Moon Bound (The Reluctant Werewolf Chronicles Book 3)

by Tori Centanni

  Sasha gestured for Raff to step forward. She bowed to him and then moved from the podium into the audience.

  “Good evening, Northern Washington Pack,” Raff said, shoulders square, his smile bright. He made eye contact with members of the audience as he spoke. “I am Nathaniel Rafften, and I’ve been a werewolf in this pack for five years. I know all of you. You are my family. And I would like to be your Alpha.”

  His eyes landed on me. I swallowed and forced a smile. I was happy to have him as our Alpha, even if might make things a little weird—like living with your boss. Your sexy, funny boss. I was less than thrilled about the fight tomorrow.

  “If there are no challenges from the pack, I will take the position, and step into the role immediately.”

  The audience was silent. I held my breath, expecting someone to jump up and issue a challenge. No one did.

  Raff grinned, the victorious politician. “Then my first act as Alpha is to adjourn this meeting and suggest we take tonight to celebrate.”

  There was a second of awkward silence and then Sasha began clapping. Soon the whole room, myself included, joined in. It faded out, with one person continuing to clap long past time anyone would consider reasonable. I glanced backward, and my breath caught in my throat. Levi stood at the back of the room, dressed in black leather head-to-toe like some wannabe biker. I hadn’t seen him come in and was surprised he’d managed to remain unnoticed for so long. Beside me, Miles sucked in a breath. I wasn’t the only one caught unawares.

  “What a civil ceremony,” Levi said. “But so very human. Where is the show of power? Where is the demonstration that this boy can lead anyone against whatever threats come at you?”

  Murmurs rippled through the crowd, but I couldn’t make out any words. I seriously hoped no one was buying into Levi’s crap.

  “I’m not a boy,” Raff said, folding his arms over his chest. “I am the Alpha of the Northern Washington Pack. And if you insist on an archaic challenge, then I look forward to proving my prowess tomorrow.”

  Levi smiled, taunting. “Boy, all you’re going to prove is that you bleed red. Stand down now, and I’ll forgo tradition. I’ll step up to the podium right now, take my place, and spare your life. You can even remain in the pack, once you earn your way back in.”

  Raff stared at him, not dignifying that with a response.

  Good, I thought. Levi doesn’t deserve to get a reaction to his taunts.

  After a long moment of silence, during which both men had a staring contest, Raff finally said, “You don’t belong here. Come back tomorrow to challenge me and we’ll see who’s left standing.”

  Someone in the crowd whistled. And then half the pack burst into applause. The other half quickly joined in, whistled and whooping in support.

  Levi shrugged, unbothered, and left. I let out a breath. As the barn door swung shut, I turned back around, and Raff met my gaze. He smiled, and I could tell it was meant to be reassuring. It was meant to say, See? I’ve already kicked his butt verbally. I’ve got this.

  It didn’t ease the acid boiling in my gut.

  Chapter 17

  Raff had been keyed up all morning. He’d gone to bed immediately after we’d gotten home last night. After Levi left, we’d stayed at the barn for a couple of hours celebrating with the pack, which meant we hadn’t gotten back until almost three am.

  I’d gone to bed, too, but I hadn’t slept at all. I couldn’t stop thinking about how much my life had changed in three months: I was now in a wolf pack, living with the pack’s Alpha, and Michael was a vampire. I didn’t envy Michael like I thought I would, except for that fact that vampires rarely fought to the death now that dueling was no longer the hip way to settle disputes.

  I came downstairs to find Raff tossing his keys from one hand to the other. He wore a t-shirt and jeans with a navy-blue sweatshirt over the top. The t-shirt was plain black, no wolf puns or wolf cartoons in sight.

  I wore black leggings and a large, charcoal-gray sweater that was long enough to be sort of a make-shift dress. It was the least gothy outfit I currently owned. My hair was in a ponytail, and I’d gone easy on the eyeliner. Guess we were both going for a more casual look.

  “Ready?” he asked.

  No time for this awful fight had ever been specified as far as I knew, but there was an unspoken understanding that it would take place at dusk.

  “Honestly, no,” I admitted. “I wish you’d skip it.”

