Scent of Valor (Chronicles of Eorthe #2) (21 page)

Ewald grabbed her by the shoulders and shook her gently. “What are you doing? Stay on your horse. Who knew what could have been waiting inside for you?”

She gave him a slow blink. He cared. In his weird vampire way. She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him close. “I thought only to help if someone was injured. It didn’t occur to me they’d be in any shape to hurt me after such an accident.”

He rested his chin on the top of her head. “How will I keep you safe if you rush into danger at every chance? I should have made one of the hunters take you back to the manor.”

She hugged him tighter. How could she help Kele and Benic? If she pleaded for Ewald to take her home, he might just send her back with some hunters. Even if he did return with her, should she leave Kele to her fate with the slavers? She closed her eyes.

“You’re trembling.” The concern in Ewald’s voice made her confusion even worse. Before Pemma agreed to being his companion, her mother had taken her aside and explained the rules of being a vampire’s lover. The number one was to never fall in love. She would age and he wouldn’t. It would only lead to heartache for them both. Ewald needed a vampire wife and Pemma should start looking for a mate.

“I’d send you home,” he whispered in her ear, “but I don’t like the idea of you alone out in the wild with only a few hunters to protect you.”

“What do you think will happen when we go west?”

He remained silent.

Exactly.

A hunter loomed over them with the vampire slavers following still on horseback. “The scent trail is confusing. From what we can tell, it looks like they went to the forest on foot.”

Huan waved to his men and in unison they galloped toward the forest.

She spun toward her horse but was yanked back by Ewald. “We can’t let them get to Kele first.”

“She sealed her fate when she ran away.” He held her fast and wouldn’t let her go. “If they live in those woods, what do you think will happen to us?”

She stopped struggling and watched the slavers grow smaller in the distance. “I hate this.”

“I do too. Benic’s castle must be close. We’ll follow this road.”

“He probably went with the hunters in the forest.”

“Then his people might be willing to send help to him and the packs against the slavers.”

Chapter Thirty-Four

Benic leaned forward, gripping the horse’s sides with his knees since he rode without a saddle, and raised his hand to guards on the castle wall.

Shouts could be heard and the gate opened.

Riding through, he slumped in relief. He’d made it. He thought for sure his pursuers would catch him first. The stable boy caught his horse’s reins and he dismounted.

“Take good care of her, she saved my life, and send someone with a fresh mount.”

His vampire warriors already surrounded him, concern on their faces.

“Arm yourselves. We’re riding out to the Temple.” He flagged the closest shifter guard. “Send someone for Inacio.” If he was going into battle, he needed to feed.

The guard looked at the others and shuffled his feet.

“What are you waiting for?” Benic snapped.

Clearing his throat, the guard couldn’t meet his glare. “Inacio left, my lord.”

“Left? Where to?”

“Soon after you left for New Berg without him, he packed some of his belongings and took a horse. We tried to track him but he…vanished.”

“You mean he used his skills on you and you let him go.” Benic rubbed his eyes. The incubus could seduce a whole battalion if he put his mind to it. Of all the crazy things to happen, this was the least expected.

The vampire frowned. “Yes, my lord, and I accept full responsibility for his escape.”

Benic sighed and dropped his hand. “I never kept him here against his will. He was always free to go and he knew it.” Inacio must have gotten tired of Benic’s recent behavior. He admonished Ewald for treating Pemma poorly, but he hadn’t done any better with Inacio. He shook his head. He didn’t have time to ponder about the incubus or look for a new source to feed from. He preferred to know his meals. “Let’s get ready.” He gestured for everyone to start moving.

Sitting on an upturned barrel, he watched the rush of soldiers and horses. A squire brought him a stout ale to clear his scratchy throat. Slumped against the castle wall, he sipped. He should have treated Inacio better. Hindsight was useless to change what he’d done, but maybe he could learn from all this.

He eyed his ale. Maybe.

He called over the vampire captain. “Did Inacio leave me a note?”

“Not that I’m aware of, sir, but I didn’t search for one either.”

“Very well.” He would look within his quarters and his lab for one. Replacing Inacio would be difficult. He’d grown rather fond of incubus blood. The emptiness plaguing his soul the last few months grew larger within his chest, almost engulfing him whole. He looked at his tower and recalled his dark study, his haven from the heartless world.

“The soldiers are ready, my lord.”

He climbed to his feet and accepted the reins of a fresh horse from the stableman. “The poachers have returned to our lands. We need to make an example of them. The shifters living here are under our protection and no one has rights to them but me.” He spoke loudly so all could hear.

“My lord,” shouted a guard from the top of the wall. “Riders approaching with a pack of shifters in feral form.”

