ago, he snapped. I brought him back into control within a few minutes through the mating bond, but the damage was done. I will pick up the pieces. I refuse to let go of my mate so soon after meeting him. Mates are supposed to have eternity together, but somehow it never works out that way, at least for me. For now, my mate is stabilized and I will keep him that way as long as necessary. My pack is strong, and they do not realize that I am the stabilizing force. Our Second, Maxwell, perhaps realizes something is up, but it is no matter. I am more dominant than he, and If he suggests anything against my mate I will discipline him. Mates are so hard to find, and they are so fragile. It is three nights before the full moon.

"You are so beautiful, my precious wolf. So strong and powerful." I relax in my mate's embrace as night falls. The pack is still a little shaken from his loss of control last week, but I fixed it. I am not naive enough to believe that this is a permanent fix, but I will ride with it to the bitter end. My husband and mate perhaps doesn't realize how much of the dominance and control he has now is borrowed from me. I smile up at him. We have just finished dinner, there are no pressing emergencies, and the pack is happy and content. It is two days before the full moon. I smile and relax. We will have a hunt on the full moon, and the pack will be settled as they see their Alphas run before them, strong and in control.

It is one day before the full moon when a dominant, strong wolf shows up at my door. "Mrs. Lyman, I am sorry to ruin your afternoon. Please gather the pack in the large barn."

I meet his eyes and ask "Why are you here, strange wolf?" He bows his read, in respect and mourning but not in submission. My wolf senses trouble coming and wants to rip him to shreds before the bad happens.

"I am sorry, Mrs. Lyman, but you and your husband must come to the barn."

The Marrock enforces good rules for the werewolves, but rules suck when you are on the wrong side of them. Still, I respect my husband enough to let him make his own choice. As the pack stands around, I wait for the death sentence.

The stranger says "Sebastian Lyman, Alpha of the Saranac pack, I challenge you. By the rules that bind us all, you are unfit to rule this pack. Your wolf is getting out of control, and you know it."

My husband replies dominant to the end "This pack is not yours to hold. It is mine, and will be so until my death." I and my wolf howl in support. It is soon, much too soon. I will never let my mate die. But my mate commands me, and although I am dominant enough to defy, I will let him fight for his life, but my support will be with him. But I cannot stop him as he shifts to wolf. Fights, especially for the position of Alpha, are often to the death. As wolves, it increases the chance someone will die. My wolf and I rage together in unison, but I cannot act without destroying the pack. But as the fight starts I no longer care. I rage with my mate as I defend my pack, but I move not a muscle. Slice and bite, snap. The red rage pours forth, as we fight. I am not certain when the timbre of the fight changes, but I know that someone will die. In my own rage, I lose control of my mate's wolf. It is no matter to me, I will defend my territory. But then my mate closes me out. Although I am more dominant than he, I cannot force the connection open in time to prevent his death. I feel only his regret for leaving me.

Perhaps, if I had been a gentler wolf, I would not react as such to a broken mating bond. Perhaps if I had more time to prepare… No regrets. I shift as I feel my hard won control over my dominance fall away. The control I had kept for such as long time as the world shifted towards male dominance. The icy rage rises, harder and stronger than I could contain. Without direction, I would be lost again. My wolf breaks through all of my barriers. My eyes are pure shining green, with a vengeful light. The challenger asks "I have defeated Sebastian Lyman. Does any challenge my right to claim this pack as my own, to hold and protect, until my time is done?" The pack bonds are in flux and the wolves must be bound to an Alpha before the pack cohesion is lost. I stand.

"I, Sydney, challenge you. You are nothing in my sight, and I will not rest until you are gone from this earth." He nods, and I realize that he expected this outcome. But he doesn't meet my eyes. I howl and let the Change rip through me. I draw from the pack bonds, and attack while I am still shifting. As only the most dominant wolves can, I halt partway through the change. I release the final hold on my wolf and let the rage take center. Let him see the monster he has unleashed. My change finishes as I strike my first blow. The challenger jumps back, stunned by my quick change and the rage which burns from my eyes. But he recovers and fights for his life. I see the realization on his face as he realizes my wolf is toying with him. But he doesn't submit, and my wolf is too far gone to accept a yield when it comes. I kill him quickly, as a mercy, but my wolf rages within me. I can see his last thoughts, and I will mourn his passing even as I rejoice in the rightness of his death for the murder of my mate.

