by L. L. Raand
The Prima shook her head. “That makes no sense. Why leave him alive? And what was the point to begin with? Have there been any demands?”
“None,” Zora said. “Thus far the attacks have been swift and focused on incapacitating our sentries, but perhaps they plan to interfere with our trade routes or our hunting grounds next.”
Ash understood what the Alpha would not admit openly—the continued raids created unrest in the Pack and could call the Alpha’s abilities to protect the Pack into question. The Alpha had already withstood more challenges than most in her position.
“No,” Torren said. “If that was the case, they would attack those directly. I think your sentries are bait.”
“For what?” Zora growled.
“More importantly,” Torren mused, “for who?”
Sylvan said, “Where’s the next outpost closest to your perimeter?”
“Twenty miles north of here.”
“Then that’s where we should go.”
Drake said, “We can’t overlook the possibility that Cresthome is also a target. Whoever’s behind this appears to be able to travel at will.” She turned to Torren. “It’s a Gate, isn’t it?”
Torren nodded. “Yes, I think so. I can taste the remnants of power. Only a very few Fae can open a Gate so precisely. Cecilia, Queen of Thorns and All of Faerie, Ruler of Dark and Light, Mistress of All Seasons, appears to be tired of allowing the Praeterns of this realm to rule themselves.”
“Niki,” Sylvan said sharply, “take half the company to Cresthome and secure their perimeter.”
“Yes, Alpha.”
Sylvan stroked Drake’s back. “The rest of us will head to the nearest outpost and set up camp. If they’re looking for bait, we’ll give them some.”
Chapter Thirteen
Drake rejoined Sylvan for the run to the next outpost, leaving Jace, Jonathan, and half of the remaining soldiers with Zora Constantine. Sylvan shifted into pelt and Drake followed, setting off beside her mate, the way it should be.
Sylvan bumped shoulders as they ran, her breathing easy and relaxed, her powerful body covering the ground effortlessly. This has the feel of something more than a border skirmish.
Do you think Torren’s right? Drake asked.
About the Gate? Yes.
And the bait?
Sylvan huffed. A possibility. The Snowcrest wolves don’t represent a threat to anyone. But their territory is valuable, running along a third of our border.
Drake agreed with her mate’s reasoning, but she wasn’t so certain territory was the issue. If raiders were attacking a Pack without soldiers, they must know eventually that Pack would reach out for aid. And where would they go? To the strongest Pack, their neighbors. Snowcrest would reach out to the Timberwolves, and everyone, humans and Praeterns alike, knew that Sylvan would respond. Sylvan could not have overlooked that possibility, but Sylvan refused to acknowledge threats to herself. That’s what made her the Alpha, and also what made her so frustrating. Drake grumbled.
What? Sylvan thought, slowing to a trot a quarter mile from the outpost.
You know what. Drake nipped her shoulder. You can pretend this isn’t aimed at you, but we must be prepared.
Sylvan’s lips drew back in a wolfie grin. You worry too much, mate.
And you don’t worry enough.
Sylvan signaled to her wolves to set a perimeter and wait for Trent, who would be along in the Rover with their supplies as soon as she traversed the dry streambed she was using as a road. Sylvan settled down in the sun on a craggy outcropping over a ravine with a thin creek wending its way through its base. A stand of evergreens stretched from there to the Snowcrest outpost under a rocky overhang. Behind, the mountain rose in a sheer wall, providing a natural barrier to their rear.
Good defensive positioning, Sylvan signaled.
And difficult to access, Drake replied. Unless they’re using a Gate.
Sylvan rested her muzzle on her paws and sighed. This would be a complicated plan, if you’re right.
Drake stretched out beside her and snorted. Since when have the Fae ever been simple?
Good point. Sylvan rubbed her muzzle against Drake’s. If it’s us they want, we should know soon.
* * *
Jace and Jonathan remained with Alpha Constantine’s force, making Ash the captain of their squad. Jonathan bristled at taking orders from an out-Pack Were, especially one who he considered less dominant than himself. Jace found that amusing. When they reached the second outpost, they helped themselves to clothes from the cache kept there for the sentries. The only shirt she could find was a size too small, but when she pulled it on and noticed Ash watching her, she didn’t mind. She shot her a look and a raised eyebrow. Ash frowned and looked away.