Benic ground his teeth and tossed the reins to the closest soldiers. They had followed him home after all. He had hoped he could leave before they tracked him here. Benic climbed the ladders to the top of the wall and watched. One of the riders wore a dress. And who would be using shifters to track him? Not many vampires would feel comfortable outside the city with so many wolves in feral form.

The guard offered him his eyepiece.

He stared through it.
Ewald.

And Pemma? Had he discovered that the petite omega helped Kele escape and he wanted to execute them side by side? Over Benic’s dead body. “Arrows.” He shouted the order to draw bows and crank crossbows. His voiced also carried far enough for Ewald’s hunters to hear.

They circled the riders and slowed the horses until Ewald and Pemma came to a stop. The young lord waved his hands above his head in a common fashion, not fit for someone of his breeding. “Parley?” he shouted.

The guard next to him snorted. “He thinks we’re pirates.” Others chuckled with him.

Benic shook his head. “No, he’s just a fool.” He gave Ewald’s expedition a month before they were all dead. At least Kele was safe since they’d followed him instead. “Go back to New Berg, Ewald. You and your hunters don’t have a chance against my soldiers.”

Pemma half leaped, half fell off her horse and ran toward the castle.

He raised his hand to the archers. “Hold.” God, she was a reckless creature. One early loosed arrow and she would have been dead.

“Benic,” she cried out. “Kele’s in trouble. Slavers have tracked her to the forest.”

Her words had him leaning over the wall and pointing to the guards. “Let her in but not the others.”

The twang of arrows reached his ears. His soldiers sent warning shots toward the hunters who followed Pemma. He descended the ladder to the ground. Benic had the gateman unlock and open the small portico next to the main gate. Sticking his head out, he gestured for Pemma to enter.

She halted just out of his reach. “Let them in too. We came in search of help.”

He gave her a weary smile. “Not to hunt me down for stealing Kele?”

She wrung her hands. “We don’t have time for this.”

“I’m aware someone is hunting us. I was about to depart to help them until you arrived with a party of hunters in feral form. How would you like to proceed from here without Ewald trying to take my head?”

“Let him approach. Only him.” She waved for Ewald before he could agree. “Ewald? He’s agreed to speak to only you.”

Benic blinked and observed Pemma with her back turned toward him. Her long, dusty hair was in a tangle yet she seemed so unaware of her state of road wear. “Let him through,” he shouted to the guards on the wall.

Ewald rode forward while his hunters paced just out of reach of his guards’ arrows. “Lord Benic.” He nodded to Benic as he dismounted. “Thank you for not filling Pemma with arrows.”

Her eyes went wide. “He wouldn’t have.” She glanced at him. “That would have been rude.” Her voice wavered as the reality of where she was sank in.

Setting his arm around the slight shifter, Ewald faced him. “We were following Kele’s trail and it seemed to merge with yours at some point. Is she here?” He stared at the stone walls of the castle as if expecting her to peek over.

“No, we parted ways.” He ground his teeth. “Let’s stop with the pleasantries. I’m pressed for time. Kele belonged to me before the slavers poached on my lands and stole some of my shifters. I came to New Berg to retrieve them.”

Pemma clutched her hands together. “All of them?”

“Yes.”

“Peder too?”

He raised an eyebrow. “He’s with Kele.”

She sighed and pressed her hand over her heart. “I’m so glad to hear it.”

“Pemma?” Understanding finally dawned on Ewald’s face.

“Kele told me about her soul mate trapped in the slaver’s compound. I didn’t think she’d leave New Berg without him.” She leaned her face against Ewald’s chest. “All the wrongs are made right. What’s a little gold in the face of true love?”

“Yes, Ewald.” Benic smirked. “What’s a little gold?”

The young lord’s frown grew deeper. “It means better supplies when we head west. It means a better chance at surviving.”

Benic nodded. “I’ll reimburse you the gold you’ve lost if you set aside your charges of thievery.”

“Deal, but you must know that the slavers tracking Kele were originally searching for you. The magistrate has placed a price on your head for the death of the slaver Timothy.”

“Fuck.” Timothy’s men must have run to the magistrate as soon as he’d left with Peder. He’d hoped fear would still their tongues. He should have killed them, but how could he after all his years searching for a way to save his people? “How many?”

“Six. You don’t deny it?” Ewald appeared clearly perplexed.

He shrugged. “No.” He gestured for them to enter his castle. There wasn’t any point to telling them Peder had done it. If the hunter hadn’t done it, Benic would have. “You can freshen up and stay overnight. We’ll discuss the details further in the morning. I need to save my shifters from these slavers.”

Pemma rushed toward him with a hug. “I knew you would.” Then she skipped inside. “Are these shifters wild as well?” She pointed to his guards.

Ewald rolled his eyes at her comment. “Do you want my hunters to accompany you?”

