Wolf's Strength (15 page)

Blake didn’t know who snapped the branch. His wolf ears were on high alert and the rest of his senses were in full gear, ready to strike when necessary. Nick signaled, giving the order to the men in the trees above them. Just seconds later, a pounding of footsteps rushed through the clearing.

The men in the trees dropped the net to the ground. The trap measured twenty feet by twenty feet so dozens of men were captured under it. As they thrashed against the ropes, the first set of wolves rushed out full speed.

Next came the yelps of surprise as arrows pierced through the flesh of many of the wolves. Blake bit back a curse as the stench of fresh blood carried on the wind. They were being hunted with bow and arrows like animals. A swarm of arrows could kill many wolves at once. Whoever was behind Shanhah knew how to keep an animal at bay. That told Blake they feared coming closer and would try to prevent it in any way they could.

Now that they knew what they were up against, the second and third attack group moved onto the fields, rushing at top speed, darting left and right in attempts to miss the arrows. The more who made it across the field to the hut where Shanhah was said to be, the better chance they had to rescue Elisa.

Blake’s heart rattled as he rushed toward his first opponent, tackled him to ground, and tore into his throat. When the wolf was unleashed, there was no going back. He only knew survival. He would kill to survive.

He came upon a lanky opponent. This one carried a machete, instead of a bow and arrow. It made sense. Inevitably, the weapons would change to those that could kill a wolf at point blank range as they got closer to the target.

The lanky man took a blind swipe that missed Blake’s front leg by centimeters. Blake’s body lurched with each rabid bark, backing his opponent into a bush. When Lanky realized Blake could counter his strikes, he reached under his coat.

Blake gave him no chance, ripping the arm from his body only to see a gun fall to the ground. Not only did his rage swell, but also his worry. Wolves of all ages and with all levels of combat training had joined the fight. He feared for many of their lives. From the way things reeked, he could tell some had already lost their lives.

As he ran for the target, his paws smashed into chunks of flesh from the carnage. The stench of blood and death on the battlefield surround him. He figured it would be quick. The intention was never to kill in the first place. They just wanted what was theirs. A teenage girl was stuck in hut of a greedy witch. Uniting the Packs was the first step to ensuring they had significant wolf power against Shanhah’s threats and artillery.

Seeing that most of their side had reached more than halfway across the clearing, Blake shifted. Many Caedmon and Arnou had done the same. A dirty path led up to the hut and on the orders of his Alpha, he marched to it.

He threw a direct blow to the face of a man who got in his way. A dropkick to the neck paralyzed the man, and Blake dove over him and carried on.

Another tried him to attack him with a few slashes of a machete. They engaged in hand-to-hand combat until Blake gripped the handle of the weapon and snatched it from his opponent. Without thought he swung, cutting clean through the man’s neck. The head fell backward and the body dropped to the ground.

Blake ran straight toward the hut. Two of Arnou’s Enforcers barreled through the door. This wasn’t too surprising. Tristan had these men trained to complete missions such as this. Whether it called for rescuing, capturing, detaining or killing, they were taught never to fail.

As soon as they opened the door, a ball of fire blasted them and knocked them backward. They regrouped and staggered to their feet. He’d landed facedown in the dirt from the force of the blast. Blake spit some dirt and dry grass from his mouth.

A second group of wolves rushed toward the door again only the strong ray of fire met them once more. Several of them caught fire and were engulfed in flames. Blake nearly vomited as the men hollered in pain.

Those standing nearby managed to put out one of the fires, but the other three men did not make it.

“Fuck!” Devin exclaimed. “I would burn this entire motherfucker down if my sister wasn’t in there.”

“We can burn it down and then get your sister.” Tristan hissed.

“Heck no! I want Elisa out of there without a scratch.”

Tristan motioned toward two of his Elites. “Go around the back. If one of you can cover the roof, do it. Be careful, keep quiet. There’s a witch inside. She doesn’t need to see you to know you’re there.”

They ran off and Tristan called two others. “Once we have the position of the witch, we’ll snipe that bitch. SR twenty-five. Crew seventeen. E2. Post north.” He pointed his finger, and his Elite ran north with a sniper rifle. “Crew two. E1. Post south. Cover the rear.”

As the snipers were setting up, more of their opponents came out of the back end of the forest.

Blake groaned. “You’ve got to be fucking kidding me.” He felt his bones crack and snap as his wolf yearned to break free and attack.

