Addie (Pack of Misfits #1) - Raven Kennedy Page 0,29
own pack. Not until I left and Hugo took me in. It’s why I never tell any outsiders what my animal is.
I’m no longer embarrassed by what I am, but it’s ingrained in me to keep the secret of what I am so that I can keep myself and my animal safe. I’ve been careful to stay secluded with my packmates as my friends, while sleeping with only humans. This is the first time I’ve broken that rule and slept with outside shifters. It looks like I was right to be secretive.
The way Penn brought up severing our freshly forged bond makes my chest constrict, but I won’t cry in front of these assholes. I’ve been mocked and teased and tormented my entire life about being a duck. But ever since Hugo took me in, I refuse to take anymore bullshit. So if it’s driving them nuts that I called another guy, then I’ll let them stew with that, because the assholes deserve it.
I may not be a fierce predator or one of the four-legged shifters that are so revered in our culture, but I won’t let anyone make me feel bad about who I am anymore. I bet these guys wouldn’t be considering severing the mating if I were a stupid fox. It’s shifter prejudice, and I hate it. Besides, my duck is a savage thing when she wants to be. Way better than a stupid fox.
I ignore the two pissy males behind me as I continue to stand in the driveway near the street. At some point, Herrick comes out, because I hear him start to whisper-argue with the other two, but I don’t listen to them.
I focus on their quiet neighborhood and the thick copse of trees behind their house. It’s barely dawn, and the world is still quiet. Hugo makes it to me in record time, because in only a few more minutes of waiting, I hear his Jeep lumbering down the road long before I see him.
When he pulls up in front of us and opens his door to get out, I hear Penn hiss out a breath. “Who the hell is he? That’s not the human from last night.”
Hugo slams his door and stalks over. “I’m Hugo Hill. Alpha of Pack Aberrant,” he thunders, having heard Penn’s question. “Who the hell are you?”
All three of the guys gape. I don’t blame them. Hugo is bigger than them and you can feel the alpha power rolling off of him. He looks intimidating with the scruffy beard on his face and his beefy arms on display beneath his leather vest.
“Pack Aberrant?” Penn asks with shock.
“Yeah, you got a problem with that?” I challenge, crossing my arms. Coyote or not, I will go duck-shit crazy on his ass if he says one thing against my pack.
Hugo steps between the guys and me. He has his scary alpha face on as he looks them over. He snorts, unimpressed, and then turns around to give them his back. It’s kind of a dick move, because it lets them know that he doesn’t consider them as any kind of threat, even though there are three of them and one of him. But he’s an alpha, and he’s badass like that. Also, I’m pretty sure he could easily kick their asses.
“Hey, Alpha.”
“You okay, kid?” he asks, his voice softer as he looks me up and down. He notes my lack of shoes and my borrowed attire, and his scowl deepens. He sniffs the air and goes still, his eyes widening in surprise. “You’re in heat and you’re mated?”
I grimace and Hugo whirls back around on the guys. “What in hellhound’s ballsack is going on? Did you take advantage of her?”
The guys become visibly cowed. Even Herrick. Hugo may be older, but I have no doubt he could do some serious damage to them. I take pity on them and lightly touch Hugo’s arm. “I hit my heatwave last night. I pretty much jumped them in the parking lot,” I confess. “I didn’t mean to put out the mate-call, and they didn’t mean to answer it. It just happened.”
“They?” he repeats incredulously. “You mean you’re mated with all of them?”
“Umm...Yeah…”
“Are you telling me that you were out in public when your heatwave came on last night?” he asks, his expression turning stony.
I look down, giving myself away.
Hugo rubs a hand down his face. “Fuckin’ balls. You know the rules, Addie. You should’ve been sequestered away long before it hit, either with someone,