by K. N. Banet
I couldn’t give him the assurance he obviously needed. There was nothing I could say that would make the smell go away, nothing I could do to fix it. Not until we freed my family.
There was such a heavy scent of werewolves everywhere, I had to keep my eyes peeled for any signs of movement. Lights were on in many of the houses, but I saw no one inside them. It was late, and I hoped that was the only reason for the quietness of the village. Maybe people were relaxing on their couches, trying to watch television. Even as I thought about it, lights went out in a few of the houses, and I saw people moving inside. The sign of life made me relax a little, and some of the eerie nature of the village dissipated.
Heath stopped and pointed down a small walkway. Hisao and I were behind him, but I could see the guard standing at the corner of the pathway and a stone-paved road, with some sort of assault rifle.
“What is he using?”
“AK-47. They can be used with silver bullets,” Heath whispered low. “Let’s find another way.”
Hisao and I nodded as Heath turned onto another alley between the rows of houses. There were no streetlights, the only light coming from the occasional glow from the windows. Hisao and I kept as low as we could without dragging our bellies on the ground. Heath crouched to stay under the windows.
We moved slowly, but it was the safest option. Every time we had to turn, I grew more anxious about finding my family. Was there a jail in the village? Would they keep my family there at night, or was the picture just to scare me and Gwen?
Heath stopped dead in his tracks and lifted his head, then started moving again, motioning with his hand for us to hold still. He went through a small wooden gate and crept up to a doorway. We crouched, waiting as he went to a window and peeked inside. He was sniffing so intently, I could hear him, tracking whatever scent it was.
Finally, he went around the house, and I couldn’t hear him anymore. After a minute of not seeing him, I tried to move forward, but Hisao blocked me.
There was a thump inside, and the front door opened. Heath had a hand over a male werewolf’s mouth and moved him outside. He forced the wolf to kneel in front of Hisao and me.
“Do you speak English?” Though he was speaking quietly, the growl in Heath’s words were a threat.
The werewolf nodded, his eyes wide with fear.
Where are the humans?” he demanded. “You smell like humans, but I bet none live here, so you’re going to tell me where the humans are.”
“Heath, he might scream,” I said, knowing how badly this could go wrong.
“Will you?” my werewolf asked. “We’re not here to hurt the pack. We’re here to rescue the family of Jacqueline, daughter of Hasan. Do you know who Hasan is?”
The werewolf nodded quickly, hampered by Heath’s hand.
“Good. So, you know how bad it can go for your pack if those humans are hurt.”
Another nod.
“Will you scream when I remove my hand to let you speak?”
This time, the werewolf shook his head. Heath moved his hand, and the werewolf gasped for air. It wasn’t a particularly loud noise, but it felt too loud in the perpetual silence of the village.
“There’s a building near the main house where they keep prisoners. I’m just a guard, sir. Please, don’t hurt me.”
“I don’t plan to,” Heath promised, going down on a knee next to the wolf. “What would you do if I told you we’re rescuing her family, so we can expose the pack for what it’s doing? I can smell just as well as any werewolf. This isn’t a happy pack.”
“My cousin is kept in the female barracks,” he said, swallowing. “I wouldn’t care what you do or have planned for the high-ranking wolves. Just know most of us are good, and we try. We treat the smaller injuries and keep our heads down. We’re not strong enough to fight the old ones and their followers, but we do what we can.”
“Do you have the internet or…” Heath let his confusion show.
“No, we’re not allowed phones or any contact with the outside world, and no one is allowed to come here. We can watch what they put on the TV, listen to the music they provide, but that’s it. I had a phone…before I was Changed about five years ago. Me and my cousin, at the same time. The females are blackmailed with a family member, and the family members…we stay in line because causing trouble draws too much attention to the females.”
“I’m sorry,” Heath whispered, touching the werewolf’s shoulder.
“You’re an Alpha,” the werewolf said in a hushed, almost fearful way. “Will you be fighting Sergey?”
