“How are you and Hunter feeling?”
She looked at Doc, not blinking. “Better now that we’ve been to the shadow lands to purge.”
Doc nodded. That’s all that she needed to know; he’d gotten her unspoken message.
“Maybe later Hunter can go with you on a spirit walk,” Sasha said, now looking at their clan elder.
“Yes…” Silver Hawk said in a faraway voice. “I am a man of reason and of peace.” He thrust the gun at her, presenting it in a lateral move. “Take this. I don’t know what has come over me.”
Sasha immediately took the gun and turned to face Shogun’s wary lieutenants. “Meds have arrived with an armed escort to be sure they weren’t hijacked. We’ve experienced that before.”
She waited and watched the Werewolves try to decipher the truth from the bit of yeast she added to it for peace. They had been hijacked before for antitoxin, and after a moment they accepted her rationale for the silver-slug-loaded shotgun coming through the door. Besides, what else could they do? She was a military-lab- made member of the Shadow Wolf Clan and didn’t own an aura with a silver lining, so whatever she said would have to be taken at face value.
The thought gave her pause as she walked forward with Silver Hawk, Doc bringing up her rear. That meant she was inscrutable to even Hunter… deep. She was scaring herself and shook the inappropriate thought as she leaped up on the stage and helped Doc up with a hard pull.
“My suggestion is that they take him out on a gurney to get the meds in him while not in this spell hot zone.” Sasha looked around at the men assembled. “He’ll need fluids-an IV hookup, maybe even oxygen-and he could even go into cardiac arrest, so the back of the ambulance, where they have a defibrillator and all the necessary elements of a crash cart, is the safest place for him. Once he stabilizes, we can transfer him to a room at Dugan’s old B &B… Without nurse Margaret there at Tulane, it could be risky to have him where humans could screw up his treatment-or be in harm’s way if something goes haywire.”
“If he dies, you die,” Seung Kwon said, staring at Sasha.
“How many times have I told you that if you address her out of order, it will be your ass, beta!” Huge canines ripped though Hunter’s gums, his wolf seconds from emerging.
Sasha raised the shotgun and fired it toward the ceiling. “Safe haven!”
The Werewolves surrounding Shogun hesitated. Hunter walked off the adrenaline rush, pacing. Silver Hawk’s lips circled into a snarl while Doc balled his fist at his sides, ready to fight to his death.
“Two things, Seung Kwon-one, you are delaying a healing and you
The door opened, causing everyone’s attention to train on the new potential threat. Woods and Fisher stood in the arc of waning sunlight, bearing M-16s.
“What the lady said, motherfucker,” Woods shouted, spitting on the floor.
“Which one you got a problem with, Captain?” Fisher said, brandishing a weapon as Bear Shadow and Crow Shadow blotted out the sun behind them.
“It’s all good,” Sasha said, turning back to Seung Kwon. “Isn’t it?”
Seung Kwon begrudgingly nodded and held both hands up in front of his chest. “As the lady suggests, all is well.”
“Get that man on a livery,” Hunter ordered, walking away from Seung Kwon. “I want you-Bear and Crow-on their asses. Everybody stays cool while we work on my brother.” He looked at Woods and Fisher, giving them a nod of respect. “Familiars, good job. Back up my men.”
“Roger that,” Woods said, spitting again and walking forward to take a defensive position.
Sasha glimpsed Silver Hawk from the corner of her eye and could see another haphazardly parked jeep through the window. “Woods… tell ’Rissa, Bradley, and Winters to get word to the local Fae-I don’t want them near a flreflght, if one goes down. They need to regroup back at the B &B and stay put-have them focus on research.”
“Yes, sir,” he called back to her with a salute.
But she turned to Hunter, catching his line of vision and holding it. “I think I should do this healing… Silver Hawk may get more intel and clarity behind Shadow lines, you understand?”
“I’m not leaving you here with them,” Hunter said, snarling in the direction of Shogun’s men. “They’re unstable and could rush you.”
“Me and Doc are getting into the ambulance with Shogun… only a medical team.” She held his gaze, pleading with her eyes. Hunter was affected, and yet it was because of that that she needed to allow him to be in his full alpha glory. He had to be able to save face and still seem in control of the group.
“I don’t like it.” Hunter rolled his shoulders.
She went to him and embraced him, taking his mouth. “Safe haven,” she murmured. “Remember?”
He stared at her for a few moments. “Safe haven,” he repeated quietly after a long pause. “But what if he comes out of the transformation in battle mode or something… I don’t want you to be vulnerable.”
“Does he look like a man who can come out of a transformation ready for war, or does he look broken and in need of serious healing?” She kissed Hunter again, this time a slow and tender kiss. “I will be fine; we will be fine. Let me get this man medical attention while you purge your grandfather in the shadow lands… and maybe you can spirit walk as one to gather clues. We have to move-I just fired a shotgun in a commercial district. NOPD will be here soon, which will only complicate things.”
It took a moment but finally Hunter nodded. He glanced around as he released his hold on her and then began barking out commands as his gaze slowly roved from his men to Shogun’s.
“I want these men in your sights at all times. My mate is a practiced healer. She and Dr. Holland have been well versed in restoring botched transformations. They and only they are going to go in the ambulance with Shogun. We will all regroup back at the old Dugan B &B once we have clearance from Sasha to do so.”
Hunter’s gaze locked with Seung Kwon’s in an open challenge that made the lesser-ranked wolf look away. “If anything happens to Sasha or her father, her familiars, or any of her humans while I am in the shadow lands with my grandfather to seek spiritual clues, I will hunt you down and slowly dismember you until even your own mothers won’t recognize your remains.”
“My castle is in shambles! When Sasha brings her clan here, I want everything to be perfect for her! What about my orders do you not understand?” Sir Rodney swept away the long pole strung with freshly hunted quail, sending it crashing to the floor amid his bewildered kitchen staff. “She is a Shadow Wolf! I want the finest cuts of wild game
He then turned to the other members of his beleaguered staff. “This castle must be face-lifted so that she only receives the greatest comfort! Goose down and silk should grace her bed; I want Faerie dust covering everything to keep her in a state of constant euphoria! Nothing can be left to chance, and if she goes wanting for anything I will hold you all personally responsible.”
“As you wish, milord,” his patient valet of more than a century announced with a deep bow. “Shall I prepare a comparable suite for her husband… or would you want me to-”
“Her husband! Her husband?” Sir Rodney shouted, making the staff lower their heads in fear. “She is not married! Where did you get a preposterous idea like that, Rupert?”
The valet watched his master begin to pace and he spoke slowly, calmly, and in an extremely patient tone. “Milord… according to Shadow Wolf custom and culture, they mate for life. It is a bond that is unshakable, unless there is a formal hearing and cause for the dissolution of the union. So, please forgive me for using the incorrect terminology when referring to our guests of honor. I should have said
