Logan.
My mate is a rogue. A fucking rogue.
The intensity in his stare could melt icebergs. Logan - the focused, intense and demanding brother - could barely contain a neutral expression at the wild thought bouncing back and forth in his skull.
She's a rogue - the woman he had been fantasizing about in secret. He had pictured her in many forms and shapes. A brunette, a blonde, a red head. But not as a rogue with eyes wild and fire-like, not with sleeve of tattoos and temper to match a grenade. That girl was gorgeous in the most ferocious way possible. And that girl was-
Gone.
A low growl thundered through his chest, raising up to his throat and spilling past his lips. For the first time since buying the car, he was regretting the decision. It had dug itself to half-tire deep in squishy mud.
"That firecracker got us here." Caleb commented, staring down at the useless vehicle in amazement.
Logan stood besides him, muscular arms crossed over his broad chest. He did not feel compelled to respond. They had much bigger problems in hand. In moments like these Caleb's devil-may-care attitude really served to piss him off.
This firecracker was his mate as well, but the two years younger brother didn't look nearly as bothered by her escape. "Call Maximillian. I want him on this case, stat."
Caleb turned his gaze upwards. "Aren't you at least a little impressed?"
"Caleb." Logan's tone held warning, which hardly affected the other brother. They were both Alphas, stubborn and with egos too inflated to react to orders calmly.
Still, Caleb dug up his phone from pocket of his champagne-stained pants and typed away with a growing frown. "She could't have gotten far." He murmured. "Not really how I pictured meeting my mate for the first time."
Logan silently agreed. He was miles away from romantic type, but even he hadn't anticipated what this tedious wedding would lead to.
Why would she run?
None of them voiced the question, but the similarly creased eyebrows suggested that both brothers were pondering the same.
"I don't mind a little chase, but she took it to another level." Caleb broke the silence. "Naughty girl."
Logan felt another growl building within his ribcage. "Get your head out of the gutter."
"Don't pretend that you didn't want to push her up against the nearest wall. I dig that badass character-"
Caleb's phone pinged with a new message from their Beta, saving him from an angry fist meeting his square jaw. A thick vein had popped on Logan's neck and his face had turned tomato red with rage.
Fate had played an odd card by giving the two the same female as a mate. It had happened before, although very rarely. The two brothers had always been competitive. Sharing a woman was outrageous. Just thinking about Caleb lusting over his mate, made him want to tear his brother to pieces.
She will have to choose. And she will chose me.
"Max will be here in ten." Caleb informed, disregarding the fearsome glare his brother was giving him.
Tension skyrocketed. Minutes ticked by slowly. Logan felt the muscles underneath his skin coil with pressing need to shift and track down the runaway mate. His wolf was growing impatient, but the rational part of his brain reminded him that the woods were packed with Hunters. This was a 'free land', those were patrolled by werewolf-hating individuals armed to teeth with silver, on a constant hunt for rogues.
Rogues like his mate.
Maximillian arrived just on time. Both brothers were a hair away from jumping the gun.
"What is going on-"
"Drive!" Max's question was cut short by sharp, sync bark of the two Alphas.
Logan sunk into the front seat while Caleb updated their Beta on the situation. Maximillian's usually aloof expression turned stone-like with words Luna and Rogue spoken in the same sentence. He was smart enough not to comment. He didn't have to with the evident shock on his face.
"GPS says these woods are circled by highway. She is ought to stumble upon it at some point." Max's tone was firm as he steered the car. "We will find her." He reassured.
That hardly did anything to ease Logan's tempter. "We better find her before Hunters do."
~~.~~
Mariana.
Her chest heaved with heavy breaths. Branches snapped underneath her boots, feet pounding into the ground with every hectic step. One arm clutched her side where a huge stain of blood was forming. It seeped through her slender fingers in ruby red trickles.
Mariana felt the strength draining from her body with the silver bullet lodged under her ribs.
Let me out. She could particularly hear her wolf growl.
Even if she wanted to, she couldn't shift. The silver ate away at her strength, sizzled against her skin. It spread like poison in her veins. Mariana's tan skin had turned ashen, and her usually sharp vision blurry.
