Shadow Hunt

by L. L. Raand

  Katya bowed her head. “Yes, Alpha.”

  Katya signaled to her soldiers and they drifted away. Sylvan turned back to Drake. “How is Torren?”

  “She hasn’t shown any signs of waking.” Drake shook her head. “I just don’t know what that means. She could be healing. She might be too weak to heal.”

  “Help is almost here.”

  Drake’s expression was grave. “Good.”

  Five minutes passed as slowly as an hour, but finally a Rover pulled around the corner and stopped beside them. Sophia jumped out with her med kit and ran toward their vehicle. Drake pushed the doors open and she climbed in.

  “I’m glad to see you,” Drake said.

  Sophia glanced at Torren. “What happened?”

  “Multiple deep punctures in the neck,” Drake said. “I don’t know if there’s any systemic poisoning, but she’s lost a lot of blood and hasn’t been responsive for the last half hour or so.”

  “Max,” Sylvan said, turning to the front, “let’s go.”

  Sophia said, “You are injured, Alpha. Let me—”

  “No,” Sylvan said. “Just some burns. They can wait. See to Torren.”

  Sophia hesitated, then nodded. “Yes, Alpha.”

  As Drake filled her in, Sophia pulled out intravenous lines and catheters and began inserting them into Torren’s arms. “There’s not a lot I can do here except resuscitate her with fluids and cleanse the wounds.”

  “That will help,” Drake said. “If there are toxins in the wounds, diluting them may give her the ability to heal.”

  Together they irrigated the punctures and bandaged them. As they worked, the edges of the wounds slowly drew closer.

  Misha, who still held Torren’s hand, murmured, “I think she’s getting stronger.”

  “Talk to her,” Sophia said, sending Misha an encouraging smile. “Your strength will be hers.”

  Drake said, “When she wakes, she’ll require food to shift. Do you know what she needs?”

  “I know what to get her,” Misha said. “I brought her a tray many times when she first arrived—I’ll fix something as soon as we get to the Compound. But she’s so weak.”

  Sophia said gently, “I think the only thing that can heal Torren is Torren…and you.”

  Katya’s escort left them at the border of Pack land, and fifteen minutes later, Max pulled into the Compound and drove up to the infirmary.

  “I’ll take her,” Max said. He lifted Torren out, and he and Misha hurried inside. A moment later Elena appeared on the porch.

  “Callan just returned,” she said. “I have wounded in the treatment room. We put Torren in an exam room.”

  “I’ll check her,” Sophia said, glancing toward headquarters. “How many wounded?”

  “Three so far, two seriously.”

  “Are my parents still here?”

  “Yes. In the isolation room with the mutia. No change there…or anywhere.”

  “Thank you.”

  Sophia disappeared inside and Elena turned to Drake. “Prima, I could use your help. One of the wounded needs surgery.”

  “Of course.” Drake glanced at Sylvan. “You need attention.”

  “Soon. See to our wolves. I must see to our defenses.” Sylvan jumped down, showing no sign of pain or injury. She would not show weakness now when the Pack was under attack and anxious.

  “If you’re not back in half an hour,” Drake said in a low voice, “I will come looking for you.”

  “I promise.” Sylvan frowned as Callan hurried across the Compound to join them. “Where is Niki?”

  Callan saluted and said, “She’s in a holding cell.”

  Sylvan’s eyes sparked. “What?”

  “Voluntarily, Alpha. She—”

  “Never mind,” Sylvan growled. “I’ll find out for myself.”

  She strode off in the direction of headquarters and Drake followed Elena inside. A female Were was in the first room with a relatively minor bullet wound to the upper extremity. Adam, the medicus trainee, was cleaning the wound. “Everything all right here?”

  Adam looked over his shoulder and straightened perceptibly. “Yes, Prima. As soon as this is clean, we’ll get her to the barracks where she can shift and rest.”

  “Very good.” She continued on down the hall to the treatment area. Elena had two patients side by side on treatment tables. Gray and Acer. Tamara stood by Gray’s side, a hand on her shoulder, watching fluid run into Gray’s arm. Gray’s eyes were closed, her chest rising and falling shallowly. A bullet wound in her right shoulder was crusted with blood. “Is that the only wound?”

