The Wolfborne Saga Box Set

by Cheree Alsop

  I cut him off. “Sutter, it’s me.”

  “It’s great to hear your voice.” He hesitated, then asked, “And Fray?”

  She smiled at me. “I’m here, too.”

  Sutter gave a whoop so loud a few of the people outside of the car laughed.

  “I knew he could do it! I had no doubts,” the info tech said. “How did you get out of there? That place is a fortress!”

  “Some smart person I know recommended using the front door,” I reminded him.

  He laughed. “And you took it literally. I love it!”

  “Sutter, we need your help,” I told him. “This is urgent.”

  “That’s what I’m here for,” he replied.

  “We have a broken phone with a phone number we need to trace. Hundreds of lives depend on it,” Fray said.

  Sutter’s tone became all business. “What’s the number?”

  We could hear him typing it as she told him. In less than a minute, he said, “I have the address.”

  A cheer ran through the crowd.

  “It’ll take you about an hour to get there,” he continued.

  The smiles fell and fear took over the faces who watched us.

  “What do we do?” I asked Fray.

  She looked at the cellphone. “Sutter, can you pretend to be the phone that called this number? If Godnik doesn’t check in, those families will be slaughtered.”

  “I can if you can get the number I need to pretend to be,” he said.

  Fray pushed a few buttons, but couldn’t find the phone number.

  A young werewolf stepped forward. “I’ve got this,” he said with an air of confidence.

  Two seconds later, he held out the phone. “Give him that number.”

  She read it to Sutter.

  A few tense moments later, we heard him dial.

  “This is Godnik checking in.”

  I had to admit that the info tech’s impression was spot on. He must have been listening closely over my earpiece.

  “Yes, yes,” Sutter said. “Check.”

  A moment of silence followed, then Sutter’s voice came back over the car speakers. “You’ve got another hour. Don’t waste it.”

  A cheer followed his words.

  “Let’s go,” I told the others. “It’s going to be tight.”

  Nobody moved. I glanced at Fray. “Am I missing something?”

  “We don’t have vehicles,” a dhampir said.

  A witch perked up. “I saw a basket of keys inside!”

  There was a mad scramble for the rows of fancy vehicles that lined each side of the mansion’s driveway. Soon enough, Fray drove our car while the rest of them followed.

  “I still think I should be driving,” Sutter pointed out for the sixth time.

  Fray gave an exasperated sigh. “I can manage, Sutter. Stop treating me like an invalid.”

  “From what they told me about your condition before you left, you’re lucky to be alive,” he said sulkily.

  I nodded. “It’s true.”

  She shot me an accusing look. “Traitor.”

  I chuckled. “Guilty. I just don’t want you to wear yourself out.”

  “After too much time dying in a cell, driving feels like freedom,” she replied. “Argue that.”

  Both Sutter and I kept quiet.

  Fray laughed; she sounded more carefree than I had heard in her entire time at the Division. “Shut you two up, didn’t I?”

  I grinned. “Mission accomplished. The rest will be easy.”

  “I hope so,” Sutter replied. “Because we’re getting close. I’m shutting off the headlights. We’ll see if your mighty band of paranormal warriors will do the same.”

  To my relief, when the headlights turned off, the cars behind us followed. Sutter turned from the main highway onto a smaller paved road. It was harder to navigate, so Fray gave up the controls to the tech. The rest of the cars followed our brake lights through the twisted trees and down a steep decline. We turned into a narrow pass and then the terrain opened up into a narrow valley.

  Fray sucked in a breath. “Look at that.”

  I had already seen the razor wire and fences from the werewolf’s perspective, but the sight of the armed guards in towers and the seclusion of the valley truly sent the image home. This was a concentration camp for paranormal creatures raised to be hunted in the arena, and they were prepared to annihilate their captives at a moment’s notice. There was nothing humane about it. They needed to go down.

  “Let me out.”

  Sutter stopped the car.

  Fray looked at me in surprise. “What’s going on?”

  “If they see us, they’ll sound the alarm and the families will be killed. We have to do this the old fashioned way.”

  Fray watched me closely. “What does that mean?”

  A grim smile crossed my face. “It’s time to hunt as a pack. Wait here and keep the others calm and quiet. It shouldn’t take long.”

  “Zev, be careful.”

  “I will,” I said as I reached for the door.

  “Zev.”

  She waited until I looked at her fully.

  “Be careful,” she repeated.

  The concern on her face made me stop. Nobody had ever looked at me like that. She was afraid for me, not of me, not of what I would do, but for my personal safety. It gripped my heart and wouldn’t let it go.

  “I will. I promise,” I told her.

  She gestured toward the cars behind us. “You’re not alone, you know. You don’t have to go as only wolves.” She smiled. “Thanks to you, we have an entire fleet ready to protect their families. Everyone deserves a chance to fight the battle they’ve been dreaming of for as long as they’ve been imprisoned.”

  I warmed to the idea. “If we work together, this might be quick and painless for those waiting inside.”

  “But not the guards,” she said. It was obvious how she felt about the pains she had also endured under their hands.

  I shook my head. “They deserve their fate.”

