Rated M for language, sexual themes, violence, and rape and torture. This story contains no explicit sex. All rape and torture content comes in the form of memories and dialog of past trauma.

*This story is written in Patricia Briggs' Alpha and Omega universe and is solely for entertainment purposes. I have the highest respect for Patricia Briggs and her writing and hope that this story compliments her work. I make no money from this work. Enjoy!

This story takes place after Hunting Ground.

CHAPTER 11

The girl listened carefully to the voice on the other end of that line. A person's voice said a lot about him. The Marrok – Bran – sounded… She wasn't exactly sure. There was a lot of authority in it, but she couldn't detect so much as a hint of malice or cruelty. She didn't think that he was just acting because he knew she would hear, though he obviously did know.

She heard in the Marrok's voice something that quite perfectly fit with the feeling of respect and appreciation she'd sensed from Nathan when he'd described him to her. This was not a man to be trifled with, but she didn't think that he was malicious either. She breathed a little easier when Nathan closed up his phone.

So far, she thought she'd made the right decision. She'd been comfortable enough living in the wilds, but it was hard on Lupa, and she was not a master to dictate when and if she was allowed to have what she wanted. Their deal had always been compromise and Lupa needed this chance the way the girl needed to avoid ever answering to a master again. They were both willing to kill for what they needed, and the girl very much feared – after that ranger named Bob – that Lupa would end up doing just that.

This opportunity seemed to be the best of both worlds. Of course, the girl knew from experience that good things seldom came to her, and never easily, but Lupa was convinced that they were not in great danger. The girl would not have had the courage to follow Nathan back to the Marrok, but Lupa had been adamant, and so here they were.

Despite the way the Marrok's voice had calmed her, the girl felt herself getting jittery again as they sped up on the highway. This felt too familiar to her. She'd been transported like this a few times before – though of course she hadn't been a giant wolf then – and it had always ended with her in the hands of a new master.

Friend. Lupa insisted, urging the girl to look at him. She did. He was looking at the road, so she was free to study him for the moment. Despite herself, she liked him. He was strong in a way that made her nervous – not physically, but mentally – but he was kind too. She could feel that from him as clearly as she could feel the raw truth behind his words when he told her that no one would hurt her. No one had ever made her a promise even half so sweet without lying through his teeth. She hadn't been as good at detecting lies before Lupa had joined her, but she'd been good enough. Now, there was no doubt – at least not for Lupa. Nathan was no threat to them.

Lupa's claim that he was a friend was a little harder to swallow. The girl didn't even fully understand what a friend was. The friends of her masters had not always been treated well, though they had often taken liberties with her.

Our friend. Lupa insisted again. Feel it. She encouraged.

Curiously, the girl followed the line Lupa had suggested, and then she did feel it. It felt like her she-wolf, but it was not. It was Nathan's wolf. It was curious that she could feel his wolf in a way that she could not feel him, but then their wolves were their mystical sides. She felt compassion, intrigue, and… attraction. Nathan's wolf would kill before he would let anyone hurt them.

Lupa settled down happily in response to those feelings, and the girl sensed that Lupa shared the other wolf's sentiment. The girl didn't understand how their wolves could share such feelings after only just meeting, but she couldn't deny them either. Nathan would protect them. She'd never had even the hope before that someone might protect her, and now she knew that there was at least one person in the world who would do anything to keep her safe.

She huffed a contented sigh and nuzzled her face into her paws to rest.

More to come...

I hope that you enjoyed and would welcome any reviews and/or suggestions.