Page 58 of Guardians

Diego swept in with less subtlety than usual and captured the wolf’s image. “Armando.” He snarled the name as if it were profane.

“You know him?” Malik was relieved. It was infinitely easier to hunt for a specific target than some nameless face.

“He’s Elias’ second in command. This will not take long. I’ll be back when Armando has breathed his last.”

Malik watched Diego stride across the room, wishing he could be in two places at once. Kane needed him, but Malik wanted—no, needed—to go hunt with Diego.

“Diego’s not going by himself, is he?” Lexie asked, her eyes also following Diego.

“He prefers to hunt alone,” Raphael told her. “And then there’s the whole invisibility thing. He’s much better at it than any of the other Shadows.”

“The invisibility thing?” Lexie looked at Malik, clearly confused by the phrase.

Raphael laughed. “Do you guys ever talk to her? You know, females are good for more than just fucking.”

“It’s a long story,” Malik told Lexie. “I’ll explain later, I promise. But I need to concentrate right now.”

For the next hour and a half, Malik tried his best to repair the damage to Kane’s body. He made improvements, but each time he thought he was in the clear, something else developed. There were so many lacerations, and closing one inevitablyopened another. They didn’t have a blood supply on hand and the molecular conversion units were incapable of producing medical-grade products.

“Let me know when you’re ready for me to step in?” Raphael said as Malik paused to wipe the sweat from his brow.

“Can you fix him?” Malik asked, far beyond pride or patience.

“Maybe,” Raphael said regretfully. “It will take multiple sessions and more energy than I can produce on my own, but I’m willing to try.”

“I can pass you energy. Diego can as well.”

“I’m aware,” Raphael said, “but the energy would be most helpful if it’s passed to Kane directly.”

Malik tensed. Raphael was talking about a soul bond, the psychic link that connected mates. Their relationship with Lexie was less than a month old. They hadn’t even mentioned the existence of psychic links to her, much less pressured her to allow a permanent, soul-deep connection.

“We haven’t formed a soul bond,” he told the mysterious raptor. “Kane’s unconscious, so it’s not like we can form one now.”

Raphael waved away the excuse. “Kane’s being is on the metaphysical plane. You can interact with him there.”

“Diego might know what that means, but I sure as hell don’t,” Malik snapped, frustrated by all the non-answers. “Will you please do what you can for him now? We’ll discuss other options as soon as Diego returns.”

“Of course.” Raphael dipped his head, then walked over to the bed on which Kane lay and started chanting.

Diego paused outside the walls encircling the lupine village. He unclenched his fists, retracted his claws, and drew in several deep breaths. The task awaiting him called for his skills as Shadow leader, not a feral lion, but damn, he wanted to shift and rampage through the village, savaging every wolf in sight. His Shadow shield would conceal his physical appearance and dampen his natural smell, but wolves could also detect the scents produced by strong emotions. If he didn’t calm down, they’d be able to smell him. It wasn’t easy. Kane and Malik were the closest thing to family that Diego had, and no fucking wolf was going to harm his family and get away with it.

The wolves were out of control. Zion was a firm believer in live and let live. He didn’t care what took place inside the other villages as long as it didn’t affect the cats. The strategy had worked for the past two years, but Elias was no longer satisfied with the status quo. Frustration and jealousy combined to make the wolf leader reckless and cruel. At first Elias lashed out in small, random ways, but the arrival of the humans had given him a focal point for his animosity. The only thing that would back off an alpha wolf was someone stronger and deadlier than the wolf.

Not wanting to involve his spy in what he was about to do, Diego decided not to contact Travis. There were other ways of entering the village. He just had to be patient. He positioned himself near the main gate and waited for one of the wolves to enter. About half an hour later, the gate was opened and Diego hurried in after the unsuspecting wolf.

Twilight cast an eerie glow over the huts and houses. Diego wasn’t sure which cabin Armando lived in, but it would be near the center of the village. An oversized, A-frame building served the same function as the feline lodge. Diego didn’t know what the wolves called it, but it was clearly a gathering place. Light from inside the building spilled out into the yard where a large fire was blazing. Around the fire wolves congregated, laughing and drinking what appeared to be some sort of liquor.

“You should have seen the look on Malik’s face.” The deep, boastful voice identified Diego’s target and instantly rekindled his temper. “I thought he was going to weep like a fucking woman.”

Lethal fury surged through Diego’s system, threatening his control and making his Shadow shields waver. Killing Armando in full view of his pack would thrill Diego, but it also increased the chances that he’d be caught. Again, he needed to be patient and wait for the right opportunity to avenge the attempt on Kane’s life.

“That’s what they get for daring to take what’s ours,” one of Armando’s companions responded. “You’d think the cats would have learned by now.”

“What the fuck are you celebrating?” Elias asked angrily. “Armando might have taken out a guardian, but they killed six wolves and captured three others. They also got all our supplies, which means that outpost is now vacant, creating a hole in our defenses. You should be planning our next attack, not slapping each other on the back.” Without giving them the opportunity to respond, Elias stormed into the cabin and slammed the door.

“He’s right,” Armando said after a tense pause. “Regardless of who I shot, tonight was a loss, not a win.”

It didn’t take long for the group to disperse after that. Several of the wolves went inside, but Armando and a couple of others headed for their cabins. Apparently they were no longer in the mood to socialize.

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