“No. I plan to get Callahan and Corissa involved. They’ll be able to help the most. They outrank Sergey far more than me.”
“I don’t know…” He looked down. “You and Sergey seem…similar. I could leave his pack and join yours, and he wouldn’t be able to take me back.”
“Heath?” I was confused now. First, his werewolf form was massive, and now some wolf was saying Heath and Sergey were similarly dominant? And could Alphas steal werewolves from each other?
“You must be mistaken. I am an Alpha, but I’m not that old, nor have I run a pack this large. Let’s stay on topic. We’re going to do what we can to fix things here, but first, we need to rescue the innocent humans being kept here. We can’t leave them. Some of them are much too vulnerable.”
“There’s a little girl in the group,” the guard whispered, his eyes going wide. “I’ll show you.” He nodded vigorously. “Yeah, I’ll show you, but you have to promise you’re going to do something to help us.”
“We will. We have all the evidence we need to help you, but we have to make sure Sergey can’t kill those humans when we take it to the Tribunal.”
The guard got to his feet with Heath’s help and started walking. We followed, Heath staying close to him. The guard was smart, leading us through the small alleys.
“There’s a curfew,” he explained. “It keeps us from running since we can’t be out of our homes at night. There’s only one patrol out there, and they only catch people trying to run. People still escape, but never for long. They’re either killed or brought back before they do anything.”
“Full moons must be hard,” Heath whispered in return.
“They are. The high-ranking wolves get to run. We’re kept indoors by the loyal ones who are looking to get ahead. Those are the males who treat the women wrong.”
“So, you’ve never run under a full moon. I’m so sorry,” Heath said kindly. “What’s your name, young man? I didn’t ask, and for that, again, I’m sorry.”
Damn, he’s so fucking attractive when he’s being a leader, a caregiver, and just…Heath. He thrives when he’s trying to meet the needs of others.
“Iosif,” he answered. The smile on the young werewolf’s face was bright. “Now, we must be quiet. We’re almost there.”
Heath nodded and let Iosif lead the way. We were only a block away from a large mansion in the center of the village, and Iosif pointed to a guard at the door to the small building we needed to get into.
“The cells are underneath,” he explained, gesturing down.
“Are there any guards inside?”
Iosif shook his head. “Just one outside. No need for many guards here.”
Heath nodded and started walking, holding up a fist to tell us to stay. He went straight up to the guard whose back was turned as he looked over a shadowy area, obviously bored with his job. It happened fast. Heath grabbed the guard from behind, got the door open, and pulled the man inside. Iosif followed next and went inside. I looked back at Hisao. Were we supposed to follow? He went, and I followed him, slinking low to the ground. Once we were inside, Iosif closed the door.
“That was fast,” I said, looking at Heath who held onto the wolf and ignored me.
“You have two options,” Heath growled at the struggling man. “Cooperate or die.”
The werewolf growled, and Heath made the call. With a sharp twist, the neck was broken. Heath lowered him slowly to the g
round and sighed.
“We can’t take chances,” he whispered. “Keys?”
Iosif grabbed them from the wall and tossed them to Heath. Then all four of us walked downstairs.
“Can you free Ivan?” the young werewolf asked.
“Who is Ivan?” Heath asked, frowning.
“Ah…He’s the beta who stabbed Alpha Vasiliev.”
“Was he Devora’s brother?”
“Ah, yes!” Iosif nodded a lot, in a quick, excited way. “Him! You know Devora? Is she okay?”
“She was murdered at the hospital by the high-ranking wolves who followed her and Ivan there,” Heath said softly. “I’m sorry.”
Iosif only sighed and leaned on the wall. “These are the cells. Please take Ivan. They’ve been beating him.”
Heath looked at me, not Hisao. He wanted to. I could see the desperation to take not only Ivan but also Iosif, an Alpha werewolf who had the need to protect a pack and weak wolves. As a beta, Ivan might have really hit a nerve as well. I knew something about betas really made werewolves want to help them…or rule them. I would need Heath to clarify it later.
