Wolf Moon

by A. D. Ryan

  I laughed a loud and almost unladylike sound. “Yeah, okay.”

  “I’m serious,” Nick said, his hands moving up my back and working each knot from my muscles.

  “But…Corbin?”

  “It’s not necessarily genetics that guarantee who becomes Alpha. It’s whoever proves themselves strongest,” Nick explained, removing his hands from my body and sitting back on the bed. I turned toward him. “The Pack’s survival depends on their Alpha, and that means whoever leads them has to excel in every way.”

  “Well, I think you might be putting the cart before the horse,” I replied. “I’ve got a long way to go before I’ve got my alter-ego under control.”

  “Minor setback,” Nick said with a headshake. “I honestly wouldn’t be surprised if Marcus takes you on as his protégé.”

  I pulled my bottom lip between my teeth, suddenly concerned with how the rest of the Pack might react should this happen. Would there be dissention in the ranks? Would this paint a target on my back and undo all the camaraderie? Nick had taken Jackson’s place at Marcus’ side, and the strain between them was palpable. I’d already been the subject of office gossip when I was promoted to detective by my father, and I didn’t want that to happen again.

  Shaking my head roughly, I tried to eliminate the idea entirely. There was no way I was ready for anything like that, so why was I even worrying about it?

  Nick smiled, reaching out and cupping my face in his hand. “Sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t mean to freak you out.”

  “Freak me out?” I repeated, trying to brush our conversation off as no big deal. “No, it didn’t freak me out.”

  He laughed, clearly not believing me. “Okay, well that’s good, because I’d hate for you to be worrying yourself over something that could be years in the making…especially when you need to be resting up before we head out tonight.”

  Nick got up and started a fire while I crawled beneath our comforter. Even though I was trying not to focus on it, the knowledge that any one of us could be named Alpha when Marcus resigned would stay with me. But Nick was right; I needed to file it away for now and try to get some sleep. Hunting these vampires hadn’t been easy thus far, and I knew that tonight would be no different.

  Chapter 25 | stakeout

  The wind whistled through the trees, but even my finely tuned hearing could pick up on the rustling of woodland creatures or the soft breathing of the Pack all around me. I couldn’t see any of them, but I sensed they were close.

  After waking from our nap, Nick and I checked back in with Marcus. While we’d been asleep, Marcus, Jackson, and Vince started formulating a stakeout. The plan sounded pretty solid; we would shift and cross the lake before hiding beneath the cover of the forest and wait for sunset when they were most likely to make a move. Hopefully they’d slip up and we’d find a way in.

  There was just one problem with this plan: my ability to shift with ease.

  Everyone else was halfway across the frozen lake while I was still crouching in the snow. What bothered me most was that shifting the night before hadn’t even taken this long. Stressing about it didn’t make it any easier, and I could tell Nick was getting anxious to join the others. I tried to tell him to go on without me, that I’d go back to the house and stay with Layla, Miranda, and Colby, but Nick reminded me that Marcus was really looking forward to having me along tonight.

  It took a little while, but I was finally able to calm down and find my center. The shift came easy after that, and soon Nick was by my side and we were loping across the ice. I was able to track the Pack easily, and we soon came up on Marcus’ flank as he lay crouched in the deep snow, concealed in the shadows as the sun continued to set.

  We were supposed to wait for nightfall, but my body itched to begin the search as soon as possible. The only thing that kept me from acting on these urges was the look in Marcus’ big yellow eyes when he glanced back at me.

  So, we waited.

  With the sun down, the temperature dropped significantly. When I started to shiver, Nick sidled up to me and we used each other for heat while remaining acutely aware of our surroundings. It started to snow, but the wind stayed calm, so it didn’t feel any colder. If we’d been out for any other reason, I might have had a moment to revel in the beauty of a fresh snowfall.

  A twig snapped behind us, and I jumped to my feet, whirling around and snarling. My ears flattened against my head, my hackles raised, and I parted my front legs and dropped my head in a threatening way. I started to growl, but it was cut short when I recognized the dark brown wolf in front of me.

