“Look at them,” I said, nodding at a hulking specimen standing near the front eyeing Lysandra. “They need women they won’t break in the throes of passion.”
Teah’s cheeks turned the color of the billowberry wine we were sipping. Almost all of the orphans at the Training Center were virgins — not for lack of interest on their part, but because very few men wanted us, and those who did, hid their desires as something perverted and taboo. Wargs had no such hangups.
Solan called for the start of the feast and everyone filtered out of the hall to the tables set up outside.
“Where’s everyone going?” Lysandra asked, leaning toward me across Teah.
“Back when we arrived, the entire tribe fit in this one room,” I explained, “but since the two tribes recently merged, we have to hold feasts outdoors.”
“Phew,” Lysandra said with a lascivious smile. “I thought all the men were leaving for good.”
I couldn’t help laughing; she had the best sense of humor. “Don’t worry, you’ll be sick of them all pestering you pretty soon.”
She raised a skeptical eyebrow. “Don’t count on it.”
Just then, a young and handsome Hill Warg I didn’t know approached and drew Lysandra’s attention. Emboldened, other men crowded around the table, trying to catch the eye of one of the new women. Not a single one of them looked my way.
“Hey, no cuts,” growled a patrol guard over his shoulder at a younger man trying to push his way to the front.
“You got your chance, old man, now make room for someone younger, stronger and faster.”
The older guard whirled around and bared his growing fangs at the upstart, who snarled right back. As was custom among men of all species, the rest of the mob backed away to watch the fight, which gave the two opponents space to shift to their beasts.
Teah gripped my hand, and this time I could tell she was actually afraid. I didn’t blame her; Warg beasts were massive creatures with hackles that sprung up along the spine in an intimidating ridge. Of course, that was the least of which made them — us, I reminded myself — terrifying. Razor sharp teeth dripping with frothy drool, and claws that dug grooves into the hardwood floor of the hall probably caught the eye first.
“Oh my God,” Teah whispered, shrinking away from the scene.
“Shh, they won’t hurt each other,” I assured her, but I wasn’t truly certain of that at all. Competition for females was already fierce enough as it was without adding three new women to the mix.
“Stop!”
Thrane’s thunderous command hit me like a sonic wave, and it apparently had the same effect on the dueling Wargs, because they immediately turned to their alpha, lips still peeled back, but no longer growling and barking.
Thrane leapt off the platform and stood between the two beasts, almost daring them to attack him. My heart thrummed in my chest at his bravery…or more likely, his stupidity.
“Brother will not fight brother! We are one, and I expect you to behave that way. Besides, these beautiful young women will find their mates on their own — they don’t need these pathetic male displays to make their decision. Now out! All of you!”
The fighting wargs dropped their heads in submission and slinked from the hall. The other men soon followed, leaving Thrane standing, before us looking the part of a hero — one very handsome, burly, sexy-as-hell hero.
“Now,” he said, turning around with a wicked smile on those luscious lips of his, “I don’t think we’ve been properly introduced.”
The moment Thrane picked up Teah’s hand and brought it to his lips, fur sprouted along my arms and neck. At her shy — yet flirtatious — giggle, my fangs sprouted, and it was all I could do to keep my beast from biting her hand right off her arm.
Down, girl! I commanded, and pulled my beast back, but I was unable to keep my fury fully in check.
“Thrane!” I shouted, then jumped down from the platform and ran up to him. “Can I speak with you outside?”
He glanced down at me, amusement dancing in his eyes. “I’m just greeting our guests—”
“Now!” I hissed, dragging him out a side door.
Once outside and away from prying eyes, I whirled on him, pointing a finger in his astonished face. “How dare you—”
Before I could finish my scolding, Thrane cupped my face in his hands and let his gaze roam my features. “You’re beautiful when you’re jealous.”
“Jealous? I’m not—”
Then his mouth pressed against mine, and I suddenly forgot what I was mad about. The next few minutes slipped by in a frenzy of lips and tongues and breathless sighs. When I came to again, Thrane was gently laying me down.
