Chris
Snow crunches under my black paws as I follow the guards up the foothills. The sun is nearly blinding, reflecting off the snow-covered landscape but leaves very few places to hide.
I wrinkle my nose, picking up the humans' scent once more. A flash of sandy blonde to my left shows Jace's wolf taking off after something.
Cyrus lets out a low growl picking up the scent of more humans and something else. Acrid soot burns my snout, warning of dark witchcraft.
'Over here,' Jace calls.
I follow him up to an outcropping fifty yards or so from the tunnel I was investigating. The opening looks much like the surrounding mountainside with jutting rocks breaking through the ground and a smattering of trees, including a couple of evergreens that he stands in front of.
'Anything look out of the norm to you,' he asks, already knowing the answer. A gust of wind rustles my black fur, making me thankful for its protection in this harsh environment. In my wild form, I also pick up the faint smell of ash.
A large brown wolf lopes into view from behind the trees, sniffing and growling as he goes. Ryker brought this breach directly to me before heading out to investigate personally.
Jace nudges the pine boughs aside, revealing a little camp inside, complete with a fire pit. I growl as I creep along the encampment, easily picking up six males scents, all human.
'How fucking long have they been here?!' I snap.
There's no doubt in my mind they're hunters. That they slipped into our territory and set up camp undetected is terrifying.
How many more are lurking?!
'Days at least, maybe weeks,' Ryker spits.
Jace says nothing but I catch the keen glint in his eye, he's working something out. He pads down to the crevice in the rocks, forming some half tunnel that they used to enter and exit. Down the hill on the far side, a roadway winds around the base of the foothill.
'The humans left this way but the witch is still here,' Jace warns. I knew as much, having caught her trail on the way up.
I leave both men to investigate and turn my attention inward. 'We've got a problem.'
'What's new brother?' Derek clips back.
The link feels strained even though we're not that far apart, only adding to my concern. 'Why can I barely hear you, is something-'
'Relax, we're under the palace, Sparky is giving us a light show,' Derek adds, trying to calm me.
'And Jess?'
'Is right here with us. Mack and Sasha are glued to her and I promise not to let her out of my sight,' he assures me. 'Now, what new problem do we have?'
'Hunters, maybe scouts, six of them? And a witch, all in our territory for weeks,' my voice twists with anger as I explain our predicament.
'Are they still here?' The edge to his voice tells me he's every bit as concerned as I am.
'No. Cleared out yesterday, maybe the day before...' That they left nothing behind is possibly the most concerning part. They left on their own time, not because someone almost found them and they had to flee, so what made them?
'Where? I'll send Dex, there's no better tracker, maybe Sadie.'
'Eastern ridge,' I reply, looking for a landmark. 'Where twin evergreens grow on an outcropping.'
'I think I know it... I've got to go, I think Sparky's onto something...'
I feel the link close before I can reply, leaving me more curious. Both men have stopped scouting and look deep in conversation.
'There's nothing here,' Jace says, drawing me into their conversation and getting me up to speed. 'Not a scrap of garbage was left behind... whoever they are, they are careful and skilled, but more so, they weren't in a rush.'
Ryker growls and turns down the hill to the waiting squadron. Before I can ask what's going on, he has the largest wolf by the neck and throws him back. The other five wolves jump back, some even looking to run, but snaps and snarls from the wolves Ryker brought with him corral them closer.
'How the fuck did you miss this?!' he snarls at the wolf below him.
'There wasn't anything out of the ordinary-'
His excuse is cut off mid-sentence as Ryker scruffs the lead wolf and drags him like a disobedient pup to the trail where the witch's scent crosses their patrol route. Without restraint, he shoves the veteran's nose into the snow, driving the scent deep.
'That's fucking ordinary?!' he snaps.
The wolf snarls and squirms in his hold, eventually breaking free and backs towards his squad, tail tucked and eyes on his furious boss. The whole squad is pressed in tightly together, backs hunched, their fear palpable.
'You scented that witch and said nothing!' I growl, stalking over to them. The leader fought long before he was brought to the spot, he KNEW it was there.
'We thought it was your witch,' he spits.
Jace is on him in a flash and nowhere near as gentle as Ryker was. Golden fur flashes like lightning as he makes strike after strike in a flurry of growls and snarls before pinning the male below him, teeth bared, blood dripping.
'My MATE,' he snaps. 'Is also a wolf, and the furthest thing from a dark witch as possible! She smells nothing like that!'
The veteran bares his neck in submission and whimpers. Jace just growls above him as if struggling with himself to not rip the offered throat out.
'Enough,' I link directly to Jace. 'You've made your point-'
'Have I thought?! What will it take for these mutts to finally accept her!' He growls, making the wolf below him tremble.
'Slaughtering their squadron leader in front of them is probably not going to make them love her like we do,' I chide.
Reluctantly he agrees and steps back, letting the wolf up. The beaten male slowly gets up, not wanting to catch Jace's ire again and slinks back to his squad, favouring his right front leg.
'Escort them back, INDIVIDUAL CELLS, until I have a chance to interview them all personally,' Ryker orders. His wolves nod and start prodding their captives along.
'I have no words,' Ryker starts as he watches them disappear into the distance.
'What's done is done... all we can do is try and get ahead of it,' I grumble, shoving my anger aside. No one wants a breach, but knowing his guards are under such scrutiny a lesser man would have swept it under the rug, that he didn't, speaks volumes.
'What do you know of those men?' Jace asks, the look in his eyes tells me he has a theory.
'Not well. They're under my command but overall there are two groups within the palace guards. Those who were before me and those after... Olie, the youngest, is the only one that's talked to me in any amount.'
