When a Pack Dies

by Gwen Campbell

  Fina closed in on her, teeth bared, hackles raised. The black bitch finally called an end to the match by yelping, jumping to her feet and racing off into the night with her tail tucked between her legs. Fina watched her retreat with savage satisfaction.

  In a parody of a victory lap, Fina slowly paced the clearing. She sensed the massive, brown males fall into step behind her, although they followed at least two body-lengths behind. Fina’s wolf surveyed her pack. She let them nuzzle her, sniff her snout, the drying saliva on her coat, the adrenaline-hot afterscent of victory surrounding her. One male began pacing alongside her. He was young but large and perhaps his size gave him more verve than it should. As he skipped along with his tongue lolling, he sniffed her back end then lay a heavy paw on her shoulder to slow her and hold her in place.

  Fina’s wolf reacted to the male’s ill-considered attempt at mounting her before her mates did. She spun, sank her teeth into his chest, released then sank them into his shoulder. Fina bit hard. Deep. She snarled—a low, savage rumbling that made the young male yelp and try to run away. When he did, he cried out in pain. His jerky movements ripped his skin and she made no move to loosen her grip. She snarled again and every wolf around them trembled. Finally, she released her would-be paramour.

  He backed away quickly, favoring his shoulder but backed right into Fina’s mates. They bit him too, although not as deeply or savagely as Fina had. They growled, snarled and shoved him until, dazed and terrified, the young male spun and headed for the relative safety of the tree line. He stood in the shadows, shaking and licking his wounds. When Fina glanced back at him, he ducked his head and looked away.

  Fina finished her tour of the clearing. The remaining members of her pack came to her willingly, sought her scent then touched her and her mates with their snouts as they passed. The pack settled and a palpable shiver of relief ran through it. Their top bitch turned, walked up to her mates and stood between the two, massive males.

  As the three of them sniffed each other and rubbed their chins over each other’s backs, the focus of their pack returned to their own lovers. The small, silver bitch stepped up to Fina, greeted her with a playful yelp then trotted away. She seemed to make a point of not getting too close to Fina’s mates and when she left, her six salivating suitors trailed after her.

  Fina’s wolf chose its own route out of the clearing. Slowly, she made her way through the mass of playful wolves. The scent of lust began to grow thick. Her mates followed close behind, so close their snouts bumped her back end. She felt their breath as they took in her scent. One bitch they passed turned and lifted her tail, presenting her backside to Fina’s larger mate. He snorted and kept walking. Another bitch spronked playfully, touched her paw to Fina’s other mate’s snout then lifted her tail in invitation. When he blinked, Fina spun. She bit the other bitch’s backside then cuffed the Beta violently. He yelped, rubbed his nose, looked at her in open confusion then stood beside her despite her growls and snarls. He rubbed his jowls over her forehead and licked her cheek.

  Satisfied, Fina nuzzled him back then resumed walking. After that, no other bitches dared offer her mates a friendly, casual mount. When she reached the edge of the clearing, she glanced over her shoulder, satisfied she had her mates’ full attention then raced off into the woods. Fina’s wolf ran with every ounce of strength it possessed. It remembered these woods, this young, wild land. Exalting in its freedom and strength, her wolf ran until the running intoxicated it. She sensed her mates behind her, keeping pace. Now and then, one of them would move forward, crowd her, re-direct her path, then drop back. They let her run, followed their bitch’s lead like males had since their species had been born.

  After a time, Fina smelled the river. She knew this place. The younger male caught up to her, squeezed her to the left until the three of them were running parallel to the water. When the land dipped and the river widened into a slow-moving stream, Fina ran into it, sending up sheets of water in her wake before she stopped. She sensed the males watching her. Pacing back and forth in the water, Fina surveyed the area with every one of her senses. When she was sure they were alone, she drank then lowered her chest into the water to cool herself. The males approached then yelped and jumped back indignantly when she shook, spraying them. Her mouth opened in a parody of a smile and Fina ducked her body under the surface again, letting the gentle current rinse the spit and dirt out of her coat, soothe the scratches and glancing bites on her skin. Her mates approached eagerly, but warily.

