Garden of the Wolf Box Set (Werewolf / Shifter Romance)

by Mac Flynn

  "Too late."

  "-they got a whole bunch of werewolves around them and Blackwood started telling people he wanted to make them immune to wolf's bane, but he'd make it even more powerful against other rival clans and against humans."

  I frowned. "Starting a war on two fronts?"

  "Yep. Well, that didn't sit well with Scott, but he kept his head down and tried to find the cure. He was using his own blood in the lab work, and one night he was working alone. Blackwood was out preaching his we-will-be-world-rulers shtick to a bunch of the other werewolves. Scott was blending his blood with the plant when there was some sort of reaction and it suddenly became edible. All the bad stuff was neutralized by the blood, but a little bit of the blood was absorbed into the plant. He tested it on an old bird he caught and it made it young again. Kind of cool, isn't it?" she asked me.

  "Yeah, but judging from what I know of Blackwood I don't think he was happy," I mused.

  Susie shook her head. "Nope. When Blackwood found out it had their longevity blood in it he wanted to burn the whole lab building to the ground. I guess Blackwood hates humans almost as much as he hates Scott. Anyway, Scott got him to agree just to destroy the notes and samples, but before they did it Scott managed to sneak out the info and some of the samples. He worked on it in secret for about twenty years before he got some of his money together and made the Garden."

  I stopped our walking and raised an eyebrow. "Twenty years? Don't you mean two?" I asked her.

  Susie folded her arms across her chest and shook her head. "Haven't you been listening to anybody?" she scolded me.

  "Only if they sounded sane, and there's not that many people around here who do sound sane," I retorted.

  Susie sighed and patted my on the shoulder. "Then I've got some bad news for you, Abby. Your boyfriend's about two hundred years old."

  My eyes widened. "You're joking. You have to be."

  "You know me. If I was joking there's be some crack about us dating older men," she argued. She paused and tapped her chin. "Now that I think of it that's pretty funny right now."

  I grabbed her shoulders and shook her. "Susie, focus! What you just told me is impossible!"

  "Yeah, well, so are werewolves, but we're pretty much one of those now," she pointed out.

  My mouth dropped open and my hands slid down her shoulders and dropped to my sides. "Then you're not joking?"

  "Nope."

  "Scott's really two hundred years old?"

  "Give or take a decade. Dan's a little younger."

  I ran a shaky hand through my hair. "My god. . ." I murmured.

  Susie slung an arm over my shoulder and grinned. "Cool, isn't it?"

  "My god. . ."

  "I knew you'd be thrilled." She pulled me along and we continued our trek down the beach. "Anyway, when Scott got the formula just right he revealed what he'd been doing and challenged Blackwood. They had some epic fighting, blah-blah-blah, and the clan split into two. There was Scott's group and Blackwood's group. Scott took the lake because he had more followers and Blackwood was left with the mining town and the gold, or so he thought. The gold vein ran out a few years later, so they've just been kind of limping along for a few decades, living almost like-well, like wolves on the land. Lots of people have come over to Scott and Dan's side, so that's made Blackwood all evil and bitter, like a shriveled mushroom with an attitude. That's why he hates Scott so much." She stopped us at a log and plopped down. "And there you have it. A history of your mate."

  "He's not my mate," I growled.

  "Well, it's his history, anyway. Right now Blackwood's got just a couple dozen followers and is trying to make trouble to provoke them into a small war. Scott doesn't want to, and Dan can't see any other choice." Susie sighed and shook her head. "Men."

  I joined her on the log and looked out on the lake. There was only an hour before the sun set. My mind buzzed with Susie's story. A cool breeze wafted over us. I closed my eyes and breathed in the fresh smell. My mind was soothed. Mostly.

  "So where are we in all of this?" I asked Susie.

  "In the middle of trouble, like always," she quipped.

  "Fire!"

  Chapter 4

  Susie and I jumped to our feet and whipped our heads to and fro to find the source. I guessed it was in the direction of the billowing black smoke that rose up from the trees at the far end of the settlement.

  "Fire!" again came the cry.

