Voss Read online

  Contents

  Introduction

  1. Voss

  2. Jillian

  3. Jillian

  4. Jillian

  5. Voss

  6. Jillian

  7. Voss

  Coven’s End

  About Lia Davis

  Also by Lia Davis

  About L.A. Boruff

  Also By L.A. Boruff

  Coven’s End: Voss

  © Copyright 2019 Lia Davis & L.A. Boruff

  Published by Davis Raynes Publishing

  PO Box 224

  Middleburg, FL 32050

  DavisRaynesPublishing.com

  Cover by Crimson Phoenix Creations

  Formatting by Glowing Moon Designs

  All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

  DavisRaynesPublishing.com

  I’m arguably the biggest, strongest Lycan in the pack.

  My father would have it no other way. He raised me to mate the Princess and become the High Alpha.

  He was wrong.

  The High Alpha is letting his daughter choose her own mate. He’s letting her choose love.

  My competition is fierce. The cocky Vampire prince and the Princess’s best friend and sentry both hold a piece of her heart. But too bad for them, so do I.

  They aren’t backing down.

  Then the Vamp suggests we share her. If we truly loved her like we say, why make her choose?

  I don’t know if I can do it. I didn’t intend it to happen, but I already love her.

  One thing is for sure. I’m not walking away from her.

  1

  Voss

  With the practiced skill of a pro, I unwrapped the tape from my hands as I slowed my breathing, bringing down my heart rate. Even after the cool-down exercises, my wolf pushed for control. The breathing helped calm the beast a little, but the wolf was always at the surface, restless. Years of training under a sadistic prick of a father had turned me into the strongest and most dangerous lycan in the U.S.

  Lifting my gaze, I met the stares of the pups around me as they finagled their own tape. The class was finished, the young wolves exhausted and hopefully a bit more skilled. "Be sure you get plenty of rest tonight. I heard some of you have exams tomorrow."

  A few groans echoed around the room, and I smiled. When I took on the post as Jillian's sentry, I’d considered giving up the class, but I enjoyed training the pack’s young.

  These were the kids that, if trained properly, would make the next leaders. They'd be the sentries, the pack alphas. They'd be looked up to, listened to, and respected. If left untrained, their alpha and beta energy would drive them to trouble, possibly turn them rogue. I'd seen it before. Lived it, actually. So it was my duty to teach them the correct way to train and hone their power.

  They had something I never had—a teacher who cared about them enough to let them discover their own potential.

  "Thanks, Voss," a pup called out as he left the room. He was my oldest student and would be graduating to the adult classes soon.

  "Have a good night, kids." I waved at the eight boys and two girls as they filed out the door, then made my way to my bedroom on the other side of the gym. I held the class in the basement of the High Alpha's house, much to the kids’ awe and delight. Graham didn't mind, either. He joined us on occasion, giving his advice to the kids. They really loved the High Alpha sharing his skills and advice on leadership with them.

  As soon as I entered my room, Quin walked in behind me. "How was class?"

  I glanced at him over my shoulder, then tugged my shirt over my head. "Good. We need to keep our eyes on the Fowler kid. He has a lot anger bottled up inside of him and won’t talk about it."

  Unresolved up anger wasn’t good for the wolf within. Unfortunately, I knew that all too well.

  Quin nodded, a little distracted. "Noted."

  "Jillian gone?" I turned and watched him, knowing good and well Jillian had left earlier. There was only one place she’d go without Quin or myself.

  Quin’s features darkened. "Yeah. She's at Kane's."

  He wasn't as okay with it as he said he was. I couldn’t blame him, he’d known Jillian all her life. Probably loved her just as long.

  If I was to be honest with myself, I wasn’t warming up to the idea either. Although I was pretty laid back about sharing her—much to my surprise—it rankled me that I'd be sharing my mate with a fucking vamp.

  "I convinced her to stay there with him until we come back for her in the morning, at least," Quin added, his tone a little less irritated.

  "He could bring her home."

  Quin laughed and sat in a ratty armchair in the corner of my room. "She won't risk her dad seeing her with him until she's figured out how to tell him."

  Yeah, that could be a problem. "I don't envy her that job."

  Graham doted on Jillian, gave her everything she'd ever wanted in life. But a vampire mate? That wouldn't go over well with the High Alpha of the lycans.

  That's the hand we'd been dealt. Me and Quin might’ve been having a hard time reconciling it, but we'd get there eventually. What else could we do? Fated mates were impossible to ignore. Apparently the Fates had a plan for the four of us.

  Then there was the fact that Kane had given up the vampire throne for her, unable to mate with anyone else besides Jillian. "Was Kane able to get any more leads on The Red Night?"

  Quin shook his head. "None new. It’s like since the attacks on the coven and the pack they ghosted."

  Damnit. I was afraid of that. I opened my mouth to suggest we go sniffing around the attack sites again when my phone rang from my desk. Recognizing the custom ringtone and dreading the coming conversation, I let out a growl. "It's my dad."

