Wolf's Den - A BBW Shifter Romance Novel (31 page)

“Very dramatic. But I hold the upper hand,” Violet said. I sensed Violet was about to act but so did my friends. Men became wolves and they advanced towards Violet’s forces with guns. Yeager, Amp and Sprocket remained men to lead them, each carrying a rifle. Even Agnes and Edie joined us, Agnes becoming the dark wolf and Edie raising the rifle Amp had taught her to shoot in the past few days. They did not attack, however.

“Go for it,” I told her. I sensed some change. Violet looked about. She sensed it too. Her loyal shifters and gunmen were poised for battle but the wolves beyond, the ones she held through coercion and threats, would not come. They weren’t with me, but they weren’t with her either. Not until she answered the challenge. “They won’t come. They question your leadership. You must prove you are the alpha. You can’t deny me or that will show weakness. You use their instincts to hold them to you, well now you must fight to retain their allegiance,” I told Violet what she already knew but didn’t want to accept.

Yeager leaned close and whispered, “Are you sure about this?”

“I told you I wouldn’t let anything happen to you,” I replied. Lady Violet looked about, unsure of what to do. I could smell the fear she felt.

“I could...,” Yeager began to say but I looked at him sharply and he stopped.

“I appreciate the gesture but you and I both know I alone can do this. Just promise me that if I lose, you’ll kill her anyway,” I said. Yeager chuckled.

“Like that’s going to happen. You got this, fur ball,” he told me. I smiled up at him as Violet settled on a decision.

“Fine. If combat is what you seek, then so be it. I am not afraid. I’ve been a wolf since I was young. You have only been a wolf for a few months. This won’t even be a contest,” she told me but I could hear the fear that tinged her measured words. Still, she was dangerous and I had to be wary.

“You wish, you crazy bitch,” I said and became the black wolf with the white patch on her back and the fluffy coat my mate loved so much. Violet did the same, becoming the dark gray wolf that was her alter ego. I knew my friends would prevent interference, as would Violet’s minions but it was not the wolves I worried about. The armed men may not have understood but to the shifters, the wolves, this was sacred ground we tread upon. They would stand by and let fate take its course. The strong must survive, the weak must perish. That was how wolves viewed the world and they would not interfere.

The others made room, the human gunmen following the lead of the wolves. They had no dog in this fight, so to speak. They were likely here for the paycheck and nothing more. I moved right as the dark gray wolf that was Violet did the same. We measured each other as we circled, sizing up our advisary and watching for weakness. My fur bristled, the white patch on my back standing tall. I always looked bigger than I was.

Violet was leaner, a dark gray, almost black with white on her face showing her age. That didn’t mean however, she was weak. She was as dangerous as any wolf and I had to respect that. She was right about her experience too. I was new to this but she had been roaming as a wolf for decades. Still, my instincts were finely honed and my lack of experience could be an advantage if used properly. But it was Violet’s anger and indignation that I sought to use to my greatest advantage.

Violet lunged but it was a half-hearted feint. I didn’t react, however. Instead, I stopped circling and faced her. I bared my teeth and growled in challenge. Violet stopped moving as well. She simply stared at me but I could sense her anger at my insolence. Suddenly, she charged but I was ready. I moved aside as she rushed past. She twisted in an attempt to bite me but her teeth found only fur. I turned to face her as she skid to a stop beyond me, my tongue lolling out and my eyes conveying amusement.

Violet growled and then barked at me. I waited as she made her next move. Violet came at me but this time I didn’t move. I let her barrel into me, absorbing her rush as we tumbled to the ground. Her jaws snapped in futility as we fell into a heap. I spun free of the fray and got to my paws. I toyed with Violet, not making any move to attack. She was infuriated. She came at me again and I let her get at my flank. I felt her teeth scrape along my flesh as my fangs sank into Violet’s leg.

But the wounds we suffered were superficial. We separated and faced one another again. This ploy had worked until now, Violet was angered and making poor decisions. I didn’t expect it to last, however. She was too experienced and wise to let me play these games for long. We circled, each waiting for an opening. I had no intention, however, of attacking. I stayed on defense. I just hoped my plan would work.

Violet rushed but this time she was ready. I moved and Violet anticipated my tactic, turning and sinking her teeth into my shoulder. I shook loose as Violet bared her bloody teeth at me. I heard whispers from the human men and women and those shifters that remained men that watched but I ignored them. I limped to the side, the pain in my shoulder radiating outward. Violet rushed again. She bowed her head and slammed her body into mine. I rolled, letting myself fall and then coming up ready to fight again but Violet was there. She attacked and it took all I had to fend off her sharp teeth.

I twisted and retreated as Violet snapped at me. Her teeth found my fluffy coat several times but I managed to stay free of her jaws. But she had me on the ropes. I couldn’t attack or even stop her from advancing. I finally had to relent. Violet found my flank and she dug her teeth into my thigh. I yelped in pain but then took the opportunity to return the favor. I sank my canines into Violet’s side, tasting her blood and flesh. I’d been forced to give in but I had attained a stalemate for the moment.

We both let go and backed away. I bled from my shoulder and the opposite thigh. Violet’s ribs had been injured by my bite but it was superficial. I was losing this fight. Then Violet charged again. She slammed into me and sent us both rolling in a cloud of dust. Her teeth and sharp claws were a blur as she attempted to injure me yet again. I managed to keep her at bay but I could only do so for so long.

Teeth found flesh and I yelped again, twisting to try to break free and finding nothing but Violet’s fur with my fangs. She shook her head and tore the flesh along my back. I wiggled from her grasp and backed away. Violet, however, did not relent. She came at me again. I avoided her charge but she wheeled and came at me yet again. I managed to avoid the brunt of her attack but as Violet slammed in my back legs, I was upended and I heard bones crack as I slammed to the ground.

