Chapter 4 Good Service, Here's Your Tip!

• Caleb Brooks’ POV:
• “Bam!”
• “Oh, shit!” Chris rubbed his sore lower back where I’d just hit him, sprawled out on the ground like a mangy dog refusing to get up.
• “Again!” I clenched my fists and threw a hook at him, ready to attack.
• “Can’t take it! My Alpha, if you keep hitting me, we’re gonna be kissing the moon goddess goodbye!”
• I glanced around. Every top fighter in the Howlwood Clan was knocked out cold, groaning and unable to get back on their feet.
• “You useless trash!” Sweat soaked my hair, but it still wasn’t enough.
• I needed to blow off this extra energy inside me. This wild, restless power had been keeping me up for way too long.
• And it all started three months ago.
• I’m the Alpha of the Howlwood Clan. Three months back, I awakened a rare bloodline gift—Frenzy Bone.
• In the werewolf tribes, it’s hailed as a blessing from the moon goddess herself.
• This gift cranks up my bone strength, power, and speed by several times when I’m in battle mode. It even gives me some resistance to silver weapons.
• Sounds great, right? I figured once word got out, the Howlwood Clan would have total dominance in the wolf world.
• But with this gift came a nasty side effect.
• I got way more irritable and volatile. The extra power made my mind unstable as hell.
• That meant I was constantly hit with brutal headaches and sleepless nights.
• Especially on full moon nights—those were the worst.
• I pinned my hopes on a potion from Lunaris Laboratories, but their boss, “K,” was a real pain to deal with.
• Our people tried reaching out to him multiple times, but he flat-out refused to meet.
• “Caleb, this isn’t working. I say we go straight to Saintleaf Town ourselves. That’s K’s turf. I bet he’ll be moved by our sincerity,” Chris said, suddenly by my side, slapping a hand on my shoulder with a suggestion.
• Even though I’m the Alpha of Howlwood, Chris and I grew up together. We’re like brothers behind the scenes.
• “Maybe you’re right. I heard the Alpha of the Redrock Pack went there himself to get medicine for his son.”
• “Yeah, and from what we’ve heard, he actually got the potion K gave him.”
• I thought it over for a moment, then decided to take Chris’s advice and head to Saintleaf Town myself.
• If K cooperated, I wouldn’t mind giving him a little extra something in return. But if he played me, I had other ways to handle it!
• “`
• I told Chris I was going solo and set off alone.
• After two days poking around Saintleaf Town, I came up empty. This “K” guy was way more mysterious than I thought, running the place like clockwork.
• No leads made my mood tank fast. My already jittery mental energy was about to blow a fuse.
• Chris suggested I hit a bar to chill out. Said he had a surprise for me that might calm my raging mind.
• I was kinda curious at first, but then the dude drops this bomb: his “surprise” was a woman.
• I almost laughed in his face.
• Even the tough wolf girls in our tribe avoid me like the plague. What could some random woman possibly do?
• That killed my interest right there. I turned to leave, but a drunk woman suddenly blocked my way.
• I was about to shove her aside, but then I caught a glimpse of her face and hesitated for a second.
• I’d seen her before—she was the Lady Luck from the dance floor earlier.
• Gotta admit, the way she danced was damn mesmerizing.
• My curiosity sparked. When she nearly stumbled, I caught her by the waist.
• Right then, a soft floral scent mixed with a hint of herbs hit me.
• Maybe it was my imagination, but my wild mental energy seemed to calm down for a moment.
• Before I could think it through, the woman boldly kissed me.
• I was caught off guard. Remembering what Chris said about the “surprise,” and then hearing her say, “It’s you,” I got it.
• So this was Chris’s setup?
• Well… not bad at all.
• That night, I slept better than I had in three months.
• The next morning, I took a deep breath, feeling refreshed and calmer than ever.
• I turned my head and saw the woman still asleep beside me.
• Her blonde hair spilled over the pillow like a waterfall, one hand resting lightly on my waist.
• Thinking back to those pale blue eyes, teary and pleading with me last night, I sucked in a sharp breath.
• “What a little troublemaker.”
• But then I noticed the bruises all over her body and hesitated. I’d heard a woman’s first time can be pretty painful…
• I fought down the urge stirring below, gently moved her hand off me, and got up to take a cold shower.
• No sooner had I finished washing than my phone buzzed on the sink.
• I picked it up, and Chris’s teasing voice came through.
• “Hey! Brooks, my man, how’d you sleep last night?”
• “Didn’t scare her off, did you? You know, the women in our tribe usually run the other way when they see you! You better listen to me and smile more at people.”
• “Not bad,” I said, a rare smirk tugging at the corner of my mouth.
• “Haha, I knew you’d like the girl I set you up with!”
• I was about to reply when my eyes swept over the empty bed—and my heart skipped a beat.
• The woman… was gone?
• My gaze landed on the nightstand, where a check for a hundred grand and a note sat.
• I picked up the note. It read: “Good service. This is for you!”
• Chris was still yelling through the phone, “You should’ve listened to me earlier! So, did you have an unforgettable night or what?”
• I almost crushed the paper in my fist. “Unforgettable, alright!”
• “Uh, what’s wrong? You don’t sound too happy.”
• “Give me that woman’s contact info!”
• “Come on, man, I was just joking. She’s just a bar girl, nothing serious. Just have fun, don’t take it to heart!”
• “Cut the crap. Give it to me!”
• “Okay, okay, hold on!”
• A moment later, Chris’s voice came back, shocked: “Shit! That chick said she had a last-minute date last night and didn’t even show up! Dude, you actually slept with a woman last night?”
• I pressed my fingers to my forehead, listening to the disbelief on the other end.
• “Unbelievable.”
• My eyes flicked back to the note. I thought about the crazy connection we had last night, and the calm energy I felt inside this morning… I narrowed my eyes.
• “You little shit! Don’t let me find you!”
• “`