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“He’s telling him how to shift,” Blake hummed in her ear. “When it was my turn to become a wolf, he told me to close my eyes, listen to my wolf and feel him. Feel his soul, to imagine breathing through his nostrils and feel the air as it fills my large wolf lungs. To feel not just my heart pumping but that of my wolf, to listen with my wolf ears, feel the wind as it plays with my fur as I run through the woods, my paws sinking into the ground as my weight bears down on them.”
As Blake spoke, Niev watched as Tanner stepped back and the boy’s body slowly blurred.
“He told me to open my heart to let Selene in, let her help me through my shift, pulling my energy and strength from her. When I did as he told me, when I started feeling my wolf’s soul take over my body, the pain was unimaginable, but I opened my heart and felt Selene pouring her strength into me.”
A scream ripped through the silent night, a scream so painful that a shiver ran down Niev’s spine. She watched as his bones rearranged, as his skin stretched slowly and tore apart.
“His wolf doesn’t quite know yet how to shift, and the first time he emerges it will be far longer and will be more painful than a normal shift.” Blake’s voice was still a quiet humming as he enjoyed his ear scratches.
“And it will become easier the more he shifts after this?”
“Yes. He and his wolf will get used to each other. With time, they’ll become a team and it will be easier for them to let each other take over one’s body.”
Niev watched with fascination as the boy’s body slowly grew hair and taller. He fell onto all fours, the scream intensifying. Goosebumps appeared all over her skin. “Whenever I see you shift it looks far less painful than this.”
“He’s young and so is his wolf. They don’t know each other. He might be in pain, but Selene is watching over him, soothing his heart.”
The scream slowly turned into a painful whine before a large, ginger wolf appeared. He seemed wobbly and weak on his feet, his eyes scared and confused as he looked at his surroundings.
Tanner stepped forward, dropped his pants, and shifted in a blink of an eye. Niev flinched a little at how fast it all happened. After watching the boy in agony for what had felt like hours, Tanner’s shift paled in comparison. Tanner walked over to the scared wolf and towered before him.
Blake started explaining again. “He’s testing him, seeing if he will submit. He will of course, but it’s part of the ritual. Father has to establish his dominance over him.”
“Did he do the same to you and Seth?”
“Yes. An alpha son might become alpha at some point, but he’s still his father’s subject.” She could hear him hesitate before he continued. “With me, all went as expected. I submitted to my father like I was supposed to, and he welcomed me. It was only when Seth shifted to welcome me as his brother that our wolves didn’t accept each other. He saw me as his rival, and I saw him as mine. We would’ve fought to the death, young and ignorant as we were, if Father hadn’t stopped us with an alpha’s command.”
It was painful listening to his words. This seemed to hurt deep within his soul.
“I never wanted to take his title, but my wolf is an alpha. It’s what he’s born to do, as is Seth. We didn’t mean to hurt each other, but our wolves didn’t understand what was going on.”
“It’s not your fault.” She slightly turned her head and kissed his cheek bone. “Your wolf was confused. He only did what is embedded in his DNA.”
“It took me a while to understand it.” He tightened his arms around her and pulled her even closer, rubbing his thumbs soothingly over her tiny bump.
The ginger wolf slowly bowed his head and exposed his neck. Alpha Tanner bent down and sniffed the young wolf, walking around him to inspect him. He seemed to approve because the young wolf looked up again and seemed to relax. A man, who Niev assumed was the boy’s father, stepped forward. He bowed toward Tanner and dropped his pants before shifting. He stepped to his son and now welcomed him with a nudge, his big eyes filled with pride.
Blake turned his head and kissed her cheek. “Time for the pack to welcome him.”
All over the clearing, huge wolves appeared and she felt Blake step back. She turned and saw him drop his shorts as his body started to blur. His bones cracked and his skin tore apart and a second later, Blake’s beautiful black wolf stood before her. He came closer and nudged her with his nose before sitting down next to her. She leaned against him and buried her hands in his neck fur, scratching and petting him.
Tanner was the first, his proud howl filling the air. Slowly, every wolf in the clearing started singing, letting the crisp night air vibrate.
She hugged Blake tight as she buried her face into his neck listening to the beautiful song until it slowly faded away. She looked up again and saw the son and father duo head into the woods. Everyone started to move about and the crowd spread apart. Niev’s eyes wandered over the clearing and found a group that everyone seemed to try to avoid.
She took a closer look and found Olivia’s sad, milky eyes. She didn’t look as skinny and malnourished as the first time Niev had seen her, but she seemed weak and scared. She remembered what Seth told her that morning and her heart began to ache just as Olivia’s eyes looked up and met hers. Niev wanted to talk to her, but not in front of everyone. Olivia deserved to have all her questions answered and Niev knew she must have a lot. Chayed was dead because of her and Olivia as his mate deserved to know all the details. She deserved to confront the person responsible.
Blake lowered his head to her height and looked toward the group of Skadu Wolves–and Olivia. He gently rubbed his soft cheek against hers as if he wanted to comfort her. She leaned into his touch and soaked up his serenity that always consoled her.
“She deserves answers. I took her mate from her, no matter how horrible and disgusting he was toward her, she loved him.”
He stood up to his full height, towering behind her and gently nudged her toward the Skadu Wolves.
She looked up at him. “Not now, everyone will see us with them, and I don’t want that.”
He placed his nose in between her shoulder blades and pushed her, forcing her to walk forward. After she’d taken the first few steps, he walked next to her. The little group were mostly women and two wolves. One that she recognized as Clarence and a younger one that she hadn’t seen before. The two wolves had the women in the midst of them as if they wanted to protect them.
The closer Blake and Niev came, the more nervous the women seemed and the more tense the wolves became. She looked up at Blake, his muscles tense, his demeanor dominant and alpha like. When they reached the group, Niev could feel the tension in the air and her neck hair standing up.
