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My mate is troubled, and that means I am troubled, too. A part of me wants to leave, but I also see the risks. She is with child now. I would do fucking anything to keep her and the babe safe, but I am merely an orc who happens to be able to shift. I don’t claim to have the intelligence to strategize for the complex situation that is unfolding.
In plain terms, I do not know what the fuck to do for the best.
“Doug! I need you!”
Hearing Ashe’s hail, I pivot and center myself on the call, sensing the urgency of his request—the alpha and his patrol are under attack.
I charge, tearing through the narrow forest path that is better suited to wolf or deer, snapping branches and flattening saplings in my haste. I see them as I crest the hill, battling with a dozen humans who have set up a rough camp by the river.
As I apprise myself of the situation, I see that the opponents are not only humans. Their number includes two orcs.
I bellow my challenge and race down the slope. The Oberon wolves scatter out of my way, aware of my battle skills and the deadly might of my tusks. The orc, though, sees me too late, his club swinging as though in slow motion as I stampede through the broken tent and skewer the bastard.
My attack provides an opening. The shifters regroup and take down the second orc.
I toss the orc from my tusk and trample him as I charge a fleeing man.
More men scatter, running into the forest, but the wolves are faster, chasing them down.
I snort and bellow again, letting my aggression ease its hold on me, seeing only dead on the forest floor as our wolves return to the camp.
It’s only then, as my vision settles, that I notice the harsh metal collars upon the broken human remains. This, more than the presence of two orcs, forces me to acknowledge what this is.
“Blighten,”I say, dread leeching me of strength.
“Aye,”Asheagrees.“Two of you return to the pack. Ask Tavion to meet me outside the den. The rest search the area, looking for evidence of any more of the Blighten bastards. Doug, stay with me and keep watch while I search the camp.”
As the shifters leave to do his bidding, he shifts to human and, crouching, inspects the nearest body on the ground.
“Do you think Travis is behind this?”
Ashe lifts his head. “That would be bold, even for Travis. While I am sure that bastard is undoubtedly scheming to have me taken out, I don’t believe he would engage the Blighten to this end.”
I have supported Ashe on many occasions since I first joined the pack. It was Ashe who I spoke to the night before we fled the Blighten. He gave me his word that night that he would aid me, even though Travis had indicated conflict should be avoided unless the Blighten stepped on pack lands. At the time, I questioned that he went against his leader, even though I was grateful that he did. Now, a year on, I see Ashe in an ever-evolving light. He is no insubordinate acting without due care, but a man and shifter with purpose and standing.
“You are the leader the pack deserves.”
He huffs out a breath and, tossing aside the satchel he was rummaging through, rises to face me.
“You wonder why I don’t challenge him,”he says. “You are not alone in this.” His eyes shift toward the river before returning to me. “A leadership challenge is never clear-cut. Many will die. That will likely involve innocent pack members who find themselves caught up in the fray. The bloodlust that follows can be barbaric if unchecked by the leader. If it were only about my life, it would be easier. Make no mistake, if I fuck up, it is not only I who will forfeit my life, but many lesser shifters and their mates will suffer atrocities beyond imagining. I would know,” he adds bitterly. “It happened in my former pack.”
“This is why you wait.”
He nods. “I do not underestimate Travis. In a straight fight, I could take him. But it would never be a straight fight unless I catch him unawares. Even then, he likely has contingency plans. Someone waiting to attack me, even though it’s forbidden, and that shifter would be dishonored by the act. They only need to distract or wound me enough to give Travis the edge. Don’t think they would do as much out of love for him. No, Travis is ever a schemer and will have leverage over many toward this end. That this is not the way of shifters means nothing to him, for he is a man enamored with the power of leading a pack.”
He looks down at the fallen man before shifting his focus to one of the prone orcs.
“Seeing Blighten scum on our lands? That is a bigger worry and must be my priority. If I challenge Travis now, I will weaken our pack and put us all at fucking risk.”
I feel the honesty of his words. He is a good man and alpha. I would follow him willingly; in a way I have never wanted to follow anyone before. It dawns upon me that I have never had someone who I might look up to until now. Both Ashe and Tavion are worthy leaders, in ways that have nothing to do with age but come from the sort of maturity that is soul deep.
“You have my allegiance. In whatever ways this plays out, and whenever and however you might need it,”I say.
“I hope I never need to call upon you, Doug. But make no mistake, if I need to, I will.”
“Doug!”
My head lifts, and my nose turns toward the north.
