WOLF (Wolf River Book 1)

by Alaska Angelini

  “What?”

  A smile pulled at Caleb’s lips. “Morton didn’t turn her, Alex, I did. And everything I did was for a reason. I would have told you this before, but you were too hostile. You weren’t ready. There was still lessons for you to learn.”

  My head shook. “That doesn’t make sense. You were in human form when you were with Erin that night.”

  “When I cut her? Was I? Did you see me come up from behind her? I know she didn’t. She was too busy staring at the window, terrified at what she had witnessed. Even when I returned to human form and eventually helped her stand, she stayed in a daze, staring for a good ten minutes. She knew it was you. It put her into a shock and I took advantage of that. I would have liked to get it over with a hell of a lot earlier, but you just wouldn’t leave her alone. Not that I expected you to after you ran across her wrecked car. Still, I couldn’t change around you. You would have known and it would have ruined everything.”

  My lips separated as I tried to piece everything together.

  “I need someone to help me regulate this town. Erin is it. The sheriff is out of control, but I can’t take him and his men out on my own. I need her. And I need you, too.”

  “But … you killed Gregory. You killed that expert. I heard everything, Caleb!”

  A hard expression slid into place. “Then you know I needed to say and do what I had to at the time. Did you not think I didn’t know you would be outside of Gregory’s house? That you wouldn’t protect her? You will never understand what it is to step up and take control of a species, Alex. You won’t, because as your maker, I will do that for you. In the meantime, we take care of ourselves. Everyone except the true victims were threats. Gregory wouldn’t have stopped until he exposed what we are. The sheriff and his unstable deputies are liabilities. You, me, and a handful of others are the only ones to be trusted if we’re to survive. Do you want your happy life with Erin?”

  “You know I do.”

  “Then let’s go find your girl and begin a new era of Wolf River. One our families don’t have to be afraid of. Let’s fade out the nightmare we’ve created and slip back into the legends we were meant to be.”

  Chapter 33

  Erin

  What had started out as temptation to explore the outside with my new vision, turned into a walk my wolf couldn’t resist. The long red nightgown I wore was wet from the snow and torn in places along the bottom from foliage, but I didn’t care as I stared up through the trees. There were so many sounds. So many smells. It fascinated me to see the world through a new light. And to see it at all with the way the last few days played out … there was a gratefulness there.

  When I awoke, I expected to be a monster. A killer focused only on creating mayhem against the humans I’d spent my life trying to protect. But I didn’t feel like that right now. For the first time since I had realized my fate, I was at peace with the outcome. My wolf lingered just in the background, but she was oddly content at the moment, just happy to be free of the cage that had driven her crazy. My bad blood didn’t seem so bad.

  Wolves trailed behind me as I circled around to head back home. Their presence was a comfort. I often found myself trailing my fingers down the length of the gray wolf’s coat as he stayed the closest. Communicating with them had been automatic. I felt their thoughts. Their energy. It traveled through my mind and blood as if we were one. I didn’t even have to put sentences together to express my questions or emotions. Everything just was. They read me as good as I read them. The animals I once feared more than anything were no longer a threat. They were a part of me now. It was another piece of the puzzle that fit the new person I was. For who’d I’d be if Alex and I could figure out what to do about Caleb and the other werewolves determined to kill me.

  Just the thought brought clarity to what I was doing. I blinked through my slight fog still in my mind. The effects were still here, just not threatening. I took in the woods around me and shook my head. I shouldn’t be here. If Alex woke up early, he was going to be so upset with me. I wasn’t far from the house, but far enough away that if something happened, I might not make it back in time. Plus, I was with the wolves. He didn’t understand them. Or want to, for that matter. I would just have to show him and make him change his mind. They protected me just as much as he did and I liked that. I didn’t depend on their presence, but knowing they were with me brought an ease.

  My boot sunk through the snow as I stepped in a hole. Coldness embraced up to my knee and I threw my weight forward to trudge on. Four steps forward and I blinked past the strange scent. She stirred within, analyzing the smell that made her uncomfortable.

  “Come on,” I whispered to the gray wolf. I didn’t want to know what it was that I was picking up on. It’d only be trouble, whether it was food or foe.

  I increased the pace, trying to hold my breath as much as I could. My pulse was hitting into my chest so hard. It only turned harder when the wolves began to slip off to disappear into the dense trees around us. I tried to tune into their energy, but I was so worked up, I couldn’t focus. Panic was taking me over and with it, she was winning. My wolf didn’t want to be afraid. She wanted a fight. She wanted blood, something I’d denied her up until this point.

  The lookout rested up ahead and I glanced over my shoulder at the weird energy that was getting closer. Unrecognizable voices were beginning to hum in the distance. I bit my lip trying to decide whether to wait it out up there or continue on. No. I couldn’t stop. I just had to move faster.