“I’m okay with it. If you think we can take them both with us…We’ll already be pissing off the pack by taking my family.”
Hisao shook his head, though. I didn’t know his opinion or what repercussions he might be thinking about, but he obviously had something he wanted to say because he growled softly.
“Let’s get your family first,” Heath whispered. “Iosif, we’ll consider it. We don’t know what we can get away with here. Taking Jacky’s family back is within our rights, but we might lose our case with the Tribunal if we take any of you. But we’ll think about it.”
“That’s okay. Think but don’t take too long. I don’t know how they haven’t realized you’re here yet.”
“Could you lead us to a truck when we get everyone free? We might be able to give you two a head start to get away on your own.”
Iosif only nodded once, then Heath unlocked one of the rooms in the underground bunker-like prison.
When he pushed it open, he revealed my family. They were behind more bars, two layers of security keeping them contained in the werewolf prison.
I didn’t try to speak to them, letting Heath continue with his phenomenal leadership. He walked in, with me prowling behind him, and knelt as he unlocked the bars. Daniel was the only one awake when we opened the door, and he glared at us.
“Now there’s fucking monster cats? I don’t know what—”
“I’m Alpha Heath Everson from Texas. I’m here to help you. You’re Daniel Miller, right?”
Daniel’s glare shifted to a frown. “Yes, I am. Who sent you?”
“Gwen and Jacky,” Heath answered. I couldn’t see his face, but from the tension in his voice, I wondered if he had that tight smile.
I tried not to look at Daniel or the kids sleeping with their heads on his lap or my parents huddled together in the corner, holding each other. There was no missing Daniel’s expression, though.
“Is Gwen okay?” he asked. I didn’t take it as a personal insult he didn’t ask about me. Daniel was asking about the woman he had loved for years.
“She’s safe,” Heath promised. “Let’s wake everyone up and get moving. We can’t be here long. This isn’t freedom, this is an escape.”
Daniel nodded and began to gently shake the kids, whispering to them it was time to escape and that they needed to be quiet. When the bleary children moved, Daniel got out from underneath them and went to my parents, shaking their shoulders until they woke up.
“This is Heath Everson. He and…” Daniel looked at Hisao and me.
“Friends. They’re friends, not wild animals. We’ll need them if the wolves catch us, so please hurry.” Heath unlocked the gate in the bars and slowly opened it.
“Daniel, what if we can’t trust this man?” my father asked, glaring at Heath as he stood. He made no move to go through the gate, moving so my mother was behind him.
“Figure out something to tell them.”
Heath shot me a glance, asking me in one look, ‘Why don’t you talk to them?’ I didn’t make any effort. We didn’t want them freaking out that much.
“You’re Michael Duray, and your wife is Helene Duray. You’ve lived in Minnesota for fifteen years, moving there once your children went to college. Jacky and Gwen are actually Jacqueline and Guinevere, names neither of them particularly like using. You’ve been taken by the Russian werewolf pack. They control what used to be the Soviet Union and expand even further than that. I’m from Texas.” Heath stepped up to the door. “And we don’t have time for you not to trust me.”
The kids were just getting to their feet when my father nodded. Heath sighed in relief and turned to Iosif.
“I’ll get Ivan out of his cell. Can you go out and find us a truck?”
“Yes, Alpha.” Iosif jumped into the action.
“I want all of you to stay with…these two,” Heath pointed at Hisao and me as he spoke. “I need to free one more person.”
Heath was nearly out of the room when a gunshot rang out above the building and echoed down the staircase.
29
Chapter Twenty-Nine
“Go get Ivan,” I ordered Heath, my heart pounding. “We can try to save one of them.”
Iosif’s fate was sealed. That was the only explanation.
He walked out of the room with a sense of great urgency. He was back quickly with a beaten and starved werewolf, whose large, dark eyes seemed hollow.
“You’ve been a brave wolf,” Heath whispered to him. “I just need you to be brave for a little longer, okay?”
