From the Ashes (Force of Nature #1)

by Amber Lynn Natusch

  “Warlocks are strong in magic, but their combat skills are shit. How did you manage to take out the ones you did, Foust?”

  “By tearing them apart with our bare hands,” he answered, eyes narrowed with hatred.

  “Exactly. We need to get close enough to them to take them out before they have a chance to work their hocus pocus bullshit.”

  “Fucking pussies,” Jagger added, riling the others up. His sentiment drew a roar from the group, myself included.

  “I like this plan and all, Knox,” Brunton continued, “but saying we need to get close to them and actually doing that are two very different things.”

  “We need a diversion, Brunton. Something to draw their collective force so we can come in from behind and strike.”

  “I like it,” Foust agreed. “But what will we use to accomplish that?”

  “Not a what, Foust. A who,” Knox explained, a wicked grin overtaking his expression. The others all looked around at one another, most likely wondering which of them was going to be volunteered for the unenviable task of being warlock bait. The tension in the room was thick while they all awaited Knox's plan. “I'm going to draw them out. Once they figure out that I'm alpha, they'll do all they can to eliminate me, thinking it will serve them in the long run.”

  “NO!” I yelled, shooting out of my seat. “You can't. I won't let you!”

  “Piper, this isn't—”

  “I don't give a shit what you think this is or isn't, it's fucking suicide, Knox. You don't know Kingston like I do. He's insane. He has no honor. He'll find a way to take you out without even trying and then he'll cheat his way through the fight until every single one of you is dead.” I was shouting so loud that I could feel the strain in my ears, the uncomfortable pressure building until it popped, shooting sharp pains through my head.

  “This isn't your choice to make, Piper,” he countered, a flash of darkness disappearing from his eyes.

  “I know you've decided to make this fight your own, Knox, and I'm not going to try and stop you, but you have to listen to me about this. If anyone can buy you time to do what you need to do, it's me. Kingston loves nothing more than to grandstand when he thinks he's going to bring me down. His arrogance is his Achilles heel. You can either choose to exploit that, or you can send your pack to slaughter. It's your choice to make, but you need to listen to me if you want to have any chance at beating him.” His eyes were glowing slightly, his anger building. But he was letting me speak, so I continued before he changed his mind and decided to shut me up. “You've asked me to trust you, Knox. Now I'm asking you to do the same. I can do this. I need to do this.”

  “I can't let him hurt you,” Knox replied, his voice low and wistful.

  It was my turn to smile wickedly.

  “Then kill that asshole before he gets the chance.”

  I could see the war waging behind Knox's eyes; fear and reason were battling it out. But the second I saw the corner of his mouth twitch, then curl up into a lopsided smile, I knew which had won the fight.

  “With pleasure.”

  * * *

  A guard rotation was put into effect immediately following the pack meeting. Groups of ten would fan out into the forest, fully Changed, to secure the perimeter while others stayed behind to protect the property itself. I did what I could to contribute to that effort as well. Grizz had been dutifully waiting outside for me, and when I came out after the post-breakfast scheming session, I did my best to convey to him the plan. When I got to the part about me being the bait, he snorted and stomped, shaking his head back and forth in a rather grand display of his disapproval.

  “I know, buddy. But I need you to trust me, it sounds worse than it will actually be, okay?” His disgruntled exhale in response was not encouraging. “Listen, I need you to do something for me. If you can...” He raised his head higher, his ears perked to attention. “I need you to help the wolves keep watch for the warlocks. I don't know if they can sense werewolves or not, but I'm assuming they can. But they won't think anything of you and your friends. They'll walk right past you like you don't exist.” Grizz growled low and deep. “I know, buddy. They're arrogant pricks, but we'll show them. You'll show them, won't you?” He nodded up and down. “Go and get the others. Make them understand what's at stake. Can you do that?”

