“Leo—”“I’m sorry.” He raised his voice to speak over me. “But I can’t help you. I can’t afford it.”He walked away from us before I could say anything else. Cat followed him, calling his name.“Well, shit,” Lance said. “Now what?”Bryn started walking toward Leo and Cat. “Maybe if I talk to him, I can change his mind.”I touched her shoulder to stop her. “Bryn, wait. Let me try talking to him first.”I expected her to ask why I wanted to try this, but she only nodded and stepped back immediately. There were no questions, just an acceptance of my plans.“I’ll try speaking with some of the Garou to see if they know an alternate route to Troy’s hideout,” Bryn said.“Got it. If I can’t convince him, you can do it your way,” I said.“I know,” she replied. “But I don’t think I’ll need to after you’re done with him.”Her words warmed my heart and made me smile. “Guess I better make you proud, then.”I left Bryn and the others behind and went in the direction of Cat and Leo. I found them sta
She snorted, then something over my shoulder caught her eye. I turned to see what it was as she said, “I don’t know, Night, I think you were pretty successful.”Leo and Cat rejoined us. Cat was trying to keep her emotions off her face, but the corners of her mouth curled ever so slightly upward. It told me that I’d gotten through to Leo before either of them said anything.“Very well,” he said to me. “I spoke to Cat, and we see your logic about working together. I don’t want to put my pack at more risk. And it’s better to attack the threat head-on than wait for him to move first.”“So, you’ll help us?” Dom asked.Cat nodded. “Yes. We’ll put our best people in your hands, and we’ll send those of us who know the area best with you.”Lance let out a whoop. “I think the odds have shifted back in our favor.”“You’ve got us on your team, too,” Oakley said. “I can send for reinforcements from my pack. We’re not more than a few hours from Camas territory, and they’ll be eager to help.”“That’
“We’ll all work hard to keep you safe, Dawn,” Lance told her.She looked at him and blushed bright red. “Th-thank you. I’m in your care.”Leo clapped his hands, directing our attention to where he and Cat stood. “Great. Let’s get things going.”He’d spread a map out on a large, flat boulder. It must have been an older map because the edges were frayed. The map itself had soft creases from years of use, and the cave systems were marked in faded black ink. We all gathered around the rock to get a good view of it.Leo pointed to the map. “From what Bryn said, this is the best route to get to Troy’s hideout. Heading this way would prevent the ferals from cutting us off because we won’t be going at them head-on.”“Alpha Oakley, could I take a closer look?” Dawn’s soft voice pulled our attention. It was silly that she would need permission before looking at the map. Obviously, Oakley had a long way to go if he wanted to make his pack more equal.He nodded. “Of course.”She leaned over the m
It was cold, damp, and dark. The ground beneath me felt like wet stone, rough against my skin. The air smelled like stagnant water. All at once, I was flooded with memories of the last time Troy had kidnapped me. Tavi had been with me then—“Are you awake?” Was that Tavi’s voice? I rolled onto my side and saw her sitting against the wall. She was also tied up and beaten, just as she’d been back then, but she wasn’t unconscious. In fact, considering our situation, she looked pretty calm.“Tavi, are you okay?”“I’m fine.” The cut on her head and her split lip and the blood splattered over her clothing and skin said otherwise, but her eyes blazed in triumph. “I’m better than okay. I killed them both.”“Who?” I asked as I struggled into a sitting position, pressing my back against the craggy rock wall. My head still hurt, but it was already starting to pound less.“Harlon and Samson. They’re dead.” She grinned at me. “I don’t have to live my life worrying about them anymore. I ended them
“I’ve been researching a new spell, and I’ve found a way to bring my father back.”“What?”He nodded as if what he’d said wasn’t the most insane thing that had ever left his lips. “He was never meant to die. I need my father to help me run things. He and I will seize territory from every wolf in the area, and then we’ll move on to human cities. We’ll expand our reach until this entire country is ours. He had the plans, and I can make them a reality.”I shuddered at the thought. It wouldn’t happen that way. They’d tried to use blood for their purposes before, and all it had done was ruin those children and destroy Gregor and Troy. I wasn’t sure what the side effects would be if he went through with the ritual, but they couldn't be good.“Children weren’t the way to go,” Troy said. “They don’t have enough blood for what I need, and they’re not pure enough. Children don’t have the connection to the land that’s necessary to make real magic happen. This time, I’ll drain the life from the c
For all of it. I wish every day that I’d stayed with the Kings after you became alpha. I wish things had been different.” Her words became incomprehensible as her crying turned into sobs. She covered her face with her hands, tears dripping between her fingers.Tavi looked at me. “Fine, so she’s telling the truth. But I don’t want to leave you with her. She doesn’t seem stable.”“I know. But what choice do we have? You getting out of this cave is the best shot we’ve got.”She looked frustrated enough to punch the wall, but I knew she agreed. “Watch your back, Bryn.”“I will. Don’t worry, I’ve got this.”With Trish still weeping, Tavi took a few steps back. She took a deep breath, then darted at the wall. Leaping up, she kicked off the wall and reached for the hole. She grabbed it with her claws, grunting when the momentum caused her to hit one of the stalactites. It fell to the ground and broke with a thud. Trish jumped at the sound and stopped crying. She watched as Tavi wiggled herse
No, no, no, he was catching up! I tried to up the pace, my heart pounding hard, but I would never be fast enough to get out before he caught up with me.Trish looked over her shoulder at me. In her eyes, I saw her consider abandoning me to the wolves and running off on her own, but almost as quickly, I watched her make a different choice. She slowed until she was running next to me.“I should’ve done things differently,” she panted. “I really am sorry, Bryn. I hope you can believe that.”My eyes widened. “What are you doing, Trish?”I should’ve known I wasn’t going to make it out of here. Tell my family, Tanya, and Tara that I’m sorry for leaving them behind.”“Wait—”She didn’t wait. She stopped running. I looked behind me as the wolf knocked her down, turning away just as he tore into her neck.Chapter 25NightWe managed to force our way through that attack with few casualties, then retreated to Garou territory to recover. My wolf was gnashing his teeth inside me, eager to take con
“Right.” She took a breath, then let it out. “Troy’s got Bryn holed up in the cave Dawn was talking about earlier. He’s planning on draining her and her baby so he can do a ritual that’ll bring Gregor back.”“What?” My question was little more than a growl, and I heard a similar rumbling from Lance and Dom.She nodded. “One of the women who used to bully her is with her, and Bryn believes she’s on her side.”“Do you think she’s trustworthy?” I asked.“No. But Bryn promised me she’d be careful.”I ran a hand through my hair in frustration.“Can you tell us about his guards?” Lance asked.“They’re all over the place. It’ll be hard for Bryn to get out because of that. The only reason I could escape was because there was a hole in the roof of the cave.”“I’m sure they’re expecting us,” Lance said. “They’ll be prepping for that.”“Troy’s not going to do the ritual until sundown. There’s only a couple of hours until then.”“We need to go. Now.”“Tavi, we’ll be back,” Dom told her, pressing