Robin whirled around when a loud yowl echoed from the forest. He didn’t know that voice, but then there was a familiar snarl. Tim.
He ignored the brambles and small sticks that scratched his skin as he pushed through the undergrowth, following the fighting sounds. He was aware of Peter’s presence right behind him, which filled him with a strange sense of comfort.
It didn’t take him long to find the small clearing surrounded by high pines, with his pack and Peter’s clan gathering around three wolves and Jay.
Jay had sunk his teeth into one wolf’s throat. The wolf tried to shake Jay off, but that only seemed to encourage Jay to dig his teeth deeper.
Panting, Robin stared at Jay and the wolf he’d attacked. Why did no one attempt to interrupt their fight? No one communicated either. There were no normal forest noises—only harsh pants from the circling bystanders and the yowls and growls from Jay and his victim.
Robin searched for Tim, not comprehending why Tim didn’t interfere. He’d never allow Jay to attack anyone, except when he couldn’t do anything about it. Robin’s stomach churned when the image of Tim’s unconscious or hurt body formed in his mind.
Tim?
Get Dad to let go of me! Tim whined.
Robin’s head swiveled to the right, where he finally found Tim.
He was pressed to the ground with Ralf’s jaw fastened on his neck, keeping Tim immobile. Tim was struggling and yipping, but Ralf refused to relent.
Dad! Let Tim go so he can help Jay!
No.
Dad!
No, Robin. Jay chose to ignore all our warnings, and I’m not allowing Tim to get hurt or killed because his mate seeks revenge, Ralf replied.
But Dad—
And you’re not getting involved to prove anything. This is Thompson, he’s insane. Got it?
Robin tore his gaze away from Ralf to dart a quick glance at Peter, who had silently come up behind him. For such a huge animal, he sure could walk without making much noise if he wanted. Peter huffed, which sent his hot breath right into Robin’s neck. Instinctively he turned around, tucked his tail between his legs, and licked Peter’s muzzle, trying his best to ignore the fighting noises.
Peter, I know you can hear me. Please, I need to help Jay, and I’m counting on you to help me.
Peter pulled his head away, snorted, and with one swift motion, pushed Robin underneath his bulky frame.
Peter!
Robin’s protest went unheard in the increasing growls and barks from the other wolves. He looked through Peter’s forelegs and sucked in a deep breath. Tim had freed himself from Ralf’s grip and now attacked the wolf Jay was attached to.
It was the signal for Thompson’s helpers to engage in the fight as well.
All hell broke loose. Robin stared at the heap of moving and writhing bodies. He could barely make out who was who except for Jay, whose red fur stood out from the mass. The growls and yelps grew in their intensity and volume, almost deafening Robin.
He tried to escape Peter several times, dodging and feigning movements, but Peter thwarted each and every attempt, no matter how much Robin begged.
The were-bears and wolves reduced the circle’s size by slowly coming closer, fencing the fighting wolves in. Robin caught a glance of Shawn struggling against Will’s hold on him before he stared at the fight in front of him again.
A pained and terrified squeak sliced through the haze of fighting noises, and seconds later Tim emerged from the crowd, dragging Jay’s body with him.
Tim! Bring him to me! Robin called out. If Jay was hurt, he might be the only one able to help.
Tim came to him, laid Jay’s trembling body in front of Robin, and said, I don’t think he’s hurt too badly.
Jay whimpered and lifted his head. Jay’s flank heaved up and down way faster than usual. Gazing up at Peter, he pleaded, Please let me check on him! I promise I won’t run and try to fight.
For a moment Robin believed Peter wouldn’t let him go. Then the expression in Peter’s eyes softened and he pushed through Peter’s forelegs. Sniffing at Jay, he found a large bite wound at Jay’s flank.
To Tim he said, He lost some blood, but it’s not life threatening. Do you want me to help and quicken the healing process?
Tim looked from him to the still ongoing fight. You’ll have to shift, won’t you?
Yes.
Will Peter help me protect Jay if there’s need for it?