“Save your energy. We’ve lost too many,” Devin commanded. “Get one of those guns and mow them down.”

They fired on the Alpha’s command and bodies fell. There was complete silence and then two additional shots aimed toward the house.

“Man down!” The Enforcer on the roof yelled. “The witch is down!”

The hut was small enough that only a dozen of them fit inside the room. When Blake got inside along with Devin, Tristan and most of the Council and a couple of Arnou Enforcers, sure enough, a tall woman with ice-blond hair shrank back against the wall. Her eyes were stark purple.

She screamed and they doubled over from the high-pitched sound.

Elisa was in one corner of the room, roped to one of the beams holding the hut upright. Another man lie dead on the floor. He had a deep gash at his throat. His eyes were still open and a hands poised in rigor mortis at his neck.

“Priestess Shanhah?” An Enforcer approached the delicate but deadly woman. “I have orders to kill you.” He didn’t get another word out as he fell to the floor, clutching his throat.

“Don’t underestimate her! She’s trying to eliminate everyone.” Elisa yelled from the center of the room. She pointed at the dead man with the gash to his neck. “She killed Jonathan Ellis.”

“I killed that stupid prick because he let the journal be stolen right out from under his nose. He was a weak link and I disposed of him…and his useless father.” Priestess Shanhah started chanting what sounded like gibberish. Elisa pressed her hand to her ears and shook her head.

“She needs to be detained,” Tristan mumbled.

“Kill her! It’s a spell,” Elisa urged. “She can’t be detained.”

“You can stop her, Elisa!” Devin yelled.

“Why kill me?” Shanhah laughed. “Why do that when I have the power to save all of you?”

“Save us?” Devin spat.

“You don’t want to be animals all your life, do you?”

“We’re Caedmon and we plan to keep our spirit alive,” Devin replied.

The door was ripped from the outside of the hut by some strong force and gust after gust air burst inside. The air formed a quick funnel. It spun from one corner of the room to the next, knocking out everything in its path. Even some of the men were caught off guard, the funnel knocking them to the ground.

“I can’t!” Elisa cried. “She’s bound my Spirit with hers.”

“Take it back. You know how, Elisa,” Dawson pleaded.

“Concentrate,” Devin yelled.

Moments passed and Elisa battled with the witch. Shanhah’s heart might have been pierced with an arrow, but her Spirit was fighting for dear life. When the witch stumbled, gasping for breath and clutching her chest, Elisa’s ropes popped free.

She rose above Shanhah Osborne, chanting in an exotic language Blake didn’t understand. Shanhah froze and her eyes bulged until she crumbled to the ground. Her body convulsed and dozens of gleaming orbs floated out of her body.

“Caedmon Spirits, I release you. Arnou Spirits, I release you. I release the Spirit that did not enter you as a result of your birth,” Elisa chanted.

When the witch was dead, the breath Blake was holding rushed from him. Finally, his tense muscles relaxed.

“Dingdong, that witch is dead,” Dawson declared solemnly.

“Finally, but who’s to say her followers won’t pick up after her.” Devin stabbed his thumb in the direction of the fields. “She had a mass army attacking us.”

“Well, the main instigator is gone, that’s for sure,” Blake offered.

“I have to hand it to Tristan,” Devin said. “The men did well in paralyzing the witch in the beginning.”

Tristan had said nothing since the witch fell.

“Tristan?” Devin called.

For once, Tristan remained silent.

“Tristan?”

Blake turned around to see why Tristan was so preoccupied he couldn’t speak. His head jerked when he processed the scene in front of him.

Elisa stood there with her sky-blue dress in shambles, and Tristan stood unmoving in front of her. Inches separated them, and then only centimeters were keeping them apart until they both appeared to close the gap. Elisa held up her palm and pressed it to Tristan’s cheek over the deep wolf gash. When she lifted it again, the scar was gone and the skin was pristine. Tristan’s mouth dropped open and he swayed on his feet.

Tristan wasn’t swaying for long. Right before their eyes, the Alpha of the Arnou Pack dropped to his knees in front of Elisa Caedmon.

Blake couldn’t believe what he saw. He peered around and everyone was in a state of shock.

“You exist…” Tristan took Elisa’s hand and pressed a single kiss to the top of it. “My Queen. Mate.”

