Chapter 1: Erik
‘I’m going ahead,’ I announced as I dashed through the trees at top speed.
I knew running so fast through uneven terrain was dangerous and possibly stupid, but losing any more time could end in a bloody disaster. And I had seen far too many of those lately.
‘Erik, you can’t fight them alone!’ Liam snarled through the mindlink. ‘Slow down! We can’t catch up with you! This isn’t worth your life!’
‘There are children there, Liam! I’m not slowing down! You’d better hurry,’ I replied, ignoring the annoyance and worry radiating from my second-in-command.
I leapt over a wide stream barring my path. White foam churned across the surface, and its waves splashed against my feet when I landed on the opposite bank. Glaring at the current that would delay the others even more, I broke into a sprint again.
‘River ahead. Spread out and find a way across,’ I warned the others.
A chorus of annoyed howls answered me as they reached the obstacle. Liam shouted for me to wait again, but I ignored him. I had bigger issues to deal with—like the violent, foul stench of rogues that hit me as the wind changed direction. They smelled even more feral than usual, but the real question was: what had brought so many of them here?
The thought had barely crossed my mind when I spotted a large brown wolf moving to intercept me from the left. Even if I wanted to, I couldn’t stop at the speed I was running. So instead, I jumped, planting my feet against the trunk of a tree and launching myself sideways.
We narrowly missed each other.
The rogue tried to pivot and continue the chase, but ended up crashing into a tree and rolling several times before eventually scrambling upright. By then, I had already regained my speed and was moving away from it.
I couldn’t afford to be trapped there. Too many lives depended on me.
A second wolf joined the pursuit, its red eyes gleaming with hunger and violence. Saliva dripped from their mouths while their tongues hung out, dark and covered with pink foam. Judging by their state, their rationality was already too far gone. Even if I tried to subdue them, they would never become human again. And with their bloodlust and inability to submit to authority, there was only one way to stop them.
‘Did you get across the river?’ I asked the others.
‘Just now,’ Liam answered instantly. ‘Where are…?’
‘Two rogues ahead. Kill them quickly and follow me.’
A few howls echoed through the forest, confirming the order was received.
A movement among the trees ahead caught my attention, and I narrowed my eyes until I spotted the third wolf. The red on its muzzle gleamed in stark contrast with its pale gray fur, while its crimson eyes flashed with savage hunger the closer it got.
We jumped at the same time, clashing in the air. Pain spread through my shoulder as we hit the ground. Thankfully, my size gave me the advantage, and as I landed on top of the rogue, I drove my claws into its neck. Before the mad creature had time to retaliate, I tore its throat out. Warm blood sprayed across my fur, and for a brief second, I stared into the wild eyes as the light faded from them.
Nothing. There was nothing human left in there.
I vaulted over the twitching body and kept running. Screams and howls echoed somewhere behind me, but I didn’t stop. My warriors could handle two rogues. The people we were trying to save… well, that was a different question.
Once the trees gave way to a wide meadow, I dug my heels into the earth. Wolves and humans ran in every direction, desperate to escape the fight spreading through the streets of the small settlement. A group of warriors was trying to keep the rogues back, but their numbers were quickly dwindling under the relentless attacks of the mad creatures. I even spotted a man with a rifle on one of the rooftops, but the moment his bullets struck the nearest rogue, all attention switched to him. Two of the creatures snarled, pouncing on top of an old car and launching themselves onto the roof, where they tackled the man and ripped him to shreds before he could reload.
With a vicious snarl, I dashed forward, tackling the nearest enemy while it was trying to pin a much smaller wolf to the ground. When my teeth closed around its leg, I yanked it off her.
Bones snapped. The creature howled. A moment later, it was lying dead at my feet with its neck twisted at an unnatural angle. The female stared at me in shock, but I had no time to waste making sure she was alright. She was alive, and that was enough for now.
I jumped over her, charging another enemy just as it tore a chunk of flesh from the werewolf pinned beneath it. Ramming into the side of the creature, I threw it off, but it quickly rolled to its feet. Its bloodthirsty eyes locked on me while it licked the blood dripping from its muzzle.
A familiar howl echoed across the valley, and I bared my teeth in a wolfish smile. A moment later, that sense of triumph turned into something cold and bitter when a second rogue joined the first’s side.
‘Hurry up, damn it!’ I barked through the link, taking a measured step back while the pair circled me slowly.
‘I told you to wait!’ Liam chided. ‘Two minutes! How many are left?’
‘Four, that I can see, but—’ I allowed my gaze to sweep around the place, which was all the distraction the rogues needed to attack. The first one tried to bite my leg, but I swatted it away with my paw. I had no time to stop the second before it raked its claws over my back.
Pain exploded where the flesh tore, but I pushed it away. Instead, I spun around and crashed into the beast, sinking my jaws into its neck when it staggered backward. A loud crack echoed as I yanked, then its body went limp in my grip. I dropped it to the ground just as the sounds of my warriors’ howls echoed through the settlement.
“Help! Help! Please, somebody, help!” a woman screamed.
My ears perked at the panic in her voice, and my head snapped in her direction. She stepped from behind a car, slipping on a puddle of blood while pointing at something behind her.
“The children! The other one went after the children! Quickly!”
My gaze followed her finger that was pointing back to the sanctum, and my heart dropped when I noticed the red wolf throwing its weight against the double doors of a small building. The sound of wood snapping pulled me out of my stupor, and even before the splintered doors had dropped to the ground, I was running.
Children’s screams echoed from inside as the mad creature took one step forward. The world turned red at the edges when I imagined what could happen to them if I were even a second too late.