In his bed.
In his hut!
“How…?” I squeaked, looking around and wondering how the hell I’d gotten there. Then I looked up and became lost in him once again. “Oh, who cares!”
Wrapping my arms around his neck, I pulled him down on top of me as I tore my silk wraps away from my body. Sure, I despised the guy, but the connection between us was undeniable. Besides, virginity was overrated. And if I was destined to never find my fated mate, I might as well have a little fun.
For a moment, Thrane seemed caught off-guard by my aggressiveness, but in a blink of those fiery eyes, he took control, and began doing things to me I’d never imagined in my wildest fantasies.
Instead of taking me right then and there as I’d imagined he would, he lay beside me, his massive hands caressing me all over. I yearned for him to kiss me again, but his lips were too busy following his fingers as they traced the outline of my jaw, circled one diamond-hard nipple, then trailed along the center of my tummy. When he reached the apex between my legs, my breath caught in my throat.
Defying the frenetic energy building in my core, Thrane took his time as he settled himself between my thighs, and even looked up to shoot me a devilish grin. His hot breath singed my flesh as his tongue flicked here and there, driving me wild. When he slipped a finger inside me, I whimpered — not only because of the brilliant stars which suddenly burst behind my eyelids, but also from the memory of our previous encounter.
“Does that hurt you?” he asked, his voice soft with concern.
I answered with a thrust of my hips.
His mouth engulfed me then, and my world disintegrated. Each arch of my back was met with a thrust of his fingers, or the delicious pain of an expertly placed nip. As had happened in the forest, the universe of stars sparkling in my vision, coalesced into a single, blinding supernova. When it exploded, my body flailed in an eternal convulsion of ecstasy, my fangs gnashing the air around me, and my lips crying out Thrane’s name.
Only after he milked every last spasm from me, did Thrane slide up my body, holding himself over me like my master. In that moment, he was, and I would let him do whatever he wanted.
“Please…” I begged, raising my hips until I could feel silky-soft steel pressing against my entrance.
He hesitated for a moment, but my moan of need apparently proved more than he could bear. Slowly — ever so slowly — he eased into me, then pulled back and teased me with shallow thrusts, which drove me to the brink of insanity, until finally — blessedly! — he filled me to the brim.
Bursts of orange flashed and intertwined with threads of purple silk, until I could no longer discern the difference between the two. At the same time, our bodies became one, moving in a rhythm we couldn’t control — and wouldn’t want to even if we could. Our speed picked up, and so did the twirling, swirling lights; moving ever faster toward the ultimate goal.
As I rode the wave toward another mind-blowing climax, every muscle tensed and twitched in sweet anticipation. I thought my brain would melt, and that nothing could be better than this…then Thrane’s fangs sank into the same spot he’d bitten to change me into a Warg.
I screamed in pain and pleasure and hate and love and everything in between. I bucked against him, then bit down on his shoulder, the coppery taste of his blood pu
shing me over the cliff. My entire body clenched around him as he pumped into me, a rumble rolling up from deep in his chest.
The hut around us disappeared and we were flying through space and time, wrapped in each other, roaring our pleasure into the universe. Gravity meant nothing to us as we ascended into the heavens, weightless. An infinity later, we drifted back to Thracos like feathers on the wind — slowly, gently.
I lay breathless in Thrane’s arms, our bodies slick against one another, wondering what the hell just happened. I’d always imagined sex to be a spiritual encounter, but this…this was so much more than my feeble imagination could have thought up.
We need to do this more often, I thought, as I drifted into the deepest, most peaceful slumber of my life.
