Bonded (46 page)

The wind was
picking up speed, yet another rainstorm on its way during the
unseasonably wet summer. Bits of leaves and dirt whirled in the air
as grey clouds, rolling and heavy with precipitation, slowly moved
in obscuring the bright blue sky. Brandi shivered as the air became
cooler. She was hungry, tired, and most importantly, worried about
Reno. At one point her mental control had slipped and she’d opened
her connection to him. There’d been a strong feeling that he was in
danger, his senses on high alert. It had been intense enough to
spike her own anxiety and send adrenaline surging through her
system.

Anxiety had clawed
at her stomach and she’d longed to linger in his mind, to really
know what was going on, to perhaps even help, however she’d forced
herself to pull back. Not only wasn’t it ethical, but it could even
be dangerous to Reno. While he’d never shown signs of being aware
of her mental bond to him, she didn’t want to chance that it might
somehow distract him. A split second of him wondering why there was
a niggling in his mind—a moment of inattention—could prove to be
his undoing.

Brandi wrapped her
arms around her body and compressed her lips tightly. Leaning back,
she felt the rock she was hiding behind pressing against her, its
surface hard and rough. Somehow, its unyielding nature was
comforting right now as everything else in her life seemed to be
unravelling. She eased back even more and stared unseeingly at the
ground while mulling over the situation.

Reno was an
Enforcer, trained to deal with dangerous situations. He likely had
several tricks up his sleeve and would easily outwit his pursuers.
The sense of danger she’d picked up on was likely just a result of
him being overly alert and ready for any eventuality. She tried to
squeeze some comfort from that fact, despite the sense that
something...unpleasant...was about to happen.

“I wonder where
Klaus is.” Aran was next to her scanning the slopes for any sign of
their Alpha. Presently, they were all gathered in the shelter of
several large boulders some distance up the mountain from where
Victor was holding his meeting. By peering over the top they could
just make out that a number of vehicles were there and a fairly
large contingent of weres seemed to be milling about. According to
Katie, Klaus should be somewhere around here waiting for the right
moment to enact his plan.

“I’m right here,”
a voice came to them out of nowhere and they all turned to see
Klaus emerge as silently as a shadow from behind a large tree
several yards away. “The question is why you are here?” He folded
his arms and stared down at them, his expression twisted with
displeasure.

“We’ve come to
help.” Peter rose to his feet.

“Dammit, Peter!”
Klaus snarled at them. “I gave you—all of you—orders to stay put
until this mess was taken care of. I didn’t spend months working to
keep your families safe and you alive just to have you walk into
the middle of a group of bloody Purists! Are you trying to get
yourselves killed or are you just plain stupid?”

Brandi winced.
Even though the man hadn’t raised his voice, his words were
cutting. She bit her lip and berated herself for not stopping the
humans from coming. In her worry over Reno, she’d neglected her
duty and...

“Actually, you
didn’t say to stay there,” Peter pointed out, a muscle working in
his jaw. “You only said it was a safe place to wait. No direct
command was given.”

Klaus inhaled
sharply at the minor show of insubordination and narrowed his eyes.
Peter, however, didn’t cower and after a moment the corner of
Klaus’ mouth twitched. The Alpha relaxed his rigid stance, shaking
his head and sighing. “You’re as bad as my granddaughter at finding
ways around me.”

“I’ll take that as
a compliment, sir.” Peter gave a slight smile and the tension
between them slipped away.

“We’re tired of
hiding,” Aran stood up.

“You always said
we were full pack members. It’s our right to defend the territory.”
Darcy joined the other two.

Klaus looked each
man up and down before nodding slowly. “My apologies. You
are
wolves at heart though sometimes I forget that.” He
quickly scanned the area. “Where are the others?”

“We told them to
stay behind. If something should happen—if Purists storm the
tunnels—they can shift and defend the pups better than we can.”
Aran explained.

“Well thought
out,” Klaus commended.

“So what’s the
plan here?” Brandi kept one eye on the activity below. Something
seemed to be going on, but what?