  “I can’t skip it,” Raff said. No ire, just matter-of-fact. “I’m the Alpha, and Levi’s challenge falls on me.”

  I wanted to argue; to point out that this stupid archaic macho fight wasn’t going to prove anything, remind Raff that if our pack wanted to do things differently then we didn’t have to play by these rules, and all of the arguments I’d already made in the month run up to today.

  But I knew it was pointless. Raff would never back down from a fight, especially one that challenged the legitimacy of his leadership or the wolf pack.

  “All right, then,” I said, resigned. “Let’s go.”

  I headed for the door. Raff, who was blocking my path, didn’t move. I stepped right up to him and stopped. The way he looked me knocked the wind out of me. All of the butterflies bouncing around my middle froze.

  “Before we go, I just wanted to tell you that I’m glad you’re part of the pack.” Raff reached forward, like he might touch my face, but then his hand moved lower and landed on my shoulder. “You’re really something special, Charlie, and we’re all lucky to have you.”

  “Thanks, Alpha,” I said, trying to hide my disappointment.

  I mean, I wanted to be part of the pack. I didn’t before, but I did now. I’d just hoped for a more personal declaration of his feelings. But given how things might go, maybe it was better not to get that.

  “Or should I call you boss? Chief, maybe?”

  Raff rolled his eyes. “You’re not as funny as you think you are.”

  “True. I’m probably a lot funnier.”

  I smirked. He smiled. And we headed for the car while trying to ignore the cloud of doom that hung overhead.

  Despite the mortal danger, Raff was upbeat on the drive.

  “You know, I’ve gotten so much stronger this past month,” he said. “Preparing for this challenge has been really good for me.”

  I didn’t know what to say to that, so I said nothing. Thinking about this death match had been nothing but stressful for me, and now I felt like the worry might tear me apart. Raff could die, and no one seemed to want to acknowledge that part.

  “In a matter of hours, this will be behind us and we’ll be celebrating my new position.” Raff beamed at me. He really, truly believed that.

  So, for his sake, I tried to believe it, too.

  The challenge space had been set up in an empty field on the Orchard’s property. Bare apple trees, naked for the winter, loomed over the fence. Clouds dotted the sky as the sun sank lower.

  The crowd was divided like a middle school dance: The Portland werewolves were on one side, our pack on the other, with a sizable space left in between. The grass was wet and dewy, but at least there wasn’t snow on the ground.

  It was the empty space, where the two Alphas would fight, that pushed a lump up into my throat. It made it feel real, somehow, and I was not ready.

  Raff, though, examined the space stoically, nodding at Miles and Sasha and Zara as he joined our group on our side of the open area.

  Across the way, I saw Rayna in her leather jackets and dark jeans, hair braided down her back. Levi stood near her, laughing as he spoke with another werewolf, a blonde woman who wore a pink dress under her leather jacket. Her lipstick was the same pink as her dress. Normally I’d have admired that kind of coordination. But she caught me looking and smirked in my direction. Levi turned to see who she was smirking at and he grinned. He didn’t look nervous at all. He looked excited.

  Ice ran down my spine.

  Raff carried tension in his shoulder
s, and though he was acting nonchalant, I could tell from his voice as he spoke with some of the pack’s warriors that he was wound up tight.

  When the sun fell behind the mountains and an eerie orange gray light suffused the world, Rayna stepped into the clearing. “It’s time.”

  I felt nauseated, my heart hammering. I wanted to stop this. Instead, I had to stand by and watch and hope I wasn’t about to witness a slaughter.

  Raff nodded, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he swallowed hard and ripped off his sweatshirt, leaving him in a plain black t-shirt. He stepped up to the edge of the clearing. Levi did the same.

  “If each Alpha’s mate would come forward to flip a coin to see who gets to wave the starting flag, we can begin,” Rayna said.

  Raff jolted. It was a tiny motion, like he’d been stung by a bee.

  The woman in the pink dress touched Levi’s arm as she stepped into the clearing with Rayna. Raff didn’t have a “mate,” and no one stepped forward.

  Everyone across the way looked at Raff, and then their eyes roved over our pack disdainfully. Some of them looked annoyed at the delay.

