Chapter 18 NIGHT HUNTER
RAY’ POV
"Lockdown. Now."
My voice cuts through the chaos erupting in the packhouse courtyard. Wolves freeze mid-motion, all eyes turning to me. Some with trust. Others with doubt.
Too many with doubt.
"You heard your Alpha." Monty's already moving, years of training kicking in. "Perimeter guards, double shifts. Scouts, eyes on every approach. Everyone else, defensive positions."
The pack scrambles to obey, but I can feel the resistance underneath their compliance. The whispers that have been spreading since Alicia arrived are louder now, bolder.
Halfblood.
Abomination.
Corrupted.
Cosmos, one of my senior warriors, steps forward. His expression is carefully neutral, but I can read the challenge in his stance. "Alpha, with all due respect, is this wise?"
"Which part?" I don't have time for politics, but I can't ignore dissent either. Not when we're about to be attacked.
"Risking the entire pack to protect..." He hesitates, choosing his words carefully. "...her."
The temperature in the courtyard drops. Several wolves shift uncomfortably. Others nod in agreement.
I cross the distance between us, getting in Cosmos’ face. "Say it. Finish that sentence."
He doesn't back down. "She's Vincent Rowe's daughter. Blood Moon through and through. And now we learn she's not even his biological child, she's the product of an affair with your father." His voice rises slightly. "A corrupted bond that's killing you both. Four mates when one is tradition. And her own brother is leading an army to kill her." He meets my eyes. "Why are we protecting someone who brings nothing but chaos?"
Growls of agreement ripple through some of the gathered wolves.
My Alpha authority surges, hot and demanding. I could crush Cosmos with a single command. Make him submit. Make them all submit.
But that's not leadership. That's tyranny.
"You want to know why?" I keep my voice level, dangerous. "Because she's my mate. Because she didn't choose this situation any more than we did. Because she's being hunted by her own family for secrets she doesn't even know." I let my gaze sweep the crowd. "And because if we turn our backs on someone who needs protection, we're no better than the wolves trying to kill her."
"She's an outsider!"
"She's mine." The words come out as a growl. "And anyone who has a problem with that can challenge me right now. Here. In front of everyone."
Cosmos’s jaw clenches. He's not stupid enough to challenge an Alpha in his prime, especially not with a fight coming. But the resentment doesn't fade from his eyes.
"I'll defend my Alpha's choice," he says finally. The words are correct, but the tone suggests otherwise.
"Good." I step back, addressing the whole pack now. "Jake Rowe is coming with Blood Moon warriors and possibly allies we don't know about yet. They want Alicia dead. They get through us first." I let that sink in. "Defensive positions. Protect the territory. Protect each other. And protect her."
Most of the wolves move to obey. A few still hesitate, exchanging glances.
I don't have time to deal with every doubter. Jake's howl from the forest was close, less than a mile out. We have maybe fifteen minutes before they hit us.
Kai appears at my side, already shifted back to human. Blood still stains his hands from the warriors he killed earlier. "East perimeter is weak. Only three guards."
"Pull from the south. Cosmos, take six warriors and reinforce the east side."
Cosmos nods stiffly and moves off with his chosen wolves.
Logan limps over, still recovering despite Alicia's healing. "Where do you want me?"
"With her." I jerk my head toward the packhouse. "Inside. Last line of defense if they breach."
"I can fight."
"You can barely stand." I grip his shoulder, not unkindly. "And you're the one Jake specifically targeted. He wants you dead, which means you're staying close to Alicia where we can protect you both."
Logan looks like he wants to argue but finally nods. "Understood."
Monty returns from organizing the scouts. "Perimeter's set. We've got eyes on every approach." He pauses. "Ray, about the pack's reaction…"
"Deal with it later." I can't think about internal politics when external enemies are at our door. "Right now, I need you coordinating from the command post. You see the battle better than anyone."
"Where will you be?"
"Front line." Exactly where an Alpha should be when his territory is attacked. "With Kai."
Speaking of…Kai's already shifting again, silver-white fur rippling as his wolf takes over. He's larger than my wolf, faster, deadlier. And right now, I'm grateful he's on our side.
I shift too, feeling my bones reshape, muscles reconfigure. The world sharpens into scent and sound and instinct. My dark wolf pads forward, and Kai falls into step beside me.
Together, we move toward the northern border where Jake's howl originated.
The forest is quiet. Too quiet. Every wolf in my pack feels it, the unnatural silence before violence erupts.
Through the pack bonds, I feel my wolves taking position. Thirty fighters total. Not a large pack, but well-trained and loyal.
Mostly loyal, a bitter voice whispers. Marcus's challenge still stings.
Movement in the trees ahead. Multiple shapes, moving fast.
Here they come.
Jake bursts from the forest first, his dark brown wolf larger than I remembered. Behind him there were at least twenty wolves. Blood Moon warriors all of them, with a few rogues mixed in.
We're outnumbered.
My wolf snarls challenge. Jake's answering howl is pure aggression.
Then they charge.
The two forces collide in a explosion of fur and teeth and blood. Kai tears into three wolves simultaneously, moving like water through their defenses. My own wolf takes down a Blood Moon warrior, claws raking across his throat.
Around us, chaos. Wolves fighting in pairs, in groups, savage and desperate. The scent of blood and fear and rage thick enough to choke on.
I spot Jake circling toward the packhouse. Toward Alicia.
Not happening.
I leap over two fighting wolves and intercept him. We collide mid-air, a tangle of snapping jaws and slashing claws. He's strong, stronger than he should be. And there's something in his eyes that wasn't there before. Something cold and calculating and utterly ruthless.
He fights like he's trying to kill me. Not just win. Kill.
We roll across the ground, each trying for a throat hold. His teeth catch my shoulder, tearing deep. I felt the pain, hot and immediate.
I throw him off, panting. Blood runs down my leg from where his claws scored across my ribs.