Her Wolf’s Demands by Rachel Medhurst
Chapter Fourteen
My fingers tingled as we rounded the curve of the hill and knocked on the cave door.
Drake was close behind me, his spine straight and his eyes clear. It hadn’t taken much to persuade him to accompany me to question the mutant wolf. Malone and some of his wolves were already inside, waiting for us.
The magic from the night before had drained out of Drake and he was feeling quite well. Laura had helped him to control the channelled energy while I’d locked myself in a private room nearby and gone through my second forced shift.
“Malone won’t mind me being here?” Drake asked as we waited for the alpha to open the door.
Glancing at my brother, I sucked in a breath in an attempt to stop the sob that wanted to explode from me.
Once the coast had been clear and there was no sign of Ertha and the Crawley Pack, I’d left Malone to guard the wolf while I checked on Drake to make sure that he’d pulled through the evening okay. Malone had explained what had happened at the ritual, giving me a clue into what Ertha had done.
Luckily, Drake had managed to control the magic on his own. The seriousness of what was happening had helped him to clear his mind a bit more. He would be shaky now, but I could see the signs of his returning health.
“No, this concerns you,” I said over the noise of the metal door unlocking.
Drake nodded, his eyes watching as Malone allowed us entry. He was not used to being around wolves so the culture shock would be interesting.
“Drake.” Malone gestured for us to go in, gripping my brother’s hand in a strong handshake as he passed him. “It’s good to see you.”
My heart swelled, growing heavier with emotion as I followed them. I smiled up at my man when he stroked a finger down my cheek before kissing the same spot swiftly. He smelt of old sweat, pine and mint. He had stayed guard all night, not trusting anyone else to do the job.
“Our new friend is awake.” His deep voice sent a shudder over me as his hand brushed against my arse.
It had felt like a lifetime since we’d been alone, able to be free with one another. And yet, it had only been a matter of hours. Still, there were important things to discuss.
Coming further into the cave, I clenched my tongue between my teeth. Manual, Rochelle, Emiliah and Lionel were there, huddled in the corner. My gaze slunk past them to the man who slumped on the cold ground in the cell with nothing but a thin blanket.
Flicking my fingers, I whispered a spell to create clothes to cover him. Okay, so he might have been the enemy, but no one wanted to see his junk. Certainly not me.
His scent smacked into my face as I drew nearer, the stench different from normal wolves. Usually, I could smell the earth that ran in their veins and the smell of the forest that leaked from their pores, even in human form. This man though, he had an added burnt smell added to his scent.
My eyes had adjusted to the dark as soon as I entered, searching for the one who might have the answers. It wasn’t until Drake leant against the bars, squinting towards the shape in the corner that I realised how good my eyesight had progressed since becoming a hybrid-wolf.
“You’re the witch,” the man said, wincing when I pointed at an old candle that sat in an ancient sconce. A flame burst into life, casting shadows down the wall and highlighting the prisoner.
He had long straggly hair, not unlike my own right now. I hadn’t even had a chance to brush it and neither had he.
“I am the hybrid, yes,” I replied, wrapping my hands around the bars and peering closer.
The man now wore joggers and a Tee, both plain, both a normal size. His light eyes looked up at me from under his hair, which half covered his face. His breathing was shallow, laboured. There wasn’t an obvious difference from him to the other wolves, and yet, there was a hint of anger, pulsing from him.
Malone stepped forward as I was about to speak, taking my hand and pulling me gently. Of course, the questioning was his job, not mine. Regardless of how much I wanted to hate the hairball leaning against the wall, I had to play by the rules.
“Did you come willingly last night?” Malone asked the man.
Standing with his hands in front of him, the alpha watched him closely. The others stayed silent, watching the man also. Not one of them had greeted us when we’d entered. Maybe they were weary of Drake’s presence.
Lionel was the only one who lifted his gaze from the man and looked straight at me. His snarl was unmistakeable as he glanced at Drake, his lips lifting silently. If he dared to harm my brother, I would take him down. They might now be my kind – well, sort of, just a bit smellier – but Drake was blood. He would always come first.
Shifting his feet under him, the wolf nodded. “My name is Neil.”
“What happened to you?”
The straight forward question made Neil’s face screw up. His hand jerked towards his head and tucked his hair behind his ear before he glanced at Drake. “They used us, that’s what.”
“The witches?”
My skin itched, desperate to be scratched as I waited for his answer. I had to be quiet and let Malone do his thing. His sexy voice echoed around the cave every time he spoke, sending pulses through me. Was it totally inappropriate for me to keep sneaking a look at my man’s butt in the too tight jeans?
