Battle Cry (Loki's Wolves Book 2)

by Melissa Snark

  "I sense no deception about you." Finn shrugged his skepticism. "However, you are known to have powerful magic. How am I to know whether you possess the ability to deceive me?"

  The insult to Jake's honor offended him, but he masked his displeasure. "What if Victoria Storm vouched for what I'm telling you?"

  Finn's head jerked back. A stir passed through his followers, murmurs of astonishment and speculation. "Adair's daughter is still alive?"

  No thanks to Sawyer's best efforts.

  Jake arched his brow. "Would her word be sufficient?"

  The Alpha's eyes hooded, and his voice grew shrewd. "I would listen to what she has to say. For the moment, I notice that she is not here, and so, once again, I have only your word..."

  "That's not entirely accurate," Jake replied. "You have Andy Chart. If he confirms what I say, then you would have proof that he is a poor assassin and a traitor."

  Snickers passed through the werewolves. A few even dared chuckle until their Alpha's angry glare raked over them.

  "Why would this man admit to such a thing?" Finn asked. "Does he have a death wish?"

  "He must. He betrayed me." Jake smiled, a cold, deadly smile that never reached his eyes. "Allow me to speak with him, and he will confess. I can be very convincing. If he speaks the truth, you will know it, since you can smell lies."

  Spine ramrod stiff, Tarak's head jerked in silent denial. Behind him, the pack's reaction ranged from curious to furious, but awaited Finn's reaction.

  Jake ignored the Beta wolf and stared straight at the Alpha, the center of true power within the tribe. He had the patience of a veteran huntsman. He could wait for as long as it took the Alpha to make up his mind. Fortunately, Finn didn't strike him as the contemplative sort.

  "Why not?" Finn's face lit with a huge grin. He punched his Beta on the arm. "Stop scowling, my friend. What do you have against good entertainment?"

  "Nothing." Grumbling, Tarak spun and marched off. Members of the pack turned and followed him.

  As he watched the others leave, Jake found himself standing shoulder to shoulder beside Finn. The hunter turned his head to address the Alpha. "I hope you're not too attached to your guest. I'm going to carve Chart into pieces and curse him to eternal damnation."

  "You are furious. It is good." Finn eyed him shrewdly. "My father often told the tale of how the Hunter King rose from the dead and went on to slay a dragon. He described runes that arose beneath your skin, turning it as black as coal. It is a sight I have waited to see my entire life."

  Gruffly, Jake cleared his throat. "It was a small dragon, more of a big fucking lizard."

  "You're a funny man." Chortling, Finn clobbered his shoulder with a meaty paw. "I've seen the photographs."

  Right. Jake huffed. "Of course you have."

  Snickering, Finn strolled away, shaking his head. "Big fucking lizard, my ass!"

  The man's hoarse screams rent the midday sky. On a wide rock platform, he lay spread-eagle, chained and naked. Sweat beaded on his skin, forming rivulets that flowed across the raw, branded flesh of his ribcage and mingled with blood before dripping onto the thirsty limestone. The stench of pain and urine punctured the sweet aroma of springtime wilderness.

  A pair of ravens perched on the branch of an old tree, witnessing the spectacle.

  "Please, please, please. I confess. No more!" Almost incomprehensible, he sobbed for mercy. "I admit to it all."

  With the back of his hand, Jake wiped perspiration from his brow. He hesitated, staying another downward stroke of the burning dagger in his hand. More than a dozen burn marks delivered by the flat of the blade branded Andy Chart's naked skin.

  Forming a loose circle, his fellow hunters and the White Mountains Pack bore silent, fascinated witness to the interrogation.

  Turning his head, Jake traded a loaded glance with Skinner. If the wolves refused to accept Chart's confession under duress, then they needed to be prepared for a sudden escalation.

  Skinner nodded his understanding, adjusting his grip on the stock of his rifle.

  Summoning his power, Jake reached through the mystical connection he shared with his men. He infused the bond with magic, and the dagger tattoo on the arm of every hunter glowed red-hot.

  Finn issued a threatening rumble, and the rest of his pack echoed the warning. "Is this treachery, hunter?"

  Jake shouted over the din. "This is justice, Alpha. Just as your people have their code, we have ours."