  Susie grabbed my wrist and pulled me down the beach towards the greenhouses.

  "Where the hell are we going?" I yelled at her.

  "Dan showed me where the hoses were in case of fire!" she shouted.

  I wondered how those two got any sleep with such a thorough tour, but my shallow thoughts were driven from my mind when someone drilled their shoulder into me. They came from around a corner and rammed into my side. I slipped from Susie's grasp and crashed hard to the ground. Susie skidded to a stop a few yards away and turned to find the problem.

  That turned out to be Celeste, the constant companion of Blackwood. She stood over me with a sneer on her lips and the fire of anger in her eyes. She leaned down, grabbed my collar and pulled me up so we were nearly face-to-face.

  Her voice was low and dangerous, and there was a slight hiss to her venomous words. "I would kill you here if I could, but Blackwood demands you come with me."

  I covered her hand with both of mine. "No thanks," I choked out.

  "That wasn't a request."

  "It is now!" Susie yelled just before she rammed her body into Celeste.

  All three of us tumbled to the ground. Susie and I jumped on our foe and attacked her like modern, civilized women. That means we used what nature gave us and bit, clawed, and pulled her hair. We handled her for all of five seconds before she grabbed Susie and tossed her into me. Her hip bone and rear connected with my nose and head, and I was left seeing full moons. Celeste stood and snatched the backs of our collars. She lifted us off the ground and held us away from her.

  "Don't try that again," she growled.

  We didn't try it again, but Nelson did. Dan flew from behind a nearby greenhouse and snatched us from Celeste's grasp. He stepped back a few yards and pulled us behind him so he stood between us and Celeste.

  "Leave or you will hurt," he threatened her.

  Celeste grinned. "Just the tasty little treat I was looking for." She put two fingers in her mouth and blew.

  A shrill whistle echoed through the settlement, and in a few moments a dozen shadows jumped out from behind the greenhouses. They were scroungy werewolves from Blackwood's pack, and their yellow eyes gleamed with glee as they slowly surrounded us. The werewolves inched closer, and we inched closer together.

  One of them broke from the pack and lunged at Nelson. Nelson grabbed the male wolf by the collar and tossed him into one of his companions. That was a signal that one wasn't enough, so the remainder of our enemies, excluding Celeste, jumped Nelson. They crashed atop him in one big wolfy pile and pounded away at his hidden body with their fists.

  "No!" Susie yelled.

  Susie tried to rush forward, but a new pair of wolves in tattered clothing came up and grabbed us from behind. They pinned our arms to our sides with more strength than we could break. We could only watch as the pile slid off Nelson and revealed him unconscious on the ground. He was covered in bruises and his clothes were torn. There were cuts all over his arms and face.

  Celeste snapped her fingers and one of them slung Nelson over their shoulder. "Let's go before they put out the fire," she ordered us.

  We were hefted over the shoulders of our captors as Celeste sprinted down the beach. She led our large group into the trees at the far end of the settlement. We turned and dove deeper into the woods, and with a sinking feeling I noticed we followed a small creek that ran northward. The werewolves ran in pairs of two, and I glanced to my side at Susie who lay over the shoulder of the nearby wolf. She was pale and her lips were pursed so tight there was hardly any color in
them.

  "You okay?" I whispered.

  She shook her head. I couldn't blame her. She'd just watched her mate get pulverized by our enemies. We bounced onward until there was hardly any light left from the setting sun. The mountains grew closer to us and the terrain changed from dirt to rock. The trees ahead parted and revealed a large open area at the foot of one of the smaller, rockier mountains. The mountain was a patchwork of open mine shafts and sluices. Piles of fallen rocks and old, rotten boards lay at the bottom of the mountain near the creek.

  The rest of the place was no less depressing. Between the mountain and where we entered was a single long, muddy road. Dozens of abandoned homes lined both sides. Their empty window eyes stared at us as though we intruded on its efforts to die a peaceful death. Large piles of trash covered the ground around the houses that were occupied. Outhouses stood behind every house, and there were a few sad-looking gardens between the homes. The sun was just setting, and the only sources of light were lanterns placed at intervals in front of the homes, and those were lit by thin, half-melted candles.

