HAPTER 5
The moment I saw the wolf's glowing green eyes, I dropped my basket of apples, which overturned, spilling the apples all over the grass beneath the tree.
Trying not to panic, with only partial success, I glanced at Katie, who stood with her back to me beneath another tree just to my left. "Katie...there's a wolf watching us in the hedge about thirty feet away. We're going to have to run."
It was the third week of September, and we'd been picking bright red apples in one of the orchards on the outskirts of Crystal Falls. During the several weeks since Ezra and his wolf shifters had attacked the town, there had been a few more wolf attacks, though on a much smaller scale. They'd been coming one at a time, and sometimes in pairs. Nick assumed that they were all Ezra's most stealthy spies. And presumably, they were all on a mission to kidnap me because I was a Woman of the Star.
However, Nick had said it was safe for Katie and me to go to the orchard that day. He'd positioned his best men around the outskirts of town in a very wide ring. Though now, it was clear that one of the wolves had somehow managed to get past this ring of town guards. And now, this wolf was stepping out from the hedge.
Katie whirled around to look at me, red curls bouncing. "Where? What are you-?"
"Now! He's coming! Run!"
Heart pounding, I turned to follow my own advice and immediately stumbled on an apple. Hearing loud snarling not too far behind me, I sprang up from my hands and knees, already beginning to run even while doing so, but immediately tripped again. On another apple.
Katie was by my side in a flash, and she grabbed my arm and began trying to yank me up. "Hurry, Daisy! Up! He's coming!"
"Run ahead! Go!" I got to my feet, trying to push her forward with my free hand. "Go!"
She finally took off, and I did, too, without even a quick glance behind me, even though the loud snarling was getting nearer, sounding like it was mere feet away, even. I sprinted behind Katie for maybe twenty feet or so before stumbling again. Though this time it wasn't because of any fallen apples. Judging from the feel of sharp teeth just grazing the skin of my lower back, the wolf had taken the back of my long, red, cotton shirt between his mighty jaws.
Still not turning around, I struggled to crawl on my hands and knees, trying to break free. "Keep running, Katie! Go!"
But she didn't. I'd made a grunt when I'd fallen, which had made her turn around, and now she stood with her hands to her mouth, seemingly frozen, maybe not even ten feet ahead of me and the wolf. Who was now shaking my shirt, and me with it, like a rag doll.
Yet still, I struggled to crawl free, my gaze on Katie. "Move, Katie! Get help!"
"No! He'll drag you off by then!"
She hadn't dropped her wicker basket of apples, and now she dumped it. She then raised it over her head and took off for me and the wolf, presumably to hit him over the head with it, which I was sure would do absolutely no good.
She sprinted toward us anyway. "Let her go!"
But before she could hit him over the head, a roar sounded from somewhere above us. She froze. The wolf stopped shaking me. I stopped trying to break free.
I looked up and instantly spotted the source of the roar. It was Nick, enormous in dragon form, his forest-green scales glinting in the sun. He wasn't too far up in the sky, maybe only a few hundred feet, and he was diving for us. The sight probably would have terrified most people, particularly since he had an unmistakable angry gleam in his dark green eyes. But I had faith in him to take out the wolf without accidentally hurting me or Katie. I knew he could do it. Despite his massive wingspan and body, he had the ability to fight with controlled precision, which I'd seen during the large-scale fight against Ezra and his men. All Katie and I would have to do would be to run to safety at the earliest possible chance.
And that chance happened even sooner than I'd thought it would. Not even a moment after Nick had roared, the wolf released my shirt, and I didn't waste any time. After jumping to my feet, I grabbed Katie's hand and began dashing through the orchard. It wasn't long before we heard roaring, snarling, and howling behind us.
We didn't slow down to look, at least, not at first. But when we were far down the aisle between two long rows of trees, I just had to turn around. And what I saw made me gasp. Nick had the wolf pinned under one several-foot-long, razor-sharp claw, and he was breathing a jet of fire on him. The wolf deflected it by surrounding himself with some sort of bright white forcefield around himself, as all the wolves did during fights; however, these forcefields never lasted for long. The wolves just didn't seem able to sustain them, for whatever reason. And soon, this was the case with the one Nick now had pinned.
As soon as his bright white forcefield disappeared, the wolf's howls of defiance clearly became howls of pain. He thrashed while Nick continued his fiery assault. I thought it was all over, and that Nick would soon be killing him. But I thought too soon.
