by Raand, L. L.
Grumbling, Misha took the meat and nearly swallowed it whole. Her wolf was so hungry she couldn’t think of anything else for a few minutes. With every bite Torren fed her, she felt stronger, and more certain than ever that Torren was hers.
“Better?” Torren asked when everything that had been delivered from the kitchen was gone.
“Much better.” Misha rested her cheek against Torren’s shoulder. “You smell like the breeze—so cool and so…alive.”
“You fill me with the lightness of the clouds.” Torren cupped her chin and kissed her. “Tired?”
“A little. If I shift, I’ll heal faster.”
“Then call your wolf. There will be no battle for you for a while.”
Misha wanted to protest, but Torren was right. She felt as wobbly as she had when she was first learning to shift and every transformation would leave her weak. When she took a deep breath, a dull pain radiated through her chest. She was not yet healed. “Will you stay?”
“Until you tell me otherwise.” Torren stretched out beside her.
“Rest with me, then.” Misha shuddered and a gray wolf with white patches on her chest and forelegs curled up against Torren’s side.
Torren ran her fingers through the thick soft pelt. Dark eyes watched her face with curiosity and trust. For an instant her hawk dropped from the sky and her Hound roused from its slumber and they welcomed the wolf. The wolf barked a sharp greeting, the hawk let out a shrill cry of acknowledgment, and the Hound rumbled deep in its great chest.
“Sleep,” Torren whispered, and the wolf closed its eyes. Torren loosed the hawk to hunt and the Hound to keep watch and, draping one arm around the wolf’s powerful shoulders, settled down to rest.
*
Francesca closed the doors of the armoire, hiding the monitor from sight. She’d seen what she needed to see, what she’d been expecting to see for weeks. She turned to Dru, who lounged on her sofa, her eyes faintly hazy from her recent sexual pleasures with Daniela. “Can you track her?”
“Of course.”
“I want her in a cell by daybreak.”
“She’ll fight.”
“She’s young and alone. You are the experienced fighter.” Francesca smiled and draped the arrogant cat in her thrall. As she expected, her faint challenge to the Were’s ego and the subtle blood kiss caught the cat’s interest.
“I’m not worried about a fight.” Dru smiled and ran her hand down the center of her chest. Her blood was still high from her recent coupling with Daniela and the chiseled muscles were still brushed with soft pelt. “If she resists, I can’t promise you she won’t be injured.”
“As long as she doesn’t die.”
“As you command.” Dru stretched, her nipples tight and tingling. Her clitoris was tender from the repeated releases, but her sex still throbbed with urgency and need. Her heat seemed to be never ending. She couldn’t remember any longer what mattered beyond her service to the Vampire Regent and the rewards for pleasing her. She would welcome a hard run and a successful hunt. She would welcome the taste of her victim’s blood in her mouth when she brought her down. And then when she returned—
“When you return,” Francesca said smoothly, “I will see that you are amply compensated, as always. As many times with as many partners of any nature as you desire.”
“And if I desire you?”
“Then you may find yourself with more pleasure than you can stand.”
Francesca was suddenly looming over Dru. Francesca kissed her, and Dru’s body reacted as if the Vampire had bitten her. She groaned and released her essence in a blinding explosion. When she caught her breath, she met Francesca’s laughing gaze. “I look forward to it.”
Francesca waved a hand toward her door. “Then go, and bring me the wolf.”
Chapter Twenty-two
“Roger said they spent half the day in pelt again,” Sylvan said as Drake returned their young to the collective sleeping pile.
“I know, Marta told me when I stopped by earlier.” Drake settled Kendra next to Kira on the blanket with the other young. The twins curled up together, arms and legs and fingers touching, and went back to sleep. She straightened and met Sylvan’s eyes. “Maybe this is because of me. Whatever made me heal the way I did has affected them too. Allowed their wolves to ascend sooner.”
Sylvan shrugged, her heart aching at the uncertainty and worry in Drake’s eyes. She held out her hand. “Whatever the cause, it’s natural for them. Don’t worry. They’re the healthiest young I’ve ever seen.”
“If you say so.”
