The Hero Within

by Bec McMaster

  D) How can you ever move on, if you don't confront everything that lingers between you?

  Easy to think.... She wasn't the one who refused to discuss the past.

  "Arik," Nnedi called, leaping up onto the dais and striding toward the enormous newcomer.

  Dark eyes flickered toward them, and the man turned, capturing Nnedi's hand and drawing her against him, his forehead bowing to rest against hers. He had to lean down to do so.

  "They're together," Colton muttered. "I'd keep my eyes off him, if I were you. Nnedi would bury you alive, and then I'd have to step in—"

  "You're so gallant."

  Arik's eyes flickered their way as Nnedi murmured to him, one hand on his enormous chest.

  "Welcome to Shadow Rock," Arik said, gesturing them closer. He sank onto a chair, legs spread wide, and his forearm resting on his thigh. "My second tells me you're on your way to Cortez City."

  Here was her opening. Eden swiftly explained about their mission, giving it her all. "We're running out of time," she pleaded. "We have to leave as soon as possible."

  The Alpha's face remained impassive. "You won't see the inside of Cortez City. Its walls are thick and the Confederacy doesn't like outsiders getting in."

  "Then we just have to figure out a way over their walls," Eden shot back, growing a little vexed. "Or under them. Or around them. I can't go back to watch the people I love die without at least trying. I know a man inside. He might agree to meet with me, if I can just figure out a way to—"

  "You have a contact?"

  "Miles Wentworth."

  Stillness radiated through him, and if she hadn't known any better she would have suspected he knew the name.

  A flicker of something dangerous roamed through Arik's hazel eyes. There were flecks of gold mixed among the brown, as if a painter had flicked gold paint from his brush onto his canvas.

  "I understand your desire," Arik finally said, leaning back in his chair. "It doesn't negate the truth; you can't get inside Cortez. It's impenetrable."

  Nothing's impenetrable. But there was no point arguing with him. He'd made up his mind. "We shall see. In the morning I'll check on CJ. If he's feeling a little better, we intend to head on."

  "And if he's not well?" Nnedi asked.

  Eden knew what CJ would tell her to do. She'd seen Nnedi tending him and knew he was in safe hands. "If he's not better, then we will have to go on without him—if you would agree to tend him?"

  Colton stirred at her side, and Eden looked up into his eyes. Please. She couldn't do this without him, and despite the change in circumstances, the plan had to remain the same.

  He nodded faintly, and relief flooded through her. Eden pressed her hand to his back, a silent thanks.

  "I will tend the boy," Nnedi said, her hard face softening.

  Arik turned his head toward her, his brows drawing together. "He is an untested warg," he murmured, censure in his voice.

  "I will vouch for him," Nnedi said. "When he is better, CJ can be tested."

  Arik pushed to his feet, and Eden felt the tension in the room shift.

  They'd all been making plans around this man, a potentially volatile alpha, and she could see he didn't like it.

  "You are strangers in our territory," Arik said, "and one of you drew blood."

  "Arik," Nnedi said under her breath.

  He moved forward, and Eden took a step back as he loomed above them on the dais.

  "My second has granted you guest rights for the night. Tomorrow you intend to leave. But first"—Arik held up his hand to still the murmur of the watching crowd—"there is a reparation to see to."

  The crowd grew a little closer, and Eden shook her head. "Reparation?" she demanded. "What sort of reparation? Your men attacked us."

  A hand came to rest in the middle of her back.

  Just a light warning.

  "Is this how you treat guests?" Colton murmured. "We've obeyed your rules, and given over our weapons in good faith."

  Lincoln began stripping off his vest with a faint smile. "You misunderstand, friend." He touched his throat, where Colton's blade had kissed it. "You owe me a debt, Colton. You drew the blood of the pack, now you must pay the price. Maybe I'll take that pretty little piece at your side as repayment."

  Colton stiffened.

  "What’s going on?" Eden whispered, horrified she already knew the answer.

  "Blood for blood. If your man wants to keep you," Arik called, "then he needs to fight for you."

  A chorus of howls went up.

