He sent Rua ahead to scout the condition of the pack and its walls, while my anxiety ratcheted to intolerable levels in my body. I alternated between freezing to listen for any sound I could and pacing.
Finally, Rua raced back toward us, her ears back, and shifted as she skidded to a halt. Her shoulders heaved as she gulped in breaths, and her wide-eyed gaze darted to me before addressing her alpha. “Something’s going on.”
My spine stiffened as my heart beat double-time, a resounding bass in my chest. “What? What’s going on?”
She didn’t look at me, her eyes on Dare. “There’s a lot of smoke coming from within the walls.”
I had to brace myself on a nearby tree so I didn’t fall over.
“Did you hear anything?” Dare’s voice sounded far away as I gasped.
There was a pause. “Yes, there was a lot of shouting. And screaming.”
Selene was in there with that fucking monster, and Jude could be in there too. I didn’t question my next action, or say a word. I shifted and took off at a dead sprint toward the compound. I was probably racing to my death, but my instincts were screaming at me to get to Selene.
A shout rose up from behind me. Dare was saying my name, but I didn’t care, because I had to get to my family. He wanted me to be free? Well I was making my own damn decisions then. All I had left were Jude and Selene. They were all that mattered.
When I crested the hill, the Bluefoot compound rose before me, all gray stone and iron spikes. Sure enough, thick gray smoke billowed into the sky from the center of the compound, fed by licks of flames. A thunder of paws followed me, so I knew Dare and his pack weren’t far behind. The front gate was open, and a body lay on the ground. As I drew closer, I recognized one of Xan’s guards. I knew the smart thing would be to hang back, bide my time and figure out what the fuck was going on, but with the fire, I didn’t have time. I had to get inside and find Selene. I shifted to human as I entered the gates, and turned to see Dare and his pack, also shifted, following me. Dare’s face was thunder, the veins in his neck protruding, as he glared at me.
“I have to find them,” I explained as he drew closer. “The fucking Column is on fire.”
His gaze drifted away to take in the burning building in front of us. He seemed to want to protest, but in the end, he jerked out a nod. “Then let’s go.”
Xan’s compound was comprised of one main building, the Column, which housed Xan and the elite members of the pack. The rest of the pack lived in small huts surrounding the building. Among the huts were wolves, some shifted, some in human form, running amok. Despite the way I was treated here, this was my surrogate pack and my heart hurt at the chaos and hysteria.
Along the far wall, I spotted Xan’s two sons, armed to the teeth with knives, facing off against a small group of Xan’s guards. Ah, so that was the source of this anarchy. As I’d long predicted, there’d finally been a mutiny. Zin and Zen had no love for their father, and I’d always suspected if anyone was going to challenge him, it would be them.
The brothers hated my guts, so staying out of their sight was preferable. They’d only be a distraction from the reason I was here.
Something crashed to the ground, and we all glanced up to see a chunk of the Column’s roof had broken off. It looked like the entire top floor was on fire.
Weres among their midst sent the panicked wolves into a bigger frenzy. Werewolf novuses screamed, and adults fled from the Weres as well as the rapidly spreading fire. Some larger wolves shifted, acting on instinct to protect their pack and family, but the Weres, even in their human form, easily fended off any advances. The open gates were a huge security breach, and I was eager to get the fuck out of here before the noise attracted Noweres.
A familiar form burst out of a side door of the Column and ran toward me. “Reese!” Gale, my sister’s best friend, grabbed my arm and tugged, eyes wide, face blackened with ash. “Is it really you? Am I seeing things?”
She was frantic, blood trickling from a cut in her lip. “No, it’s really me. Gale, what the fuck happened?”
Her nails dug into my arm. “Zin and Zen. They aren’t daddy’s little boys anymore.”
“How did this start?”
“I don’t know, but Xan thinks his guards will win. He’s locked himself in his quarters.” She swallowed and her next words were spoken through clenched teeth. “With Selene.”