  With gentle nudges of their snouts and shoulders, they guided her out of the river and onto the sandy bank. Circling her slowly, they rubbed her fur with theirs, yipped playfully and nuzzled her face.

  The very large male with the bright, pale eyes bumped her back end with his chest. He lowered his snout, sniffed her and touched his tongue to her genitals.

  Fina yelped and jumped away. Facing him now, she bared her teeth. The male held his ground, waited then walked forward slowly. He nuzzled her again and again moved behind her. Tension hummed through the bitch’s powerful body. Her other mate stood in front of her. He stroked her cheek, licked her ear, ran his jowls over hers. The larger male sniffed her backside and the younger one calmed her with a low, peaceful rumbling in his chest. This time, when the Alpha’s tongue moved over her, Fina didn’t jump away. She jerked in fear but held her ground.

  Breathing in the scent of her mates, Fina’s wolf weighed its options. It wasn’t much of a debate mostly because her brain operated on a different plane than her human one. It responded to its senses and instinct, not rational, confusing thought. She was young and strong. Even when she wasn’t in heat, her body enjoyed the uncomplicated pleasures of mating. It also remembered her last mating, if it could be called that. There had been pain. She had been unwilling. Fina’s back end jerked away when her mate’s tongue passed over her more firmly than before.

  This male was large enough to perhaps overpower her on his own. With his brother’s help, her struggles would be futile. Yet she sensed the patience in them. They were her mates. They would honor her refusal at any time. The male behind her growled with pleasure, licked the most sensitive parts of her backside, seemingly intent on coaxing her into accepting him. His brother nuzzled her face then ran his tongue over her neck, grooming her. She shivered delicately.

  When the large male behind her lay his paw on her back, she didn’t rebuke him. She held herself still, locked her strong legs as he transferred some of his weight onto her then waited. After a time, when she didn’t shrug him off, he put a second paw on her back, rose up on his back legs and touched the knob of his distended penis to her tail.

  Fina shook, looked back at him hesitantly then slowly, very slowly, let her tail move aside. He touched his teeth to her neck, held her in place and gently sank his penis into her.

  When the bitch standing for him continued to shake, Cutler gentled his movements. It wasn’t in his nature to claim a female slowly but he was driven to care for this one like he’d cared for no other before her. He was rewarded when her body opened to him, accepted the pleasure he offered. Even then he didn’t thrust against her. He held himself still while his brother stepped closer, nuzzled her, grumbled soothingly then licked her face. She finally stopped shaking. Adjusting his paws on her back, trusting his considerable weight to her powerful frame, he sank the knob of his penis deep into her, felt his balls draw up tight and potent and started to move.

  His mate growled but it was a sound of satisfaction, not anger. When his brother moved, rolled and presented his belly to her, she dipped her head and lapped at the tip of his penis. Cutler snarled with lust and thrust into her faster.

  His paw slipped and he adjusted his hold on her frantically. Panting now, he released his hold on her neck. Primitive, glorious pleasure shimmered in his sex organs, slid deep into his belly. The bitch holding him howled then her body bore down on him hard. She gripped him tight, painfully tight and he had no choice but to drive his penis into her as dee
p as it would go and let the ecstasy take him.

  Cutler knew nothing but joy as his seed filled the remarkable bitch standing in front of him.

  When it passed, the base of his cock was swollen and the mouth of her sheath was locked behind it. Not so tight that, if he wanted to and with a great deal of discomfort, he couldn’t jerk his cock out of her. Cutler didn’t want to. He rested his chest on her back, panted and imagined how it would feel to mount her when she was in heat. When the mouth of her sheath would close so tight around him there was no way he could escape and neither could the seed he’d spill in her...holding it deep in her womb and fathering the cub he longed for. He sucked in his lolling tongue, combed his teeth through the dense fur protecting the back of her neck and stepped off her.

  They stood awkwardly for a moment with Cutler’s swollen penis still stuck inside her. He sighed with relief when the swelling started to subside.