13
THRANE
I sit angry and defiant upon my stolen throne, the victor…or soon to be. I’ve taken my rightful place as leader, the general to a squad of assassins, and am ready to strike. The fools have no idea they’re drawing their last futile breaths of air. They believe they’re safe, but in a few short hours, they will discover the truth, when my men sneak into their huts under cover of darkness and slash their throats. I’m only disappointed their suffering will be so short-lived. Eventually, the war cry will be sounded, and our surprise attack will descend into an all-out battle, but I’m ready. They’ve taken what’s most precious to me, and they will pay for their sins. Even if it means my own demise, I’m ready to finish this.
Startled from yet another dark dream of death and war, I bolted upright in my bed, my heart hammering in my chest. Though the dream seemed to show me confidently leading the Hill tribe again, terror pulsed in my veins.
“Arlynn,” I whispered into the tight fist of darkness, hoping her soft touch would soothe my jangled nerves.
Silence.
Reaching out for her, I grasped nothing but emptiness. She was gone. And judging by the chill in the bed where she’d fallen asleep, she’d left some time ago.
Throwing my legs over the edge of the bed, I sat for a moment with my head buried in my hands, trying to make sense of it all. Why would she leave her mate like that? How could she? The separation left me aching so deeply, a part of me wanted to weep from it. Surely she felt the same?
Then wonder eased my pain — wonder because, despite my cynicism and despite the odds, I found my fated mate. I should have recognized how much I’d changed since giving her the bite which had transformed her into one of us. Even as I’d roamed the Hill as an outcast, following the traitorous Terran guard — who’d ended up being directly responsible for the deaths of several of my warriors — a chasm had grown in my soul. At the time, I’d assumed it was because I felt betrayed by my tribe and my brother, but now I saw the truth.
The truth.
It seemed so obvious now, but I’d talked myself into believing the almost-painful attraction I’d felt for Arlynn, was simply a product of not being able to have her. No one rejected the magnificent Thrane, Alpha of the Hill tribe…make that co-alpha of the newly-reformed Great Tribe. But that hadn’t been it at all.
The truth.
It had hit me like a thunderbolt as my fangs pierced the scar on her shoulder the night before, but Arlynn had fallen fast asleep long before I could even begin to make sense of the all-consuming emotions rolling over me. I’d lain awake for hours, listening to her quiet breathing and cradling her in my arms. Only once I’d fully accepted the truth, did I feel the comfort of sleep sneak up on me. Pressing a kiss against the top of Arlynn’s purple and red head, I snuggled her deeper into my embrace and drifted off.
The truth.
The truth was, I needed Arlynn. My entire life had been spent making everyone else depend on me, so this soul-deep sense of incompleteness made my head spin. Even stranger, it made me happy. Never again would I feel alone, as I had my entire life. I would always have my mate, just as she would always have me.
If they harm her, I will tear them apart with my bare hands and make their children watch!
The whispers of war and hate, which had filled my dreams, seemed to be spilling over into my waking hours. Bristles sprouted on the back of my neck as my beast howled to be released — against what, neither of us knew.
Bandrin might know though. He and the Valley shaman, Binkor, claimed to have insights into spiritual things — maybe they could help me figure out what this was all about.
Ten minutes later, Binkor was offering me a cup of reet spirits, while Bandrin puffed on a pipe stuffed with butterweed.
“Dawn hasn’t even broken yet,” I scoffed, scowling at them both.
They shrugged, completely unperturbed their alpha had just chastised them. Binkor tipped the spirits back in one practiced swallow, then settled himselfin the chair across the rough-hewn table from me.
“Some say the day is barely begun, others say it’s not yet ended,” he said with a grin, which showed me a mouth with only half its teeth.
“How may we serve you this fine day, Thrane?” Acrid green smoked drifted up from Bandrin’s pipe, stinging my eyes.
I could barely believe I was about to trust my deepest fears to these two halfwits, but if they didn’t know what was happening to me, no one would. Now I wished I hadn’t been so hasty in refusing Binkor’s spirits.
“I’ve been having…dreams,” I started, uncertain and hating myself for it. “Dreams I’m planning a great battle from my command post in the Hill compound. I speak of killing my enemies in their sleep, but I no longer have enemies I could sneak up on like that. The Terrans live safely behind their walls.”