“I do.” Sylvan tugged Drake into her arms. When Drake looped both arms around her waist and settled her head on her shoulder, Sylvan just held her, watching their young sleep peacefully. So simple, life at this moment. Her mate, her young, and the quiet safety of the Compound. The tranquility was marred by the knowledge she could lose it all with one misjudgment, one wrong decision, one failure in battle.
Drake kissed her bare chest. “You won’t fail.”
“Why are you always so sure?” Sylvan rubbed her chin against Drake’s cheek. Drake smelled of oak and autumn leaves and home.
“A million reasons. The first being that you’re wise and don’t make bad calls. Second, you were taught by a supreme Alpha to be masterful in a fight.”
“My mother was a very great warrior.” Sylvan chuckled, relaxing a little. “And my mate is very good at flattery.”
“So not true.” Drake nipped her neck. “But most importantly, you lead from the heart as well as the head. We all trust you.”
“That means everything to me.”
“Then trust your wolf, follow your heart, and know that we are all with you.”
Sylvan took her hand and led her from the nursery. When they reached the main hall, Niki was waiting.
“The warriors are assembled, Alpha,” Niki said formally, touching her fist sharply to her heart.
“Good. We’ll take the Rovers as far as the border. Then we’ll go in pelt.”
Niki’s brows rose almost imperceptibly. “Without arms?”
Sylvan’s wolf shone bright and clear from her eyes. “We will face Bernardo as wolves, and I will kill him as one.”
“Yes.” Niki’s smile curled into a snarl as she fell in beside Sylvan and Drake.
Outside in the Compound, twenty warriors waited in front of the idling Rovers: all of the centuri, Callan and his lieutenants, and a cadre of soldiers.
Drake’s grip on Sylvan’s hand tightened. “Fight well. Come home safely.”
“We will.”
Gray broke from the group of soldiers and loped over to them. She bowed her head as she stood before Sylvan. “Alpha, Katya is not here.”
“Where is she?”
“I don’t know. She left a few hours ago. She should be back by now.”
“We cannot wait.” Sylvan glanced at Drake, knowing Drake could feel what she felt. Katya, wherever she was, was disconnected from her Pack link. Only a few things could cause that, none of them good.
“We’ll find her,” Drake said. “Do what you must and leave this to me.”
“Be careful.” Sylvan kissed Drake again and leapt down from the porch. She raised an arm in a silent signal to her wolves, and they all piled into the Rovers. She climbed into the first vehicle and Niki took the wheel.
“We should reach the border at just about midnight,” Niki said.
“If Bernardo has any brains at all, he’ll have increased his perimeter guards,” Sylvan said. “Stop a mile before we reach his territory and secure the vehicles.”
Niki shifted into gear, and the Rovers filed out onto the single track into the dense forest. “I wouldn’t give Bernardo credit for much of anything, which makes him a dangerous enemy. Unpredictable.”
“Yes, and I’m still not sure why he perpetrated this lie. What does he gain by sending his wolves into my territory? He must know we will come after him.”
“It’s a trap of some kind.”
Sylvan couldn’t disagree. She stretched out her legs, dropping into the calm before the battle. There had not been a major war between neighboring wolves since her mother put down the uprising led by Bernardo’s predecessor. Perhaps every generation they would need to do this, or else expand their territories and put more distance between the Packs. Once, that might’ve worked, but now, unclaimed and undeveloped territory was growing scarcer. And with the world aware of their presence, she was even more pressed to protect her Pack land, not just from encroaching Weres, but from human agencies bent on regulating them. Bernardo’s Pack was smaller than hers, but his territory was almost as vast. If he was wise, he would spend his energy securing what he had, but Bernardo, like so many others, lusted for power. But he’d made a mistake when he’d sent his wolves into her territory, bent on destruction.
“Are you looking forward to this as much as I am?” Sylvan asked quietly.
Niki’s canines gleamed in the moonlight. “More.”
