Drake’s arm came up as a fae blade swung out toward Cypher. He caught it on his own and felt the vibration of it all the way up his arm. “You seem to be having plenty of fun yourself,” he ground out through his teeth at Tyler, who simply laughed. Drake was beginning to wonder if the older a wolf got, the crazier he became because Tyler seemed to be having way too much fun.
“My wolves were feeling cheated out of a battle,” Jeff Stone, the Coldspring pack alpha, said as he moved into place at Tyler’s back, offering protection as he took on a couple of vampires attempting to sneak up on the other alpha. “It’s a good thing our wolves can see in the dark,” Tyler growled as he slammed his fist into a warlock's face. “It’s black as pitch.”
Behind him, Drake heard the djinn warrior’s voice. “I can fight alongside you here, Vasile. But I’ll have to be just as conservative with my power as I was in the previous battle.”
“Be as conservative as you need,” Vasile said. “I’m just glad you all decided to join us. Can you help with the darkness? I can smell the dark magic being used to create a spell.”
“I can definitely take care of that,” Jareth said, and it sounded like he was smiling.
Drake nearly shouted an amen to that but didn’t have time as the fae he was going toe-to-toe with was giving him a serious run for his money. But they certainly needed the numbers, and it would be nice to be able to see if a blade was coming at your throat. The pack might have had the upper hand if the Order didn’t have their own fae fighting with them, and if they hadn’t been using some sort of spell to make the darkness damn near impenetrable, even with wolf eyes. But as it was, the Order seemed to be taking control of the battle simply because of the vampires. They weren’t necessarily skilled fighters, but their sheer numbers were becoming overwhelming.
Riven appeared beside him and held out his hand. A bolt of light shot from it, hitting the other fae in the chest. Drake’s eyes widened as the light seemed to spread through the fae’s torso until there was a gaping hole, and the male crumpled to the ground. Drake turned his head to look at Riven. His eyes were wide as he stared at the taller fae. “I’m going to be honest right now, though I might deny it later. I really want that superpower.” Riven simply grinned and then turned to take on the next foe.
A moment later, the battlefield lit up with thousands of white lights floating everywhere. For a second it confused the enemy, and Drake was able to take out several vamps one right after the other. Then the Order army refocused, and Drake flinched as he heard a nearby shout. He saw Jeff wielding his sword against two fae, and he was impressed with the skill. But they were pushing him back, and he needed help. Just as Drake was about to assist the Coldspring alpha, a sharp pain sliced through his abdomen. He gasped as he looked down and saw a short sword protruding from his stomach. Though he desperately tried to remain standing, his body didn’t cooperate. Drake fell backward. The last thing he saw before the darkness swallowed him was the face of his mate in his mind’s eye.
* * *
“Iwantto know how they knew we were coming.” Decebel growled as he paced the living room of the Colorado pack mansion. A week had passed, and they’d yet to figure out who the traitor was in their alliance, who had warned the Order that they were about to be attacked. Dillon had questioned every member of his pack. Using alpha commands, they could not lie to him. They were all innocent. Decebel was beyond restless, and the only thing keeping him calm was his ability to feel and communicate with his mate. “I don’t understand why someone would betray us, would betray Vasile.” Then again, Skender had done it, though he claimed it was for his mate. Maybe Decebel could have understood that. Maybe. But it had been a lie.
“What makes you think it’s someone in Vasile’s pack?” Dillon asked.
Decebel’s steps faltered as the words sunk in. “I guess I just assumed it was someone in our pack because of Skender. And it’s not someone in your pack. I’m not having a lot of faith in the loyalty I once thought was ingrained inCanis lupus,” he admitted.
Aidan, one of Dillon’s dominant wolves spoke up. “No one wants to think that anyone in their family is capable of betraying them. But beingCanis lupusdoesn’t make us perfect. We still have the capacity for evil.”
“The fact is,” Dillon said, “while it may not have been someone in my pack, that doesn’t automatically mean the traitor is in the Romania pack. There are the Missouri and Coldspring packs to consider. Whoever it is, they won’t be able to hide forever. Eventually, the truth will come out.”
“I hate sitting around waiting,” Fane snapped. Decebel had noticed the younger wolf was becoming increasingly agitated with each passing day, which Decebel completely understood. Fane’s eyes had switched back and forth from his wolf form to his human form the past two days. Decebel had made sure that they slept in the same room every night, so that he could be there if Fane’s wolf began to lose control. But so far, the younger wolf had kept himself in check.
“There’s not really any other choice at this point.” Dillon sighed, his narrowed eyes conveying the same frustration that Decebel and the others were feeling.
Decebel couldn’t disagree with Fane. Waiting was its own special form of hell.
* * *
Fane’s wolf was ravenous.He wanted the bone, flesh, and blood of his enemies between his jaws. He wanted to take action. He wanted his pup and mate back safe beside him where they belonged. Instead, he was standing in the Denver, Colorado pack mansion, staring out a large window that displayed what he knew to be majestic mountains. But the only thing he could see was their faces.
Five days. It had been five days since Fane had held his female and child. He’d been in this position too many times before, but this time, it wasn’t just his Luna. It was Slate, as well, which made Jacquelyn even more vulnerable. She would do anything to protect their child, which both impressed him and terrified him.
“Wolf-man?”Jacquelyn’s voice filled his mind, and like all the times before when she reached out to him, for a brief minute, he could breathe.
“Are you alright? How is Slate?”He tried to keep the growl from his voice, but his wolf had too much control. He’d been able to feel her, but she’d had the bond closed enough so he couldn’t speak with her. Fane hadn’t wanted to distract her by pushing harder to get through. He figured Jacque had to have had a reason to keep him blocked, and he trusted her judgment.
“We’re fine,”she assured him.“They haven’t come for me, and Slate is still with me. They haven’t hurt us. They bring us food and have provided what I need to care for Slate. It’s almost like an unwanted stay in a hotel with decent room service.”She was trying to lift his spirits by joking, but he couldn’t bring himself to laugh.
Fane growled.“They took you. I consider that hurting you both. Alston and Skender will die horribly for touching you and our pup.”
“Are you okay?”
Fane could hear the worry in her voice and feel the anxiety coming through the bond, but it wasn’t for her and Slate. It was all for Fane. She was terrified he was going to do something drastic. She knew him well.
“You don’t need to worry about me,”he told her gently.“I promise I won’t do anything stupid.”
“I can feel your wolf, Fane. He’s holding it together by a thread.”
Fane took several deep breaths and forced his wolf back so he could think clearly and comfort his mate. He didn’t want her concerned about him. He needed Jacque to focus on taking care of herself and Slate.“I’ve got him under control. He needs his mate and pup. But I’m not in danger of going feral.”He didn’t add “yet” to the end of the sentence, even though he knew Jacquelyn could hear the unspoken word. His mate was no fool, and she had been with him long enough to know how crazy his wolf got when she was in danger.
“I love you. I won’t let anything happen to Slate. I will do anything I have to in order to protect him.”He could hear the fierce determination in her voice, and it worried him. Of course, he wanted her to protect their son, but he didn’t want anything to happen to either of them.
