Ravensong (Green Creek 2)

“Idiot,” I said quietly, reaching up and running a finger between his eyes.

He pressed against my hand and breathed in deeply.

“—don’t know why we had to wait,” a voice said as it got closer. A man. “What the hell is she doing?”

“I think she likes it here,” another voice replied. A woman. “Don’t know why. This place gives me the creeps. Being in an Alpha’s territory is one thing, but two Alphas? She’s going to get us all killed.”

Oh, how right she was.

They were closer.

“I don’t give a fuck what she likes,” the man said. “And just because she thinks the ferals are going to do the job for us doesn’t mean they’re not going to come for us after. I mean, there were already two of them. What if it’s the whole pack by now?”

“They’re easier to put down,” the woman muttered. “Feral wolves don’t think. They’re nothing but animals. It’s the nonferal wolves I’m worried about. She should have just let us burn down the goddamn house. Circle the whole thing with silver and just be done with it.”

The man snorted. “Did you see the look on her face when Grant told her that? I thought she was going to shoot him right there.”

Closer.

“We’re hunters,” the woman said mockingly. “We’re supposed to hunt.”

“Right? I get off on killing these things as much as anyone else, but goddamn, she’s getting careless. This isn’t like it was in Omaha. Or West Virginia.”

“Bennetts,” the woman said. “I don’t necessarily agree with the way she’s going about this, but can you imagine what it’s going to be like for us when we get to say we took out the Bennett pack? We’re going to be legendary.”

Closer.

“As long as we get paid, I don’t care about—”

Mark looked at me with violet eyes.

gordo gordo gordo

I stepped out from behind the tree.

They were young.

Almost kids, really. Maybe younger than Joe.

Such a waste.

They both had their rifles slung over their shoulders.

They hadn’t expected me.

They stopped, eyes wide.

“Hello,” I said.

They took a step back.

Mark rounded the other side of the tree, lips pulled back against his fangs. His tail swished side to side.

They took another step back.

“Your mistake,” I told them, “was talking about killing a pack when a mother wolf could hear you.”

The man snapped, “What are you—”