  Roxanne.

  She tilted her head and dipped it in what I could only assume was an apology as she moved to the right and came up beside me. Nick acknowledged her with a low woof that disrupted the snow, and then we took our previous positions. Marcus looked behind him as Roxanne settled into her spot. He was watching out for her; making sure she was okay to do this.

  The plan was for one team to be somewhere on the mountain, close to where we’d lost the scent, a second heat would be lower down, and the rest of us were here. The four of us stayed in our hiding spot while the others were somewhere up ahead. Every time there was a breeze, I picked up faint traces of their scents, but I could no longer hear their breaths or their footsteps. I continued to listen for a series of howls that would indicate whether the vampires had been spotted.

  I grew more and more impatient as the minutes ticked by. I wanted to be patient, but it wasn’t in my nature; as a cop I was used to acting, not sitting around and waiting for the perp to find me. If we did that, we’d have solved a lot less cases.

  I had just settled down onto my belly, relaxing my muscles, when the first yip was heard in the distance, followed by a long howl and several snarls. Marcus and Nick leapt to their feet; Roxanne and I weren’t far behind. My ears twitched, and I inhaled deeply. At first, I picked up nothing, but then the rotten smell of death hit me, followed by that of Vince and Jackson.

  There was rustling in the forest to my left, twigs snapping and snow crunching as someone ran through it. Marcus was quick to head in that direction. Roxanne followed him while Nick nudged me and then took off in another. It took me a second to figure out what it was he was doing, but then I realized he was likely trying to get ahead of the action while Marcus and Roxanne were hoping to intersect it.

  They wanted to surround the vampire.

  I ran with Nick, letting the foul smell of our prey guide us, and soon we were in a clearing. The others weren’t there, and there were no tracks that indicated that they’d been through either. To the East, we heard a commotion, and we took off running. When we got there, I was horrified to see blood staining the snow and Vince standing over a fallen wolf—Marcus.

  My heart thundered in my chest and my lungs burned from the run. Nick moved to Jackson’s side, and just when I started to worry about our Alpha, I was struck from the right. It felt like I’d been hit by a semi-truck. It wasn’t just the physical force of whatever it was, but the smell that slammed into me as well.

  Every muscle in my body tensed as I tried to regain control. Hands wrapped around my neck, and I whipped my head around, burying my teeth into my attacker’s hand. Cold, congealing blood filled my mouth, and I gagged on it as we slid to a stop. Once my head stopped spinning, I got a good look at the vampire who tried to take me out. I didn’t recognize him, but I registered the feral look in his onyx eyes.

  Behind him, I watched as Nick, Jackson, and a recovering Marcus bolted toward us. The rest of the Pack was behind them, but they’d never make it to me before the creature had a chance to strike again. It lunged at the same moment I did, and we fell to the ground in a tangled, snarling heap. His fingernails were unnaturally sharp as they cut through my thick fur, sinking into my flesh like it was butter, and I let out a shrill howl of pain. A fresh surge of adrenaline surged through my veins, and I flipped us over, pinning the vampire to the ground. Instinct told me to go for his neck.


  Without another thought, I clamped my jaws around his neck and bit down hard. The monster screamed before my powerful bite severed his vocal chords and then his spine. Afraid it might be too soon, I continued to bite, and I only pulled back when his neck turned to dust in my mouth, coating my tongue.

  I snorted and pushed my snout into the snow, lapping it up in hopes of clearing the taste from my mouth. Nick was beside me, sniffing me and licking my neck where I’d been cut. I snapped at him the first time because it stung, and he looked surprised. Dropping my head, I allowed him to continue, sensing his concern.

  One by one, each of the Pack members changed. None of them seemed to care that their clothes were still miles away on the other side of the lake. It was strange, but I figured modesty wasn’t really a concern within the Pack. I looked to Nick, who nodded his head toward a small copse of trees. I followed him, glancing back as Marcus watched after us.

  It wasn’t until Nick stood between me and the rest of the Pack, his back facing me, that I realized what he was doing: he was offering me privacy to go through my change without prying eyes. He knew I still struggled with it, and he was trying to be supportive.

