by Reese Morgan
Affronted, she watched through lowered lashes as Cole knocked aside the rogue’s advancing fist. He sent the man’s arm flying before quickly taking possession of it and twisting it in a complete circle. The sound of breaking bone was drowned out by the rogue’s howl of pain.
Cole slammed his elbow into the rogue’s face, creating a noticeable dent between the man’s eyes. As the assailant staggered backward, unbalanced, Cole thrust the blade into the man’s chest, finding the heart on impact.
Yanking the knife from his victim’s chest, Cole nudged the man to the ground with his foot. As the rogue collapsed, his body shuddered in agony for a few moments before turning abruptly still.
The black-haired Alpha stood over the motionless rogue, carefully assessing his surroundings. Once he clearly determined the threat was gone, he turned and faced a discarded Hayden.
She raised her eyebrows, waving a mocking hand in his direction. “No, that’s ok, I’m ok.” Flashing the clueless male a glower, Hayden stood from the ground. “Why would I mind being your artillery? Let the woman hold the weapons until the man needs them, then discard her to the side until he’s taken care of the danger.”
Cole blinked at her before he offered her the bloody knife. A peace offering.
Hayden seized it from his grasp, frowning. She pressed the flat side of the blade against his coat and wiped the blood off. “Don’t worry, I’ll clean it.”
His upper lip twitched. “You are the armory. I imagine cleaning the weapons would be their job.”
She squinted up at him, noticing the glow in his eyes. Her frustration subsided at seeing such raw humor. While Cole wasn’t necessarily gloomy all the time, and he wasn’t afraid to show amusement, Hayden had seen little emotion from him today.
It was hard to stay angry. “I had a clear shot, Cole.”
He inclined his head in agreement. “You did. But it is my instinct to protect you.” Cole looked at the rogue at his feet. “I’ve also noticed they’ve been more difficult to kill as of late. I didn’t want to take a chance with your life.”
Hayden sheathed the knife back in its holster and adjusted her coat. “It didn’t look as if you were having any problems with him.”
Sarcasm aside, she couldn’t help but to think of the rogues she and Rachel encountered the other day. While she understood some werewolves were better fighters than others, Hayden thought the mediocre fighters possessed more strength than usual.
“No,” Cole agreed. “But I encountered a few rogues on my way to retrieve you. They took longer to fall and they had more power than what I was familiar with.” Though his face didn’t show it, Cole seemed truly perturbed at the notion.
“What are you implying?” Hayden asked. “That Nicolas has created something that increases their strength? Like a beast on steroids?”
Cole pressed his lips together and his eyes turned half-lidded with skepticism. “I find it difficult to imagine he’s creating so many serums that are so fictitious.” He looked down at her. “But yes, that is a possibility. I would very much like to know who he’s employing to generate these creations.”
She had to agree with him. It was implausible to imagine Nicolas generating so many serums that would give his rogues an advantage over traditional werewolves. But even Cole, who was exceptionally skilled at combat, had noticed the rogues’ increased stamina.
It was unnerving. Was Nicolas trying to create the ultimate army by injecting them with chemically altered steroids? And what was his gain by doing so? An upper hand?
“Come.” Cole’s tone was heavy with weariness as he continued through the trees. “We need to identify the source behind the blood.”
“Oh.” Hayden’s mood darkened further as she jogged to catch up to Cole. “I thought we could take a detour and avoid any potential situations that would put us in jeopardy.” She noticed his determined stride. “But I see you’re bound and determined to jump right into the fray. And considering I’m your weapons armory, I’m expected to follow you wherever you…”
She trailed off when Cole shot her an indescribable look.
“I think that’s the most I’ve ever heard you say in one breath.” Cole shook his head, perhaps amused perhaps exasperated. “You’ve been spending too much time with Blake and Fergus.”
Hayden scoffed but followed Cole without another protest.
