by Kim Faulks
I dragged frigid air into my lungs and felt the tremble in my lips. With each step the shudder spread, smothering the fire inside. The soft patter of paws drew my gaze as the wolf came between us. I dropped my gaze to the icy breath that drifted from the steel and felt my innards quake.
The cloak moved as the warrior shifted, swinging the blade. I held by the shine of the sword as the wolf lunged. Savage snarls filled the air as the animal collided with the hooded figure, then a yelp tore through my head.
No! I stumbled as the wolf fell. Something warm and wet splattered my face. I reached for my cheek, then dropped my hand, staring at the blood on my fingers.
Agony tore through my chest. The bull snorted, filling one ear with a rush of air, while my dragon snarled in the other. But it was the voice inside my head that buckled my knees and took me to the ground.
I gave you a warning—yet here we are. Is she worth that much to you, Marcus? Is she really worth dying for? Inanna whispered.
A soft whimper slipped through my lips. I had a choice? I opened my mouth to answer as the remnants of the Bloodstone pack filled my mind. Lost and broken, they needed a leader who was kind and strong. Who sacrificed themselves for the greater good—one who wasn’t afraid of change.
But Abrial was more than that.
Fire lapped the insides of my mind, followed by the screams of my brothers and my sister, calling me, begging me. Your line starts and ends with you.
She was hope and not just for my family—she was hope for me. My heart sprouted wings. My dragon lifted its head and pierced me with blazing eyes. I’d killed for her. I’d bled for her.
You don’t even know her. Inanna’s voice danced across my mind.
The bull snorted, then issued a grunt. His hoof pawed the ground as I pulled myself closer to her. The fire in my chest raged, consuming me.
Her green eyes haunted me. Those lips tormented me. Mine, snarled my dragon. I didn’t know her. I’d barely scratched the surface of who this woman was, yet I knew with every spark of life left in me, that I wanted more.
I wanted more of her mind. I wanted more of her heart, and Goddess help me, I wanted the warmth of those soft lips. My fingers twitched, eager to skirt the seductive swell of her hips. What once was a spark had turned into an ember. Now that ember raged. My dragon stretched his wings as I burned from the inside.
I ground my face against the rocks and the earth, turning my gaze to the wolf and finally answered my Creator. “Yes.”
Abrial
I stared at the thin gold ring on her finger and shook my head. “No.”
His chuckle wore like sandpaper on my heart. “She’s been a good wife, although she’s yet to deliver me children. But we’re working on that, aren’t we sweetheart?”
The ghost of a smile touched her lips and was gone again, but those eyes never smiled. They were… devoid.
“It’ll happen. But if it doesn’t at least I have a backup plan.”
His slippery words drew my gaze. Clear blue eyes sliced me down the middle. My innards clenched tight. Run, my wolf urged. I turned to my sister. How could I leave her again?
“I’ll go. I’m sure you two have a lot of catching up to do.” Sol turned, brushing my arm with the twisted appendage and his voice turned hard as stone. “By all means make yourself at home, Abrial. None of my men will harm you while you live under my roof. But if you try to escape, they’ll shackle you and beat you like a dog.”
Something inside me withered with those words. One last spark of hope, one last surge of defiance, died as Sol shuffled away. I dropped the pack from my back as I tracked the sound of his boots.
I rubbed my shoulder and lifted my gaze. She wasn’t quite what I expected. Rowen. Her name conjured many emotions—hope, fear, love… guilt. But as I searched her sea-green eyes for the little girl I once knew, all I saw was a shadow. A shadow of ice.
Underneath the slick surface was a river. I could see the current—I could hear the rush, and yet as I brushed my fingers along her arm, I felt nothing at all. “I never stopped thinking about you. I wondered what you looked like, wondered where you were.”
The dead would have more life.
“I never knew, Rowen. You have to believe me. I never knew.”
A spark. A ripple. Something moved under the façade. I caught the movement at the edge of my vision and dropped my gaze. Her right hand grasped the fingers of her other, thumb and index twisting the wedding band around and around. I tried to swallow the lump in my throat, but the wad wedged tight. “Are you going to say anything?”
