Wolf Queen (A New Dawn Novel Book 6)

by Rachel M Raithby

  Nico’s mother was hysterical as he pushed her into the back seat of the car, ordering her to stay down. Olivia jumped in without instruction as he slid into the driver side and started the engine, slamming his foot on the gas. Wincing as they careened through his mother’s garage doors, not waiting for the automatic lift to open fully, Nico sped away as bullets rained down on them, shattering through the car windows.

  “What the hell is going on? Who was that?” his mother screeched.

  Nico ignored his mother’s question and asked one of his own. “Where the hell did you learn that, Liv?”

  Olivia glanced at him. “I took self-defense classes in New York. First time I’ve actually needed to use it.”

  She sounded way too pleased at her achievements. Nico decided Olivia was spending too much time with Katalina. Next, she’d want to be in the line of battle.

  His phone chimed in his pocket. Keeping his eyes on the road, Nico reached into his pocket and gasped as pain shot through his shoulder.

  “What’s wrong?” Olivia asked.

  “Get my phone,” Nico instructed, not answering her question.

  Olivia leaned across, her hand slipping into his pocket to retrieve his phone. “It’s Bass,” she murmured, answering, “Hello.”

  “We’re under attack.” Bass’s voice crackled through the speaker.

  Nico laughed bitterly. “Thanks for the heads-up, pal. But we already know that. Assholes hit my mother’s house.”

  “Everyone all right?” Bass asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “Good. I need you to make a detour. Do you remember River Run’s twin boys?”

  “Yeah?” Nico took another turn, the wheels screeching as he went.

  “Anna says they’re in danger, along with their mother and father.”

  “Shit,” Nico muttered.

  “What?” Bass and Olivia said as one.

  “We’ve got a tail,” Nico explained, accelerating faster.

  “Jesus,” his mother muttered from the back. “Oh God. Jesus.”

  “Do you remember the address?” Bass asked.

  “Yes,” Nico answered, pleased he’s spent the time to learn the locations of all of River Run’s pack mates.

  “Then collect them and get the hell back home. In one piece, Nic.”

  “I’ll do my best,” Nico muttered as the line went dead.

  Nico took a sharp left, heading for the twin’s home. His shoulder protested with every turn, his teeth gritting together against the pain.

  “How bad is it?” Olivia asked, eyeing his shoulder.

  He met her gaze for a second. He should have known it was pointless trying to hide the fact he’d been injured. “Pretty certain a bullet clipped my shoulder.” The adrenaline coursing through his system was doing a good job at keeping the pain at bay, but that wouldn’t last forever.

  “What?” His mother gasped.

  “Chill, Mom. Not the first time, and it won’t be the last at this rate.”

  Olivia shifted in her seat, her touch gentle as she inspected his shoulder. “Through and through. But there’s a lot of blood.”

  “I’ll live,” he murmured as they careened onto the twin’s street.

  Indiana were there, two men on the boy’s front yard. Nico didn’t slow down. His foot pressed down on the accelerator as he bumped up the curb and rammed the car into Indiana’s men.

  The front door opened, and Amelia dashed out, her twin boys in her arms, her husband on her heels as he aimed his gun, firing at the attackers.

  “Mom, open the door,” Nico instructed.

  The second they were in, Nico slammed his foot on the gas, reversed, and took off again. He prayed to God they didn’t pass any police as he sped through Atlanta.

  “They’re following,” Amelia whispered, fear in her tone.

  “We’re nearly there,” Nico reassured her. “We’ve just got to reach the border; they’ll be waiting for us.”

  Sirens sounded in the distance as houses made way for trees. This is going to be one hell of a situation to talk ourselves out of.

  Wolves could be seen dashing through the trees on either side of them, and before they’d even made it to the pack border, Nico spotted two alpha wolves leap out into the road and land onto the pursuing car, the impact sending it flying into the air.

  “We made it,” Olivia murmured, looking out of her window.

  “Yea—” Nico blinked as his world tilted suddenly, the pain in this shoulder rushing back into focus. “Olivia,” he gasped as his vision faded. “Gr— th— whe… el.”