The wolf suddenly did some sort of violent, wild roll that allowed him to become free of Nick's claw. And then, in a blink, he lunged for Nick's long, scaly tail and clamped his vice-like jaws on it, making Nick rear back, bellowing. I clutched my chest, cringing, knowing he was in terrible pain.
Katie shook my shoulder. "We should go. Nick will kill him in the end, but you shouldn't have to watch this."
"No, I have to stay. I have to make sure he's going to be all right."
To my great relief, he soon was. And actually, he was more than okay; he was victorious. He raised his long tail, the wolf still on it, and lashed it against a tree, smashing the wolf into the wide trunk. The wolf released Nick's tail and fell to the grass, whimpering. And after that, things didn't take long. Hovering above the wolf, Nick stabbed him through the heart with one sword-like claw, and then immediately stabbed him through the eye. The wolf was dead.
After a moment or two seeming to make sure that the wolf was no longer breathing, Nick shifted back into human form in a blink and began racing over to me, his expression concerned. I began running myself, and when we reached each other, he scooped me up in his strong arms and just held me tight for a little while, periodically kissing the side of my face, before speaking.
"Please tell me you're okay. Did he hurt you?"
I lifted my face from his muscular shoulder, shaking my head. "No. Not at all. I'm fine. Thanks to you."
He studied my face, his expression dubious. "Are you sure? I saw him grab your shirt and take you down to the ground. You didn't hurt anything when you fell?"
I loved having a man as caring as Nick, though looking into his deep green eyes, which positively radiated concern, I had to suppress a smile.
"I am absolutely fine. Okay? Trust me; I wasn't hurt at all."
He frowned, drawing his dark blond brows together, and I knew he was just itching to once again ask me if I was sure. But, seemingly, he fought the urge and sighed instead.
"All right. And thank God you're okay. Thought at the very least, I'm sure you should have a nice, long bath later on to help head off any aches and pains before they even get a chance to develop."
I really liked the sound of that. Especially if Nick would be somewhere nearby when I was bathing. We had a large, sunken tub with whirlpool jets in our master bathroom, and the couple of times I'd bathed in it, Nick had ended up getting in with me, which had led to a little passion afterward. And passion with Nick was one thing I couldn't seem to get enough of.
Once Katie had joined us, Nick explained that the guards he'd posted around the town had been having an increasingly difficult time keeping Ezra's wolf spies out, and he'd taken to the skies that day just to provide some backup.
"And now, I'm very glad that I did. We haven't had too much trouble protecting the borders near the orchard, though now it seems that's changed."
Katie began heading back to Crystal Falls, and Nick and I followed a little ways behind. While we made our way out of the orchard, I teased him, asking if he was going to ask if he could carry me.
"Because after all, I did just go through a terrible ordeal."
Being chased by the wolf had been terrible; though now, with the wolf dead and Nick beside me, I was quickly forgetting my panic and fear at seeing the wolf's glowing green eyes.
I'd thought Nick might tease back, saying he was sure my legs still worked just fine on their own; but instead, he picked me right up immediately and gave me a long, lingering kiss, making my heartbeat race again, though now not from fear.
After lifting his face from mine, he smiled. "I'm glad for any reason to carry you in my arms. One of my favorite things to do in the world."
Over the past several weeks, since he'd officially told me he loved me, it had become clear that he hadn't just said it just to say it. Not that I'd ever thought that he had. It was clear that he was just as head-over-heels in love with me as I was with him. To the point that several of his top men had even dared tease him about just how smitten he was with me.
I loved the fact that a man as strong, powerful, and brave as Nick was so crazy about me, and I loved that a man like him could be so tender, nurturing, and protective at the same time. I loved him more than I'd ever loved any man before in my life. We were deeply in love and looking forward to a future together once the situation with the wolves was resolved.
However, one person wasn't quite as thrilled about our happy new relationship, and that person was, of course, Damien. In the weeks since the shifter fight, he'd spent a lot of time away from the town, presumably to lead the patrols to keep the wolves out, but I knew part of the reason was that he just couldn't stand to see Nick and me together. Flickers of pain that flashed across his handsome face whenever he saw the two of us together told me that.
But I'd made it clear to Damien that while I appreciated him saving me from falling from the window during the fight, and I had affection for him as a friend, I was in love with Nick. He'd very reluctantly seemed to accept that, and Nick had accepted my assurances that he was the one I loved. Nick had also seemed to have gotten over the fact that Damien had been my "hero" during the fight. And now that Nick had saved me from being attacked by a wolf, I was sure any last traces of lingering resentment he had toward Damien would fade. I hoped so, anyway.