“Our mother died screaming.”
My heart sped, racing like my wolf.
“She died screaming, because I told Sol I loved her more than I loved him.”
I closed my eyes and felt the sun fade.
“You look like her. Did you know that? You have the same red hair and the same green eyes. I could say I hate you for that reason alone. But the truth is sister. I simply hate you for leaving me here.”
I opened my eyes to see the same pain and felt the same hurt. Around and around, her fingers never stopped twisting that band, never slowed. I loved. I lost. I killed. I hurt. I needed… I so desperately needed. Yet all these things seemed so damn pathetic now. Everything I’d done. Everything I’d become had been all for nothing.
I dropped my head, nodding and slowly stepped away. Maybe she needs time. Maybe once she gets to know me. Maybe if I told her. Maybe if she understood….
The desperation churned my gut. I came here to save my sister and never once thought she wasn’t the one who needed saving—it was me.
Sleep little wolf. I’ve got you, sleep now. The dragon’s voice echoed from somewhere inside. I scrambled for those words and clung tight as I walked the track to the main camp. He could be standing right here, yet my Bloodletter was still too far to save me.
The irony brought both a smile to my face and chilled me to the bone.
I’d felt the dark magic that surrounded this camp before. Yet I still hadn’t understood the depths of its power—or understood that the predator mingled amongst the camp. Not until I stared into my sister’s eyes.
I might’ve looked like our mother on the outside, but that was where our similarities had ended. But Rowen had it all. She had the wolf, the mage, the fire and the fury, all rolled into one.
My sister held a dark power I’d never felt before. And yet the question remained, why was she still here?
Murmurs died as I broke through the trees. I turned my gaze to the group of warriors who sat on the outskirt of the camp. One-by-one they dragged their focus from the pens to me and lingered. Meat sizzled over the small open fire at their feet. My mouth watered at the scent and my belly clenched with need. One smiled at me and licked his lips.
I bit the edges of my mouth and kept on walking. Food was never free for a woman—no matter which camp you were in. I steered away from the pens, and headed for the cabin. Did the Alpha’s blood stain the floorboards? Did Sol rejoice at the sight of his leader’s dead body, or did that come after when he became their new Alpha?
Kill the Alpha and run. I thought I’d done just that, until the headlights blinded me and the squeal of tires filled my ears. Did the Alpha’s curse deliver me to the dragon, or was that nothing more than a whisper from the Gods?
A husky cry echoed from the barn. I turned my head toward the shadows, drawing in the fetid stench of hay, piss and shit as the croak came again. “I’m human, please help me.”
Darkened corners held nothing more than sacks of rice and rye. I blinked as my sight adjusted to the gloom and stepped inside. Small stables divided the far wall, some doors were open, others chained shut.
Something reached through the bars and clawed the ground. I licked my lips and moved closer. “Please help me. I’m human. I’m human.”
“Stay away from her.”
I spun at the growl and shuffled backwards. The wolf stood in the doorway, shoulders hunched, fist clenched at his si
des and staring at me.
“My name’s Joslyn Goulding. My brother’s a deputy. I’m being held captive, please help me. I’m begging you, please help me.”
I shifted my gaze from the wolf to the stall. “She’s human, what is she doing here?”
The warrior wrenched his head to the side, the sound of cracking bones filled the air. “Well, that’s none of your business is it?”
“Please help me. I’m pregnant. I’m not supposed to be here. I’m not one of you… creatures.”
I winced from her words and swallowed the stench. Three padlocks guarded the door. “Wolf law says no humans.”
He snickered and swung his hand palm up. “If you haven’t figured it out yet wolf, we abide by our own set of rules.”
“Let her go or I’ll….” My voice faltered as he took a step inside and gripped the thick metal handle. With a growl he wrenched the massive wooden door shut. The clang of metal rollers lingered well after the thud.
“You’ll… what?”