The full moon rises as I call my pack to me. My pack, mine alone. I am sole Alpha again.


Chapter 2

It only took three days for the Marrok to get in contact. I have not met the Marrok yet, and if I knew him before he became Marrok I am not aware of it. The Marrok arose in America, but his looks and actions testify to the fact he was born and raised in Europe. Still, it would not do to underestimate him. He does hold all the wolves of North America in his sway. The house phone rings. It is an unlisted number, known only to the pack and the occasional telemarketer. I pick up the phone "Sydney here, how may I help you?" I do not recognize the number, so I go with cheerful.

"I would prefer to do this face to face. Go to your computer and pull up skype. I would like to talk to you." I sigh. I believe it is the Marrok.

A few minutes later, I pull up skype on the house computer. It is not my personal computer that I do my work on but it is a very good computer. I bought it for my mate a year ago. I note the telltale shift that shows that the Marrok is not actually using skype, but is interfacing directly with my computer. That takes skill. I will have to find out who the Marrok's hacker is. He cuts right to the chase.

"Who is Alpha there? I could feel the change in leadership but I have no idea who he is. The pack bonds are strong but I don't recognize the wolf." Mr. Marrok looks pissed off. I raise my eyebrows.

"I am Alpha here." I wait for the reaction. All I get is a glimmer of gold in his eyes.

"How? And why would a female challenge for pack leadership? I thought you were mated to the Alpha."

"I was. A challenger killed my mate, and I defeated him." I hear an inhale of breath and I realize that there must be other people in the room.

"I will find someone to take over the pack from you." My wolf roars at the implications. I smile cruelly. Typical male. Just because most of the dominant wolves are male doesn't mean females can't be dominant.

I speak softly, but the wolf will hear every word. "I am Alpha here. This pack is mine to hold and protect, until the tides of fate carry me away." I wonder if the Marrok will recognize the ancient wording. I let enough of my wolf into my eyes to assure him of my willingness to fight for my position. Dominance squabbling such as this is something I have avoided for many years, but it is time to rejoin pack life. There is a storm brewing on the horizon.

The Marrok sighs "Call me Bran. I will send someone to you to discuss this further." I nod in agreement. The next day, Charles Wolfkiller arrives on my doorstep.


Chapter 3

I hear a knocking on my door around noon. I am about to sit down to lunch with a few members of my pack to discuss the changes I will make, primarily the allowance of females to challenge. We have a very large number of females for a pack of this size, 6 out of 27. Now, five, including myself, are not mated and allowing them to challenge will help strengthen the pack bonds.

I open the door. There is a tall, very dominant wolf that appears to be mostly Native American, to use the politically correct terminology. But the women behind him catches my attention. The most recent stories are true then. Omega, mated to Charles Wolfkiller. I smile a greeting and keep the challenge out of my eyes. "Charles," I say with a nod to acknowledge his dominance "Anna, welcome to my house."

Charles frowns "We were told this was the new Alpha's house. Can you direct us to Sydney Lyman?"

I grin wolfishly and allow the situation to escalate, just to test the Omega. It's not like I would want to challenge Charles or anything. "I am Sydney Einar."

Anna steps forward and smiles. It is like the sun after the long winter of cold and snow. She is a powerful Omega indeed. "I am sorry that Charles didn't realize you were the Alpha."

I return the smile, to test Charles. To see if he catches the undertone that Anna will miss "Greetings to you, Omega. You are welcome within my walls anytime you wish. It has been a long time since I have met an Omega." I can feel the wolf in Charles fight to come to the surface. I show my guests in. "Please, come eat. My pack and I are just sitting down to lunch." I show them to seats, and my submissive, Eli, sets out extra places without being asked. A good submissive wolf is rarer than a good Alpha. With a strong Alpha and one of the best submissives I have met, the pack has been stable for many more years than I have been here.

