Moonlight Hunters: A Reverse Harem Shifter Romance (The Witch and the Wolf Pack Book 2)

by K. R. Alexander

  “Shhh,” I said over Kage. “We’ll have to use the light. Andrew? And find the cutters.”

  He fumbled in the bag, then located the cutters and stuffed them inside. I stepped away from Kage to take the small flashlight, unzipped the jacket, and slipped it below the lower hem of my blouse, holding the light through fabric to soften the effect.

  “Isaac? Do you know where the shovels are?”

  He was standing in the neatly clipped green grass between headstones. Uncertainly, I thought.

  “Forget shovels,” Andrew said. “Where’s the grave?”

  It took them several minutes to locate both the grave and the hidden shovels. Then, though my own mental state was rattled to do it, I scried the headstone.

  Yes, I read Maximilian Walkenhorst clearly. Even Oberleutnant and 1882–1918.

  Just a human being? No undead, no vampire with a stake in his chest?

  Why did Dieter want him? What for? They couldn’t reanimate old bones, surely. The idea made me shiver.

  They dug, taking turns, wearing gloves, mindful of the space and not digging under the headstone. The going was alarmingly slow. I’d imagined we’d nip right down there. Instead, the ground was packed, rocky, and being careful about the process was a major holdup.

  After half an hour and being maybe eighteen inches down in a coffin-sized hole, Kage rounded on me.

  “Can’t you do anything?”

  “What?” I looked up from checking the time on my phone.

  “Anything about this?” He waved his hand at the dirt.

  Do something? Like Andrew’s glasses, it hadn’t crossed my mind. Now, I wondered if my training had made me so unused to publicly using magic it would be our downfall.

  I waved them aside and stood over the grave. I connected with earth spirits, the roots of the trees, worms and ants, mole spirits and badger spirits. I felt for the magic of the earth to ask a favor. I felt the depth. I felt the tombstone and fixed it to hold firm. Then I called the wind, my friends the air spirits and their magic to move. I infused the two, saw them shake hands, and the earth in that hole bubbled up until it filled the space they’d already cleared and more.

  All was still again.

  “Okay,” I panted with the effort. “Try now.”

  They looked from the grave to me.

  “You just filled it up,” Kage said like he thought I was extremely slow.

  “No, I didn’t.” I waved my hand at it. “Dig. There’s a guide now. And the headstone is secure. You can dig under it so we can get the coffin open.”

  Kage just stared at me but Isaac tried again.

  What had felt like concrete was now like shoveling cracker crumbs: feathery and aerated, with a path right to the coffin. they had the whole thing cleared out and efforts underway to feel out the lid in no time.

  Isaac climbed out from the bottom. Andrew got the crowbar and eased in while I held the light, on my knees in the dirt on the edge of the pit.

  The casket was wood but lacquered, thick, with iron trimmings. At a century old, I’d thought it would be in rougher shape. It seemed the lack of oxygen must have slowed decay. While Andrew fiddled with it, it creaked and groaned under him—not all that stable.

  After ten minutes, he’d pried one side carefully loose, but the lid ran the full length of the coffin. He couldn’t open it because he was standing on it.

  With the appropriate side loosened, Andrew wedged one foot hold into the side of the earth and reached his free hand up to Isaac. On his knees beside me, Isaac held his weight while Andrew teetered on one foot and tugged up the lid with the hooked end of the crowbar.

  Despite the sense of a comedy act beside me, I felt a rush of dread with the lifting of that lid. It even crossed my mind just in the moment that we should have brought wood stakes of our own. What was really in there?

  But, no, disturbing as it was anyway, there were only bones and decomposing uniform and a little hair somehow remaining on the skull.

  In the dark, huddling over a grave we’d just broken into, it was still one of the most horrifying things I’d ever seen. And confusing—as Andrew pointed out.

  “There isn’t much.” Andrew shifted his feet to stand on each rim of the coffin, one leg keeping the lid open up the side of the grave.

  He leaned down to prod the legs with his crowbar. Disintegrating uniform trousers. There were no bones in there, nothing at all. He had to reach the ribcage to find any substance. Even that was fragmentary: more like half a cage inside the uniform tunic with buttons tarnished and black in the light.

  One upper arm connected to a shoulder. Then a whole arm and the other shoulder, with the neck and skull attached. Less than half a person had been buried here.

  Andrew looked up to beam at me in the wavering light. His face was streaked in dirt, but his smile was wide and genuine. “Makes the old sod a hell of a lot easier to move, doesn’t it?”

  Chapter 44

  I did my best to restore the space with magic. It wasn’t the same. Moss disturbed, the ground heaped, no matter how much we pounded it. But, unless someone was checking closely, it wasn’t that bad either.

  We hid the shovels at another part of the wall. Then returned as silently as the robbers we were to the bikes. All clear at the wall this time. We walked them out of the neighborhood and finally left town at 4:00 a.m.

  Back home, covered in dirt, clothes filthy, I had to take one more shower, this time needing to wash my hair for the dirt, no matter sleeping on it. I pulled on my tank top and pajama bottoms and fell into bed, hardly remembering to set an alarm on my phone for 9:00 a.m. Then I reached again and changed it to 9:30.

