by G. K. DeRosa
He cocked a dark brow and grunted. Get your head back in the game.
As if the skeletal demons had heard him, another wave rushed forward. The three of us stood back-to-back and the fighting ensued. The screams and howls muddled in my head, the pounding of my heart roaring the loudest as I fought each fiend off.
The crunch and snap of bones barely registered as the chaos reigned all around. I lost myself in the fight, letting my beast take the lead so I could block it all out. She liked the battle, her alpha female showing off its true nature.
Seconds, then minutes passed, and the warning ring of the buzzer finally drew me from the fog of war. Five minutes remaining. There were still so many of them.
“Sierra, shift back.” Hunter’s voice surprised me, and I whirled around to meet his fully naked form. Despite the pandemonium all around us, I couldn’t help but take a moment to ogle his finely sculpted perfection. Mine. My wolf growled.
Ignoring her, I focused on my magic and before the violet haze crept up my legs, I was back in human form.
“You have to start climbing,” Hunter continued. He pointed at Ransom-Wolf, whose fangs bored into a wraith’s femur and shook his head until the bones rattled and fell to the floor. “We’ll hold them off so you can get out.”
A flicker of dread pierced my insides. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
Yes. Ransom’s reply reverberated in my head almost in unison.
I stared up the steep incline, at least twenty feet above my head. Now, how in the realms was I supposed to make it up there?
A sharp cry swiveled my gaze back down to the battlefield. I could just make out the top of Canyon’s blonde head before he was engulfed in a wave of black. North was beside him, shooting icy daggers at the wraiths, but his packmate’s howls continued as the creatures bored down on him.
An unexpected pang tightened my ribcage, and I forced my lungs to keep pumping. Canyon had tried to kill me in the last round. I shouldn’t care what happened to him. But I did. No one should die at the hands of these vile demons. My feet compelled me forward, back into the viper’s nest.
I could vaguely make out Hunter’s shouts from behind me, but I ignored him as my arms pumped faster. By the time I reached them, both faery wolves were inundated in a sea of bones and black.
A few yards away, Zuriel swung his angel sword, cutting through a dozen wraiths in one blow. I focused my attention on the gleaming blade and muttered, “Spada venitem.” Holding my hand out, the weapon jerked out of the angel hybrid’s hand and flew into my palm.
Zuriel’s glare shot glacial blue daggers in my direction, and I threw him a smile. “Sorry, I’ll give it right back,” I called out over my shoulder.
I slashed the blade through the mass of wraiths, unearthly shrieks and cries ricocheting across the pit. Adrenaline surged through my veins, the rush of the kill unleashing a surge of power I’d never felt before. Inky dark tendrils of magic coursed from my core to the tips of my fingers. I cut a hole right through the attacking demons, until two still forms appeared beneath the boney carnage.
Canyon. His mouth hung open, his light eyes vacant and unseeing, tilted toward the sky. All the air whooshed from my lungs. No. I was too late. North lay beside him, his eyes glazed, but I could still detect the faint rise and fall of his chest. I slid to the ground beside him, and my eyes landed on his hand. His fingers were intertwined with Canyon’s motionless one.
A stab of pain lanced through my heart. I couldn’t help but think of Hunter and what I would’ve done if anything happened to him.
“You’re going to be okay,” I whispered to North as his eyes drifted shut.
“Sierra!” Hunter barreled toward me, cutting through the line of wraiths. “What are you doing?” he cried.
“I couldn’t leave them like this.” I pointed at North, his colorless cheeks growing paler by the second. “You have to get him out of here.”
Hunter’s jaw clenched, teeth grinding. “I won’t save him and risk you.”
“Then take us both.”
He eyed the field and the smattering of wraiths still fighting. “We’ll all be disqualified.”
“It’ll be worth it, if we save North’s life.”
Hunter nodded despite the unease seeping through the bond. He thought I was nuts, and I probably was. I wasn’t stupid enough to think any of these wolves would do the same for me. But if I wanted to be their alpha, then I needed to do what was right.