“Do you want them all to die? Wild shifters are incredibly territorial.” Benic shook his head in disbelief. “Learn quickly, Ewald, if you really want to travel west and survive.”

Chapter Thirty-Five

The pounding of Peder’s heart filled his head. Soft soil squished between his clawed toes as he led the others deeper into the forest. The run had been longer than he’d wished. Every stride sent a new wave of muscle spasms along his back. He glanced over his shoulder to check on Kele.

She panted with exertion and he was stunned that she struggled to keep pace. The last time they had run through these woods together to save Susan, he’d had difficulty making it back to Apisi lands. Granted, he had run all the way to Benic’s castle first.

He smirked. “We need to not make a habit of these types of runs.”

Her folded ears twitched in annoyance. “You’re injured and can still outrun me. How is that possible?”

Peder slowed until he stopped, giving her a chance to catch her breath.

Ahote brought up the rear. “Why are we stopping? I can smell horse close by.” The hunter didn’t even look winded, but he hadn’t been beaten and starved for days.

“Give her some water.” Peder pointed to the water skin on his back. “I’ll double back a little ways and check.”

Before he left, Ahote grabbed his upper arm. “Take a drink first.”

He gulped a few mouthfuls and handed the water skin to Kele. “I won’t be long.” He hated seeing her like this. They were so close to home. He’d never let them take her away from her pack again. He’d die first.

It didn’t take long before the scent of horse drifted to him on the wind. Only vampires rode those beasts. He couldn’t smell any shifters with them. That was good. He didn’t want to fight his own kind. Not after the last few days of senseless killing. He would if he had to. The wind didn’t blow hard and they were only a few hundred strides into the forest.

The vampires were close.

Peder returned to Kele and Ahote using the hunting skills Sorin had drilled into him. Stay close to ground, watch where he placed his feet, and for Goddess’s sake, act like he was part of the land. Peder found them where he’d left them. “We’ll head west from here.”

Ahote shook his head. “The forest gets thick that way. It will make it harder to run.”

“Exactly. They won’t be able to use their horses. The thick underbrush will give us cover until we reach the Temple.”

Ahote eyed him. “You’re different.”

“Let’s go.” Peder rested his hand on Ahote’s shoulder.

The dark hunter glanced at where he’d been touched. Omegas didn’t touch hunters uninvited, not unless they wanted a beating. “Yeah, we’ll talk about this later.”

Peder chuckled under his breath. Ahote could talk to him all he wanted, but Peder would probably be dead anyway. He led them into the thicker part of the forest. Keeping his nose close the ground, he smelled for the neutral scent of Temple land. He didn’t want to compound their problems by accidently crossing into Yaundeeshaw territory.

His chest tightened. It wasn’t time to mourn Nahuel, but somehow he’d get word to the dead hunter’s pack of his passing.

The nicker of horses pricked his ears. The slavers were even closer than he’d assessed. Damn. He motioned for Kele to stay next to him and directed everyone to follow him into the sea of ferns that flowed with the spring breezes. The leaves would weave in their passing but would appear as wind blowing.

Ahote crept to the right of them. “At least this plan doesn’t involve skunks.”

“Yet.”

The dark hunter’s ears flattened to his skull at the joke. He’d never forgive Peder for that.

On four legs, they made good time.

In the distance, Peder heard the vampires talking. “The ground’s too unstable for the horses. We’ll have to go by foot from here,” one of them said.

“Are you mad? They can be waiting for us in there. I know where they’re heading.”

He couldn’t move.
That voice!
He recognized it.

Shift for me.
Huan had said that to him before setting the brand to his hand. His voice was like a brand in his memory.

Kele crept next to him. Her eyes narrowed and her claws extended for a kill.

They couldn’t indulge in revenge. Not here, not now. Inside the Temple, they’d have the higher ground and the doorway was narrow enough to force them to enter two at a time. The space was close so blow darts would be hazardous to use. He grabbed her hand and shook his head.

Her eyes blazed and her claws dug into his flesh but didn’t draw blood. The scent would be a beacon to the vampires.

He didn’t have the time or patience for her vengeful nature. He squeezed back but harder.

She blinked and bared her teeth at him.

Ahote reached out and cuffed them both on the ears.

The pain snapped Kele out of her rage. She released his hand and nodded for him to continue leading the way.

He breathed a sigh of relief and rose to his feet. So Huan knew where they were heading. It made no sense to hide anymore. It was now a race to the Temple. “They’re not following. We need to make better time than the horses. Let’s run.”

Without waiting for a reply, he took off at full speed over branch and bush. This was his idea so he should be the one to fall if it failed.

