Cry Wolf (Alpha and Omega, Book 1)

Cry Wolf (Alpha and Omega, Book 1)

#1 New York Times  bestselling author Patricia Briggs presents the first Alpha and Omega novel—the start of an extraordinary series set in Mercy Thompson’s world, but with rules of its own... Anna never knew werewolves existed until the night she survived a violent attack…and became one herself. After three years at the bottom of the pack, she’d learned to keep her head down and never, ever trust dominant males. But Anna is that rarest kind of werewolf: an Omega. And one of the most powerful werewolves in the country is about to recognize her value as a pack member—and as his mate. “Once in a while there comes a book that sweeps you off your feet, a book you fall in love with so completely that it is hard to do justice to that love in a review. Cry Wolf made me feel that way.”—Dear Author “Fans of the vampire series by Charlaine Harris and Mary Jane Davidson will also enjoy Briggs' fantasy adventures.”— Booklist More Praise for the Alpha and Omega Novels “A terrific saga.”—Midwest Book Review “Briggs has created such a detailed and well thought out world that I am helpless to resist.”—Fiction Vixen “[Briggs] spins tales of werewolves, coyote shifters and magic and, my, does she do it well...If you like action, violence, romance and, of course, werewolves, then I urge you to pick up this series.”—USATODAY.com “Interesting, fast-paced urban fantasy...[An] imaginative writer who always leaves fans anxiously waiting for the next tale.”—Monsters and Critics “Patricia Briggs is amazing…Her Alpha and Omega novels are fantastic.”—Fresh Fiction Patricia Briggs is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Mercy Thompson urban fantasy series and the Alpha and Omega novels. ONE Chicago: November ANNA Latham tried to disappear into the passenger seat. She hadn’t realized how much of her confidence had been tied to having Charles beside her. She’d only known him a day and a half, and he’d changed her world . . . at least while he was still next to her. Without him, all of her newly regained confidence had disappeared. Its mocking absence only pointed out what a coward she really was. As if she needed reminding. She glanced over at the man who was driving Charles’s rented SUV with casual ease through the light after-morning-rush-hour traffic on the slush-covered expressway as if he were a Chicago native instead of a visitor from the wilds of Montana. Charles’s father, Bran Cornick, looked for all the world like a college student, a computer geek or maybe an art major. Someone sensitive, gentle, and young—but she knew he was none of these things. He was the Marrok, the one all the Alphas answered to—and no one dominated an Alpha werewolf by being sensitive and gentle. He wasn’t young, either. She knew Charles was almost two hundred years old, and that would necessitate his father being older yet. She looked hard, out of the corners of her eyes, but except for something in the shape of his hands and eyes, she couldn’t see Charles in him at all. Charles looked pure Native American, as his mother had been, but still she thought she should have been able to see a little resemblance, something that would tell her that the Marrok was the kind of man his son was. Her head was willing to believe Bran Cornick would not harm her, that he was different from the other wolves she knew. But her body had been taught to fear the males of her species. The more dominant the werewolves were, the more likely they were to hurt her. And there was no more dominant wolf anywhere than Bran Cornick, no matter how harmless he might seem. “I won’t let anything happen to you,” he said without looking at her. She could smell her own fear—so of course he could smell it, too. “I know,” she managed to say, hating herself for allowing them to turn her into a coward. She hoped that he thought it was fear at the idea of facing the other wolves from her pack after she’d precipitated their Alpha’s death. She didn’t want him to know she was scared of him, too. Or even mostly. He smiled a little, but didn’t say anything more. All the parking places behind her four-story apartment building were filled with strange cars. There was a shiny gray truck towing a small, bright orange and white trailer with a giant manatee painted on the side just above lettering that let anyone within a block know that Florida was “The Manatee State.” Bran parked behind the trailer without worrying about blocking the alley. Well, she realized as they got out of the car, she wouldn’t have to worry about what her landlord thought anymore. She was going to Montana. Was Montana “The Werewolf State”? Four wolves in their human forms waited for them at the security door, including Boyd, the new Alpha. His shadowed eyes took in every bit of her. She dropped her gaze to the ground after that first glance and kept Bran between her and them. She was more afraid of them than the Marrok after all. How strange, because today there was none of the speculation, the avarice in t