Night Fall on Dark Mountain by Delilah Devlin Page A

“Just don’t try to be a hero. I knew what I was walking into when I came back.”
    Alec read acceptance in his brother’s flat gaze. “I’m no hero. I leave that role to you.” He tilted his head back, fighting to keep his composure. “He’ll be here soon.”
    “Guess this will be it. Maybe the last time we have to talk.”
    “Yeah.” Alec cleared his throat and met his gaze. “I wanted to tell you this for a long time. I’m sorry about what went down in Florida. I don’t know what I was thinking.”
    “You were thinking you wanted it over, and you wanted to come home.”
    Alec snorted. “I guess. I went about things ass-ways. Turning wolves. I thought I could control them.” He wished he could walk around the desk and fold his brother in his arms—but Max wouldn’t like that. He was stronger than that.
    “So, you made a mistake. I did too. I should have explained what was happening, what I was learning about the vampires.” The corner of his mouth lifted in a smile. “So what about you and Stasi? You gonna marry her?”
    “If she’ll have me.” And he meant it. Enough playing around—let someone else save the pack from extinction.
    “Way it seems to me, you shouldn’t ask her.”
    Alec gave him a startled glance and flushed at Max’s rueful grin. “Yeah, it’s probably not the best approach—to ask.” He grinned at the thought of just how he ought to approach popping the question. Handcuffs might do the trick.
    “I’ll give you a hint,” Max said his voice sliding into a low, teasing growl. “Buy her a collar. She’ll love you for it.”
    Alec didn’t like thinking about how well his big brother knew his future wife. “Did you ever…?”
    “No!” Max shook his head. “I never took to the time to figure out what rang her bell. I was a purely selfish bastard.”
    “Good. Don’t want her comparing.”
    A single dark brow lifted above Max’s twinkling eyes. “Think you’ll come up short?”
    Alec narrowed his own gaze. “Not a chance.”
    His office door was flung open, and Todd strode in. “Ready, Weir?” he asked, his lips curling in a snarl as he approached Max. “Hey, he’s not cuffed!”
    “You don’t need ’em,” Alec said, rising from his chair. “He asked for this meeting.”
    “Still, law’s the law.”
    Max shrugged and held up his hands. “Wouldn’t want you getting nervous on the drive.”
    Todd grabbed one arm and twisted it to bring it around behind Max’s back.
    Alec stepped forward to reprimand him for his unnecessary roughness, but Max shook his head as Todd finished. “I’ll be right behind you, Todd. No detours.”
    “Wouldn’t dream of it, boss,” Todd smirked. “The sooner this one gets to the town hall, the sooner he’ll be pushing up daisies.”
    Max’s jaw tightened, but he remained silent as the deputy led him out of the station house to his cruiser.
    Alec followed on their heels, the sick feeling in his belly growing stronger by the minute. He climbed into his cruiser and peeled out of the parking lot, determined not to let Todd and his brother out of his sight.
    Darkness was falling fast, and he flipped on his lights. When Todd’s cruiser left the hardtop to follow the gravel road, his jounced along behind it.
    Deeper into the forest he traveled, toward the old town hall—the original building the first settlers had built when Dark Mountain was chosen as the new home for the battered pack. Fresh off the boat, and determined to save their heritage and species, they’d sought refuge far from any human settlements, content to make their own insular community until progress had caught up with them.
    The newer town hall was reserved for show and political meetings—but the old log building was their true town center. Alec knew the rugged road to the hall like the back of his hand, so he was surprised when Todd veered sharply left ahead of him. He was following so close, he almost didn’t hit his brakes in time to miss the pickup