  Levi barked a laugh. “An Alpha without a mate? My, my, my, this pack has such an interesting way of doing things.”

  The werewolves behind Levi snickered. On our side, we remained silent, glancing around at each other uncertainly. Everyone had been prepared to watch Raff fight to the death. No one had understood the rules. None of us in this pack had ever taken part in such a challenge, as far as I could tell. Jean, who had been killed last month, had started this group with her husband as a new way to run a werewolf pack, after fleeing a more traditional pack in Montana.

  And yet here we were. She was gone, unable to pass down the rules of such a fight, and life had moved on.

  “If you wish to forfeit…” Levi said, smirking at Raff like he’d already won.

  Fury burned away some of my nausea and made way for courage. I looked at Raff’s back, his broad shoulders, the way his t-shirt hugged the cut of his torso and hips. He’d trained so long for this. He didn’t want to be under Levi’s rule. None of us did.

  He needed support. My support.

  Before I could talk myself out of it, I stepped forward. I brushed Raff’s shoulder lightly as I passed, copying what the other woman had done. He met my eyes, grateful and relieved.

  I walked to the center and faced the blonde woman, my arms crossed over my chest as if I could contain my pounding heart by holding it in.

  Rayna nodded at me. “I’ll flip the coin. Since this is your pack’s turf, Portland gets to call.”

  “Tails,” Levi’s mate said. “Because I think I’ll be wagging mine all night.”

  The Portland pack whooped and whistled at that. I resisted the urge to roll my eyes, because that definitely wasn’t appropriate.

  Rayna tossed the coin in the air. It landed with a thud on the grass. I glanced down. Heads. Relief flooded through me. At least something was going our way.

  Levi’s mate pouted as Rayna called it out. My heart leapt into my throat as I was handed a scarlet-colored flag and left alone in the center of the field.

  “When Charlie drops the flag, the challenge begins,” Rayna called out. She met my eyes, which must have been wide and wild. “Whenever you’re ready,” she added gently.

  I wasn’t ever going to be ready. Blood thrummed in my ears and bile rose in my throat. I looked at Levi, perched on the edge of the clearing, ready to pounce. And then I looked at Raff, back straight and eyes hard, ready to fight for his place at the top of the werewolf hierarchy.

  My hand shook as I raised the flag. The wooden pole got slick in my sweaty grasp. What would happen if I refused to drop it and let this fight continue? What if I refused and gave a speech about how there were better ways to solve disputes? No, that wouldn’t work. But maybe I could cause enough chaos to get the fight cancelled.

  Raff caught my attention and nodded sharply. It was a small, almost imperceptible motion meant for me. He was eager. Ready. Willing.

  If I did anything to stop this, no matter the outcome, Raff would never forgive me. This was what he wanted. What he’d worked for. He believed in his ability to win. I had to believe in it, too.

  Hand shaking, I took a deep breath and swept my arm down. Both men entered the clearing and I quickly moved out to join my pack.

  Chapter 18

  Raff and Levi circled each other, moving a little closer with each loop, neither one daring to attack first. My stomach churned, and I still clutched the small red flag in one hand as if I could use it to stop the fight if things got out of hand.

  The circling went on for so long that members of the crowd on both sides became restless, shifting uneasily as we waited for someone to draw blood.

  “If you forfeit now, I’ll be merciful,” Levi said.

  Raff growled and leapt at him. Levi danced out the way and, while Raff was recovering from his failed pounce, jumped on him, snarling. I screeched. Sasha’s hand landed on my shoulder, a comforting weight. Levi’s very human teeth snapped at Raff’s throat.

  Bile filled my mouth, and I swallowed it down, not wanting to puke. Not sure I could avoid doing so.

  Raff rolled and managed to push Levi off of him, escaping his orbit just long enough to get back on his feet. When Levi came at him again, Raff punched him in the solar plexus. As Levi recovered, Raff tried to sweep his feet from under him. But Levi was faster and instead lunged at Raff, punching him in the jaw. There was a sickening sound, and something flew out of Raff’s mouth along with a lot of blood.

  I whimpered.

  “Just a tooth,” Miles whispered to me. “He’s okay.”

