Page 33 of Moon Guardian
Right now, I didn’t have time to indulge a pissing contest. First, we needed to find her, and now that the alphas were no longer trapped in the rut, they might be able to listen to reason. Then, we would go from there.
Alternatively, I could not allow her to slip out of my grasp and escape from me forever. She wasn’t familiar with our ways and the Outcast would want to use her against us.
Our mate had no idea the den of liars and thieves she’d willingly walked into.
Dash flexed his fists, looking as if he wanted to punch something. I took a step back. “The Outcasts have evaded us since the war,” he snarled. “If we knew where the Outcasts holed up, we would have snuffed them out by now.”
Ryker scratched a bit of bark off of the nearest tree and sniffed. “She came this way.”
I joined him, bringing the dry bark to my nose.
It took a minute, but then I scented it. A hint of jasmine and moonlight.
Ryker and I shared a look. “Do you think they returned to the barren lands?”
We’d faced off with the Outcast pack before, gone to war when our ideologies hadn’t lined up. They believed the humans were to be cherished, equal members of our world.
Humans were prey, a gift from our Goddess to use as we saw fit.
At least, that’s what I had always believed. Our Goddess had still come to us, showered us with blessings, and the storms had never touched our lands.
Yet, the storms shouldn’t have existed at all. They were something new that had decimated human lands and shortened their lifespans.
“That would be a bad place to hide,” Ryker observed. He jerked his chin toward the break in the terrain. “We burned it all down and there’s nothing left except charred red dirt and a few dead trees.”
Dash hummed in thought. “Perhaps you’ve missed something.”
Ryker snarled in reply. “You want to go see it for yourself? Be my fucking guest.”
Dash lifted his lip and stalked past the wolf, heading toward the wasteland.
I shared a look with Ryker before following.
Dash was the alpha of the Soldier Pack, providing an outside perspective the Mystics had never considered. This was the first time the alphas from the other packs were all in one place aside from the High Moon Ceremony.
With all of us sharing a common goal, perhaps we would finally discover how the Outcasts had hid from us.
And as a result, where our mate would be lying in wait.
Katlyn
I declare my loyalty to the Moon Guardian, to serve and protect, now and forever.
Kane’s vow reverberated through my body down to my very soul, making me tremble as his pack snarled at me, but kept their distance.
They didn’t like this one bit, and I didn’t blame them.
Their alpha had done exactly what Althea had said he would. He had pledged his loyalty to me and placed me on a pedestal so high, I felt like I might fall forever.
“My fangs shall tear the flesh of your enemies,” he continued, his teeth sharpening to points in response. It gave him a beautiful and terrifying appearance. Silver tattoos swarmed over his body and I couldn’t look away. Instead I found myself drawn to him like a moth to the flame.
Or prey to a beautiful predator.
“My claws shall carve your symbol into every plot of land,” he said, every word accompanied with a growl that made my toes curl. “My wolf shall howl your praises.” He surprised me by kneeling and leaning his head to the side to expose the beautiful curve of his throat. “My life is yours to use as you see fit, if you’ll bless me with your mark.”
I glanced at Althea who nodded her encouragement, then I looked back to the alpha.
He waited patiently and I ran my touch over his shoulder, unsure of what to do.