‘Not again! I won’t let it happen again!’ I promised myself.
I threw my head back and howled, putting every ounce of power I had into that command.
STOP.
The red rogue’s head snapped toward me, and a pair of orange eyes bore into mine.
Orange, not red.
‘We have one that can still be saved,’ I told the others even as I held the weight of pure loathing in its gaze. ‘Bring it here.’
Before anyone could reply, the wolf spun around and attacked me. She tried to go for my neck, so I had to duck several times to avoid her sharp teeth, but once her balance was off, all it took was a hard shove to take her down. Even as I pinned her to the ground, she just kept thrashing like she couldn’t feel the paw pressing precariously on her neck.
‘Erik!’ Liam’s voice echoed in my head just as a movement in my peripheral vision made me turn. His dark brown form slowed to a trot and shifted into a human without breaking stride. The gray wolf behind him hurried at his side, turning around so Liam could unclasp the rifle attached to her back.
The rogue beneath me howled, thrashing even harder when she noticed Liam aiming the weapon at us.
At her.
I held my breath until he pressed the trigger, and the sleeping dart sank into her exposed belly. Two more followed before her struggle slowed down, and she finally dropped limp beneath my paws.
Liam huffed a breath and looked around. I did the same, if only to confirm what the eerie silence meant.
There was no more fighting. The rogues had all been neutralized, and everyone was now shifting into humans, rushing to help the wounded or moving toward the warriors that immediately formed a loose circle around me.
After one final glance at the unconscious wolf by my feet, I shifted as well. A sharp pain spread through my back the moment the fur vanished, and smooth skin pulled over my muscles. I tried to hide it, but some of it must have shown on my face because Liam’s expression fell.
“I told you to wait,” he chided once again, clicking his tongue in disapproval. It took everything in me not to roll my eyes. I could already feel the cuts closing, so it was going to be tender for a few days, but it was nothing serious. He acted like I lost a limb or something.
“It’s nothing,” I murmured, shrugging him off when he tried to touch my back. He pursed his lips, but then focused his attention on something over my shoulder. I turned just as the crowd parted, letting through a tall, bearded man.
I held back a sigh of relief when I recognized Alpha Duffus’s familiar face. My warriors tensed when he continued to approach with that stone-faced look on his face. Even Liam took a step closer, looking like he might jump in his way to protect me.
I raised my hand before he could do just that, and he immediately retreated.
Alpha Duffus stopped a few paces away, looking me up and down like he was trying to decide what to do. I’d know it was a risk barging into their territory without invitation or an escort, but when we heard about the rogues, I didn’t think. I just wanted to make sure they didn’t have to suffer the fate I did all those years ago.
Alpha Dufffus rolled his broad shoulders back, and for a moment, I genuinely thought he was going to pick up a fight. To my surprise, he slowly forced them to relax, then… lowered his head.
A few people gasped, but then one by one, the rest of his pack followed his example. I fought the smile tugging at my lips and waited, not wanting to embarrass him by rushing him. I knew how much it took for an Alpha to lower himself like that. I’d been forced to do it several times ever since I took over my father’s pack, and I couldn’t think of a single thing that I hated more in this world.
“Thank you,” Alpha Duffus cleared his throat as he finally rose again. He ran his hand over his graying hair before letting it drop by his side. “If it wasn’t for your aid, many of my people would have died. I… I don’t know how to repay you.”
“There is nothing to repay,” I replied, and even though I could think of a hundred ways he could do just that, every word I said was true. “We are one people, even if we are not one pack. And a threat to you is a threat to all.”
The edge of his mouth quirked up, and suddenly, his whole aura changed. Instead of imposing, unfaliable alpha, he turned into a man who looked like he was going to pull me into a bone-crushing hug.
“That’s what my father used to say,” I laughed bitterly, remembering all the times my father used those words to scold me for this or that. “But if you’d take my free advice… asking for help is not a weakness. Only a strong man can admit when he needs help.”
Duffus nodded, allowing his smile to grow.
“I’ll remember that.”
We continued to stare at each other for a few painfully long seconds, then his gaze lowered to the red wolf at my feet. His lips pursed, and he nodded toward her. A few of his men rushed to his side, slowing down their approach as they neared my side. Despite their Alpha’s relaxed posture, they were clearly uneasy with my presence. Perhaps it was the bodies lying around us and the blood still marring my skin.
“Come,” Duffus said, motioning toward one of the buildings. “The last time we met, I wasn’t particularly open to hearing what you had to say.” He glanced over his shoulder as I moved to join us, and I could almost imagine what he was seeing—his people dead or hurt because of a threat he wasn’t prepared to defend them from. The fact that he was so calm and collected was a testament to his will already. “After today, I find myself in a different mood.”
He turned back to me and held up a hand for me to take.
“Stay tonight. I’ll arrange for rooms for you to rest while I take care of my pack, and later we can have that talk about your ideas.”
I fought another smile as I slid my fingers into his, squeezing tightly.
“That sounds good to me,” I replied, allowing him to lead us to his home.
My gamble had paid off. If we won the Graymaw Pack to our cause, then the balance was finally going to tip in our favor. All those years I’d been fighting to make a difference for our pack, for our kind and our world, they wouldn’t be for nothing.
I looked up at the sky as we climbed the steps toward one of the bigger houses. My eyes caught on a cloud just above us that suspiciously looked like a man smiling.
‘I’m almost there, father,’ I thought as I followed Duffus inside. ’I’m going to make you proud. I won’t let nothing—and no one—get in the way of that.’
