by Kit Lane
“Thank God for that.”
I drove for several more miles before I spoke again. Dusk was falling fast and despite the fact we’d slept all day and eaten late, I was tired and hungry.
“Is it safe to stop here for the night, Lee?”
“No, they’re searching for us still.”
“We need to eat if we’re gonna drive through the night,” Kyle said. “Let’s find a diner or a drive-thru and pick up takeout.”
“I can share the driving,” Ronin said.
I was touched by his offer. “I’m okay, as long as we get food.”
As if by magic, the golden arches appeared out of the deepening gloom, and we ordered enough food to keep us going for a few hours. There was a startled pause when we placed our order.
“Can you say that again?” said the tinny voice.
I went through the order again. Each of the guys had ordered four burgers, enough fries to cause multiple heart attacks and a small vat of chocolate milkshakes. Plus my much smaller order.
“Okay.”
She sounded doubtful, and they wouldn’t hand over the order until we’d paid. I took advantage of the delay to use the facilities. Matt wasn’t happy about me leaving the car until I pointed out I was a woman and peeing wasn’t as easy for me. He promptly shut up and told me to hurry. I saluted him and got out, Ronin taking my place in the driver’s seat.
The restroom was empty, and after one squint at myself in the mirror, I took the opportunity to wash up. Without a comb and a tub of moisturizer I didn’t look much better, but it would have to do. I grimaced at the greasy feel of my hair. The next time we found a room, the shower was mine.
Matt was almost apoplectic when I returned to the car, Ronin having parked in the lot. “How long does it take to have a piss?” he barked.
“As long as it takes,” I said, taking over the driver’s seat once more.
He spluttered, but from the yelp that followed, someone must have elbowed him in the ribs.
I crammed the burger into my mouth, washing it down with a fruit smoothie. Then I resumed driving.
Ronin fed me as I drove. It started out as a practical thing, but by the time I’d finished, he’d turned it into something sensual, his fingertips brushing my lips as I took each morsel. I was glad the road was empty because Ronin was doing his level best to distract me as I took fries from him. The next time he offered one, I curled my tongue around his fingers. He hissed as I licked and I smiled. Two can play at that game, mister.
By the time I’d finished my dinner, and Ronin had settled back in his seat, I was a mess of need and want, and he radiated smug satisfaction. I wished the two of us were anywhere but driving across the country, because I’d show him what I could really do with my tongue.
“I can’t wait to find out.”
Damn. I had to get more skilled at shielding.
Ronin laughed at me inside my head as I blushed.
If the guys in the back realized what was going on, they were kind enough to keep quiet. At least one of them had fallen asleep, quiet rumbling snores reaching me. That was Matt. After a week of sleeping with them, I knew all their individual habits.
Matt must have been exhausted and in pain. I knew Kyle was forcing meds obtained from Aunt Ruth down him at regular intervals. I wondered how meds worked on wolves. Did they get them from the vets?
“You do know we have a human form too,” Ronin said.
Dammit! “Was I broadcasting my thoughts again?” I asked out loud.
“Some emotions like curiosity leak out unless you control them. It takes time for pups to control the leakage.”
Great, now I was a pup.
He snickered again. Leakage. I got it. I needed diapers for thought control.
The hiss behind me distracted me from my bitching. Ronin sat up and turned around. “What’s wrong, Lee?”
“We were spotted at the drive-thru.”
I immediately felt guilty. If I hadn’t stopped to use the facilities…
“A wolf must have been working there. They got suspicious about our order and alerted others. They’re coming after us.”
“Fuck, fuck!” Matt said, shaking the sleep from his voice. “I should have known it was too good to be true.”
“What do you want me to do?” I asked.
There was silence in the car. The hunt for us was back on and not one of us knew the hell what to do.
Chapter 40 - Lee
“Keep driving, Alex,” I said. “We’re miles ahead of them and it’s dark. We may outrun them.”
Matt made an approving noise and Alex said, “Okay.”
