by Cloe Cullen
The two cubs recoiled as Amara's hand came forward and glanced in Darius' direction. Darius sat down on his rump as Amara turned to face him. "Oh, you're afraid of him? I know, it is scary to meet a wolf shifter, isn't it? But this guy is weird. I only met him a few hours ago, but I trust him. He fought to protect you both." She leaned in and pretended to whisper, though Darius could still hear every word. "Don't worry, he's kind of smelly, but once you're around him long enough, you get over the stench."
Darius grunted, and looked away, pretending to be hurt by her words. The two cubs appeared enthralled, and they slowly came forward to meet Amara. Still in their baby cougar forms, the two allowed Amara to pick them up and place them in her lap. She protectively hugged both to her stomach as they changed back to their human forms. "Good, now that wasn't so bad, was it?"
The cubs, now human children, both nodded obediently, but never took their eyes off of Darius. Their stares made him feel uncomfortable, so he glanced away.
"Darius," Amara said. "Transform back, so that they feel a little better about you."
Darius eyed Amara, but obliged her, letting himself shift back to his naked human form and standing tall. He turned around so that the children didn't have to look at anything unmentionable. "Call me, Dare."
"Okay...Dare."
Darius glanced over his shoulder to spy not only the children but Amara looking him up and down. Her cheeks were red, and she kept glancing to and from Darius' gaze. "I didn't expect you to actually help us...for a moment back there, I thought you'd try and help your two brethren."
Darius snorted. "Those two didn't give me a choice. I can't let two cubs get killed. No wolf should be proud of hunting children."
Amara reacted somewhat strangely to that, her pretty face opening slightly, and even smiling at him. Darius thought his heart would explode from just that one smile, so he snapped his gaze back to the Oldwood. To keep himself from becoming infatuated with her at this moment in time, Darius turned on his heel to go look at the bodies of his fellow wolf shifters. As he moved past them, the two cubs became restless, so Amara scratched both their backs, getting them to relax and purr cutely.
Darius knelt next to the first body, the life Darius himself ended. Ulrick wouldn't be too happy to learn Darius killed one of the missing wolves, but Darius would deal with explaining what happened to the Alpha later. Right now, he needed to find out why they were even over here in the first place.
"Are they Changelings?" Amara asked softly, so as not to disturb the children. Darius glanced at her. "I'm not sure, but their fur is black."
"Is that uncommon in the wolf tribe? We have the odd puma here and there within ours, black from head to toe."
"It's the most uncommon color of fur, but that's not what I meant. This dark fur...it's not natural. It's too black. No wolf shifter is born with this kind of coat...and their eyes, bloodshot and red all over, their mouths frothing with saliva."
"So, they are Changelings…"
Darius sniffed the body, sighing at the result. "But they're also the two missing wolves I was tracking." He scratched his head in frustration. "The only thing I can't put my finger on is how they became Changelings."
"The pale man...Orpheus, I think his name was," Amara began. "I think he mentioned he was a Vampire."
Darius stared at her, the hairs on his arms standing up. "That's right, he mentioned it during the battle, didn't he?" Darius shook his head in disbelief. "And just when I thought things couldn't get any more difficult to explain."
Amara glanced between both bodies. "He wanted to make us Changelings too. How do you think he does it?"
"I don't know, but that's just extra details we don't need right now. Orpheus said he'd be back to punish us, to tear us apart."
Amara's mood soured. "You don't think he actually would? We kicked his ass pretty good." She looked down at the cubs and covered their ears. "Sorry, try not to listen right now…"
"Not alone, but if he had reinforcements, he could do damage."
"You think there might be more Vampires waiting to join him? It seemed like he was acting alone."
Darius crossed his arms. "You remember the story of the Bear Clan, right? The ones who inhabited the Blackwood down south before the Vampires washed ashore from some far-off land and took the Blackwood for themselves?"