  The forest cleared and I passed the lookout tree, sliding to a stop at the evil vibes that prickled against my skin. It was a werewolf. The alarms rung in my head like sirens. He’d get me before I made it home. I’d seen how fast those things were. I had felt my own power last night.

  I gripped to the ladder, climbing up into the hole that led to the deck. It was covered in a good foot and a half of snow. I placed the tip of my boot on the edge and jumped toward the middle, shoveling the snow in a cubby around me so I could try to get as low as possible. It wouldn’t hide me from view if someone came up the ladder, but if they were walking below or if they peeked in, maybe they wouldn’t see me? Fuck. They’d see my footprints that led right to the outlook.

  Even as I saw my mistake in my head, I felt myself project it to the grey wolf below. I doubted he’d be able to do anything, but I wanted him to know my predicament. If something happened…he’d have to show Alex. Alex would have to know.

  “Hurry up Logan, you’re falling behind. We ain’t got all day.”

  “I’m trying, Sheriff. I had to text my brother. I’m missing dinner for this shit.”

  The voices had me burrowing down even further. They were still a bit away. How much, I wasn’t sure. They weren’t my fear, it was the werewolf growing closer at incredible speed. His aura went beyond threatening. He was hunting, and I knew exactly who he was trying to find.

  “Alex. Alex, please.”

  The fear had the cold sinking in all the way to my bones. It was conflicting with the heat pouring from my skin. My wolf was getting angrier. Where she saw me as cowardice, I tried to convince her that this was the smart thing. I wasn’t ready to fight. I didn’t even know how well I could. Alex didn’t seem to have a problem manhandling me last night. He was faster, stronger. I had no doubts this one would be, too.

  Birds burst from the trees overhead and I inhaled deeply, holding my breath, while I squeezed my fists, listening for the creature’s approach. Snow began to crunch, the growling, much closer. At the heavy pants, I completely froze. He had to be almost right below me. God, he was going to find me. I knew he was.

  “What do you got, Zach?” The sheriff’s voice was louder. From his words, I knew he was within seeing distance. From the grunt that followed, he was talking to the werewolf.

  More crunching went left, and then right. A deep rumble echoed from all around and I tried to imagine what was happening. The wolves? It had to be. There were too many different tones. I wante
d to see for myself, but I was too afraid to tap into the energy for fear that the werewolf was too.

  “Get out of here!” Logan’s voice came through from only a few feet away. I stared into the cloudy sky listening as he continued. “Look what those damn wolves did. I don’t even see her tracks anymore. Damn scavengers. They’re so bad around these parts. I can’t stand being here.”

  “They’re just wolves, Logan. Ignore them.”

  “They’re vultures. I can’t even enjoy a meal in peace without one coming in trying to forage my food. I hate those bastards. More so when they’re packed like this.”

  The sheriff laughed. “They guard the girl. Why do you think they’re reacting as they are? If they didn’t have something to hide, they wouldn’t be within twenty feet of Zach. What does that tell you?”

  A scream exploded from my throat as a dark brown werewolf jumped to grip the railing and swung himself over. I skittered back, stopping only when the barrier prevented me from going further. My ribs were cracking, hindering me from escaping like I wanted.

  “Alex!” I put everything into my yell, praying he’d hear me.

  “Zach, stop playing with your food. Get her!”

  The sheriff’s voice faded from my hearing as my muscles and bones flared and exploded free. I wasn’t trying to fight my change anymore. If I were going to have any chance of surviving, I didn’t have a choice.

  Light flickered, as I clawed across the deck. The werewolf was coming closer, his moves slow as he watched me. Material shredded from my body and growls tore form me as I began to push from the wood to stand. Before I could get to my knees, weight slammed into me with so much force that I felt the banister bust to pieces at my side. I was falling, flailing and clawing at the wolf who held his own weapons latched into my sides. We hit the ground and oxygen was nonexistent as I landed with him on top of me. We immediately started rolling. I twisted and turned, pushing at him with my feet.

  “That’s it! Get her!”

  Drool fell from his mouth, sliding across my cheek while he snapped toward my face. Fear didn’t exist anymore as blood became my main focus. His attack and power pushed my wolf to the brink of her abilities. I kicked and bit, slicing into his shoulder with my sharp teeth. A howl of pain filled the air and he reared back catching me across the face with the back of his hand. The hit left sound wavering and I was rolling from the force. Dizziness took over and my vision was blurred. I blinked rapidly, seeing him flying through the air right for me. My arms and legs shot up, bracing for the impact. For the death I knew that would suddenly follow. Color blurred from all sides and I watched as wolves flew in from all directions, knocking him off to the side.

