Page 72 of Moon Claimed

I pushed back into the corner of the couch as he continued.

“We were welcomed to Deception Valley by a human tribe who deemed themselves protectors of the land. The area was bountiful and, really, we had no other choice but to lick our wounds for a time on the land loaned to us. Decades went by in this manner without issue, but then the humans discovered what we truly were. Sensing the shift in the tribe, my father tried to broker the purchase of land here, but the tribe would not allow it. Owning land was against their sacred laws. They agreed to loan us the south side of the valley in return for their guaranteed safety. The relationship was tense, and my father worried for the future of our pack. He turned his attention to a new direction. South. A small group were sent to gather what information they could.”

My mouth dried. “What happened to them?”

“Only one returned. Before he died, he told father that a witch’s coven occupied the land to the south. They’d claimed the territory in the last ten years. Father had left the exploration too late—and the terrible sight of the dead Luther’s body was enough to convince him not to start a war with witches. Now, only one direction remained. Farther east. Another party were sent there. They discovered that not only did the demon kingdom we’d faced fifty years before occupy the territory north of Deception Valley, but their kingdom wrapped around the base of this place too.”

Vampires to the west.

Witches to the south.

Demons to the north and east.

Oh my god.“You’retrappedhere.”

I’d never seen Sascha look so solemn when he replied, “We can never leave this place.”

They’d wanted to own the land for security.

If my tribe won Grids and cast the Luthers out, they’d be slaughtered. “Shit, Sascha.”

But that didn’t explain how they’d lost another half of their pack.

Was that to theNi Tiaki?

He looked at me. “That’s not all. We can’t leave Deception Valley, Andie. That means our mates can’t get in either. And we can’t have children without finding our mates. Some of us have been lucky in the last two hundred and sixty years—very few. Some were already mated prior to coming here.”

“What does that mean?” I croaked.

Sascha glanced away. “It means my pack is dying. Any pups are few and far between.”

“But you’re immortal.”

“Immortality is given to mates only. Nature only protects those of us able to reproduce. The lifespan without finding your mate is around four hundred and fifty years. Many of the pack were at least one hundred before they arrived at Bluff City.”

Shit.

Being contained like this was literally killing them.

I mean, four hundred and fifty years was over five times the life expectancy of a human, but that seemed so harsh, to kill wolves who couldn’t reproduce.

And to never find a mate because they couldn’t leave the valley… that put so many things into perspective. How desperate Sascha was when we first met and I mentioned leaving. How intense he’d been.

He probably expected to die without finding his mate.

Yet he’d never forced me to stay here either. Nowhere near as much as Herc and Rhona.

I frowned, aware that feeling pity and sadness for my enemy wasn’t a great idea. “Does anyone outside of the pack know?”

“I’m sure you can see why we keep it a secret?”

In a word,yes. The tribe could simply wait for them to die. My thoughts drifted to the pup I’d saved in the river. I’d only ever seen that one pup on pack lands. And he’d nearlydied. That would have devastated them. “Your parents are mated, so they’re immortal, right? Your father must still be alive then. How are you the leader?”

“I became stronger than my father when Greyson decided to work with me and the pack.”

How nice of him.

Quiet fell as I processed that.

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