The pungent smell of wild. Ever since I stepped onto their territory, it comes at me from every corner. Sickening to a point where my stomach threatens to turn. The last few days, I've spent too much time around these abominations. Creating their kind was the Moon Goddess's greatest blunder.

The hybrid is brooding next to me on the passenger seat. Since we left the Iomaire Draíochta, she has barely spoken a word, and I don't need Rikka's mind wandering abilities to know that she's having second thoughts.

I pat her hand. "You have nothing to worry about."

She cuts her gaze at me. "He's still an Alpha and stepping onto his territory without his consent is a sign of disrespect."

"Trust me, he'll get over it." What else could he possibly do? Even the strongest wolf is inferior to a warlock, so he'll either suck it up or bleed.

Rikka leans in from the backseat. "Maybe I should get out and wait for you."

I snort. "What are you guys fussing about? We are two sun warlocks and a Sentinel. Together, we hold all five powers of the magical pentagram. There isn't anything these wolves could possibly do that could harm us."

"Sometimes, a physical wound isn't the one that hurts the most."

Cryptic mumbo jumbo that makes no sense at all. "Fear is a weakness, just like conquering pain is a strength. Those who are afraid to get hurt and back down as a result are fools. If you let these types of feelings guide you, creatures like wolves will get the upper hand. It's against nature for a warlock to be frightened."

I get no response, which can only mean I made my point. We continue the drive in silence. On a few occasions, I notice wolves or crouched men in the underbrush. Even though no one tries to stop us, they are undoubtedly radioing ahead of our arrival. A welcoming committee is inevitable.

After what seems like an eternity, we pull up in front of a large packhouse. I whistle to myself; the Raynes family must be huge. Four stories high with several side extensions, the building could probably house Raelyn's whole pack. At least if they squeezed together a little.

I get out of the car and open the door for the hybrid. Her face is full of struggle. Only after I pull her hand does she abandon the vehicle, just to drop her gaze when she meets a woman's glare.

"Raelyn, we weren't expecting you." The woman smiles with teeth. A rumble resonates from her chest. Yet, despite her threatening stance, I detect a glimmer of respect.

"I'm sorry, Arabella. I should've called."

I roll my eyes. Not only can't I stand pleasantries, but there is truly nothing the hybrid needs to apologize for. She has every right to be here and claim her property. "Look, we traveled a long distance to talk to Kendrick Raynes. Guide us to him and we are out of your hair."

Arabella hugs her pregnant belly. She is shivering now, so obviously afraid of me that it makes my lips twitch. "Kendrick isn't here yet. He went up north to hunt but turned around when the scouts tracked you entering our territory. Quite frankly, I'm surprised at your audacity. This isn't your pack and you shouldn't have come here without an invitation, especially not with them." She juts her chin in my direction, even though she struggles to look me in the eyes. "Rikka was banished and is no longer allowed on our lands."

The hybrid flinches and stares at Rikka. Rikka shrugs before giving me this he-knew look.

I decide to cut through the chase. "It's not your place to banish one of our kind. Warlocks are meant to rule all creatures born of nature, so there are no off-limits areas for us. To the contrary. You should bow before your ultimate master." With one swoop of my hand, I send a shockwave her way. Her knees buckle under the impact and she drops to the ground. I guess that's close enough to a bow. "Now, if you don't mind, I would like to freshen up while we wait for Kendrick. Just point me in the direction of your facilities."

As soon as she went down, wolves form a solid wall in front of her and snap at me now. One growls, displaying an impressive set of fangs. I'm about to raise my hand to silence him permanently when an older teen steps forward.

"That's enough. Until the Alpha is back, these people are our guests." The authority in her voice leaves no doubt that she is part of the Raynes clan. She extends her hand to the house. "Please follow me."

"It would be my pleasure, Miss. . ."

"Kenna Raynes."

Ah, a younger sister. She must be the oldest Alpha-born left on site and Arabella is below her in hierarchy because she and Kendrick haven't done that claiming thing yet. An interesting development.

"I'm Marush, Moon Warlock and Sentinel of Metal."

Neither intimidation nor defiance reflect in her features; all I get is a curt smile before she spins around and heads for the front door. A puzzling girl.

Inside the house, I take a good look around. The whole downstairs is an open floor plan and quite quaint. One area is stuffed with a large couch and several beanbags in front of a huge television; it's also strategically closest to the fireplace and is probably a cozy hideaway on those long winter nights. The dining room table that takes up most of the other half of the room has sixteen chairs around it. These people must plan to multiply like rats. It's so crude to have one's future existence dependent on procreation. Even though warlocks couldn't survive without any children in the long run, at least we can make it a couple of millennia without them. Werewolves, on the other hand, would be dead without their pups in the span of a century.

My gaze scans across the country kitchen with the big breakfast bar and stops on Kenna. "Lavatory?"

"It's right this way."

I follow her along a corridor and she opens the door to a small loo. "The bigger bathrooms are upstairs, in case you want to take a shower."

"This one will do for the moment."

I close the door in her face and turn toward the small, round mirror. Running my fingers over my goatee, I flash myself a big smile. Maybe I should convince the hybrid to retrieve the necklace and get out of here, although I wouldn't mind to finally meet Raynes and see what all the fuss is about.

After washing my hands and sprinkling cold water on my face, I feel refreshed. My stomach growls. The airplane food was horrendous and we only had a couple of sandwiches on the drive. I'm going to take full advantage of Kenna's hospitality. Let's see if these wolves can put together a decent meal.

