A human man stood in one corner of the room. He saw Rosette and threw a liquid towards her, chanting a spell. She dodged the liquid with her usual speed, but Anthony hadn't seen it coming, and it hit him full in the face.
Rosette heard the thud as Anthony dropped unconscious to the ground. She listened intently and still heard his steady heartbeat; he wasn't dead. She turned her attention back to the room, and it was empty. A window was open, and she could see the wolves and the man running from the den in separate directions.
As she leaped out the window, Rosette opened her connection to Kyle back up. She told him what had happened, keeping a sightline to the wolves with her Omegas.
"Stay in the den," he ordered her, his voice a rumble of concern in her mind. But her feet never stopped moving. She heard him sending a team to go after her.
Her wolf didn't like ignoring her mate, the Alpha male, but she would just have to get over it. There was no way she
Rosette barked at Kyle loudly, her voice a sharp, insistent sound that cut through the air. He woke up a little, his eyes fluttering open, then starting to shut again, his body heavy with exhaustion."Get up," she ordered, nudging his backside with her nose. "We are going back to the den. Get up, or I will have them carry you like a baby. Do you want that?" she threatened, her voice laced with a playful edge.The threat seemed effective, and Kyle rose to his feet unsteadily, his movements slow and labored. They made their way slowly back to the den, Rosette pushing, yipping, and nipping to keep him moving. Kyle passed out once they made it into the front doors, falling heavily down on the marble floor, his wolf form a dark, inert form against the polished surface. He went sound asleep.A large silver wolf approached, eyeing Kyle. Rosette recognized Ethan and was glad to see him."Ethan, we stay on alert until Alpha Kyle wakes up. Do we have an accurate co
"If you start to feel sick, you will go to her right away. That is an order, Roel," Rosette said, turning her attention back to the dead man, her gaze fixed on the lifeless form.She heard Roel's happy response in her mind, but her attention was now on the corpse before her. He absolutely reeked. It was like he had rolled through a cemetery to get here. She'd never been so displeased to have a wolf's sense of smell.His arm flopped out when she touched it with her nose, and suddenly she understood. Track marks ran up and down his forearm, a grim testament to a life of addiction. She nudged his mouth open and saw the yellowed remains of his teeth, a further indication of his self-destructive habits."Can witches get addicted to the same things humans do?" Rosette asked Ethan, her curiosity insatiable."Any of us could," Ethan told her. "We all have a part of us that is human. With us, I know that such a thing would be possible, but the quantities needed wo
Rosette's conversation with Ethan was abruptly interrupted by a hair-raising howl that echoed from the depths of the den. She felt Kyle's presence push into her mind, a surge of concern and urgency as he quickly checked her for injuries. Despite his careful examination, she still jumped when his outraged voice boomed into her mind, demanding to be let out of his cell. He threatened to tear the door down, his frustration and anger palpable.Shifting into her hybrid form, Rosette grabbed the key from the table and bolted downstairs, Ethan hot on her heels. "Kyle, be patient, I'm coming," she called out to him, her voice a soothing counterpoint to his mounting rage.All she received in response was a torrent of anger. He was furious, frustrated by his sudden incapacitation and the subsequent sleep. His pack needed him, and he hadn't been able to protect them. The fact that the rogues had managed to do this to him was infuriating.As they reached the basement, Roset
"Oh, I've gotten plenty fast over the years. Although, having seen you move, I probably should have had Alpha Kyle hold you down. I doubt I'd manage to get out of your way quickly enough," Sarah said, a slight frown marring her features. "I would have stopped her, Sarah. I wouldn't let my mate hurt you," Kyle promised, his voice a low rumble, his gaze fixed on Rosette."Thank you, Alpha Kyle. You know, Madam Alpha, maybe next time you won't go running after the attackers yourself, but I doubt it," Sarah smiled, putting her tools away. She didn't notice the dark look on Kyle's face or she probably would have stopped talking. "The mothers downstairs all think you are their new hero. All the work to help poor Emily, going after Leidy and Sarah when you saw them with the rogues. They can't stop singing your praises," she laughed.Ethan approached cautiously from the side, correctly interpreting Kyle's body language."They are ready when you are, sir," Ethan said for
"Relax, my love, it's ok to make mistakes because you are learning," he said, his voice a low rumble against her hair, "and part of me is glad you did what you did. We may not have found the witch that was involved if you hadn't seen him. None of us would have been looking for a human. If we had found him on pack lands, we may have wrongly assumed he was a lost camper that just happened to be a witch."That made her feel better. She had helped a little bit. They stood holding each other for a moment before he spoke again."I cannot believe you outran five werewolves. If you hadn't stopped to attack, they never would have caught up to you. You are faster than any other wolf in this pack, I'm sure of that," he said, sounding a little awed, his voice filled with a mixture of admiration and amazement."I did need the help once they caught up to me," she said ruefully, a hint of humor in her voice, acknowledging her own limitations."You took down three before
Kyle looked clean, but his usual scent was completely gone. The absence was unsettling, a prickle of unease crawling up Rosette's spine. The primal instinct within her, the beast, eyed him warily, and she let out an involuntary growl when he came close."I apologize," Rosette said stiffly, "you smell different. It's really freaking me out. Whatever you showered with, don't use it again.""I bit one of the rogues several times, making him bleed quite a bit. I must have ingested some of the spell that way," Kyle explained carefully.Rosette inched closer, pressing her nose against his neck. Nothing. She searched everywhere, but couldn't detect a single scent. It was disconcerting, to say the least."I can still feel our bond, but the lack of scent is so strange," she told him, pressing her face against his chest.Ethan entered the room, his brow furrowed."Everyone says I don't smell right, and another Beta attacked Donavan because he didn't r
The next morning dawned far too quickly, and Rosette stretched, her muscles protesting the sudden awakening. She sensed a familiar presence before she opened her eyes, a comforting warmth that filled the small room. It wasn't a surprise to see Kyle leaning against the desk when she finally opened her eyes."Your scent is back," she told him groggily, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.Kyle came to lay beside her on the tiny bed, pulling her into his arms, her legs straddling his hips. He held her close, the familiar scent of him a balm to her senses."All the spells are worn off," he told her, his voice a soothing low rumble. "The girls are awake, Anthony is awake, and Roel's wound finally stopped enlarging."Rosette was wide awake all of a sudden, her grogginess replaced by a surge of concern. "What do you mean about Roel?""Ethan said you all saw him about an hour after the attack. The wound continued to enlarge until he went to see the
As Rosette watched Roel slowly heal from his injury, she was positive the menace could get much worse. Roel took weeks to improve, which was unusual for a wolf. She shuddered when she thought about what that spell could do. If it could be weaponized, it could tear the packs apart. Evidently, she wasn't the only one to see the promise in that evil design.Kyle received a call from Alpha Samuel Devoer early one morning. The spell that had glanced off of Roel had hit several of his highest-ranking Betas directly, albeit in an insignificant quantity. The wolves suffered hours of agony as their bodies were dissolved by the tonic. One wolf died when it destroyed his heart."Those spells can kill a werewolf?" Rosette asked Kyle, stunned, her voice barely a whisper.She didn't really realize much could kill them, besides another wolf. It was hard to process."Removing the head from the body or destroying the brain can kill a wolf. Enough injury to the heart can a