Chapter Twenty

Savanna couldn’t help but look over her shoulder as they walked into the forest, giving Tom one last, long, look before he was out of view for good. Silently, she prayed that Nick and Tom wouldn’t come after them.

“Ready?” she asked with a worried glance down.

Dan grinned. “I’ve been waiting for this! Let’s go!”

Savannah went first, changing effortlessly into her bestial skin. Dan was still struggling with the change when she’d emerged from her cover as a bear. He was still in pain obviously, his leg giving him more than enough trouble. Still he fought, managing to fight past the pain before slowly and painfully, the first bone cracked.

The snap and pops of Dan’s skin began to come faster and faster until eventually, he emerged from the shrubbery, tired from exertion, but otherwise triumphant.

The two walked on four paws, slow on Dan’s injured paw. He seemed to be able to keep up well enough, barely displaying a limp as he put pressure on the bum hind leg.

Savannah waited until she was sure Dan gathered his footing before speaking, “So what exactly is the plan? You never explained it to me.”

Dan snorted. “It’s easy. About this time of the month Lucas, Flood, Jake, and a few others are usually out scouting for more bears while I used to patrol the edge of the alpha territory trying to catch wind of their plans. If Lucas has stuck to that routine, I know roughly the location of all of his strongest bears.”

Savannah could understand the merits of having that kind of information, but it didn’t explain how that would help them today. “How can we use that to our advantage?”

He looked down at Savannah, an excited glint in his eye. “We circumvent the problem bears, first to the cabin with the most bears. I know a lot of bears there and we’ll probably have the best sway if we go there first.”

“What makes you think Lucas hasn’t switched all this up and moved the bears in case of his information getting out?” Savannah asked, wary of such a flimsy plan.

Dan lowered his head and he stalked forward. “Why would he do that? He thinks I’m dead and you’re loyal. He’s had no reason to feel threatened enough to change up the routine he’s had for years.”

Savannah nodded, agreeing with him there. “So in the event that everything goes right, you’re just going to, what? Preach to them or something?”

Dan’s chest rattled with mirth. “Well when you put it tha—” Dan’s head snapped up, his voice falling silent all at once.

“He’s here.”

Savannah’s heart began to pound almost instantly and her eyes darted over the darkness of the looming forest even though she knew she wouldn’t be able to see anything. “Who? Lucas?”

Dan gave one slow nod. It was enough to startle Savannah’s body into shivering. She hadn’t realized just how nervous today made her. She thought she’d already mentally prepared for her impending meet up with Lucas, the meet-up that would spell out her resignation. The day was here far sooner than she’d ever expected, she didn’t know if Dan was healed enough, or if she was confident enough. There was too much doubt and all Savannah could see waiting for them was failure.

“I thought you said he’d be gone,” Savannah said. Her voice was small and weak and she hated it.

“I thought he would be, which means either one of two things.” He looked down at the quivering Savannah, concern in his eyes. “Either you were right, he worried about me telling all to Tom and Nick so he changed everything up, or he’s grouping in preparation for an attack.” He sniffed the air. “Either way, he’s here, somewhere. He’s probably been tracking us for a while now. This isn’t good for our plan.”

Savannah closed her eyes, forcing her heart to calm as she sampled the air. It was just the faintest scent, but even she could make out Lucas’s distinct smell on the wind. And Dan was right, he was slightly downwind, a good indicator that he’d probably been trying to track them undetected.

“Damn it,” Dan muttered quietly before turning behind them. “Alright, Lucas, you got us. Now can you come out of the shadows? We only want to talk.”

The trees were thick this deep into the forest, almost completely blocking sunlight. It took Savannah some adjusting to see even the massive form of Lucas’s bear emerge from the tree cover and stand before them.

“You’re alive,” came Lucas’s rumbling growl, but it wasn’t in elation or relief. Savannah could just make out the disgusted curl of his lip, as he looked Dan up and down. The look chilled her to the bone and a small, fast puff of breath betrayed her fear.