Robin asked Peter the same question while keeping an eye on Jay, whose shallow pants seemed to turn into more normal, albeit shaky breaths.
Peter nodded his big head in agreement.
He said yes, Robin informed his brother.
Tell him thanks and no, don’t shift now. You’d be too vulnerable.
But—
Robin, don’t. With that, Tim lowered himself to the ground. He positioned himself so he could watch the fight but also nuzzle Jay.
Not knowing what else to do, Robin lay down next to Jay’s other side. Peter stood watch right next to him, obscuring his view of the battle.
Robin flicked his ears back and forth, cringing every time one of the fighters howled in pain or outrage. The pine needle-covered ground softened the hard ground and the fresh smell dampened the overwhelming scent of blood, fear, and aggression around them.
The longer the fighting noises went on, the more Robin itched to go and help, though if he was honest with himself, the urge to fight was mostly because he didn’t want to be a coward or be seen as one. The were-bears remained standing in a circle while the members of Robin’s pack fought with Thompson and his companions.
He looked at Jay again. Despite his lack of size and muscles, Jay had attacked Walter’s murderer. If Jay could do it, Robin could do it as well.
Robin stood up, his whole body taut and ready to fight. All of a sudden, two human hands wound around his throat and dug into his fur. Surprised, Robin looked at Peter in his human form.
“I believe it’s better for me to hold you back in this form.”
Hold me back?
“Yes, or weren’t you about to join the fight?”
I…. Robin trailed off. How did you know?
“Your energy lines,” Peter replied. “Look, the fight seems to be coming to an end.”
Robin allowed Peter to pull him into his chest, which also permitted Peter to tighten his hold on Robin, then looked where Peter pointed.
The two helpers shifted into their human bodies, clutching various injuries and looking pale. Robin didn’t recognize either man. Ralf and Thompson were still at it. From the look of it, Ralf would come out of the fight as the winner. He was larger than Thompson and seemed to parry Thompson’s attacks with ease and a grace that spoke of many years of practice. Maybe his father was trying to tire Thompson out so he didn’t have to kill him?
Robin darted a quick glance toward Tim, who gazed at the scene in front of him, his ears pricked forward in alert.
There was a slight shift in air pressure around him, causing Robin to frown. Irritated, he glanced sideways, to find Jay shifting slowly. Tim seemed oblivious to what Jay was doing, so Robin called out, Tim, Jay’s shifting.
Tim’s head swiveled around, and then he too shifted and crouched next to Jay, stroking his cheek. Jay’s voice was thick with pain when he said, “Tell your father to stop.”
What? Robin blinked, not believing Jay’s words.
“Tim, tell your father to stop,” Jay said more urgently.
Tim’s expression shuttered. “Why? You were the one who took off and went straight for Thompson’s throat.”
Jay tried to push himself into a sitting position but failed. Tim caught him in his arms, cursing when Jay whimpered in pain. “Don’t do that!”
“Tim, I’m sorry, I don’t know why I ran off like that.”
“Like hell you don’t. Don’t lie to me.”
Robin’s eyes widened, and he pushed deeper into Peter’s embrace. Peter rubbed his nose into the fur at Robin’s neck, murmuri
ng, “It will be all right. Your brother is upset because he feared for Jayden’s life.”
That didn’t mean Tim’s reaction couldn’t surprise Robin. Jay’s skin turned red from the neck upward as he stared at Tim, who went even further, “What? Nothing to say to that?”
“I’m sorry?”
“Did you want to get killed? Don’t you feel you’ve got anything left here that’s worth living for?” Tim asked.
“No! That’s not it! I… wanted revenge.”
“What would that have accomplished?”
“I might have felt better, you asshole!” Jay snarled.
He pressed his hands against his injured side. It only oozed a light trickle of blood, but the wound was closing.
“Of course, why did that never cross my mind? A never-ending guilty conscience, I’m sure you’d have felt so much better,” Tim snapped.
Jay’s eyes filled with tears. “That’s why I stopped.”
“You stopped because Thompson overpowered you. He’d have killed you if it hadn’t been for my father! Stop lying to yourself!”
