“Zack,” Dev called to his bodyguard. Zack ran forward from the back of the group. “I need you to change.”
Zack changed with zero hesitation. His suit ripped around him, falling in pieces to the floor. He sat back on his haunches, waiting for further instructions.
Dev focused on his well-trained wolf. “You will find a way out of here. Those wolves out there are trying to kill us. They will likely ignore another wolf, especially if you don’t cause them trouble. Get to Daniel. Wake him up and tell him to get off his ass. It’s time for us to kill Halfer. Tell him I’ll be waiting. You must be sneaky, though. I don’t want Halfer to suspect Daniel isn’t in the ground as he should be. Watch and wait for the time when Halfer won’t see you slip into the tent. Join with the others if you have to in order to bide your time. Be patient, Zack. This is our only shot.”
The big brown wolf thumped his tail once and then took off.
“So we’re supposed to stay alive until sundown?” McKenzie asked, sarcasm dripping. “I don’t think that’s going to happen, Your Grace. There are at least a thousand wolves out there and many of them are stone-cold killers.”
“Under the influence of that artifact, we have to consider them all stone-cold killers. They’ll do Halfer’s will, and he wants us dead. We have a secret weapon that Halfer isn’t counting on. Trust me, McKenzie,” Dev assured him. “My partner is a king. Daylight will not stop him. We have to stay alive until Daniel is awake then he and I will take care of Halfer. How do we get out of here?”
McKenzie moved down the hallway and we followed. “I have a secret tunnel that leads from the house to a cave in the mountains to the north. We’ll be able to see the field so at least we’ll know what’s coming.”
He led us to the back of the house. Even now I could hear the wolves beginning to howl. The sound was far closer than I was comfortable with. At least some of the wolves had made their way around the barrier. We found ourselves in a narrow hallway. McKenzie came to a dead end and we stopped, giving him space to do what he needed to do. The walls in the hallway were paneled in rich wood. The alpha pushed against a seam in the paneling and a small door slid open. McKenzie pulled on a pair of heavy gloves that had been hanging from a hook near the door.
Neil had taken up position at the rear. He listened, his senses wide open. “Dev, we’re about to have incoming.”
Even as he shouted the warning, I heard the crack of glass shattering as the strongest and fastest of the wolves made their way through, over, or around the barrier Dev had created. McKenzie opened the door with his gloved hands and ushered Felix and Sarah through. Declan stood beside his brother, sword drawn, and Neil ran to stand in front of me.
“Come with me, Your Grace,” Padric demanded, taking me by the arm.
“Dev,” I yelled out as Padric tried to manhandle me into the passage.
Dev turned briefly to look at me. “Go with Padric. I will follow you, my goddess. Padric, if you have to carry her out of here, you will do it.”
I didn’t understand why he couldn’t just come with me now, but he was being a control freak with Daniel out of action. He would never allow anyone else to control the battle besides Daniel. I saw Lee trying to stay by Dev’s side, but he faltered and fell to his knees.
“Lee!” I couldn’t leave him behind. Even if he changed, he was different. The wolves would sense his difference and he would be at their mercy. I struggled against the royal guard, trying to get back to my wolf.
McKenzie cursed as Padric shoved me into the small passage. He pushed us through as quickly as he could, directing us to move through the darkness. I looked at John McKenzie and attempted to play to anything soft inside him.
“Please,” I begged the alpha who was more than strong enough to bring Lee with us. All he had to do was drag him a few feet. “Please, don’t leave him behind.”
The alpha shook his head and started toward the sick loner. “Damn it, Owens,” McKenzie said under his breath. He picked Lee up in a fireman’s hold and walked through the doorway. “Get through that gate and we should have a shot at getting out of here.”
“We’re through,” Padric called out as he hauled me past a large gated doorway. It ran from the top to the bottom of the tunnel and created a complete barrier. Even in the gloom of darkness, I could see the silver shine of that tightly barred gate. I shivered as I realized if we got stuck in this tunnel, Daniel wouldn’t be able to get through the gate. He would be helpless to get to us.
Dev, Declan, and Neil ran through, though Dev was now laying down suppressive fire. Neil and Declan scrambled into the tunnel while Dev backed into the space, not letting up on his firing position. I held my breath as a huge black wolf reared back and leapt toward my husband. The wolf was in midair, snarling with fury as Dev took his shot. The wolf hit the floor and Dev fired through the gate as Declan slammed it shut behind him. I heard the satisfying sound of the bolt sliding home.
Dev pulled me close as the first wolf hit the gate and his flesh began to sizzle. We all turned back toward McKenzie.
“Well I don’t shoot them full of silver, but I’m not a complete idiot,” he explained. “Everyone needs an escape hatch when the going gets tough.”
I shrank back as another wolf joined the first. They shoved their bodies against the silver, not seeming to care that their flesh was burning. They snarled and howled their frustration at being so close to their prey but unable to take it down. The two wolves shoved their paws through, trying desperately to get their claws on anything.
I didn’t recognize them in this form but I knew these were people I’d probably met during our stay here. These were men and women who asked us for help and offered their hospitality in return. They weren’t raging killers. They were just pawns. They had children and lives to go back to.
Dev raised his gun and leveled it at the wolves trying to claw their way through the silver bars to get to us. His eyes held no mercy, and I knew he was ready to kill every wolf that came our way. I wasn’t quite so ready as my husband.
I put a hand on his shoulder. “Dev, they’re victims, too.”
“Victims who are trying to kill you,” he growled at me. “You’ll forgive me if I don’t feel a lot of sympathy.”
“Please.” I forced him to look me in the eyes. “They’re contained. Let’s go and wait on Danny. If we can get out of this without killing our allies, won’t it be best for all concerned?”
He shook his head but lowered his weapon. “We’ll go, my goddess, but there will be no mercy for Halfer. Understand that now. I will not be swayed.”
I rolled my eyes. I wasn’t about to plead for that bastard’s life. “I won’t try to sway you. Kill Halfer, please, and use a painful method.”
McKenzie found a flashlight on a shelf built into the side of the tunnel. He clicked it on, and I watched as he stared back with the greatest of regret. There were more wolves at the gate now but it seemed like it would hold. I was sure McKenzie was looking back at those wolves, recognizing them and wondering if he was going to have to kill them before the day was through. I wondered if it wouldn’t have been easier on him to give in to that initial urge to join the pack, to follow the Strong Arm of Remus. McKenzie had fought so hard to remain in control, to maintain his alpha status, but now it was costing him as he was on the other side from everyone he knew and loved.
“I’ll do everything I can to keep your wolves safe,” I promised him.
He gave me a sad half-smile, not showing any sign that Lee’s weight was bothering him. “I believe you, Your Grace. I’m not so sure about your husband though.”