  I watched as the bear stood on his back feet, his massive form blocking out the sun behind him. He slammed back to the ground and took off in a sprint for the woods, stopping just at the tree line to give me a backward glance. Then he disappeared.

  “Recruiting the local wildlife, are we?” Knox asked, walking up behind me.

  “Can't hurt, right?”

  “No. It certainly can't.” I felt the heat from his body warm my back. I wanted so much to lean against it and get lost in the feel of his strength. His confidence. It was a powerful force to deny.

  “When do you think they'll come?” I asked, choosing to focus on the pressing matter at hand.

  “Your guess is as good as mine, but we have a plan now; that makes me feel better about things.”

  “I think Kingston will have to regroup before he returns, especially if the boys wiped out most of his crew. He can't easily replace his major players. Not without Reinhardt finding out about what he's been up to. And after his last attempt on my life, the king and Reinhardt had an agreement in place regarding the warlocks and me—Kingston in particular. He's on a tight leash—or at least he was. Either way, with everything going on back in New York, he'll have to make his moves carefully from here on out. And if Reinhardt, or the king for that matter, learns about what he's been up to and how his warlocks have fallen, Kingston might just not return at all,” I said, realizing for the first time that that was a very plausible outcome. I mean really, how easily could one hide the deaths of several warlocks?

  But the reality remained that, if the treaty had fallen, any deals made between the king and Reinhardt would likely be null and void. And that left me back at square one. A place I didn't care to be.

  “Well, that would be a step in the right direction, but you've said it yourself; he's not the only one hunting you,” Knox said, pulling me from my ruminations.

  “About that,” I started, turning to face him. “You deserve a better explanation than the one I gave earlier when I had my mini-meltdown.”

  “Okay,” he said softly. “I'm listening.” He guided me toward the porch steps and we sat down beside each other, staring off at the wall of coniferous trees in the distance.

  “I told you that a group of enforcers found me the night the warlocks tried to burn me alive, right?”

  “Yes...”

  “What I strategically left out of that admission was that I knew them. I've known them for a long time.”

  “And that changes things how?”

  “They are my friends—were my friends. I lived at the mansion long before that night.” I hazarded a sideways glance at him. To his credit, his expression was controlled and steady. If it weren't for the slight amber glow in his eyes, I wouldn't have thought anything was wrong. “Please don't get angry. I just want you to know the truth.”

  I heard him inhale deeply, then let the breath out through his mouth.

  “Go on.”

  “The king knew of my existence long before he ever came to me. He knew I was an orphan and an outcast. He also knew that I had a massive target on my back where the warlocks were concerned. One day, when I'd narrowly escaped Kingston's grasp, the king happened upon me on the street. He made me an offer I couldn't refuse.”

  “That sounds ominous.”

  “And yet it wasn't. Not at all. He said that he would place me in the mansion—where the enforcers all live—and offer me their protection.”

  “Now it sounds too good to be true,” he said dryly. “What's the catch?”

  “No catch. That's the thing. When I ran into him that day, there was something in his eyes—something I just couldn't place—but it was as though he understood me. Und
erstood my plight.”

  “So you just moved in with the most notorious gang of vampires known?”

  “Pretty much,” I said with a shrug. “They're really not that bad once you get to know them. I mean, some are, but I just avoided them. Jase and Dean were good to me right from the beginning. They took me under their wings and made sure nobody messed with me. Ever.”

  “And they didn't want anything from you either?” he asked, the undeniable subtext to his question apparent in his tone.

  “No. Nothing like that. Jase and Dean have never laid a finger on me. They treat me like a little sister.”

  “Good. But that doesn't explain why you ran from them, Piper.”

  I sighed heavily.

  “Things got complicated when their brother, Merc, showed up.”

  Knox went rigid beside me.

  “Merc? As in Mercenary?”

  “That would be the one,” I quipped before realization of his reaction set in. “Wait a minute. You've heard of him?”

  “You could say that,” he said, the tension still rolling off of him in waves. “But I didn't know he was back in the picture.”