  My heart was racing as my nervousness mounted. I’d never really shifted with others so close by. I could hear them talking, and that only made my concentration falter. Marcus asked Jackson if his team noticed where it came from, and my curiosity piqued.

  “No. It completely blind-sided us. It was like they expected us to be there,” Jackson replied. “Is Brooke okay? That thing really had her.”

  I heard Marcus chuckle. “She seems okay. She’s strong and reacts quickly. It’s…impressive.”

  Nick turned his head and glanced back at me before growling a low warning to hurry up. I focused on blocking the Pack out and tried to visualize the change. It didn’t feel like it took very long before the winter wind hit my bare skin, and I stood on unsteady legs. I stayed hidden in the trees a moment longer, suddenly feeling self-conscious and vulnerable—something I was still struggling with a little—while Nick shifted in front of me.

  Human, he stood up and reached for me. I took his hand and let him lead me from the trees. A wave of warmth passed over my skin despite the wind chill, but when everyone respectfully kept their eyes above my shoulders, I relaxed a little.

  But only a little.

  “How’s your neck?” Marcus asked, walking toward me. I balked when he reached out for me—residual fear left over from what Karl did, I guessed. I used my arms to cover my exposed chest as Marcus tilted my head to the left. He was gentle and I could only sense his concern as he inspected my neck.

  “It hurts a little,” I replied as his fingers swept over the gouges in the side of my neck. “But I’ll live.”

  “More than I can say for him,” Jackson muttered, kicking a pile of snow over the ashes. “Glad you’re okay, kid.”

  Roxanne looked uneasy next to Vince and Jackson, and I couldn’t figure out if it was because of the vampire or another reason entirely. I decided to just ask. “Did you get a look at him before he turned to ash?”

  Roxanne’s eyes flew to mine. “It wasn’t him. He smelled different.”

  “Stunk all the same to me,” I said, trying to remember if I picked up on any subtle differences in his scent that she might have. “Different, how?”

  She seemed to contemplate this for a minute as if trying to put her finger on it. “Newer, I guess.”

  I turned to Nick, curious about what that meant. “They tend to smell a bit worse when they’re new,” he explained. “They’re so focused on feeding that they’re less likely to worry about hygiene. They don’t realize how bad they smell. Those who’ve been around longer tend to at least try to mask their natural odor from their enemies—us.”

  I shuddered at the thought; smelling a variety of vampires—new to old—was not an experiment I wanted to ever be a part of.

  “So what do we do now?” I asked as the wind picked up.

  Marcus looked back toward the mountain. “We head back to the manor for the night. We’ll try again tomorrow night.”

  Heading back to the manor meant shifting in order to cross the river and not freeze to death. The others had absolutely no problem, and they decided to wait for me so we could head back as a unit. Knowing they were out there, probably growing impatient again, only made me more nervous and I had trouble focusing once again. I knew I had to stop worrying so much about what the others must be thinking, but I couldn’t help it. My energy levels had depleted, and I grew colder. Soon, it was all I could think about, and I started shivering uncontrollably.

  “I’ll tell them to go,” Nick said. “I shouldn’t have made you shift back until we got home. It’s too much too soon.”

  “N-no,” I said, teeth chattering. “It’s f-fine.”

  “I’ll see if one of them can bring a set of clothes for you just in case.”

  I shook my head vehemently. “No. It’ll take too l-long. Besides, I need to learn how to do this.”

  “You could freeze.”

  I knelt in the snow again, digging my knuckles into the frozen ground and clenching my eyes shut. “I’ll freeze before they get back. I can do this.” I wasn’t sure if I was trying to convince Nick or myself.

  I could feel Nick’s frustration as he paced through the snow in front of me. “This was such a bad idea. You weren’t ready for this,” he muttered to himself.