Amara nodded, her frown growing deeper with every phrase they spoke. "I've heard the stories. I'm sure it's the one story both clans tell their children. The Bear Clan was killed off trying to protect their homeland, weren't they? And if I recall, as far as we know, there weren't many Vampires that landed on the Bear Clan's land…"
Silence filled the Oldwood as the weight of their conclusion bore down on both of them. Amara gave it voice first. "If he comes back with an army...would the Vampires do to us what they did to the Bear Clan?"
"If he is truly planning on coming back, then we need to warn our people." A wave of anxiety washed over Darius, and he shook out the nerves as he stood from the first body. "And I need to bring these two back across the border. If I can convince my Alpha of the facts, maybe he'll ask for a meeting with the Alpha of the Pride. Two clans might be able to stop another Vampire invasion if we can overcome our hate for each other."
But Amara stopped listening. She stayed motionless, head jerking up and her ears twitching. Darius raised an eyebrow at her, but she simply mouthed "listen" to him in response. So, Darius did, lifting his head ever so slightly and listening to the sounds of the Oldwood. He waited for a minute in silence, not hearing a thing, but then out of the blue, he heard what Amara was hearing.
Footfalls, a lot of them, heading in their direction. They sounded like they were running. Whoever they were, Darius knew they wouldn't be friendly. He glanced from Amara to the two bodies; he needed time to grab both bodies and transport them to the river border, but at the speed the newcomers were running at…
Amara jumped up, holding the two cubs to her chest. She gently placed them on the ground and went to stand by Darius. "Just let me do the talking, okay?"
"What?" Confused, he flinched as she stood directly in front of him. He didn't get to ask what she was doing, because she got to demonstrate her idea moments later.
Two cougars barreled out from the Oldwood coming to a stop and shifting to their human forms before Darius' very eyes. They both stood up, panting and glancing around.
"We heard howling," one said. "We came as soon as the sound hit our ears."
"Amara…" the other said, his eyes widening at her naked body. He turned his gaze. "What is the Alpha's daughter doing out here? Is everything okay?"
Alpha's daughter? Darius stared down at the beautiful woman in front of him, her visage finally fully forming in his mind. No wonder she was so bold.
One of the shifters noticed the dead wolf bodies, his face twisting in anger. "There were two wolves here? In Pride territory? What is the meaning of this?"
The other saw the two cubs, and rushed over to them, while the first stood up and eyed Amara and Darius. "They attacked you, those devils!"
Amara stepped forward. "And we fought them off. That's the end of the story. It's really no big deal."
"But they crossed the border, they-" The cat shifter stopped, sniffing the air. He glared at Darius, his mouth morphing into a snarl. "You! You're a wolf shifter. You will pay for attacking the Alpha's daughter!"
The shifter went to transform, but Amara stopped him. "Enough! He is not to blame for this attack."
"But he-"
"Saved me, and those two cubs. He fought side by side with me."
The shifter gave her an expression that laid bare his disbelief, but he still snarled. "Even so, he crossed the border, a price must be paid. That price will be his life."
"No, it won't!" Amara stood her ground as the shifter tried to step forward. "As the Alpha's daughter, it is my call to do with him what I will."
The two shifters exchanged glances with one another. The first stayed still. "Then what
are your intentions? Surely you mean to punish him."
"I intend to bring him before my father as evidence for a threat far greater than any single wolf shifter could pose. So, you will both back down, and heed my warning. If either of you harms a hair on his body before I speak to my father, I'll have you both personally dismembered and thrown into the sea. Do you both understand?"
Both the cat shifters appeared shocked at the level of authority Amara was throwing around, but they both nodded.
Darius couldn't believe how commanding and powerful Amara sounded. He was in disbelief as much as the two cat shifters. Frankly, her new aura was intriguing to him, and his fascination with her skyrocketed. Darius was beginning to think his decision to cross the border was the best decision he ever made.
"Bring the bodies too," Amara commanded. "I need them as evidence."
The two shifters did as she asked, carrying both bodies and the children, who stared back at Amara and Darius with wonder as the cat shifters carried them away.