  “Yeah, well, he is,” I said with a sigh. “He's also the one who's coming for me.”

  “Fuck,” Knox exhaled, dropping his head into his hands. “What did you do to get on his bad side?”

  It was my turn to tense.

  “I existed.” He lifted his head slowly, turning it to look me in the eyes.

  “Truth...” His outburst was barely a whisper. “And you still exist. Is that the problem?”

  “Something like that, I think,” I started, getting up from the steps. Suddenly, being close to Knox was more than I could bear. “To make a long story short, he went completely postal one night when we were home alone together. At first he was talking about my weakness and how it offended him, but then he just snapped and became nonsensical, ranting about me and why I was there. He thought I was spying or something. I don't know. After that, he nearly beat me to death. If the boys hadn't returned home when they did, I'd be dead.”

  “Why the fuck did they leave you at home alone with him in the first place?” Knox shouted, launching off the front steps toward me. “He's barely stable on a good day!”

  “I know that, Knox. So do they, but there was a reason they did. Two reasons, actually,” I tried to explain to the heavy-breathing werewolf with the glowing eyes looming above me.

  “I can't even begin to imagine what could possibly substantiate leaving you with a monster like that. If I ever meet those incompetent assholes, I'll tear their fucking heads off.”

  “No. You won't,” I said firmly.

  “The hell I won't.”

  “It wasn't their fault, Knox.”

  “Really? Because it sure—”

  “I'm bonded to Merc!” I blurted out with all the tact of a bull in a china shop. “Jase and Dean left me with him because he was my mate. Is my mate...”

  Knox looked as though I'd slapped him. The shock and horror in his expression was a sight I wouldn't soon forget. It seemed to take him forever to regain his composure, but when he did, he was all business. A side I had yet to really see of him.

  “You're telling me that you're bonded to the craziest, most deadly vampire enforcer to ever exist?” He did nothing to try and hide his incredulity.

  “Yes.”

  “Then none of this makes sense because vampires...when they're bonded...they can't act how you're saying he acted.”

  “Yeah, I've heard that before. Unfortunately for me, things didn't really play out how they were supposed to. Believe me, if I'd thought that getting beaten within an inch of my life was on the table, I'd have walked away from the offer he made me. But I didn't. So now I'm here, and now you know why. All my dirty laundry has been aired.”

  “All of it?” he asked. His dubious expression let me know that my response wasn't fooling him.

  “I couldn't possibly sit here and list off every scandalous thing I've done in my time, Knox, nor do I intend to try. You now know my past with the vampires. You already know that the warlocks despise me and want me dead. Beyond that, nothing else is really pertinent at the moment.”

  In fairness, I didn't think it was. Laying out every poor decision I'd made regarding Kingston seemed pointless. He wanted me dead. The why was immaterial.

  He cocked his head to the left, blocking the fading sun from my eyes.

  “Truth again. You're on a roll today.”

  “I figured now wasn't really the time to be cagey with information.”

  “And I appreciate that.”

  “So...you starting to rethink that plan of yours to stick with me?”

  “Maybe a little,” he said, bumping me with his hip. Then the smile he'd put on his face to reassure me fell away fast. “Did you love him? Merc, I mean. Did you love him when you were bonded?”

  My shoulders slumped as I considered his question. I was embarrassed to say that I did—or at least I thought I had. How stupid or blind did I have to be to miss what was headed my way only days after our bonding?

  “Do you love him now?” he pressed, filling the silence I'd created.

  “Yes. No. I don't really know how to answer that,” I replied, my voice quiet and shaky. “My life has been a mess of seclusion and survival, Knox. Maybe I loved him. Maybe I just wanted to love him. Or maybe worst of all, I just wanted him to love me. Whichever way you slice it, it hardly matters much now. Regardless of what feelings I do or don't have for him, I'm dead if he finds me. Those feelings are irrelevant. Love is irrelevant. I can't afford to sit around and ponder such things. That's a luxury I don't have.”