  “You’re not making this any easier,” I snarled, trying to tune out the crunch of snow under his feet. Soon, the cold slipped away as the fever spread over my skin. The entire world faded into darkness—the whistling wind, the sound of Nick pacing, the Pack breathing—all of it gone. Pain blistered across my body, my bones snapped and shifted, and I screamed, the sound seamlessly turning into a howl.

  I collapsed onto my stomach, panting and exhausted. When I opened my eyes, I was pleased to see fur covered legs stretched out before me, so I let them fall shut again as I caught my breath and regained a little energy.

  Eventually, my heart slowed to a regular pace. Something warm sidled up to my left side, and I opened my right eye a little to see Nick’s sand-colored body. He brushed his nose against mine, and I exhaled a heavy breath and continued to rest.

  Another set of footsteps startled me, and my head shot up, alert, ears twitching. Jackson and Roxanne stepped forward, heads bowed, ears to the side and twitching harmlessly. Nick lifted his head and pressed his nose beneath my snout before lowering it and resting his head on one of my front legs. He was in no hurry to go anywhere, and when I noticed Jackson and Roxanne settle in around us, I realized Marcus likely ordered them to stay with us. Safety in numbers.

  Jackson scooted up to my right side despite a warning growl from Nick, and Roxanne lay behind us. It didn’t take long for me to realize they were surrounding me, sharing their body heat. The four of us must have fallen asleep, because when my eyes opened the next time, the sky was lightening and the sun was coming up.

  Even though I was still tightly sandwiched in the middle of the three wolves, I managed to get up and hop over Nick, stretching my back and shaking the melted snow from the fur under my belly. Nick was next to rise, followed by Jackson and Roxanne. We didn’t linger long, leaving when Nick barked the order.

  There was no real rush to get back to the manor, so we took our time. Jackson and Roxanne stayed ahead of us until we reached the lake, and then we crossed it together. When we arrived on the grounds of the manor, Jackson and Roxanne went in separate directions while Nick and I headed to the little clearing where we’d changed the day before.

  I loped behind the shrub where my clothes were and was shocked to find a fresh shirt and pair of jeans waiting for me. Colby’s scent wafted up from the clothes. I’d have to remember to thank her for the consideration.

  About ten feet away, I could hear Nick going through his change. While he had more control over it than I did, he grunted and groaned through it as though it might not be as painless as he made i
t look when I was around. It made sense; our bodies went through so much that there was no way this would ever be anything but painful in some way.

  Focusing on what Nick was going through was doing nothing for my own change, so I tried to block him out as best I could so we could head inside. Thanks to our resting the night before, I was able to shift with as much ease as usual, and I was just pulling on my jeans when Nick rounded the corner.

  “How are you feeling?” he asked, running his fingers through his disheveled hair. He, too, was dressed in a fresh pair of jeans and a black sweater.

  I fastened the button and then pulled my shirt on. “Pretty good.”

  Nick placed a finger along my jaw and tilted my head to the right. His hand gently ghosted over the skin of my neck, and I recoiled when pain shot through me. I’d almost forgotten about the cuts there.

  “It’s healing,” he assured me softly, but there was concern in his eyes. “It’ll be slow, but in a couple of days, they’ll be nothing more than a couple scars.

  I placed a hand over his and moved them up to the side of my face. Smiling, I pressed my cheek into his palm. “I better be more careful, or soon I’ll catch up to you.”

  I’d only meant it as a joke, but the idea of that happening seemed to really upset Nick. He only let me see this for a brief second before he moved our hands and then threaded our fingers together. “Come on. Let’s head inside.”

  Inside, Vince, Layla, Corbin, Zack, and Colby were in the living room. I could hear Marcus and Miranda moving around upstairs. I wasn’t sure where the others were, but I didn’t dwell on it as Nick led me to the plush, over-sized arm chair and eased me into it.

  “Coffee?” he offered, kissing the top of my head.

  “Sounds great, thank you,” I replied.

  Zach and Colby were seated next to each other on the couch, holding each other’s hands and flirting innocently. I smiled at how adorable they were and remembered how Nick and I used to be the same way a lifetime ago. “So, I guess this means your talk with your dad went well,” I directed at Colby.