Her good humor, along with Cole’s tolerance, gradually darkened the further they traveled. Similar to when the rogue attacked, the woods were silent and still. The sun was sinking behind the horizon, darkening their surroundings and giving the snow a captivating glow. Birds were silenced and animals refrained from scurrying across the landscape, perhaps too wary of leaving their nesting areas.
Cole led with slow, purposeful strides, clearly favoring stealth and silence as opposed to speed. Fortunately, stealth was one thing that came easy to Hayden. Instead of feeling awkward and clumsy next to Cole, as she normally did when it came to physical prowess, she felt as if she belonged beside him.
The trees began thinning and the hills began flattening as they neared the town. Hayden closed her eyes against the rich, savory scent of blood. Her wolf thought it was a delectable fragrance, but her human instincts reared away from enjoying something so gruesome.
The blood was fresh, she realized. And it was so incredibly quiet.
As they closed in on civilization, she realized the town was a lot smaller than what she’d pictured.
There were a few shacks dispersed in the woods, hidden mostly by tree cover. A town square was nestled in the gully between two hills, lodging small shops that were more necessities than luxuries for the townsfolk. Only one road led in and out of town, most likely a conduit into a main road a good distance away.
Cole kept his body angled, keeping her in his sights and away from the unknown threat. Hayden didn’t protest, but she wasn’t lulled into a false sense of security. She would keep her knives accessible. It was why she asked Adolf to train her in the first place, so Cole wouldn’t risk his own safety for her.
Cole suddenly turned very still. His broad shoulder moved and completely blocked Hayden’s view into town. “Turn back.”
There was no panic in his tone, not that he’d convey any alarm if there was trouble, but Hayden didn’t think there was any imminent danger. More likely, Cole had seen something upsetting, something he didn’t want her to see.
Instead of turning away, Hayden planted her feet and lifted her chin.
Unexpectedly, Cole rounded on her, looming before her aggressively. “I said turn back!” he snarled, baring his teeth in a threating manner.
The force of his words sent Hayden scrambling backwards, never remembering a time Cole had channeled his anger and hostility towards her. If she’d been in wolf form, she would have been startled enough to tuck her tail between her legs and flatten her ears in trepidation.
With her breathing coming out in quick gasps, she took a few more steps backward, all under the attentive gaze of Cole. “Whatever happened to an Alpha standing on her own feet?” All she could manage was a whisper, her wits too shaken to manage anything bolder. “You said I would experience something similar to the rogue massacre back home. That’s what happened, isn’t it? It’s a massacre. It smells like one.”
With his expression cloaked in darkness, Cole simply stared at her, his lips pressed into a forbidding line. He gazed through her, his silent assessment somehow more unnerving than his harsh tone.
After what seemed like hours, Cole appeared to accept her stubbornness for what it was. Displeasure made his movements rigid as he moved aside in surrender. Clearly, he was not happy that Hayden threw his words back at him, especially at a time like this.
“You wish to defend rogues because you see them as defenseless creatures.” He turned his head and stared into town. “Now see the other side of the conflict. See why the Hunters continue to view us as monsters.”
As he cleared the way, Hayden finally identified the source of the
bloodshed. She had expected it, but somehow, the sheer carnage still came as a shock.
Swallowing her initial nausea, she slowly approached the heart of the town. Bodies were littered and strewn across the snowy grounds, the crimson smears surrounding the bodies mere proof that they had been dragged or tossed carelessly aside in their suffering.
Most of the victims were men, many of them holding rifles in their limp, lifeless hands. But they had been human and their bullets were not made out of silver. They would have been powerless against a werewolf.
However, men weren’t the only ones amongst the dead. Women and children were also strewn within the mass grave, all of them maimed in various degrees of gore.
Hayden blinked back her tears as she came to a stop next to a fallen human. Cole was right. For so long, she’d sympathized with the rogues for being hunted and slaughtered by Hunters. But she should have known there was more than one side to the issue. Cole could tell her until he was blue in the face that rogues were troublesome, but mere words could never bring the same clarity as living proof.