Like a predator locking onto his prey, Lucas’s eyes snapped to Savannah. “Did you bring this trash back to me?” he growled.

Her body wanted to quiver and shake apart, undone by the terror that Lucas invoked in her, but her bear stood its ground, even going so far as to raise up on hind legs to appear larger. Lucas was no longer her leader. He had no power over her. “No. I didn’t.” she grunted, her voice sounding more sure than she felt.

She saw Dan rise slowly onto his injured leg, following her lead. “I wouldn’t rejoin you even if you paid me, Lucas. Your pack is a cancer that needs to be eradicated.”

Lucas snarled. “The strong are only scary to the weak, mongrel. You’ve proven yourself useless, so you’ll be treated as trash when I burn that pathetic shop to the ground.”

A vicious growl tore from Savannah’s throat. “Like Hell you will.”

***

Tom paced impatiently in the shop, alone and letting his imagination get the best of him. There was something gnawing at him, an uncertainty that he couldn’t ignore. When Savannah and Dan spoke, a look passed between them. A look he didn’t understand. It chilled him to the bone.

He wandered aimlessly into his living quarters, thinking maybe he was just feeling irrationally jealous after finally claiming her as his mate. Something deep and powerful within him told him he had nothing to worry about concerning their relationship, and he knew it was right. From the moment that they’d accepted each other as mates, all sense of doubt faded away. So then what was bothering him so badly?

A white square of paper on Tom’s freshly made bed caught his eye. That wasn’t there before they left. Tom vaguely recalled Savannah dipping back here before taking off with Dan, and his heart began to speed involuntarily. He snatched up the note, eyes tearing across the page in a panic.

“Tom, we need to talk. And yes, before you start stressing, it is about Dan, but it’s mostly about me. It’s not a terribly long story, but I can guarantee it won’t be one you like.

I just need to get it off my chest before we go any further. Let me say in advance that I hope you forgive me.

I love you.”

Tom cursed loudly, tearing off through the shop. He barely cleared the office doorway before the bear tore from his skin and bolted towards the scent of the two departed bears.

He tried to ignore the way their scents coiled around him, beckoning him slowly but surely towards where he knew the Northern Wind was stationed. He didn’t know what this meant, he didn’t know if Savannah was safe or if Dan was an enemy. He didn’t know anything. And that terrified him.

It wasn’t long before another scent entered the mix as it tangled together lazily on the forest breeze.

“Lucas,” Tom breathed quietly, abject terror beginning to snake its way up his throat.

A snarl tore from his jaws as he rocketed through the trees. This all but confirmed his suspicions. Dan had taken Savannah to Lucas. He wasn’t sure how this tied into Savannah’s note, but something felt right about his accusation. The flame of anger burned brightly in his belly as he bolted passed trees in a rush to get to his mate.

Whispers of speech whistled against Tom ear as he ran, stopping him in his tracks. He listened more intently, trying to make out some of the words.

“You were ordered to bring Tom. You’ve failed.”

Tom bit back the instinctive growl he felt bubble up in reaction to Lucas’s words. He didn’t know when Dan had taken time to rendezvous with Lucas, but they’d obviously had a plan. Maybe they’d had this planned since the last attack. Had Lucas predicted them helping Dan heal weeks ago and set him up as a mole for information? Tom shook his head. He didn’t know, and pondering what ifs was a waste of time. He’d deal with both bears later, regardl—

“I failed on purpose, Lucas.”

Tom’s heart nearly shattered as Savannah’s pure and beautiful voice passed by his ears. His anger for the two male bears ebbed away like the tide. Gone were the plans to exact revenge on Dan for exploiting their kindness. All he could thing about was Savannah. Everything they’d built, everything he’d sacrificed, his hopes, his dreams, his eradication of doubt all for the sake of love… destroyed with something as simple as words on a breeze.

Savannah was a part of the Northern Wind pack.