Amara turned back to Darius. "Sorry about this, I know you wanted to go back to Pack land."
Darius shook his head. "I don't mind. Besides, I'm not very well liked back home. My Alpha might just take my life if I go back anyway." Darius looked Amara up and down, etching her body into his memory. "Please tell me there won't be any clothes where we're going."
Amara blushed but managed to keep her composure. "We'll find satchels of clothes near the entrance, though I'll have to see if we have anything your size." She took a step back and swung on her heel, racing off after the two cat shifters. "Come on!"
Darius smiled, and he took off after her.
Chapter Ten: Amara
It wouldn't have been a stretch to predict the whole of Red Rock would be in an uproar upon Darius' arrival.
The whole journey was tense, with Darius forced to travel in the middle with one of the cat shifters in the front and back of their traveling party.
Guilt reigned supreme in Amara for having to put Darius through all this. She knew there was a very slim chance Darius would survive his trip into Red Rock, in the middle of literally thousands of cat shifters that would want to tear him limb from limb the moment his scent filled the air.
Amara just couldn't get over how he stepped up to protect both her and the cubs earlier. He killed two of his clan so that they wouldn't cause any more harm to innocent lives. Amara didn't know if she could quite do the same if her own people became Changelings. But every time she looked at Darius now, her heart thrummed with excitement, and every time he met her gaze and smiled at her like he didn't have a care in the world, it felt like her body would melt away.
What was this feeling? It couldn't be the beginning of love, could it? Darius was a wolf shifter, she couldn't fall for a member of the other race! That was practically suicide, and yet she found herself wanting to be close to him. His ripped muscles and handsome face didn't help her case in the slightest and instead made her swish from side to side. Amara, the Alpha's daughter and next line to lead the Pride, now had a crush on the first wolf shifter she ever met, a member of the Pack, the Pride's most hated enemy. That was sure to go over well with her father.
Upon reaching a small cave just before the landscape turned red and rocky, the group stopped to clothe themselves. Amara watched Darius' expression droop as Amara fitted herself with a fresh tunic and leggings. She thought she almost heard him whimper.
It was a challenge to find clothing that fit Darius' figure. The two cat shifters begged Amara for the opportunity to drag Darius naked to Red Rock, to humiliate him, but when Amara explained how they weren't going to do that, both cat shifters growled and left to guard the entrance and the two cubs who played outside the cave.
To Darius' credit, he wore an expression that signaled he didn't quite care about how he got to Red Rock.
Amara found a bag with clothes that, to her eye, would fit Darius perfectly, so she scampered over and helped him put them on. She helped put on his tunic first, pulling it down, her hands brushing against his hot skin. Her hand lingered a little too long, and Darius grinned at her, and Amara stepped away to let him put on his pants by himself.
"Do you think your father really will kill me?" Darius asked.
Amara wrinkled her nose at a fly that buzzed about. "Possibly, but I'm his only daughter. I have power over him like no one else has. I'm sure he'll listen to reason if the words come from my mouth."
Darius shrugged as if the idea of death didn't disturb him in the slightest.
Amara frowned. "Do you want to die? Because you aren't acting like you care one way or the other."
"Of course, I care, I probably care more now than ever." Amara gave him a look, so he continued. "Back at Gray Creek, the Pack's home, I'm not well beloved. I'm, a little different than most other wolf shifters. I'm more careful, quieter, I don't just rush into action without thinking it through first."
Amara pictured the moment she fell from the tree and stood up to see Darius just watching her. Was he thinking back then too? She thought he was just surprised. "I can't believe the Pack would ostracize you based solely on how you act slightly differently."
"You'd be right. There's something else, something that not even I know, but both my father and the Alpha know. Whatever it is, neither will speak of it, but the Alpha holds a grudge over my father and me for it, and because he's the Alpha, his will of hate spread over most of the clan. There's not a whole lot I can do about that."