  I remembered Isaac as I fell asleep. The waterfall, the silver light, his body, being with him. It seemed a long time ago.

  Contrarily, it seemed only minutes before I heard the roosters crow and Joseph and Elisabeth getting up.

  I drifted off again, but my few hours of sleep kept being disturbed by roosters, sunlight, and dreams of vineyards soaked in blood. I’d forgotten to ask anyone about who in the South Coast Cooperative would be around a vineyard. And … wait … if it was so rare for a wolf to be a drinker at all, why would they ever be at a vineyard?

  When the alarm went off, I gave it up, dressed, splashed my face, pulled back my hair mess, five-minute makeup, and another fifteen to repack in my room. I’d had to put the bloody jeans back on since it was either a few spots of blood or else covered top to bottom in dirt. I only had the two pairs—no shorts for this trip because of traveling on the bikes.

  I managed the best I could, stripped my bed and put the sheets in the wash for Joseph and Elisabeth, and made my way down for coffee.

  To my surprise, the whole family was out at the long tables with half of my pack. Jed, Andrew, and Kage were absent.

  I’d warned Joseph that we planned to be out of here around 10:00 a.m. if we could.

  Though none of them were breakfast eaters, they’d put together a spread of fried potatoes, homemade pork sausages with apple and sage, and about six eggs apiece—chicken and duck.

  They were setting all this out, with Andrew, yawning, trailing over from the guesthouse, Kage getting out of the shower, and Jed soon also drifting over for the food.

  I only wanted one more of those honey and goat cheese sandwiches, but the duck eggs looked good. It turned out, everything was good.

  After swallowing their breakfasts, there was much well-wishing, and blessings for our journey. There were also some apologies from my lot, which I appreciated. Kage had left them cash for the replacement of the greenhouse panel.

  I’d seen Martha talking with Zar when I’d first come out. Once most were up from the table, I moved to sit with her on one of the benches.

  “Thank you, Martha. Danke. For sharing your insights with me.” I was all set to ask about Zar—who’d avoided me ever since I’d yelled at him for hugging me.

  Instead, Martha looked around from watching Isaac talk with Joseph about last night and wha
t we were taking home.

  She focused on my eyes. “What are you doing with that body, yearling?”

  Quite a question.

  “We want it back in London. There’s a vampire who can help us figure out who the killers are—or maybe he already knows. I’m not sure. But he’ll only help if we bring back the remains of this individual. I don’t know why he wants it, which does make me uneasy. Although … not as much as grave robbing did.”

  “You’re working with a vampire?”

  “Sort of. I know your people don’t care for each other. But he’s our best lead…” I shook my head.

  “But, yearling, if you want information on vampires, you should visit Versteckterstein Schloss.”

  “We don’t, per se, except … we do think they might be spawning again and…” I swallowed. “Okay, yes, any and all information on vampires would be nice, now that you mention it.”

  We had an audience forming, several of the wolves close and watching us.

  “Then visit Versteckterstein before you go home.” She pointed. “West of here, near the Black Forest, there is a castle—Schloss—where vampires house their library. All their lore, their history, and their current affairs are kept record of there, so it is said. If you find this library you should be able to see for yourselves if they are starting a new feud. Their texts will say.”

  The yard was quiet.

  Joseph rubbed the back of his head with a huge, work-roughened hand. “I thought you only wanted a cemetery. If you want vampires, she is right. You could not do any better than a visit to Versteckterstein Schloss. Whether they trouble wolves of England or not you would know if you find this library. Think well, though. It may be perilous to hunt for their records.”

  They were all looking at me. The Bavarians, but, more significantly, my own pack.

  And all I’d wanted to do was ask Martha about Zar. All I’d wanted were these bones to take home. All I’d wanted was one of them, not a pack fighting over me. All I’d wanted was to help. All I’d wanted was a vacation.

  “Is everyone packed?” I asked. “Bags ready? Max secured?”

  They nodded.

  “How far is this vampiric castle?” I asked Joseph.

  “Oh … three hundred kilometers? Four? Almost due west.”

  “Then let’s say it’s ‘on the way’ and get going.” I stood up.

  They followed. Those from the Sables who had still been seated stood with me. The others straightened their shoulders, watching me.

  So much I had to say, or ask, or learn. Now, though, it would have to wait.

  One more cup of coffee, many more goodbyes, and it was time to start another hunt.

  Dear Moonlight Pack

  Thank you for being part of The Witch and the Wolf Pack family! Ready for vampires that go bump in the night?

  Cassia faces her most terrifying—and tantalizing—adventures yet as she navigates not only a labyrinth of horrors but one of her own heart in Moonlight Silver, Book Three of The Witch and the Wolf Pack series.

  Looking for more? Come along and run with the Moonlight Pack! You'll find all the links to join in at kralexander.com, receive release news and exclusive content when you sign up for the Moonlight Mailing List, let your own song be heard by sharing a quick review for Moonlight Hunters on Amazon.com, or just keep reading right now with the rest of the series here!

  Thank you!

  Until our next hunt,