  Finn's head lowered, but he ceased growling and so did the other wolves. "Proceed."

  Jake leaned over Chart. He brandished the molten hot dagger over the traitor's face. "What are you confessing to, Andy? Say it so there's no doubt or confusion."

  A shudder wracked Chart. "I shot you at the farm. I set the bomb at the silo."

  "Why?"

  "I was ordered to."

  An itch of irritation prickled his already short temper. Jake allowed the point of the blade to dip toward Andy's eye. "I want useful information."

  "No, no, wait, wait!" Chart howled his panic, struggling furiously within the iron shackles which bound him to the rock. "I'm working for a necromancer. He wanted you and Victoria Storm killed together in the same explosion!"

  Through the magic binding them, Jake believed Chart spoke the truth. But he wanted more information. He needed specifics. "What's the necromancer's name?"

  "I don't know."

  "Why did he want us killed at the same time?"

  The prisoner's taut muscles formed ridges beneath his skin. Sweat poured from his face, and his chest heaved from hard breathing. "I don't know."

  "You'd better tell me something you do know, fast, or I'll take it out of your hide," Jake threatened.

  A tear leaked from the corner of Chart's eye and trickled along his cheek. "All I know is that he's playing elaborate games, pulling strings and manipulating people through agents. That's the truth. You have to believe me."

  "Do you know the names of any more of his agents?"

  "No, I don't. I've seen Vildivia, the master vampire who works for him. But he mostly kept me in the dark." Frantically, Andy shook his head.

  When the dagger descended toward the side of his face, a fresh flood of information spewed from Chart. "I've only been working for him for six months. At first, I only supplied him with information. I thought that was as far as it would go, but after Vildivia killed Daniel, the Necromancer ordered me to set those bombs at the airfield. They were only supposed to kill werewolves."

  Growls erupted from the White Mountains wolves. The entire pack bristled and shifted restlessly. Jake remained focused on his prisoner and trusted Finn to control his people.

  "No one else was supposed to get hurt," Chart continued. "You have to believe me."

  "I believe you." Sickness formed a vortex in Jake's gut. If one rat had managed to survive in his organization undetected for six months, what were the odds there were others?

  "Why did you betray us, Andy?" Skinner demanded. His huge body radiated anger from every pore. The specter of violence rode on his shoulders as he gave voice to the question burning in the hearts of all his fellow hunters.

  Chart turned his head and spat out a mouthful of blood and bile. A coughing fit seized him, and he suffered a fit of convulsions before his breathing calmed enough to allow him to speak. "I'm dying. Melanoma. It's spread throughout my body. I've got weeks to live, a couple months max."

  "This Necromancer, he promised you a cure?" Jake asked.

  Chart jerked his head to the side in a gesture neither nod nor shake.

  Jake hazarded a guess. "He promised you immortality?"

  Chart barked out an abrupt laugh. "Yeah, he promised me I'd live forever if I served him."

  "Did you tell the Necromancer that my son and Victoria Storm were lovers?" Jake asked, his tone deceptively mild. Following the revelation, gasps huffed from both his people and the werewolves.

  Oddly, he experienced no discomfort or self-consciousness regarding
the admission. Through repeated conflicts with the petite blonde Alpha of the Storm Pack, he'd come to admire Victoria's tenacity, courage, and resilience. His son's woman. To Jake's singular regret, Daniel never told him, because multiple tragedies could have been averted.

  Sudden anger shone in Chart's eyes. "Yes, I told him. Daniel betrayed you by bedding that bitch—"

  His fist slammed into Andy's face, shattering the cheekbone. Burning with fury, Jake wiped the blood from his knuckles. With one hand, he grasped Chart's face and immobilized his head.

  "You'll never speak my son's name again, traitor." A swift precision strike of the dagger's blade sliced Andy's mouth wide open at the corners and severed the root of his tongue.

  While Chart screamed and flailed, blood gushed from the injury.

  Grasping the piece of muscle, Jake tossed the chunk to the dirt. An enormous raven swooped from the sky and snatched the morsel up in his shiny beak. Head cocked, black eyes gleaming, the bird swallowed the meat whole.