Rogues were just as disruptive as Hunters were, if not more.
“Judging from the tracking in the snow, only one rogue was responsible for this,” Cole declared from behind her. “And it wasn’t an uncontrollable rogue. He knew exactly what he was doing.”
“How do you figure?” Hayden asked hollowly.
“The bodies.” Dark eyes surveyed the mass grave. “He scented every last human in town and hunted them down. He dragged them all here, into the town square in order to display them. Perhaps he knew we would be coming through, perhaps this was simply a result of his own intentions.”
Cole’s words were almost as dead as Hayden’s were. There were lines across his face, lines that shouldn’t have aged him the way they did.
“I have my suspicions that Evan was responsible for this.”
“Evan?”
“The rogue who marked you.”
She rounded on him, furious. “You said you didn’t know who attacked me!”
Cole was hardly affected by her anger, if anything, his pain only seemed to deepen. “I had my suspicions when you told me about your encounter with him. And after coming across this, my suspicions were confirmed.” He watched Hayden, as if he were curious to see how she would handle the information given to her. “When I found you, I noticed his tracks were heading north.”
Evan. Hayden tested the name, wondering what sort of man would commit mass murders like this. Judging from the crazy sparkle in his eyes when he had fought with Hayden, she figured it shouldn’t have come to a surprise. He had seemed mad, deranged.
Cole read her mind. “He’s a sadist, much like Nicolas, only far more unhinged. He’s a dangerous man who has loose morals and principles. He only knows what amuses him and what bores him. It’s why I don’t want you going after him alone.”
She looked down and away from his pointed stare, unable to promise anything. The way Evan had humiliated her and killed Rachel was still so fresh in her mind, revenge outweighed any sort of compliance Cole wanted to coercion from her.
“He called Nicolas his Alpha,” she started, “but he didn’t seem particularly faithful. Is this massacre part of Nicolas’ orders or is it part of Evan’s fun?”
Apparently, Nicolas was Siring more humans, but she couldn’t imagine him condoning something like this. Unless, of course, she really was a fool for trying to see Nicolas in a good light. Maybe he was no better than Evan.
Cole grunted darkly. “As I said, Evan has loose morals. He only respects Nicolas as a superior fighter and a man who is driven to create organized chaos. I cannot say if this was predetermined or a simple whim of his.”
Hayden opened her mouth, but shut it abruptly. She detected a faint thumping sound, faint enough to overlook, yet frantic and somehow rhythmic. It possessed a deep, bottomless tenor, something that was unmistakable to her wolf’s ears.
Quickly looking down at the man at her feet, she stared at him in horror. “He’s still alive,” she whispered breathlessly. Her eyes traced the bloody and open wound across his throat. No human could have survived that.
But she had once, those many nights ago at her aunt’s property in Montana.
Hayden looked at Cole, seeing her confused distress mirrored back at her. His eyes then sharpened and narrowed as they stared over her head. At first, Hayden thought he’d seen an enemy in the outskirts of the woods, but she was quickly proved wrong.
“Many of them are still alive.”
Holding her breath, Hayden listened intently, wondering how she could have overlooked something that now seemed so loud and unmistakable. The pulses around her began to rise in volume, synchronizing together in an eerie melody that echoed resoundingly across the valley.
In the sky, the moon had risen, not full, not even a half-moon. “But that’s impossible!” Hayden looked back at Cole. “The December full moon was a week ago. These people were just killed. I thought a werewolf’s venom was most potent during the full moons.”
“It is.” Cole tore his gaze away from her, appearing almost gray. “It was proven that the full moon is the only time a werewolf can successfully Sire a human.” He bowed his head and a humorless smile graced his stern mouth. “But we are looking at the contrary evidence.”
Hayden stared down at her hands, noticing they’d begun trembling. She was struck with a realization that left her cold. “He’s creating a new species.”
