Spoils of War

by Susan A Bliler

  He lowered his head and looked at her again, but this time he didn’t deny her words.

  “It feels weird.”

  “What does?” he asked.

  “Being someplace and not being afraid.”

  There was a challenging grin on his lips when he asked, “You’re not afraid?”

  “Of you? Yes. Of my future? Absolutely. But being here”—she waved at the land—“I’m not worried about outsiders.” Turning to face him, she tilted her head back to keep eye contact. “I’ve never felt that before. No matter where I’ve been, it’s always been in the back of my mind, this fear of attack, of . . .”

  “Outsiders coming and burning it all down,” he finished for her.

  Her eyes went wide with surprise. “You felt that way too?”

  He huffed a laugh. “I was a kid once.”

  “Then you know what it’s like.” Fisting her hands at her sides, she growled and lowered her eyes to his chest. “I hate it. Growing up, I used to be so afraid that humans would come after us or other misshapes would attack. And now, having to worry about other packs too . . . It doesn’t feel right.”

  “It’s not,” he bit out. “Wolves shouldn’t have to live in fear of any of that, but most especially we shouldn’t have to worry about attack from our own kind. I’m working to change that.”

  Now she was the one to snort, and when War frowned at her, she quickly said, “Sorry. It’s just that I don’t see how that could ever happen. There are so many packs now, and the only way for there to be civility is to have a unified law, and I know Alphas. They don’t like being told what to do.”

  “Tough shit!” he grunted. “I’m challenging them all. The Dark Moons, the Night Walkers,” he watched her closely when he said, “The Imperials, and even the RedRun. The packs will come in line or the packs will be wiped out.”

  “Sounds like you’ve got your work cut out for you.”

  “I’m man enough for the challenge.”

  She didn’t doubt it.

  Glancing at the lines of ink on his arm, Nora’s curiosity was piqued. The words were written right under his pack’s sigil, which was a wolf’s paw with a wolf’s face imprinted in it. The nose and mouth sat in the pad of the paw, while the two eyes each took up the two front toes. It was cool. War’s other arm was a sleeve of ink with that ended at his wrist where a dark pattern surrounded a link of triangles. It looked tribal, but she didn’t ask about his sleeve because the words under his sigil held her curiosity.

  “Do you mind if I ask what your arm says?”

  War didn’t even look down as he held his arm out.

  Reaching out to grab his wrist, Nora ignored the jolt of electricity that shot through her fingertips when her skin contacted his. Forcing herself to keep from looking up to see if he felt it too, she concentrated on reading the lines.

  My reach is global, my tower secure, my cause is noble, my power is pure.

  She knew these words. Pinching her eyes closed, she held onto his arm as she struggled to remember. Aaah! Eyes snapping open, she grinned up at War. “Flobots, right? The song ‘Handlebars.’”

  War’s lips lifted in an actual smile that momentarily stole her breath. Holy shit his smiles made such a huge difference. His whole demeanor changed, and for once he didn’t feel so intimidating.

  “Yeah,” he beamed. “I’m surprised you knew that. No one else ever has.”

  “I love that song.” She released his wrist and took a step back because the moment felt a little too intimate and she felt flushed. “That line especially,” she said distractedly. “I-it’s always been one of my favorites.”

  Glancing down at his tattoo, War shrugged. “Seemed to fit. Feels like a good reminder.”

  That had Nora frowning. “Reminder of what?”

  Stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jeans, War looked out over the acreage surrounding the Fortress. He kept doing that, and now it felt like it was intentional so he could avoid looking at her.

  “That what I do here is reflected on all wolves everywhere,” he answered rocking back on his heels. “That while I have the luxury of being as strong and powerful as I am, there are wolf shifters out there who may be paying consequences for my actions. It’s a reminder to myself that what I’m doing here isn’t just for myself, it’s for the good of all wolf shifters. It keeps me from getting drunk with power or straying from my course.”

  “What is your course? I’ve heard rumors of world domination.” She gestured toward the keep and the grounds within the curtain wall. “And what I’ve seen here leads me to believe that’s true, but what you just said doesn’t fit.”