  Stepping back, Jake planted his feet far apart. Deliberately, he wrapped both hands about the hilt of his dagger and held it over his head, aimed at Chart's chest. Primal magic throbbed through his body. Runes ascended from his core and appeared beneath his tanned skin as distinct ciphers that vibrated with power. They expanded until the writhing symbols interlocked and blackened his complexion.

  Clouds rolled out of the clear sky, so close to the ground they formed a stairway to heaven. Lightning arcs struck the stone above Chart's head, and then thunder swallowed his screams.

  "You betrayed me. You betrayed your hunter brothers, Andy Chart." Jake boomed like the thunder. "Since you seek immortality, I grant you eternal life. For your part in the murder of my son, you'll suffer until the world ends."

  The Hunter King plunged the dagger deep into the traitor's chest, striking the sternum. Bone cracked and flesh sizzled. Gritting his teeth in a savage smile, Jake cleaved Chart's sternum in half from top to bottom. Then he willed the dagger to return to his arm as a tattoo.

  With his bare hands, Jake pried apart the traitor's ribcage, spreading the two halves wide to expose the internal organs. An awful stench filled the air. He smeared his face with his enemy's blood and then scooped out the insides. He placed the beating heart, the breathing lungs, and other internal organs upon the rock table.

  Overhead, ravens released triumphant crraas while Chart screamed in agony. The hunters shouted with the bloodthirsty desire to see the man who had betrayed them suffer, and wolves howled their approval.

  Grim-faced, Jake finished his work and stepped back to survey what he'd done. It was good. He'd emblazoned his name upon Andy Chart's soul. The curse would endure for the rest of time—however long or short that happened to be.

  Satisfied, he faced his men. Power blazed, unifying them in their resolve and reinforcing their solidarity. "My son's death, our brotherhood's honor, isn't fully avenged. But I promise you, we're going to destroy all who oppose us."

  His men shouted at the tops of their lungs, a cheer embodying their support and loyalty.

  Jake addressed Finn, staring at the werewolf from behind his blood mask. "Are you satisfied? Have I proven that Chart is a traitor?"

  Yellow eyes glowing, the Alpha grinned. His voice was silky smooth. "It was everything I'd hoped it to be. I am convinced. Let's go somewhere more comfortable to continue our negotiations."

  Jake turned to the ravens watching overhead. Watch over Chart. See to it he is never set free.

  A raucous craa answered his command.

  They reconvened in a tiny community a few miles from Andy Chart's crucible. Finn and Tarak invited Jake and Skinner into a small adobe building to continue their negotiations. The rest of the hunters waited outside, seeking shade beneath a grove of trees in the courtyard of the village's library. The furnishings were sparse, but luxury didn't concern Jake. It never had.

  "You had an agenda when you brought Chart here," Jake said. "You wanted me here, so I came. All you've done is play games."

  Finn's head tilted to the side, and he studied Tarak with a sideways glance. His nostrils flared as he exhaled. "I would prefer to speak with you alone, Jake Barrett."

  Tarak stiffened, and he barked out a protest. "Alpha!"

  "Silence. Leave us."

  Under the Alpha's watchful gaze, the recalcitrant Tarak stood and headed toward the door. Skinner's brow rose, and he grinned. He traded a pointed look with Jake and then headed for the door without a word.

  Just as Tarak reached the exit, Finn rumbled a command. "Tarak, send in Bodaway and Lenna."

  Anger crossed Tarak's face. He held Finn's gaze and then dropped his eyes in submission. "Yes, Alpha."

  Tarak departed.

  Skinner left, shutting the door behind him.

  Silence reigned. To make his point, Jake locked gazes with the Alpha and refused to look away. "How is it that your war party came to be in the Santa Catalina Mountains in the first place, Finn? It's a long way from your territory..."

  Finn leaned closer, intense energy animating his hulking form. He exuded the aura of power associated with Alpha wolves. "Thor sent me a vision."

  Jake stroked his beard. "Thor?"

  "I am his follower." Revealing his bicep, Finn proudly displayed a tattoo, Mjölnir, Thor's hammer.

  He studied the symbol and nodded acceptance. "Who are Bodaway and Lenna?"

  Finn's mouth puckered as if he'd sucked on sour lemons. His yellow eyes shone with gemstone hardness. "Bodaway is a priest of Heimdallr."

  Heimdallr, Guardian of the Rainbow Bridge.

