Danshak chuckled. “Your father was right. You always know the right things to say. I am the luckiest werewolf alive.”“Don’t make me blush,” she laughed.When they got to where Zanisck was sitting on a tree stump, they found Weruona sitting by his feet, idly sharpening his spear.“Ah, here she is. The she-wolf with the words of wisdom,” said Weruona. He couldn’t keep the bite off his tone because he was annoyed that his reasonable explanations were not enough to convince his little brother that he was about to ride to his death if he continued on his solo quest for revenge.“There is nothing anyone can say to change my mind, so do not even bother,” said Zanisck. His jaw was set firmly in a look that Erin recognized. It was the same way her brother, Eric, looked whenever his mind was made up even when what he was about to do was totally foolhardy.“It would be a terrible thing for your father to lose his mate and his son within hours of each other. I’d say that’s a very mean thing to d
“We could do that here if you want,” she suggested with a seductive smile.“Out here in the open?” He asked wide-eyed, surprised by her boldness. “Someone could see us.”“Not if we stand behind the tree. Everyone is on the other side over there, and none of them can see us behind a wide tree bark except they have laser eyes.”“What are laser eyes?”She chuckled. “That’s ahead of your time, darling. Come here,” she said and pulled him toward the other side of the large willow tree they had been standing beside. True to her calculation, the girth of the tree was wide enough to hide both of them partially.“See?” She said triumphantly. “We are now hidden away from everyone’s view.”“I like how your mind works,” he said with a delighted grin before rewarding her with a passionate kiss. He explored her mouth with his tongue, deepening the kiss as if he wanted to drink in the essence of her as their mouths remained locked together.Erin reached up and untied the leather strap that was holdi
Vak and his pack began their journey to Vomani just as the sky began to darken. From her side-eye, Erin could see the guards filing out to take their position around their supreme leader’s territory. She quickly dodged behind the willow tree where she and Danshak had made love passionately only a couple of minutes ago. A quick look around told her that none of the guards have noticed her, so she made a run for the woods, praying that she doesn’t get discovered by anyone besides the nosy Zorraya.Once inside the woods, she paused a bit to catch her breath and do a quick mental calculation on which route to follow for her to catch up with the warriors. Danshak would kill her if he knew what she was up to, but she couldn’t help herself. She was too much of a worrier to simply, sit back and wait for news from the war front while biting her nails nervously. She would rather take this risk and have Danshak in her line of vision than be kept in the dark like everyone else at home.She shapes
“We need to separate ourselves, Edvana. Run in the other direction,” said Zorraya, taking off to the right.Erin obeyed her and ran to the left, hoping that the deathly creature would go after Zorraya, but when she looked back again, it was chasing her instead.“Leave me alone!” She screamed in frustration. When would she ever stop running in this ancient setting? She was tired and so over this madness, and if she survived this night, she would fish out the dream stone from wherever it was hiding and scram back to the safety and sanity of her real-life in Fairbanks. She has had enough of this maddening world of endless fighting and horrendous night creatures.She turned around suddenly and waited for the beast to come close to her before diving at it and cutting off what was left of its neck. The headless animal ran off at top speed and kept going until it smashed itself into a tree and it died for the second time that night.“Impressive,” said Zorraya, coming up quietly behind her. “
“What the hell?” Erin snapped at him. “Don’t you dare treat me like a child!”“You are behaving like one,” he fired back.Erin gasped.“That’s enough from you two,” said the Prime Alpha. “This is not the time or place for your marital drama. We have a more serious issue at hand here.”“They have to go back home,” Danshak insisted stubbornly.“I am not sure it is safe,” Weruona interjected. “We cannot send two of them back alone and I do not think we can spare any warriors to accompany them back home. We need every single warrior we have here because we do not know what other tricks Nikjin has planned ahead for us.”“He is right,” agreed Vak. “Let the she-wolves follow us. They wanted to participate in the war, so let us allow them.”“No, not me,” said Zorraya, taking a step back.“Well, it’s too late to back out now,” said Weruona bitterly. He hated that his mate was in this precarious situation with him and there was nothing he could do but make sure that he kept her out of harm’s wa
“I have never been this indecisive in my entire life,” Weruona confessed. “Does anyone have any brilliant suggestions? I am at my wits’ end right now.”“Let me go with my pack,” said Zanisck. “If father and the others are already dead, and I too die, there is you and Danshak here to carry on the Smallchief name. It is even better that the two of you are already married so you stand better chances of extending the Smallchief name than I do.”“Are you insane? Is this the right time to make a jest?” Asked Danshak.“I am being serious,” said Zanisck. “As much as I hate to say this, that bastard, Nikjin is right. We cannot stand here all night waiting for something to happen. We might as well go into the cave and find out what has happened to the Prime Alpha and the others.”There was a murmur of agreement amongst the warriors who were now becoming as curious as Zanisck Smallchief to find out what lay beyond the cave.“Fine, we will go in,” Weruona conceded. “But you will remain here with
“Danshak!” Erin screamed inside the dark cave that seemed not to have an end. She had been running forward for the past ten minutes or so, but she could neither see the other werewolves she entered the cave with nor hear them. It was as if she was running alone inside the cave but she knew she was not alone. This is nuts!“What is going on here?” She whispered to herself as she continued to run in the pitch-black darkness, hoping to catch even a tiny glimpse of light ahead. When she couldn’t take the endless running anymore, she suddenly found herself in the middle of what seemed like a forest. It was a moonless night but she could make out the tall trees and smell the grasses. She looked back to see where she’d come from but there was no cave in sight. It was as if she had just dropped into the middle of the forest from nowhere. She was so confused that she didn’t know whether to keep going forward or turn back, with the hope of locating the cave. Where were Danshak and the others? W
“Erin Brown, you are officially in trouble,” she said to herself. “What the hell did I just get myself into?”How was she going to survive in this place? Feeling desperate, she continued to retrace her steps with a pounding heart and a dry mouth, hoping and praying that she would miraculously stumble into the cave again and find her way back to Zanisck and Zorraya.“Oh my gosh! I have to warn them,” she said and began to run. It would be a disaster if the entire Smallchief family ended up inside the stupid deathtrap that Nikjin had prepared for them all. There had to be a way for her to warn the others and tell them to go back home to get reinforcement. They could even go to Quandagh to summon her father and his warriors to come here and rescue them. They could rally other allies from neighboring villages in Pentuck and Winshita up north to help them too. It could be done but only if she can reach the others on time and warn them.She ran and ran until her joints began to ache and her