“I’ll go to the Sheriff. The humans won’t stand for this, they’ll come after us with guns. They’ll….”
My skin crawled with the sound of his silence. I craned my head, slowing my breaths listening for a scuff of his boots, or the sound of his heart—and found, nothing.
“Who do you think gave us the green light? Who do you think lines his pockets with a share of the profits?”
His voice was at my back. I spun, lifting my hands, ready to shift.
“He’s lying. He lies, it’s what he does.” Joslyn whispered.
“Quiet!” My ears rang with the boom. “I never lied to you, Joslyn. I never….”
“You told me you loved me!”
My heart boomed. I kept my steps light and raced for the door. Please… my fingers fumbled for the handle, skirting the metal before I clenched tight.
Thunder hit the door. Vibrations shuddered the handle before something shoved me against the wood. “Where do you think you’re going? I thought we were just getting started.”
His breath scattered my hair, blowing strands into my eyes. I winced as his chin gouged my shoulder and ground against my ear. I closed my eyes and gripped the handle as his hand slapped against my breast. Calloused fingers clawed my flesh and pinched my nipple through my shirt. “They say you carry the curse of the Alpha. Is it true?”
I forced spit around the lump in my throat as I swallowed. “If you keep your filthy fucking hand on me you might just find out.”
His hand stilled for a second before plummeting south. “I always loved a good challenge.”
My teeth pinned my lip as he shoved my head against the door. My scalp stung with the burn as he fisted my hair and yanked. “Let’s see how much fire you have in you, wolf. “
The door squealed, grazing my cheek as it slid open. Sol’s blue eyes widened as he stared into my eyes, then slowly turned to the wolf at my back. “Abrial. Are you hurt?”
My thighs tightened around the wolf’s hand between my legs until I felt the crunch of bones. “No.”
“Good.” The Alpha turned his gaze to the wolf at my back. “Nicholas, don’t you have somewhere else to be?”
The wolf dropped his fist from my hair as I relaxed my thighs. My gaze bore into those blue eyes as the wolf’s hand fell free. The hiss of pain at my back was enough to tug the corners of my lips as the wolf snarled. “Yes, Sol.”
“Then, go there.”
The sadistic bastard charged my shoulder, sending me flying. I threw out my hand to stop the fall and grasped Sol’s deformed arm. The hard end of a bone slithered under the skin, spongy creases made a sound no body part should.
I snatched my hand away, fighting to keep the revulsion from my face. The Alpha never noticed. His gaze skimmed my breasts and lingered. “I think it’s best if you stay close to me. Your sister will need a hand with dinner.”
Those blue eyes met mine. “Besides, tonight we’ve something to celebrate, don’t we? And we’ve yet to discuss the sleeping arrangements.”
In the space of a heartbeat he stole my courage. Fire turned to ice, then melted to a puddle as he slid his fingers down my cheek. “Now, I would promise to be gentle. But that’s not really my nature.”
He dropped his hand, and yet his touch still lingered. That cold, dead weight wrapped its arms around me and held tight. I forced my feet to move, following his shuffled steps past the pens to the trail.
A woman broke from the middle and crawled to the edge of the pen as I passed. I held her tortured gaze, then her focus slipped from me to the warrior at my back. “Please, just a little water, that’s all we want. We’re dying here. Can you hear me? We’re dying here!”
The timber railing sang behind me. I yanked my head, catching his fist whip through the air. The crack sent the woman flying into the filth. She lay there, her body shuddering with great gulping sobs and in that moment her pain and her hopelessness became mine.
The spineless piece of shit dropped his head backwards, his sniggers gripped something deeper than my belly. I spun and covered the ground to the scattered packs around the fire and scrambled for as many water bottles I could find.
His chortle died, along with his smile as I yanked back my arm and sent the bottle through the air. The container hit the ground with a thud inches from the prisoners.
“Goddamn, bitch.”
Flesh turned to fur as the warrior lunged. His clothes fell like autumn leaves before the beast hit me head on. His paws pinned me to the ground. The heat of his breath buffeted my face.
