by Cara Wylde
“It was just a guess, but I think you’re right. I’ve already asked Caleb and Daniel to keep an eye out for her and her pack, and try to find out if she is indeed moving south, trying to come back to the Schloss. She is very clever and sneaky, I must tell you. She is going the extra mile to cover her tracks. It took us forever to find the little information we have now.”
“The more reason to think she’s planning something nasty,” said Max. He squeezed his hands into fists and looked into Kevin’s green eyes. “We must find her. We must take all precautions and never underestimate her. If she truly knows that my wife is pregnant, that we found the cure and she is now a hybrid, then she will do everything in her power to hurt us. We can’t allow that to happen.”
“Yes, I understand,” said Kevin.
Max turned back to Avelyn and his big, warm hands covered hers. “I’m sorry, baby, but I have to find Josie and tell her about this. We need to go over everything we know and try to determine what Sabine is up to.”
“It’s okay, lunch in Dunkelstadt can wait.” Avelyn gave him a small smile, but it probably didn’t come out as encouraging as she had wanted. Max kissed her forehead, then motioned for Kevin to follow him upstairs. Alone in the Crescent Hall, Avelyn sighed and realized she wasn’t feeling hungry anymore. She didn’t feel like going back to her room, but she neither felt like going for a walk alone. She looked around her, then decided to go up in the library. Maybe she could find a good book to keep her busy.
“A thriller… Yes, a thriller sounds fitting,” she whispered to herself and the empty hall, but her voice held no joy.
CHAPTER TWO
Back to Alma Venus
There had been two days since Kevin stormed into the Crescent Wing and told Max and Avelyn about Sabine and her pack. The news had taken everyone by surprise and threw the Schloss into a frenzy. Max had told Kevin and Ryan to take more werewolves with them and try to track down Sabine and her wolves, in hopes they would find out if she was, indeed, coming back to the Black Forest Mountains and the Blackmanes’ Castle. The latest news was even worse than the first: there had been signs of more kidnappings, and a couple of villages and small towns across Germany had been attacked. There hadn’t been any deaths, but two or three villagers were hurt and reported having been attacked by a couple of rogue wolves. It seemed that the authorities had started digging into the matter, but Kevin and Ryan hadn’t heard anything about the attacks being linked to Clan Blackmane, which meant no one had put two and two together yet, and hadn’t even taken into consideration the existence of a whole pack of rogue werewolves. With all the terrible news coming in every day, Max and Jocelyn had all the reasons they needed to make their move. But what would that move be? Max had been reluctant about contacting Karl in Alaska, thinking they still didn’t have enough information to get his brother all riled up and worried. After all, he was on his own mission, which was not easy in the least. He was supposed to gather information about the most powerful Alpha fox-shifter in the world, and he had to be as discreet as possible. It didn’t help that discretion wasn’t Karl’s main quality.
So, that was how the most representative members of Clan Blackmane ended up meeting in Max’s office. Avelyn shifted in her armchair, took a sip of her cherry flavored tea, and looked thoughtfully around the room, her eyes going from Max, who was behind his desk, to Jocelyn, who was sitting on the windowsill, then to Kevin, who was on the sofa, his fingers playing relentlessly with a napkin, the tense muscles in his back and strong arms showing how impatient he was.
Ryan, Jocelyn’s Beta, was standing near the door, as if ready to spring out and take action the second his Alpha reached a conclusion with her brother, and ordered him to carry out their decision.
Finally, Avelyn’s gaze fell on Christine’s small frame. The old woman was sitting across from her, next to Kevin, carefully sipping at her tea. Her wrinkled face didn’t betray much, but Avelyn could tell she was just as scared and worried as everyone in the room from how tightly she held onto her cup, as if she were afraid her hands would start shaking if she lost control over her fragile muscles.
Avelyn sighed and looked back at Max. She didn’t like the crease on his forehead, and she would have loved to be alone with him so she could go by his side, snuggle against his chest, and comfort him with the sweetest words she could find. But this wasn’t only about her, Max, and their baby. It was about the entire clan, and she knew they had to work together if they wanted to find a solution and protect their family from whatever Sabine had planned. And even if Sabine didn’t have a plan and didn’t know about Avelyn’s pregnancy, they still had to assess the situation and do something about the girl, because her actions put the Blackmanes’ reputation in danger. Her rogue behavior could deeply affect Max’s and Karl’s positions in the Council.