  She gave a grim nod. “Let’s get it done.”

  I opened the door and phased. The werewolves who saw me did the same. Soon, a group of eighteen of us paced in silence toward the compound. I sent images of the hunt as I thought of what our strategy should be. Werewolves branched off and circled around the opposite side of the camp until we had four separate packs crouched in the shadows and ready to attack.

  Ready, I thought to Fray.

  The fences in front of us vanished. The werewolves around me stared in amazement. I sent an image of us stalking through and taking down the guards in silence. The wolves moved as one. At my thought, a member of each pack broke off and snaked up the winding stairs to the guard towers. The rest of us slunk through the camp as silent as wraiths.

  All was going as planned until I heard the startled sounds of several werewolves in a hut. They had scented us. If they sounded an alert, the guards would start shooting.

  I sent a thought into the night.

  We’re here to free you. Be ready to leave at the alarm. Gates are open.

  I channeled the thought to the captives, then expanded my thoughts to find my werewolves. My heart slowed. The night stilled. It felt as though everything, including the very wind, waited for my next command.

  I let out a breath and pushed the single thought. Attack.

  The whisper of paws across the ground was followed by yells. A few gunshots rang out as several guards managed to draw their weapons, but the sound cut off quickly. The werewolves were fast, lethal, and exacting in their need to free their families.

  Witches and warlocks, use your magic, I called out to those who had come with us.

  They stormed through the gate in a group defended by the dhampirs. Shields sprang up around the huts, protecting those inside from any stray bullets. The guards who advanced on the witches and warlocks were quickly taken out by the dhampirs. The werewolves were everywhere.

  I led a pack around the far end of the
complex where my nose told me the guards lived. Someone had left the door open to let in the evening breeze. We slipped inside and made our way down the halls.

  Guns, tasers, tranquilizers, whips, silver blades, and every other weapon of torture I could imagine hung along the walls. Blood speckled some, remnants of the victims they had recently been plied upon. The scents of pain and also of enjoyment tangled in a foul mixture that made me sneeze.

  “What was that?” someone asked from inside the closest room.

  A person stepped into the hall.

  I leaped onto the guard before he could raise the alarm. He smashed into the door and it slammed open.

  “What the—”

  The lights flipped on. Guards peered blearily from their beds.

  “We’re under attack!” a woman yelled from the far end.

  The werewolves rushed past me. Weapons were drawn, but too late. The slaughter that ensued was fueled by the sight of the humans who had tortured their families. I couldn’t pull the werewolves back and I didn’t want to. Those who had imprisoned the paranormal so they could be raised and hunted like deer or rabbits deserved their fate.

  I padded back outside and left the wolves to their revenge. Within minutes, the paranormal had control of the grounds.

  No alarm rang. The attack had been swift and deadly.

  I did a final sweep to ensure that no one had escaped. As much as the sight of the slain ate at me, the knowledge of what they had done to deserve it was undeniable. Godnik was right; the predators had finally become the prey. I wondered if the irony had occurred to them the same way it had to the god of the Hunt.

  It’s done, I said to those inside the fences.

  Excited talking and shouts erupted through the camp.

  I made my way to the opening in the gate and watched with a growing satisfaction as those who had been Hunted were returned to the families they thought they would never see again. For someone like me who had never had a family, it was so beautiful it made the tears burn in my eyes. But wolves didn’t cry. At least, I tried to tell myself that as the tears made their way down the sides of my muzzle.

  “You’re a softie,” a voice said.

  I looked up to see Fray watching me from the doorway of the closest hut.

  Don’t tell anyone, I said as I wiped my eyes on my paws.

  She smiled at that. “Don’t worry. Your secret’s safe with me.” She looked around. “Though I don’t think either of us have many secrets left.”

  I like it that way, I admitted.

  “Me, too,” she said.

  Witches and warlocks held their children while the wolves ran around to locate their families. Dhampirs clustered together near the fence. Even though the gate was open, everyone was unsure about leaving. I could understand their fears exactly. Escaping the Lair had been the hardest decision I had ever made. I couldn’t imagine what my life would be like if I had never run beyond the vampire’s reach.

  When the excitement died down and families were gathered together once more, they made their way to the opening the witches and warlocks had created. Tears glimmered on many of the faces. Revna held her mother’s hand while Seth and Rainy waited with a cluster of smiling dhampirs. An expectant silence fell over the crowd.

  “I think you’re up,” Fray said.

  I hadn’t been prepared for a speech. Being the center of attention definitely wasn’t my strength, but they needed something. I only hoped it was something I could give.

  I looked around at the expectant expressions. A little girl with bright golden eyes smiled up at me, her head wreathed in a cluster of dark brown curls. Her werewolf scent was colored by lilies and snow and her tiny hand was held by an older man. The scar down his forehead and his missing ear told me that he was the werewolf who had shown me the compound in the dungeon.

  “Thank you,” he said.

  I lowered my head in a bow.

  Thank you for trusting me.

  I turned my attention to the others and addressed them in the only way I was able to in wolf form.

  You are free now. The arena and the Hunters have been taken down. There are other bands of Hunters around the world, and we will focus on taking them out as well. Nobody should live caged and in a life of fear. You now have the chance to live a life of peace with your families.

