Marked Northern Shifters 1

turn human and talk to me. Please. But he didn’t beg. He didn’t beg.
Or he’d lose it.
Gabriel warned Claire one last time. “Out of here, girl. Alec and I need to speak privately.”
The very idea filled Alec with dread. Claire disappeared into the dark.
“Guess who was asking after you?” Something in Gabriel’s voice made Alec brace himself. Gabriel’s toe nudged Alec’s leg. “C’mon, guess.”
Alec pressed his lips together.
“Such a stoic. Well, it’s another werewolf.” Gabriel cuffed Alec’s head, Alec jerked away and Gabriel, rougher than usual—perhaps because he was annoyed by Claire’s antics—grabbed a fistful of hair and made Alec look up at him. “You don’t think you know another werewolf?”
Alec’s heart was doing a funny dance number, as if out of sync with the rest of him which did not want to move. The look on Gabriel’s face said he was out to inflict pain. He shook Alec’s head. “Answer.”
“Luke,” Alec suggested despite his vow not to talk. He just wanted Gabriel to let go of him.
“No. Try again.”
Alec swallowed. “I don’t know many werewolves.”
“You know this werewolf. Intimately.” Gabriel smiled with satisfaction.
“What the fuck are you talking about?”
Gabriel slammed his palm against Alec’s ear and his head rang while Gabriel grabbed a hunk of hair again and shook Alec. “Show me more respect or you’ll get worse than that.”
Alec shut up. He had to remember to just not speak.
“Who do you know in-tim-ate-ly?” Gabriel drew out the last word in a way that made Alec’s skin crawl. Gabriel couldn’t know about the golden boy, about sunshine, about Alec’s only source of comfort.
“Say the name,” Gabriel commanded.
Alec shuddered. Gabriel didn’t know. He clung to that thought.
“Liam,” said that awful, cold voice.
Alec jerked and the air turned thin. His hearing went funny, but he still registered Gabriel’s mild laugh.
“Not bad, though I expected a bigger reaction.” Gabriel finally let go of Alec’s head. “You didn’t think to hear his name from me, did you? You didn’t even know he was a wolf. But of course he wouldn’t share that information with you. Since you were his pet.”
Despite himself, Alec shook his head. Gabriel liked to play with him, torment him, that was all. It didn’t make Gabriel’s words true.
“Is that denial?” Gabriel’s pleasure unnerved Alec even further. “Don’t you remember some slightly odd behavior? I bet Liam breathed you in a little more often than the average guy. Us werewolves appreciate our sense of smell.”
Yes, Alec remembered. But no, Liam wouldn’t hurt him. It was impossible to grasp the meaning of Liam’s name, here and now, on Gabriel’s lips. Alec had thought to keep his time with Liam sacred, private, wholesome. Not something to be dragged up here with the horror that was Gabriel. Too often, Alec’s thoughts had returned to Liam these past few days. Their time in bed had become a safe place to visit in his mind when too much else led to panic.
Liam couldn’t be one of them . Could. Not. Be.
“There you go with your noisy breathing again. Not that I can’t smell the panic wafting off you.” Alec felt Gabriel looking down at him, but Alec didn’t look up. “You didn’t think we found you just by accident, did you? Liam sent us to find you after he’d had enough of you.”
No! The word echoed in his head. Liam couldn’t get enough of Alec. The sex had held some meaning. You couldn’t fake that kind of emotion. Alec didn’t think.
Liam had said he’d miss Alec.
If only the busy-week excuse hadn’t felt so thin. It hadn’t quite made sense that Liam just disappeared like that because of work. Alec feared he was going to puke.
Gabriel crouched down beside Alec, face close.
“Liam,” said Gabriel with deliberate slowness, “had enough of fucking you. He was sick of you. And gave you to us. Though maybe he’ll visit, for old times sake.”
Oh, it hurt, it hurt so badly. All Alec could think to do was not move—Gabriel got bored when he didn’t move and Gabriel would go away. Alec needed to bleed in private and not for someone’s entertainment. Gabriel spoke but Alec no longer heard. He didn’t know how long Gabriel stayed beside him—it could have been a minute, it could have been an hour—but finally Gabriel and his breath and his words were gone. Alec bent forward and hunched over, cradling himself, since no one else would.
It wasn’t fair.