  Yelling erupted from behind and an all too familiar roar had me turning just in time to see two werewolves leaping for the sheriff and Logan. Blood and screams penetrated the air as Alex tore into the sheriff’s throat, pulling and shredding him to pieces. The brutality stirred my own wolf, making her pull even more for her mate. A shot rang through the air and Logan’s arm was ripped free of his body while the other werewolf bit down into his head even more.

  I scrambled to my feet, flying face-down as teeth embedded into my shoulder. My scream came out deep and agony jolted me to the side in time to see Zach widening his jaw to strike at me again. Wolves were still jumping on him, locking their canines into his body as they shook their heads back and forth, dislodging his tough skin in chunks. Blood poured onto my face and dripped into my mouth as I inhaled heavily through my own attack. I was clawing and gripping into his neck, holding it up with all of my strength as he tried to force his way down. My hips rocked back and forth while I did anything I could to break myself free. One minute he was gaining ground, the next, Alex was connecting with his weight and they were gone, crashing through the trees next to us. The wolves were all over them, still going after Zach as Alex tugged and twisted at his head.

  “Don’t you dare attack me.”

  The voice pushed into my head as clear as day and I knew exactly who it was. I turned, seeing the other werewolf coming up behind me.

  “How did you do that? Talk to me like this?” I could barely recall how hard it was for me and Alex.

  “I made you. Of course I can talk to you.”

  “You? But … I thought?”

  “Come on, Ms. Billings. You’re supposed to be a detective. Surely you can figure this out. You were bound to find out Alex’s past. Who better to hear it from than the one who turned him? Than the one who made you believe he was innocent to begin with?”

  “You were saying he was ... guilty.” I paused as pieces of my human self filtered in. “You played us both. Your suspicions of Alex—that was overkill. You made me feel sorry for him.”

  “I did. If you thought I was too emotionally invested, you’d turn on me, and you’d be more inclined to see him as the good guy. And you did. You took to Alex almost immediately.

  “But … the dart… Why?”

  “All Alex has ever done is hide from what he is. I needed him stronger. Like he is now. If he didn’t have a reason to fight off his need to kill you, he wouldn’t have gotten better at controlling his wolf. I knew he had feelings for you. Hell, he hasn’t left your side since I ran you off the road. Even then, I knew he’d find you. I knew I could make this work for me. And it did. Luckily for the both of you, it worked just as well.”

  “You sacrificed me because of some … what, some hunch that you could bring us all together to…” My gaze went to the sheriff and his deputies. “Stop the bad blood.” I whispered in my mind.

  “That’s right, Erin. Bad blood isn’t good for our kind. It’ll ruin everything if we can’t get it under control. And trust me, Alex killing Morton wasn’t the end of this. He’s not the only one. That’s why I need you. Why I turned you. Your past. Your history. You’re one hell of a detective, who is completely alone. You’ve had so much loss within your life. You needed us as much as we need you.”

  My head was spinning as I watched Alex head back in our direction. My brain was fighting through my continued haze. I went over Gregory’s death, over Dr. Chan’s. It had pained me to see them killed, but I also sickly understood it. And sadly, if I was forced with saving my life with Alex, my life at all, I would have pulled the trigger, myself. Maybe it was what I was now, or maybe I didn’t want to let go of what I’d found in Wolf River. Of Alex and his parents. It was my happiness and all I had.

  “What happens now?”

  Caleb shrugged. “Looks like the town is in need of a new sheriff. I could use a detective if you’re up for it.”

  “Are you really asking?”

  “Nope.”

  As Caleb slipped away, I didn’t bother to watch him leave. My eyes only stayed on one person. Alex.

  Our fairytale was just beginning. It was dark and twisted, founded in a cursed town, lined with the blood of the past. We were the monsters, and although I knew our future was uncertain, one thing was for sure. I had found love. It was real. The kind you killed—and died—for.

  The End.

  About the Author

  Alaska is an erotic BDSM author who also goes by the pen names Jennifer Salaiz and Jenny May. She lives in Wisconsin...for now. She's a dreamer, and longs for the day when her husband and kids can load up in the car and drive until their hearts’ content. Adventure and discovering new places play a huge role in Alaska's life. It drives her, and feeds the creativity of coming up with new locations for her stories.

  Within the last few years, Alaska and her family have drove across the country twice, and also drove the distance from sunny Texas to Hot California three times. Asked, if she could choose one place to permanently settle down, where it would be, Alaska laughed. "Montana, today. Tomorrow, it may be Alaska, again. I go back and forth."

  When Alaska’s not dreaming of spontaneously hitting the road to find a new place to write about, she's being a mother and wife. If you're looking to connect with her to learn more, feel free to email her at alaska_an
gelini@yahoo.com, or find her on Facebook. You can also stop by her website jennymayauthor.com.

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