Jay lowered his head and pressed his forehead against Tim’s chest. Jay’s body trembled and Tim’s expression was hard and angry. Gratitude filled Robin that Tim and Jay stopped talking even though nothing was right between them at the moment.
Except for his father and Thompson, everyone else had shifted back into their human forms. Robin nudged his nose against Peter’s cheek. Let go of me so I can shift too? Please?
Peter scrutinized him until Robin added, Come on, my big bear, and show me you trust me?
Sighing, Peter pulled his arms away. Robin shifted, then reached out to cup Peter’s face in his hands. “Thank you.”
Robin turned to Jay and Tim, watching their energy lines clashing violently. This time it was Tim who blocked Jay’s efforts to bind them tighter together. He crawled over to them and touched his shoulder.
Softly, he murmured, “Let me help you?”
Jay lifted his head enough to look at Robin from wet eyes. He gave a curt nod before his gaze drifted upward, toward Tim. Robin couldn’t stand the aggression between Jay and Tim, and tentatively rested his hands on Jay’s wound.
Jay flinched and sucked in air. Robin closed his eyes to concentrate, but that only made him more aware of the ongoing fighting noises in the background. Feeling distinctively vulnerable with his closed eyes, Robin found it difficult to conjure his healing powers.
Peter had sidled up behind him. “Would you feel more comfortable if I held you? Or does it disrupt your healing power?”
“I haven’t used my healing powers very often so far, so I have no idea whether it would disturb me or not.”
“Would you like to try?” Peter asked.
“Yes.”
Peter knelt behind Robin and pulled him against his chest. Flushing, Robin mumbled, “Uh, this could be rather distracting.”
“What are you doing?” Tim asked.
“I’m trying to help Jay, but I can’t concentrate with all this noise and you giving off those crappy vibes.”
“Crappy vibes? Jay—”
“I know!” Robin interrupted. “Geez, he lost Walter and lost his mind for a few minutes but you make it all about you. Must be real love.”
“Robin!” three voices said his name in unison, all sounding equally scandalized.
Rolling his eyes, Robin snapped, “Shut up. All of you. Who knows what other powers I possess? Maybe I’m a fire wizard or can do some other cool shit. You wouldn’t want me to burn any of you accidentally.”
He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, reveling in the stunned silence he had evoked. Peter was tense at his back while Tim breathed in and out noisily. Jay was the first to crack. “I’m so glad you’re not my mate. I don’t think I could handle you.”
“Which is why you’re mated to the big softie there in front of you, and I got the cool big bear,” Robin said. “Now shut up.”
Peter chuckled, the vibrations reverberating in Robin’s body and helping him relax enough to work on Jay. In the background Thompson’s growls turned into pained yips and yelps, which could only mean Ralf came out of the fight as the winner.
Jay shifted his weight more to his other side so Robin had easier access to his injured flank. A moment later, Tim smacked a fierce kiss on Jay’s forehead, which led to a shaky exhale of breath from Jay.
It only took Robin a couple of minutes to heal Jay’s wound, though that had mostly to do with the fact that Jay helped him along. Together they were quite a formidable healing force.
“All done,” Robin said.
“Thank you. I wouldn’t have been able to close it so fast on my own.”
“I guess you’ve been distracted by someone giving you the evil eye.” Robin shrugged.
Peter pulled Robin to his feet. “Robin, that’s enough.”
“I disagree.”
“I got the message, okay?” Tim said. “No need to rub it in.”
Robin glanced at Jay’s and Tim’s energy lines, smiling in satisfaction because the lines fed each other again.
After Tim helped Jay to his feet, they walked up to the circle of people. Will stepped aside to allow them entrance. Shawn fidgeted a lot but stayed at Will’s side, scowling.
A loud, pained howl tore from Thompson’s throat just as they closed the circle again.
Thirty-Three
RALF STEPPED away from Thompson, who lay on the ground, panting. Ralf shifted, then demanded from Thompson, “Shift and explain yourself.”
Thompson growled but obeyed. His whole body was covered in bite marks, some of them already healing, some of them looking like he was in dire need of a doctor. Thompson rose to his feet.