Jace huffed. Ash could pretend she didn’t like it, didn’t want her. But she knew better. Ash’s desire radiated like the moon on a cloudless night—bright and strong. Jace’s wolf had stopped tormenting her too, content now to wait. For a little while.
“You should stop teasing her,” Jonathan grumbled, yanking on a pair of khaki BDUs.
“Why do you care.”
Jonathan bared his teeth. “You know why. If you keep tangling with her, she’s going to bite you. Then you’ll have to accept her or challenge.”
Jace gripped her brother’s T-shirt and loomed in his face. “When I’m bitten for real, I’ll choose.”
“And have you?” he murmured. “Chosen?”
Jace didn’t answer, refusing to lie.
Dressed in the same khaki camo shirt and pants, Ash appeared beside them. “Problems here?”
Jonathan tugged away from Jace. “None at all. Captain.”
“Good. We need a perimeter north and east. Your Alpha’s covering southwest.”
“I’ll see to it.” Jonathan saluted and spun away.
Ash watched him go, then said, “Your brother is skirting the edge of insubordination.”
“He’ll stand,” Jace said mildly “He is too much of a soldier not to follow orders.”
“His temper is not just about the command chain, though, is it?”
Jace scanned the immediate area, saw that the others were occupied, and moved closer, hooking her fingers under the waistband of Ash’s pants. “He objects to me teasing you.”
“Does he,” Ash murmured, her eyes sparking. “Perhaps I should remind him our affairs are none of his business.”
Jace took a quick nip of Ash’s lower lip—a brief tug and a swifter sweep of her tongue over the same spot. “When we make camp tonight, where will you be?”
Ash licked the bite and smiled. “On duty, Wolf.”
“Me too, but if we have a moment, I will find you.”
Ash chuckled. “When the mission is done, we’ll need more than a moment.”
“Remember—I will find you. See that you’re careful then.”
Ash ran a hand quickly down the center of Jace’s chest, pressed her palm flat to Jace’s midsection, igniting her body, inflaming her blood. “And you.”
Jace felt the wolf leap into her eyes, recognized the same flash in Ash’s, and then Ash pivoted abruptly and strode away. She let out a long breath. Jonathan was right. She couldn’t tease her, not any longer, not without giving in to what her wolf demanded. To what she wanted. She shoved her hands into her pockets and walked to the edge of the rough camp they’d made among the pines. The sun was on its way down and shadows cloaked the ground beneath the tall evergreens. The distance she put between herself and Ash didn’t diminish the connection. Nor did she want it to. Whenever Ash was out of sight, she sought her—sought the scent of fresh fallen snow and morning mist, sought the heat and power of her. Until she was filled with her presence, she was snappish and ready to snarl.
Frustrated, uncertain, she grumbled and paced until a press of power washed over her and she stiffened to attention. “Prima.”
“Jace,” Drake said, joining her on the edge of the stony escarpment above the creek. “Satisfie
d with our position?”
“Yes, Prima.” Jace hesitated. “If we were expecting a standard assault.”
Drake laughed wryly. “True enough. What are the odds of that?”
“From everything we’ve found so far—or not found—I don’t think it likely,” Jace said.
“I agree. Are Alpha Constantine’s guards battle ready?”
“They’re strong, skilled, and loyal. Not warriors, but I’m not worried about them in a fight.”
“Aren’t you?”
Jace stiffened. “No, Prima.”
“Your wolf is restless. Anxious.” Drake squeezed Jace’s shoulder. “About someone.”
“I…” Jace faced her Prima. “My wolf seems to have made a choice I’m not sure how to handle.”
“The Snowcrest captain.”
Jace nodded. “Ash.”
“And her? Has her wolf chosen too?”
“She has not said.” Jace shivered. “But she threatens the mate bite.”
“How do you feel about it?”
Jace clenched her jaws, shook her head. “She is…not Pack.”
“Not my question.”
Jace scanned the surrounding forest—like Ash, strange, but still familiar. “I want her.”