The sounds of snapping twigs followed him. He glanced over his shoulder and saw them both behind him. Ahote could have easily overtaken his pace, yet he stayed alongside Kele. Peder’s chest swelled at the hunter treating him as an equal. More than an equal.

Once they dealt with the slavers, he and Kele could finally figure out what was between them. He knew his heart. He loved her. But their pack situations caused so much turmoil. How could such different shifters fall in love? He wasn’t so different anymore.

The underbrush grew more spaced out and he battled fewer ferns and bushes to run. In the distance, the Temple came into view between the tree trunks. Its stone walls were covered in fresh spring vines. Buds sprouted all over but none had bloomed yet. He lifted his ears to catch any sound of hooves and heard only the quiet of the forest. A familiar faint scent caught his attention.

Apisi?

Was that left over from their visit? Had it only been days ago? It felt like so much longer, almost a lifetime since Susan had made her strange measurements with a rope. He scanned the area but didn’t spot anyone. That didn’t mean anything. He had been running too fast to track properly and his packmates could be hiding on purpose. Peder knew he would be if a bunch of foul-smelling, beaten-up shifters came charging into the area.

They needed to reach the Temple before the vampires, though. It was their only chance to take the slavers. If they kept running to either Apisi or Payami lands, the vampires would follow and who knows how many more slavers they’d return with or if Benic could defend them against their numbers. This had to end today. For all their sakes.

He took the stairs to the Temple two at a time and collapsed next to the altar to catch his breath. His lungs heaved so hard they ached. How long had it been since he’d felt no pain?

Kele stumbled inside and lay on her back in the middle of the floor with Ahote not moments behind her.

The hunter crouched close to the doorway, panting, and tossed her the water skin. “You drive a hard pace, Peder.”

He did, but for a good reason.

The sounds of horses approaching perked all of their ears.

They’d made it here before the slavers but without much time to recover. The vampires would be fresh from riding while they were exhausted from the sprint. He crept to the doorway next to Ahote to peek outside, but nothing stirred.

Kele spoke a prayer to their goddess.

Ahote rolled his eyes. “I doubt she’s listening.”

Peder cuffed him. “Be respectful even if you don’t believe. She has enough faith for your whole pack.”

Ahote blinked at him as if he’d grown three heads. “Are you out of your mind, hitting me like that?”

He bared his teeth at the hunter and shoved his face against Ahote’s. “We don’t have time for this shit. If you follow me then you submit to my dominance.”

He growled. “You’re not Payami.”

“Sorin’s not Payami either, but you didn’t have a problem with that when he led us into Benic’s castle.”

“He could beat me to a pulp.”

Peder snorted. “And you doubt that I can? Who do you think has been training me?”

Ahote blinked again.

“I was raised Apisi, by the worst alpha known to the tribe. Try to remember that.” He shoved Ahote away before he did something stupid like snap the other hunter’s muzzle shut with his teeth.

Kele carried the water skin to Peder. “I saved you some.” She caressed his ear with her fingertips. “Forgive Ahote. He wasn’t the smartest pup in the litter.”

The hunter snapped playfully at Kele. “But always the cutest.” He rose to his feet and stretched.

Something whistled by Peder’s ear.

Ahote slapped at his thigh. “What the…?”

Peder dived, tackling Ahote to the ground as other darts flew into the Temple.

Kele was already on her stomach and against the wall.

Another dart landed on the floor by his hand. He pushed Ahote farther into the ruins of the building. “Let’s lay you down before you faint.”

The hunter gave him a disbelieving look. “It must have just grazed me. I feel fine.”

He pulled his hand off his thigh and found it empty. No dart in his flesh. Could they be so fortunate? He glanced at Kele. Or was it divine intervention? Either way, he was happy to have Ahote awake and ready to fight. He slapped him on the shoulder. “Stay quiet,” he whispered. “We’ll try to lure them inside by letting them think we’re unconscious.” On his belly, he crept closer to door, doing his best not to click his claws against the stone. All his time staying quiet and creeping around the den as a young male was finally paying off.

Footfalls on the steps outside reached his ears. They were soft and careful, as if the person expected them to charge out the doorway. He wanted to kill Huan himself. Any person who hurt Peder and his would perish from this day forward. The meek Peder whom Kele had fallen in love with had died in that pit, but he still wasn’t sure what had been born in his place.

Whoever was approaching the entrance must be expendable. Peder couldn’t imagine Huan being brave enough to lead his comrades in here. He glanced at Ahote, who crouched in position ready to spring at a moment’s notice, and pointed at the doorway.

Ahote nodded.

Kele was on all fours on the other side of the entrance. Her claws were extended and her limbs trembled. Not in fear though. He’d smell that. It was anticipation. She gave him a fierce grin. He imagined she was picturing Huan’s dead body at her feet.

They would end this just as they had begun—together.