“Yeah, the bitches. Kieran killed our alpha two days ago, claiming the position,” he spat. “Next thing I knew, we’re being offered as some sort of experiment to the witches. Promised powers beyond our abilities, we were.”
Biting the inside of his cheek, Malone narrowed his gaze on the man. “Hence the weird ritual thing. Did no one challenge Kieran once he took power?”
A quick shake of the head was followed by a growl. “Kieran has the witches on his side. One of them trails around with him all the time, spelling wolves who won’t do as he says. Otherwise, we would’ve killed the bastard by now.”
“He is a bastard!” Rochelle blurted, her cheeks as red as her hair.
“Apparently, we’re going to be part of the witch coven, helping them stabilise their magic or some fucked up witchery,” Neil said, anger colouring his tone.
I knew the wolves disliked us, it had been that way for centuries. However, hearing someone from another pack speak so vehemently about my kind gave me a chill. Ertha really had pissed off a lot of people.
Wait, what had he said? My mind kicked into gear.
“Did they ever use the word familiar?” I asked, stepping up beside Malone, who raised his eyebrows at me.
Smiling apologetically, I looked through the bars, waiting anxiously for the wolf’s answer. My heart vibrated in my chest as sweat broke out on my forehead.
“That was the word, yes.” He frowned, shaking his head violently. “We don’t really understand what one of those is, but we went along with him so we weren’t killed or spelled to stay in wolf form forever.”
A growl rose from every wolf’s throat in the room, including my own. I had never heard of a witch using a wolf for a familiar. It was kinda evil genius, although totally unethical.
“She’s determined to keep you apart.” Neil nodded at Malone and I. “That’s the main reason she’s doing all this, to break your bond and kill Della. She’s afraid of the power you have as a pack now. And quite frankly, so are we.”
Closing my eyes briefly, I inhaled the mixed scents in the cave, almost choking as they overwhelmed me. Hearing that everyone was afraid of me should have made me glad. Instead, it made it harder for me to get on with my life.
“Fuck the lot of them,” Malone pushed through his teeth, “the bond has been sealed and nothing will break it, not even Ertha and her guard dogs.”
Snarling, Neil reared up from the ground and came to the bars, staring threateningly into Malone’s eyes. His challenge was met with a flick of the eyebrows. The wolf wasn’t exactly in a positon to harm the alpha.
“I will not allow my pack to be petting dogs to a witch. I will kill Kieran and end this, now.”
“While you’re at it, Neil,” Lionel called, “call your mutts off our pack. We’ll stop Della from shrivelling your dicks if you stay away.”
The energy in the room pulsed with tension. If Malone wanted to get Neil on our side, it wasn’t working. Not that I believed that the Brighton Pack would want anything to do with the Crawley Pack, but Kieran’s betrayal might work to our advantage.
My insides quaked at the idea of Ertha being successful. I couldn’t be away from Malone. We had an ethereal thread connecting us, forging a bond stronger than anything I’d experienced before. I wouldn’t let the witch take away the only man who had wanted me.
Malone stood taller, not intimidated by Neil’s glare. “We’re prepared to make a deal to help you,” he said, glancing at me and waiting for me to nod my agreement, which I did. “If you are certain that your pack doesn’t want to be led by Kieran, we’ll help you get rid of him. We won’t get involved with the politics once he’s gone, but whoever takes over as alpha has to swear to a truce with the Brighton Pack.”
Lionel hissed behind us, the sound echoing around the cave. I glanced behind to check on Drake, who stood in the opposite corner, watching and listening closely. What did he think of my new life? Was he coping being in such a strange environment?
He caught me looking and smiled gently, nodding his encouragement. Relaxing, I released my clenched hands and stood taller. I had to be strong for my brother and the pack.
“I can’t speak on behalf of the new alpha,” Neil said bitterly, “but I know that I’ll do everything in my power to persuade my people. You’ve been a threat to us since you killed your own sister for challenging you.”
“How has that affected you?” Malone spat, his cheeks flaring red as fury surged through him.
The heat radiated from him as he stayed completely still, his frame immovable and his eyes bulging. His reaction was a testament to how painful it was for someone to bring up his sister’s name.
The wolves behind us were tense too, their feet shuffling as they waited for their alpha’s response. It reminded me that there was still a rift in the pack due to Malone’s actions. His choice not to tell them what had really happened with his sister had made them hate him.
Noticing that he’d caused a reaction in Malone, Neil came up to the bars and stared at him hard. “If an alpha is prepared to kill his own sister in order to keep his place in a pack, he’ll be willing to slaughter other wolves with the flick of a claw.”
My tummy rolled, the heat now igniting in my veins. I knew my mate, he wasn’t ruthless and unruly. He was tough, yes, but he ran the pack in a firm fair way, and if he confessed the truth about his sister, the pack would understand instantly.