A couple of hours after returning to town, Nick and I had dinner in the council lodge with several of his advisors, including his Uncle Marshall, several of his strongest shifters, and Katie and her husband Sam. Also in attendance was Damien, who sat opposite Nick at the large, polished blond oak circular table. While everyone else talked and seemed to enjoy their food, Damien silently picked at his, every so often giving me the briefest of glances with his dark gray eyes troubled.
Once wait staff had cleared away our dessert plates and refilled everyone's wineglasses, Nick cleared his throat, and all conversation hushed. I had a pretty good idea of what he was going to say. The wolves needed to be dealt with, once and for all. He'd told me earlier that there was no way he could let things go on the way they had been when my safety, as well as the safety of the entire town, was at risk.
Nick swept his gaze across everyone at the table before speaking. "I realize we've all been hoping that considering their defeat and retreat several weeks ago, and considering how we've kept their spies out of Crystal Falls since then, the wolves would ultimately give up and leave us to live in peace. But today, it's become apparent that we need to formulate a plan of attack for taking out the wolves for good. And I think the first part of this plan should be taking out Ezra, because it's clear he's never going to stop trying to get at Daisy because of her being a Woman of the Star. So, he needs to be killed, and I'll be the one to do it. Then, without their leader, the rest of his shifters should be much easier to deal with. And in fact, they may not even need to be dealt with at all. Even if they elect a new leader, and even if, like Ezra, he, too, has a mind to kidnap Daisy, I doubt he'll actually attempt it, knowing what happened to his predecessor. And so, taking out Ezra alone may solve our problems."
Sitting back in his chair with his arms folded across his well-defined chest, Damien scoffed. "Doubt it. Because after Ezra is killed, all the other wolves are just going to sit back like good little boys, right? They're just going to sit back and behave themselves while a woman who could give one of them greatly increased power just by mating with them is sitting just a few miles away. Is that how you really think it's going to work, Nick?"
Nick, who'd chosen whiskey, neat, for an after-dinner drink instead of wine, tightened his hand around the glass perceptibly, narrowing his forest-green eyes at Damien. "What I think, Damien, is that I have to take active steps to protect the woman I love and the community that I'm chief and leader of. And I have to hope for a positive outcome once I've taken those steps. After all, a positive mind-set seems to be more attractive than a negative one, doesn't it?" Nick put an arm around my shoulders, staring Damien down.
Damien scoffed again, lifting his full mouth in a smirk. "Guess you've got me there, brother. Sunshine and positivity wins the day. Good for you. However, I'm much more of a realist. I don't think simply taking out Ezra alone is going to solve our little wolf problem for good. Not by a long shot. It'll just be a matter of time before another leader steps in to take his place and resume the attempts to kidnap Daisy. And if we take him out, there will be another, and another, and another. It'll never end, and Daisy will never be safe, until all the wolves are taken out for good. And so, instead of dragging this out, like you'd have us do...as second-in-charge, I propose every last one of us shifters in this entire town attack Howler's Creek and take out all the wolves at once. Or, at least, as many as the thousand-some of them that we can. The stragglers we'll deal with later."
Now it was Nick's turn to scoff, and he did, glaring at Damien even harder. "Are you out of your mind? Attack the wolves right in the middle of their town? I suppose you've forgotten about their hundreds of wives and children living among them, many of whom would surely be killed accidentally during a chaotic battle with thousands of shifters involved; as if it wouldn't be bad enough that they'd all be losing their husbands and fathers."
Damien shrugged. "Well, from what I've heard and seen myself, I don't think that would be too great of a loss for most of them. The wolves treat those women and children terribly, to the point that they're basically prisoners used for slave labor. So, all the women and children would probably rejoice if all the wolves were killed in one fell swoop. And as far as accidentally hurting or killing women and children during the battle...." He lifted his broad shoulders in a shrug again. "Well, we'd just have to be as careful as we could possibly be."
Nick shook his head, glaring at Damien so hard he was nearly scowling. "No. It's too great of a risk. And I won't have the deaths of any women and children on my conscience."
Damien uncrossed his arms from his chest and leaned forward on the table, his gaze on Nick. "Would you prefer Daisy's death on your conscience?"
Nick glared at him silently for a long moment. "My decision is final. We're not attacking Howler's Creek. We're going to take out Ezra, and Ezra alone. After that, we'll play things by ear and formulate a new plan, if need be. But right now, that's what's happening. Ezra will be killed, and I'm going to be the one to do it."