  Some of the men in the galleries beat their chests, and others stomped their feet. Eden took a step back, unable to stop herself from counting. A full pack. She and Colton had no chance of escaping. Suddenly the alpha didn't look so pretty. Dick.

  "Munin," Nnedi bellowed. "To me."

  Almost instantly, Eden found herself surrounded by over a dozen of the women in azure blue. Most of them had spears. Some had guns, and others wore knives in the sheaths at their hip. All of them bore a black raven tattoo on their upper arms. The same raven Nnedi wore, though hers was gold.

  Colton spun around, his gaze seeking hers, but the tension in his shoulders softened when he saw what Eden had.

  All of the women held their spears out.

  Toward the alpha and his men.

  "Munin rejects our alpha's claim," Nnedi stated. "No woman can be taken by force. It is not our alpha's right to grant this woman to another without her permission."

  Arik's lips thinned, and the howling died off. "Nnedi—"

  "I will guard this woman with my life to prevent such a thing," Nnedi said, her voice softening dangerously.

  The enormous warg swore under his breath, and then strode along the natural platform toward them. "My apologies. Poor choice of words on my behalf. But he will fight to prove himself worthy."

  "I granted them guest rights."

  "With respect, Second," Arik snapped, "you had no right to grant guest rights without my approval. These people are strangers and two of them are wargs. Our prime purpose is always to protect the pack."

  Eden didn't dare breathe. Without the Munin, she and Colton wouldn't survive. But Nnedi was challenging her pack's alpha, and there were only fourteen of the Munin here, and at least fifty... maybe sixty men.

  "With respect, Alpha," Nnedi called, putting her hands on her hips. "You're being a dick."

  Silence.

  Absolute stunned silence filled the canyon.

  "Would I dare bring enemies into the heart of my pack?" Nnedi snarled, stepping forward through the ranks of her Munin. "Do you doubt my intelligence? Or do you suspect my loyalty? Either way, you show doubt in my abilities as second of this pack."

  Nnedi reached behind her neck and began untying the leather thong there, the wolf's claw on the end of it dipping between her breasts as she drew the necklace free. Holding it out, she dropped the claw in the dirt.

  The woman beside Eden sucked in a sharp breath, but otherwise the Munin remained silent.

  Despite the packed galleries, Eden could have heard a pin drop.

  The alpha's gaze locked on the claw, then slowly lifted.

  Nnedi stared back, and Eden was kind of glad she wasn't on the receiving end of a look like that.

  "It is not you I doubt. But this warg has not passed the tests, and the moon is rising," he said gruffly.

  "This warg faced a dozen of our warriors with a knife at his woman's throat, and he didn't lose control," Nnedi replied. "I consider that my test."

  "Nnedi." Arik's face tightened. "There are children here. He must prove he is in control of himself, without a doubt. I am not asking anything that any warg here has not proven. We all face the fire. We all hold the flame. Or else we burn. I will not change the rules, not for anybody."

  A murmur of agreement sprung up in the gallery.

  What did it mean? Eden took a step closer to Colton, reaching for his sleeve.

  Nnedi's lips thinned. "The woman is human."

 
"Fine." The alpha looked seriously pissed as his attention returned to Colton. "Your woman has guest right. She will be safe, regardless of the outcome of this fight. But you are an untried warg walking into my home, without having proven your mettle. You have drawn the blood of one of mine. You will fight and you will show us you are not one of the monsters. Or you will die."

  "So all I have to do is prove I can hold this form?" Johnny said, remembering what Nnedi had told him in the canyon.

  "And survive," Nnedi replied, gesturing the circle of women around them closer. "Prepare him."

  Survival might be the more difficult task. He'd caught a glimpse of his opponent, and while Johnny knew he was good, he hadn't been able to test the mettle of the other wargs here yet. Lincoln was an unknown, and he didn't like the unknown. He'd had a gun the last time he took Lincoln down, which made the odds uneven. This time it would be body against body. No weapons.

  "What sort of man challenges someone who's been recently wounded?" Eden snarled. Strands of her curly brown hair had managed to escape from her ponytail, and despite the fact she was only human, she stepped right up into Nnedi's face, her hands on her hips.

