Gina's Wolf (Daughters of the Wolf Clan Book 3)

by Maddy Barone

  Gina’s Wolf

  Daughters of the Wolf Clan 3

  Maddy Barone

  Copyright © 2020 by Maddy Barone.

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher, addressed “Attention: Permissions Coordinator,” at the address below.

  Maddy Barone

  PO Box 9995

  Fargo, ND 58106-9995

  www.MaddyBarone.com

  Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.

  Edited by Dayna Hart of Hart to Heart Edits

  Gina’s Wolf/ Maddy Barone. -- 1st ed.

  ISBN 978-0-0000000-0-0

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Epilogue

  Dedicated to my dear friends Gayle and Garrett Bitker and Robert and Becca Huck. Vivat!

  Chapter One

  The wind ruffling the wolf’s fur carried the sound of voices to him. They called words over and over in their human speech. Unease skittered over his spine at the sound, because maybe he should recognize those words. Perhaps he should recognize the voices too. But the voices were of humankind, and though confusion smeared many things together in his mind, the wolf knew that humans caused pain and carried death with them. So the wolf eluded the humans, as he had for the past several periods of light and dark, keeping out of their paths. He trotted away, careful to place his paws in ways that would keep them from sinking into snow or mud so the humans couldn’t track him.

  Humans were bad, but he couldn’t bear to leave them entirely. To the north and west there was a large concentration of humans inhabiting solid dens that shut them in completely. The wolf was sometimes drawn to them, but never went too close to the tall wall that surrounded them. To the east, over the river, was another concentration of humans, who lived in dens that they could take with them when they moved. There were fewer humans in the movable dens, but the wolf felt hatred for them that he didn’t feel for the ones behind the wall.

  The wolf did not have a den. He had made one, but the human hunters had found it and exclaimed excitedly to one another, saying that almost-familiar phrase over and over. Cold bee. Cold bee. After that, the wolf only found sheltered places to rest for a few hours.

  Cold bee. Any bee would be cold in this season, but none would be out now. He couldn’t see why the humans kept talking about cold bees. What did it signify? The wolf didn’t know. The man would know, but the man still slept, no matter how desperately the wolf tried to wake him. Maybe his head hurt even worse than the wolf’s did. It throbbed with fiery pain if the wolf moved too suddenly or for too long.

  He cautiously picked his way over the frozen river, ignoring the icy sting in his paws. In the dark, hidden by clumps of dead grass covered with fresh snow, the wolf settled down to watch the humans in the camp of movable dens. The humans here carried the dark sticks that made heads explode. The wolf knew that, and fear crawled through his ruff at the sight of them, but he couldn’t leave these humans for more than a day or two. There was something here, something important. The wolf knew that too, but he didn’t know what. The man would know. Why didn’t he wake?

  There had been a time when the wolf had never wanted his human to wake and push him into a small corner of his mind. The man had been only a pup then, and they had waged war to see which of them would be the Alpha and in control, and who would be submissive, a mere shadow in the mind of the other. The wolf had fought hard, but the human pup had won, forcing compliance to his will. At the pup’s command, the wolf was only a spirit inside the human’s body unless he decided to allow the wolf to come out and run on four paws. Then the pup was a spirit in the wolf’s mind, but even in spirit form the human pup was strong enough to banish the wolf back to a spirit. The wolf respected strength and learned to yield willingly since the pup was wise and strong. The pup grew into a man, and they had forged an alliance that suited them both.

  But now, when the wolf wanted him to take control, the man slept. A frustrated growl made the pain in his head flare. He should leave this place and go to where game hadn’t been hunted to almost nothing. He’d eaten only a few rabbits over the past week. Had it been a week? That was a human measurement of time, so the wolf wasn’t sure. He was sure he hadn’t eaten enough.

