The next morning, I woke early and decided to head back to the clearing in hopes of seeing the wolf again. I knew I should have gone out during the night, but by the time I got back to the cabin last night, I was mentally and physically exhausted. And that was mainly because of one thing, one person. Darcy. Bloody Darcy. He was always in my head.
I packed some supplies for the walk and headed out just as the sun was rising above the trees. The golden light filtered through the canopy and mist turning everything to molten gold and making shadows that lingered in the undergrowth disappear. As I walked down the steady decline toward the clearing, Darcy popped into my head once more. I wanted to shake him off me and out of my life for good, but a part of me wanted him there. A teeny, tiny part of me. I groaned and stomped down the path, only getting a little further down the hill when I realized I shouldn’t be stomping so loudly as I was supposed to be hunting supernatural wolves. Then again, I probably need not bother quieting my steps because they had probably sensed me near the moment I arrived at the cabin. This hunt was going to be more difficult than I originally thought. Wolves, especially wolf shifters and werewolves, had heightened senses. Much more defined than that of non-supernatural wolves or dogs. But I had killed a few wolf shifters before and a few werewolves. And the trick was to find them at their most vulnerable. I had to find their den.
I took a few more steps down the hill, leaping over a few trickling streams and boulders. I had just landed after jumping over a large rock when I heard a wolf howl. They were nearby and could probably sense I was coming.
I picked up my pace and pulled my athame from its sheath at my ankle. When I reached the edge of the clearing I had found the day before, I saw it. This time, the silver wolf I had seen yesterday wasn’t alone. A larger pure black wolf, probably a male, joined her. He nudged his mate and stepped higher onto the rocky outcrop they were standing on. Then he lifted his head and let out a howl that pulsed through my body. It was an emotional howl. I wondered what the male wolf was thinking. Then the female wolf beside him joined in the chorus before they both leaped over the side of the rock platform and disappeared into the forest.
Damn it! I had lost them again. I broke off down the hill, calling on my supernatural speed so I could catch up to the wolf couple. But when I reached the tree line on the other side of the clearing, the wolves were nowhere to be seen. I was about to give up once more and head back to the cabin when a twig snapped to my right. I froze and held my athame out before me, readying myself for a possible attack.
A wolf didn’t step out from the trees. Instead, a young woman did. She was around my age with black hair and silver irises.
“What are you doing in our forest, witch?” she asked, leaning against a tree and crossing her arms over her breasts. She was dressed in a black crop top, black boots and black jeans with holes in them. She was beautiful and fierce. I slid my sword back into my boot and stood up slowly holding up my hands in front of me. I couldn’t kill her just yet. I had to earn her trust.
“I’m here to talk. I heard about a pack of supernatural wolves in New Zealand and came to investigate. I’m a reporter in the human world.”
“How did you know we are supernatural?” the woman asked. Another twig behind me snapped, and I turned to see a shirtless man step out from behind a tree trunk. He had dark hair and even darker eyes, those of which were trained directly on me. He was the black wolf. I turned back to the she-wolf.
“The same way you know I’m a witch. Call it a sixth sense, if you will.”
“So, what are you going to do?” the man asked, stepping closer. My heart rate kicked up a notch, but I kept my poker face. “You’re on our land. We can only let you stay here if you don’t have an ulterior motive.”
“Daniel…” the woman warned.
“No, Shalia. We can’t just let another creature come onto our land without permission. Especially if they mean harm.”
Shalia let out a breath and walked toward me. “Okay, if you mean us no harm. You can stay. But tell that vampire mate of yours the deal is off if you make any moves against us.”
Deal? What kind of deal had Darcy made with the wolves?
“Okay, but he is not my mate.”
“Whatever,” said Daniel. I flinched when I felt his warm breath against the back of my neck. He was standing close to me. He circled me and came to stand beside his mate. He looked down at her with affection, and she linked her fingers with his. “We’ll be watching you.”
The wolf couple turned to head back into the forest when a question popped into my mind.
“Wait,” I said. They looked back at me. “What kind of wolves are you?”
Daniel’s eyes grew dark as he replied, “We’re werewolves.”