nipping and growling, and was up on my toes. I circled Stuart, trying to figure out the best move to end this quickly, when a soft flutter hit my brain.
It immediately intensified and I waited, circling more. But nothing but dead space came through. I pushed out. Dad?
Nothing.
I pushed out again. Tyler?
Jessica! Thank gods! Tyler screamed. I’ve been trying to get through for the last twenty minutes. We’re almost to you; we were a lot closer than I’d thought. Your scent is all over the place down here, even with the fucking sulfur shit plugging our noses. We’ve all changed already. I can smell the goddamn Southern wolves too. I felt his energy and his speed as he ran. My brother could run twice as fast as any other wolf. He would be here in a moment.
Tyler, the wolves aren’t Southe— I lost the connection as Stuart leapt, my brain switching back to full fight mode, slamming the door on all other thoughts. I gave a hoarse shout and threw my weight at Stuart’s oncoming body. We clashed in the middle. He gave a strangled yell as my claws tore into his neck, slashing at his jugular. I was more than ready to be done with him. “I’m finished playing with you, Stuart. It’s time for you to die.”
He staggered back, his hands grasping at his throat, trying in vain to stanch the wound. His mouth moved but produced no sound.
“It’s too bad you won’t be here to see your New Kids get annihilated.” I walked up to him as he fell to his knees. “Yep, that’s right. The Northern wolves—my Pack—are on their way up the hill right now. These wolves here don’t stand a chance. I don’t care where you dug them up from, they’re all going to die.”
Stuart clutched his neck with both hands, blood flowing freely down his shirt. I crouched next to him. “Was it worth it, Stuart?” I rasped. “Was betraying your Pack and everything you stood for worth an ending like this?”
Something lit in his eyes and he dropped both hands to his sides, blood racing from his throat. The side of his mouth went up in a half-crazed smile as he struggled to find words. “You … ack … are going to die … bitch.” His teeth were stained a dark red. He tried to laugh but fell short, instead he coughed up more blood. “You … have no idea … ack … what’s … waiting for you. You are … the true daughter of … Cain …”
A slashed jugular wasn’t enough to kill him, but this would be. With a scream, my wolf slid into the driver’s seat and my hand shot out like a lance. She tore the rest of this throat out in one swift motion, spine and all. He collapsed in a heap at my feet.
We were both so focused on the now dead Stuart that neither of us processed the other snarls.
A roar of fury erupted. “Jessica! Fight!” Rourke raced toward me at full speed. Valdov stood just behind him wearing a wicked grin, seemingly no worse off than he’d been before.
The wolves, who’d crept in closer while I’d watched Stuart die, shifted their attention for a brief second on the new threat barreling straight at them. A few of them turned, choosing their aggressor over their prey.
But most stayed completely focused on me.
This was going to be a Pack attack.
The lesser wolves would wait for the most dominant to spring first, and then they would all gleefully join in the fun of tearing me to pieces.
Rourke reached the first wolf in the circle, picked him up like he weighed nothing, and tossed him away like a bag of garbage. He was moving toward another when a loud crashing noise sounded from the woods behind us.
The wolves halted their forward progression, lifting their heads in unison, scenting the new threat.
Tyler launched himself into the clearing like a missile fired from a cannon.
He was beautifully powerful in his wolf form, and more than a foot taller than any of the wolves around us. His face was set in a gruesome snarl, his eyes flashing with an eerie menace promising swift retribution. There was a reason he was an unparalleled fighter. Few wolves were his equal. By the change in scent around me, every one of them knew it too.
Tyler tossed his head and gave a terrifying howl.
Within moments, our other Pack wolves returned his song. By the sound of it, they were only a short distance away.
The cavalry had officially arrived.
The wolves around me snapped and snarled, furious at the sudden intrusion. One of them lunged forward, his teeth latching on to my arm. His fangs sank deeply into my flesh. I’d been half hoping they’d all run with their tails between their legs when my brother had arrived in all his glory, but by the looks of the teeth embedded in my arm, they clearly weren’t going to be easily swayed from their target.
I twisted my body, dragging the wolf along with me, my Lycan form incredibly strong, grabbing on to its scruff with my other hand so my arm didn’t get shredded, and flung it straight into another oncoming wolf who was vying for a piece of me.
My arm was torn and bleeding, but more sweet energy raced through me, dispelling the pain quickly. My body rushed to fix the damage, and I was grateful.
Rourke was three feet from me, fighting the other wolves in the circle. “Is that all you got?” he roared again as he grabbed another wolf by his throat, cracking its neck with more physical power than I’d ever seen a supernatural being possess without changing. “You will not fuck with me or mine! Do you hear me?” He shook the wolf and tossed it away.
I lowered my body into a fighting stance, putting my back to Rourke’s. A savage growl rent the air from somewhere above me and I tilted my head to catch Tyler as he crashed down onto the pile of wolves in front of me, scattering them as effectively as if he’d dropped a load of dynamite. He grabbed the nearest one in his jaws and gave a powerful snap.
Two wolves inched in around him, and advanced toward me intent on harm. They saw their opportunity and they weren’t going to miss it. We got this, I told my wolf. She happily agreed. No need for the boys to have all the fun.
They both vaulted at the same time, springing in tandem.
I flicked the switch in my mind, handing the reins to my wolf. She howled once and sent us to the ground, skillfully turning and lashing in a motion I couldn’t track in my human mind. Thank goodness, you’re in charge. The two were back on us in a flurry of motion. I shot my fists out, grabbing them both by the throats before they could sink their teeth into my neck. My arms were strong—stronger than they should be—and I marveled for a moment. This really shouldn’t be this easy. I was holding back two rabid wolves, one in each hand.
Am I stronger than yesterday? No time to ponder.
Before I could reposition myself, one of them flew backward out of my grasp. It yelped once before its voice abruptly cut off. A moment later the other went in the opposite direction. I stared up to find a furious Rourke, eyes so green they appeared like pools of glowing phosphorus.
He stared down at me, scanning my body for damage.
A thin coat of fur had erupted along his arms, and his nails were curled into sharp hooks, but other than that he hadn’t changed. His control was astounding. His muscles literally bounced under his skin as he reached down to pull me up. I grabbed on to his extended hand and noticed the beautiful tattoos covering his forearms had melded perfectly into the patterns of his fur.
His eyes met mine and my heart leapt into my throat. Warrior of Old. Without a doubt, it was true. What was he? “What are you?” I breathed.
He looked at me curiously and I realized he was seeing me for the first time in my Lycan form. Surprise crept along his features, but we didn’t have time to discuss it. “I’m yours,” he said simply.
I didn’t push it, because there was a new commotion in the woods and my fur jumped to attention, this time in happy relief. The four vampires, who had watched the fight but had never participated, took off in a single whoosh, leaving Valdov standing alone.
My father’s eyes blazed a blinding amethyst, looking starkly dangerous against the jet black of his fur as he thundered across the clearing in all his glory. He was so dark he absorbed everything around him.
Nine of his wolves, including James, spread in a V just behind him, all of them terrifyingly beautiful in their true forms. Some of the New Order wolves, or whatever they called themselves, crept slowly back into the shadows, obviously unprepared or unwilling to take on this new threat. Tyler growled and snapped at the retreating wolves, but held still, awaiting the next command of his Alpha.