  He got up, intending to go right now. Further south it would be warmer and the rabbits would be plentiful. His head swung back to the human dens. There was something there. Something more important than even food. Twice, when the wind had been exactly right, he’d caught faint traces of a scent that put him in a frenzy. He didn’t know what it was. And the man wouldn’t come out.

  Even now, that scent drifted to his nose, drawing him out from the grass. He had taken several steps before he stopped himself and dropped back down. Wake up, you stupid man! he shouted internally.

  For the first time, a sluggish response came. Jee-nah. Then the man was gone again.

  Jee-nah. What was Jee-nah? Was that the reason he stayed? Why was Jee-nah so important?

  The word came to him so faintly he wasn’t sure if it came from the man or his own fragmented mind. It sent him, belly to the ground, toward the human dens. A sense of danger nagged at him, but the power of the word beat it back. The word sang in his blood and sent fiery elation through every nerve.

  Mate.

  ****

  “Miss Todd? Your father is asking for you.”

  Gina clenched her teeth. Her name wasn’t Todd and President Todd was not her father. By the apologetic look on Janelle’s face, she knew what Gina wanted to say. With great care, Gina pushed back from the rickety camp table and stood. The urge to kick her chair over and scream nearly overwhelmed her. But only one person in the Kansas-Missouri camp was allowed to throw fits, and it wasn’t her.

  “Thanks,” she said. “Where is he?”

  “In the command center.”

  Naturally. Gina brushed through the canvas door flap of her room in the harem tent and walked along the narrow corridor to the entrance. She took a wrap from the line and threw it around her shoulders. The sky was blue, and the sun shone brightly, but it was cold. She walked the twenty yards to the smaller tent her stepfather used for meetings. Two guards there gave her nods. One cleared his throat and angled his head so his voice would carry into the tent.

  “Miss Todd has arrived,” he announced.

  From inside the tent, a man said, “She may enter.”

  Oh, joy. Gina swallowed and stiffened her spine. Such formality didn’t bode well. It had been a week since she’d been returned to her stepfather, but she’d barely spoken to him. Was this when he would punish her for running away from Kansas City
last summer? Gina swallowed and stepped into the warmth of the command tent. The braziers sitting in each corner of the tent might thaw her toes, but they did nothing for her lungs, which had a bad tendency to freeze up when she was scared.

  Gerald Todd, the President of Kansas-Missouri, sat at the head of the command center’s table. At first glance, with his thinning brown hair and cherub’s face, he didn’t look like a power-hungry, absolute ruler. He wore his most cherubic smile now. Gina suppressed her shudder. She glanced at General Atwater sitting at his right hand, but the General was focused on some papers on the table in front of him. No help there. To President Todd’s left and a little behind him—the properly subservient position for a woman-- was her mother. Gina almost tripped on the canvas tarp covering the ground. Todd didn’t allow women to attend high level meetings. This was going to be bad.

  A movement to her right caught her eye. Major Ellis stood there, boyishly handsome in his perfectly fitted uniform. He wasn’t smiling. His cool eyes were fixed on the other side of the tent. Gina followed his gaze to Brother Saul Allersen, whose ascetic face held a self-righteous smirk. He’d worn that same expression every time she’d seen him, but it seemed just a little more self-righteous today. His anal son, Jon, wore his usual suit, his short brown hair meticulously groomed, and looked even more smug than usual. Tanner, his other son, had made some effort to tame his wild hair, but his denim trousers and flannel shirt looked as if he’d slept in them. His smirk matched his brother’s. Why was that disgusting trio here?

  Gina pulled her attention away from them and focused on the biggest threat in the room. Her mother’s husband still looked sweetly angelic as he stood to welcome her. She was supposed to be honored that the most powerful man in eight hundred square miles stood up for her. She tried to paste an expression of humble appreciation on her face.

  He stretched out his arms, making her intensely glad the table was between them to prevent an embrace. “Georgina, I am so glad to see you well and safely returned to the bosom of your family.” He gestured. “Major, a chair for my daughter.”