“Over the past few
weeks I’ve laid charges all around the entrance to Victor’s
underground bunker. Once they’re inside, I’ll give the signal and
we blow up the entrance, sealing them inside. I have wolves hidden
around here as well in case any Purists escape my trap.”

“I don’t—” Brandi
started to protest—the DC officer in her saw a number of problems
with the plan—but sounds from below drew her attention again.
Glancing over the edge of the rock, she gasped. “That’s Reno!”

Frozen in place,
she watched him suddenly burst into view at a dead run only to
swerve when a pair of wolves appeared in front of him. He dodged
this way and that before disappearing from sight into a small
hollow.

Instinctively, she
started moving forward to go to her mate’s assistance. Only the
restraining hands of those with her held her back.

“Let me go!” She
hissed the words, struggling to free herself.

“You’re too far
away to do anything,” Darcy insisted. For a human, his grip was
strong; the feel of his fingers biting into her arm reminded her
that the men who dared join a werewolf pack were formidable
individuals, not only in personality but in physical strength as
well.

She tensed when
the sound of clattering rocks and yelps met her ears. Her gaze
darted back and forth, wondering where Reno might be and then
suddenly he appeared in a dusty heap right at Victor’s feet!
Frantic, she turned towards Klaus.

“We have to do
something! He’s totally surrounded now!”

Klaus frowned and
shook his head. “I wish we could, but there’s too few of us. If we
make a move now, we compromise our plan to capture the whole lot of
them.”

“But they’ll kill
him!” Her heart was pounding so hard she could hardly hear and her
breath seemed as if it were being squeezed from her lungs. It was
bad enough when she thought he might be in danger, but to actually
see him in need and do nothing about it was tearing her apart. Reno
was her mate. If something happened to him she didn’t think she
could bear it.

“I’m sorry,
Brandi. The good of the pack comes before the individual. You know
that.” Regret laced Klaus’ voice and he placed what was probably
supposed to be a comforting hand on her shoulder. “Your young man
was a brave wolf. I liked him.”

Liked! She stared
at Klaus aghast. He was speaking as if Reno were already...gone.
Twisting away from those restraining her, she turned back towards
where Reno was. He’d shifted forms now and was standing with his
arms folded, for all intents and purposes appearing casual, almost
bored, but it had to be a facade. Victor and a few of the others
seemed to be talking while the rest looked on. What were they going
to do with her mate? She couldn’t just stand here and watch.

“I need to do
something, Klaus! Can’t we at least work our way down so we’re a
bit closer? Everyone’s watching to see what will happen with Reno.
No one will notice us.” The wind was whipping her hair into her
face and she pulled it back, blinking away tears as she appealed to
her Alpha.

He didn’t answer
at first and she felt the fear and tension inside her growing to
the point where she thought she might explode. She dug her nails
into her palm and tried to restrain her wolf. The animal wanted her
to shift, to run down the mountain and barrel into the group of
Purists using tooth and nail to defend their mate. Brandi agreed
whole heartedly but knew she couldn’t give in... At least not
yet.

After a long
moment of consideration Klaus finally conceded. “All right. I
suppose there’s no harm in changing our position as long as we keep
down wind. If the opportunity presents itself, we can try a rescue,
but,” he cautioned, “you have to remember our primary objective is
to contain the Purists within the mine and regain control of the
pack.”

Brandi nodded,
biting her lip to keep her emotions in check. She felt weak-kneed
with relief. At least they weren’t turning their backs on Reno.
Maybe there was still a chance to save him.

Cautiously, they
began to creep closer to Reno’s location. Along the way she caught
occasional glimpses of Klaus’ team—pack members she’d known all her
life. She noted Emmet and Victoria, Seth and Isaac; weres she’d
grown up with. They nodded a brief acknowledgement as she passed by
before shifting their gaze towards Klaus. Their loyalty to their
true Alpha must run deep if they were willing to stand by him when
the rest of the pack had caved to Purist pressure. Brandi wondered
how many others were scattered over the mountainside, their coats
blending with the rocks and logs they hid by. Both pride and fear
filled her. When the moment came, they were ready to move in and
take on any of the Purists who escaped Klaus’ trap, but how many
would be injured or even killed in the process?