I tore my arm out of her grip and took off into the building as my entire body lit up like the flames above me. Dare was at my back, his solid presence giving me more courage than I’d have on my own. I took the stairs two at a time, dodging wolves as they fought and snarled at each other along with way. The scent of Weres made members of the Bluefoot pack cower or flee, both of which were excellent choices, because I didn’t have time to fuck around with them.
When we reached Xan’s door, Dare pushed me aside. With a roar, he kicked the door open, splintering it on the hinges. I took one step inside and stopped dead.
In the center of the room stood Selene, holding a knife dripping with a dark red liquid. Her long white dress was torn, covered in ash and blood. And at her feet lay the motionless body of Xan, the former alpha of the Bluefoot pack.
At the sound of the door, her head jerked up, and she brandished the knife in front of her body, ready to defend herself from intruders. Her jaw was set, eyes glowing. When she saw it was me, her entire body slumped, like her muscles gave out. She dropped the knife to the floor with a clatter, and sobbed out, “Reese.”
“Selene.” I rushed toward her, and she fell into my arms, gripping me tightly as she sobbed into my neck.
“I thought you were dead!” She wailed against my skin. I squeezed my eyes shut, inhaling her scent. “I’m right here.” I gripped her face. “Let me look at you.”
She didn’t want to meet my gaze, and I soon saw why. Her throat was red, fingerprints visible where someone had tried to cut off her air. Her jaw was bruised and her eyes were swollen and purple. With a raspy voice, gaze darting at me, then away, she said, “He tried, Reese. He tried, but he didn’t succeed.” Her voice cracked and in spite of that, she jutted her chin out and met my eyes. “I fought like you taught me.”
My heart cracked open in my chest, blood pumping poisonous fury throughout my body. I’d never wanted this for Selene, that she had to see the worst of wolves, that she had to be treated like property, like a breeder to carry on Xan’s line. Fuck. Him. With a growl that scratched like sandpaper up my throat, I picked up the knife, and fell to my knees beside Xan’s body. With two hands, I slammed the knife into his bloated belly. “You motherfucking bastard!” Again, and again, I stabbed the man who was already dead, the man who’d killed my parents, ruined my life, and brutalized my sister. For the last goddamn time, I screamed into his lifeless face.
Hands closed around my biceps and hauled me up and away from my mutilation. Dare’s voice was firm in my ear. “Stop.”
I went limp in his grip. My arms were sore. My throat hoarse. I threw the knife across the room, and braced myself on my knees as I caught my breath.
Selene watched us closely, her gaze darting between Dare and I, then taking in the dozen Weres behind us. She took a careful step backward. “W-why are you surrounded by Weres?”
Waving a hand, I said, “I’ll explain later. We need to get out of here.”
“And go where?” Despite the dirt and blood, she looked regal standing there, her long dark hair flowing past her shoulders.
“Back to the Silver Tip pack. Just trust me, all right?”
She nodded, her expression still wary. “We need to get Jude first.”
I started. Oh shit, in all of this, I’d forgotten Jude should be here too. “You know where Jude is?”
“Yeah, they caught him sneaking around the compound and threw him in a Hole.”
“Is he okay?”
She nibbled her lip. “I’m not sure.”
“Shit.” I turned to see Dare and his pack in formation at the door
. Gale was there too, clinging to Rua, who’d wrapped her arms around the wolf’s shoulders. The crackling of the fire was louder now, a dull roar above us, and I wondered how long the ceiling would hold. G jerked, then held his ground, but his gaze was darting to the door, his hands fisted at his side.
“We need to get Hans too,” Selene said. “He’s also in a Hole.”
“Hans?” He was a quiet wolf about Selene’s age.
“Yes,” Selene said. “He risked his life to get me that knife. We have to save him too.”
I was already on my way out. “Sure, I’ll save whoever, I just want to do it and get the fuck out of here.”
With Dare striding at my side, Selene’s hand clutched in mine, and the Weres flanking us, we made our way back downstairs. The screams were fainter now, and I wondered what would happen to the Bluefoot pack. Zin and Zen were not any better men than their father was. They were just a different kind of evil.
