would likely trail them until he finished every last one of the Eir clan.

Just then, she heard one of the forward wolves cry out.

“Sadera, the river! We’re trapped!”

She turned and felt her heart sink. Without her to lead them, the Eir clan’s remnants had run themselves right up to the banks of the river, which now curved around them on three sides. Nemec’s forces would soon block the fourth and they would all be doomed. Seizing the anger boiling inside her, Sadera spun around to face Nemec and reared back on her hind legs.

“If we are to die today, then so be it, but let us not go alone!” she cried. “I’ll take as many of them with me as I can. Who will stand with me?”

The Eir clan warriors looked back at her, astonished.

And they stepped up beside her.

From one end of the line to the other, there was not a face of uncertainty or fear. Every last one was ready to fight or die. It was then that Sadera spoke again.

“We’ll not give them the satisfaction of our surrender, will we, comrades?”

Instantly, they all bared their teeth and growled.

“I thought not.”

Nemec’s forces did indeed block their escape, but they hesitated to advance any further. So fierce was the look in the eyes of the Eir clan warriors that they feared to attack.

Both leaders expected the other to attack.

Neither was watching the forest.

Suddenly, there was a rallying howl and another, smaller group of wolves burst from the darkness of the forest to tear into Nemec’s unprotected flank. His forces, which had been facing Sadera’s wolves, were caught completely by surprise.

“Where did they come from?” Cedar cried as Nemec’s wolves began to fall under the teeth of the new warriors.

“I don’t know,” Sadera said, “but something…” Just then, she spotted a familiar young wolf among the attackers and her heart soared. “Look, it’s Desai! Cloud Runner’s pack has come for us!” She barely realized what was happening before she looked for Nemec among his wolves. “You like war, huh? How do you like it when someone fights back?”

Just then, she heard her nemesis cry from within the ranks of his troops.

“Fall back or we’re all lost! Fall back!”

Instantly, Nemec’s troops turned on their heels, disengaged Desai’s troops, and ran. Sadera finally spotted Nemec himself as he and his troops broke into a run. She made to pursue them, but suddenly Desai stood in front of her.

“You’re safe now,” he said, sensing her thoughts. “There’s no need to loose any more of your clan in a useless pursuit.”

“Useless?” Sadera cried. “Desai, together our forces outnumber him. Please, help me make them pay for what they did to Daciana.”

“He could lead you into a trap, Sadera,” Desai replied calmly. “And then, we would not be there for you.”

Sadera stood silent for a moment.

“What?”

“Our clan maintains its neutrality. We’ll only act as a negotiator, should you and Nemec’s clan ever come to terms-”

“Come to terms? Come to terms with that monster who twice has taken away everything that was important to me?” Sadera screamed. “He killed my parents when he served under Vanuk, and when Steele was in power, both my sisters died by his order.”

Desai bowed his head.

“I’m sorry, Sadera, but we can’t follow your troops to take Nemec,” he said. “We’ll escort you into our territory to rest and regroup, for now, but we won’t take a side in this war.”

“Even if you could help end it now?” Sadera said softly, moving up until their noses almost touched.

Desai turned away.

“Come,” he said, “The hour is late; we have to make it back before the moon rises.”

 

 

Meanwhile, Nemec made his way slowly back toward his lord’s territory. He glanced around at his unit and sighed quietly. Many had died taking the Eir clan’s land; several more were killed when they were ambushed by Desai’s group. That would not have been hard to report if they had still wiped out Sadera and the rest of her pathetic band. But since the case was not so…

It would be difficult to explain to his lord.

Just then, the winds shifted, and a new scent reached his nostrils. It didn’t take him long to recognize; his eyes narrowed, and he grinned. Signaling his troops, he broke into a run.

There might yet be a way to evade his lord’s wrath.

 

 

Tes woke with a start. He looked around slowly to find himself in the same nightmare he’d hoped to escape through sleep. He shook his head and laid it back down to rest again, only to find his eyes drawn to Belle. She lay a few feet away from him, sleeping soundly. He wasn’t sure how to describe what he felt when he looked at her, but longer he gazed at her, the harder he found it to look away. So he just lay there with his head on his paws, watching her.