Across the table, Uncle Marshall nodded, stroking his short gray beard. "I'm definitely behind you on this, Nick. And I know you're strong enough. Though considering the strength Ezra displayed during the last fight, and considering how stealthy he was to slip into the house how he did, undetected, you're going to have to have your full strength about you, and then some, in order to make a quick, tidy job of killing him. And I'm sure a quick, tidy job is what you want to make of it, so that things don't escalate. And I mean escalate like him calling on his men to attack us here in town while you're busy trying to kill him."
Nick nodded. "You're exactly right. A scenario like that is, of course, one I want to avoid. And so, you're also right that I'm going to have to be as strong as possible when I face Ezra. And this is why...." Nick swallowed, giving me the briefest of glances. "This is why I plan to enlist the help of Alexandria. Over the next couple of weeks, she can help me increase my power by using her magic."
I looked at Nick, suddenly uneasy. "Who's Alexandria?"
Before he could respond, Damien threw his head back and laughed. "Oh, you're about to find out."
*
In response to me asking Nick who Alexandria was, Katie and her husband Sam exchanged glances. Uncle Marshall lifted his gaze to the ceiling of the council lodge, inhaling deeply. Several of the council members dropped their gazes to the surface of the polished blonde oak table.
Damien continued laughing. "'Who's Alexandria?' Oh, poor Daisy."
Growing increasingly uneasy, I fixed Nick with what I imagined to be a demanding stare. "Who is she?"
He took a deep breath, clearly struggling to maintain eye contact with me. “Well...Alexandria is a former friend of mine."
Damien snorted. "Oh, is that what serious former girlfriends are called these days? Former 'friends?'"
Nick gave him a look that could only be described as a death glare before returning his gaze to me. "She's a former...person I had a brief relationship with, though that is long, long, long in the past. But now, she may be able to help us accomplish our goal of taking out Ezra. You see, she's a sorceress, and she's able to use her magical abilities to increase the strength of dragon shifters. She's already done this before, for a few of my top shifters who just needed a little boost, and I have no doubt that she can use her magic on me to do this for me, as well. And if I can become even just slightly stronger, this will help ensure a quick, decisive victory when I take on Ezra, meaning that there won't have to be any worry about his shifters attacking our town during some long, drawn-out battle between him and me."
Damien snickered. "And it'll just be a bonus that you'll get to look at Alexandria's fine form while she performs her spells on you over the several days that the task will require, right?"
Nick gave Damien another death glare before looking at the group at large. "This meeting is adjourned. Uncle Marshall, I'd appreciate it if you could please dispatch a few guards to Coldwater, asking Alexandria if she'd be kind enough to come here and offer her assistance. If she is, and if she's willing to make the twenty-mile trip tonight, then the guards are to bring her here right away. She can ride on one of their backs while they fly back in dragon form if she doesn't mind. Thank you, and thank you all for attending this meeting. Good night."
Nick rose, taking my hands and kind of gently pulling me up, as well. After I'd murmured a good night of my own to everyone, we left the lodge and began walking hand-in-hand down a tree-lined paved street to Nick's massive, three-story cabin-mansion. It was about nine o' clock; it was dark and only a couple of people were out and about on the lane, heading to their own houses. We didn't talk at first. But after we'd passed the couple of people and the paved street began a gentle curve that would take us directly to Nick's, I couldn't hold back any longer.
With my stomach churning, I glanced at him. "Is whatever you had with Alexandria really 'long, long, long in the past?' Are all your feelings for her completely gone?"
To my relief, Nick didn't even hesitate. "Yes. Without a doubt. We had a 'thing' at one time, yes, but I was the one who broke it off with her, and I don't have any remaining feelings for her at all, whatsoever. I'll be grateful to her if she's willing and able to magically increase my strength for the fight against Ezra, but that's it."
"And do you think that she no longer has any feelings for you?"
Now Nick did hesitate in responding, and he walked with his gaze forward, his lightly golden skin even more golden than usual in light from a streetlamp just up ahead. "Well...I couldn't answer that with any confidence. She took our breakup pretty hard. Though in the past year, she seems to have gotten over this, because like I said back at the lodge, she's helped me by performing magical spells on several of my top men to make them even stronger so that they can better help me defend the town against the wolves."
"But that just means she may not hold any hard feelings against you. That just means that she probably doesn't hold a grudge. But that doesn't mean that she doesn't still have love feelings for you. That doesn't mean that she doesn't maybe secretly hope that the two of you still have a chance."
"Well...maybe."
"And in fact, her helping you might have just been a way of trying to get into your good graces. It may have just been a way for her to get back into your life and have you think positively of her."
