HuntressUnleashed

by Clare Murray

  Eagan searched for signs of the dark wizard but he discerned no wards, no sizzling magic that tainted the air. His greater size, speed and stamina allowed him to gain on Caitrin. Soon he saw her in the moor ahead, a light-gray wolf bounding eagerly forward, lit up like a beacon by the full moon.

  The wind was beginning to carry the scent of witch. Even as he ran, he recognized the scent as the witch who had cast the wards around Caitrin’s croft.

  Delaney’s trail led in the witch’s direction. He seemed to be alone but Eagan knew the twisted werewolf was dangerous even without his wizard companion.

  Eagan caught up with Caitrin just as she reached a small rise. Putting on a burst of speed, he blocked her path, snarling a warning. Just ahead was a small cottage, presumably the witch’s. Eagan had eyes only for his mate.

  She faced him warily, her thoughts racing in circles as he listened with his mind. Seeing him calmed her Huntress prey drive somewhat, but she was only an instant away from attempting to sidestep him and continue her pursuit. Seizing her gaze with his own, Eagan projected a calm dominance. Slowly her eyes lost their fierce inhumanness, her paws ceasing to shuffle in agitation.

  Just when he thought she was returning to him, Delaney roared a challenge from the cottage.

  Caitrin growled, the sound rippling through her chest and throat. Her Prey stood in full sight with Iris lying on the ground behind him.

  She forced herself to concentrate, watching for any movement from her beloved friend. Finally she spotted the slight rise and fall of her chest. Relief steadied her.

  Her mate was continuing to block her path. Conflicting signals were beginning to drive her mad—Prey nearby, yet her Alpha was denying her the right to chase.

  “I know ye hear me, Eagan MacCulloch!” Delaney swaggered forward, arrogance in every line of his body. “Hand over the lass and ye can slink off unharmed.”

  Never.

  The word, heard directly with her mind, was as sharp as knives. Werewolves could do that? Caitrin struggled to comprehend that fact in the midst of everything else. There was a lot her mate wasn’t telling her.

  Although the potion must long since have worn off, she studied Delaney intently, seeing him in the entirety of his evilness, the black ink of the wizard tattoos barely keeping him together, alive. With her wolf-aided sense of smell, the reek of his foul body was almost overpowering. He was rotting from the inside out. Even those strong runes wouldn’t prolong his life much longer.

  “I demand the Right of Challenge.”

  Ye pervert our ancient traditions.

  Delaney laughed, an unpleasant crackle. “If ye worry about the wizard, MacCulloch, ye should know he’s miles from here. I have all I need from him. Now what I want is my mate.”

  I will kill ye.

  Caitrin looked on in frustration as Delaney threw back his head and began to shift into his wolf. It was happening just as she swore it wouldn’t—the two males fighting without any say from her. Nearby, the Guardians took up position next to Iris, their plumed tails held low in distress.

  Briefly Cait considered running back for the sword. But that would take her a good fifteen minutes at a flat-out sprint. She wouldn’t leave Eagan for that long.

  Her drive to kill Delaney was still in full effect, but now she was in control of her own mind, her own actions. A slight movement from Iris drew her attention. Walking slowly so as not to alert either werewolf, she drew close to the witch.

  “The runic tattoo around his wrist, child.”

  Was she imagining the voice? It seemed to hang on the night air like spun silk. But no, Iris was moving her lips again.

  “Pierce the band of runes around his left wrist, and the others will unravel. Delaney is no longer a true werewolf, so his Right of Challenge is null. You can interfere, make a difference in the fight.”

  Caitrin glanced up, doubt settling over her. Despite his grotesqueness, Delaney was faster, more powerful than she’d expected. He was taking Eagan by surprise, feinting in and slashing at the Alpha. His runes glowed dully, aberrantly through matted gray fur.

  “Child, listen to me.” Iris’ voice grew stronger. “The potion I gave you earlier was no real potion. It’s only something given to young witches to bolster their confidence. Everything you have sensed up until now is your own skill, your Huntress skill. Do not doubt yourself.”

  His left wrist. Delaney was protecting that side fiercely, wearing Eagan down with relentless lunges and slashes. If she ran directly at him…

  For the second time in her life, Cait was seized by pure instinct. Her paws scrabbled in the dirt as she ran downhill toward the fight. The smell of blood was hot and coppery, filling her nostrils as she struck.

  Delaney’s scream was mental and physical, reverberating through the night. Still she hung on, grinding through the rune even as Eagan pinned Delaney’s muzzle to prevent him biting her. When her teeth finally severed the skin where the rune was tattooed, the scream ended with a wrench. A physical and psychic backlash flung her several yards into the air.

  The taste of blood filled her mouth. She spat as well as she could, her thick, unfamiliar tongue getting in the way. Within seconds, her mate was by her side, inspecting her for any wounds.

  Stiffly, Caitrin heaved herself to her paws, licked pointedly at one of Eagan’s many lacerations. Once she had contented herself of his general well-being, she padded over to Iris, who was now sitting up, watching them with a smile on her face.

  “I see you have made your decision, child. Would you two care to come inside? I have spare clothes available.”

  * * * * *

  He didn’t dare relax until he saw Caitrin dressed and sitting warm and safe in the witch’s snug cottage. The Guardians lay under the table, clearly relieved that all the chaos was over.

