I crept closer to the camp after Zeke and the demon finished their search. They’d checked every building, shadow, and corner, and they hadn’t found any more of my wolves. So far, so good. Zeke could shout and yell about how he was going to destroy the camp all he wanted, I knew he wouldn’t do it. He wanted to move here and take over the pack. He’d never be able to do that if he torched my pack’s homes. They wouldn’t follow him.
Zeke walked toward the edge of the camp, close to where I hid. No one else was with him except the woman. I extended my wolf senses to be sure, but they were alone. It was now or never.
Bracing in the shadows, I shifted quickly into my wolf form, letting his instincts guide me as I pounced onto Zeke.
He yelled for the demon to charm me off him.
“I can’t do that,” she said, her face pained at refusing his order.
“Try, damn it!”
Zeke chucked the last of his clothes and shifted to meet me claw for claw. He couldn’t give her any more orders, which I hoped would swing the fight in my favor. And so far, it was working. He was underneath me, pushing with his claws, trying to scrabble around into a better position, but I’d got the meat of his shoulder between my teeth and I bit down, drawing blood. It ran down his side as his wolf yelped, unable to keep the pain from coming out verbally. Another minute, and I’d have him.
“Jaxon, get off him,” she said, more robotic than natural.
And like I expected, her words did nothing. I felt the power in them, the strong aura around her, but they slid off of me like water.
A shot echoed through the camp and I glanced up, freezing when I saw Vince, my own gun pointed at my snout. He jerked it, signaling me to back off.
There didn’t have to be silver in those bullets to kill me. Many werewolves had died over recent years to a “wolf kill”. I was outmatched.
Slowly, I released my hold on Zeke and retreated.
“Stop there,” Vince said.
I did as ordered, my wolf’s tail thrashing from side to side. Zeke had baited me right into another trap, and I hadn’t seen it. I hadn’t even smelled it. Vince must’ve hidden behind something pungent, or well upwind, and waited for the right moment to run in. I should’ve known Zeke would try something like that. This whole invasion had been designed so that I couldn’t fight back and win.
Zeke shifted into his human form and pulled on his clothes, barely looking at me. Vince was the one to keep a steady eye on me, never letting up his aim. I didn’t have a chance in hell of escaping. They had me, and my wolves couldn’t help. I’d failed my pack. I dropped my head and pawed the ground. Whatever happened, I wouldn’t submit to Zeke. The mountain didn’t deserve him.
“Lock him up in the main cell,” Zeke said. “And get a patrol started. This is our territory now.”
“What about the girl?” Vince asked.
Zeke frowned as he thought it through, then he chucked the icon to Vince. “Hold her on the other side of the camp. Use the icon to control her, and you’ll be fine.”
And there went any chance of me getting through to the demon. Great. Fucking perfect. Zeke finally used his brain and got more consistent, and he used it to overthrow his own brother. My wolf growled. We should’ve killed him after that alpha fight, twin or not.