Sweet Little Mate

8:Luke

Since discovering Lila is my mate, I have been following her around as discreetly as possible. Jake has been looking into her and her father in as much detail as possible. Donte has been speaking to people around town to try to dig up what he can. I return to the hotel, trying to control my temper. I am getting really irritated by Keith, Lila's father, because he seems to be guarding her, and I can't get close to her. I need to be near her more than I have ever needed anything.

I barge into the room. "Luke, I've got something on her." I have never been so happy to have Jake as my beta.

"What did you find?"

"She did have a birth certificate to enroll in school. Someone just went into their system and wiped it. I was able to pull it from the state records, though. Lila Anneli Parker is her full name. Her parents are Kieth Parker and Gemma Woods."

"Gemma. Her mother is Gemma. I need to call my father."

"Wait, dude, there's more." I brace myself for what else Jake found.

"She came here with her dad. Gemma wasn't with them. From what I found, Gemma and Keith met just outside our pack; Gemma and Keith traveled for a few months and then seemed to have settled in North Carolina. That's where Lila was born. Something must have happened, though, because after her birth, all traces of Gemma end. Keith and Lila stayed in Utah for a bit before finally moving here. Keith has embedded himself into the town. He may be a drunk, but people respect him."

I'm pacing the room. Finally, we have something on her. I pull out my phone, getting ready to call my dad, but Donte stands up. I'd been so focused on Jake that I hadn't even noticed him in the room.

"Before you call your dad, I've got more information. I've been talking to the locals." I'm not sure if I'm ready to hear more, but I sit down on the edge of the bed and wait for the blow I just know is coming.

"I met a guy named Mark. He was a bit strange, but he grew up with Lila. Says she is the sweetest girl he's ever met and that it's amazing her dad is Keith because he knows Keith. Mark said her dad often ends up at his house because he's friends with his parents. He'd heard them talking, and Keith had bragged about how he put down Lila's mom, and if she turned out to be as disgusting of a creature as her mother, he'd put her down too."

My wolf is furious. He's pushing against me, trying to take control; he's ready to rip Keith to pieces. I push him back. I need to stay in control. "What the actual f**k is wrong with him?" I feel completely ferrl right now. My wolf wants to protect Lila and I need to get her away from her father.

"There's more." Donte says flatly as I push my fingers rake through my hair sighing.

"Mark said Keith had talked about taking care of any wolves that have made their way here. Bragged about how you won't find one within a hundred miles."

With that, I pull out my phone and call my dad to fill him in. He tells me I need to get Lila out as soon as possible. He will break the news to my mom about Gemma. He says I just need to focus on getting Lila out and before her dad can find out what she is. I filled him in on what happened at the diner and tell him she's my mate.

I continue to follow her over the next couple days waiting for a chance to get close to her. I don't know how I'm going to get her to leave with me. I don't expect she'll want to run away with a guy she just met and his two friends, but if I need to take her, even if it's against her will, then I will if that means she's safe.

I'm waiting in the woods outside her house when I see her come out and start hiking into the woods. I give her some time so she can get further down the trail when I hear her dad pull into the drive he's supposed to be at work. He's on his cellphone talking to someone as he walks towards the back of the house.

"Yeah, she's out hiking."

"I just got to the house. I'm going to catch up with her."

"If she is with that wolf I won't need to wait till her eighteenth birthday to put her down, I'll do it today." he hangs up the phone, shoving it into his pocket, and he starts down the trail Lila had followed. I'm in wolf form, so it's easy to keep up and my wolf is quiet on the forest floor.

I decided to get ahead of Keith. I think it will be a better way for me to protect Lila. I follow he scent. I'm outside the cave she went into just minutes before I hear her screams and I know she's shifting. I don't know how its possible that she's shifting when she shouldn't be able to yet. I take a step towards the cave when I see a reddish brown wolf with the most luminous green eyes coming out of the cave. I'm hidden behind the trees and I just stay where I am. I watch as she moves towards the water taking in her reflection. She isn't there long as she's suddenly rushing back into the cave. Minutes later there is Keith outside the cave. I'm ready to jump in and protect my mate if I need to. Keith is in the cave, and I am at the entrance waiting to see what I need to do next when I hear Lila and her dad talking.

Lila and Keith come out of the cave and walk back towards the house. I follow them just to be sure that Lila will be safe for at least another night. Her dad leaves, heading back to work almost as soon as they arrive. Her dad warns her to stay away from me. I'm not the one she needs to fear though. Keith wouldn't be warning her though if he didn't already know what I am. I'm going to have to let Jake and Donte know we need to keep our guard up in this town. I don't know how many people know why we are here and if we need to worry about being hunted while we are here.

Once I knew Lila was safe for the night I went back to the hotel needing to get some sleep as I haven't been sleeping much. The guys and I have been figuring out how to get Lila out. We plan to take her the night of her birthday. We found out they were going camping. This means they will be in the woods, giving us the advantage with our enhanced senses. It will also mean no one will be around if we need to fight to keep Lila safe.

Lila didn't shift and as I started to relax knowing my mate was safe, I see Keith go up to her holding her face in his hand, and then he reaches for his gun and before the guys can stop me I am knocking Keith to the ground. I don't want to kill Lila's father in front of her and as I look up to check on her, Lila is gone.

Keith take advantage of the split second in which I had been looking for Lila to stab me in my back leg. My wold howls in pain. Keith must have dropped the gun when I knocked into him. He had a knife though and my wolf backed out of the way. Keith is fast and almost to his car. The guys went after Lila knowing she was my priority, and they don't want to see their alpha lose his mate, their luna.