Every pair of eyes turned to Victoria, watchful and wary, including the hunter's. Sawyer regarded her, struggling and failing to keep emotion from his face. His hatred burned in his eyes, but his handsome features held surprise and confusion. The scent of his fear betrayed him. She moved toward him, grappling with the dilemma he presented. Alive, he represented a danger to them all, but there was no way she could kill him after Daniel’s request to spare his life.
Victoria forced herself to look at the faces around her. Their weary expressions reflected exhaustion that bordered on defeat. Every member of the pack had experienced the loss of someone loved and cherished—Sylvie, a sister; Paul, a brother and nephew; Morena, her parents and an older brother; Sophia's mate had died in Phoenix alongside Victoria's mother and father. Of course, they were pack, family, and drew strength from each other.
The pack formed the foundation of werewolf society with the most powerful wolves holding the highest ranks. A complex set of factors influenced status: age, sex, birthright, physical prowess, cunning, and natural dominance. The dynamics were more complicated when mate bonds formed and children were born, bringing humans and non-shifting wolves into the fold.
The hunters had decimated her pack and left the survivors to scramble to stay alive. Out of the chaos, Victoria had emerged as Alpha, the acknowledged leader. While Rand or Paul might have challenged her, they had not, out of loyalty to her parents and trust in her abilities. The bonds of affection carried more weight than ambition.
"Why does he get to live? It isn't fair." Morena stood with her arms folded across her chest. Her expression conveyed anger and fear.
Sylvie put an arm around the girl's shoulders and hugged her. "We don't murder prisoners, Morie."
Morena turned her face into Sylvie's shoulder and shed tears. "Mercy doesn't make sense. As long as he's alive, he'll never stop hunting us. He'll bring his father and the others next time. We should kill him now."
Sylvie stroked Morena's short dark hair. "Shush, sweetie. Mercy is what separates us from them."
Victoria crouched before Sawyer to look him in the face. He tilted his head, tossing his dirty blond shoulder-length hair back, and returned her stare. His hatred remained but no longer appeared so blatant. His eyes were wary, and he looked more than a little confused.
Barrett men shared a powerful family resemblance: long limbs, muscular frames, and classical features in the Greco-Roman tradition. They were handsome, but not pretty, truly masculine. Although in his mid-twenties, Sawyer's lashes were long and thick, lending him the false innocence of childhood. She found the resemblance to his older brother uncanny and painful.
She faced one hell of a dilemma. Allowing him to live when the pack needed to cover their tracks might constitute a huge error in judgment. With his knowledge, the others could pinpoint their exact numbers and last known location with accuracy. Like wolves, hunters were most effective when working in groups.
A sigh escaped her lips. "Thirty years of peace between our people wiped out overnight."
"Your people, as you call them, started this. Mine will finish it." His stoic mask dropped, and he bristled with hatred, a heart full of unreasoning rage. He understood that she had spared his life and saved it; still, it made no difference.
She cocked her head and leaned in closer to monitor his scent. Deceit caused physical fluctuations in the body, changes in pheromone levels her sensitive nose could detect. She could literally smell a lie.
"Where's your father, Sawyer? Why isn't he with you?"
Sawyer's jaw hardened. "He's close."
Victoria's nostrils flared, inhaling his scent. He stank of deceit. "You're lying. I think you're alone, except for those two locals who were with you. Your attack was sloppy. You didn't bring backup. Did you come after us without your father's approval?"
He made no response, but his head jerked and betrayed him. Victoria smelled the truth of the matter. His reckless pursuit of revenge had led to his current predicament. No one was close enough to save him if she decided to kill him.
A thin sigh escaped her. "You can relax. I'm not going to hurt you."
That proud head bowed forward, and his tense body relaxed a little. Thinking their conversation over, Victoria started to stand, but he seized her arm.
His voice emerged as a croak, so rough it hurt to hear him speak. "There's something I want to ask you... I need to know..."
The confusion and hurt in his voice got to her.
"What?" she asked.
"What the hell happened back there?" He jerked his head toward the building. "Was that Daniel's—"
"Spirit?" she asked. "Yes, it was."
He stared at her. His features hardened with suspicion. "How do I know that wasn't a trick?"
A harsh laugh escaped her, but she cut it short. She wrenched free of his grasp. "Why bother?"
Sawyer gazed at her with agony in his eyes. Beneath that savage hatred, he suffered the same as she: a hurting heart, a wounded soul.
"Why did you murder my brother?"
Victoria stared at him with pity. "You're a fool, Sawyer Barrett. I never hurt Daniel. You're only alive because your brother wanted it. Daniel was my lover. My best friend."
Sawyer was rendered speechless.
Victoria punched him hard enough to knock him out, and he slumped to the ground, unconscious.
Victoria turned to her wolves. "Paul, give me a hand with Rand's body. We'll have to add him to the fire since we don't have time for a proper sendoff."
"What about him?" Sylvie asked with a gesture toward Sawyer.
"Tie him up," Victoria said. Gathering her power, she rallied the others to action. "Let's go. Jake Barrett can't be far."
To read the rest, purchase HUNGER MOON.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Melissa Snark is a paranormal and romance author with a particular interest in werewolves and Norse mythology. Her Loki's Wolves series combines elements of both in a contemporary fantasy setting. She lives in Northern California with her husband, three children and a glaring of cats.
Visit Melissa at
http://www.melissasnark.com/ or http://www.thesnarkology.com/
Join Melissa Snark's newsletter to be notified of new releases.
BOOKS BY MELISSA SNARK
A Cat's Tale
Learning to Fly
The Mating Game
Loki's Wolves
The Child Thief (A short story)
A Brother by Choice (A short story)
Valkyrie's Vengeance (Book 0)
Hunger Moon (Book 1)
Battle Cry (Book 2)
Wolf's Cross (Book 3)
Blood Brothers (Book 4) to be released Sept. 2016
REVISION LOG
5/24/2016
Updated front/back matter.
3/29/2016
New cover by Ravenborn Covers.
2/27/2016
Corrected a misspelling.
1/6/2016
Updated front/back matter.
Table of Contents
VALKYRIE'S VENGEANCE
DEDICATION
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
PRAISE FOR VALKYRIE'S VENGEANCE
COPYRIGHT
CHAPTER ONE
CHAPTER TWO
CHAPTER THREE
CHAPTER FOUR
CHAPTER FIVE
CHAPTER SIX
CHAPTER SEVEN
CHAPTER EIGHT
CHAPTER NINE
CHAPTER TEN
CHAPTER ELEVEN
REVISION LOG
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