Ivan’s blank stare was heartbreaking, but I couldn’t imagine this werewolf had much hope anymore. His sister was dead. After surviving being beaten nearly to death, she was then murdered by her own pack. This man had taken revenge into his own hands, and it changed nothing for them.
Don’t worry. We’re going to fix this, Ivan. Devora is lost, but not all hope is.
“Let’s go,” Heath said softly. “Hisao, if it needs to happen, I want you to run and find a vehicle. Everyone, follow the black cat. He’ll get you out of here.”
Hisao growled, looking between Heath and me.
“I’m fine, brother. Sergey will know I’m in the group, but he doesn’t know who you are. We can’t let him learn that Hasan sent the Assassin on this mission.”
Hisao nodded and agreed, but the next growl told me he hated the idea of leaving me and Heath to meet the werewolves.
“Let’s go meet the werewolves,” Heath said softly.
“Do they talk to each other?” my mother, Helene, asked.
“They have a simple understanding of growls between them. They have human forms, but those wouldn’t be helpful for this mission. If we get out, you can ask them any questions you like,” Heath answered. “Let’s move, everyone. We can’t hide down here and get trapped.”
Heath went up first. Hisao and I followed as a wall of power between our enemies and the vulnerable prisoners. I looked back as he climbed up the stairs. Daniel was carrying his son, and my father was carrying his granddaughter. My mother reached out and took Ivan’s hand, pulling him along as she whispered to him.
“You can stay with us, young man. We won’t leave you behind,” she promised.
She had always had a gentle soul when it came to strangers. I was glad to see that one positive was shining in this dark place.
Heath went through the door first. I could smell the blood and knew the scent.
Iosif.
He had been a great help. My fury turned cold as I followed Heath outside and saw the young werewolf with a dark spot between his eyes.
I’m sorry. I’m so sorry. They’ll pay for that, Iosif. I promise they’ll pay for it.
I looked at the group assembled in the yard in front of the prison. Sergey stood in the middle, with werewolves behind him in a semicircle. I could only assume they were his inner circle, newl
y formed since he took power.
“When my patrol caught your scent, I decided not to raise the alarm and make my pack anxious at the idea of an intruder,” he explained, smiling coolly at us. His eyes lingered on Heath, then flicked a glance at me. There was a bit of a shock when he looked at Hisao, a massive, dark werecat, built for the kill. “I knew where you would go. I never thought you would convince one of my werewolves to betray me, but that’s easy to solve.” He nodded to someone behind him, who came forward and grabbed Iosif’s ankles, dragging the body out of the center of the group. “String him up as a warning, then tell everyone to leave their homes and come see what we do to traitors and intruders.” Three werewolves peeled away, and Sergey looked back at us, smiling.
“It didn’t need to be like this,” Heath said, standing strong at the front, Hisao and me flanking him. I bared my teeth in warning, just a show of strength and a willingness to fight.
“I’m a new Alpha. It has to be this way. I’m certain you understand. New Alphas cannot tolerate any test of their control or power. In the beginning, we need to rule with an iron fist, beginning our time as Alpha with strength, not weakness.”
“Have you smelled the air in your village? You didn’t need to beat or kill any of them. You just needed to start treating them better than Vasiliev did. Obviously, you want to maintain his legacy, instead of creating your own.”
“You American werewolves are so soft,” Sergey said softly, shaking his head. “You want to take care of them. They are supposed to serve you, to see your goal through—”
“Being an Alpha isn’t a one-way street, Sergey. You have to provide for their needs as well.”
“And I do. They have food and shelter.” Sergey shrugged. “If they’re so weak, they need a hug because we’ve hurt their feelings, they do not need to be in this pack.”
“Then let them leave instead of killing them,” Heath pressed. “And let us leave.”
“Why should I? By the looks of it, you’ve brought me not one but two werecats to keep. They can be good bargaining chips with Hasan, or they can die to my pack and further advance the projection of our strength. One day, we can take Callahan and Corissa down, and there won’t be anyone to stop the dominance of my pack.”
