Reborn (Shadow Beast Shifters Book 3)

The wolf mixer was in full swing by the time I made it to my apartment, got dressed in the only half-decent outfit I had, and returned to the pack lands. Torin’s house was filled with alphas from many of the other packs, as well as a decent selection of single shifters who were all hoping to find a true mate tonight.

If only they knew.

Despite my reluctance in having anything to do with being alpha-mate, Torin had assigned me more than a few tasks in relation to this little soirée. Most of them involved liaising with other packs’ alpha-mates in regards to the guest list, décor, and food. I’d ignored every request to assist, of course, and I had no idea who’d stepped in to take up the slack. Probably Sisily. I sensed she was still fucking my mate—oh, sorry, taking care of his needs because his mate was neglecting him, and I really wasn’t mad about it.

As long as someone kept him busy, it didn’t have to be me.

My silver sequined dress swished around my boring silver heels as I descended the stairs into the ballroom. It was awash in soft lighting, with strands of fairy lights above and candles on the ground level. Everything was tastefully done, with gold and silver as the main theme.

Heavy gold curtains were pulled back on the multi-pane windows, showcasing spectacular views of the pack lands, along with an outdoor area for more of the packs to mingle in. We would literally have so many here tonight—the meeting of the decade—that not all of them would fit inside our massive ballroom.

“Mera,” Torin said, appearing at the bottom of the stairs, wearing a perfectly fitted black tux. He ran a hand through his dark hair, shaking his head as his awestruck gaze lifted to meet mine. “You look absolutely stunning.”

I forced a smile, glancing down at my outfit. The dress had been my mother’s; it had sat unused in her wardrobe after my dad had been killed, since she’d had no more balls or mixers to go to. It was modestly cut, with a skinny-strapped top that fell into a slinky silver length, trailing longer behind than at the front. Not really my style, but for this, it worked.

“Thank you,” I told him, wishing he would stop looking at me the way he was. Despite the connection I felt between us, his heated stare made my skin crawl.

“Are you ready?” he asked, holding his hand out to me.

I didn’t want to take it, but Jaxson’s words reverberated through my mind, and even worse, the beta himself was across the room watching me with the same laser focus as Torin. They both needed me to act the part tonight, present a strong, united front, and I was going to give it at least a thirty percent try.

“Touch me anywhere except my hand,” I muttered to Torin from beneath a fake smile, “and I will make you wish you could reject me again.”

He grimaced, swallowing hard, but didn’t argue as he took my hand into his much larger one. I forced my smile to remain in place, even as a vision of ripping my shoe off and stabbing him through the chest with the stiletto heel flickered briefly through my mind.

No doubt I needed anger management help, but if that was the case, there was only one pack to blame for that. They were finally reaping what they’d sowed.

When we stepped out onto the main floor, lots of faces turned our way, nodding respectfully, but it wasn’t crowded yet, allowing us to walk uninterrupted. Which, unfortunately, gave Torin time to talk to me.

“At what point are you going to let go of your virgin status?” he asked bluntly—and kind of rudely, since this wasn’t really the time or place for a damn sex talk.

But hey, I wasn’t shy, and if he wanted to hash it out tonight, then he was about to get some real talk. “I’ll never give my body to a shifter until I think they’re worthy of it,” I said just as bluntly as the alpha. He opened his mouth, and I cut him off. “That doesn’t mean I hold myself above anyone else, because I don’t. What it does mean is I have a hand and a vibrator, and if getting off was my sole aim, it’s more than covered. With sex… I want a bond and a connection. I want mutual fucking respect. I really don’t think that’s too much to ask.”

His head jerked as he took a quick, frantic look around in the worry other shifters had heard my words. Apparently, this was personal business he wanted kept secret, and yet he was the one who’d brought it up here.

Dickhead.

“You always have to fight everything,” Torin finally said when he was satisfied that no one had overheard. “Even when we were children, you could never just let it be. Always picking at issues. Digging deeper. Sticking your nose where it didn’t belong, which is clearly a family trait. It got your father into trouble, and I just don’t want to see you going down the same path. We’re mated. That’s not changing. I just need to feel a deeper connection with you.”

Translation: My “dick” needs a deeper connection with you. Eye fucking roll.

More important than his poor “neglected” penis was the mention of my father. Lockhart Callahan had destroyed my entire life when he’d attacked Alpha Victor, a crime he’d been executed for. But at least his punishment had been over immediately, unlike my mother’s and mine.

“Tell me what caused my father to attack Victor,” I said suddenly.

For years, I’d never questioned that day—I’d asked Jaxson and Torin one time when I’d been younger, and they’d deterred me from ever trying again by leaving me locked in a prison cell for two days. I’d nearly died from dehydration since I hadn’t had my wolf to call back then.

My hatred for the pair should come as no surprise to either of them.

Torin’s face paled. “You have to stop digging into the past, Mera. You just have to stop. I don’t even know what happened, and I’m pretty sure the only shifters who do are dead. Whatever bad blood was between Lockhart and my father, it died with them. Let’s leave it there.”

My lips tilted into my fakest smile yet. “Of course, dear. Whatever you say.”

Torin was just lucky I was too lazy to reach down for my heel. Because that brief thought I’d had earlier was about to turn into a premonition.

At this point, the bulk of the guests came in from the outside, so our conversation was cut short as we greeted them. The rest of the evening was one of non-stop socializing and talking pack bullshit. The amount of times I wished I’d smuggled a book in here with me so I could escape and read in a corner was about the same number of times I had to gush about Torin, acting like he was the next coming of the Shadow Beast because he’d “saved us” after the dark years we’d been punished.

I loved the way no one mentioned the fact that it was Victor who’d created the need to be punished in the first place. Apparently, only Callahans would be vilified for the sins of their father.

