AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Thank you.” I appreciated his understanding more than words could express.
“Hey,” he said, with a mischievous glint in his eyes. “You two should get matching tattoos to celebrate. How about heart-shaped wolf paw prints or something equally cheesy?” He grinned, obviously teasing, but the idea sparked something within me.
I laughed, shaking my head. “Somehow, I can’t imagine Ridge with a tattoo, but maybe I’ll sketch something out for him just for fun.”
“Go for it,” Kyle encouraged. “Who knows? You might be surprised by how much he likes the idea.”
We continued to work on plans for setting up the studio, laughing as we brainstormed ridiculous tattoo ideas for Ridge. Despite the troubles and threats surrounding us, at that moment, everything felt right.
A sudden question from Kyle pulled me from my daydreams of tattoo designs and wedding plans. “So, are you guys still planning on having the wedding in December?” he asked, concern lacing his words.
I nodded, excitement making my belly somersault. “Yeah, I think so. That gives us a few months to sort out this mess with the hunters.”
“True.” His expression darkened. “It’s only a matter of time before they attack. We know Giselle is working on that mass cure for the shifters here in Blackwood Creek.”
His tone was somber, reminding me of the harsh reality we faced. There was a fleeting expression of guilt in my brother’s eyes, though it would only be apparent to those who know him well. I saw it, and I knew why.
I thought about how Zander Elkins had been affected by the so-called cure. Losing his wolf, his memories, and essentially turning feral, suffering a painful, protracted death…it was a fate I wouldn’t wish on anyone.
“Listen, as much as I love having you here, I know this is not your fight,” I said. “I won’t think any less of you if you want to stop training the shifters and take a step back. Blackwood Creek is my home now. I plan on protecting this place and its people at all costs.” My hands balled into fists, ready to fight for what I believed in.
Kyle glanced at me, surprise and pride in his eyes. “You really mean that, don’t you?”
“With all my heart,” I said earnestly.
He sighed, running a hand through his hair. “I’m not sure I can call this place home yet. But I came here to help you.” His gaze met mine, filled with a steadfast resolve. “No matter what, I’ll be right by your side, Tori. Always.”
“Thank you.” I was touched by his unwavering support. Kyle and I may not have had the easiest lives, but we always had each other.
Chapter 30
Ridge
The sun rose high in the sky, casting thin shadows across the construction site as I stood, arms crossed, waiting to talk to the contractors. My gaze swept over the nearly completed houses. In such a short amount of time, this patch of forest had been transformed into a small development of houses just about ready for the refugee shifters to move into. The dusty building site was filled with the scent of freshly cut wood and the sounds of hammers and saws as the construction crew put the finishing touches on the new homes. It was amazing how much faster contractors worked when you greased the right palms with bonuses and incentives.
The contemporary houses, designed to blend with the nearby forest, rose tall and proud with sturdy walls and gleaming windows, promising a fresh start. It’s what I’d been visualizing—a sanctuary for shifters, where we’d live without having to continuously look over our shoulders. The dream was slowly materializing, and I felt a surge of excitement for the families who would soon call this place home. The infighting and power struggles within the packs in Blackwood Creek were something I couldn’t ignore. Members of my own pack were deliberately causing trouble. Still, I firmly believed that if we came togetheragainst the hunters, we’d be able to establish a peaceful coexistence.
“Ridge, we’re ahead of schedule,” the foreman, Pete, informed me, wiping the sweat from his brow with a rag he’d pulled from his back pocket. “So, barring any unforeseen issues, your people should be moving in within a week.”
“Good.” I appreciated the efficiency. Those packs needed to get out of the woods. Camping was only fun when it was for a vacation, especially when children were involved. “Make sure the security measures are being followed correctly. We don’t want any incidents like the one involving Tori.”
Pete nodded, understanding the gravity of the situation. After the attack on Tori, when a hunter disguised as a construction worker had slipped through our defenses, I had kept the crew under even closer watch. It had been hard. Trusting these contractors was risky, but the lives of many other shifters depended on the work they were providing.
“Will do,” Pete assured me before turning back to his crew, barking orders to ensure the job was done right.
As I walked away from the construction site, I held my head up higher. I was so fucking proud of the progress we’d made here. These homes would provide shelter and safety for those who’d lost everything due to the hunters’ relentless pursuit of shifters.
It was a risky tactic, bringing different packs to live side by side. We were territorial creatures by nature, with each pack traditionally holding its own lands, never working together. The hunters had used their knowledge of this practice to decimate our numbers.
If we were to survive the hunters’ ongoing onslaught, we had to find a way to fight back. Coming together to work collectively as a cohesive unit was the last thing the hunters would expect. I’d reached out to all the packs I could and pitched my idea tothem. Some of the biggest packs in the States no longer appeared to exist. They’d either been pushed so far off the grid that no one knew where or how to get in touch with them, or the hunters had succeeded in wiping them out.
The nomadic packs had fared better; the hunters couldn’t pin them down, so they saw no reason to change. Then there were the packs whose numbers had been greatly reduced, their trust at an all-time low. Those surviving did so in a near constant fight-or-flight mode, expecting they’d be captured at any moment, tortured and forced to betray others before being executed. They had grown tired of witnessing this same cycle again and again.
I was certain if the packs came together, we could make changes so the hunters couldn’t keep repeating their same strategy. Security would be tighter, because we’d have the numbers to have regular perimeter patrols. We could fight back. I’d finally gained the trust of shifters willing to give my idea a go, and slowly but surely, more shifters were seeing the benefits of the plan and were trickling into town.
Initially, we didn’t have anywhere for them to stay, so many were resorting to camping. But thanks to Tori’s idea to build these houses, they would have somewhere to call home.
Once the threat passed, and itwouldpass, many of the shifters would inevitably return to their old pack lands, but many had asked me to join the Northeast Pack permanently. Seeing these houses come together so quickly had brought a rare sense of satisfaction amid the chaos.