  Knowing better than to sit without permission, Gina merely nodded her thanks and stood beside the chair until President Todd beamed approvingly and invited her to sit.

  “You are a fine young woman.” He dimmed his smile to something gently aggrieved, folding his hands on the table before him. “But you have been very naughty to worry your mother and me the way you did by running off. You know we live in a dangerous world where not everyone is as protective of women as I am. And some people would take advantage of you and try to use you to hurt me.”

  That’s the real issue, Gina thought sourly behind her mild mask. Since he didn’t demand that she reply, she was happy to keep her mouth shut.

  “It was very foolish of you to risk yourself like that. Your mother has explained it to me. When you were told of the great plans I had for you, you were overwhelmed with maidenly shyness and ran.”

  Gina couldn’t help a quick glance at Major Ellis. Her stepfather noticed, of course.

  “Is your mother right, my dear?”

  Curse it, she had to answer a direct question. “Yes, sir.”

  “Well.” He tapped his fingertips together under his chin. “I have changed my mind. You will not marry Stanton Ellis.”

  A gasp of relief almost escaped her.

  “He is young and handsome and one of my most promising young officers. I had thought you two would be a good match, but I believe you have made it plain that you are too flighty to be his wife.”

  Thank you, thankyou, thankyouthankyou, she chanted silently.

  “I have made a new plan for your future, one that suits me very well. I have allies to whom I owe a great debt. How better to reward them for their loyalty than by marriage into my own family?”

  Dread crashed over her. Involuntarily, her gaze slid to the side, to Jon’s self-satisfied face.

  Her stepfather beamed again. “You are such a clever girl! You’ve already deduced the plans I’ve made for you. You will be the jewel of the Brotherhood Commune of Falls City as Mrs. Allersen.”

  Gina clenched the edges of her chair to keep from jumping up and screaming, but she couldn’t keep her mouth shut. She gazed with horrified eyes at the Allersens. Jon, so prissy, like he had a stick up his butt, round face smug. Tanner, always so sure he was right, and no woman was worth much. “Which one?” she blurted.

  Her stepfather’s smile turned sweetly vicious. “Why, all of them, of course.”

  An hour later, Gina dug her fingernails into the thin mattress on her cot. “I can’t marry him—them,” she said in a furious whisper to her mother. “I can’t.”

  “You can,” her mom countered. “And you must.”

  Gina scowled at the tarp floor. Of course her mother would take his side. The days when her mother tried to protect her had ended years ago. It probably wouldn’t change anything, but Gina had to try to convince her. “Do you know how the men in Falls City treat their women? You can’t really call them wives. A man takes a number and when his number comes up, he gets to sleep with one of the women. The women have no choice. Is that what you want for me?”

  “Of course not.” Her mom laid a hand on her forearm. “I wanted you to marry Stanton Ellis.”

  Gian recoiled. “He’s a monster.” All too aware that the walls, being only canvas, didn’t keep sound from carrying, she lowered her voice. “Do you know what he does to stray dogs and cats? Torturing them is his hobby.” She shuddered, memories of finding the results of his hobby making her stomach turn. “I couldn’t marry him.”

  “So you put everyone, including yourself, in danger by running away.” Her mother’s lips tightened. “I am very disappointed in you. The major wouldn’t have treated you badly. Your father wouldn’t allow it. He would see any abuse of you as an insult to him. If you had stayed instead of running away from home last summer, you would have been married to a young, handsome man high in your father’s favor and living close to me. Any friends you made in Omaha would be safe now. Instead, because your selfish willfulness forced your father to come looking for you, they will never live in peace again. That is on your head.”

  Gina kept her chin up even though it wanted to wobble. There had been a time when her mother had loved her. What had happened?

  Her mom stood up and went to the door flap. “Think about that, Georgina Anne. Your engagement supper will be served in one hour. Wear your nicest dress and don’t be late.”

