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CHAPTER
ONE
LYNX
“You’re holding the knife wrong again,” I point out, eyeing Leo with annoyance. Sure, he’s only five, but how many times do we need to cover this? To prove my point, I chop at his tiny wrist, and the knife clatters to the rocky ground.
Leo turns his glare on me, like a cub assessing whether to pounce. I wait him out, loving the fight in him but needing him to make the right choice. He’s a vulnerable pup, and taking on someone larger and stronger is a sure way to get killed. Survival is something I instill in all my cubs, and I’ll be disappointed if he doesn’t choose it in this moment.
Slowly, his glare lessens, shadows dispersing from his brown eyes as his lips turn down in a pout. He stoops to the ground, one eye still on me, and retrieves his knife. “Like this?” he asks, wrapping his fist around the handle.
I chop at his wrist again, but this time, he keeps hold. “Good.”
We take time going over defensive maneuvers and how to strike fast and unpredictably. Leo’s a quick learner, and I enjoy knowing he’s getting stronger and smarter, but his short, little arms are going to be his downfall. There’s no way a kid can fight someone or something off with those stumps.
Until Leo is older, he will be prey.
Which is why I never let him walk home alone. I do a great job of keeping the bears and mountain lions away from here, but you never know when one of them might get curious and stray too close.
“Okay,” I say, setting a hand on his head to get him to stop moving. “I think we’re done.”
The tension releases from his little body. “Do you have any cookies?”
I nod and wave him toward my house, watching as he recklessly bounds up the wooden stairs. Then I turn my back to him and the house and scan the land around us.
One of the reasons I chose this location is because it’s slightly elevated above the crop fields and gives me a good lookout if danger were to approach from that direction. Trees crowd the western side of my cottage, and a thin trail lets out in view of my bedroom window.
It would be very difficult for anyone to catch me by surprise out here.
“You shouldn’t let kids play with knives.”
So it pisses me off when that voice does. I slowly twist my head toward the melodic tone, senses on high alert, and find Sasha standing there.
His curls are bright in the sunshine, a mix of silky butter and the color of fresh blood hitting water. Everything from his big, eager eyes to his lithe form gives the impression of prey, but unlike Leo, Sasha won’t grow out of it.
He’s the example given of when survival of the fittest goes wrong.
“We weren’t playing,” I reply.
“It’s a saying. Playing, not playing, he shouldn’t be running around with a weapon.”
“Then how would he protect himself?”
Sasha looks at me like I’m the one permanently walking around in danger. “He’s a child. He shouldn’t have to.”
Well, that’s something we can both agree on. Cubs shouldn’t have to protect themselves, but the real world doesn’t run that way. People try so hard to distinguish themselves from animals, but the base instincts remain the same. And Leo needs to be able to defend himself from the evil in the world.
Not everyone is so lucky.
“But he can, and he will.” I eye the dirt smudges on his cheeks. “How did you go with the carrots?”
“They’re done.” His blue eyes flash. “Thanks for the help.”
I don’t miss his sarcasm, but I also don’t care for it either. “Out here, we help ourselves.”
“Yeah, yeah, big, bad mountain men. Can I at least grab some water before I start on the potatoes?”
Water? From inside my house? I don’t invite spirits inside, and Sasha is a complete unknown. He could be a fairy like Rooney for all I know. “Fine, but I’ll get it. Stay there.”