  “Yes,” Elena said as she opened an instrument tray. “The bullet passed through her shoulder and missed the bone. The track needs to be cleaned, but she’s stable.”

  Drake went to Acer’s side. “What about him?”

  “The bullet’s lodged near the femur, and I don’t think he can heal this until we get it out.”

  “All right. How is he otherwise?”

  “Weak, but he’s young. Once he shifts, he’ll heal. So will Gray.” Elena straightened, her gaze worried. “How can this be happening? Other wolves attacking us, trying to hurt us?”

  Drake stroked her arm softly. “Bernardo’s rule was flawed and he lost control of his Pack. They are lost, without a strong leader, without a home. For now.”

  Elena nodded. “I would feel sorry for them if not for this.”

  “Yes,” Drake said grimly. “So would I…if not for this.”

  Drake used a claw to enlarge the wound another five inches, separated the damaged muscles, and probed gently until she located the bullet track. Sliding deeper, she grasped the bullet and pulled it out. “Can you take care of the rest of this? I want to see to the Alpha’s injuries.”

  “She’s hurt?”

  “Not badly, but nothing to be ignored.”

  “Of course. Take her home, see to her there.”

  Drake frowned. “You might need me here.”

  “We need both of you well and strong more.” Elena smiled, her gaze clearer and more assured. “Now that you’re back, everything will be better.”

  “We won’t be long. If you need us, just call.”

  “We know.”

  “Then I’ll see what I can do to convince the Alpha to let me tend to her,” Drake said.

  Elena laughed. “Don’t give her any other choice.”

  Chapter Twenty-four

  “What are you doing in here?” Sylvan jammed her hands on her hips and stared through the bars at Niki. Her second looked half-feral, her eyes hot and her skin shimmering with pelt about to burst free. She crouched on the iron ledge, her clawed fingers gripping the metal. Her wolf was close, and she was slowly losing the battle to keep her at bay. The last thing Sylvan needed was her imperator out of control.

  “One of the mutants bit me,” Niki growled. “I might be dangerous.”

  Sylvan took a long breath, scented the pheromones rolling off Niki. Familiar scents of aggression and power, and something new. A subtle strength entwined with raw muscle; a tempering of primal force with cool rationality. She smiled. “Finally, you and Sophia have done what has needed to be done.”

  Niki straightened, satisfaction flickering over her face. “You scent our bond.”

  “Of course, why wouldn’t I? You are two normal, healthy Weres who have joined your essences. Now get out of the cell. I need you.”

  “But the Revniks haven’t completed their tests yet.”

  “The Revniks will never complete their tests,” Sylvan said. “They’re scientists, that’s what they do. And you are a warrior, and my general. I need you to do what you do.”

  Niki snarled and leapt halfway across the room. The seams of her dark T-shirt split, her torso broadened.

  “Niki,” Sylvan snapped. “Hold your wolf.”

  Niki’s lips drew back and she growled. Sweat drenched her clothes as her wolf howled and thrashed to be free. Her voice thickened. “I know what my duty is
. But you didn’t see what that thing became.”

  “Then tell me. What happened?”

  Niki told her of the serum and the test trial that went so wrong. “She was caught somewhere between human and Were, a monster like one the humans think we all become when we shift. But…” She shuddered and looked away.

  “But what?” Sylvan asked softly.

  “Somehow, she was one of us. When I killed her, I felt her wolf reach for me. For Pack.”

  “You know it had to be done, but I’m sorry.”

  Niki shook her head. “It is my duty, but whoever did this to them must die.”

  “What about the second female?”

  “She has shown no signs of transforming, or of improving,” Niki said. “At least not before Sophia needed to leave.”

  “I’ll see that Sophia gets free to find you. Your mate is fine.”

  Niki relaxed minutely. “And what of the ones who did this? No human court will punish them the way they should be punished.”

