Scarlet Forest

by Jennifer Ann Reed

  In front of us, a tall funeral pyre stood 100 yards from the house on top of a concrete slab. Sable kept moving me forward otherwise, my steps might have faltered. The fall trees were in the last stages of shedding their leaves and the bleakness seemed appropriate as we took our place beside the pyre. Lucian’s remains rested on his guards’ shoulders as they carried his wooden bed with his body covered in a white shroud. Fern fronds outlined his form and as they grew closer, I saw that the fabric covering his peaceful face was sheer. A broadsword laid across his chest, and the hilt was covered with rubies and emeralds. His guards stopped in front of us and Sable took the sword and turned to me with the blade resting in one palm.

  “May your reign be as honored and supreme.” She held the sword out and I lifted it from her hands.

  The men climbed a set of wooden stairs built into the pyre and placed Lucian at the top. They fell into a single file line as they walked back down the stairs to join our group.

  “Lucian died in another world protecting his people. While we can’t lay our Alpha to rest in the place where he fell, may the Creator accept his spirit here this day.” Sable reached for a burning torch from a flaming barrel that stood next to her and passed it to me. “Our goodbyes were said this morning and now it’s time for our Luna to send Lucian Grey to the Creator.”

  I stepped forward and set the bottom of the pyre on fire. The wood crackled and the flames rushed to the sky. “Lucian meant the world to me and helped me remember my father. His loss will never be forgotten.” I turned to the people as the flames engulfed my friend. “I won’t let his death be in vain. He will be avenged, and we will make sure Caden returns as Alpha.” Whispers started among a group of girls, but I continued. “We must find Aelfric’s hideout and rescue Caden and my aunt. They come first. After that, I will take Aelfric down.”

  “You’re not my Luna.” A dark-haired female came forward. Her black dress flared around her hips and the hem rested mid-thigh, showing off shapely legs. Her red lips pulled back in a sneer, dulling her pretty features. “We won’t listen to a filthy half-breed.”

  The hackles on Phobos’s gray coat rose and a menacing growl showed off his deadly canines. Several more wolves agreed with the girl as I ran my hand over Phobos’s head.

  Calm down, Phobos. She’s hurting and her words mean nothing.

  Phobos calmed instantly, but my wolf was ready to put the girl in her place.

  “She is your Luna.” Sable’s voice rose over the crowd. “Kitra wears the mark on her neck.”

  “Lucian’s memory deserves better.” The girl got in my face and my eyes flashed as I held onto Phobos’s scruffy neck. “Caden deserves better than to be mated with your kind. He deserves a real wolf.”

  “And that’s you?” My words were spoken through clenched teeth and Ryn maneuvered his way to stand against my back as the others gathered around me. Why couldn’t we mourn Lucian’s loss? The flames above us engulfed Lucian’s form and parts of the pyre were already falling to the ground.

  “It could be any of us, but I think I’m up for the job.” Her eyes traveled from my head to my toes and back again. “I’m sure he’d be better pleased with the alternative if he were here to decide for himself, and I’m calling for an open challenge for any female shifter of age to earn the right to be Luna.”

  “I’m not fighting you.” Gasps filled the air and Sable grabbed my arm, leaving nail prints in the soft skin.

  “You have to.” Sable’s dark eyes bore into mine until I nodded. “The Luna accepts the challenge from any of age female for her position. Meet us on the training grounds in thirty minutes.”

  The crowd dispersed as I watched the group of girls march away. Lucian’s pyre was almost disintegrated when Sable told his guards to take care of the rest before she pulled me behind her towards the main house. What did I just agree to?

  CHAPTER 2

  Kitra

  S ABLE DRAGGED ME BY the wrist and marched us inside the cabin with the others on our heels. She didn’t utter a word as she pulled me through a closed door into an office with a massive oak desk resting in front of a set of windows that were covered in olive drapes. She forced me to sit in the red leather wingback chair and waited for the last person in the room to close the door. I was glancing at the floor to ceiling bookcases on both sides of the room when she gripped my chin and forced me to stare at her.