Robin stared at the man’s energy lines, which were all black, devoid of any spark. The lines were small, some almost like flimsy threads, close to rupturing. The lines looked unhealthy, and as Robin inspected them, an icy feeling coiled in the pit of his stomach.
Peter slid one hand toward Robin’s fluttering belly, rubbing lightly. Robin rested his forehead against Peter’s right cheek, enjoying the soft feeling of Peter’s beard.
“His energy lines look… not good,” Robin whispered, unsure how to put into words what he was seeing.
“He is not a good man.”
Robin turned his gaze back to the man who had killed Walter and waited for a tidal wave of anger to crash over him. To his astonishment, nothing happened. He wasn’t angry, he didn’t feel hate, even though this man was responsible for his mother’s spinal injury. Thompson’s actions bewildered and scared him, as he simply couldn’t understand why Thompson needed to kill hybrids.
Thompson swayed on the spot, his face a mask of righteous indignation while Ralf stood close, his posture self-assured and alert. Robin envied Ralf for the quiet dominance he exuded. It had to be an alpha wolf character trait because Tim looked very much the same. Maybe a bit more worried, but that was probably because he had Jay tucked against his side.
Thompson glared at the circle of people, wolves, and were-bears surrounding him, then transferred his glare to his two companions on the ground.
“Get up!” he ordered.
The two men rose to their feet, groaning and pressing their hands against wounds that oozed blood. One of them collapsed back to the ground.
Thompson shook his head in disgust. “Loser.”
The chastised man breathed heavily and stared at his feet, shaking. Thompson’s other companion stepped closer to the man at the ground, keeping his eyes averted. Both of them smelled defeated and scared. Thompson bared his teeth and snarled at them, which raised the hairs on Robin’s body.
He changed his mind how he felt about Thompson—he was genuinely scared of the man and his attitude.
“Explain yourself,” Ralf boomed. “You were banished from our pack, and I haven’t seen or heard from you in almost twenty years. Why did you choose to come out and kill an innocent human?”
“Innocent human? Pah!” Thomps
on spat onto the ground.
Jay inhaled sharply. Tim hissed, “Don’t engage!”
Jay seemed to abide, but Robin didn’t look his way because his gaze remained firmly glued to Thompson.
“That man raised a hybrid to adulthood, and he knew what he did! He should have drowned him!”
This time Robin looked at Jay, whose face was ashen. He had his hands balled into fists, and his body seemed coiled as if he’d jump Thompson any second now. Tim dug his fingers deep into Jay’s flesh to keep him at his side. Would other people think about Peter the same way?
“So you decided to finish what he didn’t?” Ralf asked.
“I decided to finish what I started so many years go.”
“Which would be?”
Thompson straightened up and squared his shoulders before he replied in a voice that brimmed with excitement, “To clear our family’s bloodline from scum.”
Robin gazed from Thompson to Ralf to Tim and Jay. All of them wore equally puzzled expressions.
“Yeah, you didn’t know that his mother”—Thompson pointed at Jay—“was a remote relative of my father. I never told anyone about it, but a few people got wind of it. I had to do something about it.”
“Why?” Jay asked. “Why couldn’t you just leave us alone?”
Thompson’s expression hardened, and his eyes turned flinty. “And live with the shame of hybrids in my family? Not going to happen. You’re a dead man.”
“This is a very strange conversation,” Peter observed.
“Strange? Yes, we shouldn’t have to have this conversation! We wolves should stick together and kill all hybrids!” Thompson shouted, his eyes glowing feverishly.
“What would you accomplish with this inhumane action?” Peter asked.
“What would we accomplish?” Thompson’s voice soared. “We would keep our bloodline pure! We would keep our superiority!”
“The pure werewolves have never been a superior race. From what we have deduced, the mating with other shifters is a necessary evolutionary step. All hybrids possess special powers, whereas only a very small minority of pure werewolves acquire specific powers,” Peter replied. “I believe your argument is invalid.”
Secret Energy (Shifters Book 2) Page 24
