Page 81 of Pack Ruin
One of the wolves leaped for me, and I rolled underneath him and had my exit from the circle. I raced to fight with the guys, taking one human-shaped shifter off guard as I vaulted over him, doing a somersault before I landed next to Luke.
That somersault was a mistake. Sure, it had caught most of the enemy by surprise. But the enemy had surprises, too. Suddenly, they all fell back, leaving the three of us standing next to one another, panting, the shifters massing on the side opposite the Pack House. Were they leaving us a way to retreat?
Absolute panic flew through our bonds as Glen suddenly whispered, “Fuck. Get down!”
Then there was a loud shout, a word that made no sense. “Fire!”
In that instant, I felt a blaze of fire move through my gut, entering from the front and exiting at my spine. My legs went numb almost instantly. Pain sheared from the place, and I looked down, confused. My shirt was already too blood-soaked to see what had happened.
“Not her!” someone yelled.
And then another voice. “Fire!”
Luke screamed and began to shudder next to me, like he was having a seizure. Glen was doing the same thing, but he managed to fling himself toward me, crushing me to the earth underneath him. At the last second, I managed to angle my steak knife so it wouldn’t go through his stomach.
I couldn’t breathe. I couldn’t move. And as Glen continued to shudder on top of me, I knew what was happening, though I could hardly believe it.
Del had taught me about all sorts of weapons, but there was one I’d never touched. I’d never even seen one, except on television or in pictures. It was considered the least honorableweapon a shifter could use, and even if he owned one, not even Callaway had broken that taboo and used it.
But these shifters had done the unthinkable. They’d brought guns into the compound. Into the fight.
Into my pack.
36
Half a Pack
BRAND
“Look at your pack,” Dad murmured at my side, as the line of shifters who had formed that morning dispersed without a word.
Well, not from me. They’d had a word from Grandma, an important one: dinner. The scent of her brisket and cornbread, along with the appearance of a dozen of the pack’s best cooks bringing out the food, and what looked like an endless number of homemade pies, had everyone ready to stop for the day. Or the hour, at least. They would form the line again after we’d eaten, and continue until midnight.
They were as anxious and excited as I was to have the pack whole once more, though I knew hundreds more were still traveling here. It would take a long while.
“It’s only half the pack,” I replied, rubbing my chest. “Three thousand and forty-seven down, three thousand and twelve to go?” I glanced at him for confirmation.
I’d had an official phone call from the Council days ago, congratulating me on my ascension. Aidan McDonnell had beenextremely curious as to how my father was still alive, a fact he shouldn’t have known. I’d known his pack was watching us, but hearing him refer to having eyes inside my borders—even if they were merely electronic ones—made my wolf howl for his blood.
He’d insisted on my immediate presence at the Mansion in the next few days to accept my pledge to join the Council, then to attend a Council vote on his installation as permanent Head, knowing it wouldn’t be possible. He’d insinuated that perhaps I would do as my father had, and adopt a hands-off approach to Council matters. I’d made sure he knew that would not be the case, but left his invitation hanging. I had to consolidate power before I confronted him.
Dad shrugged and settled back in the wide Adirondack-style chair, made of logs and cushioned with Grandma’s quilts. “Wouldn’t know. Sounds right, unless someone’s died, or been born. It’s odd not to feel the connections.”
I grunted in agreement. “It’s even more odd to suddenly have them, like moths fluttering in the back of my thoughts.” It was distracting, but that feeling had been all that kept me from throwing myself in a truck and driving to Alabama to be with Flor. That and the knowledge that it was only once I’d finished this process that I would have the full power of the Mountain pack behind me. And the right to take them to war.
“Moths, huh?” Dad grunted a thank you to the young shifter who’d handed him a plate piled high with food, as well as a cloth napkin wrapped around some cutlery. Another young shifter ran over with a large ceramic mug of cold water. Dad nodded his thanks, then turned back to me. “They felt like caterpillars inside my brain, not moths. Don’t worry. Once they’ve all pledged, that’ll go away.”
I scowled at the image of brain caterpillars. My brain was already so full of extra input, from the currents of energy thatflowed between me and Flor, and the lesser ties to Finn, Glen, and now Luke.
The young male bringing my food had stumbled twice on his way to me, and now stared red-faced at my feet as he offered now half-filled plate, promising to bring me more. I took the plate and dismissed him with a gentle nod. But instead of eating, I pondered the sensations and thoughts that had tumbled through my mind over the past two days.
After the first few hours on the road, Flor had slept, and I’d had a short respite from her thoughts. That hadn’t worried me, since I could still sense that she was safe. Glen would keep her that way, I knew. But when she woke up and her thoughts—which had been so clear to me while she was inside my pack’s borders—grew fuzzy and faint as they kept going, my wolf began to pace. It had only been two days, but something in my soul was urging me to drop everything and run to her side.
Except dropping everything might hurt all of us more in the long run. I needed an army. I needed the full power of the Mountain pack tied to my own soul, so I could protect her and all of the honorable shifters who were vulnerable to the Council’s machinations. So I stayed.
But something was now telling me that I needed to leave,fast.
The moon chose that moment to rise over the horizon, a deep red hue tinging it. Like blood. A howl began, from within my soul. I stood abruptly. “I have to go.”
