Page 39 of Wolf Bonded (Rejected Moons 2)

Wilder’s main job, apart from training Milo and Emlyn to use their magic more effectively, is scavenging. He’s got a real knack for scrounging up exactly what we’re looking for, which today is sneakers for everyone.

Personally, I think we could keep going barefoot. But Wilder’s insistent that having shoes is a lot nicer and is worth the trouble of getting them.

“You never bring me on your supply runs,” I say. “You always ask Milo or Emlyn to go, but not me.”

“Have you wanted to come?” he asks, looking at me with some surprise. “You never said anything. I ask Emlyn and Milo to come because it’s a good opportunity for them to practice magic, and that’s not something you need to do.”

“I wouldn’t have minded coming with you,” I say. “I know I wasn’t much help against the Ravagers when they attacked your coven. But I’m actually pretty good in a fight, believe it or not.”

“Oh, I believe it,” he says fervently. “It’s not like that’s the only fight I’ve seen you in, you know. I saw you fight the Moon Drinkers.”

That’s true. I had almost forgotten my part in that fight because of everything that happened immediately after.

“You shouldn’t give yourself a hard time about what happened with the Ravagers,” he says. “That’s how it is with Ravagers. No one can fight them off. There are too many of them when they swarm like that. I think only magic would have had a chance in that situation.”

“They’re only human,” I say.

“A swarm of locusts can strip the meat off a cow,” Wilder says sagely.

“That sounds made up.”

“But you get my point.”

“Yeah, I do.”

Wilder bites his lip as if he’s thinking carefully about something. Then he says, “Do you want a fight?”

“What do you mean?”

“Do you want to kill some Ravagers?”

“Always.”

He laughs. “You’re not even going to ask what I’m talking about?”

“I can’t picture a scenario where I wouldn’t want to kill Ravagers.”

***

The trap Wilder sets is the first use of magic I’ve ever just fucking fallen in love with. It’s also probably the most insane thing I’ve ever seen in my life.

He lies in the middle of the road and plays dead, and the first thing I think is that there’s no way in hell even someone as stupid as a Ravager could possibly fall for this.

Then I notice the smell.

It’s the smell of decay and death. The wolf hates it. I feel a whine start to crawl its way up my throat.

“Stay back,” he says.

This is depraved.

My senses are telling me that he is absolutely dead. The wolf in me is reacting to that. It takes my human mind all kinds of effort to realize that I’m being tricked right now. That this is some kind of spell.

It doesn’t take long to work.

Ravagers never travel alone. But the group that happens upon Wilder—what they perceive as the corpse of Wilder—in the road is small because they weren’t out here looking for anything in particular. They’re scavenging, like us—for bodies, not for shoes—and you can’t send out a whole swarm for a job like that.

There are three of them, and they’re running up the road toward Wilder. I hold my position, and so does he. We want them to be drawn in. We want them not to be able to escape.

---