  Gina fell face first into her pillow and waited for the rustle of the curtain over her door falling closed behind her mother before she allowed silent sobs to shake her. Her mother was right. Every person in the city of Omaha and the state of Nebraska was in danger because she had gone to Omaha when she ran away last summer. Why hadn’t she thought of that? Or maybe she had, she admitted painfully, but cared more for her own freedom than anybody else’s welfare. Running away from Kansas City had been the bravest thing she’d ever done. Only now did she wonder if it was also the stupidest.

  But President Todd would have come to Omaha eventually, she reminded herself. It was too prosperous a region for him to have ignored for long. She had only sped up the inevitable. She let out a long, trembling breath. She hated him with every fiber of her being.

  Nine years ago, when she was eleven years old, her father died. Less than a month later her mother had married Gerald Todd. Mr. Todd, as he’d been called then, already had a wife. Since there were far more men than women, women did sometimes marry more than one man. Gina couldn’t imagine that, but if everyone was happy, it wasn’t any her business. But she had never heard of a man with more than one wife.

  At first, she had been wary of her new father and his other wife. But First Mrs. Todd, as she was called to differentiate her from Gina’s mother, who was Second Mrs. Todd, couldn’t have children and doted on Gina. Gerald Todd was strict, but he treated Gina like his own child. He called her his little girl and bought her new dresses every month. Sh
e had been too young then to recognize the signs of megalomania. She smothered an unsteady laugh in the pillow. Heck, until a few years ago she hadn’t even known what megalomania was. Except for the two wives, they had been a normal family in Kansas City until she was fourteen.

  Gina carefully wiped her eyes. What had changed that? Maybe it was her mom’s string of unsuccessful pregnancies. Her stepfather had been affectionate toward Gina, but he made no secret of wanting children of his own. That’s why he had married Third Mrs. Todd, Fourth Mrs. Todd, and most recently, Fifth Mrs. Todd. Like her mother, those women had conceived, but their babies were either miscarried or stillborn. Fourth Mrs. Todd had discovered only a few weeks ago that she was pregnant again. The President sometimes traveled with a wife or two when on campaign, but the trip to Omaha had included all of his wives but the first. Fourth Mrs. Todd hadn’t known she was expecting until they were nearly to Omaha.

  President Todd was over the moon with delight, and terrified that this pregnancy would be yet another failure. That was why they were still camped here outside Omaha. Todd didn’t want to put his precious unborn son in any danger. Traveling in March was always tricky. The broken roads from the Time Before were mostly impassable, with trees growing out of them. A pregnant woman lumbering over the prairie in a badly sprung truck would naturally face some risk. The prospective father had ordered a thousand men from his army to build a road. They waited in this miserable camp until the way was clear enough for the trucks to drive them back to Kansas City.

  Then again, Todd was probably trying to provoke some response from Omaha that he could use as an excuse to attack them. So far he was keeping to the terms of the peace treaty Omaha had negotiated at the prisoner exchange, but that would last only as long as he wanted it to.

  Gina rolled over on her back and put her arm over her eyes. Yeah, her mom was right. Her selfishness would cause her newly made friends in Omaha lots of trouble. People like Lachlan and Ceara McRoberts. When she had escaped from Kansas City – through mostly good luck, considering that everyone in the city knew who she was and that she wasn’t allowed to leave – she had disguised herself as a boy and hopped on a riverboat going north. When she disembarked in Omaha, she was tired, hungry and scared. Ceara had found her and given her a job in the coffee shop she owned with her husband. They had given her an attic room in their house to live in, a place at their table, and a small wage. Those were all good things, she was grateful for them, but the most important thing they gave her was a new life. No one in Omaha knew who she was, so no one was frightened of her. No one hated her. No one tried to get close to her in order to curry favor with her stepfather. She hadn’t made any close friends, but for seven months she’d had a good life. Now, her future didn’t look nearly so good.