“We’re more than our wolves, and mating is not just physical.”
“I know. I want her.” Jace squared her shoulders, met the Prima’s eyes for an instant. “All of her.”
“Then I suggest you stop fighting it.”
“But she is Snowcrest. And I am Timberwolf.”
Drake raised a shoulder. “I was human when I met the Alpha.”
Jace smiled. “Yes, but you are…Prima.”
Drake laughed. “Now, perhaps, but I wasn’t always. I wasn’t even Were.”
“Did you…” Jace flushed and looked away.
“Did I what?” Drake asked gently.
“Did you want her—even when you were so…different?”
“Always.”
Jace sighed, a weight lifting from her heart. “The Alpha would not have let you deny it.”
Drake laughed again. “No. I couldn’t deny her.”
“Neither can I,” Jace whispered.
“We can’t know the future, but you must know your heart.” Drake looped an arm around Jace’s shoulders, pulled her close, and rubbed her cheek against Jace’s hair. “All else will follow.”
Jace closed her eyes, breathed the comfort of Pack and absorbed the strength that flowed from the power of the Alpha pair. “Thank you, Prima.”
“Besides,” Drake said casually, “I like her.”
* * *
Ash completed her circuit of the sentries she’d posted in pairs overlooking the ravine and the most likely approach points. Jace and Jonathan took lookout above them on the rocky ledge. Even from out of sight, Jace’s scent stirred her blood.
Zora sat on a log underneath the overhang where she’d established her command post. A small fire burned in front of her. If an attack came, this would be the focus, where the raiders would expect to find two lone inexperienced wolves. “The perimeters are secure?”
“Yes, Alpha.” Ash crouched beside the fire, gazing across the flickering flames to the woods where the Timberwolves waited in darkness, camouflaged in case the raiders approached from the south.
“Alpha Mir has offered to post a cadre of soldiers at Cresthome to help train a warrior class from among our young.”
“A good idea,” Ash said. “We need to be able to protect ourselves, even with powerful allies.”
“I want you to take charge of our trainees when we return.”
“But…” Ash hesitated. “I have my duty as your guard.”
“And you are valued. But I need someone experienced to deal with the Timberwolves. A senior dominant.”
Ash chuckled. “Yes, I agree.”
“Alpha Mir has offered to send senior warriors as instructors. We will need a liaison. I was thinking of Jace.”
Ash sucked in a breath. “She is a centuri.”
“I am aware. I am also aware that your wolf has chosen.”
“I am Snowcrest, Alpha.”
“A mating would not change that.” Zora rose, her gaze traveling the darkened forest where friend, and possibly foe, awaited. “But the future holds change for us all.”
Chapter Fourteen
Once full dark enclosed the camp, Ash took up a position to the left of the overhang, facing the guttering fire, with Evan on the right. The Alpha crouched on the ledge above them from where she could survey the entire outpost. The forest thinned for twenty yards beyond the ledge, creating a rocky semi-bare crescent of moss and low scrub. Beyond that, the tree growth thickened again and formed a barrier between their camp and the edge of the ravine. The midnight sky, inky black and cloudless, once again hosted a full moon. The silvery light courted the shadows at the edges of the clearing, forcing the wolves to take cover among the trees and rocky outcropping. Ash breathed deep, searching the pungent forest for signs of intruders, and found nothing beyond the expected night life and, cutting through the labyrinth of scents, Jace’s unique signature. She couldn’t see her across the clearing, hidden beneath the pines, but she didn’t need to. The thrum of Jace’s heartbeat in the dark echoed as strongly as her own heart pounding in her chest, the steady rhythms in perfect synchrony. Ash and her wolf were one in their certainty—Jace was hers. Ash’s acceptance of their connection grew steadily with each passing hour. All that remained now was the ultimate union, when they would share the essence of their bodies and spirits. Mating fever burned in her depths, and only her Alpha’s presence, formidable and demanding, kept her focused on the mission. Jace was near, and for now, that would have to be enough.
A crack like a whip rending flesh shattered the stillness and Ash jerked to attention. The tapestry of stars above her head split with a gout of flaming red as if blood exploded from a mortal wound, leaving a yawning void—starless and wholly without form. An abyss with no beginning and no end.