Dare
* * *
Reese led us to the first floor of the Column. Bodies littered the floor and I nearly slipped in a pool of blood. Werewolf fools. The Bluefoot pack had a real enemy outside their walls, yet they were fighting and killing each other.
Once outside the building, Reese took off at a sprint down a narrow path between some stone buildings. We followed him until we reached a clearing. At first, I couldn’t understand how Jude would be here, until I saw the metal grates in the ground, about five of them spaced ten feet apart.
“I helped dig these fucking holes, so I know they’re about eight feet deep.” Reese peered down into an empty one. “There’s enough room to sit down in a ball, and that’s about it. Guards have the keys, and those metal grates are silver.” He cupped his hands over his mouth. “Jude!”
A strangled cry went up from a Hole in the far corner.
A streak of black fur flew past us, and then a shifted Were came to a skidding halt ahead of us. With a ferocious growl, he gripped the gate with his clawed hands and ripped it open, sending it flying into the far wall where it crumpled like it was paper. G shifted into human form, then reached inside the Hole, hauling out a body. He clutched Jude to his chest like the wolf was made of gold.
G stroked his hair and ran his hands over his back, while Jude blinked up at him with adoration. “Jude!” Reese screamed. I cringed at the sight of Jude’s face, but he managed a bloody, lopsided smile for his brother.
Reese fell to his knees beside them and tugged Jude into his arms. “I’m so mad at you,” Reese said, shaking him slightly. “I’m so fucking mad at you, and I love you so fucking much.”
Jude gripped his brother tightly. “I love you too.” His gaze went past Reese and widened. “Selene!”
She was a blur of white cloth as she raced to her siblings, and they fell into a heap of limbs. There were apologies and whispered promises, and they ignored everything around them. My heart pounded in my chest at the sight of the reunited family. Reese had spent the last couple of weeks as an outsider with my pack, and now he’d finally found his home. He deserved it. I’d made the right decision letting him free.
I turned away to see Rua at another Hole, lifting out a wolf who looked even worse off than Jude. Selene gasped and tore herself out of her brothers’ grips, running to brace the injured wolf as he stumbled. His skin was a deep, dark brown, and it wasn’t until he stretched his lips, showing off bloody teeth, that I realized the liquid glistening on his skin was blood, not sweat.
When the wolf lifted his head, he smiled at Selene and raised a mangled hand to her face. “You’re okay,” he said in a broken voice.
She wiped a drip of blood from his chin. “Thanks to you.”
I checked the rest of the Holes, finding them empty. I was walking away from the last one, when a chain rattled. I sniffed the air, having trouble picking out scents because there were so many around me. But there it was, the scent of a Silver Tip pack member, but mixed with something foreign.
I leaned back over the Hole and peered inside. A foot moved into a small patch of light, and I ripped open the grate, ignoring the burn of the silver on my palms.
The scent was stronger now, and a silver chain attached to an emaciated leg rattled.
I yanked it out of its bolt in the wall, and tugged slightly. “Hello?”
A form dragged itself into the light, then a face peered up at me, green eyes sunken into its skull. His cracked lips moved, and his scent hit me. He was a Were, and definitely a Silver Tip. How the hell did he get here? “You’re a Silver Tip,” I said.
He nodded.
“I’m your alpha, and I’m going to take you home.”
His lips moved again, and finally a raspy voice rumbled out. “Dare.”
I smiled as I reached inside, and lifted out the bare-bones Were. “Yeah.”
In the sunlight, he looked even worse. Dirty, brown, stringy hair, and bones protruding sharply against thin skin. He blinked at me and said even more softly, “Bay.”
I tilted my head at him, pushing his hair out of his face. Those eyes. I remembered those eyes. “Wait, are you… Are you Nash?”
His lips moved, like he was trying to smile, and a bit of blood trickled out of a crack. “Yeah.”
I cupped his face, unable to believe it. Nash—my brother’s long-lost best friend—was actually alive. “I can’t believe it’s you.”
“Me,” he said, then coughed.