  She squatted, dropping her hand when Phobos quaked next to me at her intrusion into my personal space. “Let’s get something straight.” Her brown eyes hardened.

  “You can’t talk to your Luna like that.” Ryn pulled a dagger from his boot. “She is a Princess and heir to the Seelie throne, and I won’t allow you to disrespect her.”

  “Fairy.” Sable kept her gaze on mine without acknowledging Ryn’s threat. “You’d do well to keep your opinions to yourself as your kind doesn’t get a say in the ways of the pack.” She gripped my fingers in her hand. “I was the advisor to Lucian and I’m going to pick up where I left off and advise my new Luna.”

  Uncle Kalen’s fervent whisper for Ryn to behave like an adult reached my ears, and Ryn sheathed his dagger.

  Sable waited for me to nod before she continued. “Luna, our ways are different from what you’re accustomed to. Pack mentality and loyalty are based on a show of strength and refusal of any challenge will land you banished from our ranks. Lucian wouldn’t want that.”

  “Okay. What am I supposed to do? Fight everyone in the pack anytime they issue a challenge?”

  “After this challenge, I doubt anyone will issue another.” Curtis put an arm around Allie and Sable’s brows drew together. “But you need to know the true nature of this fight.”

  “Which is?” I rubbed my temples. I was tired of mean girls refusing to accept anyone who was different. Why should my heritage dictate whether or not I could perform the duties of a Luna? No one answered, and all eyes were on the floor. “Guys… don’t beat around the bush. What aren’t you telling me?”

  “It’s a fight to the death.” Uncle Kalen squatted next to Sable.

  “No. I’m not doing it!” I tried to stand, but Uncle Kalen pushed me back into my seat. Phobos dropped to his belly and watched our exchange. It was funny that the phouka who was keen to protect me from my family and friends during my depression was suddenly silent during the possibility of a fight to the death.

  Did you know about this? The mental block I’d held between Austin and me fell with my shouted words.

  No, but I suspected when Sable made you agree to the challenge. Austin grimaced and his attention fell beyond the window.

  The brown-haired girl and a few others were surrounded by a group of shifters in the outlying field as they stretched.

  “This is ridiculous.”

  “Kitra, I don’t want you to do it either, but it’s the pack way.” Uncle Kalen’s fingers tightened on my other hand. “If I could do anything to change this, I would. I watched as they challenged John many times after he married your mother and I feel as helpless now as I did then. Tell me what to do and I’ll do it.” Tears gathered in his eyes and his lips landed on the back of my hand as his fear saturated the air almost making me gag.

  “If you back down now, you and your group will be banished, and you won’t receive any help to rescue Caden and Mauve.” Sable frowned and looked out at the gathering group. “You’ll be on your own and they will see you and the others as weak prey and I know you’re not weak, Luna.”

  The sound of the crowd’s laughter grew louder as some shouted about my dual nature while others called me a coward. I glanced around the room at the mixture of feelings that were plainly written on my friends’ faces. They were ready to take on the challengers for me, but I couldn’t let them fight my battles. If I were to be a true leader, a true champion, I had to prove myself.

  “I will fight them, but I won’t kill them.” Sable opened her mouth at my words but closed it when she glanced at my face as I stood. “Sometimes mercy proves to
be the strongest. No one is to interfere.” Phobos’s head ducked, but he and Austin sent their agreement mentally as the others let out deep breaths and nodded.

  I found my way to the training grounds. and the crowd parted as we arrived. Five girls of different heights and builds huddled in the center as the dark-haired girl gave them a pep talk. Once she noticed my approach, her trademark sneer fixed over her features.

  “You came.” Her bottom lip stuck out. “I told the others you’d tuck tail and run. Are you ready for punishment?”

  “Just remember you were the one who started this.” I did a few stretches as the others gathered around us.

  “I would start it a million times if it gave Caden a chance for a wolf of superior breeding, especially one not tainted with fairy blood.” Curtis wrapped muscular arms around Allie as she launched herself at the she-wolf. “Curtis, please tell me you haven’t stooped as low as John Frost.”