  His last coherent act was to hit the brakes, and then the world was nothing but black.

  Chapter 19

  Bass

  “NICO!”

  Olivia’s scream had Bass skidding to a halt, the car he and Jackson had just flipped less important than the life of his best friend.

  “Go!” Jackson yelled. Sirens sounded in the distance, growing ever closer. “I’ll deal with them and make sure these assholes don’t escape. Get our people to safety.”

  Turning away, Bass then raced for the car as it screeched violently to a stop, Jackson’s words echoing in his mind. Our people. Somewhere along the way, the lines had become so blurred both he and Jackson had come to see Dark Shadow and River Run as one.

  “He’s been shot,” Olivia gasped as he reached the car. “Left shoulder, through and through.”

  “He’ll be all right,” Bass said. “He’ll have passed out from blood loss.” Opening the driver door, Bass hoisted his friend out. “Open the back door.”

  Caroline was sobbing while Bass heaved his friend onto the seat next to her, Owen climbing out, and Amelia and her twins climbing into the back.

  “I’ll stay with Jackson,” Owen said as he pressed a hand against the back window over his mates. “Be good, boys.” The twins smiled, waving as their father ran off.

  “Can you drive, Liv?” Bass asked.

  She let out a breath. “Y-Yes.”

  “Good. Straight home. Do not stop for anything. I’ll follow on foot.”

  Waiting for her to take the wheel, Bass shifted, keeping to the edge of the trees as Olivia drove the car down the road, then pulled off onto the near-invisible track, which would lead them home.

  Wasting no time, Bass snatched a pair of jeans from a nearby stash and pulled them on, before coming to the car and lifting Nico out. “Stay close,” Bass instructed, setting off at a light run, Nico in his arms.

  John and Katalina met them at the inner border, John jumping into action and organizing everyone as Bass raced Nico to the newly built infirmary. Entering the building, Bass relayed what information he had to Oliver as he laid Nico down and placed a hand on his friend, momentarily feeding him his own energy through the alpha bond.

  “Livy?” Nico murmured, eyes fluttering open, unfocused.

  “She’s safe, Nic. I have her,” Bass replied. Gritting his teeth, Bass gave more of his power, his head swimming slightly.

  Nico’s gaze cleared. “Bass?” Nico broke Bass’s connection. “Stop it, you fool. We need you strong. No more.”

  Blinking against the pain that wasn’t his, Bass waited for the wave of dizziness to pass as Nico’s parents rushed into the room, Olivia behind them. They’d passed Daz on the way in and while Nico’s parents didn’t live together anymore, Caroline had fell into Daz’s open arms as if the years of separation between them meant nothing.

  “There’s too many people in here,” Oliver ordered. “Everyone out, except for Olivia.”

  Standing, Bass gazed down at his friend. “Rest up.”

  “Nico,” Caroline gasped.

  “I’m fine, Mom, go with Dad,” Nico murmured, attempting a smile. “Just a bullet hole, nothing major.”

  Bass smiled as Caroline argued with Dax, hitting his chest as she blamed him for her son growing up in a dangerous world. The truth was, it wasn’t funny at all, and Bass longed to give his people a home without death waiting around every corner.
He longed for peace, for happiness. For simply a little time to breathe.

  But longing for something wasn’t going to get him anywhere, and the wait had gone on long enough. Indiana had had their fun, coming at them again and again until they were nothing but caged animals, trapped for slaughter.

  If Castor wasn’t willing to face him head-on, Bass was left with only one option. He’d sneaked onto their lands before, and he’d do it again. Only this time, he’d be leaving with Castor’s head.

  Chapter 20

  Eva

  Sitting in a corner alone, Eva watched what could only be described as organized chaos exploded around her. Not long after the first howl had spurred everyone into action, another softer, more distant howl cut through the air. For a beat, everyone froze, even the children, who seemed far less affected than she’d expected, tilted their head as if to listen.

  Sitting straighter, Eva waited for someone to explain what the howl had meant, but after the initial pause, no one seemed to react, and the chaos renewed again.