  Jake nodded. "And the woman?"

  Giving the impression that he might burst, Finn stilled and then slowly exhaled. "Lenna is the she-wolf who was slain in the battle at the mine."

  "Ah." Jake crossed his arms and waited. As he anticipated, his forbearance won out over Finn's limited patience.

  "Bodaway is insisting that Lenna's soul was rejected by the Valkyries. He says she was passed over for entry to Valhalla and cursed to return to this wretched existence. Her life thread was cut by the Norns, so she is doomed."

  Floored by surprise, Jake failed to retain control over his demeanor. His anger percolated to the surface. "That's the most self-serving bullshit..."

  Eyes gleaming, Finn crossed his arms over his chest. The redhead cocked his head. "I saw what transpired with my own two eyes."

  Jake tensed. His fingers flexed, but he aborted the automatic grab for his dagger. "What do you think you saw, Finn?"

  The Alpha chuckled. "I know old One-Eye when I see him."

  The hunter stilled. His brow arched, he held the wolf's gaze and waited.

  "The affairs of the gods are none of my concern." Finn's tone remained low, demonstrating circumspection at odds with his blunt demeanor. He leaned closer and talked faster. "The fact is that I'm eager to serve, should the opportunity present itself. However, there are politics, even within my own pack..."

  Within seconds of ruining a lifetime of secrecy for the sake of cementing a new alliance, Jake opened his mouth, but an inopportune pounding on the door of Finn's office prevented him from saying anything.

  Snarling, Finn swung toward the entryway. "What is it?"

  After a measureable delay, the door swung inward and revealed a tall, thin man of Native American descent. His face, throat, and hands bore extensive burn marks which disappeared beneath his long sleeve shirt. Gray hair grew in scraggly patches from his scored scalp.

  The man's gaze snaked through the room before he looked down and slithered into the room. His voice was oily and obsequious. "You wished to speak with me, Alpha?"

  A slender young woman followed him, walking with her head bowed and her hands clasped before her. She had light brown hair and skin. She hunched as if trying to take up as little space as possible, and her gaze remained firmly fixed on the ground.

  Tarak stood behind the pair but remained in the doorway as if obeying the letter of his Alpha's command. Jake made note of
the division between the two highest ranked wolves of the White Mountains Tribe. The information might prove useful.

  "This is Bodaway, my priest of Heimdallr," Finn informed Jake. "Bodaway, please repeat what you told me."

  Bodaway arched his pencil thin brow. "All of it, Alpha?"

  "All of it."

  Bodaway shot Jake a conniving glance before reciting his speech. "These are trying, perilous times we live in, Alpha. A long winter is coming, and we must choose our path with great care. Those who align with the Hunter King have been shown to endure misfortune because it is not the will of the gods that our people should be his ally."

  Jake snorted. "Which gods would those be?"

  Bodaway's mouth opened and then closed. "I serve Heimdallr. He is the guardian—"

  "I know who Heimdallr is," Jake interrupted.

  Turned so Bodaway couldn't see, Finn rolled his eyes.

  "Then why do you ask?" The priest addressed him in a facetious manner.

  "I've heard enough of your lies."

  Jake's proclamation elicited exclamations from Bodaway and Tarak. Their growls rolled through the office. Shame-faced, Lenna remained silent and cowered in the corner.

  "How dare you!" Spittle flew from Tarak's curled lips. "How dare you denounce our gods!"

  Bodaway directed his challenge to Finn. "Alpha, this is an outrage."

  Finn's booming voice drowned out Bodaway. "Enough."

  Silence swept the room. All eyes turned to the Alpha.

  "I brought you here because you have the right to hear these accusations, Jake Barrett. Bodaway is a powerful and influential priest within my pack. Many listen to him. He has the ear of my second." Finn's mouth curled in a sly non-smile. "I wanted you to know the opposition I would face should I consider allying with you."

  "Alpha," Bodaway protested. "Surely you can't mean to align yourself with this man!"

  Fiery mustache and beard bristling, Finn swung on the much smaller man and advanced, intimidating him with sheer brawn. "You have said your piece. Now you will listen."

  Seething, Bodaway dropped his gaze. "Yes, Alpha."

  Finn swung to the hunter. "I'd like to hear your position."