  His brother got up, walked around them and made a sound that was more laugh than bark. Cutler tried to cuff him but his brother jumped out of the way.

  When his penis finally slid out of his mate, she growled, looked at him contentedly and held herself still while his brother sniffed at her backside and put a big paw on her hind quarter. Her tissues were swollen and glistened in the moonlight. Cutler yawned then shook it off. Always after mounting a female, he’d simply drop to the ground and sleep, even if only for a few minutes. Something about this bitch kept him awake and focused on her. He’d never had a mate before. Never felt this pull, the need to stay close to a bitch, to keep her close to him.

  This need in him blended somehow with the eroticism of watching his brother rouse her. Nath licked her backside, nudged her, ran the cold, spongy tip of his nose over her heat. Then, as gently as Cutler had, his brother stood over her, gave her the chance to refuse him then entered her slowly. She leaned back into him, accepted him without hesitation and howled at the night sky.

  The three of them mated over several hours. In between they played, drank from the river or curled around each other like pups. Finally, when the moon was setting, Fina’s wolf lifted its head, howled one last time and began trotting back to the clearing.

  By the time they reached it, they’d resumed their human form. Holding hands, Fina and her mates wove their way through the members of their pack that hadn’t yet left. Cutler glanced over at his friends, Eddie and Jane Robertson. Eddie lay asleep, spooned behind his wife’s body, gently holding her naked breast. She nodded a greeting to her Alpha, Beta and new Head Bitch as they walked past, then resumed absently stroking her abdomen. They walked past Officer Suzanne Young. Her long, blonde hair was disheveled and spread over the weres lying in front of and behind her. Another male was curled up near her legs. His pursed mouth touched her mound then he sighed and fell asleep. They passed other clutches of weres, other couples, picked up their clothing and made their way to Cutler’s SUV.

  Chapter Ten

  “Am I here because it’s the easy thing to do, not the right thing?” Fina’s fingers hesitated on the keyboard. She glanced up at the screen. Staff-Sergeant Owen Wells was looking at her. The furrow between his eyes was deeper than usual. “I’m wasting your time again.”

  “No waste, Fina. There’s not many people I get letters from. Is this still considered a letter?”

  She saw his blue eyes glance at the computer he was using. His powerful shoulders, outlined beneath a plain, tan t-shirt, lifted then fell. He grinned.

  “Anyway, the guys respect me more now because I know a real, live girl.”

  Fina laughed. The darkness crowding the home office seemed to shrink back a little. “Flirt,” she typed back.

  “Flirt? Coming from your gene pool, you’re one to talk. Even when he was a kid your brother chased tail whenever he could. One time he chased Paulette Howard up a tree while he was in wolf form. Kept head butting her until she rubbed his belly. We were only in junior high then.”

  Fina laughed harder when she saw the static images of his face, contorted in merriment, change about once every two seconds.

  “Did Paulette...?” Owen’s head dipped and his hands rested unmoving on his keyboard.

  “She and her mate died too.” Fina’s fingers moved sluggishly. “They had two cubs.”

  Owen’s mouth curled into a snarl and his head jerked away from the camera.

  “You would have liked her mate,” Fina typed, trying to find something to temper Owen’s anger. “Great sense of humor. Always putting blobs of shaving cream in people’s mail slots at the nursery.”

  She watched Owen turn back to the screen, saw his eyes move, saw his jaw relax and the corner of his mouth turn up.

  “Your mother loved giving him hell.”

  “I bet she did,” Owen replied after a time. His head bobbed up and down in a nod.

  “Fina?”

  She turned in her chair as the office door opened. She’d been so engrossed in her on-line chat she hadn’t heard Ryan get out of bed. He stood there, wearing his cowboy pajama bottoms and a blue t-shirt, rubbing a knuckle across his eyes.

  “Hey, Ryan. There’s somebody I’d like you to meet.” She held out her hands. Ryan came to her readily, crawled onto her lap and blinked at the screen.

  “Hey. You must be Ryan. I’m Owen.”