Avelyn set her cup down and placed both her hands over her baby bump. The child was growing bigger and bigger every day, she could feel it. Unlike normal, human pregnancies, a shifter bride’s pregnancy lasted somewhere between four and six months only, depending on the father’s race. As she was going to give birth to a little wolf, Avelyn could expect to carry him inside her for no more than six months.
Max was playing with his pen while staring blankly at the notes before him. He had given up reading and rereading them minutes ago, when his vision had become blurry and his brain had refused to keep struggling to make sense of them and come to a conclusion. They had been arguing for over an hour, and they were finally taking a break to gather their thoughts. If Sabine did know about the child, it was impossible for them to figure out how exactly she could have found out. It wasn’t impossible that she had heard about the mating ritual between Max and Avelyn, as Clan Blackmane was the second most powerful in Europe, and Maxwell Blackmane’s marriage with his young Alma Venus bride had certainly traveled the continent. But the fact that Avelyn was with child… That was something Max and his pack mates had tried to keep a secret. If Sabine found out about it, then she would start wondering how it was even possible in the first place. A pregnant she-wolf? It hadn’t happened in centuries. Had Avelyn never turned? Yes, Sabine was almost insane, but she wasn’t stupid. She would eventually figure out they had found a way for Avelyn to carry out her pregnancy even after turning into a werewolf, and sooner or later she would probably find out about the cure and even expose James Harington. No, they couldn’t have that. They could never risk putting their only ally in danger.
Max felt like they were missing so many details, so many clues, and the idea that he simply had to give up and work with what he had was driving him insane. It was like making the decision without having the full picture, and he hated it. He hated it because it didn’t give him the assurance that his final decision would protect Avelyn, their child, and their entire family, but also because it meant he could make the wrong choice again. And Max was tired of making wrong choices. He was tired of hurting the people he cared about most. The worst part was that, this time, there were even more people involved. The innocent victims Sabine had kidnapped and turned into werewolves would end up suffering regardless of what Max decided. They were rogue werewolves, even if not by choice, and they were probably going to suffer the consequences the Council deemed appropriate. Max bit the inside of his lip. He had to stop thinking about these people, no matter how innocent they were. He couldn’t possibly save everyone involved, and he had to deal with it.
Christine straightened her back and cleared her throat, drawing everyone’s attention. “We can’t sit here all day and wait for the correct answer to pop out of thin air. There is only one thing we can do, and I am willing to take it upon myself to accomplish it,” she said.
“And what would that be?” asked Jocelyn. For some reason, the she-wolf had a vague idea about what the clan’s Elder was going to say.
“I must talk to her.” Before Max even opened his mouth to say “no”, Christine raised one hand to stop him. “Listen to me: this is the right thing to do. Since she was forc
ed to live… down there, Sabine and I developed a strong friendship. I was by her side every day, every step of the way, and I am sure she hasn’t forgotten how much I helped her, and how much I care about her. She will want to talk to me, and I will make sure to explain the situation and convince her revenge is not the answer.”
“That is, if revenge is what she’s looking for…” said Kevin thoughtfully.
“Of course, of course…” agreed Christine. “We don’t know that for sure, and I hope to God I’m exaggerating when I’m talking about revenge. We can never know what that poor girl is thinking and what her intentions are. Her poor mind has played so many tricks on her, and I don’t even want to imagine how she’s feeling now, after one month of going without medication.”
“Yeah, she’s crazy all right,” whispered Jocelyn.
“Josie, darling, please don’t say that.” Christine said the words in a hushed voice, but her disapproval was obvious. “We all know what Sabine has gone through all these years. Losing her family in a bloodbath, going through the painful transformation, then having to deal with the idea that she would never be able to have children… It was all too much for her. In fact, if we all take a moment to think about it, it would have been too much for any of us.”