Trees zinged past like a huge, foggy wall of greens, browns and greys. The woods thinned, threatening to lead her somewhere civilized where she would serve as a walking example of zombie and scare the shit out of children.
Who gives a-
The tumultuous group of Hunters was her only concern. They chased after her, struggling to keep up. Armed they might be, but they still were humans. Speed was her golden advantage, although diminishing.
A couple more bullets whizzed past her, their metallic bodies straying from the target. Hunters were falling behind. This particular bunch weren't the best shots, luckily. If she was dealing with an elite team, she would be roped-up, tortured and killed when they got bored. Even the strongest Alphas stood zero chances of escaping deadly clutches of the top Hunters. They were the black ops - single man equals army type of shit.
Short lived triumph coursed through her when their loud yelling got distant. Go! Go! She urged herself. Self motivation didn't quite help. Her legs were turning to jelly. Mariana didn't have to look in the mirror to know that she looked like a junkie on withdrawal, sweaty, pale and trembling.
Just a bit more! Just a bit-
Her legs collapsed. Knees buckling, she ungracefully pivoted towards the ground. In the haste, she hadn't noticed when the muddy soil had turned to hard asphalt.
Sprayed out like a starfish on the bitumen, she had landed a couple meters from a gas station. Two boys sat on the sidewalk, their eyes nearly bulging from the sockets. One even dropped his lemonade.
Yup, defiantly traumatizing children...
"Mom!" The two called in unison. The eldest of two rushed into the gas station, the other staying behind to ogle the bloody scene.
Mariana couldn't help a pained groan. The cheerleader in her was fussing about the lack of strength in her bones. She always pictured that side of her being a blond bitch that constantly screamed for her to get up. Sometimes that voice in her head was angering enough for that to work, just to get it to shut the hell up. But not this time.
All she managed was to roll onto her back not to look totally stupid when she died. Again, the dress props made her look rediculous enough, cool pose wouldn't save her dignity.
"My God!" A light haired woman exclaimed in horror. One of the boys was clinging to her arm, pure terror on his round face. "Patric, stay back!" She ordered, pushing the kid towards his brother.
Carefully, she approached. Mariana caught a whiff of the woman's scent. She was a werewolf. Dang it!
"Hang in there." The woman spoke softly in an almost motherly way. She knelt down besides Mariana's bleeding body, frowning. "Is it silver?"
"Y...Yes..." She could barely manage to squeeze out a single word. Not a good sign.
"Try to stay conscious. Speak if possible." The blonde instructed, tugging the jacket off of her slender shoulders and pressing the cloth against the bleeding wound.
Mariana had to clench her jaw not to howl in agony. The silver bullet seemed to press further into her, burning. She nearly lost consciousness.
"My name is Natalie. What is your name?" Natalie asked, pressing harder against the wound.
She did not respond, shooting this Natalie a suspicious look. It was then, her eyes fell on the large baby bump. Being saved by a pregnant woman. Great. Now I just have to wait for her mate to pop around the corner and grand me a quicker death.
"I am not trying to spy on you. I need you conscious." As if to sense her thoughts, Natalie scowled. "I am trying to save your life not kill you. Would I be ruining my favorite jacket if I wanted you dead?"
Solid point. Pregnant women are fucking scary.
"Mari...ana..." She drawled.
"Good." Natalie's expression relaxed into a gentle smile. "Patrick, pass me my phone."
The boy fumbled with the handbag, hurriedly handing the phone to his mother. "You need urgent help." She stated, pressing the device between her ear and shoulder. It beeped a couple of times before a deep male voice rumbled on the other end. "Max!" Natalie yelled into the phone. "You have to get to the gas station me and boys are at-" She paused. "No, it's not the baby. I found a wounded woman! She's been shot with silver, and is bleeding pretty badly."
There was some commotion on the other side of the line. Natalie cringed at the yelling happening in the background before hurriedly hanging up. "They will be here shortly."
They...There's more than one Max?
"They..." Mariana repeated out loud, dread sinking deep within her. Unfortunately she had come to the brink of her strength. Her eyes felt too heavy to keep open.
"Stay awake!" Natalie urged, her voice sounding miles away.
Her eyes closed just as a loud roar of engine thundered through the air. This was it...she would die in some random lot in pregnant woman's arms.
Perfect way to go.