Page 107 of Faerie Hunted

And suddenly there was Mike swinging his fist. His knuckles connected with the side of Uncle Will’s face and the surprise was enough to get the werewolf to release Livvy.

Will recovered in half a heartbeat and moved toward Mike, his mouth open and his growl rumbling through me. Engaging every instinct I possessed as a wolf.

Fear clenched my heart so tightly I lost my breath. I scrambled to get to Mike, to make sure Will didn’t shift, to obey the order.

My uncle was the alpha of our pack for a reason.

He had the strength and the savagery to hold the position, although he’d maintained his hold on our people through diplomacy. His instincts made him a good lawyer and a better leader.

They moved at the same time. Mike let out a yell and slammed both his hands against Will’s chest, using the older man’s momentum against him. Will staggered a bit but maintained his balance. The hair on his forearms began to grow dark and long.

But he hesitated. Why?

Why didn’t he take Mike down?

Suddenly I noticed details in sharp contrast. Will looking around at the surroundings as if memorizing every inch of the landscape. Memorizing the scents and the feeling of the air, the inherent magic of this place.

His eyes went wolfy and Mike managed to shove the older man back through the portal. Livvy reacted in the same instant and drew her key out of the lock, the door disintegrating, locking us on one side and Will on the other.

But it was too late.

Didn’t they realize what he’d done?

Will had seen where we were. He was memorizing the landscape to find another way in, with more muscle to back him up. Muscle like Grimaldi, who would stop fighting the Alderidge pack if he knew there was another way to get me back.

“We have to go,now.” I straightened to my full height.

“There’s no way he can get back through,” Mike replied breathlessly.

“Yes, he can.” If Kendrick Grimaldi could find a way to get to me during the Wild Hunt, then Uncle Will could do the same. I knew it in my gut. “Bronwen! Onyx! Noren! We’ve got to go.”

The longer we hesitated, the more likely it was that Will would find a way to bring the entire pack to Faerie. The boundaries weren’t going to hold him off if he was determined enough to break through. And we’d just given him a pretty big reason to rekindle his determination.

Between me and Onyx, our hasty escape was less a run and more a power walk. We navigated the field, the dew-drenched grass soaking through our pants instantly.

“You know, I’m getting really tired of this,” Bronwen grumbled.

“You’re telling me.” I flashed her a smile.

“Yeah, right, Iamtelling you. And I’m in the best shape out of all of us. No offense, Mike.”

He glanced sideways at her. “Why am I being dragged into this comparison?”

A layer of nerves underpinned the banter but I appreciated her attempt anyway.

And I liked having Mike close to me. He hadn’t hesitated to go head to head with Uncle Will. For me.

Except something Will said tickled my mind. I kept looking over my shoulder to make sure he hadn’t somehow found a way to sneak back in through the same door and follow us.

“Hey, what’s the Abyss?” I asked Livvy. “Uncle Will said he banished your things there.”

Livvy looked shocked. “You heard him?”

“Of course. I was in the same room.”

She shook her head before glancing over at Laina. The two mothers shared a long look that sent prickles of cold awareness along every vertebrae.

Even Bronwen and Onyx felt tuned in to the conversation although both of them were doing their best to look disinterested.

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