I bent down and snaked my arm under North’s shoulders, heaving him up. Begrudgingly, Hunter did the same until the faery wolf was on his feet. His head lolled forward, knees wobbling. “You’re going to have to fly him up,” I repeated.
Hunter let out a grunt but tossed him over his shoulder anyway. Then he held out his other hand to me. As I reached for it, he pulled it back. “I changed my mind.”
“What do you mean?”
“There’s no point in both of us being disqualified. You can do it, climb to the top like we planned.”
I stared at him for an endless moment as indecision battled his need to protect me. I could feel the conflict raging within his depths. His lips thinned, and he turned his gaze toward Ransom who was across the field still in wolf form. Hunter’s eyes glazed over, and I knew he was speaking through the pack link.
Before Hunter’s dragon wings unfurled, Wolf-Ransom appeared beside me, his thick gray fur mottled with blood. His own blood. The wraiths had none of their own.
“Protect her with your life. Do you understand me, Ransom? Or you won’t have one after today.”
The gray wolf whined and nudged his big head against my hip.
“Go, Hunter. I’m afraid he doesn’t have long.” I could barely make out the whisper of breath from North’s slack jaw.
Please, be careful. Don’t let me regret this decision. Hunter’s gravelly voice was like a heated caress.
I love you, too, mate. I’ll see you on the other side.
Bending his knees, his wings expanded, and he rocketed skyward. I watched Hunter for only a second before I raced to the earthen walls surrounding the crater. Ransom’s wolf raced in front of me, barreling through the remaining wraiths. Willing my claws out, I dug my fingers into the hardpacked dirt and started to climb.
Chapter Nine
I sat back on my elbows, staring up at the clear blue sky atop Lupine Hill. Birds chirped merrily as a gentle breeze swept my violet tipped locks over my shoulder. It should’ve been a beautiful day. Nature was oblivious to my inner turmoil, of the respite from the trials for the day of mourning. Because Canyon was dead. And North was hanging on by a claw.
Canyon’s death sat heavily in the middle of my chest, an immovable weight since yesterday. And I didn’t understand why. The faery wolf had been nothing but rude to me from day one.
My wolf chuffed her annoyance, prowling around inside me. She felt his absence most. Was it the alpha in her? The need to protect other wolves?
The cords around my heart snapped tight, and I buckled forward as all the air squeezed from my lungs. What the hades? I massaged the spot over my chest as a hint of fear lanced through me. Hunter? I scanned the bond, and his presence hummed along like normal.
I drew in a deep breath and the tightness receded, then completely disappeared. Gods, I needed to relax. I was going to give myself a heart attack.
“You should be celebrating, not sulking.” Hunter’s voice startled me. I’d been so wrapped up in my inner monologue, I hadn’t even noticed his stealthy arrival. He folded down beside me and lay his head on my shoulder. “You did everything you could to save Canyon, Sierra. And you saved North. He’d be dead too if it weren’t for you. Don’t let the guilt blot out what you accomplished.”
My mind swirled back to my earlier thoughts. “I can’t help it. I don’t know why I feel this way.”
He lifted his gaze to mine and smiled. “Because you’re a kind, caring woman with the biggest heart I know, who’d put her own life at risk for someo
ne who didn’t even deserve it. You’re a true alpha, Sierra, and I’m honored to have you as my mate.” His hand cupped my cheek, and I leaned into his touch as his lips brushed mine.
“I love you,” I murmured against his mouth, my heart instantly made lighter by his gentle kisses.
His mouth tensed and he sat back, forcing a smile to his lips I knew he didn’t feel.
“What?” I ran my thumb across his scruffy jaw.
“Every time you say that it’s a constant reminder of what I can’t give you, and I want to so bad, Sierra. I want to love you like you deserve.”
“I know.” I fixed my gaze on his and poured myself into the bond, hoping he understood how I felt. “And I’ve told you before, even if you can’t say it or even sense it, what I feel from you is more love than I’ve ever known.”
His lips thinned into a tight line, and the tendon in his jaw fluttered. But he didn’t speak.
“Do you not want me to say it anymore?” I offered.