  Ryan looked up at Fina then his finger moved over the screen. He was able to read out over half the words. Fina filled in the rest.

  “I’m Samantha Wells’ son but I moved away before you were born.”

  “Aunt Samantha?” Fina typed for Ryan.

  “Yes.”

  “Are you a soldier?”

  “Yes. I’m serving in a country called Iraq. Maybe Fina can show it to you on a map later.”

  Owen and Ryan looked at each other for a long minute before Owen started typing again.

  “Your dad was really good at building things. I remember he built a lot of things at the nursery and built that little strip plaza with the real estate office your mom used to work in. She was very pretty.”

  Ryan glanced up at Fina excitedly then started talking. “My dad built houses. He had other guys working for him,” Fina typed obediently, “and they built a row of six of them near my school.”

  Owen smiled broadly then turned his head when someone put their hand on his shoulder.

  “My time’s up, Ryan. I have to give one of the other guys a chance to talk to their family. Maybe we can talk again later this week. Send me a regular email or maybe a picture if you like. Bye.”

  Ryan waved at the screen until it went dark, then Fina’s email screen came up.

  “Is Owen our family, Fina?” Ryan turned his face up to her when he asked.

  “Yes. I suppose he is.” She hugged his small body tightly, kissed his head then carried him back to bed.

  * * *

  Fina held Ryan’s hand as they walked into the local primary school. The floors gleamed, the air was fresh but the place seemed hollow, almost sterile somehow. It was too quiet. As she walked toward the door marked office she forced a smile and pointed out the bright artwork on the walls. Last term’s work, no doubt. Each painting or drawing bore a child’s signature. She recognized most of the family names. “Here we go,” she said brightly as she pushed the door open. “Hello?” There was no one sitting at the desk inside.

  “Ms. Whitesage?” a woman called out from the inner office. “That was great timing. I just got here.” The woman who stepped out was about 40, maybe a few inches taller than Fina with a generous smile and bright, brown eyes. Her short, brown hair swung against her neck as she held out her hand in greeting. “I’m Dodie Smith. The principal. And this must be Ryan Upton.” She was wearing a pair of tailored slacks, a blouse and, incongruously, a pair of high-tech running shoes. “Forgive the ensemble, or lack thereof,” she laughed when she saw Fina glance at her feet. “I’m going for a run after our meeting and I forgot to bring dress shoes.”

  “You run?” Fina asked conversationally.

  “I�
��m training for a 15K in September.” She grinned conspiratorially. “I know it’s not fair...me competing against humans but I can’t turn down a good race.”

  “Impressive,” Fina nodded. “Wear uncomfortable shorts and it’ll even everything out.”

  Principal Smith laughed. When she stopped, she smiled down at Ryan. “Ready to meet your teacher?”

  Ryan glanced up at Fina then back at the principal. He nodded.

  “Miss Lee is in her classroom,” she explained as she led Fina and Ryan out of the office. “She’ll have you write and draw a few things, do some addition and play with some blocks. I think you’ll like her.” Principal Smith turned her attention to Fina. “We keep the kindergarten and first-grade classrooms closest to the office. The washrooms in this wing are designed for our smallest students.” She pointed as they passed one sparkling example. “Our curriculum is grounded in the basics but we also put an emphasis on creativity. Music and art stimulate the students in ways other subjects can’t. We find our students’ grades are consistently higher than the state average because of it. Here we are.”

  She led them into a spacious classroom. The walls were covered in colorful cutouts of numbers, days of the week, pictures of different topographies, mammals and birds. Ryan walked into the room without hesitation, drawn by the visuals, a cluster of soft cushions on the floor, and a neat row of cubicles. He ran his finger over the names taped above each one until he found his then he turned back to Fina, beaming. He hung his lightweight jacket on his peg then headed for the tidy baskets of toys arranged beneath the large, bright windows.

  “Miss Lee will test Ryan’s cognitive skills this morning,” Principal Smith said to Fina, drawing her attention back to her. “You explained you didn’t have his kindergarten transcripts or notebooks and didn’t want to send for them.”