“The ritual will be performed on the Solstice tomorrow night.” I brought us back to the current topic. “So we’ll need to plan a strategy to stop the witches from making your pack into their familiars.”
Everyone breathed easier as the tension dropped. Neil dropped his gaze from Malone, backing down in the face of a powerful man who wanted to help. Malone wasn’t an amazing leader, but a fair one.
Shit, he had been a bastard to me and still had to make up for that. However, he was offering his enemies a way out of a life of servitude. It was that or kill them all when they shifted. I had a queasy stomach, not made for mass slaughter – or raw meat, thank you – but even I had to admit that wolves enhanced by channelled ancient magic were a danger hazard to every living being on Earth.
“I’ll have to stay here,” Neil said. “If Kieran catches even a hint of betrayal, he’ll kill me and the pack won’t rebel.”
Holding his chin with his finger and thumb, Malone rested his elbow on his other hand and narrowed his eyes. “No doubt the witches will keep someone on guard at the stones until the Solstice. Ertha is too desperate for her plan to work. I’m hopeful that they didn’t scent us and assumed that you lost it and ran away.”
“The witches are so desperate to complete their spell, they probably left Neil to it.” Drake’s voice was strong as he stepped forward.
Everyone turned to look at him, surprised that he’d actually spoken. Lionel scowled, the low hum of annoyance echoing around the room. Emiliah punched him in the arm, frowning up at him as he shook his head.
“I’ll go to them,” Drake announced, wringing his hands in front of him. “It’s me they want.”
Dragging his gaze away from Neil, Malone turned slowly and regarded my brother. In a deadpan hard voice, he replied, his tone matter of fact. “No, you won’t be going anywhere.”
My own protest had been on the tip of my tongue, but my mate was quick to step in. Tingles ran over my skin, ignited from fear for my brother and gratefulness to my man. He would do anything to protect us, regardless of our witch heritage. I had made the right choice. My wolf spirit would not be bound.
“They want to use you, yes,” Malone went on, “but only to take us down. They already hate us because of our claim to the standing stones. Now, they’re afraid of Della’s power. They want her gone.”
Rochelle cleared her throat, asking her alpha permission to speak. When he glanced over at her and raised his eyebrows, she flicked her hair over her shoulder. “We have the element of surprise. The coven doesn’t know that we were there last night, or they would’ve been able to trace us back to the camp. We only have one chance, so we’ll need to be in perfect synchronicity.”
“No!” Drake insisted, silencing my new friend. “I’m the one responsible for all of this, even down to my painting. I should’ve refused the commission when Ertha asked me to infuse my magic into my art. I should’ve spoken to Della when I started to get suspicious of the elder, instead of keeping it to myself. If I had, it wouldn’t have led to my breakdown and subsequently, me hurting...”
“Lionel,” I blurted, my heart swelling with pride – although not enough to let him offer himself up.
Smiling apologetically at Lionel, Drake shook his hair out of his eyes. “I should be the one to face Ertha.”
The silence was punctuated by the sound of everyone’s breathing. We all watched my brother, our own thoughts whirring in our minds. No doubt Lionel would agree, but the others frowned, clearly not happy with his offer.
My heart thudded violently in my chest as I stepped over to Drake. Taking his damp hands, I squeezed them tightly as I looked into his light eyes. A rush of emotion threatened to close my throat. For so long, it had just been us against the world. And now, there was an alpha who wanted to take care of me, of us. I still couldn’t figure out why. “As commendable as your offer is, bro, the pack have their own fight with the witches. It goes beyond us.”
“She’s right.” Emiliah stepped forward and clasped Drake’s elbow. “We don’t hold you accountable for what happened. Weirdly, I’ve grown to like our new pack member.”
Her smile was wide, all-encompassing, as she beamed at Drake.
He smiled back, shyly glancing at me. “She can be a pain in the butt sometimes,” he said, “but she makes a great cup of coffee and does anything for those she loves.”
“Bloody hell,” I burst out, sucking back the sob that tried to escape, “you two need to stop or I won’t fit out of this cave where my head’s grown so big.”
“Why, what’s happening?” Manual piped up. “Is there something wrong with your magic?”
Laughter erupted after an initial moment of confusion. Manual had never struck me as the intellectual type, but he wasn’t stupid either. Maybe he had become lost in the conversation.
“Moving on,” Malone barked, shutting everyone up. “We need a plan.”
Sobering, we looked at one another. The wolves came closer, ready to work with us to form a plot that Ertha would never see coming.
“Can I ask just one thing?” I wrung my hands together as fire heated my insides. “Let me be the one to kill Ertha.”