AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“I didn’t,” he insisted gruffly.
Liar,the wolf in him hissed. He could have compelled her to stop. Let her run off while her emotions were heightened. Bringing her to Connors’ house in the first place was a risk—especially after her nerves were already frayed due to the presence of Naomi. He had pushed her too hard—she was bound to snap eventually. And, damn it, he hadwantedher to. A sick, twisted part of him embraced her rage. Craved her mark.
And the sad part was…that even now, with Sonia staring at him horrified, he didn’t feel one damn ounce of guilt.Mine.
“Do you know how much harder it will be for her now? For you?”
He frowned at her mournful tone. It was the same question he had avoided answering himself.
“It won’t matter,” he explained, shaking his head. “I’ll tell her the truth. Teach her our ways. The more she learns, the easier it will be for her to understand why I did what I did.”
Sonia didn’t look convinced. She always wore her emotions on her sleeve. Currently, her frown was so pronounced it resembled a crescent moon. “You should get started, then. While you’re at it, what exactlydoyou plan on teaching her?”
It was the million-dollar question.
“How to hunt,” he said, choosing to list the safer topics first. “How to master her instincts. How to fight. Our customs, the most relevant ones, anyway. Our history.”
“And the mating bond?”
After a pause, he nodded.
“And how will you explain abandoning her once you take on Lukka?”
He winced. “Low blow, Sonia.”
“Is it?” She squared her chin, and he internally groaned, recognizing the stance. Like a dog with a bone, she wouldn’t let this go. “Let’s say you win and then decide to leave; she won’t be welcome on Black Mountain. Especially if someone like Kyle takes over in the aftermath—”
“Don’t even go there.” The mere prospect irritated something inside of him, and he turned away, gritting his teeth. “I don’t need that mental image.”
“That’s what could happen,” Sonia countered. “Kyle or someone else just as ruthless and cunning. Can you imagine what state we’ll be in after that?”
Bill grunted. It was a good question, recalling the truth she let slip earlier.
“I know you can only dance around the issue,” he began. “But it’s time to come clean. What’s been really going on since I left?”
It was her turn to grimace. “Our territory has shrunk, for starters. No one will say why.”
So much for her reluctance; he couldn’t hide his shock. “Shrunk? What the hell do you mean?”
She shrugged helplessly. “What else? We used to find plenty of fish in our rivers. That’s changed. Same with the deer. The bears. Even the birds seem fewer these days. It’s gotten so scarce, in fact, that Lukka has all but given permission to push into Eislander territory to—”
“Encroachment,” Bill snarled. The polite term for what was, in essence, stealing. It was unheard of. He wouldn’t have believed the claim if Sonia didn’t appear to be in physical pain. Breaking Lukka’s trust to divulge this much must have taken monumental effort on her part. So, he softened his tone. “Seasonal shifts happen all the time. That doesn’t necessarily mean mismanagement.”
“I thought so, too,” Sonia admitted. “But it’s been three years, and it’s getting worse. There’s more—” Her eyes shifted toward the shadows as if she thought someone might be lurking within them, listening. “There was a forest fire a few years back. It was small, relatively contained. Only a few acres were damaged, and no one was injured. Afterward, the affected territory had been marked off as a forbidden zone, at least until the natural balance returned.”
“That’s protocol,” Bill said. Out of tradition, they avoided wounded parts of the forest and allowed them to regrow with little disturbance.
“It’s been years, but the ban hasn’t been lifted. Rumors have run rampant, of course. Some of them claim that, in actuality, the land has been sold off. For development—”
“No.” Bill couldn’t believe it. Lukka was many things, but to sell off their ancestral lands? That was a step too far, even for him. “Do you have proof?”
Sonia shook her head. “Of course not. Can you imagine the uproar that would cause?”
He could, in fact. Even the threat of a sale would be enough to foment an outright rebellion, if not a direct challenge from any number of elder lycans within the pack. But while Lukka had never been much of a fighter, the bastard was smart. Smart enough to cover his tracks.
“What aren’t you telling me?” he demanded of Sonia. Her eyes were darting again, avoiding his gaze. She wasn’t merely nervous. She was being evasive. For her to play coy now, after everything else she’d revealed, there could only be one explanation. “Youcan’ttell me. There is something he compelled you directly not to reveal.”
Her lips twitched. Suddenly, she jerked her chin toward the house. “That boy you let stay here. I saw him around Black Mountain before.”
