The Heart of a Wolf

by Megan Smith

  They finally reached the bend in the river, tucked into a flat area shaded by tall trees and Kendrick quickly made fishing poles out of sticks and handed them off to the two children before he got a fire started. Allandra sat between Teagan and Brylee, holding her own pole and listening solemnly as they instructed her on what to do.

  They were more excited than she was when she caught a good-sized fish, jumping up and down while she pretended to struggle while bringing it in. Then, after handing it over to Kendrick to cook in the fire, she led them on a hunt for something to add to their impromptu meal. After showing them how she could communicate to the trees by resting her hand on the trunk and focusing her energy, she followed the tree’s directions to an apple tree and some berry bushes where they filled their tunics and carried the bounty back to Kendrick.

  Later, replete from a simple meal that tasted better than anything she’d had in a long while, she leaned against Kendrick, their hands intertwined and feet dangling in the cool water while the children splashed and explored.

  “This is perfect” she sighed softly and felt Kendrick’s lips lift before he pressed a soft kiss against her hair.

  “Yes.”

  “I wish life could always be like this,” she admitted, watching as Brylee examined a rock she’d pulled out of the water before she tucked it into the bag slung over her shoulder.

  “Someday all Packs will know a peace like this,” Kendrick stated, his voice firm in resolve.

  Squeezing his arm in support, she rested her head on his shoulder. “The children are opening up. They’re starting to trust us-don’t you think?” she asked hopefully.

  “They are. Brylee looks for you as soon as she wakes. And Teagan keeps you in sight as much as he can.”

  “It’s hard to believe you can love someone so much after knowing them for such a short time...but I do. I couldn’t love them more if I’d given birth to them” she admitted.

  “I felt the same way. It made more sense when we found them to foster them with a family, but they had my heart the moment I saw them. I knew they were meant to be mine” Kendrick revealed softly, his gaze glowing with the bright green of his wolf as he watched them with loving protectiveness.

  “Did you ever imagine we’d end up like this?”

  “No. This life was nowhere in my dreams. But you always were.”

  “Oh, that will earn you a kiss” she teased and he turned his head, his expression light.

  “I should hope so” he murmured, dipping his head to brush her lips with his before inquiring, “how did the celebration planning go?”

  “Well. Most everything is settled-though really, all we have to do is show up. Everyone else is taking care of the details. They did suggest I talk with you about having the Guardians be invited.”

  Stiffening slightly, he looked down at her. “We don’t have outsiders to pack celebrations.”

  “They’re not outsiders, they’re my family,” she reminded him gently.

  “Pack is your family.”

  “Yes. But, so are they. One isn’t more important than the other. You know I would never do anything to harm you or the packs. The Guardians will keep your secrets,” she told him earnestly before cupping his chin and finishing quietly, “I am intwined with both of you and I would like the celebration of the beginning of our new life together to reflect that.”

  He was quiet, the soft murmurs of the forest and the faint buzz of insects the only sound before he let out a tiny breath of air.

  “All right.”

  Pressing a kiss against his cheek, she rested her head again against him, knowing what a huge concession it was and that he was doing it just to please her even though his wolf was no doubt unhappy about it. It was a sign that he was willing to listen and give when she offered her opinion or desires, which was a good start for a marriage that was no doubt going to have its fair share of conflicts with two people as strong willed as they were.

  But for now, she just shifted closer to the man who held her heart, content to let the warm shafts of sunlight filter down through the trees as an almost perfect afternoon wheeled slowly toward night.

  Chapter 10

  THEY HEADED BACK TOWARD the den when the late afternoon shadows grew long with happy hearts and glowing eyes.

  Kendrick put Brylee on his shoulders while Teagan clung to his back, both children visibly tired. Allandra had volunteered to take one of them after a while but he just shook his head with a smile and since he showed no signs of tiring, she let it go.

  He led them down a path that ran along an area of the border she hadn’t seen before and swept the area with interest, memorizing the terrain and adding it to the mental mapping she’d been making since she arrived. It wouldn’t be too long before she knew Kalvara as well as Kendrick did.

  A faint creaking caught her attention and she tilted her head toward the sound curiously just as Kendrick froze. Teagan scrambled off his back when he murmured quietly while swinging Brylee off his shoulders. They instantly scrambled up into a tree and Allandra sent them a reassuring smile before silently moving up next to Kendrick. With a quick glance her way, he moved silently off the path.

  An enemy?

  A very loud one, if it is. That sounds like a wagon. I’ve never known an enemy who didn’t at least attempt to hide their approach.

  True. And I hear....crying. Soft...and worried.

  Kendrick shot her a look as they approached the dirt road that wound down the mountain toward the small city of Allenvale.

  You can hear their emotion?

  Can’t you?

  A hint of amusement flickered across his gaze before he grew serious and still, watching with narrowed eyes at the peddler’s wagon rumbling up the road. A couple sat at the front dressed in the sturdy, quality clothing of prosperous merchants but their faces looked ragged and the horses tired, like they’d been travelling long, hard days.

  Kendrick stiffened as they grew closer, the glowing green of his wolf bleeding across his eyes.