“Tristan.” Elisa blushed as Tristan held her hand. “What a surprise.”

“I’ve waited. I’ve waited for you so long.” Tristan’s voice shook as he spoke.

Elisa brought him to stand so they were eye to eye. Tristan slid his palm up along her neck and his fingers slid against her throat. Elisa’s eyelids closed and she tipped her chin. Tristan’s canines shot past his bottom lip.

A rapid growl erupted from Dawson, and he snatched Elisa to his side.

“You’ll be waiting a little longer.” Dawson bared his teeth. “She’s only fifteen.”

Tristan retracted his fangs. “I understand yet she is mine. I would never hurt my Queen.” He held out his palm. “Give her to me.”

Dawson snarled but didn’t oblige.

“Dawson.” Elisa placed her hand against her brother’s chest. “Let the cards fall,
Dawson
. Tristan’s words are genuine. Let’s not ruin our victory. Our Packs are once again united. It is up to us to keep and strengthen the bond. We have a lot to learn from each other.” She took Tristan’s hands and peered up into his eyes. “We’ll learn one night at a time.”

Not a single Spirit left that night without having confirmation that when a man follows the desire of his heart, he gains much more than he’s ever bargained for.

Three weeks later

Mating ceremonies were one of the most sacred unions among both Caedmon and Arnou-kind. This one would be the first in the history of their existence that an official mating was performed between members of two different groups. The union had been sanctioned by the Alpha’s of both packs and dozens of wolves were in attendance from each side.

In wolf form, Blake flanked
her. His sleek black wolf appeared just as majestic as the full moon highlighting them. Naomi’s own wolf rejoiced in being claimed at last and shrills of excitement raced through her spine. She moved closer to her mate as the crowd turned to acknowledge them. Panting and out of breath, she and Blake prowl near the center of the gathering. Their brethren rejoiced.

Both female and male wolves participated in the
mating run which had started hours earlier and would last well into the next morning. Unmated females would disburse into the forest and the males would descend upon them shortly afterwards. The objective of the run was for the male to scent track a female of his choosing, chase her down, catch her, and bring her back to the circle. The wolves indulged in this behavior on a monthly basis to appease their ravenous needs. The event usually occurred during a full moon—like tonight. Group sex usually occurred in the case that no official mating was performed.

But at this moment, it
was all about Naomi and Blake. They prowled together to the center of the circle where the wolves had placed bundles of
lupinus perennis
on the ground next to the silken sheets.

Naomi was the first to sh
ift. A white translucent gown clung to her curves and stuck to the thin coat of sheen on her skin. She was still aroused from their coupling in the forest. Her nipples were still drawn into taut cylinders and protruded against her flimsy attire.

Blake followed, standing to his full height, completely naked just like the rest of his brethren.
His brown skin glowed beautifully under the twinkling stars.

Howls rang out through the crowd when they saw the
mark on her shoulder. Naomi was overjoyed that their union and true mate bonding was accepted by both Packs. The mate mark was already forming as clear evidence. Although the bite was freshly impended in her flesh, the serum he’d placed there saturated the wound ensuring Blake’s mark was a permanent one.

“Well done,” she whispered and took his hand.

“You didn’t make it easy for me.”

“Have I ever?”

He gave her a knowing grin.

The chase had lasted over an hour before she finally succumbed to him.
They’d been together before in wolf form, but this time the union had been different, sacred, and magical.

Naomi pulled Blake closer to her chest. “The crowd is waiting on us. Let’s lead them into a night of bliss.”

Blake’s agreement was a deep kiss. He sat on the white silken sheets and led her down to straddle him. They continuing the loving kiss as she mounted him. The head of his cock tipped something inside her, setting off a series of vibrations in her loins. Her clit throbbed, ready for yet another climax. She locked gazes with Blake pretending that they were the only one’s here tonight.

Grabbing her hips, Blake
led her into slow strokes up and down his rigid cock.

“I love you, Naomi.”

“Blake, I love you.”

Naomi pulled him closer into her embrace,
gently taking his face between her palms and pulling his mouth against her neck. He stroked her aching wound with his tongue, soothing her. They climaxed together and she cried out in burning passion, lifting her face to moon and letting the carnal trance take her higher and higher into the dark sky amid the stars.

What had once been forbidden was now respected.

Naomi Valentine had given her heart to Blake DeLuca a long time ago and now he possessed her body, mind, and soul.