  Iris glanced down at the dogs, a smile wrinkling her face. “I have not had Guardians in this cottage for several years now.”

  “What about our bonds?” Caitrin scratched Bannock behind the ears. “Now that I’m a full werewolf, they might be uncomfortable around me.”

  “True,” Iris acknowledged. “Although I think it’s your Alpha they will be most uncomfortable with. Shall I transfer their soulbonds?”

  “To you?” Caitrin swallowed. “I will miss them, but yes. I think they will be more comfortable here with you.”

  “I’ll put them to work with my own sheep,” Iris said cheerfully. “Now that everything is peaceful again, they will be quite handy to have around.”

  “Is the dark wizard truly gone?” Eagan asked bluntly.

  Iris tossed her braid of pure white hair over her shoulder and laughed. “He came to see me first. Wanted an alliance. I sent him away with a few things to think about and a singe on his cloak.”

  “He abandoned Delaney?” Caitrin asked. She wrapped her hands around a steaming mug of tea, looking delectable even in the too-large blouse and trousers she’d borrowed.

  “Och, there’s plenty more like Delaney to be had,” Iris replied. “He was particularly resilient for a werewolf, but anyone with a third eye could see he had outlived his usefulness.”

  “So the wizard moves on, looking for another to use.” Eagan shook his head, worried. There were plenty of young male werewolves eager for fortune, fame, long lives. They would flock to the dark wizard, drawn by evil promises.

  “Without any cohesion between Packs, he’ll continue to use and abuse,” Iris said. “That wizard has discovered ancient texts, unearthed perhaps from the Isle of Lewis where Viking wizards once lived. He and his dark knowledge will continue to trouble the world unless we fight back.”

  Eagan nodded at her pointed look. “The Packs rarely communicate between themselves. Too protective over the females.”

  “Witches and wizards communicate, but primarily between ourselves,” Iris replied. “That needs to change.”

  “What about Hunters?” Caitrin asked.

  “Yes, they tend to be solitary.” Iris gave her an appraising look.
“Werewolf and Huntress…your offspring will be interesting indeed.”

  Eagan placed a protective arm around Caitrin. “Aye. I intend our bairns to grow up knowing all their potential. And if we must fight a greater power than an occasional Loner, they will have as many Packs as I can contact on their side.”

  * * * * *

  Cait awoke, deliciously warm. She splayed a hand across Eagan’s bare skin, watching his cock respond even as he slumbered. True to the quick healing powers of a werewolf, his wounds had all but disappeared.

  Green eyes slitted open, fixing upon her immediately. She grinned mischievously. “Good morning.”

  “Didn’t peg ye for an early riser, lass.”

  She looked pointedly at his crotch. “Well, you certainly are.”

  Without preamble he pinned her to the bed, reversing their positions in the blink of an eye. “Thought I’d lost ye last night, Caitrin.”

  “I had to hunt him or I would have gone crazy.” The last word came out in a gasp as his fingers found her, testing her readiness.

  “When ye were running toward him, I nearly went crazy.” He bent his head, nibbled her earlobe with slightly more force than he’d previously employed. Without ceremony he entered her, his eyes blazing possessiveness.

  As he moved, Cait forgot what she was about to ask, closing her eyes and breathing hard as he built her up, only to take her down swiftly, his lips closing around her nipples as he coaxed her into orgasm.

  Only when she came another two times did he finally allow himself to spend, shuddering against her, eyes never leaving hers. Then he blinked, leaned down to kiss her and rolled over to hold her snugly against him.

  “Where will we go?” she asked after a long, lazy recovery.

  “Do no’ know. What the witch said is true—we must rally the Packs, warn them. But we must make time for ourselves as well.”

  “I could give the croft to one of Iris’ daughters,” Cait mused, “but that would leave us without a livelihood.”

  “Lass, I have no’ lived centuries without putting assets aside,” Eagan said drily. “By your standards I am wealthy beyond imagining.”

  “Should we return to Castle Lennox?” It was a gamble. She felt him tense against her, wondered if he could overcome old memories.

  “Aye,” he said very slowly. “That would please me. The place wants rebuilding, but we will need time to speak with each Pack along our way.”

  “Can we build a library?” Cait wistfully imagined a room filled with books. She wanted to read something other than tomes about herbs and witchy charms.

  “We can build anything ye like as long as I can make love to ye in each room.”

  “Eagan!” Caitrin giggled, feeling at peace with herself and the world. She was his now, werewolf and Huntress. A new life awaited—and she intended to embrace it with all her skills fully unleashed.

  About Clare Murray

  Clare Murray was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area, living aboard a boat with her parents until the age of three. She has a degree in Journalism and has worked in libraries in both California and London. In 2006 she moved to England, where she now lives happily with her husband and two children.

  The author welcomes comments from readers. You can find her website and email addresses on her author bio page at www.ellorascave.com.

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  Huntress Unleashed

  ISBN 9781419945328

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  Huntress Unleashed Copyright © 2013 Clare Murray

  Edited by Raelene Gorlinsky

  Cover design by Dar Albert

  Cover photography by Hotdamnstock.com, chorazin and serge B/Fotolia.com

  Electronic book publication May 2013

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