  Quin frowned and stood. "I'll go start dinner."

  I'd never told him every detail about my relationship with my dad, or about my childhood, but Quin knew the gist. My dad was a real dick, always had been. My feelings when it came to him were complicated. Part of me wanted to rip him apart for everything he put me through. The other part had an obligation to him for making me who I was.

  "Hey, Dad," I muttered unenthusiastically into the phone. "What's up?"

  "Have you bedded her yet?" he snarled.

  "Dad, I keep telling you, that's none of your business." I tightened my grip on the phone and gritted my teeth. Why the fuck did I answer the phone?

  All the asshole cared about was securing my seat as High Alpha. That meant claiming Jillian. I suppressed a growl. There was no need to piss off dear ol’ dad and have him come over.

  Fucking prick.

  "If you don't mate that bitch soon, you're going to have to challenge the High Asshole directly. It will be a cinch, but it's not been done in so long people might not take to you right away." He rustled around and I heard the jangling sound of his lighter, then he inhaled. "Just fuck the bitch and claim her."

  My wolf slammed against me, growling and wanting to tear him a new one for talking about Jillian the way he did. I worked my jaw a
nd kept the snarl out of my words. "Watch your tone, Dad."

  Closing my eyes, I inhaled deeply, calming myself while my free hand fisted at my side. "Look, I'm not challenging Graham to anything." I was going to have to tell him eventually, but the time was definitely not right. "Listen, I gotta go. You okay? You need anything?"

  Even after all he put me through, I still felt the urge to make sure he was well. After all, I was his only family.

  "I need my son to step up and be the leader he was meant to be. That weakling Grey is letting his daughter choose a mate for love. If she chooses someone weak, you'll be forced to challenge."

  She didn't choose someone weak. Two alphas and a vampire... not weak at all.

  "Dad, let me worry about whether or not I'll become High Alpha, okay?"

  There was a long pause before he said, "I missed my chance. I won't let you." His voice was low and deadly.

  "Okay, Dad. Okay. I'll talk to you later? Call me if you need anything." I hung up before he could argue any more.

  My dad had been on track to be a leader in the pack when he'd been grievously injured by a vampire. He'd been caught alone and unaware after spending some time in a bar. It was a stupid move on his part during a time of great tension with the vamps, and he'd paid dearly for it. The lycan healers had barely saved him. After that, his physical strength never fully returned.

  Over the years he became more and more angry. Eventually, my mom left, but he wouldn't let her take me. Looking back, I was surprised he let her leave at all.

  A few years later she died in a fire. I'd always wondered about the cause of the fire, but the human fire marshall had investigated and ruled it a wiring problem.

  Shaking off the thoughts, I stripped down and headed to the shower.

  Ten minutes later I joined Quin in the kitchen. The hot shower hadn’t soothed my anger toward my father. Leaning against the counter, I tried to focus on something positive. Jillian was usually what grounded me, but she wasn’t there. The thought of her in the arms of the vampire did nothing to calm my wolf.

  Without turning from the stove, Quin asked, "How's Emerson?"

  "Dad's dad." I hated getting bogged down in details of my father. He'd made my childhood a living hell, I refused to let him conquer my adulthood as well. Too bad I couldn't bring myself to kick him to the curb. However, I was damn close after the things he said about Jillian.

  "You can tell him to get lost, you know. That's not being disloyal." It was like Quin read my mind. Maybe he scented my current mood.

  "I know. He was hard, but he's my dad. I just can't bring myself to do it." I took over cooking the ground beef at the stove because I needed something to do.

  "He wasn't hard, man. He was cruel."

  I looked up at Quin in surprise, my chest tightening. I hadn't given him much detail, just that my dad was a bit of an asshole and had been hard on me as a kid. That was all I wanted others to know. "How do you know that?"

  He set down the spoon he was using to stir the lasagna cheeses together. We'd previously made a batch of sauce and frozen it, so we just had to throw the rest of the ingredients in the pan. "Man, you know how the pack talks. We all know."

  They'd known. They'd known how he treated me. "And nobody thought it would be a good idea to do anything?"

  Quin was ten years older than me, he remembered my childhood clearly. "Every time anyone tried to intervene, he explained everything away. Nobody could get anything concrete on him."

  That was true. He'd only hit me where the bruises could be hidden. Nobody saw the hours of drills, making me stronger and faster. Nobody saw the lessons on politics late into the night, after my regular school work, chores, and drills were finished.

  Cruelty wasn't always punishable. I was living proof of that. "Well, same old, same old," I muttered.

  "He still pushing you to mate with Jillian?" he asked.

  "Yeah, surprise, surprise. He's going to lose his mind when he finds out about our unusual arrangement." I was half looking forward to it, to see his face that she not only picked me, but two others. Maybe he'd wash his hands of his disappointment of a son and finally free me of the weight of being his only offspring. I doubted it, though.

  Once an asshole, always an asshole.

  "You're a good son," Quin said. "Stop feeling guilty."

  "I know, I know." I said as I drained the grease from the meat.