  “World domination?” he scoffed. “It’s a full-time job controlling the wolves in my seven territories. I couldn’t imagine trying to take over the world. Hell, I’m not even interested in ruling the continent.”

  His words were confusing because the consensus outside of the Fortress was that the War Gods pack was on the hunt to cow every Alpha in existence and claim their territory.

  “What do you want?” Nora asked. “What is it you’re trying to accomplish?”

  He turned to face her, and his eyes shone with sincerity when he answered, “I’m just trying to protect my people.”

  “You mean your pack,” she corrected.

  “No.” He shook his head. “My people. I’m not just doing this for my pack, Nora. I’m doing it for all packs. Every pack everywhere should be able to do more than just survive. We can thrive if we do this right. If we push out all the bad Alphas, the ones who take instead of giving, the ones who stand at the back and lash the whip instead of placing themselves on the front lines, we’ve got a chance. Greed and hunger for power are diseases among the packs, and they’re ones we can eradicate.”

  Her delicate brows spearing down, Nora simply stared at him as hope and confusion warred within her. “Why?” she finally asked. “Why take on such a monumental task? You don’t have to.” She glanced at the land. “You could have just established yourselves and set your pack up and let it be. Why tackle such a colossal effort? What do you get out of it?”

  “Hopefully, I get to see things the way they were meant to be. When the dust settles, maybe I’ll be lucky enough to get to see some of the good that I know will come from the changes I’m forcing on the Alphas.”

  “War?”

  Tearing his eyes from his territory, he turned and looked down at her.

  “Was it . . . Was it bad where you came from?”

  ***

  The trepidation in Nora’s tone had War’s hackles rising. Understanding was instantaneous. He knew she was asking if he was doing all this because he’d been in a bad pack. But something about the way she asked, the way her scent changed, had him thinking that something bad had happened in her pack too. Jaw ticking, he debated on what to tell her. She was easy to talk to. Too easy, and as they’d toured the Fortress, his intention had been to show her how intimidating his domain was, but as she oohed and ahhed over the library, the dining hall, and even the war room, he felt himself growing eager to show her more. Showing Nora all he’d built had foreign emotions welling up in him. She was so enthusiastic about the grandeur and beauty of his compound, that it was infectious, and seeing his home through the eyes of someone else had pride swelling within him. He’d spent so much time fighting and building and fighting and building that it wasn’t until today that he realized he hadn’t taken any time to really enjoy how far he and his pack had come. She’d given him something today, and in exchange, he’d give her something too. The truth.

  “It wasn’t so bad for me, but my mom and sister had it rough.”

  Nora’s expression went sad, and not liking the look on her, he heaved a sigh. “But they’re good now. I’ve got them someplace safe until I can make this place fit for them.”

  “They’re coming here?”

  He dipped his head in a nod. “As soon as I can whip this pack into good enough shape for them. They spent their whole lives being treated
like shit not only by Alphas, but by all males. I was too young and too small to do shit about it then, but as soon as I could, I hid them someplace safe. It’ll never be that way for them here. I won’t fucking allow it. When the WG has earned the right to have females, they’ll be treated like queens when they’re welcomed into my pack. I’ve already got their rooms ready.”

  Nora’s brilliant smile and eyes brimming with approval had his heart clenching.

  “What I’ve heard about you doesn’t fit at all with who you really are,” she breathed, sounding almost awed.

  “Nah,” he cast her a crooked grin. “What you’ve heard about me is one hundred percent legit, but it’s a side I only show to my enemies. Women should never know the depths of a man’s brutality unless he’s using it to defend her.” Smile vanishing, he warned, “I am all of the things you heard about me, Nora. The blood lust, the violence, the deaths. It’s all true, and it’s something I own, but it’s a part of me you’ll most likely never see. The ruthless and vicious parts of me are reserved for battle and for setting the Alphas straight. I’ve done some shit, but . . .” he shook his head “. . . can’t say I’m ashamed of it.”