Avelyn looked down. Judging by the way Max, Jocelyn, Kevin, and Ryan looked at Christine, it was clear that her words hadn’t impressed them, but Avelyn knew better. Even though Sabine had hurt her and had almost killed her baby, Avelyn still couldn’t find it in her to hate the girl or, even worse, wish her harm. After everything that happened, Avelyn could understand the girl’s rage and desire to get back at those who had taken her life away from her: the Blackmanes.
“As much as I hate to say this, Christine is right,” Max finally said. “It might be our only chance.”
Jocelyn sighed at his words, and Kevin shook his head.
“No, it’s not,” said Avelyn, her voice startling them. “Christine, you have no idea what Sabine actually thinks about you. It’s true that she never considered me her friend, but it’s also true that she never considered you either, even if she might have given you the impression.”
“What are you saying, child?”
All eyes turned on Avelyn.
“What I’m saying is that Sabine hates you. She told me about the herbal teas you prepared for her and how much she hated it when you made her drink them. They made her weak and helpless during the full moon.”
“Of course they did. They were supposed to protect her from herself. Sabine was not all right, Avelyn, she was a danger to herself. The tea prevented her from turning during the full moon, when her wolf would have been too strong to control.”
“She didn’t see it that way. She always thought that you were doing it because you didn’t want her to turn and break down the walls of her luxurious cell.”
“I was never her enemy…”
“I know that, Christine. We all know that, but Sabine didn’t. All she knew was that your teas always made her feel drowsy and helpless.”
Avelyn’s heart sank when she saw the hurt in the old woman’s eyes. Christine truly cared about Sabine. In fact, she might have been the only one who still remembered the girl the way she was before becoming a werewolf. Unfortunately, things were not as Christine thought they were. That girl was gone. The suave Sabine had died together with her slaughtered family.
“I know this is hard for you to understand, but you have to believe me: Sabine didn’t consider you her friend, she didn’t like spending time with you, she never looked forward to your company. She deceived me and lied about many things, but I know she was honest about this one thing. I’m sorry, Christine, I’m so sorry. I know you care about Sabine just as much as you care about me, and I can understand why. Sabine, on the other hand, can’t.”
Christine didn’t know what to say. She set her cup down on the glass table in front of her, then let her hands lay motionless in her lap. What Avelyn was saying made perfect sense, but what hurt Christine most was that, deep down, she had known these things all along. Hearing them from someone else made them more real than ever. She couldn’t deny the truth anymore.
“I still have to try,” she said in a weak, trembling voice. If the people in the office didn’t all have werewolf senses, they wouldn’t have heard her.
“What?” Avelyn couldn’t believe her ears.
“I still have to try, and you, more than anyone, know why. For so many years, Sabine was like my own daughter. She might not have thought the same, but this doesn’t mean I will let her down. I will never let her down.” Christine turned to Max, a silent plea in her faded green eyes. “Let me talk to her. If she ever comes close enough to the Schloss, let me go out there and try to talk to her.”
Max placed his pen atop his notes, and leaned back in his chair. He didn’t like Christine’s idea, but they didn’t have anything else to work with. “Are you sure?”
“Yes.” The old woman held his gaze, even as she was aware of Jocelyn’s hard eyes on her. When Max turned towards his sister, a silent question in his eyes, Christine held her breath. Even if Max was the main Alpha of Clan Blackmane, his sister’s opinion weighted a lot, and Christine knew Max would take it into consideration. Eventually, Max’s decision would be the last one, but Jocelyn had a unique way of getting into his head and making him change his mind, even when Max himself least expected it. This time, however, Jocelyn simply nodded her head in approval.
“Okay,” said Max. “You will talk to Sabine when the time comes. Until then, we can’t sit around with our arms crossed. We have to do something to protect my wife and my unborn child.”
Avelyn’s heart skipped a beat, and a small smile tugged at the corner of her lips. She loved it when Max became so possessive and protective.