"What a jackass." Amara cocked her head. "You don't know what created the grudge?"
"No...but I have a feeling it might have something to do with my mother."
Amara felt another wave of sympathy for Darius as he finished up his story. She noticed the quick, pained expression upon his face, and all she wanted to do was comfort him, but his expression quickly brightened, and she found herself looking at the same, smoking hot smile that made her lovemaking instincts go into overdrive.
One cat shifter popped his head into the cave. "Come on, you mongrel, we don't have all day."
Darius shrugged and walked out of the cave with Amara in tow.
The trek from the cave over to Red Rock was a short one, but to Amara, it was like walking into a den of heavy scrutiny and mistrust. Not once had Amara ever felt alienated walking into Red Rock, but there was a first time for everything. When they came upon the first stray cat shifters, Amara tried to smile at them, and they reacted warmly...until they caught Darius' scent and bore their gazes into his back. They further in they walked, the more cat shifters stopped to stare in horror. Amara wanted to crumple under the pressure of their looks, but she stood tall, trying to smile as if nothing was wrong. Darius seemed more concerned with taking in every detail as they walked.
Things became chaotic when they finally reached the central circle of Red Rock. There, an enormous crowd formed as they made their way up to Amara's home, the home of the Alpha. Hardly anyone spoke, as if merely vocalizing would get them in trouble. But finally, one shifter spoke up.
"There's a wolf shifter...in Red Rock?"
The floodgates opened, and suddenly every shifter in sight began to yell and shout at Amara and the two cat shifters that tugged two wolf shifter corpses along. They asked hundreds of questions, and Amara tried to answer some, but eventually, her voice was drowned out by the mob of anger.
"Quiet!" A voice bellowed.
Every shifter in the circle shut their mouth and turned to the Alpha's house. Amara' home sat upon a raised rock, and so her father stood just before the house, arms crossed, his brows furrowed, and Amara's mother at his side.
"What is the meaning of this?" He shouted, his voice echoing and powerful enough to take most everyone's breath away.
No one stepped up to answer, so Amara came forward. The crowd around her backed away to give her ample space. Her father's gaze was intense, but she didn't back down. "There's something I need to share with you father, a new danger to the Pride." Amara motioned to the two wolf bodies
behind her. "I bring you two dead Changelings, puppets of the Vampires from the Blackwood. I encountered them while I roamed the Oldwood, near the border."
Her father's frown deepened. "Changelings you say...all I see are two dead wolves."
"They are Changelings," Amara declared.
Her father nodded to Darius. "And yet one still lives. Why?"
Whispering among the crowd irked Amara, but she chose to ignore them and focus on the Alpha. "Because he is not a Changeling, nor is he an enemy of the Pride."
Everyone went silent as her father stared Amara down. "He is a wolf shifter, Amara. He's not supposed to be in our territory under any circumstances."
"You need to listen to me-"
But her father ignored her. He motioned to two cat shifters near Amara. "Find this dog a cave to hole up in while I speak with my daughter. Do whatever you like to him, but don't kill him yet."
"What? No! Father, listen to me!"
"I'll listen to you inside," her father replied. "Now, come up here so we can speak as you so desire, cub."
Amara watched sadly as Darius was led away from her, the crowd jeering and throwing things at him. He looked back at Amara and grinned slightly, to let her know he was okay.
The other two cat shifters came up to Amara, one held the two cubs in his arms. "What should we do?"
Amara grimaced. "Come along, and bring the cubs. I'll have need of you all."
The cat shifters nodded and followed Amara she climbed the rocks to her home.
The Alpha slammed his fist down on a table. "Why would you bring a wolf shifter from the border directly into the heart of Red Rock?"
Amara flinched, and so did the shifters and cubs behind her.
"Torian, calm yourself." Amara's mother came forward and grabbed her father's arm. "You're scaring Amara and the cubs."
"And she should be scared," her father snapped. He turned his attention back to Amara. "I raised you right, I know I did. So why in the hell did you bring that beast back here?"