  "A warg who cannot heal himself is weak," Nnedi replied flatly. "A warg who cannot control himself is weak. A warg who cannot fight to protect himself is—"

  "Yeah, yeah, we get it," Eden replied.

  "It doesn't matter whether he is healed or not," Nnedi muttered, her lips pressing thinly together as she shot Arik a hard look. "The alpha has decreed your man shall fight for his right to survive, and so it shall be."

  Tension existed there, if Johnny wasn't mistaken. Could he use that to help them get free of this place? "Is this going to cause problems between you and your alpha?"

  "He is my chosen," Nnedi said, with a shrug. "Eight years ago we stood before the pack and pledged ourselves to each other, and he placed the claw at my throat to show our bond. However, he has displeased me. I shall not put the claw back on until he apologizes and proves he is a man I can give myself to."

  Oh, shit. Not just the leader and his second, but a man and wife.

  "I'm sorry," Johnny murmured. "We didn't mean to—"

  "Arik makes his own choices." Nnedi sounded completely assured. "You did not force his hand. And as he likes to say—it is up to each of us to prove ourselves worthy. So let him prove himself to me."

  Someone started tugging his shirt buttons undone. Another woman began on his belt.

  "Whoa." He grabbed her hand.

  "You can keep the jeans on," Nnedi said, "but a belt gives your opponent leverage."

  He slowly released the belt. Good point. Heat still flushed through his cheeks though, as they stripped his shirt off him. Eden gave him a faintly amused look, her gaze lingering on his bare chest.

  Focus, he told himself sharply.

  Johnny took in the circle of wargs and the way several of them were dipping their hands into a clay bowl and pressing powdered handprints to Lincoln's chest. Drums sounded as wargs packed the cliff shelves and gallery, looking down at the sandy floor as they hooted.

  It wasn't the first time he'd been forced to fight for entertainment reasons, but as Johnny glanced toward the alpha, he saw something reflected in the man's dark eyes. This wasn't just for laughs.

  "What happens if I kill him?" he asked.

  Eden paled.

  "I would advise not killing him. Lincoln is Arik's younger brother."

  "So all I need to do is force him to submit or cry mercy?"

  "It is a fight until you cannot keep fighting anymore," Nnedi replied steadily, using a pestle to grind something to dust in her clay mortar. "This ends when one of you is no longer able to get up."

  "And what about Colton? Is Lincoln going to pull his blows?" Eden demanded. "Or is he going to try and kill him?"

  Nnedi's expression said it all.

  "This is bullshit," Eden exploded, her vehemence startling him. "You said we were guests. Is this how you treat your guests?"

  "It is not my call to make," Nnedi responded sharply.

  "Hey." He grabbed Eden's arm and dragged her in close, mimicking a man comforting his sweetheart. His voice dropped as his thumb stroked her upper arm. "It's okay. I'm not going to let anything happen to you, and Nnedi will protect you if this goes south."

  Conflict waged war in her green eyes. "Jesus Christ, Colton. How about you focus on yourself?"

  She was worried? For him?

  No. Couldn't be. She needed a guide and with Cole down and out for the count, he was it.

  "This isn't my first time fighting like this. I'm good at what I do, Eden."

  "Good. Because I'm going to be pissed if I have your death on my conscience."

  That was more like it. "Can't have that."

  "Boots off," Nnedi instructed, examining the white powder in her bowl.

  Johnny stared over her shoulder toward his adversary. Several of the pack gathered around Lincoln, painting a thin line of black down the center of his face.

  Something stirred in Johnny's blood, as if the war music called to him. He could feel Eden's hands on his body, as she knelt and tugged his boots off.

  "The amulet too," Nnedi instructed.

  Eden hesitated as she straightened, and he read the train of thought in her eyes. It was the one thing that kept her brother Adam from turning, despite the pull of the moon. She hadn't seen him take it off in front of Cole.

  Johnny lifted the amulet over his head, handing it to her. "Keep it safe for me, angel. It was my grandfather's. I don't need it—I never have—but it holds sentimental value for me."