They traveled northeast swiftly and reached the borderlands well before midnight. Niki pulled the Rover into a secluded clearing abutting a steep rock face, and Callan parked the second vehicle behind her. The warriors disembarked and gathered a distance from Sylvan. She faced them, her strongest warriors, even though some were yet young and inexperienced, and her heart swelled with pride—along with something else she couldn’t show them. Their faith in her was humbling, but she would never say so. She ruled because she claimed the right to rule and held her place through strength and dominance, but in her heart she knew she ruled because they let her. They gave her their trust and their lives.
“This land is ours,” Sylvan said, her words carrying across the small clearing easily although she had not raised her voice. “We have fought for it, claimed it, and will hold it against all comers, now and forever. This is our destiny and our legacy. Bernardo has issued a challenge, and tonight, we will answer. Are you ready?”
Every voice rose with a resounding Yes, Alpha.
Sylvan’s wolf ascended, calling her warriors to pelt, and within a minute her wolves surrounded her. Turning, she raced into the forest, Niki at her right shoulder, the centuri on either side of them, and the soldiers fanning out to protect their rear. Minutes passed as they arrowed into Bernardo’s territory, and still they proceeded unchallenged. Where were the guards?
They passed a deserted outpost and then, miles farther inside the perimeter, another empty bunker. The scents left by the Blackpaw sentries were a day or two old. Why had Bernardo pulled back his border guards when he should have been reinforcing them?
Niki bumped Sylvan’s shoulder. Something is not right. Maybe they are waiting in force until we are too far inside their territory to retreat.
We’ll know soon.
If this was an ambush and they ran into all of Bernardo’s army with no clear line of retreat, Sylvan could be leading her wolves to their deaths. But she knew Bernardo. He was impatient, reckless, and overestimated his own strength. His ego clouded his judgment. If he was lying in wait for her out here in the wilds, he would have to face her, Alpha to Alpha. No. He would want to weaken her forces by making her fight her way to him. Then, even if she defeated his advance fighters, her ranks would be depleted by the time she reached him. He would not stop at sacrificing his own soldiers in the process, holding back his centuri and lieutenants until she was outnumbered and at a disadvantage. A coward’s fight, but pure Bernardo.
We’re only a few miles from his main camp. Instruct the soldiers to close ranks and expect attacks on their flanks.
Yes, Alpha.
Niki barked commands and the warriors moved into tight formation, a phalanx of muscle and might knifing through the night like a giant blade.
Drop back with the centuri.
You’ll be a target!
Sylvan snarled and snapped at Niki’s ruff. Do as I say.
Niki fell back a few paces, allowing Sylvan to outdistance her. The centuri closed in around Niki, and the soldiers drew in behind them. Sylvan raced on alone, a great silver beast leaping over fallen logs and rocks with the lethal grace of a speeding missile. She was Alpha, and she would bring the fight to Bernardo so all would know who to fear.
The red glow of campfires grew brighter through the trees. Sylvan sped toward Bernardo’s stronghold, her wolf howling a challenge. Two wolves launched themselves out of the dark on either side of her, jaws snapping and snarling. Sylvan slowed and swung her head from side to side, growling a warning. They were half her size and young. The black male on her left and the red female on her right shuddered as her power washed over them. Both dropped their gaze but held their ground, quivering with indecision. She signaled Niki, who guarded her rear.
Take the female.
Gladly.
Sylvan and her imperator both struck at the same time. In one powerful lunge, Sylvan dragged the male to the ground, her jaws clamped on his throat. Behind her, she heard Niki’s growl and a cry of pain as the female fell beneath Niki’s assault. The wolf beneath her instantly turned on his back and showed his belly. He whined and his cock discharged against her thigh, his submission complete. She held him down, her canines buried in the muscles of his throat, and she squeezed until he quivered. When she released him, he whined again and rubbed his muzzle beneath her chin, acknowledging her dominance.
Niki?
She submitted with no fight at all.
Sylvan growled at the young male, and he flattened to the ground.
Where is your Alpha?
Gone.
Sylvan signaled to Callan. Have your soldiers guard these two. They will not fight.
She shook herself and trotted over to Niki, who crouched over the cowering female. These are weak young dominants. Not soldiers.
I know. Niki’s lip curled in disgust. Where are his lieutenants?
Let’s find out.