  “If we exact retribution,” Sylvan said, “we will be seen as in the wrong. Humans experiment on animals all the time, and that’s all we are to them.”

  “We are nonhuman,” Niki said, “and that means less than human. We have no protection.”

  “Don’t you think I know that,” Sylvan snarled. “Don’t you think that’s why my father wanted the Coalition, wanted us to force the humans to abide by laws that protect us from just this kind of thing?”

  Niki strode close until only the silver-impregnated bars separated them. She met Sylvan’s gaze with the hunter-green eyes of her wolf. “And where has that gotten us? We are more hunted now than we ever were, only now it’s done secretly in laboratories and behind closed doors in the legislature, and in secret meetings of radical extremists. And now the Vampires, with whom we’ve had a truce for centuries, are in league with the humans who would like to destroy us. What has the Exodus gained for us?”

  Her words, her stance, her direct gaze were a challenge. Sylvan growled softly.

  Niki shivered but held her place. “Gregory has been trying for decades to wipe us out. That mutant in the infirmary is proof he’s still trying. They’ve tried to kill you, they nearly killed Lara, they did kill Andrew. Where will it end?”

  “Not all the Vampires are our enemies. And we are making strides in counteracting the experimental agents—at least we know what and who to fight.” Sylvan was no politician, despite her father’s faith in her. Her law degree was of no use to her now when there were no laws to address the needs of her Pack. She was first and foremost the Alpha of her Pack, the leader of her wolves. She had tried so hard to fulfill her father’s wishes, to lead the Weres and all the Praeterns to a more secure future, economically, legally, and socially. That seemed a very far-off dream now. “I know this, Niki. I know that we have as much right to exist as any other species. That we should not have to hide, pretend that we are other than who we are, make excuses for our nature, or justify our society. If that recognition is all we ever gain in the human courts, that will be enough. We can rule ourselves, we’ve been doing it for millennia. And we will protect ourselves.”

  “What if the Nicholas Gregorys of the human world gain more power and sway the government into believing we are a danger to the human population? What then?”

  “There are humans like Andrea and her brother and the organizations they represent who know that isn’t true. Andrea is more than just one human fighting on our side—she’s a federal agent, and there are others like her. We do have friends in the government.” Sylvan stepped close to the bars. “And if we must fight, we will.”

  “Wherever you lead, we will follow.”

  “Then follow me now. There’s nothing wrong with you,” Sylvan said. “We have wounded in the infirmary and renegades within our borders. I need a patrol organized to run them down. I need you upstairs now.”

  Niki snarled. “What if—”

  Sylvan yanked the cage open, breaking the lock. She strode forward, grasped Niki by the back of the neck, and dragged her out. She pushed her toward the stairs. “I’m tired of arguing. Do as your Alpha commands.”

  Niki spun around but carefully did not challenge. “If I turn—”

  Sylvan grabbed her shoulders, yanked her up onto her toes, and glared into her eyes. “If you turn, I will kill you myself.”

  “Thank you,” Niki whispered.

  “Now, are you ready to do your duty?”

  “Yes, Alpha,” Niki said, relaxing in her grip. “More than ready.”

  “Good.” Sylvan let her go, slung an arm around her shoulder, and pulled her close as they walked out into the late-day sun together.

  Upstairs, Max and Andrea stood with shoulders touching by the great fireplace in the gathering hall. Callan worried a line in the floor striding back and forth in front of the tall windows, grumbling steadily. Jace and Jonathan, guarding the doors, rumbled happily as Sylvan strode in with Niki. Everyone straightened as her power flooded the room.

  Callan halted abruptly and his grumbling ceased. “It’s good to have you back, Alpha.”

  “It’s good to be here,” Sylvan said. “Tell me what’s happening.”

  Callan gave her a summary of the last twenty-four hours, finishing, “There’s been no more activity along the perimeter since the last attack at dawn.”

  “What about pursuit?”

  Callan shook his head. “We did not want to weaken the lines or reduce our forces here, in case this attack was a decoy action and a larger force is gathering to attack the Compound.”

  Sylvan nodded. “That’s possible, but it seems too soon for them to have organized an army.”