Bandrin’s pipe dangled in his limp hand, his mouth agape. His gaze slid slowly to his companion, who looked equally as shocked by my statement. They’d probably never heard an alpha open up so much, which meant they just lost all respect for me.
Fuck!
“Never mind,” I muttered, nearly knocking over the table as I stood to leave. “Just a stupid dream—”
“Wait!” Bandrin cried.
Normally, having a subordinate shout a command at me would have resulted in a very unpleasant experience for the man in question, but the urgency in his voice quenched even a flicker of any anger before it could ignite.
“Are you hearing…” Bandrin glanced at Binkor, who nodded encouragement. “Voices? While awake?”
Blood drained from my face, only to be rerouted to my quickly beating heart. “How did you know?” I whispered.
“We’ve been hearing them for some time; quite clearly too. And they talk about killing and war and ambushes.”
“Until you came, we thought…” Binkor chewed on his lip and ducked his head in shame. “We thought we were simply imbibing too much.”
I pointedly glanced at the pile of empty reet spirit barrels in a corner, and the bunches of butterweed drying in the rafters.
“Ya think? Regardless, it appears the two things aren’t connected. A good alpha can’t risk numbing any of his senses with that stuff, yet I’m hearing the voices too.”
I slumped back into my chair and stared at the men. Together, we’d just discovered something. Something important, of that I was sure — but…what, exactly?
“Is it possible the three of us are just imagining the same things?” I asked, unsure whether I hoped it to be true or not.
“You mean a shared delusion?” Binkor asked, pouring himself another drink, then passing the cup to me.
I haven’t enjoyed spirits in any amount for many years, and after tipping the drink back, I realized I still didn’t enjoy it. “Blech! And yes, a shared delusion.”
“Impossible,” Bandrin said, then stood to pace around the tiny hut the shamans shared.
The man had been the runt of the village as a whelp, until my father’s shaman had taken him on as an apprentice. He’d proven himself to be a talented healer, but I didn’t fully trust him. Hell, I didn’t trust anyone who claimed to be in touch with the spirits of dead Wargs. None of that mattered now though. I was just glad he’d taken hi
s smelly, matted hair farther away from my nose.
“You see, Thrane, for a group of people to share a delusion, they have to actually…you know, talk about it. That theory might have applied to Binkor and myself, if we hadn’t just assumed it was our over-enjoyment of intoxicants, but we’ve never mentioned it to anyone else. Now you come along, reporting you’re hearing the same exact conversations? No, I’m afraid this is something else entirely.”
I looked between the two men, exasperated at the lack of explanation. “What?” I snapped.
“I honestly don’t know,” Bandrin said.
“Fuck!” I slammed my fist on the table, frustrated at racking my brain for an answer which apparently wouldn’t come.
“It’s so weird,” Binkor mused quietly. “It’s almost as if we’re all three hearing thoughts. And judging from what you’ve told us, we’re hearing the same thoughts.” He then sat up, his eyes sparkling with excitement. “Far be it from me to ask my alpha to disclose any attack plans he might have, but…are you planning any attacks?”
“Sadly, no,” I said with a sigh.
“Can you think of anyone who might be planning an attack? On enemies he despises? Enemies he wants to wipe out of existence?”
Understanding slammed into me. If I’d been standing, I would have fallen over from the force of it. “Yes! But…how?”
The shamans looked as puzzled as I felt.
“We have to talk to Markon and Solan,” I said, jumping up. “I don’t care how I’m reading a Terran general’s mind, I don’t want it to stop!”
14
ARLYNN
Since the merge, the population of the village had exploded overnight. With no empty huts to spare, I’d invited Nell, Lysandra and Teah to stay with me until we sorted out where they’d live on a more permanent basis. It made for a cramped living situation, but it didn’t bother me, and I knew they were so relieved to be out of the Training Center, they would have happily slept in the dirt outside. I could definitely relate.
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