Nick walked along beside me in silence for a long moment. "Well...it's possible, I guess."
I figured it was just like a man to not have this occur to him earlier.
I glanced over at him, wrapping a light gray wrap I was wearing around me even tighter as a stiff, chilly, early autumn breeze picked up. "And if that was her intent in helping your men...to get you thinking warm thoughts about her again...that might be her intent if she agrees to help you again now. She might intend to work herself back into your heart over the several days, or however long it takes, for her to help you."
Nick frowned, his deep green eyes dark in the dim light. "Well...well, maybe."
We didn't speak for the rest of the short distance to the cabin. I knew he was in a tough spot, because I had to admit that it made sense for him to become as strong as possible before taking on Ezra. And if there was a good chance that Alexandria could increase his strength by doing a few spells on him, I wanted him to take that chance. However, I still wasn't exactly thrilled that the two of them would be spending time together. Especially considering that our relationship was still brand-new. And also especially considering what Damien had said about Alexandria having a "fine form."
Once inside the cabin, Nick shut the door, kicked off his brown boots, and took me in his arms. "Listen to me, Daisy. I want to tell you something." He paused before continuing, looking deeply into my eyes. "You are the woman I love with all my heart and soul. You are the woman I want a future with. And nothing is going to change that. Not Alexandria being in town for a few days, not her doing spells on me, nothing."
I had a sudden thought that horrified me and gave me a chill even though I was wrapped in the strength and warmth of Nick's arms.
"Alexandria's magic. Can she do any spells that would make a man fall in love with her? Like, while she's doing the spells on you that will make you stronger, could she slip one in that-"
"No." Nick fought a smile. "No, absolutely not. If she could, don't you think she would have done that by now?"
"Oh. Good point. I guess I'm just a little...." I trailed off, sighing. "I just don't want her to take you away from me, Nick. I just love you too much to ever lose you."
He brushed a tender kiss against my mouth. "And I love you too much to ever lose you. To anyone, ever. Please believe me when I say that. Alexandria coming to town changes nothing. It's just something we have to get through in order to take out Ezra so that you can be safe. And no matter if Alexandria wants to rekindle our relationship, and no matter if she takes steps to try to do that, what we have won't change. Because you're the woman I want to be with. If I wanted to be with Alexandria, I would never have broken up with her. But I did, because we weren't a match in the end, for me, anyway. So, please believe me when I say that nothing will happen. Nothing will change between us. I have faith in our love, and I hope you can have faith, too."
I nodded. "I do have faith in our love. And I do feel reassured that you don't still have feelings for Alexandria. Although I'd be lying if I said I'm not looking forward to the time when she's left town."
Nick smiled, beginning to rock me in his strong arms almost imperceptibly. "Won't be long. And it also won't be long until Ezra is taken out for good. And then, we can get to enjoying our happy life together in peace. But tonight...if I recall correctly, I think I promised to draw you a bath. And considering what you went through today, I think I'm going to make it a bath with extra bubbles. How does that sound?"
I grinned, wrapping my arms around his muscular shoulders. "It sounds heavenly. And after...maybe after, you'll show me exactly how much you love me."
His green eyes twinkled in soft light from a lamp with a tan, frosted-glass shade sitting on a foyer table nearby. "Well, I don't know about that. I am awfully tired this evening. I'll probably be fast asleep in bed by the time you get out of your bath. I'll probably already be out like a light."
Though amused, I tried my best to scowl. "You're mean. You're so, so mean."
Nick bit back a chuckle. "Yes, now that I really think about it, I'm sure I'll be sleeping. I'm far, far too tired to get a peek of your gorgeous, naked body when you step out of the bath. Far, far too tired to run my hands all over it, too. And without a doubt, too tired to plant kisses all over your wet, glistening skin."
I pushed against his chest. "All right. Let me go. I'm going back to the council lodge to sleep tonight."
He pulled me even tighter against his chest, chuckling, and spoke near my ear in a low voice. "Oh, no you don't. Because I am absolutely, one hundred percent teasing. I'm actually not tired at all. And even if I were...even if I'd just flown ten thousand miles in dragon form...I could never, ever, be too tired to physically show you how much I love you, and that's a promise. There's no level of tiredness like that that even exists. There's nothing I wouldn't do to get a peek of your sweet, bare, luscious, naked skin."
His words caused a little thrill to ripple through me, and I relaxed against his chest, inhaling his clean, woodsy, masculine scent. "All right. Then, I think it's time for my bath now."
Displaying his shifter strength, he picked me up with one smooth, seemingly effortless movement. "I think it certainly is."