Page 40 of Guardians

“We can’t leave them here,” Malik insisted. “They’re defenseless. If we consider these females potential mates, we must take them to the village now.”

“I agree,” Diego said.

Kane shook his head. “I’ll dispatch guards to protect them, but they have to stay here. Zion was clear about that. No female is allowed inside the village walls unless she has been claimed.”

“He already bent the rule for Bianca and Tara,” Malik pointed out.

“It’s not the same,” Kane objected. “Bianca’s life was on the line.”

“So are theirs,” Diego argued, motioning toward the traumatized humans. “Sending guards here will only get our people killed. I don’t care what Zion said. Without some sort of barricade, we would be defenseless too.”

“Why would the wolves do this?” Claire sobbed, finally composing herself enough to speak. “Why slaughter everyone?”

“They didn’t. They only killed the men,” Kelly, another one of Lexie’s tent mates pointed out. “Gale and Tammi got in their way, but they weren’t meant to die.”

Scrambling to her feet, Claire spun around and glared at Kane. Tears streamed down her face and grief obviously fueled her anger. “You knew this was going to happen. Didn’t you? Why didn’t you bring more men? For God’s sake, you can shift into lions!”

Lexie stood as well, but her attempts to calm Claire had been futile.

“We suspected that the wolves would retaliate,” Kane admitted. “We had no idea they would do this.”

“But why slaughter our men?” Kelly persisted. “This makes no sense.”

“Men are expendable. We are not,” Tara said softly. “This makes us even more vulnerable.”

“He was my baby brother,” Claire cried, suddenly sobbing even harder than before. “He went to work at Nuevo because of me. He’s dead because…”

Lexie wrapped her arms around Claire, but her own emotions were starting to awaken. There were so many bodies, and so much blood. She’d never been exposed to such savage violence. “This was not your fault. The wolves are vicious. Their leader is clearly a lunatic.”

With a heavy sigh, Kane looked at Malik and Diego. “You’re right. We can’t leave them here.”

The Shadow team, now human again, found a shovel and tried to dig a grave, but the ground was frozen.

Lexie’s heart sank and she began to shake. “We’re going to have to burn the bodies, aren’t we?”

Kane nodded and took a deep breath. “This camp is no longer safe,” he called out and no one argued. “Everyone who is eligible for the alliance will return with us to the village.” Again no one argued. “It’s dangerous and disrespectful to leave the bodies unattended. With your permission, we will build a fire and put them to rest.”

This upset some of the women, but Kane stressed that there was no alternative.

Anger, confusion, and grief took their toll on Lexie. She left Claire with Tara and slipped away into the trees. A harsh sob tore from her chest. She covered her mouth with her hand, determined not to reveal her weakness to anyone in camp.

Strong arms wrapped around her, and a lean body pressed against her back. Malik. She turned and buried her face against his chest, finally giving in to her emotions. She wept, her entire body trembling with the intensity of her emotions. She was furious and horrified, but most of all she felt guilty. If she hadn’t pressured the cats to steal back the scanners, the wolves wouldn’t have attacked.

“They were your friends too.” Malik ran his hand down her back and rocked her gently. “Let it out, love. Just let it out.”

She cried hard for a few more moments then stubbornly regained her composure. “I didn’t really know any of them before the exile, but three months in such a stressful situation made it seem much longer.”

“You have the right to grieve, just like everyone else.” He wiped away her tears and pressed a kiss to her forehead.

“I can’t help feeling like this is my fault,” she admitted.

“That’s ridiculous,” he insisted, easing her back so he could see her face.

“If Diego hadn’t?—”

“Don’t,” he warned sternly. “This was not your fault, nor was it Diego’s. The wolves were looking for a reason to lash out. If it hadn’t been the scanners, it would have been something else. They wanted females and they wanted you as vulnerable and afraid as possible. Clearly, they’ve accomplished both.”

Lexie shook her head. “But this sends us into the arms of their enemies. Wouldn’t it have made more sense to make us run to them?”

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