When angry voices assault my ears from the living room, I duck in the hallway behind a credenza. Catfights are right up my alley.

"You know how much I care about him. Why did you ever agree to become his mate?" That's the hybrid, fighting for her man. Adorable.

"What choice did I have? You shot him down when he needed you the most with that lame excuse that you had to find yourself." Arabella snorts. "Do you even have the slightest idea what that did to him? He was totally out of it for weeks until Zyron was ready to call for Trials. There was no Luna, so everyone expected me to make decisions for the females of the pack. Plus I struggled really hard with Nicollo's death and the pregnancy. It has been hell, but all you care about is your precious Kendrick mating with another female. You don't give a damn about anyone else or this pack."

Arabella's words tremble and long sniffles hint that she is crying. So emotional. And pathetic. If you have beef with someone, bring them to their knees instead of showing them this sad display of self-pity.

I peek around the door to get a better picture. She and the hybrid face each other in a standoff. For what I know about their species, Raelyn is winning the glaring contest.

Arabella points at Rikka. "And if you are worried about a female making a pass at Kendrick, you should take a closer look at her. She has had her hands all over him."

This fight could turn ugly if Rikka decides to join in. Time to intervene. I step out of my hiding place and raise my palms to calm everyone. "Now, girls, no fighting. I'm sure Kendrick will be back in no time and will be able shed light on this disagreeable matter." I clap my hands. "Now scoot and fix me something to eat. I'm starving."

Arabella's gaze flicks to Kenna. She in turn gives me a hard stare. I smile, not really sure what the problem is. From everything I read about the werewolf culture, the gals are meant to serve the lads. What am I missing?

Kenna finally lets out a long exhale. "I call the servants and they can do it."

I arch a brow. They have servants? How posh.

She disappears in the back part of the house and returns with a girl and an older woman. They both look as if they've staying at a dump. Disheveled hair and soiled clothes hang from their shoulders in a way as if nothing but skeletons were underneath. Sunken cheeks and a grayish complexion complete the picture. These servants are treated worse than those of the French nobility before the revolution.

The hybrid takes a sharp breath. "What are they doing here?" She lifts the arm of the girl. "And the sign of bondage? What's going on?"

For the first time, Kenna bares her teeth. "Not that it's any of your business, but Kendrick brought them here as punishment for killing our sister. He was justified under the old laws."

For humans and other creatures, old is usually a synonym for obsolete. I pull up a bar chair. This fight will be fun to watch.

The hybrid's eyes are blazing. "Funny he didn't mention anything when we last spoke. These two females had no hand in Cassum's death."

"How can you say that? Their pack killed her."

The hybrid shakes her head. "If you knew anything about the Scopan Lake pack, you'd realize that they oppressed their females. Not even the Luna had the right to speak up or meddle with pack business. I'm sure the females didn't even know of the males' plan until after Cassum was already dead."

"You can't be sure."

"I lived with them for many months and know how the males treated the females. How Dante treated me." Anger sparkles in the hybrid's eyes. "They don't deserve being kept here like cattle."

"It's not only that they killed Cassum," Arabella says quietly. "Did you forget how they hurt you? They tore you to pieces and left you for dead."

"Still, that was after the males riled them up. And that's also beside the point. Kendrick should've discussed it with me before making such a decision about my pack."

The servant girl who has just been standing there with her eyes peeled to the floor suddenly looks up. "And it's not only us. He's been taking the young males and is using them as sparring toys in their training. They are all dead. There's a mating ban and he barely gives any food to the females that are left. Compared to them, we've been treated well."

Tears roll down her cheeks and the hybrid pulls her against her shoulder. "Oh, Hailey, I'm so sorry I haven't been around. I will talk to Kendrick. I'm sure he'll change his mind and lift your punishment."

"Don't hold your breath," Kenna hisses. "Their whole pack deserves what they are getting. You kill one of us and we will retaliate. That has always been the way of Northern Light pack. You don't mess with us."

"It's cruel—"

"The only cruel thing was killing Cassum, skinning her, and letting the pigs fill their bellies with her flesh. Thanks to that, her spirit is lost forever, so don't come here and talk about cruelty and unfairness. Kendrick has been more than generous to even allow them to live, though to be honest, I'm glad we had this conversation. Shows that you never cared about our pack, or my brother."

"That's not true."

"No, Kenna is right." Arabella nods her head with conviction. "You are a self-centered bitch who uses others. I'm just glad the Alpha never mated with you."

The hybrid's lip quivers. I sense her anger clenching her stomach. Her eyes have darkened and the heat on her skin is rising. Every hair on her arms buzzes with electricity. One more wrong word from these two and she'll set the house on fire.

I'm about to reach for her to calm her down when a door in the back of the house slams closed. Footsteps rush up the stairs.

Kenna cranes her neck. "That must be Kendrick. He's just getting dressed."

Perfect timing. I lean closer to Rikka, my words no louder than my breath. "Go to him and get him into a compromising position." With the hybrid fired up the way she is, she will take care of the whole pack for me.

"And how am I supposed to do that?"

"If you have to, compel him, but get it done." And pronto. "You have five minutes and then I'll bring her up."

Rikka springs into action. "I'm gonna quickly use the loo." She disappears in the hallway.

My lips twitch. Just a few more minutes before absolute mayhem will unleash onto this pack and with any luck, the necklace will be the sole survivor of this god-forsaken place.

~~~~

© Sally Mason 2018

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