“Hayden.”
Cole sounded cross, but he did not contradict her.
“He’s trying to create a subspecies of the werewolf,” Hayden insisted fiercely. As soon as her mind presented her with the theory, she passionately connected the dots. “Nicolas wants a more intelligent, more in control newborn. He’s making the rogues faster, stronger, and he’s removing the majority of their scent, giving them an advantage when it comes to stealth. I don’t know how it’s possible… but I know this is his aim.”
Again, Cole remained silent, neither agreeing with her nor refuting her. “If that’s the case,” he started carefully, “then he hasn’t perfected it yet. I’ve encountered rogues who were strong, but others with noticeable scent. He hasn’t combined all the desirable traits into one body as of yet.”
As if struck with a sudden realization himself, Cole pinned Hayden with a stare. Beyond the dark eyes, there was an emotion Hayden couldn’t quite pinpoint. It unnerved her, simply because it was directed at her.
“Cole?”
His expression cleared and turned to stone. “Nothing.” With purpose, he strode over to a fallen human. “What’s worse is that Nicolas found a way to Sire humans on nights that aren’t the full moon. The increase in attacks will cause havoc and will threaten our clandestine society. They can only do so much to keep these things covered up.”
“They?” Hayden crossed her arms over her chest. Cole was being exceptionally secretive and vague. Usually they were in harmony, but she couldn’t have felt more further from him.
“There are werewolves implanted in higher society, engrained in the human population. Some work in the press, some in politics, and many in law and law enforcement. They are responsible for damage control and preventing the public from finding out about our existence.” Cole crouched down next to the human. “Attacks like these, especially if they are consistent, will become harder to cover up.”
Before she could digest the information given to her, Cole angled his face towards her. The lines across his face seemed more pronounced and she was taken aback at the emptiness in his eyes.
“I need to take care of this,” he murmured quietly. “Please lend me a knife.”
Hayden blinked, turning immovable at the implications. “Cole…” she trailed off hoarsely, unable to find the words she needed. Gazing across the town square at all the strewn bodies, she shook her head. “You shouldn’t have to do this.”
She didn’t want him to do it.
He unfolded from his crouched position and
reached for her coat. Nothing but firm resolve settled across his expression. “If you’re right, and Nicolas is trying to create an indestructible enemy, then its best we destroy them when they’re at their most vulnerable.”
Opening her coat, he grabbed one of her knives and unsheathed it. Hayden didn’t stop him. She didn’t know whether she felt more concerned for the humans or for Cole. But the heavier question was how she could stand by and allow something so morally and ethically wrong to transpire.
There were children here. They were helpless and they were victims.
“Cole…”
She was going to stop him. She wanted to. But when she saw the naked emotion in his eyes, her chest tightened enough to muffle her words. Though he tried to hide it, she knew he didn’t want to do this either, but considered it his duty to do so.
“I—I can help you…” she whispered instead.
Cole curled his hands around hers and smiled faintly at her offer. “I don’t want this on your hands.” He kept her gaze. “After I finish here, assuming they have a phone in town, I will try to contact someone who can clean this up. In the meantime, I want you to go wait for me in the woods.”
The very idea repulsed her. How could she hide in the woods and condemn Cole to a task this immoral?
Sensing her reservations, Cole released her hands and gave her a slight nudge. “I don’t want you to see this, Hayden.” I don’t want you to see me like this.
The words hadn’t been uttered, but Hayden could clearly hear what he didn’t say. The confession made her even more determined not to leave him behind. Not long ago, Cole told her she’d been lucky that she hadn’t been the one to execute the rogues. Now she understood why he had forced her to accept what she’d seen that night with Asher.
This really was reality.
At their feet, the man gurgled and gasped, his eyelids snapping open to reveal amber eyes. He appeared bemused at first, but as if remembering the attacking wolf before he lost consciousness, he flinched and scrambled backwards on his hands and feet.