Shoulder to shoulder, Sylvan and Niki advanced into Bernardo’s camp. A few wolves tried to challenge but submitted quickly as Sylvan and Niki overpowered them. Within minutes, her wolves had corralled all of Bernardo’s in the center of his camp. No one fought back.
Sylvan shed pelt as did her soldiers, and the Blackpaws followed, congregating in an uneasy group near the central fire pit. Rough log barracks ringed the half-acre clearing. No perimeter stockade. No guards. No protection. Sylvan seethed at Bernardo’s disregard for the safety of those entrusted to him. “Who is in charge here?”
A dark-haired male stumbled forward, his eyes downcast. “I am, Alpha.”
He reeked of fear. He was no soldier. The others with him were maternals and nondominants or weak, untrained dominants. No lieutenants, no centuri, and no Bernardo.
“How long has your Alpha been gone?”
“Two days, Alpha.”
“Where?”
He was silent.
Sylvan grasped his neck and dragged him close. “Where?”
He shook in her grasp. “Please don’t kill me. I don’t know.”
She released him. “What is your name?”
“Nathaniel.”
“What of the rest of the Pack? Where are they?”
“Those of us who live here are just…waiting. Many live off Pack land, and we have heard nothing from them.”
Sylvan glanced at Niki. Bernardo’s Pack was without a leader. Without someone to maintain order, even nondominant Weres would begin fighting among themselves, searching for someone to establish order. Niki’s eyes glowed green-gold, her wolf raging.
“Where are the young?” Sylvan asked.
His shoulders rose, and for an instant, Sylvan glimpsed a wolf of worth.
“We have none.”
“If you lie to me or mine,” Sylvan said softly, “I will tear your throat out. Where are they? Your borders are open and some of the Catamounts will not care who they kill. Your young need protection.”
“In a cave not far from here. We have only a few. There are only maternals with them, but they will fight.”
&nb
sp; “Good,” Sylvan said, “but they will not have to tonight.” She called to Jace. “Take a squad and secure the young and their caretakers. Make sure no one is injured.”
“Yes, Alpha.” Jace disappeared into the inky forest with her soldiers.
“Jonathan, Gray. Come here.”
The two jumped to her side.
“Stay here and organize these wolves. See that they are fed. No one leaves.” She fixed on Nathaniel. “You will see that everyone follows my warriors’ orders. Understood?”
Nathaniel swallowed and nodded briskly. “Yes, Alpha.”
“They will lead you on a hunt so your wolves will have food. If you disobey, they have my leave to kill you.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
Sylvan looked over Bernardo’s wolves clustered in the clearing. Some continued to cower, watching her timorously from beneath lowered lids. They expected her to hurt them. “As of this night, you are mine. I and my warriors will protect you with our lives. Do you give me your allegiance?”
“Yes, Alpha,” every new Timberwolf responded.
Sylvan turned to Callan. “Have your soldiers spread out between here and the border. That land is now ours. Secure it.”
Callan grinned. “Yes, Alpha.”
“Niki,” Sylvan said, wrapping an arm around Niki’s shoulders, “let’s go find Bernardo.”
*
After Katya left her, Michel headed upstairs to the club to avoid Francesca, who would instantly know she had fed, and fed deeply. As soon as she reached the club, she perceived something amiss. The club was overrun with Weres, dominant Weres who were not regulars, and more than she had seen congregated in one place in centuries. None of them were hosting. She didn’t sense hostility yet, but she alerted all the Vampire enforcers to report upstairs immediately.
Come join me, my darling.
Michel smiled wryly. So, the summons she had been expecting had finally come. Francesca had accepted her absence from her bed for far longer than Michel had anticipated. Now she had run out of time.
She quickly completed her circuit of the main floor and paused. She couldn’t be sure how long she could keep her shields in place if Francesca decided to roll her mind and rape her thoughts, and she needed to be sure Katya was beyond danger. When she reached out for her, all she came upon was a wall of darkness. She should have been able to reach a blood-bonded cohort over a far longer distance than Katya could have traveled by now. Dread, something she hadn’t experienced since her turning, churned within. Something was blocking their connection. Ruthlessly, she buried her apprehension. Francesca could not know.
