by Sky Winters
“How do you know all this?” Johnny asked suspiciously.
“Because ever since I was born I’ve been able to sense things about people, it's like I was born deaf, but nature found a way to compensate,” Savannah explained. “I feel more than a normal person can, as a result, which means I can feel that something is wrong…with the pack, and I want to know how that'll affect my family. And the thing is, my family doesn’t just include Xander, the baby, and myself, anymore--my family includes you, too. My family is the pack, and I can’t be kept in the dark about it.”
Gordy glanced at Johnny, but his eyes were fixed firmly on Savannah. He took a deep breath and leaned back against the sofa, and she knew his resolve had weakened.
“All right, fine,” he said, after a long pause.
“Johnny!” Gordy said.
“She’s going to find out anyway,” Johnny said impatiently. “Xander can’t control everything. He’s going to need to make sure Savannah has enough information to protect herself.”
Gordy fell silent, and Johnny turned his eyes to Savannah. “Dominic came back into town last night,” Johnny said, “and he found out what happened. He knows that you’re pregnant. He knows that your union with Xander will be allowed, and he also knows he has no chance of taking the pack because of it.”
“The man in my vision,” Savannah whispered under her breath.
“What?”
Savannah shook her head. “Nothing,” she said. “Go on.”
“After you and Xander had the meeting with the elders, it created some tension…among the pack,” Johnny said. “Xander isn't alpha yet, and the bonds that hold us together have not yet been cemented. The news of your pregnancy was…unexpected, to say the least.”
“What happened after we left the clearing?” Savannah asked.
“There was a…discussion–"
“There was an argument,” Gordy corrected.
“Marissa,” Savannah said instinctively, and both boys looked at her in surprise.
“Did you sense that, too?” Johnny asked.
Savannah shook her head. “No. Some things don’t require heightened senses to figure out. I knew Marissa wouldn't be happy about any of this.”
“We all knew she wouldn’t be happy,” Johnny continued, “but no one thought she'd have this strong of a reaction to the news.”
“What do you mean?” Savannah asked, feeling her worry grow. “What did she do?”
Johnny took a deep breath. “After you and Xander left, Marissa got into a shouting match with the elders. She felt they should have opposed your union with Xander, regardless. She believed they were letting you off the hook on a technicality. She raged and fought with all the elders, but mostly with her mother.”
“What happened?”
“She was told that the decision had been made, and that she'd have to bend to the will of the council and accept that Xander would eventually marry you.”
Acceptance. It was a hard thing to accomplish, especially when your beliefs, your hopes, your needs burned so brightly. Accepting something you did not want or desire was, in some cases, an insurmountable task.
“What did she do?” Savannah asked again.
“She left,” Johnny said, but there was a dull hollowness to his words that conveyed more than was obvious.
“She left?” Savannah repeated.
“She left the pack,” Gordy said.
Savannah looked first at one of the men, and then the other. “I don’t understand,” she said, shaking her head. “She left--does that mean you have to find her now?”
“You don’t understand,” Johnny said patiently. “It’s not that we lost her, it’s that she's chosen to break with us…with the pack.”
“How can she do that?”
“She can do that only if there's a suitable alternative left for her,” Johnny explained.
“But there is none,” Savannah said. "Is there?"
“There actually is,” Johnny said. “He came into town last night.”
It took Savannah a moment to decipher what he was saying. When she did, she felt her body grow cold. “No,” she whispered. “She didn't.”
Gordy nodded. “That’s exactly what she did,” he said.
“She left the pack to join with…Dominic?”
Johnny nodded. “Yes.” His face was creased with worry.
“What does this mean?” Savannah asked.
“It means we're in trouble,” Johnny said without emotion. “It means there’s a battle on the horizon, and we're no longer a united front.”
Chapter Four
“Wait,” Savannah said, scrambling to understand. “You still have the whole pack. Marissa and Dominic are just two against many.”
“Marissa knows all of the pack secrets,” Gordy said with venom. “She can tell Dominic all of our weaknesses, and they'd be able to destroy us without even trying.”
“I still don’t understand,” Savannah said. “How is that even possible?”
Johnny sighed deeply. “Our history plays an important role here,” he said, “and sometimes, a legend is just history in disguise--”
Savannah's instincts kicked in. “The Wolf Prince,” she said.
Both Gordy and Johnny looked at her in amazement. “You know the legend of the wolf prince?” Gordy asked.
Savannah nodded “Yes. I may not be a shifter, but that doesn’t mean I’m not interested in learning about you and your history, especially since it’ll be my child’s history, too.
"I know the legend of the wolf prince. Kato, the only wolf-child of Mira and Kian, fell in love with a human girl, named Alais. They wanted to leave Grey Mountain and travel the world together, but first, Alais needed the power to transform into a wolf.”
“So they went to a woods witch,” Gordy said, taking up the narrative when Savannah paused. “They made a deal with her: Alais would be transformed into a wolf, but both she and Kato would be bound to Grey Mountain. Since they could never leave, they could never be truly free.”
