Page 8 of The Wolf's Secret Baby

I shook my head. Kull could be troubled sometimes. Mostly I was confident that I knew the thoughts running through his head, but then there were times like these when I couldn’t understand him at all, when my brother was almost a stranger to me. I focused my gaze on the path ahead and thought about what would happen when we returned to the pack. We would present Ambrosia to Vance, and he would be pleased. I secretly hoped that he would allow us to keep her. But if not, then he would be grateful, and the wolves would begin to look at us in different ways. It had to happen eventually. We had proven ourselves over and over again. Surely it was reaching the point where they had to acknowledge that we were equal to them?

Ambrosia faltered and gasped. “I need to rest.”

“Do not stop. We keep moving,” I said.

“I can’t. I physically can’t. I’m not built for this lifestyle. I can’t remember the last time I went for a proper hike. My feet are killing me. Look,” she slipped off her shoes, which were flat and stained with dirt. They were wholly unsuited for the rigors of a trek through the forest. Her delicate feet were blemished with blisters. The dainty toes trembled with pain, and the fine arch of her foot belied the anguish that she felt. She gasped when she looked at them and sank to the ground. I pursed my lips. “I just need to rest for a little while,” she said.

I directed Kull to go and fetch some herbs to make a simple salve. I grabbed Ambrosia’s bag and tossed her a bottle of water and an apple. She guzzled the water down and then crunched on the apple. The juice ran sweet and clear, trickling along her chin. It brought to mind that intense moment when I had been seized by something utterly glorious, and it had exploded in her mouth. It was almost enough to make me forget my ambitions. Ambrosia leveled her gaze at me, and I averted mine. There was something uncanny about her, although I couldn’t quite put my finger on it.

“I thought you would be putting up more of a fight,” I said. She rolled her shoulders.

“What’s the point? I can’t overpower you. I can’t outrun you, especially not with my feet in this state,” she gestured towards her feet which she held in the air, flexing her toes. “The best I can hope for is that eventually you’ll show me mercy and return me to my old life.”

“Even if we did, that life would not remain the same for long.”

“What do you mean by that?” I asked.

My lips curled into a smile. “The world is going to change. There is a war coming, and your kind are going to be thrust off your throne. You will be the first of many prisoners, and you will be tasked with serving us in all kinds of different ways.”

“I’m not sure that’s going to go down well. Why do you want to go to war with humans?”

“Because that is what Vance wants.”

“And do you always do what Vance wants?”

“He is the Alpha.”

“But what about what you want? Don’t you think for yourself?”

“Of course,” I spat. “But we are wolves. Our ambitions are aligned with the rest of the pack, and the Alpha directs these ambitions.”

“I see. It’s fascinating. Can you tell me more?”

“About what?”

“About everything, the way your society works, how you think, how decisions are made. Is there anything more to the hierarchy than the Alpha?”

“He has people he trusts.”

“And are you these people?”

I turned away and pouted. “Not at the moment. But we are working on it. Soon we shall gain his respect, and it’s because of you. He will be pleased that we managed to capture one of you. You should never have trespassed in our territory.”

“In my defense I didn’t know that it was yours. It’s not like there were signs or anything,” she said.

Kull returned at this point. I mixed what he had gathered into a paste and then applied it to her feet. I gently rubbed it into the blisters, tracing the flow of her arch with my fingers. She winced with pain as I applied the salve. I wrapped my fingers around her ankle, trying to keep her foot from moving too much. Her skin was warm to the touch, and I could feel arousal flaring within me again. I cleared my throat and made a concerted effort to control these feelings. The last thing I needed was for them to get the better of me. I had had fun with her, and there was nothing more to it.

Vance was going to have plans for her, most likely taking her for himself. Envy flashed within me. It was a hard thing inside me, like a great stone that weighed down my soul. As Alpha, Vance could do anything he wanted, and he could have anything he wanted. He did not have to answer to anyone.

I longed to enjoy that glory. Life would have been so much easier had it been like that for me. Then I could take Ambrosia for myself. My gaze rose from her feet. It traveled up her elegant legs, feasting on her thick thighs, her voluptuous figure, and the strands of fiery hair that brushed against her milky skin. Heat rose beneath my flesh. Would it be wrong of me to try and enjoy her again before we brought her to Vance?

“So how does it work? Did Vance get elected or something?” she asked.

“He killed the previous Alpha. The strongest gets to rule,” I said. Kull was pacing nearby, watching the area in case there were other predators in the forest foolish enough to encroach upon us.

“Ah, so might makes right. So, if someone was strong enough to kill Vance then they would become Alpha?” Ambrosia asked.

“Nobody is strong enough to kill Vance,” Kull said. I glared at him, but did not argue the point in front of Ambrosia.

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