I can feel the fear roll through my wolves as I introduce Charles and Anna. As I lend them support, I can feel Anna use her influence to calm them as well. Charles looks at her, and I can feel a bit of smugness although nothing shows in his face or body. I have an extra advantage due to my heritage that sometimes allows me to read others more than a normal wolf would be able to. Already, I can sense that there is more to him than the stories I have heard. Anna glances at me as she realizes I have already calmed my wolves. I give her an almost imperceptible acknowledgement, and start a conversation as I bring out the food. Lunch is forced, with Charles mostly scaring my pack, but Anna and I make small talk. To my surprise, Eli manages to start a conversation with Charles. I whisper to my wolves through our bond "I will postpone our meeting about pack changes until I get this settled with the Marrok's representative." Their ears perk up, and I regret that I haven't found time to train them not to give away my words with signals like that. My second, Max looks at me, and I raise my eyebrows, reminding him I am Alpha.

Max asks "With your pardon, Sydney, I would like to get back to my house. My wife is expecting me." It rings true, without the hint of a lie. However, he didn't say when his wife was expecting him.

The others stand up fairly quickly and I say, with just a hint of amusement "Dismissed."

I can sense a returning hint of amusement from Charles, although, again, nothing touches his face. After the others have left I ask "If you are done, we can discuss business."

I get up to clear the plates, and to my surprise, Eli is still in the room and helps me. Anna jumps to her feet and I say "You are a guest in my house. You do not get to help." Charles bristles at the order to his mate, but Anna sighs and relaxes after just a second of irritation. Eli follows me to the kitchen. I turn the water on, suspecting he wants to talk. After some shuffling of his feet he comes right out with it "I knew Charles a while ago, and I think you should be careful of him. You know you are too close to you mate's death to be thinking clearly." I match his seriousness.

"Thank you. I will be careful, but my dominance is a little too close to his for me to be comfortable. My wolf view him as a threat, which should be enough warning. But please, come by later after they leave." I return to the room where Charles and Anna sit.

"Please, come into my study. I'm sure you have a list from the Marrok."

After they sit in the comfy chairs, I pull out my computer. It is the one that I keep for pack and financial business, not my work computer. I set it open to the side, so they can see the screen and it doesn't form a barrier between us.

Anna starts it off, to my surprise. "Sydney, can you tell me a little about yourself?" She backs it with just a hint of power, but that is probably enough to make anyone without experience with Omegas spill their life's story.

I smile "A little about myself? I have recently become sole Alpha of the Saranac pack. I make my money as a hacker. Anything else you would like me to say, Omega?" I feel a little bad about cutting her off, but that is part of the danger of Omega wolves. I must keep her at a distance until I know she and Charles can be trusted. I know my dominance is hidden, so I appear less dominant that I am. It is partly to deceive Charles so I can remain in control of the situation.

Charles asks "Where do you come from?"

I reply "I was born far away and long ago. I came from China to join this pack."

Charles pushes "There is no record of your immigration or a request to come onto the Marrok's territory."

"I was with my mate." I speak the truth, as far as it goes. Charles's face is still unreadable, but my power tells me he is uncertain. He backs off, leaving the first point to me. Perhaps I shouldn't be playing games with the acknowledged second most dominant wolf on the continent, but I really can't help myself. I wait for the next question.

Charles and Anna exchange a glance, and I can almost hear their conversation. They will not push me on personal matters until tomorrow. Charles asks "You are certain you want to be Alpha of this pack?"

I reply "I am Alpha." The slight frown on Charles's face makes me realize he must have been listening to my conversation with the Marrok. I add "I have been Alpha before, and now I am again. Does the Marrok challenge the right of a women to lead a pack?" I am not surprised when Anna stiffens. The people of this century are firm that women are the equal of men. I see Charles realize that there is only one answer that is acceptable to his mate.

"He will be fine with your being a woman. It is policy to check on new Alphas."

I incline my head in a characteristic wolfish fashion. "It is policy to send the second most dominant werewolf onto a new Alpha's territory?"

Charles allows a hint of expression, perhaps amusement onto his face. "In this case, yes. I also just happened to be in the area." That rings false, although there is no telltale lie signs. Perhaps the Marrok felt the instability in the bonds before my mate died, and had already set him to possibly clean up the mess that would have resulted from a crazy alpha wolf. My wolf howled at the reminder of our mate's death, but I made sure no hint showed in my bearing. Our discussion evolved to matters of pack and pack finance. Charles definitely knows more about how to run a pack that his reputation would indicate. Anna too is sharper that she looks, but I expect that from an deny my invitation to stay the night, as expected. After they leave, I get on my real computer and hack into Charles's cell phone.


