Page 41 of Stolen

A wave of confused anger swept through the pack. As one, they howled in return—and ran into the woods to attack their brothers.

Rex was out of the driver’s seat as soon as they were gone, facing Gunn. “What the holy hell was that about?” he demanded. Gregor was still standing rigid, howling. And the wolves were attacking each other, everyone thinking the others were enemies.

It was going to be a massacre.

“He’s crazy,” Dobe said bluntly. “He’s crazy, and he’s dying, and his mind is too strong. He’s taking the pack with him.”

“We have to do something,” Gunn said.

“Cold-cock him?” Rex asked coolly.

“It might make them crazier.”

“Is that even possible?”

But the decision was taken out of his hands.

Two tranquilizer darts thunked into Gregor—upper arm and leg. He gave one last agonized howl, and crumpled into Gunn’s arms.

Gunn looked around frantically. Out of the woods ran Sugar, lean and wiry, his shock of white-blond hair gleaming in the sun. “Fuck, man. I’ve been trying to find him all day. He went nuts—took out the cellular arrays and all the comms equipment, here and at the house. I haven’t been able to reach anybody. What’s going on down in the town?”

“Cartel’s there by now,” Gunn said shortly, laying Gregor down gently in the truck bed. “No idea how it’s going. Thanatos diverted me here, when no one could reach you. But they have close to fifty men—Boomer and his brother and Hawk and the farmers with pitchforks aren’t going to be able to hold them off for long.”

Sugar swore inventively. “This is a cluster fuck. We have to get them rounded up and calmed down before they kill each other.”

Gunn could feel the edges of the madness gnawing at his brain. Shapes swam in front of his eyes. Enemies, cried his wolf inside him. Attack!

Yes! Save the Ridge! His lips pulled back in a snarl. He went to leap out of the Jeep bed, and then felt himself yanked back, hard. Two stinging slaps hit his face, hard enough to knock his head from side to side.

“Gunn! Get a grip!”

Blearily, he tried to focus on what was in front of him. His wolf was scrabbling around inside him, trying to get out. Rex had his hand poised to hit him again.

“Gregor used to be his alpha,” Dobe said to Sugar. “He’s getting sucked in.”

“Well, get him out.”

Rex said, “They need a new leader. Who’s the strongest, the most stable? We need to find him and snap him out of this.”

Next to Gunn, Gregor took one deep breath, then another, then one more. There was a rattle in his throat, and then silence.

He was gone. The wolves howled, but they didn’t stop fighting.

“How the hell should I know who’s the most stable?” Sugar demanded, frustrated. “They’re all crazy.”

Gunn was still struggling to clear his head. His cheeks were stinging from the blows, and his hip was on fire. Something burning, like a lit cigarette in his pocket. He thrust his hand in—and it closed around the amulet. Gregor’s amulet.

He pulled it out, and light exploded from between his fingers. Rex, Dobe and Sugar flinched back.

“Is that Gregor’s amulet?” Sugar asked.

Dobe said, “He gave it to Gunn. When we were coming down the road.”

But Gunn wasn’t listening. He could feel the wolves. Not just the accumulation of their shared emotion, like before, but each of them, separately, and yet a part of the whole.

He could feel the bonds between them, weaker for some, stronger for others. Pain, and anger, and confusion. Old wounds. But also, loyalty. Courage. A need to serve—and a need to stop evil. The qualities that had brought them to the Ridge, and the qualities that kept them here.

Bound them together.

Slowly, slowly, he began gathering in their energy, feeding it to his wolf. It’s a lie, he told them. The enemy is not up here. The enemy is down there.

He projected images of De León and Rockhaven into their minds. Rex and Dobe were caught up, through the qualities they shared with the pack, the ones that made them part of his team, and his friends.

He felt their hands on him, giving him energy, giving him strength. And he gave the pack more images. The cartel convoy, coming to the town. Images of it burning, razed to the ground.

Our people, he told them. Our territory. Ours to protect. More words came into his mind. This is the promise we made, this is the pact we’ve kept. They’re under attack, from the evilest of evil men, who preys on innocents. He came to our territory, to harm our people, and destroy their homes.

We will stop him, or we will die trying.

This is the promise we made, this is the pact we keep.

Dimly, he was aware of the noise of wolf battle dying down. He felt the pack—wolves and men—come to attention, every one of them turned in his direction.

With the power of Gregor’s amulet, he bound their spirits into one—one pack, one purpose.

And he raised his head and howled.