  Thin, pale faces peeked out from windows and doorways. The women and girls wore homespun tattered dresses, and the boys and those men not with us sported patched pants and shirts. Everyone sported grim, grimy faces, and watched us with sad, scared eyes. It was like we were transported back to a more primitive time when strangers were feared and basic survival was the primary employer.

  "Where are we, old Salem?" Susie whispered.

  "Quiet," I hissed. Part of me was afraid she was right and we'd be burned at the stake for heresy.

  Celeste led us to the center of the settlement where stood a well made of stone. Its hole was covered by a rotten, moss-covered gable roof and a single worn bucket with a rope of equal antiquity helped retrieve whatever water would come from such an old well. We stopped near the well. Celeste tilted back her head and let out a howl.

  The sound echoed off the rock mountain and the people at the windows and doorways shuffled from their homes. There was a well-kept home, brightly painted and with fresh boards, near the front of the street. The large oak doors swung open and out stepped Blackwood. His cold eyes fell on us, and I shuddered at their lack of humanity. He was more wolf than man.

  Blackwood stretched out his arms and stepped off his small porch onto the muddy street. "Welcome, guests! Welcome!" he bellowed. I noticed the inhabitants shrank from his voice.

  Blackwood strode over to us and stopped beside Celeste. She nodded at we three captives. Nelson, still unconscious, was dropped onto the ground and we were pushed onto our knees in front of Blackwood.

  Blackwood looked past us and frowned. He turned his cold eyes to his lieutenant. "Where is Linda?"

  She bowed her head. "We couldn't find her. She must have been on the other side of the lake."

  His lips turned down. "I didn't ask for excuses."

  Celeste cringed. "I'm sorry, sir."

  Blackwood turned back to us and some of his good humor returned when his eyes fell on Nelson. "Well, it seems it wasn't a complete loss. We have Scott's friend, and his mate."

  "I'm not his mate," I snapped, more out of habit than thought.

  I stiffened when Blackwood's eyes turned to me. A grin slid onto his face. "Ah, but you are. Once a pair of wolves has chosen their mates than there's no fighting against the calling."

  "Are you going to tell us why we're here or do we have to listen to you gloat all night?" Susie spoke up.

  "Shut up!" I hissed.

  Blackwood chuckled. "This is rather boring. Let's have some sport."

  At his direction a few of our captors fetched a large tin wash bin. They placed the tub in front of Nelson's limp body and filled it with water from the well. The brown water was as clean as sewage, and even had a slight hint of sewer to it. Two of the werewolves lifted Nelson by his arms and dragged him forward so his upper body hung limp over the dirty water. Blackwood gave a nod to the pair who held Nelson, and with one strong push they plunged his upper body into the cold, vile water.

  His lower body came alive. His feet kicked, and his hands found and grasped the sides of the bin. He pulled his head out of the water and gulped in a hearty dose of air before they pushed him back into the dark depths of the tub.

  "Let him up," Blackwood ordered them.

  The pair pulled Nelson out of the bin, but kept him close enough that they could continue their torture. Nelson's upper body dripped with brown water. It ran off his short locks in streams and he coughed out several tablespoons of the stuff. Susie, her face a picture of concern, tried to tear herself from her captor and go to him, but the werewolf held her back.

  Blackwood knelt in front of Nelson and looked over our friend's bruised face. "It's been a long time since you were here, Nelson."

  Nelson's lip curled back in disgust. "Not long enough," he growled.

  Blackwood drew his hand back and snapped it forward. The back of his hand slapped Nelson's cheek, and I winced when Nelson's head whipped to one side and his neck cracked. "You were always fast with your tongue, but now you've got to watch yourself or I might play with your mate before I'm finished with you."

  Nelson curled his lips back in a snarl and lunged forward. Blackwood fell back onto his rear, and Nelson's sharpened, lengthened teeth and strong jaws missed our foe by a half a centimeter. Nelson's captors yanked him away from Blackwood. Blackwood stood and smoothed the wrinkles on his shirt as he glowered down at Nelson. He turned to our audience and gestured with one hand to Nelson.

