23- Blood and Moonlight
POV Edric Eldoria:
I smelled the first one. They reeked of moss and stone, unmistakably marking the pack they belonged to.
I waited behind a tree, silent, biding my time as they pushed farther into my territory. Rage crackled through me, radiating with such force that I could barely contain it. I was furious they had the audacity to trespass here, showing complete disrespect to me. And worse, they were here because of Lunara.
I still hadn’t formed an opinion about her. I couldn’t understand how I had lost control. That had never happened before—not once in my three hundred and thirty-eight years.
The first wolf came into my line of sight. I inhaled deeply, taking in his scent. An alpha.
In one swift motion, I extended my claws, slashing his throat. I felt the impact as his flesh tore apart. Hot blood sprayed over me, soaking my clothes and spattering across my face.
He looked at me with dark, terrified eyes. I growled, baring my fangs.
He hadn’t expected the attack. They should have smelled the pack, but they had no idea what awaited them. They had come for Lunara. They had walked in blind, without studying the territory—and they would leave dead.
Another growled to my right and leapt at me. I dodged easily, seizing his head and sinking my teeth into the vein in his neck, ripping away a generous piece of flesh before snapping his spine.
I spat the blood onto the ground and flung his body aside. If they knew just how enraged their attack had made me, they would have fled far, far away.
I could feel everything the she-wolf felt—every emotion she had. And it only intensified when we were near each other. I saw how she felt fear, panic, and sorrow. I hated this bond. I hated feeling what she felt.
Another wolf crossed my path. I grabbed him by the throat, digging my claws into his flesh. With one hand on his shoulder, I yanked his head in the opposite direction. His skin ripped, along with muscle and ligaments, blood spurting everywhere—over his body, over me, dripping onto the brittle leaves covering the ground. Then came the sharp, dry crack of his bones breaking, cutting through the silence, until his head was no longer attached to his body. I hurled it against a tree trunk and growled.
Their blood drenched my clothes, my hair, my skin. And it brought me a strange satisfaction. The pungent stench of death floated into my nose, saturating the air.
Footsteps sounded to my right. I whirled, ready to kill more of them.
Andrei emerged, his dark skin smeared with dirt and blood. He arched one black eyebrow.
“And you said you weren’t angry,” he mocked, rubbing his forearms and brushing off a few leaves stuck to the rolled sleeves of his dark shirt.
I cracked my neck from side to side, easing the tension in my shoulders.
“I don’t like my territory being invaded.”
“And the girl?” Anton asked, stepping out from the shadow of a tree. The silver moonlight gleamed across his filthy pale face.
“Locked in my house,” I announced, running a hand through my hair.
“How many were there?”
“Eight. Not counting the one who ran as soon as the slaughter began.”
I clenched my teeth, gums aching as my fangs lengthened.
“I hope next time their alpha comes in person.”
I would take the greatest pleasure in ripping out his heart and shoving it down his throat.
Anton raised a blond eyebrow.
“All this because of Lunara?”
“All this because he invaded my territory, and I will not tolerate such an offense.”
I stepped out of the pool of blood at my feet, leaves sticking to my skin. I scanned the area, eyeing the bodies of the wolves.
“Bury them. Anywhere. I don’t care where, just get them out of my sight,” I snarled, fighting the urge to tear them apart one by one.
To invade an alpha’s space without permission was one of the gravest insults. It meant they had no fear and no respect for the leader. My pride was wounded, and I was at the height of my fury.
“Any dignity for them?” Andrei asked.
In our pack, we usually burned the bodies of the dead after the wake. It was a way of giving the deceased a chance to reach the valley of the dead. At least, that’s what I, my pack, and a few others believed. Not all followed this custom.
“None,” I replied coldly.
They would never reach the valley. Their existences had ended for good, no afterlife awaiting them.
“And what do we do next?” Anton asked.
I closed my eyes, inhaling deeply.
“I must inform the Elders and the other alphas of my current situation. The meeting will be in two days, as you know.”
“And after that?” he pressed.
I shook my head, with no answer to give.
“After that, things stay as they are. I can’t get rid of Lunara.”
“I just wish I understood how this even happened,” he muttered.
I let out a laugh.
“Well, so do I.”
Andrei moved, dragging the headless body across the forest by one leg.
“Standing here with unanswered questions won’t help. Let’s bury these bastards and get some sleep,” he said, picking up the severed head near the tree trunk.
Anton nodded in agreement, heading in another direction to gather another body.
I turned on my heels, ready to help them with the task, when I felt something stir in my chest. It took me less than a second to recognize it.
Lunara.
Heat spread inside me, growing stronger. I lifted my face, sniffing the air, ignoring the stench of blood.
Dew and wild jasmine.
I pinched the bridge of my nose, letting out a low growl.
“What is it?” Anton asked.
I shook my head.
“I need to deal with something,” I warned, striding off with heavy steps.
Somehow, I knew exactly where she was—the precise direction and distance. She wasn’t projecting anything, as if trying to keep her emotions under control.
Clever little wolf.
My feet crunched the fallen leaves as I stalked toward her. I quickened my pace as I felt her moving farther away, running from me.
A smile tugged at my lips.
I inhaled deeply, swallowing her scent, and veered right, breaking into a run. Lunara would feel my presence—she knew I was coming. She could no longer hide her emotions, and the taste of her panic tingled on my tongue.
She was engaged. Engaged to a damned psychopath who hunted her. And that was just one of the many problems I had to face. If that bastard laid a hand on her and killed her, I would die too.
I had heard of the Eastern packs. Old-fashioned, backward, and their alphas—two complete bastards. I did no business with them. Aldren did, though—selling them heat suppressants, even after killing some of theirs, tearing the head off one of their couriers who tried to rob him.