Raging Kane: Book Three in the Wolfe Creek Series by C.M. Steele Page B

truck came up the road, but it wasn’t fast enough for me.
    “Uncle, why do I have to wait for Hunter? Why can’t you just answer me now?” I snarled.
    “Boy, patience. You’re going to need it. Trust me. I didn’t know that it could happen more than once in a century, but I guess I was wrong.”
    What could happen?
    My great-uncle, Creed Holt, stood up from his chair and looked out onto the porch as the truck pulled up. I continued pacing the floor as he walked down the steps to meet Hunter.
    They both came back into the house and Hunter looked at me strangely. “Hey, Kane. What’s up?”
    “Nothing much, Hunter. I was visiting when Creed said you were stopping by. I thought it was something that might need my attention since it was so unexpected,” I lied.
    I sat down on the single chair near the fireplace, needing to calm down before I shifted again.
    “It’s not really, but seeing as I need answers and you’re almost as old as me and also without a mate, you might want to be here.”
    “So what brings you to see me?” my uncle asked as he poured Hunter a cup of coffee. 
    Hunter turned to look at all the books Creed had on his shelves. There were books of all sorts everywhere. He didn’t look back at us before he took a deep breath and said, “I have questions about mates.”
    Creed gave me a wink. “My boy, you’re not the first to have to wait longer than others for a mate. Kane’s right behind you on that. Not to mention your great, great-grandfather waited until he was your age to meet his mate, and I’ll tell you boys a huge secret...,” he paused for effect. “She was a human.”
    I gasped deeply, in complete shock. I never knew it was possible. Did that mean this woman in my dreams was a human too?
    Hunter was just as confused and curious as me. “So how come I’m just learning about this? Shouldn’t we all know about it?” he asked my uncle in frustration.
    “A big reason for the silence is that he wanted it kept a secret, and they pretended she came from a different pack from the North. After that, we had the great fire that killed many of the elders and most of the historical records perished. Tales of her existence seemed to disappear from our history and it only became a legend. Those who knew the truth kept her history from the rest of the packs because there was too much tension between them. Besides, after their first litter, she became a shifter as well.”
    “So she wasn’t human after all,” Hunter whispered. He looked upset. I didn’t like where this was going. My great-uncle was beating around the bush about it.
    “No, she was human. Her parents and the descendants all down her line had been human. It’s one of the interesting things about human mates. They shift after they birth their first pups.” He paused and took a drink of his coffee. “Only an Alpha can possess a human mate. He is the strongest, and it takes the most powerful Alpha to consummate the bond.”
    “Why?” It was peculiar because humans were weaker than us. Why would they be our mates? Alphas are the strongest, most capable leaders of the packs.
    “Because until she had borne him his first pups, she possessed no special abilities. She was extremely vulnerable, and it took a strong mate that could handle an attack on her and their unborn. Before she changed, they had no idea that she would ever grow to have the ability,” he informed us.
    Fear started to course through me. My dream woman could be in danger just for being with me. Hunter was looking at me suspiciously, and I knew he could sense the tension that was rolling off me. My heart was racing and my need to shift was building. Thoughts of her hating me for not protecting her crossed my mind.
    Creed tapped Hunter’s shoulder as he examined me intently. “You look lost in thought. I knew one day you’d come for these answers.”
    “What do you mean?” he asked earnestly. I raised my brow at my great-uncle, too.
    He knowingly smiled,