  For now, I thought.

  Raff’s hand flew up to his mouth to probe the damage, but his eyes never left Levi. When the man came in for another blow, Raff lifted an arm and blocked him, kicking out and striking him in the thigh. It didn’t do much. Levi swung and caught Raff in the nose. Raff backed out of range, circling around.

  Levi didn’t let up. He charged and knocked Raff to the ground.

  And then they were wrestling, a mess of limbs and punches. Legs kicked, and they rolled around on the grass without rhyme or reason. It would have been funny if not for the flying fists and grunts of pain from both.

  Raff extracted himself from the fray and crawled away. Levi grabbed his shoe and pulled him back, jumping on Raff’s back and pinning him in place. Raff struggled to throw him off.

  “Give up now, and I’ll let you live,” Levi growled.

  My heart hammered so hard I strained to hear Raff’s response.

  Raff spit blood on the grass. “No.”

  His voice was strained from having Levi on his literal back, but he wasn’t giving up.

  A little flare of pride rose inside me, but fear threatened to drown it.

  Then Levi pulled out a knife. I didn’t know where he’d been keeping it. His pants pocket, I supposed. It wasn’t very big, a six-inch blade at most, not much bigger than a steak knife. But it glinted menacingly in the lights that illuminated the field.

  “He has a knife!” I yelled. No one gasped. No one moved. I turned to my pack, who stood there silent. “Knives aren’t allowed! They can’t be allowed, can they?”

  “No one said they weren’t,” Sasha said gravely.

  She seemed sorry to say it. Across the way, I met Rayna’s eyes and she looked equally horrified. But I knew she wouldn’t dare speak against her Alpha.

  “But that’s not fair!” I cried.

  No one cared. It didn’t matter if it wasn’t fair, no one was going to do a darn thing about it.

  Levi was saying something to Raff, too quiet to make out with blood buzzing in my ears. Raff spit again and writhed under Levi’s weight. Raff tried to get up, but Levi was heavy, made of as much muscle as Raff and a little broader in the shoulders, and Raff couldn’t get out from beneath him.

  “Well, it seems this boy won’t give up,” Levi called to everyone. “So I will invoke my right
to win by blood.”

  He dug his fingers into Raff’s hair and jerked his head back. He brought the knife down to Raff’s throat and held it steady against Raff’s skin.

  I stepped forward, ready to rush into the clearing. Miles put a warning hand on my shoulder, but I shrugged it off.

  And then Raff got his arm loose and grabbed Levi’s hand, the one holding the knife. Levi struggled to get control of it, and that tipped his balance. Raff managed to lift his back and toss Levi off, rolling away. Panting, Raff stood and wiped his mouth. Levi, holding the knife, began to inch forward.

  “A real wolf wouldn’t need a knife,” Raff growled.

  “I don’t need it,” Levi snarled. “But I thought you’d prefer the honor of a quick death.”

  I winced. Another wave of nausea washed over me.

  “If you don’t need it, cast it aside, and let’s do this like the beasts we are,” Raff challenged.

  Levi hesitated. He stopped circling and Raff stopped, too, keeping a wary distance but not breaking his stare.

  “Fine,” Levi said. He threw the knife to the side and lunged at Raff.

  It took me a second to realize he hadn’t thrown the knife at all. He’d mimed doing so, like someone pretending to throw a ball for their dog to fake them out. But Raff was apparently ready for him this time. He bent his knees, and as Levi smacked into him, he thrust the other man up using his momentum and knocked him off his footing. Levi hit the ground.

  Raff jumped after him, landing on Levi’s back. The knife flew out of Levi’s hand in the fall, and Raff snatched it, shoving it into his pocket as he used his weight to keep Levi down.

  Levi tried to get up, but Raff gripped his hair like Levi had done to him. “Not so fast. Concede.”

  Levi spit. “Never.”

  The Portland Pack cheered.

  Raff kept him pinned down. In my head, I heard the ref of a boxing match counting down. But here there was no referee, no one to call time. This was so badly thought out. Why weren’t there more rules, or at least a way to end things without someone being dead or beaten to a bloody freaking pulp?