Mating the Alpha by Ivy Sinclair Read Free Book Online Page B

history buff,” Billy said giving me a sidelong glance.
    “I wasn’t. Maren’s always been into that kind of stuff,” I said softly. “We’re going to have to split up and scope it out. We have no idea how many are in there with her.”
    “I’ll scope it out,” Billy said. “Give me five minutes.”
    “If what you say is true, they’re expecting a bear to show up.”
    “I’ve got some tricks up my sleeve. Trust me,” Billy said.
    I didn’t have any tricks up my sleeve at the moment but sitting still was the absolute last thing I wanted to do, and I said as much.
    “We need to know how many we’re dealing with and if they’re armed.”
    “I could smell the gunpowder a mile away,” I said flatly. “Of course, they’re armed.”
    “We’re two against at least two with guns. Likely there are more.”
    “We’re not just any two men,” I said grimly.
    Billy shook his head. “It’s too dangerous. We can’t just go rushing in there half-cocked without a plan. I know you know that.”
    “Well, then let me enlighten you. I do have a plan, and it involves using the town to our advantage.”
    “What do you mean?” Billy asked.
    “There are a series of tunnels around the town. There’s also one that leads out here. The old miners really didn’t like the long winters. They added another couple of tunnels that allowed them to go further out into the forest for hunting and trapping during the winter. We passed one a few yards back. That’s when I realized where we were.”
    “You have to assume they know about the tunnels,” Billy said.
    “Maybe they do, and maybe they don’t,” I said. “But I’m not sitting here waiting around for you to figure out a better plan, not while Maren is in there alone and helpless.”
    “I don’t think going into a tunnel with only one exit is the right approach,” Billy said. His tone told me exactly what he thought of my plan.
    “Fine, you putter around and think on it, and in the meantime, I’m going in to get my mate.” I turned around.
    “Lukas…the clan…”
    The rest of his sentence was blurred out when a woman’s scream ripped through the air. I didn’t wait for Billy’s reaction. As I surged forward, the bear took over. There was going to be a reckoning now. I would kill the man who had dared to touch a hair on Maren’s head.
     
     

CHAPTER SIX - Maren
    After hauling me out into what was once generously called the town square, I saw my destination and renewed my efforts to get free. I had no idea if I’d be able to get away if I did. I didn’t care at this point. I just wasn’t going down without a fight. That wasn’t how my father raised me, and if nothing else, hanging around with Lukas for the majority of my childhood taught me a thing or two. If the fight isn’t fair, then it’s okay to fight dirty.
    Years ago, I had done my research thoroughly on the little mining town of Black Falls Cove. The men who decided to play the iron ore game in the hopes of getting rich were a motley crew at best. In the wilds of Minnesota, the definition of the law often left much to be desired. They took care of business their own way when someone crossed the line. That included a rather strict policy around public whippings for offenses that ranged from stealing bread from the community mess hall all the way up to murder. And for a community as small as Black Falls Cove, there had been a surprising number of murders over the years. That’s what happens with a few hundred men are sequestered in the middle of a nowhere suffering through the long Minnesota winters together. Tempers flared, and often it ended badly.
    Despite the condition of the rest of the town, the whipping post remained wholly intact in the middle of the town square seemingly as a testament to that bloody history. And that was exactly where Joshua was taking me. I struggled against the men who held me, and Joshua chuckled as he walked behind us.
    “It isn’t going to do you any good