“We’re going to need to change vehicles soon,” Kyle said.
Matt nodded. “Lee, is there anywhere ahead that’s a non-wolf inhabited area?”
I tuned out the car and focused on the network. The area stretched out ahead of me like a collection of moving red dots. “Sorry, Matt. It’s full of them. There’s several packs in the area.”
“We could ask the local Fae for help,” Alex said, suddenly.
Oh hell, no. What on earth?
“Not all the Fae are like your Aunt Ruth,” Matt said. “Most of them view wolves as a nuisance, to be ignored and warned off their territory.”
“But wolves are tracking us to kill us. We need help from somewhere, and I’m half-Fae.”
“Who thought she was a human until just over a week ago,” I said, and I sensed the glare she was sending my way. “I’m not trying to be a dick, Alex. I just don’t see how contacting species who view us as the enemy will help.”
“She’s got a point,” Ronin said.
Of course he was going to agree with her, but Matt jumped in before I could voice the sarcastic reply burning on my lips.
“What other options do we have?”
Matt asked me directly, and I slumped back against the seat. He was right. She was right, dammit. We were in an area we didn’t know, being tracked by unknown wolves, and short of continuing to run, we had nowhere to go. Matt squeezed my shoulder as if he understood my conflict.
“How do we contact the Fae?” Matt asked.
I heard the exhaustion in his voice, and I realized he wasn’t just asking for our opinion, he genuinely needed our help. I thought for a moment. “I don’t think we should stop driving. If we do that, the wolves will catch us. If Alex was more experienced, I’d suggest she send out a plea for help. They ignored us before, but this is a different area, and now we know about Alex’s mother. We can use that information if necessary.”
.
Ronin grunted in approval. “I have some—one—Fae contact in this area. She’s a shaman like me. She’s not exactly friendly, but not hostile either. I can tell her about Alex, call on her to back us up.”
“You hope,” Kyle said.
“She’s shaman,” Ronin said firmly, as if that explained it all.
“Ronin, you contact her. Better to talk to someone we know. What’s her name?” I asked. Unlike the others, I had experience of talking to other species as part of being in the network. The Fae, however, kept themselves apart.
“Lily.”
“You contact Lily. If she wants to talk to Alex, I can boost Alex’s power.”
Ronin closed his eyes, and I felt the power extend from him. I was always in awe of a shaman’s ability to reach out to others. I had that power too, but his flowed like water rippling over rocks. Mine was more of a spider’s web. Beside us, Matt’s strength although somewhat depleted, Kyle’s sharp hunter focus, and the new power that was Alex, waited.
“I’ve made contact,” he said, and his voice was different, older, as if more than one voice was speaking. Which actually was true. When Ronin activated his power, he did so with the spirit of our ancestors. Not one wolf, but many shamans down the centuries.
Ronin’s shaman voices murmured in my head.
“What do you want, wolf?” The voice was sharp, unfriendly. Lily, presumably.
“Lily, I—my Cinco—are in
trouble.” Ronin’s tone was very respectful.
“We have heard.” It didn’t seem like she cared much.
“Then you know who is with me.”
“Rosa Lea’s daughter.”
Not Wulf Rieke’s daughter. Not the traitor’s daughter. The only thing that mattered was the Fae.
“Yes,” Ronin said. “And she will be killed if the wolves catch us.”
“What do you think I can do to help?”
Her tone made me bristle but Ronin kept on.
“We need somewhere to hide.”
“If we help you, we are hiding traitors. This could cause war between our species.”
“And if you don’t, you are condemning one of your own to death.” Ronin was sharp now, as if he was getting angry.
“Rosa made her choice when she left us for the wolf traitor.”
Alex made a choked sound from the front seat and the car jerked.
“Steady,” Matt said, reaching forward to touch her shoulder.
“You make sure she can hear me,” Alex said fiercely, although whether she was aiming it at Ronin or me I didn’t know.
“She’ll hear you,” I said, my voice grim.