Right, we needed to get the fuck out of here. I handed Nash off to Vaughn and rose to my full height. “Time to move out. Weres, we form up around the wolves. Protect them at all costs.”
In seconds, my pack surrounded the werewolves and Nash. Vaughn supported Nash, while Selene and Reese walked with Hans between them, his arms thrown over their shoulders. Jude stuck close to G’s side, and Gale matched strides with Rua.
That was it, our party was full, and I was ready to get the fuck out of here and back to my pack. Reese directed us back to the front gates, and we walked quickly, on alert for attackers.
A werewolf raced toward us on four legs. I wasn’t sure if he was friend or foe, but the answer became apparent when he launched himself into the air toward Jude with a snarl. G didn’t even bother to shift. He snatched the wolf with a hand around its throat and with one twist of his wrist, the wolf lay broken at his feet.
From behind me, Hans sucked in a breath. “Who are these guys?”
“They’re Weres,” Reese answered. “And they don’t like anyone fucking with their pack.” There was a hint of pride in his voice.
“But we’re not—” Selene began.
“We’re their pack,” Reese said quickly. “The alpha is my mate.”
There was a stunned silence. “I have so many questions,” she muttered.
Reese snorted. “You and me both.”
When we reached the gates, I glanced back and met the brown eyes of a wolf. He stood watching me, a spear in his hand, head tilted. Behind him, a group of wolves were kicking the motionless body of a wolf bearing the tattered remains of a guard uniform.
Something brushed my arm. I smelled Reese. “That’s Zin,” he said, pointing to the brown-eyed wolf.
Zin’s expression remained hard to read, and his gaze took in the group behind me. When his expression hardened, I followed his sightline to Selene. His lips curled back in a sneer. “Taking our females? That’s breaking the truce, Alpha Dare.”
“Consider it broken,” I growled back. “But I think you have enough to worry about within your own walls and directly outside of them. Good luck.”
I urged my pack out the gates, bracing myself for an attack from the back by the wolves. But none came. And when the gates closed and shouts went up from behind the wall, I knew the brothers had chosen to deal with bigger problems than losing a couple of female wolves.
Reese walked with his head down, trudging forward. Selene faced forward, chin up, dark hair billowing around her face, and a steady stream of tears flowed down her cheeks.
“We’re free, Reese,�
�� she whispered in awe.
My mate’s eyes met mine, and he didn’t look away as he said, “Yes, we are, baby. We’re finally free.”
Chapter Sixteen
Reese
* * *
I wanted my eyes on Jude and Selene at all times. I wanted some part of my body touching theirs. Any minute, I expected them to be snatched away from me, but the farther we walked from the Bluefoot gates, the more I could grasp the fact that they were alive, and real, and we were together. And at the end of this journey, we were free.
Xan was dead. His sons let us go. We were under the protection of some badass Weres.
We were free.
I would have danced if I could, or laughed at fate—that bitch. But I was too busy holding up Hans who seemed to look worse and worse with every step.
Dare, ever aware of his pack, could tell we had too many injured to make the entire trek back in one stretch, so he led us to a small clearing, well away from the Bluefoot gates but not quite in Nowere territory.
The scent of blood surrounded us to the point of being nauseating, so hopefully it didn’t draw the Noweres to where we were. As Dare checked on his pack, Selene and I lowered Hans to the ground. I barely remembered the guy, but Selene said he’d risked his life to save her, so I was going to do what I could to repay him.
Hans lay on the ground panting. His dark skin was ashen, his lips a dull gray, and the whites of his eyes were bloodshot. I dug in my pack for a canteen of water while Selene knelt beside him, running her hands over his body, taking stock of his injuries while speaking in low tones.
He was gritting his teeth, trying to shift. But I knew he wouldn’t be able to, not in the state he was in. Selene held the canteen to his lips for him to take a drink, then she tore off a piece of her dress and began to use the dampened strip to clean his wounds.
I blew out a breath as I watched the poor wolf struggling. Shit. His breathing was off, something wheezing in his chest that made me suspect one of his lungs wasn’t working.
Daring Fate: Silver Tip Pack series Page 17