  Cheers went up from those who watched me. Several of the families approached the gate.

  “Who are you?” a dhampir asked.

  My name is Zev.

  “You mean Wolfslayer,” Revna said as she reached the gate with her mother.

  I snorted. That’s not a very fitting name if you ask me.

  Several of the others laughed.

  “I don’t know,” Fray said. “The wolf who slays those who hurt the innocent. It is fitting if you ask me.” She ran a hand through my fur. I closed my eyes, enjoying her closeness and the scents of licorice and sage that enveloped me.

  “Where will we go now?” a young warlock asked. “This isn’t home anymore?”

  “Never again,” his mother told him. “You’ll never have to live here ever again.” There was worry in her eyes when she looked back at us. “But we’re not sure where to go from here.”

  An idea struck me. I have an idea that might just work.

  “You do?” Fray asked in surprise.

  Trust me, I said.

  “I do,” she replied. “I really do.”

  Chapter Thirteen

  “There’s one thing I don’t understand.”

  I glanced at Virgo. The warlock leaned against a tree with his eyes on the construction. Georgia the author sat at his feet. Rocky, the deaf white Pitbull I had rescued, lay with his head in her lap. His tongue lolled out almost far enough to touch the leaves beneath him. The happiness on the dog’s face filled me with warmth.

  “What don’t you understand?”

  Virgo gestured toward the work that was taking place. “Where did you get the money for all this? I thought you were in debt to Captain Roarsh for getting you into the Hunters’ arena in the first place.”

  I laughed. I couldn’t help it. A rolling, deep laugh escaped me with such surprising ferocity that I had to lean against the tree for support.

  “What’s wrong with him?” Georgia asked.

  Virgo lifted his shoulders. “No idea. He’s not the laughing type.”

  That slowed my laughter enough for me to say, “I didn’t used to have a lot to laugh about.” I wiped at the tears that rolled down my cheeks. “It really feels good.”

  Virgo nodded, but worry creased his face and I could tell he thought I had finally gone mad.

  “I haven’t told you something,” I said. “I forgot about it until now.”

  He rolled his eyes. “I figured as much.”

  I grinned. “You, my friend, are a millionaire.”

  The warlock stared at me. He then looked at Georgia. “What did the werewolf say? Is he crazy?”

  “I think so,” she replied. “He called you a millionaire.”

  “You are a millionaire,” I said.

  I was enjoying the conversation immensely. I was used to being the foreteller of doom. I could definitely get used to the opposite side of the spectrum.

  “How do you figure?” the warlock asked. “I own a million pages of books. I have Georgia, which truly makes me a millionaire in the emotional sense.”

  She smiled up at him. “I feel the same about you.”

  “Thank you,” he replied with a grin. He turned back to me and his gaze became calculating. “But somehow I don’t feel like you’re counting that. Care to explain or are you going to leave me guessing?”

  “Do you remember fighting demons?” I asked.

  He sighed. “One doesn’t forget those things, Zev. Did you get tranquilized one too many times at the Division? I hear those things mess with your brain.”

  I grinned. “What if I told you that you got paid a million dollars every time you saved the world?”

  “Was that
a lot of times?” Georgia asked. Her tone was light as if she thought I was joking.

  “Well, I saved the world four times by my guess,” Virgo said in a tone that told me he was humoring me.

  “Three,” I replied.

  “Four,” he said firmly.

  Georgia laughed.

  I shook my head. “They had to send me in on a rescue mission the last time, so it doesn’t count.”

  “It should count,” Virgo argued. “Especially since—” He paused and I could see him processing. “Wait. Are you serious?”

  “Completely.”

  His mouth fell open. “A million dollars each time we saved the world?”

  I nodded.

  He stared at Georgia, then me again. “A million? So if you’re not counting the last time, I have….”

  “Three million dollars to your name,” I finished for him.

  He gaped like a fish pulled from the river. Georgia stared at me too as if waiting for me to laugh again. But I didn’t laugh.

  Virgo waved his arm toward the construction. “So you’re using your money here.”

  “I used one million to pay my way into the Hunters’ arena, two of it to turn the Lair into a haven for the paranormal, and one million to buy this forest and put a wall around it so nobody bothers them if they choose to stay.”

  My ears tuned to the familiar footsteps that walked up behind us.

  Virgo watched me closely. “So you spent all your money?”

  “What do I need money for?” I asked him. “I’m a werewolf.”

  “Money comes in handy,” Georgia supplied helpfully.

  Arms wrapped around me from behind. Virgo stepped back as if afraid I would take my attacker down; but I merely smiled and set a hand on Fray’s, pulling her closer.

  “You’ve worked for the Division for a week or so?” Fray asked the warlock. “I’ve been there for years. Trust me when I say I have enough money for the both of us.”

  “So it’s true?” the warlock asked. “I’m really a millionaire?”

  Fray nodded. “Three times over. Sutter will send you the account number whenever you want it.”

  Virgo stood there in stunned silence until Georgia broke it to say with an air of speculation, “Maybe I should join the Division.”