  “If you still love him at all—even a little bit—that could be dangerous.”

  “I'm well aware of how dangerous loving Merc proved to be, Knox,” I snapped.

  “I didn't mean it like that. I'm saying that if you're not crystal clear on how you feel about him when he's standing before you—”

  “Him wanting me dead has been super helpful in clarifying where I stand with him and where he stands with me.”

  Even as I spoke those words, a small part of me buried deep inside cried out against them. I looked to Knox, who eyed me tightly for a moment, assessing what I'd said, and awaited the verdict. Truth or lie.

  “Good,” he said plainly. “If he comes here, you can't falter when you see him. You can't interfere.”

  “I've seen him in action, Knox,” I whispered, not wanting to anger the alpha. But he needed to know what he was up against. If Kingston posed a problem for the wolves, Merc would prove an even bigger one.

  “So have I,” he countered, leaning in close to my ear to speak. “But he doesn't have magic on his side, Piper. Not like the warlocks do. With the vampires, it's all hand-to-hand combat. And that's what I do best.” He lingered by my face for a moment after he'd finished, his warm breath tickling my cheek.

  “If the warlocks found me, that means that the enforcers will likely do the same, and soon,” I explained, my breath catching in my throat.

  “Say what you want to say, Piper.” His voice was low and husky, and it made every hair on my body stand at attention in the most unexpected way. I tried to ignore the sensation and put together a coherent thought.

  “You could avoid a war if you let me go...”

  “Maybe I like war. Did you ever think of that? Maybe I like the thought of taking down anyone who has ever tried to hurt you. And maybe I really like the idea of you staying here with us indefinitely.”

  “Oh.”

  “Exactly.” He pulled away from me just enough so that I could read the conflicted expression on his face. But I couldn't make sense of it. “We should probably go in now. It's getting dark. The boys will be having a shift change soon. Best that you aren't present when they turn back and stagger through the yard naked as the day they were born.”

  He took my hand in his and guided me back toward the house.

  “Maybe I like naked,” I teased, giv
ing his hand a little squeeze for emphasis.

  He stopped dead in his tracks.

  “I'll be sure to keep that in mind, Piper,” he said with a smile, then started walking again, laughing to himself as he led me up the porch stairs. The second shift of scouts came out of the lodge just as we reached the door, Brunton and Jagger leading the group. “Be ready for anything at any time,” Knox warned them, his tone serious.

  “We will,” Jagger agreed with a nod.

  My heart seized a bit as I watched them make their way toward the tree line, the ten of them fanning out like spokes on a bicycle. They each had their section of perimeter to guard, and I had no doubt that they would. Knox ran a tight ship, but it was plain to see the loyalty his wolves had for him. They trusted him completely.

  I said a little prayer for them under my breath, asking the Earth, or whatever source I was connected to, to keep them safe. Then I pulled my hand from Knox and bent down to touch the ground.

  “Take care of them,” I whispered, running my hand along the blades of grass. A gentle breeze blew my hair into my face, encircling me before it drifted away to die off.

  “No powers, my ass,” Knox grumbled from behind me.

  “I'm just testing out your theory,” I said with a shrug. “At any rate, it can't hurt to try. We need all the help we can get.”

  “I wish that weren't true,” he replied tightly, heading up the steps to the house.

  I opened my mouth to offer some meaningless placation, but thought better of it and snapped my lips back together. He always knew when I was lying. Why bother trying?

  Once inside, we were soon joined by the returning wolves from the first watch. We ate, watched TV, and did everything we possibly could to act as though we weren't waiting for trouble to find us. Nobody spoke of the attack in Anchorage. Nobody mentioned the warlocks. Everyone, without exception, acted as though nothing had ever happened—that they hadn't buried two of their own earlier that day. I couldn't figure out if they were doing so for my benefit or their own.

  Maybe they did it for both.