  “You don’t have to be.”

  Surprised by her words, his brows hiked up and his eyes went wide. “I’m pretty sure my mom would disagree.”

  “No,” Nora breathed. “She wouldn’t. Especially if she experienced firsthand what you’re trying to fix. If she could see you now, she’d be proud of you.”

  “Yeah, and how do you figure that?”

  Without hesitation, Nora blurted out, “Because I’m proud of you.”

  A frown claimed War’s face as he stared down at her. Ducking his gaze, Nora bit her lip and angled her face away from him, but it didn’t keep him from seeing the blush that crept into her cheeks. She kept saying shit like that. Earlier she’d called him brave, and now, her saying she was proud of him had a weird fluttery sensation filling up his belly.

  Releasing her lip, Nora sucked in a deep breath and then looked right at him. “I am, War. I’m proud of you and your pack for what you’re doing. You’re making things better for all shifters, but most especially for shifters like me.”

  So there had been trouble where she came from. It had him thinking on the information Tallius had given him. Tally said Nora admitted to being a Winter Wolf. She’d told his Beta that she’d left her birth pack and had recently joined the RedRun. Was this why? Had someone in the Winter Wolf pack been fucking with her? The thought had his hands curling into fists. He had to know. “Who in the Winter Wolf pack hurt you, Nora?”

  If she was surprised by his knowledge of her being a Winter Wolf, she didn’t show it. Instead, she pulled her hands up into her sleeves, crossed her arms over her chest as if to ward off the chill, and offered a quiet, “No one. Not like you think. When I left my pack and was on my own for a while, it was harder than it should have been. I was scared the whole time. I was worried about being discovered by humans. I was worried about running into vamps or skin walkers. Mostly, I was afraid of the other packs. Everyone’s so damn unpredictable that I never knew what to expect. It’s why I went to Castamere’s ball.”

  At the mention of Castamere, War bristled.

  “I’d been so afraid for so long, and then word spread about the ball and how all packs were invited. I was pissed at myself for being such a chicken shit all the time, that I decided I’d go. Alone! My cousin offered to come, but I told her I needed to do it on my own.” Ducking her head to the side, Nora tucked her chin into her shoulder. “It was dumb. I was dumb.”

  He didn’t know how much of what she was saying was true, but still, he offered, “Reign didn’t see it that way.”

  “He shouldn’t have gone either.”

  War agreed but didn’t know what to say to that. He didn’t want to talk about Reign, and he sure as fuck didn’t want to talk about Castamere. Glancing at Nora’s crossed arms, he asked, “Cold?”

  “Yeah, guess I’m not back to one hundred percent just yet.”

  Suddenly, he felt like shit. He hadn’t even thought once about the amount of exertion his tour had required of her.

  “Ffffuck,” he said low. “Come on.” Stalking away from her, he led her toward the stairs that would take them down off the wall. His first compulsion had been to grab her hand, but something weird happened when she’d touched him earlier, and worried about a repeat of the same, he kept right on walking.

  Soft. She was making him soft because he kept itching to do considerate shit and he wasn’t considerate. He was War King Wolf fucking Vox!

  Halfway down the stairs, he heard her huff quietly and turned to find her resting up against the wall. She shoved off it when he turned around, and plastered on a forced smile.

  “You tired?” he asked.

  “No.”

  Nostrils flaring, he instantly scented her lie, and it pissed him off. “Do you ever tell the truth?” he snapped.

  Nora must have been exhausted, though, because her typical sass was absent as she leaned against the wall again, hand curling tightly around the metal stair rail. “That’s the first time I’ve lied to you, Alpha Vox.”

  “You lied about being a RedRun.”

  Head lifting off the wall, she stared down at him. “No I didn’t. I don’t have my sigil yet, but I’m working toward it.”

