Chapter 9 - Kane

A shift was just what Kane needed in order to clear his mind. Taking to the woods at the back of the house, he stripped off his clothes and hid them in the hollowed-out trunk of an old, dead tree, his favorite hiding place for his shifts.

With the glowing moon riding high overhead, he shifted, shaking off his human form in favor of his huge charcoal-black wolf.

It felt good to have the wind rushing through his fur as he started to run. Since taking over Nightstar, he and his packmates had far less time for runs of late, and it was beginning to get to him. Especially with everything going on.

Sometimes it was easier just to let the wolf take over and forget the problems of his human life for a while.

And that was just what he was trying to do when he heard the scream. It was a guttural scream, so filled with fear that Kane acted on instinct.

Turning in the direction of the sound, he raced forward with no thought for his own safety.

It was a woman. He was quite certain of that. And she had sounded petrified, in pain even.

When it came again, it was even more shrill. The scent of wolf hit his nostrils, causing him to slow.

Whatever he was running toward, it was a dangerous situation. Instinct continued to guide him, and he kept forward, his paws silent.

Holding his breath, he poked his long snout out between the branches of a bramble, ignoring the thorns that gripped and clawed at his coat.

His stomach twisted at the sight before him.

Pinned face down, her arms and legs spread like a starfish, was Miley. Atop her were two mean-looking wolves, one pinning her down hard while the other stood off to the side, snarling into her ear.

Her face was aimed toward him, but if she saw him, she did not react. Her pale green eyes shone with terror in the moonlight as she screamed again. This time she managed words. "Get off me! Let me go!"

That"s when Kane noticed the man standing at the edge of the clearing. He looked oddly familiar, though Kane was certain he had never seen him before.

He laughed a sadistic laugh as he stepped closer to Miley and the two wolves. "Don"t struggle. It will all be over soon."

His tone was menacing, deadly even, and Kane couldn't bear the way it made Miley struggle with terror.

His wolf took over entirely, and before he knew what he was doing, he had pounced at the nearest wolf, snarling.

Knocking one into the other, Kane barreled them off Miley and sent them reeling.

They each scrambled at the loose-leaf detritus in an attempt to get up as Kane attacked them with everything he had.

"No!" the man cried, and out of the corner of his eye, he watched Miley struggle onto shaking legs. She started to run almost the instant she found her footing. "Don"t let her get away!"

When the man started to shift, likely to chase down his pray, Kane knew he had to be ruthless.

Grabbing the nearest wolf by the throat, he chomped down hard until he felt bone crunch between his teeth. He hated killing, but it was the only way. He had to protect Miley. He felt it in every inch of his bones.

She was the most important thing, the only important thing.

She is to be my wife, he reminded himself. Whether he wanted her to be or not, he could not stand idly by and watch three enemy wolves rip her to pieces. Besides, they were on Nightstar territory. He had every justification to kill them, even without their attacking her.

When the first fell limp at his forepaws, he turned on the second. Baring his teeth, dripping blood on the leaves at his feet, he growled a warning.

He would snap his neck, too, if necessary, though the first death had been warning enough to the second wolf, it seemed. He whimpered, lowered his head and shuffled away on his belly in the opposite direction of where Miley had run.

The man, now a third wolf, was not nearly so clever as the second. He was already headed in the same direction as Miley, gaining on her swiftly, and Kane knew he would have her in seconds if he did not intervene.

So he ran faster than he ever had before, paws pounding so hard on the forest floor that the thudding of them rang in his ears even over the pounding of his heartbeat.

Whether she knew it was him or not, Kane would see Miley safe if it was the very last thing she did.

When he was just within reach of the other wolf's tail, he stretched his neck as far as it would go and clamped his teeth down on the other wolf"s appendage.

There was a tug, and then the resistance gave way, as if the clamping on his tail had halted the wolf entirely.

He spun on Kane, snarling, lashing out with tooth and claw until Kane was forced to release him.

At just the right moment, Kane rolled away, narrowly missing a bite to the shoulder as he went.

The second he made it back on his paws, he darted forward, slithering under his opponent like a snake.

When he shoved himself upward, hard into the other wolf"s stomach, his opponent was thrown clear into the air, landing a few meters away.

But Kane didn"t relent. He turned on the other wolf again, pouncing and pinning him to the ground. Leaning over him, he growled a warning in his ear, hoping he would get the message easy enough.

When the other wolf started to snarl back, snapping his jaws in a menacing yet futile manner, Kane attempted the next best thing to killing him.

Lunging hard to be sure it hurt, he grabbed hold of the wolf"s scruff and bit down until he tasted blood, pulling the skin away from his neck to be sure he left no permanent damage that couldn"t be undone by a little wolf healing.

One death for the night was enough on Kane"s conscience, even if it was in the name of saving Miley.

The wolf seemed to get his point, and his body grew limp, submissive even. He whimpered and scrambled his paws frantically until Kane finally released him.

With another snap at the wolf"s heels, Kane turned his attention to Miley.

He could no longer see her, but he could sense her. The sweet scent of her wafted through the trees on the warm, late summer breeze, and she was slapping her feet so hard as she ran, he was surprised she hadn"t woken the entire forest. She was certainly no werewolf.

With a deep sigh, Kane started to run again. He had to be certain she was safe.

Who knew how many other wolves were in the woods. Sure, his own packmates might be around, but who was to know? And if anything should happen, he would never forgive himself.

It was only when he glanced down at his paws, having almost tripped on an upturned root, that he stopped dead in his tracks.

What am I doing? he thought bitterly. He was a fool. Here he was in wolf form, huge, black and menacing, chasing down a terrified human girl who had absolutely no way of knowing who or what he was.

All she would see was another wolf coming to kill her. No, from this point on, she was better off alone.

He had done what she needed him to, even if it was he who"d needed to be certain she was safe.

Lifting his head, he sniffed the air and listened. Her scent grew weaker. The sound of her footsteps receded. She was slowing down. He could just hear her panting on the very edge of his hearing. If she had risked stopping, she felt safe enough to do so.

He listened still, reaching out for any other signs of danger. If he saw, smelled or even heard an inkling that there were more enemy wolves within the woods, he would not think twice about it. He would run to Miley, shift and show her his true self if that was what it took to keep her safe.

As her husband, he would have to do that sooner or later, anyway. How could he possibly keep a secret like that for their entire married life together?

Werewolves didn"t believe in divorce. Even if he had been human once and was set to marry one now, he wouldn"t even consider it. If Miley would have him, he would be hers for good. The small part of him that had ever considered marriage or mateship had always been quite certain on that.

It was even more certain now that he had felt the determination to protect Miley. She was going to be his, and no other person—wolf, human or otherwise—was ever going to lay a hand on her again.

Even if he did have to keep his distance in order to stop from scaring her.

Luckily for him, and perhaps even luckier for her, he didn"t sense anything but Miley"s relief at being left alone.

With a grim heaviness in his stomach, he thought, you have this night alone. Tomorrow, everything will be different.