“Val!”
His voice echoed around the forest. I slowed to a stop and tilted my head to the side to listen. Sound from behind me made me spin around. David stumbled out into the clearing. I rushed towards him and threw myself against his chest. He caught me with a grunt and hugged me tightly.
“Are you okay?”
I nodded, hugging him tighter. “She shot at you. Where you hurt?”
“I’m fine,” he muttered. “Someone hit me over the head.” He pulled away and cupped my cheek. “I was so scared.”
“We need to get back,” I said as I stepped away from him. “The pack is in trouble.”
He gave me a nod and shifted into his wolf before gesturing for me to climb onto his back. I’ve ridden on Devon in shifted form before, but David was bigger and more muscular. He had to crouch slightly so I could climb onto his back. I was careful not to hurt him when I gripped his fur and pulled myself up. With a low growl as a warning, he took off.
I buried my face against his scruffy fur. The trees blurred past us which made me feel sick. My hold on him tightened when he jumped over a log. I slid down his back a little but instantly moved back into place again. My heart was beating erratically in my chest. Aunt’s voice echoed in my mind again.
“Hurry,” I breathed. “Hurry, David.”
He came to a sudden halt and tilted his head to the right slightly. I listened as well. It took a few seconds for me to realize what he was listening to. The alarms they had installed along with the cameras, was blaring loudly. No! I dug my heels into his sides. David growled but he got the message.
Our plan had failed.
There was still going to be a war. People would die. Families would once again be torn apart, and there was nothing I could do about it.
As we neared the house the sounds of fighting could be heard clearly. We were already too late to warn them. David changed directions. He skidded to a stop near the secret entrance that led down into the basement that was installed as an escape route. I slid to the ground and turned to frown at him. He pressed his snout against my stomach and pushed.
“I’m fighting with you.”
He flashed sharp teeth and let out a low growl.
My eyes narrowed. “This is my pack too! I’m fighting with you.”
Bones cracked as he shifted forms. David straightened and instantly reached out to grip my upper arms. “Don’t, fucking argue with me now. Get in there.”
“David—” My words got cut off when he grabbed my face and smashed his lips on mine. The kiss ended too soon.
“I love you,” he whispered.
He stepped back and bent to grip the latch. I hesitated but with a firm push from him, I had no choice but to climb down the steps. I glanced up when he slammed it shut again. I sucked in a breath and then continued down the stairs.
There was a door at the end of the staircase. To my surprise, it was unlocked. I pushed it open and entered the room. My eyes widened when I came face to face with five women holding guns pointed right at me. They made no move to lower them. Were they going to kill me because they thought I had abandoned them? Swallowing, I turned around and closed the door. Devon had told me that turning your back on someone was a sign of trust.
After I made sure that the locks were in place, I turned back around again. They had lowered the guns but they continued to stare at me with wide eyes. My lips twitched.
“Hi.” I gave them a small wave. “Are you all okay?”
“Alpha David said that you ran away,” someone spoke up from behind the woman.
My smile faded. “Yeah.” I glanced around. “They wanted me and David and Devon refused to give me up. After the house was set on fire we found another note. David came up with a plan to stop the war, but as you can tell, it didn’t work.”
“What type of plan?” the woman right in front of me asked softly.
Telling them the plan would make the traitor aware that we knew about him or her. It would give them a chance to run before we even knew who it was and why he informed the enemy. I couldn’t do that.
“We will explain all this later. Right now we have other things to worry about.” I stepped away from the door and glanced around. “Has everybody made it here safely?”
“Yes. Alpha David ordered us to come here before he left.”
“Good.”
The silence was killing me. We couldn’t hear anything happening outside. I glanced around and then back at the door. Some teens were entertaining the younger kids. Women sat in small groups of four talking quietly. My stomach grumbled but I ignored it. According to my body, I was hungry, but I wouldn’t be able to eat a thing. Worry ate at me.
Had Wrin untied Devon when the alarms went off? Was he still tied up and unable to help his pack fight? What if someone had managed to enter the house and he was still helplessly tied up? I couldn’t just stand back and allow them to fight. I needed to help them. This happened because of me so I needed to fix it.
A loud thud suddenly filled the room. Silence descended. I slowly turned towards the door. There was another thud. A dent appeared right above the lock. The thick wooden bars hadn’t been placed over the door like they had been instructed to do.
My aunt mentioned making friends. If Carl had come for me then he would be searching the house. He would want to get me to lower the risk of getting himself killed. But we had no clue how many men he had with him. The first time we attacked, hunters had joined forces with the rogues. All the hunters were humans.
Judging by the dents appearing, they were using something to try and break the door open. Whoever it was wasn’t strong enough to do it themselves. I sucked in a breath, but all I could smell was dirt and blood.
My eyes dropped down my body. Aunt’s blood covered my hands and shirt. With my mind made up, I glanced towards the teens huddled in one corner. My eyes darted over every one of them until they landed on a girl wearing a tank-top. We were similar in build and size. I hurried over and pointed a finger at her.
“Give me your shirt,” I demanded. “Please.”
“W-what?” she stuttered.
“Give me your shirt.” I gripped the hem of the shirt and pulled it over my head. “Hurry!”
She jerked. For a second I felt bad for yelling at her but it faded when there was another thud. Her green eyes darted around. I followed her gaze and realized that a lot of the boys were staring at me.