My mood lifted when five true mate bonds were discovered, one right in front of me between two females from Southern and Northern Californian packs. They’d been so close to each other all that time and hadn’t known. I loved that true mate bonds knew no sex or race; it was truly about who was the most perfect fit for your soul. At least I hoped it still was. Torin and I had to be the exception, right? At one time, I had truly believed in the magic of these bonds, and I couldn’t quite let go of that, not even today.

Halfway through the evening, I excused myself to use the bathroom, and once I was done, I didn’t bother to find Torin again, instead choosing to head outside for a moment in the fresh air.

When the cool breeze hit my face, a fraction of the tension crushing my spirit faded, and I briefly closed my eyes to appreciate the moment of serenity. I scented the shifter a second before I opened my eyes, only just managing not to run into him.

“Sorry!” I said in a rush, taking a step back from the tall man who was not from Torma.

He had dark skin and eyes and looked to be of Asian descent. He could be an alpha or beta from any number of the packs, though, and since I’d taken no time to really learn about the other leaders, I was going to have to try to figure it out by chatting with him.

“Apologies,” he said in a deep, pleasant voice. “I don’t speak English.”

I just stared at him. “You speak perfect English, actually,” I said, arching my eyebrows at this peculiar conversation. “I would have guessed you were a native speaker.”

His eyes widened, and there was a wariness in the depths as I felt his wolf shifting in his energy. I’d clearly said something to alarm him. “What game are you playing?” he finally bit out.

Now it was my turn to be on the defensive, but unlike him, my lethargic wolf was barely noticeable. “I’m playing no games, sir. Just merely commenting. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m in search of a moment alone.”

I turned and walked off, glancing back just one time to see him staring after me, his face creased in suspicion. Seriously, that had been some of the weirdest shit ever, but I already had too much to deal with to worry about it any longer.

“Mera!”

The shout stopped me before I made it into the trees, and I gritted my teeth, unable to keep up a fake smile any longer. Turning, I waited for Jaxson to interrupt me for the second time that day.

“Did I just see you talking to Alpha Dai?” he asked as he hurried up.

My eyes flicked around him to where the other man had been. “Alpha Dai?”

Jaxson nodded. “Yeah, he’s from the Tokyo pack, visiting America with some of his members. I just thought it odd because he doesn’t speak English, and I know you failed out of Japanese in school.”

My eyes narrowed on him as I sorted through my confusion. “He spoke perfect English. If this is a joke between the two of you, it’s a really fucking bad one.”

Jaxson didn’t smile or laugh, and I could have sworn he was as confused as I was. “No joke, Meers. He requires a translator whenever he comes to these things.”

He pulled out his phone and pressed a few buttons before the alpha dossier appeared on the screen. Scrolling through the many packs and various details about their members, he finally stopped at the International contingent. Sure enough, right there in black and white was Alpha Dai, requires full translator.

“Uh…” I mean, what was I supposed to say to that? “Maybe it wasn’t him. I mean, there’s no other reasonable explanation, right? Except if I secretly learned Japanese in the two months of memory loss time, all the while keeping it exceptionally well-hidden from everyone who knows me.”

I was being sarcastic, but Jaxson didn’t even crack a smile. Lifting his phone, he pressed a few buttons before I heard it start to ring. A familiar voice answered in a gruff “What?” on the other end.

“Something is up with Mera,” Jaxson told Torin. “Get outside and bring Alpha Dai with you.”

After he hung up, I resisted the urge to run before my moron of a mate showed up here. It was only the small part of me curious to see if this was all a misunderstanding or not that had me staying put.

Jaxson and I existed in an awkward silence while we waited, and even though he attempted to break it a few times with small talk, I ignored him, staring toward the pack house.

As soon as Torin and Alpha Dai walked out, I went to them.

“Are you okay?” Torin asked when we were close, a look of concern on his face. “I might just kill Jaxson if he keeps up with these vague cryptic messages about my mate.”

As he wrapped an arm around me and pulled me close, I tried to figure out why his touch was so abhorrent. Torin was giving me everything I’d ever wanted in this world, a true pack and family life… and it felt so damn wrong.

Leaning forward so that his arm would fall off me, I smiled at Alpha Dai. “Did you speak English to me before?”

The alpha tilted his head, and again he wore a super confused look. “You’re speaking Japanese,” he said, in what sounded like perfect English.

Switching gears, I faced Jaxson, whom, despite everything, I still tolerated better than Torin. “Did I speak Japanese?”

Jaxson nodded. “Yeah, sounded like it to me.”

“See,” I said, turning back, only to shake my head and side-eye my oldest friend. “Sorry, what? I spoke Japanese?”

I knew Japanese? Had I actually learned it during my two months of memory loss? As I pressed into that thought, the familiar sharp pain in my head jabbed harder than usual. “How is that possible?” I mumbled through the pain. “I did one semester in school! The extent of my Japanese is Konnichiwa and Ohayou gozaimasu!”

Alpha Dai blinked. “When you said that, you sounded like an American trying to butcher my language, but before, you spoke to me in perfect Japanese. Like it’s your natural language.”

“Nope.” I shook my head. “Nope. I cannot handle this, I’m sorry.”

Before anyone could say another word, I spun on the spot and took off into the trees, desperately craving an escape.

“Mera!” Torin bellowed after me, but I didn’t turn back.

The one advantage to tonight’s event was that Torin was required to be present and converse with all the alphas. Especially since he was so new to this role; it was more important than ever to establish us back in the pack hierarchies and foster new friendships.

Duty first. Which gave me exactly what I needed: time to escape.

Only someone did come after me, the crashing of bushes and trees loud behind me, as I tore through the forest.

I didn’t turn back, though.

If they wanted me, they would have to catch me.