Page 7 of Wolf Hunter

Hesitantly, I take her outstretched hand. “Tell me what you want. No more tiptoeing around the subject. You said you have a business proposition.”

“Um, well, we’ve been studying you for a bit of time, as I stated earlier,” Mae says as she looks down at her hands. “My coven needs to hire a highly trained assassin. Someone with your powers, who understands about covens and the boundaries of magic.”

She needs an assassin? Okay, this just got about ten times weirder. “Why?”

“We require someone to do what must be done to put an end to our terror. You’re the only one who can take down the alpha of the wolf pack that lives in the Redcliff Mountains.”

The name strikes through me like a burning arrow.

The Redcliff Pack… Does Mae even know what she’s asking?

Does she know what the name means to me?

I’ve been training most of my adult life to infiltrate the pack and take them out. They’re the reason I parted from this town and my past in the first place.

Mae nods. “We know better than most what they are. Vicious. Bloodthirsty. We need to put an end to their reign before they wipe us out entirely. You know about the ceremony, I’d imagine?”

Of course I do.

Every year, the Redcliff Pack requires a witch to keep the peace. They need an offering to fulfill the treaty set forth two hundred years ago between the first witches in Buson and the first wolves. The covens send a witch to either do the wolves’ bidding, or…they feast on her for her magic. In exchange, the pack is meant to keep the witches safe from outside threats.

Seems like the arrangement isn’t working for the coven anymore. As it shouldn’t.

“And what would you need me to do?” I ask.

She looks me dead in the eye. “Kill the alpha wolf controlling our coven. We’re tired of the random attacks we can’t stop. They creep in to steal our girls, they’re taking women outside of the ceremony, and our numbers are dwindling. They take and they take, and none of our defenses hold against them. It’s almost as though they’re impervious to our magic.”

Ah, the wolves are getting greedy now.

Bastards.

I squeeze my eyes shut as I’m assaulted by the memory of the night my sister was taken from me. It’s a nightmare I’ll never forget. Her screams as she clung to me while the Redcliff men ripped her from my arms…

I’ve been waiting to strike. I’ve trained for years, perfected my skills, my gift, but now that the opportunity is staring me in the face, can I say that I’m actually ready? I’ll only get one shot at this.

“Tasha?” Mae’s voice is kind and full of concern, but it tells me I’ve shown her too much in letting some emotion slip through.

Sitting up straighter, I quickly regather myself. “Why don’t you just leave, then? Move away and find another safer place. Not all covens have to rely on wolves to keep them protected.”

“Because the Redcliff Mountains are our home, and we have every right to be there. More so than the wolves, who moved in years after our people founded the area.” Mae’s voice turns hard and stubborn. “You have to understand, Tasha. We’ve tried to fight against the wolves before. We’ve even managed to take out one or two of their numbers, but nothing we do makes any difference in the long run. We desperately need your help. But failure will not be tolerated if you agree to take this job. We need the alpha dead. Without him, the pack scatters and we will have a chance to rebuild.”

Mae saw me tonight. She’s already aware of what I do for a living, and what I can do in terms of power. But what else does she know?

I’ll be doing the jobandgetting the revenge I’ve craved for so long. Finally find out what happened to my sister and if there’s a chance—if by some slim chance she’s still alive—then maybe I can save her.

Seems almost too good to be true. But if this wasn’t hitting so close to home for me, would I turn it down? The answer to that is no. I’ve never said no to any job, no matter how hard or messy. As long as kids aren’t involved and the pay is good, I’m in.

“What will you give me?” I ask. “My services don’t come cheap, and what you’re asking comes with a whole lot of risk. Not only to me but to you, if things go south. You’re risking the full wrath of the pack if word gets back to them that you hired a hit woman.”

“It’s a risk we’re willing to take.” Fear flashes briefly in her eyes, but Mae gives no indication of backing down. “We’re being killed off anyway. Either you succeed and we’re free, or you fail and we’re dead. So knowing that, we’re willing to meet your price, whatever it is. We’ve gotten to a point of no return. You coming back to town actually seemed like a goddess send, if you get what I mean.”

No real reason for me to say no.

“When is your next ceremony?”

“In a week,” she tells me. “The wolves are expecting a brand-new sacrifice with the new year, but the last of our girls who are of age disappeared a month ago. Holly was her name.” Her voice hitches. “My… niece. She went out one night to meet her friends and just vanished.”

Ah, so this is personal to her too. Things are adding up.

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