“There’s no point pondering on the how… that won’t give you the right mindset to get through it.” Carmen’s voice startles us from out of nowhere. Strong and clear with that bitchy tone that separates her from other femmes. We both turn in shock at the presence that has been elusive for days, expecting to see a moody and frosty Carmen, but she looks awful though.
Dark circles under her eyes where normally her skin was fair and blemish free; her figure is slimmer, like she’s not eating well, and she has a pale pallor and tiredness to her eyes that suggest she isn’t sleeping either. I never saw her this way, not even back when Colton and she were falling apart, and it shocks me to my core to see her so unkempt. All her life and vigor are missing.
“True.” I concur, not drawing attention to how rough she looks and welcome her with a gesture, a flick of my fingers to come over and join us.
“How have you been, Chica?” Meadow is the one to ask, softer with her since Jasper rejected her that day and Carmen shrugs, dismissing it with a sigh. Another non answer that she’s so good at. She moves nearer but doesn’t sit down on the grass with us, just lingers as though she feels like she’s invading. My heart aches for this girl anytime I see her now, and I wish she would trust even me enough to let someone close. After those days away, I thought we would have at least taken a step forward as friends. All she did upon return was push everyone further away and killed any progress I thought I might have made with her.
“Raring to go beat the shit out of vampire ass and teach those witches a thing or two.” Her tone is familiar old haughty Carmen but the intent behind it seems forced. She gives of an aura of emptiness, and I frown at her, trying so hard to get a read properly on her emotions but get that cold wall again.
“Sure, you’re up to it?” I query, not entirely convinced she has it in her to be helpful but her stubborn jut of her chin and the way she pulls her shoulders back speaks volumes.
“Yes! How else am I going to vent all this rage and fury to get it out of my system? Those monsters took my mom…. I have a score to settle and I’m sorry, I know they’re also kind of your people, but your brother is right. You have to avenge those you love, or it festers, and it no longer matters if people you care about are connected in some way.” There’s an icy edge to her words that sobers the mood.
Meadow catches my eye over the top of her head, a worried glance at Carmen’s mental state but I one shoulder shrug it off. I know what she means and how she feels. She’s hurting, and much like Jasper, she feels that only taking some action against the cause of that pain will ease some of hers. She’s not unstable, she’s angry, and broken up, and looking to find a way to offload the horrendous number of feelings coursing through her.
And no, I don’t care if I’m meant to be half of what those things are. In my head I already separated that issue out and concluded why killing them has never really been an issue at all. Darrius called them halflings, turned creatures with no real link to those born like we are. They’re not what I am at all… they’re like lab rats, injected with a booster to make them worthy as soldiers and a pale copy of something they were never meant to be. The ones like me, with red eyes, they have never graced the battlefield and come up against the wolves. Well, except one – my father. Wherever he is. So, killing the halflings is nothing at all like killing the ones who share my blood, because they were infected and not created in nature.
“I don’t care how many you kill; god knows we have ended many these past months. I’m not one of them and I understand your need to do this.” It’s a blessing in a way and I lock my eyes on her to push the point that I truly don’t care.
“We should leave at first light… the vampires will have retraced to the mountain to avoid the sun, and we’ve seen the wolves pull back to sleep at night, so they will be surfacing only just. That means we can get halfway to the mountain before we encounter them and less distance to fight while Leyanne gets the rest of the way.” Carmen is obviously someone who has been thinking this through too, and I listen and take in what she says as Meadow nods. Impressed that despite being absent, she is worthy of adding her own input and summarizing things.
“That makes sense. Instead of fighting from the first step, we make a run for it straight to the mountain in the tiny time gap we have open. If we’re lucky, we distract them around the base while Leyanne gets in with the ones needed to distract the vampires. Cuts down the time we need to keep fighting against our own and minimizes failure.”
“Is the plan… split us in two and take a species each to distract so the witch can go alone?” Carmen finally nestles into the grass and mimics Meadow’s habit of ripping out strands of grass while thinking. I know it’s such a tiny movement and insignificant, but by merely sitting down with us, getting on our level, it warms my heart and makes me want to hug her. That step to come closer and be involved again, like she was when we went looking for Leyanne. It’s so stupid to get emotional over it but I do, and I blink at her as my eyes mist over and try to conceal it. Damn hormones, from these two minis inside me are making me soft.
“It’s the only plan we have. She needs to focus her powers on witches and spells. Not keeping vampires and wolves at bay.” Meadow answers her while I pull myself back to normal. Realizing a lot of my ups and downs these past weeks are probably a lot to do with being pregnant before I knew I was.
“So, two dozen of us, several dozen of our pack to get through, and probably the same number of vamps… wow, we’re really making life easy.” Carmen tries to joke with that heavy sarcastic way she has but it’s the reality and it’s depressing. All things are weighed against us.
“Wolves will kill wolves, you know this?” Meadow brings us all back to somber with her words and we all lower our eyes to the grass as I slump down onto my butt away from aching calves. No one has wanted to talk about this, even though it’s been hanging in the air since we knew we had to go out there, but we can’t keep ignoring it. The ones enchanted will fight to kill, we know this, while our own, they’ll fight to keep them at bay and hope that the spell breaks before someone dies. We don’t want to hurt our pack, we love them and know this isn’t their fault, but they don’t have any reason to restrain themselves against us. To them, we’re enemies they don’t know but only hate.
More Kickass Werewolf Reads
Dive into our collection of free werewolf romance novels—where fierce Alphas, daring heroines, and heart-stopping twists await. Every story burns with forbidden desire, loyalty, and destiny. Don’t wait—here’s a world where love bites hard and nothing is stronger than the call of the mate.
Leave a Reply