Hunter’s eyes jerked to mine, his brows furrowing. “No, never stop. Feeling your love is the only thing that gets me through some days.” He threaded his fingers through mine, running his thumb across my palm in slow circles. “The echo of your love is ten times better than nothing at all.”
Cass’s soft footsteps alerted me to her arrival a few seconds before she appeared at the top of the knoll. “Hope we’re not interrupting…”
Vander and Brax trailed behind her. My packmate eyed me warily, as if he could sense my churning emotions. Which he could.
“Nah, come sit.” I patted the spot beside me, and Cass plopped down on the dewy grass, the other males filling in the area around us.
“So is there a ceremony or something for Canyon?” Braxton asked. A prick of anxiety flared at his name.
“The Court of Wolves has decided to keep the funeral private,” Hunter replied.
“I don’t blame them.” Cass shrugged. “I wouldn’t want a bunch of enemy wolves attending my last rites either. And to have Tyrien presiding…” Her lips screwed into a pout. I elbowed her in the side, and her eyes slid over to Hunter. “Sorry, no offense.”
“None taken.” Hunter huffed out a breath. “Father hasn’t exactly been the best example of a supreme alpha, and that’s not to say anything of his personal shortcomings.”
“At least you knew him,” Braxton blurted. His eyes widened as if he hadn’t meant to speak the words aloud.
“Trust me, an absent father is better than a terrible one, and besides, your sire had no say in the matter. Again, because of mine.” His fingers clenched into tight fists.
“So why is Tyrien still breathing?” Braxton growled and jumped to his feet.
Relax, I shot through the pack link, lacing my voice with alpha power. “The situation is complicated.”
“It’s not easy to oust a supreme alpha,” Hunter added.
“I wasn’t talking about ousting…”
“Braxton!” I snarled.
“I’m just saying the truth. Tyrien drove our pack to extinction, he tried to have you killed a couple times, he had your mom murdered, and who knows what else? Why is he still alive?”
“Because we can’t prove any of those things.” I rose, bristling. As much as I hated to admit it, Braxton had struck a nerve. I’d been waiting and waiting to get my revenge on Tyrien, but I was no closer than when I arrived in Moon Valley. Other, more pressing issues kept interfering. And if I was being honest, I still feared what would happen between Hunter and me when I exacted that revenge.
“But we will.” Vander had been so quiet I’d almost forgotten he was there. “I’ve got eyes on him and on his personal guard. I’m just waiting for him to make a move.”
“And when he does, it’ll be too late.” Brax dug his fingers through his short hair. “I hate living like this. First, I was in hiding, and now I’m constantly looking over my shoulder.”
“It’s been like one day. Chill, Braxton,” Hunter countered.
“Yeah, and it sure looked like you were enjoying yourself the other night.” I cocked a brow, grinning.
Everyone chuckled, and even my grumpy packmate’s lips curled at the corners.
“Those Royal females were all over you,” said Cass. “Which one did you end up taking home?”
“What?” I screeched. We’d all come back to my den together before Cass and Vander continued on to his place. My apartment was getting cramped fast.
Cass waggled her brows. “Oh, Brax didn’t tell you about the girl he snuck in last night?”
“Cass…” he hissed.
Hunter’s gaze narrowed on Braxton, but a hint of amusement twitched through the bond. “You brought a stranger into Sierra’s home?”
“She wasn’t exactly a stranger. She was one of Ransom’s cousins.”
I gulped. Was it the one who’d threatened to rat me out as a Mystic? I tossed the thought to the back of my mind since it really didn’t matter anymore. “I still don’t understand how you got her in without us noticing.”
“Brax has gotten pretty good with incantations.” Cass shot me a knowing smile before turning to him. “You used a cloaking spell, didn’t you?”
I couldn’t figure out if I should be upset or impressed as he slowly nodded.
“Well, I hope you got it out of your system,” said Hunter, his alpha heir tone in full power. “Because you can’t bring random females into this home.”
“And I hope you used protection,” I blurted. “The last thing we need are Royal/Mystic hybrids running around.”
Hunter cracked a smile. “Tyrien would love that.”
