New Territory (7 page)

Keva stood, and came to stand beside Liam. “Elder Garr, I am not Hannah. I am Keva, shifted into my human form, and I have the gift of telepathy due to my half-breed nature.” Garr looked up in shock from where he sat, staring at the lean redhead. “Um,” he said slowly, “Shouldn’t your hair be pale blonde, Keva?” She glanced at Liam and they shared a grin. “We dyed it, sir,” she explained. “Oh,” said the man faintly, before passing out and falling out of the chair. He would have hit his head on the floor if Liam had not quickly caught him and laid him gently on the couch. The two friends left quietly, leaving the elder in a faint on the couch.

Cian called a pack meeting the next day, Keva’s seventh day in the pack and her last day, according to the Council’s decree, to shift into human form or be cast out of the pack. She attended the meeting in human form, happily smiling at her new family. The teenage twins, Rick and Rosa, sat next to her and asked her all about her life growing up as a true wolf, which they thought was “awesome.” Rosa was a thin, short, black-haired girl with two differently-colored eyes. Her right eye was gold, and her left eye was a deep green. Rick was a bit stockier, with shaggy black hair and the same color eyes as his father Davin, a light gray-green that seemed to change in different light. Neither twin had shifted yet, so they were happy to hear that Keva had been able to learn to shift so quickly. Rosa giggled when Keva mentioned her real age. “What? You’re only two years old! You’d still be a baby as a human,” she said with a grin, her eyes twinkling. “What if you were, and Cian had to change your diaper?” The twins screeched with laughter at the thought, but Keva only shook her head with a smile.

The pack quickly grew quiet as Cian began to speak. Elder Garr had not yet arrived, which was very unusual. Cian detailed the specifics of the Council’s scheme, and no sooner had the story been explained when Elder Miella burst into the meeting hall, leading the rest of Council, including Elder Garr. Several members looked very displeased, particularly Elder Sera, who had decreed Keva only be given one week to learn to shift. Keva bold met Elder Sera’s sharp yellow eyes as Elder Miella began to speak, directing her tirade at Cian. “How dare you, Alpha, have your beta interrogate a member of the Council without first seeking advice from the Council itself! This is an outrage!” Cian growled deep in his throat. “Your breeding program is an
outrage,
Miella!” He boomed at the small woman, his eyes sparking with anger. “By implementing this breeding program, you have managed to shrink the entire
lycan
population to a mere one hundred individuals!” The elder glared at him, but was unable to respond before he continued. “Yes, I do have the numbers, because my messenger contacted every Alpha in the country. And, now the whole
lycan
population knows of your crimes, particularly your ‘half-breed’ program to create an
uber-lycan
!” He stopped to take a breath, and Miella broke in, a devilish grin on her face. “This is all true,” she said loudly, spanning the entire pack with her sharp gaze. “We sought to make the
lycans
stronger, that is all! Without our guidance, the werewolf packs would be fighting amongst one another and raping their women!” Elder Garr looked angry at this statement. “Nonsense!” He bellowed, surprising Cian. “The Council was drunk on power, and only wanted to further itself,” he said sadly, ashamed to meet the eyes of his pack. “I was not part of the Council when this plan was conceived, but I do know that most of it was Elder Miella’s idea,” he said, pointing a thin finger at the woman, whose eyes seemed as though they might pop out of her head.

“But—but you…” she sputtered, unable to make a coherent sentence. The rest of the elders were arguing amongst themselves, trying to sort out who had done the most damage. Cian slammed his palm on the table. “Enough! Thank you, Elder Garr, for pointing the finger. The truth is, however, the entire Council knew of this plan and did nothing to stop it.” The Council members grew silent, each staring in a different direction, not willing to meet Cian’s angry gaze. “The Alphas of each pack are on their way to this meeting hall,” Cian continued, a little calmer. “We will vote upon what judgment the Council should face, and discuss a country-wide werewolf reunion to allow all of our single pack members to potentially meet their life-mates, as I have.” The Council stared daggers at one another, and several of them glared at Miella as if they wished to slit her throat right there. “Idiotic woman,” one of the males mumbled. Miella screeched at the insult. “Egotistical brute!” She shouted, and tackled the tall male, scratching at him with her nails. The meeting hall erupted into chaos, the pack members trying desperately to pull the fighting Councilors apart and restore order.

Keva covered her ears at the horrendous noise, grimacing. Finally, she gathered her focus, and sent a mental shout at everyone in the hall.
THAT IS ENOUGH, LYCANS. BE SILENT.
The unusual mental command sent a shocked silence through the hall, and the only sound that could be heard was the panting of Miella, held down by Cormac and Davin. “That’s better,” Keva said mildly. “Miella, you have caused enough damage. Elders, although I respect your age and experience due to my true-wolf upbringing, I feel that we have all had enough of your schemes. Cian, why don’t we tie them up to the chairs in here until the other Alphas can arrive to discuss their fate?” Cian nodded grimly. “An excellent suggestion, my love.” With the help of Cormac, Liam, and Davin, all the elders were soon tied to the chairs in the meeting hall, unable to break free.

Elder Garr was left loose, but Cian gave him a sad look. “Garr,” he said, leaving out the honorific, “I don’t have it in my heart to tie you to a chair, but you must remain here for now. The elder nodded sadly, shame casting a shadow in his eyes. “I understand, Alpha,” he said quietly, and sat in a chair, where the other elders glared at his partial freedom. He did not meet their gaze, but instead stared out the window at the afternoon sun.

Cian invited Keva back to his cabin after the tiring escapade. “Come take a nap on the couch with me,” he suggested, tugging her hand and grinning. She smiled and curled up next to him on the couch with a sigh. “I think things will soon be much better for all of us,” she said quietly. He grunted an agreement. “We have a few hours before the Alphas of each pack will start to arrive,” he said with a yawn. Keva snuggled closer to him with a deep sigh, and he kissed the top of her head, hugging her tightly. “Good,” she said. “I want to spend a few hours just enjoying your company.” He chuckled. “Ah, beautiful, I’ll have to show you how humans usually ‘enjoy each other’s company’,” he said with a grin.

She tilted her head to meet his fiery golden gaze, intrigued. “Oh? And what do they do?” She asked, intensely curious. He tilted his head and pressed his lips to hers, eliciting a gentle gasp from her soft pink lips. “Oh,” she said breathlessly, then instantly pressed her lips greedily to his. The kiss grew deeper until they both broke away, grinning at each other. “This is nice,” Keva said shyly, tracing her fingers down the front of his shirt. He grinned, and stroked her cheek with his thumb. She closed her eyes and leaned into his caress with a sigh. “There’s much more than just kissing, my love,” he whispered. She opened her blue eyes, which seemed to be lit by some inner fire. “Really? Like what?” He chuckled, then swept her up into his arms and carried her into his bedroom. “I think I will just have to show you,” he growled playfully.

The End

If you liked this novella, there is more to come! My next novella, “Dream Walker” will be the second novella in the Wolvenkind series. I welcome any feedback that you, my readers, can offer on Amazon.com.