The forest grew
darker as the clouds thickened overhead and the scent of impending
rain hung heavy in the air. In the distance rumbles of thunder
could be heard, the ominous sound reflecting the dread Brandi felt
in her heart. The future of her birth pack hung in the balance and
the fate of the man she loved seemed doubtful. Scenario after
scenario raced through her mind, few of them pleasant. And while
she could create fictional situations as a DC officer, there were
none in her repertoire that would help out now. She swallowed hard
and tried to accept the unpalatable fact that, while the pack had a
chance of survival, Reno’s situation seemed hopeless.

“This is as close
as we can get.” Klaus stopped near a thick growth of bushes and the
others did as well. For Brandi, it was still too far away but she
kept her complaints to herself. Klaus had already been lenient in
allowing her this close. Silently she crouched down, her hands
clenched into fists as she peered through the branches and observed
the scene unfolding below.

There seemed to be
some form of challenge going on; she could read it in the body
language of Victor and two others. Flicking her glaze to Reno she
saw he was watching the interaction intently, still appearing
outwardly relaxed but knowing him as she did, she could tell he was
obviously ready to act.

Some of the
observers began to laugh and then, quite unexpectedly, Victor
shifted forms and lunged at Reno. Brandi gasped and surged to her
feet, only to be pulled back down by Klaus.

“Quiet and stay
undercover.” His tone hinted at dire repercussions if she
disobeyed.

Brandi nodded, her
mouth too dry with fear to even speak. Her body trembled with the
need to do something—anything—that might help Reno, but what? Had
he even had a chance to transform before Victor had struck? Without
a protective coating of fur, his body would have been extremely
vulnerable to slashing teeth and nails. How badly was he injured?
Was he even capable of defending himself or had Victor struck a
fatal blow?

In the middle of
the melee, human arms and legs became wolf limbs; a whirling mass
of fur and fang fighting to the death. Snarls and growls drifted up
on the wind along with the heavy scent of fresh blood. She couldn’t
watch but neither could she turn away. Around the two wolves the
rest watched, cheering when Victor seemed to have Reno pinned only
to grow silent when the balance of power shifted.

Back and forth the
battle went, no clear advantage being given to either. Perhaps Reno
hadn’t been injured in the initial attack, or perhaps it was just
his years of training that were allowing him to hold his own
despite being hurt.

A part of her
brain registered that the storm must be growing closer now. The
noise of the thunder was making the whole forest seem to vibrate.
Beside her, Peter gasped and nudged her shoulder.

“Brandi,
look!”

She didn’t spare a
glance his way though, only vaguely aware he was pointing at
something. Her attention was focussed on more important things.
Reno seemed to be faltering, taking backward steps as Victor
attacked again and again. Oh God, Reno was weakening, she could see
it in his movements. Unthinking, she got to her feet and began to
run to her mate. Ignoring the shouted commands from Klaus, she
shifted forms and raced towards the scene of the fight.

The wind was
picking up even more as she moved down the mountain, gusts
buffeting against her, blowing dirt into her face. She blinked
rapidly and narrowed her eyes, intent only on reaching Reno’s side
in time. Momentarily she lost sight of him as she dodged around a
fallen tree and traversed a minor gully but upon emerging he came
back into view.

He was down!

She stumbled to a
standstill. It felt as if her heart stopped. All she could see was
her mate. Blood darkened the ground and oozed from his wounds.
There was a strange buzzing in her ears. Bile rose in her throat
and everything else blurred out of focus except him. No. He
couldn’t be...

Terror rose up
inside her and she suddenly burst into action running faster than
she’d ever thought possible. Her paws thudded against the forest
floor, her stride as long as she could make it. On autopilot she
covered the distance between them, her gaze never wavering from his
body.

Oh God, this was
all her fault. She should never have called him when she discovered
Purists were in Kolding’s Pass. She should have waited, called the
captain directly. It had been the need to hear his voice that had
caused her to act so precipitously.