“Avelyn isn’t safe here. Even though we managed to block all the entrances to the tunnels under the Schloss, we must be aware that Sabine still knows her way around the castle. We must make sure that neither she, nor any of her pack mates ever get to Avelyn. With Karl gone, I’m afraid we don’t have enough people to patrol the forest and guard the castle, not to mention that we still need people to go to Dunkelstadt and the neighboring villages and towns to keep an eye out for her pack.”
“So, you’re saying that the Crescents and the Moon Children are not enough to protect one woman from a rogue she-wolf and her lousy pack of misfits?” asked Jocelyn, disbelief obvious in her voice.
“No, Jocelyn, what I’m saying is that we must take all possible precautions. We underestimated Sabine once, I’m not going to make that mistake again. I’m taking Avelyn back to Alma Venus.”
At first, Avelyn thought she hadn’t heard him right. Back to Alma Venus? After having been so sure she would never see her friends again, it all sounded so surreal.
“Are you serious?” she asked.
“Yes, I am.” Max rose to his feet, pushed his office chair back, and fixed his beautiful bride with his green, intense eyes. “You will be safe there. Sabine has no idea where Alma Venus is and, as far as I know, she has never even been anywhere close to Myrtle Valley. I will have Caleb and Daniel guard you while you’re there, and once I know you are all right, I will get back here and settle this once and for all. Maybe Christine will manage to talk Sabine out of whatever she’s planned, maybe not. Either way, I want you far away from her and her pack. When you come back to the Schloss, I want you to feel safe. This is your home, and this is where you will give birth to our son. I will never let anyone else drive you away from here.”
There was complete silence for a couple of long minutes. No one expected Jocelyn to be the one to break it. “Okay, let’s do this!”
“Oh, one more thing,” said Max, turning to his sister. “I think it’s time to let Karl know about what’s happening here. If this goes south, I’d rather have the Dark Wolves by our side. Josie, please call him and tell him he needs to come back home as soon as possible.”
***
Even though she
had been packing her things for over half an hour, Avelyn hadn’t made much progress. She would stop to contemplate every little thing and piece of clothing before placing it into her suitcase, but not because she was trying to decide if it was going to be appropriate for the June British weather, but because she couldn’t quite wrap her mind around the fact that she was going back to Alma Venus. With a heavy sigh, she dropped on the bed, next to her suitcase. She was clutching the flowery summer dress she had bought from Dunkelstadt during one of hers and Rosanna’s shopping sprees, but she wasn’t aware of what she was doing. She looked around the room and tried to imagine how she would sleep that night, in her own bed, sharing the dorm with Delyse, Claudia, and Amelia. She was sure Miss Delacroix wouldn’t give her a room of her own just because she was the wife of an Alpha werewolf now, and she didn’t want that anyway. She smiled thinking of her friends and how they used to snuggle in one bed and talk about little nothings until late at night. Amelia never joined them, and she had always made sure to complain about the noise, an insignificant inconvenience that never stopped Avelyn, Delyse, and Claudia from doing the exact same thing at least once a week.
Avelyn checked the time and realized Max would be up soon, to see if she was ready. She put the dress in the suitcase then reached over to the huge jewelry box she had placed on her nightstand earlier. Opening it, she wondered if she would need any of those fancy earrings and ridiculously expensive necklaces back at the boarding school. They were all gifts from Max, and Avelyn would wear them once in a while, when she went out with Rosanna or Val, or when Max made time to take her to lunch or dinner in Dunkelstadt. Otherwise, if there was no special occasion that required a sophisticated outfit, Avelyn preferred to settle for the rainbow moonstone bracelet which had belonged to Max’s mother. She rummaged through the jewelry box carefully, then pulled out two pairs of earrings and a thin golden necklace that went well with them, and decided it was enough for a couple of days at Alma Venus. She stood up, put the jewelry box back in its place, then went to the dresser to throw a last glance through her clothes. She would have to get some new clothes because it had become more and more difficult to fit in her old ones. As her pregnancy progressed, she had a hard time choosing her clothes every day, and she had discovered that some of her larger dresses had become a bit tight around the waist. But, with the madness of the past few days, Avelyn hadn’t found the time to go shopping, and Max wouldn’t have probably let her out of the Schloss anyway.