“This is Alex Rieke, daughter of Wulf Rieke and Rosa Lea.” Her voice rang clear. I was having trouble moderating it just to us and the Fae. “I don’t know who you are, but you obviously knew my mother.”
“Brace yourselves,” Matt muttered.
“I knew her, half-wolf,” Lily said.
“I’m half-Fae too,” Alex shot back, “and I’m asking for sanctuary for me and my Cinco.”
“Why should I help you?”
“Because Fae help family, and all Fae are family. Even hybrids like me.”
“You know something of our ways,” the Fae said, her tone curt and grudging.
“Aunt Ruth told me. You know her, too.”
“I do.”
I felt the network tug at me and I checked to see a circle of red dots closing in on us. We had been found. “Time’s up, Fae. You either help us, or we’re dead meat.”
Tension increased inside the car, but finally the Fae sighed.
“I am Shaman. I have to help you.”
“What do we need to do?” Ronin asked.
“Take the next turning and head for the trees. We will meet you there.”
So will the wolves, I thought grimly, but I kept my fear to myself. This was our only chance to survive. I just hoped the Fae didn’t betray us.
Chapter 41 - Alex
My hands hurt from clutching the steering wheel so hard. I turned off the highway onto what was little more than a dirt track, and we bumped and bounced across the ruts and dips toward the treeline to the unknown.
Ronin had insisted Lily would help us. Although she was a Fae, she was also shaman, and to be trusted. None of the other wolves seemed to have that faith in her, but they trusted Ronin. It was touching how their faith in their brother wolf outweighed their survival instinct. Touching, and maybe foolish too.
I was trying to work out escape routes, but in the dark, and on unknown territory, options were limited. GPS was worse than useless now.
“Alex, I don’t want you to get out of the car when we meet the Fae. If we need to make a break for it, you’re the best driver we have,” Matt said.
Maybe he wasn’t as trusting as I thought.
“Lily is going to expect to meet Alex,” Ronin said, his tone sharper than usual.
“She can come to me,” I said. “Matt’s right. If we need to get out of here, I have to be behind the wheel.”
“We can’t antagonize her,” Ronin said.
I reached over in the dark and fumbled until I laid a hand on his knee. “We won’t. I won’t. But your safety is more important.”
He tangled his fingers in mine too briefly before I had to put both hands back on the wheel.
“Where do we have to go?” I asked as we approached the trees.
At that moment, the decision was made for me as the path vanished. I slowed to a stop, uneasy now.
“Matt, there are wolves watching us,” Kyle said.
“I know,” Matt said grimly. “At least ten.”
I couldn’t see them, not even their eyes gleaming in the darkness, but I could sense them. The more time I spent with these guys, the more my other senses were heightened.
“Stay in the vehicle!”
That was Lily.
I felt pressure in the base of my skull, like someone was pressing down, but I didn’t know where it was coming from. “Guys, I don’t like this,” I said.
“Close your eyes,” Ronin barked. “Everyone, close your eyes, cover them with your hands and put your heads down.”
I shut them, the pressure increasing to an unbearable level. There was a flash of bright, white light and yelping, almost screaming. Pain shot through my head.
Any sense of the wolves vanished. Gone. They might have not been there.
“Okay,” Ronin said, his voice shaking.
I opened my eyes and turned to him, seeing his wide-eyed horrified expression. “What just happened?”
“Do you really want to know?” he asked, holding my hand again.
From his tone, no, I really didn’t, but I had the feeling I ought to. “Tell me.”
“If the Fae feel threatened they can kill the enemy with a light so fierce nothing remains.”
“Jesus!” I was shaken. “They killed the wolves?”
Ronin nodded somberly. “They’re all gone.”
“To protect us?”
“To protect the Fae,” Lily corrected. “The wolves came onto our land to destroy. They were punished. You can get out now.”
I peered outside to see a pale form standing next to the vehicle. “Matt?”
“It’s okay.” Despite his words, I knew he was traumatized. They all were at the loss of their kin.