  She felt useless and very much human surrounded by a foreign people she’d never belong too. Eva would be lying if there wasn’t a small part of her that wished to belong—to call this place home and fit into the world her brother had so easily adapted to. She thought of John and his fearless expression as he’d raced ahead, ready to defend his home. The way he’d shared a glance with Bass as if they both agreed he’d give his life to save Katalina’s. She was jealous of Katalina in away. She was important, needed, vital enough to have a line of warriors ready to lay down their lives in order for her to live. Yet Eva didn’t think Katalina needed a line of men to protect her. She was brave, confident, seemingly unafraid of death.

  “How are you holding up?” her father asked as he handed her a cup of tea and took a seat next to her.

  Eva sipped the drink as she mulled over his question, but it wasn’t her state of mind that was intriguing her but his. “How are you not freaking out about this? Zac’s out there ready to fight people who want to kill us. Kill us, Dad!”

  “I’ve already spoken to someone, Eva. He’s fine. All his friends are doing the same, and Logan’s with them.”

  “And that makes it all right? Logan nearly died not that long ago. Do you know that?” Eva could not get her head around his calm. He’d already lost a wife, and now his son was in mortal danger. They all were in danger.

  With a sigh, her father rubbed at his face, the anxiety showing through the obvious façade he’d been putting on. “What am I supposed to do, Ev, march out there and make a scene, demand Zac returns when you know he’ll refuse? Your brother wants to fit into this world so badly, Eva, and for him to do that, I need to let him go.”

  “Fitting in isn’t worth his life, Dad.”

  Twisting in his seat, her father studied her, and the pain and pressure of the last six months seemed to stretch and grow between them, stealing any spark of hope. “I’m doing the best I can, Evaline. Do you want to hear that my heart is hammering with fear? That I don’t sleep at night because I miss your mother so much and I wonder what she’ll think of the decisions I’ve made? Every day he walks out the door, I want to call him back and whisk him away. Whisk you both away, but where would we go? Back to a life that is so broken it hurts to breathe? Do we just pretend nothing has changed and hope like hell your brother doesn’t lose his temper at school and kill someone? Because I’ve seen teenagers argue here, Eva, and when they’ve finished, they walk away with blood dripping from claw marks and bruises over eyes, and yet they laugh and makeup like it’s nothing. To them, the wound which would put us in hospital heals in three days. So yes, Eva, I am freaking out. I’ve been freaking out since the moment your mother became sick, and I’ll probably keep freaking out until the day I die, but in the meantime, I’m trying to do what’s best for your brother. And maybe that’s not what’s best for you. Maybe you are the only one of us who can go back to the human world and live a normal life, but Zac can’t, and I can’t leave him, no matter how awful I feel for neglecting you.”

  “You’re not neglecting me, Dad,” she answered, taking his hand. “And you’re doing better than you’ve given yourself credit for. I’m sorry. I’m not coping well and am taking it out on you…. I just feel so useless here, Dad. I don’t know where I fit in. You’ve come along and given them homes, Zac’s one of them, and me… what have I done?”

  Reaching forward, her father brushed a lock of hair from her face and tucked it behind her ear, making Eva feel like a little girl. “Eva, the one thing I do like about this place is the fact you don’t have to do anything to be welcomed. Everyone is important from the strongest to the weakest, the only person who is judging you, is yourself.”

  His words haunted her long after they’d left his mouth, circling her like wailing ghosts. Getting to her feet, Eva needed to escape the noise and bustle of a world she struggled to comprehend.

  “I’m going to get some air,” she told her father. “I’ll stay close though.”

  No one stopped her as she walked down the two steps onto the snow-covered ground. Most of Dark Shadow were inside of the large building she’d just left, but others stood watch outside. Wandering with no real purpose but keeping within shouting distance of the guards, Eva mulled over her thoughts. She’d been unfair with her father, jealous even, when he was just as afraid and confused as her. But what scared her the most was the almost desperate need to belong. She wanted to walk through the snow-dappled forest and look as natural as the wolves racing past. She wanted to be as brave and courageous as Katalina. She wanted to be worthy of a man like John. Yet Eva didn’t feel worthy of anything. She was lost, broken, and longing for her mother’s advice she’d never hear.