  “Kitra, if you don’t kill her, I will,” Allie vowed when I stepped up to the nasty female.

  “Leave my friends and family out of this.” The tips of my shoes touched hers. “This is between us and as far as I’m concerned, my fairy blood far exceeds your own.” I motioned at the other challengers. “Sable, how do we do this?”

  Sable stepped forth and pushed the girl away from me. “Each challenger will shift, and the fights will be one-on-one. I’m sorry Luna, but you’ll fight five times.”

  I shrugged and glared at the group of girls. “I’m ready.”

  I called my wolf to the surface and my violet eyes glowed as fur sprouted from every pore and my fingernails extended into claws. A while ago, the shift hurt more than anything I’d ever felt, but now it was as effortless as breathing. I fell forward to all fours while gasps filled the air and one woman wearing an apron fainted.

  “It can’t be!” A man in a plaid shirt pointed at me.

  “The white wolf!” Another woman fell to her knees and bowed. More exclamations followed as the dark-haired girl shrieked while brown fur sprouted over her face and her teeth elongated.

  “Enough!” Sable commanded, and the shifters quieted. The other challengers fell, prostrate on the ground before me, but the girl who started this battle refused to give up and sprang into the air.

  Her move was simple to evade. It was driven by pure emotion, not one planned out by a fighter. My wolf was ready for the cat-and-mouse game of stalking its victim only to let it escape for a few more moments before the final blow was struck. The brown wolf growled and leaped at me once more. I waited until she was inches from making contact and moved out of the way. The surrounding crowd formed a circle and chanted for the challenger’s death, snapping me out of the fog which settled around my senses.

  The mob wouldn’t get what they wanted, and I knew if I wasn’t a white wolf, they’d be calling for my death. Out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of the girl’s paw forming a hand before she tossed dirt in my face. My wolf coughed as stinging erupted over both of my violet orbs.

  Princess! Watch Out! Phobos’s warning was a second too late and pain ripped through my shoulder.

  The brown wolf sank her teeth deeper into my flesh and I roared while flipping over. Linc was holding Phobos back while Ryn gripped Uncle Kalen and I shook the wolf from her hold. I crawled away and jumped to my feet as my watery eyes dampened the fur beneath them. I glanced side to side, but my vision was still fuzzy. Part of me wanted to panic, but my training kicked in and I closed my eyes. If I couldn’t see, I would use my other senses to end this fight.

  I centered myself and let the heat in my shoulder fade. A change in the air alerted my wolf to the challenger’s advance, and I turned as she attacked, grabbing her flank and tossing her to the side. She landed with a thud and whimper. I leaped in the direction of the sound while my vision cleared enough for me to see her exposed neck. I snarled as she elicited another whimper and flipped to her back, showing me her stomach. I opened my mouth, engulfing her throat. Her eyes closed showing that she was ready for the killing blow, but I only growled and released her. I shifted quickly and held a hand over my bleeding shoulder. She shifted slower and stayed on the ground with her head bent and wouldn’t look at me as she put pressure on her hip.

  “Kill her!” A voice from the crowd demanded as howls joined the words.

  “Silence!” The hush was immediate, and all faces turned towards me. “No one is dying today! As your Luna, I’m choosing mercy, but I will punish this wolf as well as the others. What is your name?”

  The brown-haired girl lifted her wet face and the sneer she once wore was replaced by a pained expression. “Giselle.”

  “Giselle.” She grimaced and her shoulders pulled low. “I banish you and all of your family from pack lands. Your actions today were those of a rogue so you will live out the rest of your life as one.” Tears dripped from her chin when a woman with similar features fell next to Giselle and the man in the plaid shirt stepped forward, laying a hand on the woman’s shoulder.

  “Luna, your mercy knows no bounds. Thank you for sparing my daughter’s life.” His scruffy brown beard touched his chest while he dipped his head. “It will not be forgotten. We’ll collect our things and leave.”