  “You think it’s that easy,” he fumed, eyes dipping to her arms. “You do know what happens when you join another pack by any other means than mating, right?” He was irrationally pissed at what was in store for Nora if and when the RedRun Alpha accepted her into his pack. “Indian Leader isn’t just going to forego the rules for you.” Reaching out, he snatched her arm and shoved her sleeve up to expose the Winter Wolf sigil on the inside of her arm. “This’ll have to go, and there’s no easy way to make that happen.”

  Pulling her arm out of his hold, Nora paled as she tugged her sleeve back down. “I know. And I don’t expect any special treatment from Indy. He’s told me what’s coming if I’m allowed into the RedRun. I accept it.”

  Just the thought of someone burning or cutting off Nora’s sigil had his hackles up. With a snarl, War shook his head and started off down the stairs again. When he didn’t hear Nora’s feet following, he stopped, turned, shot her a dark look, and then jogged back up the stairs before scooping her up.

  “I was coming,” she breathed.

  With a growl that rattled his chest, he grunted, “Another lie!”

  Chapter 15

  For the past two days, War had been uncharacteristically mean. Well, not uncharacteristically. By nature, he seemed to be curt, but ever since he’d given her a tour of the estate, he’d barely said more than a handful of words to Nora. Even when he moved her to the guest room beside his own, he’d simply shown her to it and said, “This is your room now.” Nothing else. No explanation, no “I need my room back,” no “now that you’re feeling better.” Nothing! Nora didn’t understand what she’d done to deserve it, but knew it had a lot to do with her being the lone female at the Fortress. She suspected that War’s inability to trust her played a major role as well.

  Alone in her room, she sat on the windowsill and looked out over the grounds. There were lots of shifters at the Fortress. Lots of men. It was unnerving. She’d never been with a pack that was absent of females before, and it had her feeling vulnerable and isolated.

  Leaving her room, she made her way down the stairs to the main floor and casually walked out the front door. There was no one there to stop her, so she kept going. At the gate, several men turned to watch her, but no one said anything. Half expecting to be stopped, she was surprised when it didn’t happen. For a moment she considered walking right out the front door, but War’s warning came back to her and had her steering her feet toward the stone steps that led up to the top of the curtain wall.

  Making her way back to the place she and War had stood just two days earlier, Nora stopped and stared out at the land. It was beautiful. The dense
forest across the moat called to her inner wolf. Her animal hadn’t been released in nearly a week, and it was starting to get painful.

  “Thinking of making a run for it?”

  She didn’t turn at War’s question. Lips curling up, she shrugged. “No. Just feeling a little stir crazy.”

  “I’ve got a meeting with my top enforcers in an hour, but after that, maybe we can go for a run.”

  The offer had Nora turning to him in delighted surprise. “Really?”

  He grinned. “Yeah.”

  “I’d like that. My wolf is restless.”

  His grin vanished. “Why didn’t you say something.”

  Nora’s grin slipped too. “When?” She went back to staring at the land. “You avoid me. I can’t ask you anything if you’re not around.”

  “You can send requests with the guards who bring your meals.”

  She bit her lip hard to keep from saying something snarky. The men who delivered her meals were even brusquer than War. Even when she tried to engage them in conversation, they hurriedly set her meal down and rushed from the room. It’s like they were afraid of her. It didn’t take her long to realize they were actually afraid of War.

  “If you need something,” he ranted, “you need to let me know.”

  “I’ll do that,” she bit out.

  Suddenly, War’s hand shot out and caught her chin. Turning her head to face him, he frowned down at her.

  His hands on her had a fluttering sensation erupting low in her belly, but she didn’t like being manhandled, so against her better judgment, she slapped his hand away.

  As soon as she did it a small gasp left her and her eyes shot to his. “Sorry. I . . .”

  To her shock, War laughed. It was a great booming sound that she felt deep in her chest.

  “Now who’s brave?” he asked, and then quieted. He didn’t try to touch her again, but after about five minutes of them staring in a strained silence, he asked, “Why’d you leave the Winter Wolves?”

  Nora didn’t want to talk about it. It was painful to think about her old pack, but War had already accused her of being a liar, and she wasn’t going to give him any more ammunition. “Family,” she answered.