I scurried to my paws but my ribs were at least bruised if not broken. I bled from three wounds and limped as I moved. Violet was all but uninjured. She finally ceased her barrage for a moment to size up her work. I found Yeager’s amber eyes and stared into them. He would not intervene but I saw the fear and frustration in his eyes. But as I stared at him, I let him know it would all be all right. I let him know that I had this. Then Violet rushed again.

She bowled me over and her teeth found my flesh just below my neck. I struggled as she held fast, her teeth digging in deeper. I snapped but I had no angle. Then I submitted to the stronger wolf. I went limp and Violet let me go. I lay on the ground of Wolfsbane Ranch and as Violet looked into my eyes, I looked away showing her I was subservient. Even though she was a wolf, I could see the sense of self-satisfaction in her eyes. I could feel her gloating.

She looked around in triumph showing everyone that she had won, that she was the alpha. I waited. She would kill me, I knew. I’d been ready for it the morning I was freed. I was ready for it today. Violet turned her attention to me again. I looked away again, as wolves did when they submitted. I followed the rules as wolves did. But I wasn’t a wolf. I was a shifter, a child of two worlds. Violet raised her head to howl and that’s when I broke all the rules.

I sprang forth from my passive position and seized Violet’s throat as her howl died before it ever lived. I sank my teeth deep into her soft flesh and blood flowed from the wound. I savored it as only a shifter could. Violet struggled but it was already too late. I had her throat in a death grip, her wind pipe crushed and broken. I let go for a moment only to seize her throat again, getting an even firmer hold. Then I rolled one way and then the other, using my momentum to throw Violet’s body over me and to the ground with a sickening thud. I never let go as I got to my paws but once I was standing over her, I ripped her throat out and spat the torn flesh aside.

Violet gasped and choked on her own blood. Her eyes were full of disbelief and horror. She couldn’t process what was happening. I stared at her, my thoughts those of a wolf. I felt little as I watched her life drain away. What feelings I did experience were distant and muted. Among the relief and exuberance, there was no regret. Violet deserved this and in the calculating ways of wolves, killing her was the only solution. Violet shuddered and her eyes went dead as I looked into them. Her arrogance was her undoing and now she had paid the ultimate price.

“Hey, fur ball. It’s over,” Yeager said as he knelt. I looked at him blankly. I was lost in the blood and the kill. Cassie had influenced the outcome but the wolf had finished the job. Now there was only the animal. “Come back,” he said and reached out to stroke the white fur on my back. I nuzzled his arm and my senses were overwhelmed with the scent of my mate. I blinked and pushed the animal into the background. I shifted without a thought and began to cry.

Yeager knelt and took me into his arms as I sobbed. “It’s OK, fur ball, it’s OK,” he soothed me, now stroking my black hair with the shock of white. Others gathered around, Edie, Agnes, Sprocket and Ginnie stood silent, those that had shifted now nude. Then Amp arrived with a first aid kit and began to tend to my wounds as I cried against Yeager’s chest. But it was the awareness that dozens of wolves now encircled me that brought me to my senses.

I looked around as wolves of all sizes and colors looked on. I felt no malice from the wolves, many of which were not among those I called friends. The gunmen, however, were unsure of what to do. Some raised their weapons. Wolves growled at them while Sprocket and Edie raised their rifles in defense. “There’s nothing for you here now. Your employer is dead. Beat it losers...and leave the weapons,” Edie warned them. There was the bristly girl I knew. The men looked about but some were already backing away realizing they were outnumbered and this wasn’t worth dying for.

“Is she going to be OK?” Ginnie asked. I wiped tears from my eyes, my outburst more a release of emotion and tension than sadness.

“I’m fine, thank you,” I told her. She smiled in relief.

“You’re going to need stiches,” Amp told me.

“Can you walk?” Murphy added.

“I think so,” I said but then I looked around. Some wolves had become men and now women and even children stood in the distance looking on. “Help me up,” I told Amp and Yeager. They lifted me to my feet. I looked down at my wounds and naked body. I should have felt strange but I knew these men and woman didn’t care. This was just part of being a shifter.

One man walked up to me. Edie and Sprocket stood in his way. “Hey, it’s fine,” I told them. They looked back at me and then parted. The man, naked like I was, approached.

“I...well, thank you. I...we’re yours now,” he said. Others nodded accepting my place as alpha and submitting to my dominance. That, however, is not what I wanted.

“The hell you are,” I replied. The man was taken aback. Others whispered. “I didn’t kill Lady Violet to take her place and I don’t want that mantle. She demanded you do as she wished. I only desire you live your lives as you see fit. I am neither your mistress nor your captor. I’m just Cassie, a shifter like you, and all I want is to go home,” I told him but loudly enough for the others who had gathered to hear.

“What about this?” another man, naked as well, asked referring to Wolfsbane Ranch. I looked about the ranch.

“It’s yours if you want it. Stay and make it your home. Build a community. Or don’t. I will not presume to tell you how to conduct your lives. I don’t seek power or revenge. I don’t demand allegiance and I won’t enforce my will through fear and violence. I am not Lady Violet. I’ve only ever wanted my freedom, to live in peace with this man, my mate, and raise our pack,” I told them. Those about murmured, in excitement and some confusion. I thought about the future for the first time as I stood there.

I wanted to go home. I wanted to go back to the way things were but with a few key changes. I was pregnant, and thankfully, I was sure my fight with Violet hadn’t harmed my child, Edie had found a mate and I hoped they would come live in the desert with Yeager and me. But there were other changes. I’d met new friends, forged new bonds. There were other women that could become wolves. Now there was a whole community of shifters and their mates and children here. Things had changed and though I didn’t want it, they looked to me for guidance. I took a breath and said more.