Page 49 of Conflicted Fate
“We’ll talk when it’s over,” he said, pressing his forehead to mine, looking deep into my eyes.
“Okay,” I replied shakily.
“For now, it’s time to go.” He kissed me again briefly, then stepped back.
His body changed, returning to the huge black-furred beast that stood nearly to my breasts. The yellow eyes glowed in the dark as he shook himself down.
My wolf came charging out as well, changing my body, shifting it into my other form. Hands became paws, nails became claws. Joints reversed, and my face elongated forward.
The night swam into incredible detail. Although I benefited from slight night vision in my human form, my wolf eyesight was far superior. Not to mention my hearing.
My ears pricked at a rumble of thunder. Somewhere else in the forest, an animal squeaked in fear. The wind rustled branches high above, only the strongest of gusts reaching the forest floor.
Kiel stole forward, a shadow as silent as the night, and I followed, my fur the complete opposite, a bright white, brilliant and unhidden. Opposites in every way, but nonetheless, drawn to one another.
On we ran through the forest, across fields and over hills, flowing with speed and stealth, to complete a mission that would further change the face of the Canis Empire.
Would there evenbea Canis Empire once we were done? If we succeeded and Lycaonus and the other Alphas were destroyed forever, what would happen? Who—or what—would take the place of the former immortals?
I didn’t know, and I didn’t have the time to care. My focus had to be on the there and then. If it wasn’t, we would never be able to answer those questions.
Because we would all be dead.
Kiel slowed as we reached the outer band of defenses.
Lightning split apart the sky, revealing a pair of wolves no more than twenty feet in front of us. Side by side, they walked the trail as we looked down from the hill above.
Rain followed, a sudden torrent that muffled all other sounds as we fell upon the luckless patrol, overwhelming them in seconds. Kiel indicated that the two of our number who looked most like the enemy wolves should stay. They would hide the bodies and do their best to ensure nobody realized something had happened.
The rest of us ran onward, the same scenario playing out twice more until we were within striking distance of the lines. Once there, Kiel and I shifted while the others fanned out to ensure nobody detected us as we worked.
We crept up the gentle slope toward the back of the command pavilion, the rain soaking our skin and plastering our hair to our heads. There had been no way to figure out which part was Nycitus’ sleeping quarters, so we took a guess and headed for the rightmost outer tent.
Low to the ground, we untied one of the stakes, creating just enough slack to shimmy our way under the edge of the tent. Doing so in near silence took far longer than I’d have liked. Each moment as I crawled forward, stomach flat to the ground, was a thunderous crescendo in my mind, the hammering of the rain on the tent mixed with the roar of my pulse to create a cacophony I couldn’t believe didn’t wake everyone nearby.
The rain poured over the edge of the tent, creating a miniature waterfall for me to crawl through. Far too much of it ended upinsidethe tent, but there was nothing to be done about it.
Once I was in and could haul my legs after me, I looked around, breathing a silent sigh of relief. We were in a storage area. Trunks and bags were piled high, stacked neatly and in organized piles.
A piece of fabric was strung up, separating half of the tent from the other. Curious, I stole to the edge where it met the outer wall and peeked through.
My heart stopped. A quintet of guardsmen all slept on cots on the far side, swords next to them, ready to be swept up at an instant’s notice. Gently, I backed away before the roar of my furiously beating heart woke them up. Grabbing Kiel’s attention as he finished sliding under the tent, I held a finger to my lips and raised five fingers, pointing to the other side.
He cursed silently and nodded. There was nothing to be done about it at that point. Padding forward, we slipped out of the storage area, moving as fast as possible toward the canvas hallway between the sections of the command pavilion.
I rolled my eyes as I entered the middle section.
There, on a huge bed that had absolutelyno placein a military camp, slept the commanding Alpha. Nycitus was on his back, mouth open slightly, breathing heavily but not snoring.
No guards could be seeninsidethe tent as lightning flashed outside. However, Kiel and I could make out four guards outside the room, two posted on either side of the door.
With frayed nerves, we moved across the floor, the thick covering of rugs muffling our footsteps. Our target had no idea we were in his sleeping chamber, mere feet away from his body. The blade next to his bed would be his downfall.
As long as we found his stone. I’d fully agreed with Kiel that there was no way the Alphas would let the stones out of their sight. Not after Arcadus. But if Nycitusdidhave his, it wasn’t anywhere that we could easily see.
Cursing, knowing each second we wasted brought us closer to discovery and, thus, failure, I searched around for it, trying to move in utter silence. If Nycitus woke up, it was all over.
I’d just about given up hope, turning a glaring eye on the sleeping form, when lightning once more lit up the sky. Thecrackof thunder was almost immediate, indicating the storm was almost right above us.