  Whirling around as a twig snapped, a scream was about to leave her throat when Eva recognized the two people appearing through the trees. Dragging in a breath, she begged her racing heart to steady as they approached.

  “Eva, why aren’t you with the others?” Tyler asked. His arm was hooked under Regan’s as she limped, blood running from a wound on her thigh.

  “I….” She shrugged. There weren’t enough words to explain her head.

  “Leave me here, Ty,” Regan instructed. She reached out for Eva as they neared. “Eva can help me to the infirmary.” Tyler glanced between them, a silent battle in his eyes. Regan gripped his jaw and pressed a rough kiss to his lips. “It’s a graze. I’m not going to die. Go.”

  “You’ve got her, Eva?” Tyler asked as Eva wrapped an arm around Regan, taking her weight.

  “Yes, I’ll get her to Oliver.” Tyler ran back the way he came. “What happened?” Eva asked as she helped Regan across toward the clearing.

  “He got a round off before I could reach him. Bullet grazed my thigh. I could have stayed in position, but Tyler can’t think straight while I’m bleeding.”

  “So, it is the Indiana pack? They’re really here?”

  “Yes, it’s them, but this isn’t the final battle. There’s a small group that’s hit the border but not enough to breakthrough. They were simply a distraction while they attacked those in Atlanta.”

  “Oh no, did they hurt anyone?”

  “Not sure. Not heard anything since the initial info. Bass and Jackson are out there picking them off.”

  Reaching the infirmary, Eva helped Regan inside, shocked to find more than one injured packmate within the building.

  “Joys of war,” Regan muttered. “Dump me on the bed, please.”

  Walking across the room, Eva stopped at a free bed, unsure what to say. While she’d been worrying about her brother and what she was going to do with her life, people had been attacked and injured.

  “Everything all right, Cass?” Regan asked as she groaned and hoisted herself up into the bed.

  The pregnant woman rubbed her belly and smiled. “Baby’s excited by all the drama, that’s all. Nothing major.” She nodded at Regan’s leg. “Hope they paid for that.”

  Regan’s smile was nothing human.
“Oh yeah. I made him pay.”

  Wringing her hands together, Eva wondered if she should go or stay. Oliver hadn’t even acknowledged Regan, but then he was busy with a wailing child at the other end of the room, and his assistant was currently stitching up someone’s forehead. Looking around, Eva swallowed her fear and decided to make herself useful.

  She wanted to be a vet, and she’d done a summer volunteering at a wildlife rescue center and completed half her degree in biology; she should be able to clean and dress a wound.

  When no one shouted at her for touching supplies, Eva pulled up a stool beside Regan’s bed and inspected her leg.

  “Do you know what you’re doing?” Regan asked as she began to cut away the woman’s cargo pants.

  Eva shrugged. “I’m going to be a vet. You’re half wolf…. It’s kinda like a dog, right?”

  Regan laughed. “Good enough for me. Patch me up.”

  Meeting her gaze, Eva sighed. “I wish I was as brave as you.”

  Regan’s gazed softened. “It’s easy to look around and see nothing but strong, heroic types, but I’ll let you into a secret, Eva. Not so long ago, I was so afraid I’d never have dreamed of setting foot on the front lines again. We aren’t all fighters here. If we were, we’d be an army with no one to protect.”

  Taking a moment, Eva inspected Regan’s wound as her words sunk in. “Do you think I could learn to fight? I know I’m only human, but… I want to be useful.”

  Regan’s hand found hers. “Sure, I can teach you some things as long as you don’t tell John, but Eva, there’s more than one way to be useful.”

  “Wait, why not tell John?” Eva asked as she began to clean her wound.

  Regan laughed. “Because he’d kill me for teaching his woman how to fight, and I’m not sure if you’ve noticed, Eva, but John can be kinda scary.”

  His woman. She frowned. “I’m not his.”

  Cassady burst out laughing. “Oh, Eva, honey, you’ve got a lot of catching up to do. Whether you think it or not, in his mind, you’re his. He’s just waiting for you to cotton on.”