Chapter 4

After they get back to their hotel, Charles calls his father while I listen in. It was very difficult to get into his phone, but after I realized it was a Welsh-based code I managed it. Who among the Marrok's wolves is his hacker? The person must be fluent in Welsh, as well as be very clever. I am fairly sure it is a wolf. I heard somewhere that the Marrok is Welsh, so perhaps that is not particularly surprising.

"Hi Dad."

"How did it go?" The Marrok asks.

Charles shrugs "I'm not sure. She is a capable Alpha and suited to the job…"

"But what?"

"There is something off. It might just be her fighting her wolf for control after her mate's death, but I couldn't get a read on her dominance."

"How old is she?"

"I don't know. She claims to be a hacker, so probably young, but she also claims to have been an Alpha before."

"Alpha or Alpha's mate? Could you tell?" asks the Marrok.

"No. I didn't think to ask her to specify."

I can hear Anna walk into the room. "I think she has run into an Omega wolf before. There was a sense of real astonishment and welcome in her greeting."

Charles agrees "The wording was interesting. Almost formal. I was drawn a little off-balance by it. Actually, I was a little off balance most of the time in her house. The spirits are strong in that house. Why, I don't know."

The Marrok sighs "So despite my suggestion that you see what you can find out about her, she left you with nothing?"

Anna says "That's not true. She said she came from China." Charles grunts in agreement.

"When, and how did she get into my territory?"

Anna shrugs "She said with her mate."

The Marrok asks "Those words exactly?"

Charles shakes his head "No, I don't recall her exact words." He laughs, a bitter sound. "She controlled the conversation from beginning to end. There was no hint of fear. I didn't realize until now."

Anna sounds concerned "I know I am a young wolf, but I could feel her calm her wolves when she introduced us. Is that normal for an alpha to do?"

Charles says "I thought that was you? It was perfectly done, just enough to reassure, but not enough to let them loosen up."

Anna shakes her head "I don't have that much control yet."

The Marrok sighs "Go back tomorrow and find out more about her past." He hangs up.

There is a knock on my door as Eli lets himself into my study.


Chapter 5

By the time Eli left, it was late. I have a much better picture of Charles, admittedly one outdated by 10+ years. Eli came from Aspen Creek, and I have a suspicion he would report to the Marrok if asked to. The one weakness with submissive wolves is that they are more likely to bow to the current dominant wolf and not think about the other ones they might upset with their actions. I get up and make breakfast. I invited Charles and Anna over for 8:30 breakfast, with Max and his human mate. It is a gamble, but I think I can count on Anna to make it work.

After breakfast I move into the sitting room with Charles and Max, leaving Anna and Max's human mate at the table. We discuss the wolves in my pack. After some time, Max and his mate leave and Anna joins Charles and I in the sitting room. I am more relaxed today, more human.

"Do you know why the spirits gather so tightly around your house, Sydney?" Based on Anna's surprise, this was not part of their plan of attack.

"I am not sure, but I do feel them. It has been that way for a while. I am not sure if it is this house or not."

"The spirits of Nature gather in your house, yet you do not know why?" Charles pushes.

I smile "I do not interfere with Nature. I am older and wiser than that."

Anna laughs "Charles apparently is not." I laugh with her. She continues smoothly "I would be delighted if you would visit Aspen Creek."

I am surprised "I am being invited to the headquarters? How… interesting." I pause a few seconds for the drama of it. "I would be delighted, but it must wait a few months. I have just taken the reins of this pack and cannot chance dropping them so soon, even with so little upset over the change in Alphas."

Charles frowns. "The pack bonds sing strongly. You could easily leave now and not chance loosing the pack."

I nod in agreement "I wouldn't lose the pack, but the pack would lose cohesion. My second is still a young wolf, although very dominant, and I cannot drop a pack that has only run with their Alpha once on his shoulders, no matter the reason." By the time I finish, my eyes are meeting his is clear warning, with no challenge. But he takes the challenge as I glance over to Anna. As if I cued her, she calms her mate. Charles's wolf is probably about ready to eat me, so I should wrap this up soon. I can only keep the man off balance for so long before the wolf will snap. It is a delicate balance, but I have centuries of experience. After lunch they leave without a hint about my past.