Johnny turned to Savannah. “Dominic's a lone wolf. He has no ties to anybody, which means he can move freely. Alone, he was outnumbered and weak, but now that he's made an alliance with Marissa, all that has changed.”
“How?”
“Marissa’s ties are to this land, to Grey Mountain, or whatever you want to call it. Her bond is with this land, and by leaving her pack and aligning herself with Dominic, she's given him powers in this territory, our territory. Anyone who allies themselves with Marissa and Dominic can enter Grey Mountain and fight for control.”
“You’re saying Marissa has the power to open a door that allows Dominic and anyone who follows him to pass through?” Savannah asked struggling to keep up.
“She’s already opened the door,” Johnny said, sounding hard. “We have no doubt Dominic's amassing a pack of his own to contest us for power in these lands.”
“That sounds like--”
“It’s going to come to a battle,” Johnny said.“We’ll have no choice but to fight.”
“What does that mean?” Savannah asked.
“If we lose, all those loyal to the root pack will be destroyed,” Gordy said slowly.
“You mean they'll kill us?” Savannah asked, horrified.
“Land is sacred and holy,” Johnny said. “It has power, and it will not bend to the will of another pack so long as any one member of the root pack is still living.”
“There must be someone that can help us,” Savannah said. “Isn’t there some way we can protect the pack?”
“None that we can see,” Johnny said. “All we can do at this point is to wait--”
“For what?” Savannah asked.
“For them to make the first move.”
“That’s it?” Savannah asked. “You’re just going to sit around and wait for their move? You’re not going to do anything?”
Johnny and Gordy exchanged another glance, and Savannah felt her patience evaporate under all the stress. “Stop look
ing at each other and talk to me,” Savannah demanded. She felt a personal responsibility to the pack, considering she was the reason for the break in the first place. “There has to be something we can do. We can ask for help--”
“From whom?” Gordy demanded. “Other packs won't get involved. This isn’t their battle, and they cannot stray from their territories.”
“A witch, then,” Savannah said.
The expressions on Johnny and Gordy’s faces changed. They looked startled at first, but then their eyes visibly narrowed. “We do not involve ourselves with witches,” Johnny said darkly.
“Why not?”
“They are our enemies,” Gordy said, as if it was enough to explain everything.
Frustrated, Savannah stood. “Xander was ready to ask for a witch’s help yesterday, in the clearing,” she reminded them.
“Because he was desperate,” Johnny said. He also stood. “And that desperation temporarily blinded him, but if he'd been thinking straight, he would have realized that seeking a witch's help is like shooting yourself in the foot--it won't work.”
“Why not?” Savannah demanded.
“Because a witch brings nothing but destruction and betrayal,” Johnny said. “You may marry Xander one day, and you may bear him children, and become a part of the pack in some small way, but do not forget that you are not a shifter. You do not understand our ways, our beliefs, and our traditions. You cannot assume that you know what’s best here.”
Savannah fell silent, but her anger burned palpably beneath the surface. Her fear rose with every passing moment, and at the pack’s insistence on doing nothing, which was starting to weigh heavily on her.
She felt a sting pass through her stomach, and her hands immediately dropped to her belly.
“Are you okay?” Johnny asked, interpreting her gesture.
“I’m fine,” Savannah said quickly, and she left them in the hall to move into the bedroom where she closed the door behind her, and sat down. She took deep breaths, trying to force her fear down in order to think of a clear way forward.
The dark feeling in the pit of her belly had cemented itself there, and Savannah knew that the foreboding she had felt yesterday had been warning her of this very moment. She closed her eyes, and willed a miracle to manifest, so that she could, in some way, help decide the outcome of the looming battle.
“Savannah?” Xander said, his voice was worried and anxious as he walked through the door. Savannah sat up and Xander rushed to her bedside. “Are you all right?”
She nodded quickly. “I’m fine,” she said. “Physically, I’m fine.”
He looked at her carefully, his hand cupped at the side of her face. “What did Johnny and Gordy tell you?”
“The truth,” Savannah replied. “They told me everything.”
Xander shook his head in frustration. “I told them to leave that to me.”
“I’m not a child,” Savannah snapped. She pushed his hand away from her cheek. “Stop treating me like one. I deserve to know what’s happening.”
“I know that,” Xander said firmly. “I’m not trying to keep anything from you, I was just trying to make sure you understand what’s happening.”
“I do,” Savannah nodded. “Marissa betrayed all of you. You defended her yesterday. You said you knew her. You said she'd never harm us, but she already has.”
“I guess I underestimated her.” Xander sighed. “And that was my fault, but I don’t think she’s thinking clearly. She was angry yesterday, she was hurt, and bitter, and she made a rash decision–"
“Are you actually defending her?” Savannah demanded.
“I’m trying to understand her,” Xander said quickly, “so I can figure out how to stop this before it starts.”
Savannah shook her head at Xander in disbelief. “It’s already started Xander,” she said in a heavy voice. “She’s already left the pack. She's already aligned herself with Dominic. Johnny and Gordy told me what that means.”
