Page 116 of Brutal Reign
“Respectfully, sir, it wouldn’t be the first time,” Seb snorts.
Oh fuck.
Dad leaps up from the sofa with a roar of rage, launching himself across the room in Seb’s direction. My inner wolf shoves forward with a surge of protectiveness as Seb springs to his feet, and when I jump in front of him, I’m not able to hold back the beast within. She plows through my mental barriers, my clothes shredding away from my body as she bursts through my skin with a feral growl.
My paws hit the ground and my wolf bares her teeth in a snarl, my dad skidding to a stop before she can take a bite out of him.
“River…” he breathes, holding up his hands and slinking back a step.
I’m not in control.I’m trapped somewhere in the back of my mind, watching all of this unfold while powerless to stop it.
“Theo, I need you,” my mom whines, her hands trembling in her lap and her eyes glowing silver as she fights to keep her own wolf at bay.
My muscles coil tightly, ready to pounce.He threatened my mate.
“Riv, shift back!” Seb snaps, the powerful tone behind his voice giving my wolf momentary pause.
“Alpha command doesn’t work,” Dad growls as he rushes over to my mom, pulling her up from the couch and wrapping his arms around her.
Ace approaches my wolf cautiously, reaching down to sink his fingers into my fur. “Babygirl…” he coos, and somethingabout his voice and touch penetrates my wolf’s mental barriers, almost enough to allow me back in...
Seb circles around in front of me, crouching down and reaching out to stroke my neck. “River, we need you to shift back,” he says firmly, holding eye contact with my wild wolf.
She whines as I claw my way back through my own mind, yanking on the tethers of my mate bonds to pull myself out of the abyss. The moment I have a solid foothold, I kick my wolf to the curb, the air shimmering around my body as I shove her back to the recesses of my consciousness and retake my human form.
My chest heaves with the effort of forcing my shift, leaving me panting on all fours when it’s finally complete. Seb immediately whips his shirt off over his head, helping me into it as Ace pulls me up to my feet.
As soon as I meet my dad’s eyes across the room, I burst into tears, Seb and Ace closing in on either side and wrapping me in their arms, whispering words of comfort in my ears.
“I’m sorry,” I choke, swiping the tears from my cheeks as I stare at my father’s shocked face. “I’m so sorry…”
“They pulled you back,” he mutters incredulously, his wide-eyed gaze swinging between Seb and Ace.
My head bobs up and down with a nod, tears still streaming down my face and obscuring my vision.
Mom rushes over, stealing me from Seb and Ace’s arms and pulling me into her own. “It’s okay, sweetie,” she whispers, squeezing me tight and pressing a kiss to my hair. “It’s okay…”
Dad looks over at Seb and Ace, raking a hand through his hair and shaking his head. “Sit down, boys. We have a lot to talk about.”
38
“Hey,” Seb barks out, rudely kicking the toe of his sneaker against the metal frame of our bunkbed to rouse me. “Are you getting up or what, bro? Training starts in ten minutes.”
I roll over with a groan, shifting the pillow off my face and squinting to adjust to the harsh overhead light flooding the barracks.
“You went out running last night, didn’t you?” Seb scoffs, folding his arms over his chest and arching a brow.
“Of course I did,” I grumble, my ab muscles straining as I haul myself upright, twisting to drop my feet to the floor and scrubbing my hands over my face sleepily.
“Y’know, some might call that stalking,” he remarks, a smirk curling his lips.
I shrug nonchalantly, pushing up to my feet and stretching my tired limbs. Considering how little sleep I’ve been getting lately, it probably wasn’t the best idea to sneak away from the squad complex last night to post up outside the Summervale packhouse. River opted to stay behind with her parents after the whole fiasco of telling her dad about our mate bonds, and withhow intense yesterday was, I just needed to be close to her. I don’t regret the sleepless hours I spent in the woods, but I’m definitely paying for it today.
Circling around to my cubby at the end of the bunk, I grab my toothbrush and a change of clothes, dragging my ass to the locker room to get ready. When I return ten minutes later, Seb’s still hanging around waiting for me, now joined by Eli and Beau.
“Figured you might need this,” Eli comments as I approach, thrusting a paper coffee cup in my direction.
“Thanks,” I sigh as I reach out to take it, immediately bringing it up to my lips. I take a small sip to test the temperature, then down the rest of the cup in two big gulps, hoping the caffeine will help pull me out of the fog I’m currently in.