Mack 'n' Me: The Wolves of Alpha 9 by C.M. Simpson (top ebook reader txt) 📕

assassin’ and kept coming back.

Rohan’s voice rang death-knell final.

“Four.”

More figures were coming around the corner, and I felt Mack’s hand on my shoulder as we fired together.

“Rohan. As soon as they’re close enough get them out of here. You got me?”

“Three... Two...”

“Go!” Stepyan’s voice sounded angry, even as he gave the command.

I felt the air fizz behind me as the teleport took Delight’s group and the cubs out of the complex.

“We’re gone.”

“Tens,” Mack rumbled, and I took out another wolf as it charged toward us.

“We got you.”

“Get back to the ship.”

“Already there,” Rohan confirmed, and he didn’t sound happy.

“Good, now find me some stairs.”

“Back one and pivot right if you’re reversing. Left if you’re going forward.”

“Gotcha.”

Mack pivoted to face the way Delight had appeared from. He hooked a hand through my arm and I heard the bark of his blaster as I followed the tug of his hand. At least I knew he wasn’t going to leave me behind.

“Not a chance,” he murmured, shooting as he spoke. “I make sure I tidy up after myself.”

Nice, Mack.

He chuckled and dragged me right.

“Where to, Rohan?”

I turned my head in time to see a panel blow out of the wall ahead of him. “Where’s it go?”

“Onto the shuttle deck near the overlook.”

Man, I hoped that meant they’d sent someone to get us.

I remembered Case being half carried, half dragged, and wondered what the chances were. Mack yanked me through the panel, twisting around so I was running up a very steep and narrow set of stairs in front of him.

“What the everloving...”

“My armor’s thicker.”

Man had a point. Didn’t mean I liked it, but he was making sense.

“Nice to know I have your approval,” he snarked.

I refrained from pointing out that his head was thicker, too—and he slapped me on the ass! Man, if I hadn’t had to worry what was ahead of us, I might have shot him then and there.

He fired three rapid shots down the stairwell behind us.

“Run faster!”

I tried, relieved when Rohan opened up another panel ahead of me.

“Out and straight ahead,” the kid ordered.

I did as he suggested, resisting the urge to come to a screeching halt when I saw where we were: The Overlook...just as Rohan had promised.

The shuttle space was empty—and so was the sky, when I twisted around to look up at it. Twenty yards away another door slammed open and two very pissed wolves came out.

They looked wildly around.

“Fuck.”

My single comment on the whole situation brought their heads around, but Mack wound an arm around my waist urging me forward...across the shuttle deck toward the dining area set up on the edge of the gorge.

Oh, boy... I really hoped we weren’t...

Pushing that thought away, I focused on running. Together, we bounded across the shuttle platform and dropped into the balcony area just beyond it.

At least the drop gave us cover from the wolves emerging from the doors on the other side of the shuttle pad.

Mack and I hit the balcony and ran through the open space overlooking the gorge. Doors led into another dining area, currently vacant and strangely familiar.

For a fleeting moment, I had the feeling I’d been there before.

Mack caught that thought and snickered. “Don’t you remember?”

Crap! Well, now he mentioned it...

“You think Tens will pick us up anytime soon?” I asked, just as a solid thump and a triumphant howl announced the arrival of the first of our pursuers.

This wasn’t as bad as seeing the elevator doors on the other side of the inside restaurant open...or the fact we’d hit the end of the balcony and had to scramble over the railing so we could drop down to the shuttle pad snugged into the side of the cliff.

Mack danced back a couple of steps and I backed up with him. He snapped off a shot with his Blazer, but the weapon didn’t even spark.

“Completely out of charge,” he growled, stuffing it back into its holster. “Those wolves had better get here, soon.”

I figured he meant this world’s new Hunt Master and his pack, and not the Rennet’s World invaders currently boiling over the edge of the upper platform or through the restaurant.

We dropped down and started jogging across the shuttle pad toward the platform that ran along its lip. It gave us one hell of a view of the gorge.

“The Hunt Master will have control, soon.” Delight’s voice was an unwelcome distraction.

“Not soon enough,” Mack growled, grabbing my hand and starting to run.

I looked at him suspiciously.

“You taking me off another cliff?” I asked, and he laughed.

“Sweetheart, I’ll take you anywhere you want.”

And somehow, I didn’t think he was being politically correct.

My heart lifted, even as the edge of the ravine got closer.

“You on-line, Tens?” Mack called, but we weren’t waiting for an answer.

Those wolves caught us, and we were more than toast...and I, for one, had no desire to be the red raw filling on anyone’s sandwich.

“Aww. Where’s your sense of adventure?” Tens cut in, and I blushed red to the roots of my hair, because I didn’t think he was being anywhere near politically correct, either.

There was no time to answer, though. We were jumping.

If it hadn’t been for Mack’s strong grip on my hand, I might have panicked and let go—but he hung on, and then pulled me to him.

“Tens!”

We were still clinging together, when we hit the teleport mat.

“You can let me go, now,” I said, but Mack tightened his arms around me.

“Now, why would I do a damn fool thing like that?” he asked, and Tens groaned and rolled his eyes.

“You two need to get a room,” he said, and Mack and I looked at each other, before scrambling hastily to our feet, because Tens was right.

We sure as shit did.

Author’s Notes

Firstly, thank you for reading this far, and sharing the road with me as I write.

It’s been a long road to the end of Mack ‘n’ Me: The Wolves of Alpha 9, and a lot of things have happened alongside. I started this book in July