  There are wolves in their wagon. One not in control and the other...the other is still in the midst of the change.

  She watched the wagon grow larger as it came closer and noted several werewolf warriors who were slipping through the trees, watching and waiting for their alpha to decide how to deal with the trespassers on Kalvara. Those who innocently stumbled across their land were quickly sent on their way. Those who deliberately stepped across the border were dealt with far more harshly.

  Kendrick abruptly stepped out onto the road and the driver gave a cry of surprise before yanking back on the horses reins, pulling them to a stop. The couple stared at him with a mixture of hope and fear before the man handed the reins to his wife with shaking hands before moving to climb down.

  Kendrick growled low, his tone menacing enough to freeze the stranger in his tracks.

  “You’re trespassing.”

  The man’s eyes had grown impossibly wide but Allandra had to admire his courage when he swallowed hard and nodded before answering.

  “We’re looking for Kalvara. For the Alpha here” he explained with a slight quaver in his voice.

  Allandra studied the two and judged neither the middle-aged man or his wife-the one who had been quietly shedding tears as they’d travelled-to be a threat. Knowing her husband would sense the same thing, she quietly slipped toward the back of the wagon, drawn by his statement that there were werewolves in it.

  “Why?”

  “We need his help” the man confessed and Kendrick stared hard at them, his senses expanding to taste their intentions.

  “Most know it’s a death sentence to come here uninvited” he reminded them with growl and the woman erupted into panicked motion, tossing the reins to the seat before scrambling down to the ground.

  “Please! Please, you must take us to him as soon as possible! We wouldn’t have come if we weren’t desperate” she pleaded, wringing her hands as her husband jumped down to protectively press his hands on her shoulder
s.

  “You bring two werewolves here.”

  Surprise lit both their features before they nodded and the man motioned toward the back of the wagon.

  “I am Fredrick Castian and this is my wife, Judith. Our son...our son is in the back of the wagon. He was attacked a month ago when we were travelling through the forest in Rathmore. We thought he was just sick but when we returned home...”

  Squeezing his hand, Judith took up the narrative. “He turned...feral. When he changed into a wolf and ran off, we realized what had happened. When we found him, he was back to his human form and lucid enough that he begged us to kill him-that he’d attacked the woman he loved, the daughter of a local lord” she stopped with a sob and Fredrick drew in a deep breath.

  “We knew that hunters would come for him. For them both. So we locked them in the wagon with silver cutlery tied along the walls to keep them in and came here. Can you help them? Can you bring our son back?” he pleaded and Kendrick nodded slowly.

  “Yes.”

  They visibly deflated with relief, closing their eyes briefly before Fredrick waved toward the back of the wagon.

  “His name is Edmond. He’s a good boy.”

  Allandra heard their explanation as she listened at the canvas covering tacked down to protect the contents of the wagon. A low, threatening growl sounded when she touched the canvas and she hesitated before pushing it aside.

  A young man crouched just inside the bars of a wooden cage, spearing her with a predatory gaze gone completely wolf green. His clothes were ripped and mud stained and it was obvious by the cunning hiding in the piercing eyes that he was assessing her, waiting for an opportunity to escape.

  Silver cutlery, plates and chains had been tied to all the bars in an attempt to keep the werewolf confined in a what normally would have been an easy structure to break out of. Wood was nothing to a werewolf’s superior strength-but the silver was a different story. The burning touch of silver was an effective way to hold them prisoner.

  Flicking a glance behind him, she noted a second cage tucked behind the first, where a young woman with long brown hair lay deathly still on the floor of the wagon. Sending out with her senses, she heard the faintest beat of her heart and gave a thankful sigh that she was still alive.

  Edmond shifted protectively, blocking her view of the woman and Allandra opened her mouth to tell him she meant neither of them harm with a low, menacing growl filled the air.

  Immediately the young man’s eyes widened before his head tilted down, a wolf’s instinctive response to his Alpha.

  Kendrick stepped close, the shards of green in his eyes flaring brightly as his natural dominance surged forward, washing over the other wolf with pure power. He reached for the door of the cage but Allandra reached out to stop him.

  Let me.

  He just looked at her with arrogant wolf’s eyes and she knew he would have wrenched open the cage on his own, silver or no silver, but she couldn’t stand the thought of her husband being hurt even if it was while helping another wolf.

  The silver doesn’t affect me, Kendrick. Let me open the cage.

  He hesitated before giving a short nod of assent. She quickly pulled the silver off the area around the lock and piled it to the side out of the way.

  “I have the key-“ Fredrick started forward, digging in his coat pocket only to halt abruptly, open shock on his face when she just grasped the thick metal lock and yanked it off.

  “That’s all right,” she answered calmly, “I have it.”

  Swinging open the door, she stepped back to give Kendrick clear access, knowing that the wolf inside wouldn’t move or do anything contrary to what the Ascendant Alpha wanted.

  Reaching in, Kendrick touched the top of Edmond’s head with a light hand, causing the other wolf to give a low whine and grow still at the touch.