  Max said, “Not if they have help.”

  “Explain.”

  “Katya heard rumors that rogue Weres and some of the Blackpaws who had refused to pledge allegiance to us are gathering. If they attract mercenaries too, they could marshal a sizable number.”

  “Even if that’s true, they’ll still need to be armed and organized.” Sylvan curled a lip. “Renegades are undisciplined, unruly, and resist strong leaders. Attacking us would require an experienced leader…or a very crazy one.”

  “If we pursue them now,” Max said, “they won’t have time to consolidate significant resistance.”

  “Unless,” Andrea said quietly, “they already have and are lying in wait.”

  Sylvan regarded her intently. “Do you have intelligence that makes you think that’s likely?”

  Andrea stepped forward and Max automatically laid a hand on her back, keeping contact. “Only that we’ve heard the same rumors as Katya. Someone is recruiting mercenary Weres—wolves and cats.” She paused. “We believe the Vampires are involved.”

  Niki snarled.

  “How do you know that?” Sylvan knew the government had agents undercover in radical groups like HUFSI. Why wouldn’t they also have agents who gathered intelligence on Vampires and Weres? Perhaps all the agents weren’t human. If a wolf Were entered her territory and petitioned to join the Pack, she admitted them. Would a Were actually spy for the human government? She couldn’t believe it of a wolf, but she had to consider it. “Do you have agents involved with Vampires? Hosts perhaps? From the beginning?”

  Andrea stared straight ahead, her gaze fixed on Sylvan’s shoulder. “I can’t answer that.”

  Sylvan nodded. “That’s answer enough. Do you know where Francesca is hiding?”

  “No, and if we find her, you will be informed.”

  “So we can deal with her?”

  “The government is not interested in involving itself in internal Were affairs.”

  “I see.” Sylvan grinned, showing her canines. The humans would be happy for her to risk her wolves, but at least she would not have to worry about legal repercussions if she eliminated Francesca and what remained of her seethe. “I’m very glad to hear that.” She glanced at Niki. “Imperator? Your opinion?”

  Niki shot out, “I agree with Max. We need to run these ren
egades down now, find out what we can, and send a message. Our borders are inviolate, and anyone who trespasses will pay the price.”

  “You heard the imperator,” Sylvan said.

  Everyone moved for the door.

  “I’ll ready a squadron,” Callan said.

  “No,” Sylvan said. “You were right not to weaken our defenses here or on the perimeter. We will take a small team that can move quickly. You see to security here and coordinate the patrols on the border. I’ll take Niki and the rest of the centuri and pursue the Blackpaws.”

  “What about me?” Drake said from the doorway.

  Sylvan had felt her coming, their always-present connection growing stronger the closer Drake approached. “We need you here, Prima.”

  “You’ll need a medic,” Drake said. “The infirmary is full, and Sophia and Elena are needed here.”

  “We can manage,” Sylvan said. “I don’t plan on having wounded.”

  Drake slipped behind her and wrapped both arms around her waist. She pressed her mouth to Sylvan’s ear. “You’re not going anywhere until I’ve seen to your injuries.”

  Sylvan rumbled disagreeably.

  “You know I’m right. I’ll stay behind if you give me two hours.”

  “One,” Sylvan said.

  “Agreed.”

  Sylvan turned, gripped Drake’s hips, and kissed her. “That’s what you wanted all along, wasn’t it?”

  Drake grinned. “I can do a lot in an hour.” She looked past Sylvan’s shoulder to the others. “Bring back captives. We need information.”

  Niki’s lip curled. “They should be shown no mercy.”

  “If you want to make an example of them, then let’s find out who needs to learn the lesson. If they’re dead, they can’t tell us.”

  Sylvan looped an arm around Drake’s waist and started for the door. “One hour. Be ready to hunt.”

  *

  Drake had a Rover waiting in front of headquarters. “I’ll drive. Your hands are burned.”

  Sylvan silently complied.

  “How did that happen?” Drake pulled out of the Compound in the direction of their den.

  “Niki was being stubborn. I ripped the door off her cell.”