  The handful of women with Nnedi began rubbing oil all over him. He knew it would help him avoid Lincoln's grip, but he couldn't help noticing Eden's eyes on him. One of the women's hands slid low across his abdomen and Eden's gaze followed it. It was hard not to think about what it would feel like if that were Eden's hand, skating low enough to brush the top of his jeans.

  He caught the woman's hand before it skimmed any lower and his body started focusing on Eden beneath him, rather than on the task ahead.

  The woman giggled.

  A hand slapped his back. Nnedi walked in slow circles around him and slammed her powdered hand against his skin to leave a print. Another of the Munin pressed one to his stomach. The giggler.

  "Enjoying yourself?" Eden muttered.

  "Are you?" He quirked a brow, and heat painted a pretty red across her cheeks.

  "Don't get hurt. Please."

  He stared into her eyes, as the entire cavern vanished around them, trying to work out what she was trying to say. "Whatever happens here, it's not your fault."

  Her thumb brushed against the inside of his wrist as she lowered her eyes, trying to say something and failing. "I forgive you," she finally whispered.

  "What?" he demanded, the pit of his stomach freefalling.

  Eden slowly looked up from beneath those thick, dark lashes. "I don't know the truth of everything that happened between us. You won't tell me. But.... I forgive you. I forgive you for your part of what happened to me. To Adam. I know you never truly wanted to hurt me."

  Every inch of him ran cold with shock, his heart suddenly thundering along in time to the beat of the drums. A distant howling filled his ears—the other wargs screaming for him to enter the ring. But he was trapped in this moment, his entire world wrenched out from beneath his feet with three little words.

  He had the feeling he'd never be able to right himself again. Of all the times to tell him this.... It cascaded through him, like someone setting a spark to the fuse of a thousand suppressed emotions.

  He didn't deserve forgiveness. Especially not from her.

  But those words filled him, forcing the darkness that lingered deep within his soul to flee into the recesses of his empty heart, where they could no longer touch him.

  He hadn't realized how much he'd craved forgiveness.

  Johnny's eyes narrowed on her, as Nnedi gestured the women away from him.


  "Go," Nnedi said. "And fight with honor."

  Hands pushed him. Pulled him.

  All he could see was Eden.

  It was stupid.

  Reckless.

  He didn't even know where the urge came from. But as the wargs began howling for him to enter the makeshift ring, he slid his hand behind Eden's neck and dragged her against him.

  Eden's hands slammed against his chest as Johnny captured her mouth. The surprised exhale of her breath filled his lungs as he explored her lips. No time for finesse. Only hunger. Tongue lashing teasingly across her lower lip, and her hips grinding against his. Eden's palms skated up the back of his neck, her body softening as she kissed him back.

  He'd dreamed of this moment a thousand times. She didn't know what she gave him with her forgiveness, and her need. Intangible necessities he still couldn't quite touch, more a dream than a reality still, but growing heavier and more real with every lash of her tongue.

  Three... four seconds at most. By the time he stepped back, he was wearing a faint smile and her eyes were so wide, he could see dozens of the torches in the cavern reflected in them. It made her eyes look like a night sky. It made him feel like he could steal half the light of the world just by kissing her again.

  "In case I never get another chance," he murmured, as she put her fingertips to her lips.

  Then he stepped through the opening in the circle of wargs and headed for his destiny. The drums beat faster as he strode through the narrow tunnel of hooting wargs. Some clapped his back, others shoved their faces in his, screaming at him. Thumping their chests.

  He ignored them all.

  The only thing that mattered was survival.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The main cave echoed with shouts and the deep throat ululations Eden had heard earlier. But the tone had changed. It had been a song of welcome earlier, whereas now it reminded her of violence, of power, of the sheer, unblinking exhilaration of a people preparing themselves for war.

  Nnedi climbed the natural dais, gesturing for her follow. Eden clambered up the stone, just as the others circled the pit below. Its floor coated with sand, it bore faint ruddy stains that made her throat catch. Clearly not the first time blood had been spilled here.