The Last Wolf

Search parties went into the woods looking for any signs of Luke and Samantha’s little girl, but no traces of her could be found. Sam begged White River for answers. He gave her none. His fears, in his mind, became truer with each passing second. He had to take matters into his own hands.

“How is your patient,” He asked Phoenix as he walked through the cottage door.

She smiled a little while dabbing Shadow’s head with a damp cloth. “He’d be better if you’d stop smothering him,” he croaked while turning his head and opening his dark blue eyes. White River noted the color change in his irises.

“Someone has to keep an eye on you.” Phoenix joked.

Macon barged through the open door. White River shot a daring glare at the boy before he had a chance to blurt out any important information. The old medicine man knew that if Shadow heard about the disappearance he wouldn’t heal properly before going after her. Phoenix chose to believe otherwise, but kept her word not to tell him so far.

“You could talk Phoenix into making the elixir I asked for yesterday if you need that much breathing room,” He winked at his patient before taking Macon by the shoulder. “Come, I need help in the herb garden.”

“Is it just me?” Colt stared at their backs as they walked out of the cottage. “Or has he been a little too involved in that garden lately?”

“It’s not just you,” Phoenix answered with a bite.

“Go! Make whatever he wants, I’m fine, I promise.” He took her warm hand into his own icy grasp before stroking the back of her hand with his thumb and giving her a heartbreakingly perfect smile. She’d forgotten how much she missed this. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“Always thanking me,” she sighed. This moment, in her mind, should last forever, but it was broken the moment he uttered the real dilemma hanging over his head.

“Where’s Dahlia?”

~~~

“Tell me what you found!” His features were paler than they’d ever been. The dark circles under his eyes were from more than just a lack of sleep. Macon watched the man who’d been more of a father to him in the past ten years of his life than any other man he ever knew very carefully.

“Why are you doing this?” Macon asked as White River bent on the ground, sitting on his knees, and looked at one of the budding herbs.

“I can’t let them have her.” His teeth ground together harshly. Macon could’ve sworn that he just growled, but that wasn’t possible. White River couldn’t… “She’s important to our species. If they kill her our kind will no longer exist!”

“I understand that, but you can’t…”

“I’m going to have to!” The old man’s glare pierced Macon’s heart. Suddenly, he realized exactly what was going on. White River’s connection to Dahlia was much more than doctor/patient or savior from the Shifters all those years ago. “Tell me what you know!”


Raider moved his body so that it blocked most of mine. He didn’t try to touch me again, but his stance suggested that he wanted to shove me behind something. The man standing in front of us couldn’t have been over twenty five. Muscles in his arms and legs were subtly defined, while his torso rippled with strength training.

“She likes what she sees.” He backed away, slowly fading into the darkness before my eyes. Raider’s eyes never budged from the man’s chiseled features.

“Funny, I’m pretty sure she’s disgusted with you.” His shoulder’s dropped into a predator stance. My stomach churned while my blood raced through my veins. Anger coursed through my body; I wanted nothing more than to shove Raider out of the way, to prove I could protect myself, but that seemed like the stupidest option.

“Careful, half-breed! You’re in my territory.”

“We’re just trying to leave, Hawke. Don’t make this difficult.”

“Raider,” I hissed as the forest around us began to buzz with life.

The man clucked his tongue several times before whispering, “You can leave anytime you won’t, Raider, but the wolf stays here.”

My mouth fell open in shock. I shook my head viciously before yelling, “Oh hell no!”