The semi-intelligent beast then did something I didn’t expect. It used the smoke for cover and fled.
Except it didn’t run deeper into the forest. It made a beeline for the forest’s edge.
For Sylvie.
Fear for her well-being poured through me as I tore off after the misshapen beast. Dirt flew up in great clods torn free by my claws as I closed the gap step by step. The Chained was not going to get her. Not this time, not ever.
I could see it now, up ahead, darting around rocks and over fallen trunks. I splashed through a puddle, and thorns tore atmy hide as I burst through a clump of bushes in a straight line, gaining ground.
The single-mindedness of the monster was its undoing. It never looked back, never tried to evade. I took it down ten feet short of the edge of the forest. My jaws closed over what used to be its head, and with a mighty whip-saw of my neck, I tore it half off.
The shadows evaporated and the moonlight melted into it, killing it for good.
Breathing heavily, I looked up. Just steps away was the lawn leading up to Sylvie’s house. It had been close. Too close.
The body at my feet stirred slightly. The shadows would eventually heal it if I didn’t burn it first. Gathering it in my jaws, I headed off deep into the forest to dispose of it. Permanently.
Behind me, Sylvie lay safe and sound, unaware of how close she had come. Which begged a very important question. Why was it trying to get at her in the first place?
If she was so tainted by the Chained already, a partner of it as the elders suggested, why would the Chained send one of its precious few twisted monsters to hurt or even kill her?
Like so much lately, it didn’t add up to any logical conclusion.
Lincoln
I didn’t bother to clean myself before the meeting started. Ash still matted my fur, and the unpleasant scent filled my nose with every breath. I stank and was covered in minor wounds. Every eye was on me as I entered the meeting grounds, padding on all fours between the matching columns that marked the circular amphitheater’s entrance. That wasn’t unusual. I was alpha. I expected attention.
This time it was unwavering and intense. Hackles rose. Wolves crouched low. Human forms sat up with straight spines. The low rumble of conversation died away as everyone realized they were about to figure out why the meeting had been called so unexpectedly.
There was a mixture of wolves and humans on the various levels, scattered by familial groups, individuals, professions, and allegiances. Some of them watched with open hostility in their eyes, others with neutrality. Few were openly warm and welcoming. But that, too, was to be expected.
Everyone knew something was up, though I doubted any one of them knew what it was. They were all waiting for me to provide an answer.
I shifted as I reached the bottom, not breaking stride as I did-a subtle showcase of power and skill. It served as a reminder of why I was alpha and not any of them.
At the front and to my right sat a cluster of wolves in human form. The Elder Council, as they dubbed themselves, and most of them looked unimpressed. Of course, they would have seen such showmanship over many decades with past alphas. Why would they be impressed now?
“The Chained has sent more of his creatures out,” I said without preamble. “There was another attack.”
Simply ripping the bandage off and throwing the information out there was the best way not to waste any more time. We’d been doing enough of that lately.
There were shocked cries and outrage. Even some fear. Talk of the Chained was not something we did lightly. To many it was the bogeyman, the damned evil of the night, used to keep children in line when they were being unruly. But it wasn’t imaginary. It was real, and it was growing stronger, as this attack showed.
“Who was attacked?”
The question asker was a tall, slender male several rows up. He sat at the forefront of half a dozen or so other wolves, all of whom were clean and proper looking. Fresh haircuts, fresh faces, fresh suits. They were doing their best to look like boardroom businessmen, not wolves.
“Was it you?” Noel Rikke asked when I didn’t answer his first question immediately.
“No,” I said, deciding to reveal the truth. Some of it at least. “It wasn’t me they attacked.”
Watching Noel’s face close down as he thought it over, I turned my attention away from him. Noel was head of a group ofwolves who felt that I shouldn’t be alpha of the pack. Apparently defeating Noel in the final trial wasn’t proof enough for him or those who supported him.
“They attacked one of the humans,” I said, looking out over my assembled pack. To a one, they looked surprised. “And I know this because I was there, and I stopped it.”
I let my appearance do the talking for a moment, showcasing my lack of fear, my willingness to put my life on the line to stop the Chained. As we all should do.
The Elder Council were about ready to explode. Big buggy eyes and puffed cheeks spoke of many emotions bubbling to the surface. If I gave one of them the chance to speak overlong, they would spend forever and a day questioning me and then another eternity chastising me.
“
Who were you with?” Elder Jackson spoke up, twisting his long, scraggly white beard unhappily.
“Things are intensifying!” I shouted, speaking over him. “They have been getting worse for years. But in the past week, they have begun to spiral out of control. Out ofour control. Because we aren’t doing anything about it. So I am making it clear, here and now, that we as a pack are done sitting around. We will spread the word to our friends and allies. To those who help us guard the forest and keep the humans safe. Everyone must know and be on alert.”
The elders were ready to blow a gasket. To my surprise, though, Noel didn’t immediately object alongside them. He sat calmly, waiting, unwilling to fight me on this new shift in clan policy.
Probably thinks I’m doing him a favor and dropping a noose over my own neck. Why push me, when I’ll hang myself just fine on my own.
“All patrols are to be doubled in size,” I continued, glancing at a wolf in the front row.
Gerratt Christiane nodded. The big, beefy wolf with mutton chops and a mop of curly black hair on his head looked the part of someone who enjoyed a good fight, but hiding behind that rough and tumble exterior was an excellent brain for pack tactics and planning.
“Nobody will leave the pack lands alone. Always in pairs or more. Children will be escorted at all times, no going anywhere alone.” I noticed the muted looks of unhappiness over the added work, but I knew none of them would argue. The precautions were sensible. No, what I was about to say would set them off. “I’m also putting forth the call for volunteers.”
“Volunteers for what?” Elder Germander asked as I finally let them get a word in.
I steeled myself. “To go to the heartlands,” I said as calmly as I could. “The Chained is up to something. We’re going to cross the river in force, see just what’s going on, and figure out if we can stop it before it gets too far.”
The amphitheater exploded with noise as everyone began shouting at once.
“Crossing the river is forbidden!” Elder Jackson shouted, his voice the loudest. “It’s too dangerous!”
“We must know what is going on,” I countered. “The last time the Chained started acting up, we as a pack lost. It nearly killed us all. I will not lose a single member of this pack because we stood around, too afraid to act. I will not!”
The shouts continued after that-some in support but many against. I tried not to feel disgust at what the elders had done to the pack over the years, before and after I had ascended toalpha. They had their tendrils spread far and wide, whispering into many ears to make others see their viewpoints.
“Silence!” Elder Jackson shouted now over the commotion. “Silence!”
The crowd slowly calmed, many of them taking their seats or flopping onto their sides, shouts and howls dying away.
“We will commune with the forest,” Elder Jackson continued, tugging on the fringes of his beard. “We shall see what it says and whether it approves of this plan.”
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