I stared at the gaps of his canine’s as fear turned to fury. “You want to kill me? Go ahead. You’d be doing me a fucking favor.”
“Stop. I said, stop.” Sol snarled. “Harm a hair on her head and I’ll wear your pelt.”
The wolf sank back, sweeping those amber eyes from me to his Alpha. His lips slid back, covering white teeth. The beast shook his head, ears flapped, flattening his shackles as he stepped away.
The sky turned to dusk as the shadow loomed overhead. Sol’s blue eyes sparkled as he muttered. “Stay close to me now, Abrial.”
I climbed to my feet and glanced over my shoulder. I’d never seen a human treated like a wolf. They looked like us, but were not subject to our laws or our way of life. We were primitive, animals—used as fodder for their wars, but were not welcome in their towns or their cities. If the laws of wolves were changing, then who’s side would we be on?
I lengthened my side, catching up to the Alpha as the small hut came into view. She hated me. My little sister hated me. Why be silent? Why be safe? I had nothing left to be safe for. I stared a hole through the back of his head and spat. “Did you know that woman in the barn is a human?”
Silence answered me. Not good enough. “Was the wolf lying when he said the Sheriff had a hand in this?”
He never slowed. “It’s none of your business. You cook. You clean and you fuck. You’ll do what you’re told and you’ll keep your mouth shut.”
“They’ll come for her you know. This place will be crawling with humans. They’ll bring guns. They’ll bring dogs. They’ll tear this fucking place apart. You won’t have a pack left, Sol. You’ll have nothing left.”
He stopped and turned faster than I could pivot, snatching my hand and twisting. “You think you’re so tough don’t you? You think I’m that stupid. By tomorrow you’ll be sleeping in a new bed and you’ll be staring at a different mountain. No one’s coming for her… just like no one’s coming for you.”
Toe-to-toe, eye-to-eye. I met this mongrel with all the strength I had left. “You think I care about myself? When you turned my sister against me you lost the only leverage you had. So why should I do a damn thing you say?”
“Sol, what’s going on?” Rowen growled.
A whimper slipped from my mouth as the Alpha tightened his grip. I clenched my teeth and my jaw popped under the strain. His eyes never moved from my face. “Take off your clothes.”
My heart thundered at the comm
and. One slip and I caught my sister’s eyes widen, turning to me, then back to this monster she called a husband. “Sol. No, please. She didn’t mean anything. She’s just angry.”
He shook my arm, grinding bone and snarled. “I said. Take off your damn clothes. Or would you prefer I made your sister strip instead?”
The thought of her naked with this monster twisted something inside me. I needed to protect her. I needed to keep her safe. “No.”
My fingers shook, dancing along the seam as I squeezed the top button of Marcus’ pin-striped shirt, exposing the black singlet underneath. The flaking scalp of his thin hairline glistened. A bead of sweat caught my gaze as it raced through sparse blond strands.
“I’ve been thinking about this moment for a long time now. Sometimes, when I’m inside her, I call out your name. I love the way she freezes. I love that little whimper that slips from her lips.”
My fingers stopped half-way down. The shake raced along my hand and into my arm. Pins and needles followed as he released my arm and swept the shirt from my shoulder. “I’m going to take my time tonight. I’m going to get to know every place. I'll fill your body with my seed, in more places than one.”
My body jerked and cloth tore. The last of my buttons popped free and hit the ground near my feet.
“I wonder if you’ll cry for your mother like your sister did, the first time I took her? I wonder if you’ll cry and beg and bargain… I hope so.”
His nails gouged my skin as he grasped the straps of my singlet. I closed my eyes waiting for the cool lick of air, waiting for this animal to take what he wanted.
“You fucking bitch!” Rowen screamed.
I yanked open my eyes to a see a black blur on a darkening sky. My shoulder crunched as she charged me. My body crumpled. My head smacked the ground. All I saw were stars.
“Get your filthy fucking hands off my husband.” My head snapped to the right, fire lashed my cheek. I tried to inhale, but there was nothing but the vice around my chest.