Page 10 of Beast

I turned toward Beck, keeping my focus in his direction without fully meeting his gaze, a skill I hated getting better at.“Is Missy returning to the outposts?”

Beck’s jaw tightened; his voice clipped as he answered.“Yes.”

“And Ruth will be with her?”

He simply jerked his chin in affirmation.I shifted my attention back to King.“We’ll need Maylin here for Che.Axel should probably stay too.The island needs him.”

King nodded.“We’ll locate them tonight and have them back before we leave in the morning.”His confidence in my suggestion reassured me that it was the right call.

Maybe I shouldn’t be so thrilled that King took my advice, but I couldn’t help it.My Warrior form was everything I never thought I’d have.The strength, speed, and power gave me confidence in my ability, but I was just learning about strategic planning, and I often doubted myself.

There were still times that I wrestled with accepting who I’d become, and speaking my mind was one of those times.I’d followed the Federation mindlessly for far too long.Now that I had muscle, teeth, and claws to back me up, I needed to let the past go and get beyond the insecure Federation robot, doing meaningless work and thinking each day would be my last.I had to work harder on embracing my mental badass at every turn.

The adrenaline from the meeting and hearing about the attack began to fade, and exhaustion crept back in like an old enemy.Sleep wasn’t even on the distant horizon.There were too many things to handle: checking our gear, preparing for the hunt, and sorting through a million other details.As the meeting broke up, King’s warm hand on my thigh pulled me from my racing thoughts.

He leaned in close, his breath brushing my ear.“I’ll see you before takeoff.I’m going after Axel myself and will bring him back along with Maylin.Hold down the fort while I’m gone.”His lips touched mine in a brief kiss before he stood and strode away.

I sat there, the last Shadow Warrior in the room.Alone.

No, not alone, I corrected myself sharply.I had a family now, people who loved and cared about me.They were my friends.For so long, it had just been me and my father.After his death, it had been only me, facing the world on my own.But that wasn’t the case anymore.I stood, feeling the strength in muscles that had once been weak and unremarkable.Even my balance was something else entirely; predatory, lethal, instinctive.It was what I was designed for.

A thrill coursed through me.Without even shifting, I could feel the sheer power of who I had become.I was a Shadow Warrior.I had hellhounds to kill, the Federation to face, and a broken world to rebuild.

Piece of cake.

∞∞∞

I checked on Che before heading to my room to organize our gear.I shouldn’t have been surprised to find Ruth curled up on the floor beside him, but I was.How long had this been going on?She had taken a pillow from Che’s bed and was using it beneath her head, with one of his blankets draped over her.It took me a moment to understand why she didn’t just climb into Che’s bed to sleep.It wouldn’t have been unusual at their age.Then I noticed the slight flash of silver in her hands.Ruth was clutching a knife, holding it fiercely even in sleep.She was doing it to protect Che.

I quietly closed the door behind me and sighed.Training with Ruth would be delayed, something she definitely wouldn’t like.I shrugged it off internally.There was no time to agonize over something I couldn’t change.I pulled out our military packs and started going through them.These bugout bags were familiar to me by now.Every man, woman, and child on the island had one, each stocked with seventy-two hours’ worth of supplies and weapons.

We’d come a long way since returning from the U.S.territory.Housing areas on the island were now equipped with alarms to warn them of approaching hellhounds.Every human adult willing to fight was being trained to kill the hounds and anyone else who posed a threat.Our community wasn’t just surviving; we were learning to fight back and provide food and shelter to thrive.

I glanced around the bedroom.Both King and I were naturally neat, and the room reflected that.The only thing out of place were my clothes draped over the edge of the laundry basket instead of inside it.

The peacefulness of the room hit me, giving me pause.These past months had been the happiest of my life.King had opened his world to me, and I was finally accepted.It was a heady feeling; one I never planned to take for granted.

I never felt I fit in the new world after the collapse.I was out of place and had a keen sense that something was missing.Now I understood what that something was.I wasn’t fully human, and I spent my life carrying around a part of myself I didn’t know existed.Finding my beast gave me peace.I smiled and got to work.

Bags first.Once I’d finished checking them, I headed out to find Alden.He was in the armory with Cabel and Nokita, deep in a discussion about the firepower they were taking and what would stay behind.Guns were a topic King’s guard had been working on for a while, or more accurately, ensuring we had enough ammunition.We’d managed to stockpile more than ten thousand rounds, enough to make our guns a legitimate option.While swords were still the best weapon against hellhounds, guns were necessary for dealing with our human enemies.

I walked over to a long rack of AKs and pulled one down.It was the rifle I’d been practicing with, and to my own surprise, I’d become a slightly better-than-decent shot.When my claws didn’t interfere, I actually held the best record for distance target shooting, a fact that annoyed King’s men to no end.I ran my hand along the rifle, a grin forming.For someone who had once been terrified of guns, I’d come a long way.Some of the men named their rifles, and the thought of doing the same had crossed my mind more than once.“Bertha” ran through my head, and I decided it fit.A rifle named Bertha just seemed like the kind of weapon that made people stay out of your way.Grinning internally, the name was now settled.

The men continued their conversation without acknowledging me.They knew I was there; their awkward shifts from one leg to the other made it clear.The whole mating rage thing was still a hard adjustment for me and because of it, the men didn’t know how to act.Sometimes the discomfort between us was almost comical.

I placed the rifle back on the rack and turned to Alden.“I need to talk to you about Che.He needs to be watched closely while King and I are away.”

Alden didn’t even bother turning his head toward me.“The humans will be safe,” he said, his tone clipped and, dare I say, testy.

I didn’t miss Nokita’s grimace at Alden’s disrespect.

Alden clearly thought I was challenging his abilities, so I softened my tone, just a little.“I care about all the humans, but as you’ll remember, Che is part of the Shadow Warrior family.He’s young and has a knack for finding trouble.Granted, not as bad as Ruth, but he still can’t be fully trusted.He pushes his mom’s patience to the limit on a regular basis.It would make me feel a lot better if I knew you were keeping a closer eye on him.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I caught Nokita’s lips twitch, but he remained silent.

This time, Alden turned just enough to give me a side-eye glare before speaking.“All humans are safe with us,” he grunted, like that added emphasis would make his words more convincing.Or maybe just more irritating.

I took a deep breath, mentally telling Ms.Beast that no, we were not going to kill Alden tonight, even if the idea held appeal.I didn’t know him well, and after this exchange, I wasn’t sure I wanted to.He turned back to his conversation with Cabel and Nokita, acting like I wasn’t there.

---