Xander looked down at her and sighed. “I know it looks bad right now--”
“Are they really going to contest your claim on these lands?” Savannah asked.
Xander sighed. “I think so.”
“What chance do they have of winning?”
Xander’s eyes reflected his conflicting emotions. Savannah knew he needed comforting, but she was too far gone in worry to give him any at that particular moment. “Tell me.”
“I don’t know,” Xander said at last. “The town Dominic's from has a pack of its own.”
“Wait,” Savannah said,“Dominic’s town has a pack of its own?”
“Yes.”
“You just said Dominic's been a lone wolf with no ties to any pack.”
“He is.”
Savannah shook her head in frustration. “I don’t get it. If he was born into a town with a root pack, then shouldn’t he automatically be a part of that pack?”
“That's usually the case,” Xander said, nodding. “Which is why this situation is unique. You remember I told you my father had an affair with Dominic’s mother?”
Savannah nodded. “I remember.”
“Dominic’s mother was a part of the root pack in Mosley, this other village. She had an affair with my father, and adultery is not our way. There were consequences for my father. He was removed from the pack, and his authority was taken from him. The same thing happened to Dominic’s mother.”
“You mean lone wolves are just wolves that have been banished from their root packs?” Savannah asked, shocked.
Xander nodded. “Yes. Usually a banished wolf will move from his or her town, but Dominic’s mother didn’t move very far away.”
“That’s why he can come into Grey Mountain at all,” Savannah said, “because he was an outcast.”
“Yes.”
Savannah looked at Xander. “You know that isn’t fair--he was a child. He shouldn’t have been banished because of the actions of his parents.”
“I agree,” Xander said, nodding, “but the alternative is to separate a child from his banished parent, which an elder would never do. They felt it was far kinder to allow outcasts to take their children and build new a life for themselves elsewhere.”
Savannah sighed deeply. Her head began to spin. It was a lot to digest in such a short space of time, and there were still things she needed to know. “Johnny said that Dominic could amass followers and form a pack of his own--how is that possible?”
Xander sighed. “Because Dominic was not banished himself. The ruling was not cast on him, it was cast on his mother and father. He still has alpha-blood in his veins, and alpha-blood is sacred, which means he can take power if he fights for it, and if he has wolves who are willing to follow him.”
“That means they can choose to join him,” Savannah said slowly.
“Yes.”
“How likely is that?” Savannah asked.
“We don’t know yet,” Xander said, “but Marissa and Dominic haven’t been spotted for hours--I don’t think they’re in Grey Mountain anymore.”
“But they'll come back.”
“Yes, they will.”
“And when they do, they might have a small army with them.”
Xander’s eyes were far away and troubled. “I’m going to make sure it doesn’t come to that, if I can help it.”
“How can you make sure of that?”
“Because Marissa made a mistake,” Xander said with conviction, “and she’s going to realize that eventually.”
Savannah stood up and pulled her hand from Xander’s grip. “When are you going to realize that Marissa's made a choice?" she said. "She's betrayed you and your pack, and the sooner you accept that, the easier it'll be for you to figure out a way to fight them.”
Xander was about to say something when they noticed Johnny and Gordy at the door. They'd obviously been listening to them argue. Xander’s eyes locked onto Johnny’s.
“I hate to say it, Xander,” Johnny said, “but I think Savannah’s rig
ht: we’ve lost Marissa. We need to start thinking about battle strategies.”
Xander shook his head as though he wasn't having any of it.
Savannah felt the black hole in her stomach grow larger and more unruly. “Listen to Johnny,” she pleaded. “The threat is real--I felt it before you did. The vision I had right before the pack call? It was of Dominic.”
Xander looked up at Savannah with a start. “You said it wasn’t clear. You said you didn’t know who it was.”
“I do now,” Savannah said. “I had that vision for a reason‒it’s a warning, it has to be. You need to start thinking of ways to fight this, to fight them.”
Xander groan in frustration. “I know,” he said distractedly. “I know.”
Savannah watched him struggle, feeling her resolve cement itself inside her. Her hands fell onto her belly, and she knew she couldn’t rely on anyone but herself. She needed to make sure her child was protected.
A plan began to take shape in her head. She needed to seek out the help she needed, but she knew that if she told anyone of her plan they'd likely take steps to stop her.
It was time to take matters into her own hands. Savannah knew--it was time to visit the woods witch of Grey Mountain.
Chapter Five
Xander took Savannah back home that day and then left almost immediately to confer with the elders. Savannah waited till she could no longer sense the heady perfume of his scent before going into the house in search of her parents.
“Mom?” she called. “Dad?”
“There are you,” her mother said, surprised. “We were wondering where you were.”
“I just went out for a walk,” Savannah said casually. “It’s beautiful up here in the mornings.”
“Let me know the next time,” her father said, “and I’ll join you.”
“Sounds great.” Savannah nodded trying not to sound too distracted. “Umm… I have a question, actually.”
“Hmm…sounds suspicious,” her father teased. “What’s the question?”
“I was wondering about my car,” she said. “I was wondering when we could go pick it up.”