  Murmuring low and gentle, he slowly rubbed a hand along his back and through their connection, Allandra felt him send strength, comfort and focus to the scared and confused wolf. It was with a sense of awe and amazement that she watched her husband use his dominance, his power to reach human and wolf and help them both find control.

  She knew that this was a Gift that alphas had-the ability to calm and center the wolves in their pack-but she’d never witnessed it firsthand. There was something primally beautiful in the scene before her, of watching an alpha use his influence to aid a wolf who belonged to him. To help him find his way to being whole again.

  “It’s all right,” Kendrick murmured reassuringly, “you’re going to be all right. You’re safe. You’re among Pack now.”

  A visible shudder rippled through the other wolf as a despairing sob heaved out as he answered in a voice hoarse and aching.

  “Please...help me.”

  Tears blurred her vision as Edmond pressed into Kendrick, his fingers digging into her husband’s thick arms with desperate strength. Cupping the back of his head, his alpha held him quietly, continually sending waves of succor through the ties that bound them as the young man sobbed with visible relief.

  “You’re not alone, Edmond. You’ll never be alone again.”

  Tears streaked down his cheeks as he looked up with longing in his face and Allandra could see his desire to belief Kendrick’s words. But then he froze, as though remembering something, and the hope faded, to be replaced by despair. Shaking his head, he looked back toward the unconscious woman at the back of the wagon.

  “I’ve done something terrible,” he confessed with raw pain, “I attacked her. I couldn’t help myself. A part of me didn’t want to, but then suddenly I was a wolf and...Charity trusted me because she knew I loved her. I love her and I killed her!”

  He pulled himself back into a ball, his expression ravaged as he looked at her.

  “She’s not dead.”

  Edmond jerked his head toward Allandra at her quiet statement. “She hasn’t moved in three days.”

  “I can hear her heartbeat.”

  “You gave her your essence,” Kendrick informed him, “you didn’t kill her-you changed her. She’ll awaken soon-a werewolf, like you.”

  “She’ll hate me” he responded quietly and Kendrick shrugged.

  “Possibly. You changed her without her consent and in doing so have altered the course of her life forever. She will never be as she was. But, that doesn’t mean she won’t forgive you and accept that her new one might have more possibilities than her old. And, you’re being mated will only help the both of you adjust faster.”

  “Mated? What does that mean?” Edmond asked in confusion.

  Kendrick reached out and touched the other man’s wrist. “Your mating mark matches hers,” he pointed out with a nod toward the woman’s arm.

  “It means you’re married” Allandra interjected and the other man stared at his palm before shaking his head in bafflement.

  “Married?”

  “It’s the way of wolves. The Creators marry us upon contact with our Seraphins. When she wakes her wolf will recognize the bond between you. Her human side might take more convincing” he added wryly.

  Edmond nodded slowly before raising his head with a slow release of breath, his eyes already half-way brown now. “So what happens now?”

  “Now, we take both of you to the Healers cottage. When Charity awakes, we’ll explain what it means to be a werewolf. The laws you must follow. Then, we’ll see you settled in a Pack where you feel at home.”

  Carefully climbing out of the wagon, he nodded tiredly as his parents rushed at him with cries of joy. They hugged him tightly between them and Allandra smiled at the family, knowing that the feelings they obviously had for one another were a blessing. Too often families of newly made werewolves found themselves not only forsaken, but hunted by those who once professed to love them.

  Shaking off the sad thought, she jumped into the wagon and quickly pulled the silver off the cages so the werewolf warriors who had flowed out of the woods from where they’d been watching from the shadows could take
the couple back to the village.

  Edmond growled when one of them tried to lift Charity so the other’s stepped back so the young man could jump into the wagon and carefully gather her up into his arms.

  Kendrick stepped in front of Fredrick and Judith when they made to follow after their son and looked at them regretfully.

  “You saved his life by bringing him here. Rest assured, he and Charity will be cared for and protected as one of the Pack,” he assured them, hesitating before continuing quietly, “unfortunately, we do not allow outsiders into Kalvara.”

  The couple stilled, their expressions devastated as they hung onto each other tightly and looked over to where their son waited by the edge of the woods with his wife held in his arms.

  “We can’t ever see him again?”

  “Of course you can. There are several families who settled nearby so they could be near a packmember who had been changed. It may take some time before Edmond and Charity are enough in harmony with their wolves-have enough control-to leave Kalvara, but we can send messages of their progress.”

  Fredrick nodded, a frown wrinkling his forehead. “You would accept them both...without question?”

  “Of course. They’re Pack,” Kendrick answered simply, “I promise you that we will do everything we can to help them have a good life.”

  The couple exchanged a long, speaking glance before Judith answered. “Edmond is our only child. We lost...several before he had him. He has been our life for so long-we’ve never been apart. The thought of being so, even for a short while is...what if we chose to become werewolves as well? Could we stay in Kalvara then?”

  Kendrick studied them both for a long moment, searching them with all of his wolf senses before giving a slight nod. “That is a decision that needs to be made carefully. Some, like your son, had that choice taken from them but I’ve made it a law that before anyone is made a werewolf, they must be educated on what it means to be one. It is not a light thing you ask for-it will permanently change you in ways you might not have even considered.”