Page 340 of Warlords, Witches & Wolves

A wolf snarled. I climbed onto the workbench to peer out the window, but I couldn’t see a damn thing. How long would the shield last? Would it hurt me? How did it work?

Gah!I didn’t have time to figure any of that out. I needed to help before the hunter killed the wolf.

Taunting words echoed through the night coming from the hunter, answered by the snarling wolf. With the hunter distracted, I could sneak out.

I slid off the bench and using the light from the shield, found my knife on the ground beside the workbench. With it once again in my hand, I crept toward the doorway. The light vanished, no longer a magic flesh-burning barrier, returning the shed to complete darkness.

I inhaled a deep breath, then slid my foot along the floor to the threshold…waited…and slid it past. Nothing happened. Slowly, I reached my arm through the doorway. It didn’t burn me.

Joan must’ve put a spell on the shed so only she and I could enter.

With the knife held low and tight, I crept out of the shed, breathing a sigh of relief when it didn’t explode with light. At the edge, I pressed my body flat against the wall and peeked around the corner. At the far end of the yard, just near the forest, a wolf circled the hunter. From this distance and in the dark, I couldn’t tell if the wolf was Noah. But I sensed it wasn’t.

My gaze darted to the house. I had a clear path to the back door. If I bolted, I could make it inside before the hunter caught me. I could call for help. Who? The sheriff? Did the sheriff know? Was he a shifter or a witch or a hunter? I had no clue.

Going inside meant abandoning the wolf to fight this battle alone. Joan protected the Coles by never revealing their secret. If I let one of them die because I wasn’t brave enough to help, I’d never forgive myself.

I glanced back at the wolf and hunter snarling at each other. The wolf lunged, but the hunter was quicker, darting sideways. Midair, the hunter swiped his arm, striking the wolf with a blade. The wolf yelped but landed on all fours, circling the hunter as though the wound barely registered.

I couldn’t just stand there. Fighting the hunter wasn’t just the wolf’s battle, it was mine. This was my legacy.

I glanced at the trees nearest to the shed. I could use the forest to sneak up behind the hunter. Just as I turned to run, a second wolf sped around the side of the house gunning for me. My heart stilled.

Thor.

He ran so fast I had no time to react. Once at my feet, he growled, pushing me back toward the shed.

“No.” I shooed him.

He didn’t listen. Thor snapped at my ankles, forcing me backward. I understood his need to protect me, but I wouldn’t let him shove me aside.

Near the shed door, out of sight, I crouched, eye level with Thor. “I want to help.”

The hunter must’ve got the upper hand because the other wolf yelped again. Thor snapped his head in that direction at the same time I did. I snuck past him to look around the corner. The other wolf lay on its side, howling in pain. The hunter closed in, raising his blade in the air preparing to strike. Thor looked between me and his fallen brother.

“Go.” I shoved him away. “Save him.”

Thor held my gaze. I held my breath, waiting, as though the future depended on this decision. In a heartbeat, he turned and ran, launching at the hunter’s back. But before he connected, the hunter twisted with unnatural speed, his blade narrowly missing Thor.

Realization struck me hard like a punch in the gut. The hunter almost stabbed not just Thor…but Noah.

They engaged in a vicious brawl. I couldn’t watch. Instead, I stared at the injured wolf. He still hadn’t moved off the ground. Without thinking, I ran, trying damn hard not to look at Noah in wolf form fighting the hunter. I kept my gaze on the fallen wolf.

When I reached the wolf, I fell to my knees beside him.

Several different howls echoed through the woods. Help was on the way. I needed to keep this wolf alive until they got there.

Blood poured from somewhere on the wolf’s belly where the hunter struck him. I could hardly see. Growling and snarling continued behind me as Noah battled the hunter.

With my hand, I search for the wound, smoothing my fingers along the wolf’s underbelly. There. Thick warm blood spilled over my fingers.

Something white flashed out of the corner of my eye. In a split second, everything changed. A white wolf charged toward me. I grabbed my knife, half twisted—

The wolf slammed into my back, smashing me against the ground with the knife beneath me. Hot pain sliced through my stomach. My vision blurred. I grunted, twisting to move. The wolf’s jaws snapped at my ear, its foul breath, and the sick smell of blood in its mouth made me gag. I tried to move again but the wolf snarled, pinning me to the ground. I clawed the dirt trying to escape.

Instead of screaming, a choked cry escaped my lips. In the commotion, I couldn’t tell if the wolf wanted to kill me or protect me.

Without warning, another wolf attacked it, shoving the first one off my back, releasing the weight. The two wolves tumbled away in a vicious fury of bites and growls. My lungs inhaled but the breath caught midway. Fire burned through my body, the muscles in my stomach spasmed. I coughed, drawing my legs in, curling into a ball, attempting to ease the intense pressure. Nothing helped.

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