Above her the Alpha howled a warning, and Ash’s wolf leapt into battle mode, her pelt streaking down her chest and arms, her jaws instantly transforming, and her canines extending. Half a dozen monsters dropped out of the sky—boar-like beasts as large as oxen with tusks as thick around at the base as her thighs, gaping maws studded with dagger-length teeth as long as one of her limbs, and crimson eyes with slit pupils. Their leathery black hide was plated and armored, their stout legs ending in clawed feet. Upon touching the ground, the beasts spread out in a fighting circle, roaring a challenge, their shaggy heads with flattened snouts and stubby ears swinging from side to side.
The Alpha soared from the ledge and landed, facing the beasts from mere feet away. Their bulk dwarfed her, their wide lethal jaws capable of rending a wolf in two with a single snap. The Alpha bared her teeth, challenging the cordon of beasts. The sky above their heads roiled, swirling mists of flame and sulfur. Ash and Evan sprinted to protect her vulnerable flanks. Jonathan, Jace, and half a dozen Timberwolf warriors streaked from the surrounding woods. Across the clearing, Sylvan, the Prima, and the remaining wolves burst from the forest.
The boar-beasts charged.
Zora leapt to counter the attack, sinking her teeth into the throat of the nearest beast. Thick inky blood sizzled from the deep gouges Zora’s canines dug in its flesh. Bellowing in rage, the beast shook its massive head and flung her to the far side of the clearing. Zora landed on her side and staggered upright. Ash darted at the nearest beast, aiming for its vulnerable underbelly and the weak areas around its legs. The circling wolves harried the others in the same way, gnashing and tearing with teeth and claws while trying to avoid the deadly tusks and cavernous maws. The larger number of faster wolves corralled the beasts in a tighter and tighter circle. where they could more easily be overpowered.
An eerie howl split the air, and Torren’s Hound, twice the size of the boar-beasts, stormed into the clearing. She wove through the clustered beasts, rending and
tearing, grasping them by the necks and flinging them through the air. Bodies crashed against the rock face at the far side of the clearing, and crumpled forms littered the ground at its base. Torren grew more powerful each time she vanquished one of the intruders.
Before the boar-beasts were completely overpowered, the sky belched another gout of flame and caustic sulfur. A dozen Weres dropped from the sky and spread out on the flanks of the boar-beasts. The Weres were wolflike in form, but more sinewy and skeletal, with longer limbs, double rows of canines, and golden eyes shattered with unnatural bands of crimson that wavered and sparked. Not natural Weres, or altered by some sorcerous force.
Ash closed ranks with a Were about her size, soaring toward its back to take its neck in a killing blow. The Were spun, faster than expected, and she barely managed to score its ropey shoulders with her claws. She hit the ground, dug in her claws, and twisted to make another strike. Weaving in and out, biting and slashing, she managed to avoid the Were’s counterattacks with only minor wounds. Despite the wounds she inflicted, the Were continued its tireless attacks, seemingly impervious to her claws and canines. If they continued this back and forth dance, she might tire first.
Ash feinted a flank attack, pulling back at the last second. The Were spun to intercept her, and she dove low, under its snapping jaws, and clamped tight to its throat. The blood that filled her mouth burned like acid, but she held on, squeezing with all her strength. Emitting an unearthly scream, more human than wolf, the Were thrashed, trying to dislodge her. Ash locked her jaws, ignoring the claws raking at her sides. At last, the Were collapsed, and with a swift shake of her head, she tore through its throat. The dead Were’s body crumpled into a foul pile of charred bone and flesh, searing the ground beneath it into a widening circle of death. As if it had never truly been alive.
Staggering upright, Ash took in the battle. Sylvan’s wolves were surrounded by a few remaining Weres and the bodies of countless decimated others, all of them encircled with the same ring of charred remains. Zora battled two of the Weres, holding them off with swift feints as they circled her and alternated their attacks. A pair of shadow wraiths dropped from the tear in the sky, their flickering forms nearly transparent, but substantive enough to carry crossbows. One landed in the center of the clearing and took aim at the Alpha. Ash howled a warning.