“Turn around,” I ordered them. “Now!”
The moment they had turned their backs, I held my hand out. She hesitantly pulled the shirt over her head and held it out to me. I muttered another thanks as she placed it in my hand. I was about to hand her my shirt when I remembered that my scent probably clung to it. It could put her in danger.
“Any of you boys willing to give up your shirt for her?” I asked as I slipped the crop-top over my head.
“I will.”
After the girl was dressed again, I turned to face the rest of the women. They watched me silently. The children were too close to the door. Any second now they would break through that door. The wooden bars would keep them from entering, but that would only make them search for another place to enter.
“How many of you can fight?”
“In shifted form?”
I shrugged. “Shifted or your human form.”
They all stepped forward. There were about a dozen women and a few of the teens too. The urge to tell the teens to back down was strong, but I knew they wanted to help. They had been taught and knew the basics.
“All of you who can’t fight, move to the back. I want the children behind you and as far away from the door as possible,” I ordered. “Those of you who can fight, you stand guard in front of them.”
I caught some looks they threw at each other as they moved into position. A low growl fell from my lips, making their eyes snap over to me in surprise.
“There is no time for hatred or dislike or whatever the hell you feel for each other. This is a war. You put your feelings for each other aside and you stand together. You protect, you fight and you do it with honor. Is that clear?”
They nodded. I waited until everyone was in position before I took my place in the front. I rolled my shoulders and raised my chin. Claws slid from my fingertips when there was a click and the door slowly open. The stench of human sweat instantly filled my nostrils. My lips twitched.
I smelt two men at least.
The moment the first man stepped around the corner, I attacked. Blood splattered as my claws sliced through his skin. A scream fell from his lips. The man stumbled backward after pushing me away from him. I spun around to face the second man who entered. He froze in the doorway and stared at the man on the floor clutching his neck. Slowly his eyes rose to mine, I smirked.
“Hi.” I gave him a little wave. “Are you lost?”
His mouth opened and closed. The man looked confused, making my smile widened. It took a few seconds for him to snap out of it. He raised his arm and pointed the gun at me. It was his turn to smirk, but it didn’t last long because I kicked the gun from his hand. It slid across the floor and came to a stop against the wall.
“What the fuck?” the man spluttered. “He said you’re human.”
“Mm, that’s what they all say.”
“Dead or alive,” he muttered under his breath.
He charged, pulling knives from behind his back. I dodged and moved backward. For a moment I almost reached for the knives strapped to my body. Why would I need those if I had claws? I stumbled over something but quickly regained my balance. The blade sliced the skin of my lower stomach. I gasped and reached down to press a hand against my stomach.
The man smirked and raised the knife to glance down at the tip that had connected with my skin. He muttered something under his breath before turning around. It was the biggest mistake he could’ve made. I jumped onto his back and gripped his head. One twist and a loud crack before his body tilted forward. I jumped again and landed a few feet away. His body hit the ground with a loud thud.
Slowly straightening, my attention focused on the first man. He was struggling to pull something out of his pocket. Tilting my head to the side, I studied him. He was dressed in all black with a vest covering his upper body, black boots ended just about his ankles. He had guns strapped to his legs and hips.
I glanced back at his neck where the blood was still pouring out from the wound. He’ll be dead soon. His eyes widened when I took a step towards him. My lips twitched. I paused next to him and slowly crouched. My eyes dropped to his hand again.
“What are you reaching for hunter?”
The next second he whipped a gun out and pointed it at me. Pain shot through my arm, making my eyes snap down. I stared at the dart sticking out of my skin for a second before reaching up to pull it out. Raising it to my nose, I sniffed and then dropped it down to the floor. His finger moved to press the trigger again, but I was faster than him.
I ripped the gun out of his hand. His scream made me wince. Gripping his arm, I dug my claws into his skin and leaned closer.
“How many of you are out there?” My claws slid deeper when he didn’t answer me.
“S-stop p-please,” he breathed. “I’ll d-do a-anything.”
“Start talking. How many?”
“T-thirty f-four hunters.”
“And the rogues?”
He licked his lips as his eyes darted down. “I d-don’t k-know. Our order was to get y-you and leave. W-we weren’t informed about the number of rogues.”
I gave him a small smile. “Good.”
With a twist of his neck, his body slumped to the side. Thirty-four, I paused, no make that thirty-two hunters and an unknown number of rogues. There could be less since we’ve been in here for a while. I straightened and stepped away from the man. My eyes darted to the slightly open door. I was putting the children in danger by staying down here.
“Lock the door when I leave. Make sure you stay alert. You don’t open this door to anyone but me. Understood?”
I turned to find them all staring at me with wide eyes. My smile widened. It was good to know that I was the cause of their shocked state. I ignored their stares and bent to grab hold of the man’s ankles. A grunt fell from my lips when I started pulling him to the corner. When both of the dead bodies were moved, I made my way back towards the door.
“Luna?” I paused and glanced at the woman who had stepped forward. “It will be better for you to stay here with us.”
“If I stay more men will come.” I glanced at the woman before looking back at her. “Staying will put you all at risk. Stay here and protect them. Don’t let them go anywhere near those men—especially their weapons.”
I exit and pulled the door closed behind me. The lock instantly slid in place. I waited until I heard them slide the wooden bars in place before I turned and hurried up the steps. Fear filled me. It was a weakness and I wasn’t a weakling.