  I nodded as he helped his family to their feet and my attention rested on the four other challengers.

  Sable’s whisper was barely a breeze against my ear. “Luna, I think six months of cooking and cleaning duty will make them think twice before ever challenging you again.”

  I repeated Sable’s suggestion to the girls, and each let out a deep breath. The rest of the crowd fell to their knees and leaned forward until the foreheads touched the ground.

  “All hail the white wolf!” A man called. “Praise her name for all eternity!”

  “Stop!” My hands flew out in front of me. “Stand and never utter those words again!” The crowd did as they were told, but confusion washed over many faces. “Don’t praise me. Not me… never me.” I turned to my friends and family and then back to the crowd. “I may be your Luna, but I’m no different from any of you.” The man who praised me tried to disagree, but a female standing near him grabbed his arm and he stayed silent. “Each of us was created for a special purpose...an honorable task.” The crowd grew still and hung on my every word. “My fur may be white, but my job is still the same as yours...we are to protect mankind. Each Supernatural was created for this purpose. I know the unique differences we each carry have separated us over the years, but maybe it’s time to set those differences aside and join forces to do what the Creator set us on Earth to do. Right now, we need to destroy Aelfric and the Dark Ones.”

  This is why he chose you. One side of Austin’s mouth lifted as murmurs filled the air.

  “Can you do that?” I held eye contact with all those closest to me. “Will you help me save our Alpha and my aunt?”

  The man who praised me broke from the woman’s hold and stepped forward. He wore worn jeans with a red flannel shirt tucked into the waist. Eyes as green as grass closed when his left knee hit the ground. He fisted his right hand over his heart and bowed his head. “Luna, I pledge my wolf and self to your army. I’ll follow you through Hellfire and back or wherever the Creator deems us to go.”

  Many more followed this newcomer until the entire crowd pledged to help us.

  “Thank you. I’ll have instructions soon. In the meantime, prepare yourselves. We’re taking the fight to Aelfric.” I motioned for Sable to join us as I walked back towards the cabin. “Did Lucian have more advisors or were you his right hand?”

  “I was his most trusted, but there is another I would pull into any discussion.” She glanced back towards the smoldering remains of the pyre and the guards cleaning up the remains.

  “Bring them in immediately. We have a lot to discuss and I want to get started as soon as possible.”

  “Yes, Luna.” She left us as I walked back into the office and turned towards my Uncle, friends, and Guardians. “We need some belongings. I have
a feeling we’ll be staying for a while.”

  “I’ll take a group and gather our things,” Uncle Kalen pointed to Ryn and Phobos. “No one harms a hair on her head while we’re gone.”

  “I’m staying too.” Linc walked behind the chair I sat in.

  Uncle Kalen nodded and the rest of them left us in the office. I would not rest until we found Aunt Mauve and Caden.

  Chapter 3

  Caden

  D RIP. DRIP. DRIP.

  The sound was my constant companion. From beyond the door, a lullaby from a liquid siren encroached on the eight-by-ten dimensions of my stone prison cell, but I didn’t care. Each drop became a name of those I planned to rescue. The only thing that mattered anymore.

  My father’s slack face filled my vision with the next drop, and I squeezed my eyes shut against the searing heat along my lids. I couldn’t save him. He’s gone. A tear leaked from the corner of my right eye and his absence crushed my chest, stealing the breath I held. I slammed the back of my head against the rock surface I rested on in hopes of removing his death stare from my memory. The pain radiated from my scalp, but it wasn’t the peace I wanted.

  My father’s features slowly morphed into my soulmate’s face.

  “Kitra.” Her name was a strangled whisper. The weight on my chest became unbearable and I roared and clawed the square rocks under me. The electric blue cuffs binding my wrists flared, engulfing the foot-long chain connecting them in the same colored fire. A grunt left my lips as my skin seared again and my body stilled. Each time I thought about her or the creature posing to be her, the manacles blazed against my flesh and fed the pain I needed to plot my vengeance.