  We finished building the lasagna and stuck it in the oven as Graham Grey, the High Alpha of the entire lycan pack walked in the back door. His power flowed around him, charging the room with his presence.

  Graham was getting up there in years, but he was still able to take every wolf in the pack.

  A challenge hadn't been issued in six generations, but that didn't mean one couldn't be. My dad would've loved it if I'd issued one immediately.

  That wasn't going to happen.

  As it was, I'd be High Alpha of sorts when Graham either stepped down or died and Jillian stepped up. There was no need to challenge the alpha.

  My dad was right about one thing, though. I really wanted to bed Jillian, but not for reasons Dad wanted. She was my mate. My alpha wolf growled at me as I thought about it. He needed to claim her, had been howling for me to do it since we'd laid eyes on her. Since we'd realized she belonged to us.

  "Evening, boys." Graham advanced further into the kitchen, sniffing the air. "Where's my daughter?"

  Quin shot me a look, telling me to stay quiet. "Something about shopping and painting nails and movies. We left her at Angel’s after the shopping."

  He was detailed enough to satisfy the older man, but vague enough to not specify exactly where she was supposed to be. After all, Angel had been Jillian’s friend since they learned to walk and it helped that Angel’s dad was a enforcer. The later should satisfy any concern Graham had about Jillian being anywhere without us. Plus it wasn’t the first time she’d stayed overnight with Angel.

  I guessed Quin and Jillian had worked out the cover story before he'd left her with Kane. I just hoped they’d cleared the plan with Angel just in case Graham checked in on her.

  Moving forward with Jillian wouldn't be easy. Now that we'd all admitted our attractions and the undeniable mating urges, there was no reason we couldn't be together, no reason we couldn't claim her as ours. My wolf howled again, and I fought against him. The full moon was a good week away, and I didn't know how he'd react when he was let out, knowing she’d given us permission to be her mates, finally.

  It would probably be fun, whatever happened.

  True mates always claimed one another in their skin and in their fur. It was the way of the beast. As alphas, Quin and I had found a comfortable camaraderie as equals, and we'd found a way to be beta to Jillian, who would eventually become High Alpha.

  "Good. Is she checking in like she’s supposed to?" Graham eyed Quin.

  Locking gazes with Graham, Quin told the alpha what he wanted to hear. "Yes, because she knows I’ll go get her if she avoids my texts and calls."

  I glanced away, trying to keep a chuckle from escaping. Quin spoke the truth. The both of us would track her down if she cut off communication. It was our job.

  Graham nodded and sniffed the air again. "When's dinner? Smells good already."

  "Lasagna, and in an hour," Quin said.

  "Voss, you're quiet tonight." Graham clapped me on the back, causing my muscles to clench. I quickly relaxed the reflex, but Graham noticed. "You alright?"

  "His dad's been hassling him again," Quin said, and I shot him a narrowed-eye look. It wasn't his place to tell the High Alpha my problems.

  "I told you, I can take care of that problem for you. I can send him to another territory with one phone call." Graham crossed his arms and pressed his lips in a thin line.

  "Thanks, Graham, but that wouldn't solve anything. He'd just hassle me from farther away." And make my life even more hellish than was at the moment. He’d blame me for having him moved. It was easier to just deal with him. />
  Graham peeked into the oven. "Looks good. I'm going to go get some paperwork done. See you at dinner." He lumbered up the stairs, giving the impression of being slow and relaxed.

  I knew better. He was always alert and only seemed slow. He was High Alpha for a reason, not just because his father had been. I wasn't actually completely sure I would win if I did as my dad wished and challenged him.

  Good thing I had no plans of finding out.

  Graham joined us after Quin texted him to let him know the lasagna was ready. When he settled in his place at the head of the table, he asked, "What’s the news on the attacks?"

  "We haven’t had much to go on. We’ve actually been working with the vampires a little bit." Quin’s tone was steady and matter of fact.

  I glanced from Quin to Graham. The alpha froze, a forkful of food halfway to his mouth. "Oh?"

  "Yeah, you've heard of Kane?" I added. He nodded. "We heard through the rumor mill that his coven was attacked in the same way our pack was. Luckily we ran into him at the shifter bar downtown and were able to compare notes."

  "And? It seems likely the vampires are behind the attacks, even if the humans carried out the atrocities." Graham watched both of us closely. For a moment, I thought the old man knew we were holding back information.

  "His words smelled of truth. For a vampire, he seems honorable." I took a bite of my lasagna. Nice and normal and not at all nervous about spilling the news that Jillian had a vampire mate.

  Graham snorted. "There's no such thing as an honorable vampire." He took a bite then pointed his fork at each of us. "However, if you're confident they're not behind the attacks, I trust you boys. Just keep all your senses open. We may have a treaty with them, but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t try to break it."

  I finished off the last of my meal and set my fork down. "We've pinpointed a human militia that we believe to be the culprit. Plus, there was no vampire scents at the scene and Jillian didn’t sense any in the emotional threads left behind."