Braxton raised his hand, an annoyed look carved into his jaw. “So I’m finally allowed to go out in public, but I still can’t have a social life?”
I opened my mouth to argue, but Cass cut me off. “The guy’s right, Sierra. You can’t keep him on a leash forever.” She placed her hand on Vander’s shoulder. “Can’t you get him into the dorms?”
He eyed Hunter before nodding. “I just have to get him enrolled at MVU.”
My mate shrugged. “We’ve been talking about it for long enough. Just do it.”
“Finally,” Braxton huffed out.
“But if you do anything irresponsible, I’m dragging you back here,” I added.
“Fair enough.” He popped up and pointed at the café in the middle of the quad. “Anyone want anything?”
A chorus of yeses rang out over the hill. I needed caffeine to get through today. Despite the lighthearted banter, my heart still felt heavy.
“We’ll go with you to help.” Cass rose and pulled Vander up with her.
I watched the three of them descend the hill. Below, the quad was filling up with students bustling around the campus. My classes had been on hiatus due to the trials, but I actually missed the normalcy. Maybe when this was all over, I’d finish out the semester.
Hunter tugged me into his lap once the others were halfway down the hill. I leaned into his firm chest as his arms came around me. He nuzzled my neck, his nose grazing the birthmark on my collarbone, the same one that had magically appeared on him once we’d completed the bond.
Goose bumps exploded across my arms at his warm breath across my skin. I tilted my head back to grant him better access, and his tongue slid out. He ran it slowly over my collarbone, and my insides clenched. His fangs extended, the pointy tips scraping my delicate flesh and inciting a swell of desire.
“Hunter…” I murmured.
His mouth lifted from my neck and grazed the shell of my ear. “I’ll race you inside. We have at least ten minutes before the others get back.”
I shot up so fast I nearly gave myself whiplash. As I darted down the hill laughing with Hunter hot on my tail, a scream rang out silencing the valley.
My heart leapt up my throat, and I slammed to a halt. Hunter was beside me in the space of a heartbeat, his eyes narrowed on the growing crowd below.
“Sierra!” Braxton’s voice sent terror rippling up my spine.
Chapter Ten
When we reached the quad, my breaths came out in ragged spurts. I’d tried to get answers from Braxton on my way down, but the crushing fear and fiery rage were too overwhelming to get through. Hunter snagged my hand and jerked me behind him when we reached the mass of students.
I growled and shoved past him, barreling by the other wolves. The pit of dread doubled with each step, with each foot closer the impending taste of doom grew thicker.
“Sierra!” Hunter tried to reach for me, but I was unstoppable. My wolf whirled to life, fur sprouting over my arms as a growl erupted in my core. The crowd parted, and my eyes landed on two familiar forms.
“No!” I cried out. Jacinda’s strawberry-blonde hair was splayed out behind her like a rose-gold halo around her still form. Her head rested at an odd angle, but not a single drop of blood marred her angelic figure. Connor lay beside her, bloodied gashes across his face and torso.
I dropped down beside them, fighting down the swell of nausea. I swallowed hard and blinked back the hot tears burning my eyes.
“How did they end up here?” Braxton shouted. “What the hell happened?” He sank down on his knees, and angry tears rolled down his cheeks.
Hunter crept up behind me and hissed out a curse.
“They were supposed to be safe,” Braxton continued muttering. “They were supposed to be safe.” He rocked back and forth, his pain pummeling through the pack link. Between mine and his, I wasn’t sure I could sit up much longer.
“Everyone get back to class. This is a private matter that I will attend to,” Hunter announced to the mass of wolves, his alpha power pushing through the crowd.
Braxton’s eyes caught onto Hunter behind me, and a swell of rage nearly knocked me over. He jumped up and launched himself at my mate. “This is all your father’s fault!”
“Braxton, no!”
But it was too late. He landed a punch to Hunter’s cheek. The supreme beta stood stock still and allowed it. Welcomed it, even. I could feel the echo of his overwhelming regret battling inside me. I leapt up and grabbed Brax by the arm, hauling him off.