I slid out of the car to face her, keeping the door open, ready to jump back in and run. She was short like me, and her long, dark wavy hair gleamed with red strands in the headlights. Her lips twitched and she said, “You are safe from me, child.”
“I’m not your child,” I said, my tone icy. I wasn’t ready to let down my guard or make nice.
Lily gave a wry smile. “No, you’re not. You’re Rosa’s child.”
I became aware of the guys joining me, surrounding me, an unsubtle message to the Fae that I was not alone. Matt and Ronin were a strong presence at my back, Lee and Kyle flanking them. “Rosa and Wulf.”
“The traitor.”
I opened my mouth to argue hotly, but I shut it again. I didn’t know if my father was a traitor or if he was framed. The only thing I wanted to do was find him. “Thank you for saving us from the wolves.”
She shrugged. “More will come.”
That was the truth. More would come. I didn’t want them to die at the Fae’s hands. I didn’t want her responsible for that and I didn’t want their blood on my hands.
“What can we do?” I asked, licking my lips in a nervous gesture.
“You need food and rest,” she said. “Your alpha’s knees are about to crumple.”
I sensed rather than saw Matt’s glare, but she was right. He was shaking. Ronin had been standing as close as he could, ready to prop Matt up.
“Come.” She turned and walked into the trees, not waiting to see if we followed.
I turned to stare at the guys. “What do we do?”
Matt was still scowling, but he said, “We’ve got no choice. We won’t survive out there.” Then he glowered at Ronin. “No more healing. You need all the strength you can get while we’re here.”
I made sure Matt couldn’t see my smile threatening to break out. Ronin hadn’t been as subtle as he thought. I reached in and switched off the lights, grabbing the keys and my bag. “Come on then. Before we lose her.” Lily had almost vanished in the darkness, her pale white dress the only trace of her. “We stick together.”
“Together,” Matt echoed.
> To my surprise, he took my hand as we walked into the trees. His hand was large and warm, and it was nice. Despite his remaining frailty, Matt oozed power, and it was a source of strength. It made me feel better without even trying.
“It’s one of the gifts of an alpha,” Ronin said.
“Leakage?” I sighed.
“I don’t even know I’m doing it,” Matt murmured.
I’d meant shielding, but it amused me that Matt suffered from leakage too.
“As soon as we stop running for our lives, I’ll give you more training,” Lee promised, briefly squeezing my shoulder.
There was no time for further conversation. Lily had stopped in front of a large tree and appeared to be waiting.
“What are we waiting for?” I asked.
“The Queen,” Ronin said.
“Where?” I looked around, not comprehending.
“In front of us,” he said. “She is the ruler of the Fae. Lily has brought us to the queen.”
Chapter 42 - Ronin
I knew Alex didn’t understand when she gave me another blank look. I didn’t know how to explain. Humans were so limited in their comprehension of the real world. We were standing in front of one of the oldest beings on the planet. Pre-humans, pre-first wolf, pre-anything I knew of. The Queen had forced her way into existence during Earth’s first tentative years and reigned over the Fae with an iron fist encased in a velvet glove.
I felt the awe coming from the other wolves. We all knew of the Fae Queen, but none of us had met her. No wolf had before today, not even the Elders. The fact that we were standing before her was staggering. Why did she want to see us?
“Ronin…” Alex started, but Lily held up her hand and she trailed away.
Lily faced the tree and bowed deeply. “My Queen, the traitor wolves have entered our lands, as you requested.”
I glanced at Matt who narrowed his eyes and gave a curt nod. The wording hadn’t escaped him. The Queen had allowed us on her land for a reason. She had an agenda. Why did she want to talk to us? Traitor wolves. The thought made me feel sick.
Matt straightened his shoulders and I felt the Cinco shift until they surrounded him. Kyle almost vibrated in his heightened tension. Despite her confusion, Alex still flanked Matt, her wolf-like behavior making her part of the pack, even if she didn’t know it.