Her muzzle, still unscarred by war and unaffected by age, was only slightly open and it was curled into a small smile. Tes wondered what she might be dreaming of, and was surprised to find himself hoping it was him. He almost wished she were awake, so he could see her beautiful amber eyes. Beyond that, he admired her firm shoulders, her sleek, slender chest, and lower…

He shook his head violently.

No, you idiot, he thought. Even if by some miracle we make it out of this, you’ve no place beside her. Ryder was her mate and she’ll not betray his memory.

He curled up again and deliberately faced away, but he sighed as a wave of emotion swept thru him.

Then why can’t I stop thinking of her?

 

 

Cloud Runner paced back and forth near the family dens. It was nearly dark, and if Desai didn’t return… How could she go to look for him and the others? He’d taken what few warriors they could spare to find and help Sadera’s forces. Now, she couldn’t form a search party without taking away from the home guard, and with a war so nearby, she couldn’t afford to do that under any circumstances. Thus, she could only pace and pray.

Her prayers were rewarded when Desai and Sadera padded into the clearing, leading their respective groups, and not a moment too soon. Cloud ran out to meet them, and greeted Desai with a warm nuzzle and a smile.

Sadera, however, seemed unapproachable, and only paused to thank Cloud for her rescue before moving away to lie down amongst her exhausted troops. She didn’t even give Desai a backwards glance.

Cloud followed her with her eyes and then looked to Desai for some sort of explanation. Desai just shook his head.

“What happened out there?” she asked him as they made their way to their den.

“She wouldn’t accept our neutrality,” he replied, lying down with his head on his paws.

Cloud furrowed her brow and lay down beside him.

“Tell me everything.”

 

 

 Nemec padded softly, reluctantly, up the rocky incline. He wasn’t worried of waking his lord; Lord Shadow was expecting him.

“You sent for me, my lord?” he said slowly, looking around the dark cave.

“Yes, Nemec, I did,” replied a voice that seemed to come from nowhere. “I know you must be tired after your trek today, but I want a status report.”

Nemec gulped and hesitated, eying the outline that was beginning to form as his lord stepped closer to him from the shadows. It was not that light made it easier to see Lord Shadow, but rather the darkness within the cave seemed to deepen and intensify around him, setting him apart from the rest.

“Well, go on,” Lord Shadow insisted.

“The raid on the Eir clan went accordingly, despite our loss of surprise. Daciana is dead.”

“Good, Nemec, very good.”

“Their defenders rallied around Sadera and fled. We gave chase-”

“Sadera is alive?”

“Much to my surprise, yes,” Nemec replied. “It seems she is not as … ‘weak’ as we assumed.”

“Hmm… Go on.”

“Well, we gave chase, my lord, and we nearly had them on the banks of the river, but then…” He paused. He could see his lord’s eyes narrowing. Reluctantly, he continued. “But then, a group of wolves from Cloud Runner’s clan out-flanked us and ambushed us. We were forced to retreat before we could finish Sadera and the rest of the Eir clan.”

He stopped abruptly to find himself sweating profusely.

Lord Shadow bared his teeth, and suddenly, Nemec felt as though the very warmth of his blood had been stolen away. He began to shake, but not from cold, rather from fear.

“This is unacceptable, Nemec,” Lord Shadow said through clenched teeth.

“I offer my deepest apologies, my lord,” Nemec replied. “I take full responsibility for what happened. Had I been better prepared-”

“Better prepared?” shouted Lord Shadow. “I give you the finest of all my troops and still you ask for more!”

Nemec felt the hair on his neck rise.

“My lord, please, you misunderstand me,” he stammered.

“For your sake, you better hope I am,” Lord Shadow replied coldly as he turned away. “Do you realize that if you were anyone, anyone else, you’d be dead right now?”

Nemec swallowed hard again.

“Yes, my lord.”

“Then go. I’ll find some way to punish you later.”

Nemec stood rooted to the spot, still unsure if he had really escaped unscathed; he took a hesitant step back.

“Are you deaf, Nemec, or just stupid?”

“No, I mean neither, my lord.”

“Then go!”

Nemec turned swiftly, and was about to leave when a thought crossed his mind, and suddenly he could see a way to regain his lord’s favor.

“My lord, if I could ask for your ear, just this once…”

“You’re trying my patience, Nemec,” snarled Lord Shadow from within the cave.

“But my lord, we’ve taken some prisoners who may interest you.”

There was a moment of silence, and suddenly

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