  "You see how vicious our enemies are? How they wish to do us harm when we have merely invited them here to see what they've done to us?" he called to the wisps of people around us.

  From the crowd came a meek, quiet female voice. "He was always nice to me."

  Chapter 5

  Blackwood's eyebrows crashed down and he scanned the crowd. "Who said that? Speak up!"

  A small woman of about twenty squeezed past the front of the crowd and stood before Blackwood. She clutched her hands in front of herself and her shoulders trembled. Though she faced Blackwood, her eyes looked at the ground. "I-it was me, sir," she admitted.

  Blackwood pursed his lips and closed his eyes as he shook his head. "Stephanie, you of all people should know how they have stolen our people from us."

  Nelson tried to stand, but his captors held him in a kneel. "We stole no one. They came to us to escape this poverty," he argued.

  "Frank would never have left on his own. He was therefore stolen," Blackwood countered.

  "Frank? I know him," Susie spoke up. All eyes turned to her, and she smiled back at them. "He's in charge of the front desk. We saw Blackwood talking with him the other day. He should know Frank's happy where he is."

  Stephanie gasped and looked to Blackwood. "Is this true? You've seen Frank?"

  Blackwood straightened and coughed. His eyes flickered to us and I didn't like the glare in their depths. He returned his attention to Stephanie. "Yes, of course I've seen him, but he's a prisoner in his own life. They control him-"

  "The only controlling is what you're doing," I snapped.

  Blackwood curled his lips back in a snarl. "Quiet, woman."

  "Telling us to be quiet is like us telling you to stop lying. It ain't gonna happen," Susie quipped.

  Blackwood's gaze caught on Nelson. Susie's mate still sat on his knees close to the dunking bin. A grin slid back onto his lips. "If you choose to disobey me then I have no choice."

  Blackwood nodded at the pair who held Nelson. They yanked him forward and plunged his upper body into the dank water. Unlike before, Blackwood didn't give the signal for them to pull Nelson out. Nelson thrashed and kicked, but the pair held him tight in the water. My eyes widened when I beheld air bubbles rise to the surface.

  "No. . ." I heard Susie whisper. I turned and saw her pull against her captor. Her eyes shone with a strange, unnatural yellow light that I knew all too well. "No!"

  Susie spun around and her swift movement freed
one of her arms from the werewolf who held her. She dragged her lengthened fingernails across the face of her captor. He cried out and released her to clutch his wounded, bleeding gashes. She lunged for the pair who held Nelson and crashed into them. They lost their grip on Nelson who immediately pulled himself from the water and gasped for breath.

  I looked over my shoulder and noticed my captor had his full attention on Susie. I jerked my head back and slammed into his nose. He yelped and I felt his hands loosen. I broke from his hold and shoved him into a group of werewolves who charged towards us.

  The street was chaos as people ran towards their houses at the same time the werewolf fighters tried to get at us. The two factions collided and slowed down one another in a mess of screaming people and shouts of command from Blackwood and his minions that were ignored by the terrified followers.

  The shit really hit the fan when I heard a wolf howl from the woods. I looked to the trees in time to see dozens of shadows swoop out from behind the trunks. They raced towards us and the unknown forces collided with the first line of Blackwood's men. One of the shadows became known to me when he rushed to my side and pulled me into his arms.

  "Are you all right?" Scott asked me.

  Tears sprang into my eyes and I wrapped my arms around him. It was nice to bury my face into his chest and deeply inhale his fresh, clean scent. "I am now," I replied.

  His chuckle tickled my body. "It seems the others are not in need of my help."

  My eyes widened and I half turned back to the well. I was just in time to see Nelson swing and punch the last of his captors unconscious. Beside him Susie swung the tub like it was a bat. At her feet was Nelson's other captor. He sported a large bruise on his forehead that matched an indent in the tub. Our other foes were preoccupied fighting those who had come with Scott.