Chapter 21

21

T hor roused before dawn to the smell of smoke. His first thought was that one of his wargs had fallen asleep too close to the fire again. Then, all the wards rang, and the water systems in the hall kicked on.

Thor leaped out of bed and opened the large window to let the smoke out. He pulled on his jeans just as a heavy bang pounded on his door.

"Thor! Get your ass up! We have a pack of wolves that have just tried to set the hall on fire," one of his wargs yelled through the door.

"I'm coming," he called back.

Nicola got out of bed, and Thor tossed her some clothes that Astrid had left for her. "Fucking Kaleb can't give me one damn night," she growled.

Thor grunted. "Don't worry, little wolf. We will kill him and be done with this nonsense once and for all."

Nicola dressed and tied back her long hair. "I'm going to smell like you, and it will drive him crazy."

"Good. Let them all smell my seed dripping down your legs. There will be no doubt who you belong to," Thor declared. He took great pleasure in the thought of it.

Nicola pulled him in for a kiss. "Barbarian."

"You like that about me," he said and squeezed her ass.

"I love it. Can I use your ax? I like it too," she replied, and he wanted to fuck her all over again.

"It's yours. Like everything else." Thor found where he propped the ax the night before and passed it to her. "Stay close to me. Don't take any unnecessary risks."

"That's it? You're not going to get all alpha hole and try and convince me to sit this fight out?" she asked, genuinely surprised.

Thor crossed his arms. "You are my mate. You are strong enough to fight at my side, and that is where I want you. Always. Understand?"

"I love you, Thorfinn Halfdansson," Nicola said with a soft laugh and kissed his shoulder.

"Let's go kill this fucker so I can get you naked again," he grunted, his heart feeling dangerously soft. It was not the way to go into a battle.

Outside, the snow was falling in thick drifts. The wolves must have thought attacking at dawn gave them an edge over their vampire sides.

"It's like this dumb fuck never learns," Bjorn said, joining them. "He should give up while he is ahead."

"By the end of today, he is only going to be a head," Astrid chirped happily. She looked at Nicola and the way she casually held Thor's ax. "We will make a vikingr out of this one yet."

"You know what they say about once you go Viking," Nicola said, making them all laugh. Thor wanted to kiss her but knew they were being watched. Kaleb's pack was lined up in the snow in front of the hall.

Nicola's scent changed to anger as Kaleb himself came into view. He seemed terribly young, but most people did to Thor. He looked like a businessman, not a warrior. He was even wearing some kind of body armor and had his dark hair neatly styled.

"This fucking little cock is the one that thinks he can start a war with the vampires?" Bjorn demanded, not bothering to keep his voice down. "He doesn't look old enough to drink. How the fuck did he become an alpha? What's wrong with all you wolves?"

The rest of the wargs filed out of the forest and hall behind them. A ripple of unease went through the wolf pack, and Thor tried not to smile.

"I thought you said there were only three of them," a voice whispered.

" Shut up . It doesn't matter how many of them there are," Kaleb snarled. He straightened his shoulders and closed the distance between them. "Thorfinn Halfdanson, I am here to demand that my mate be returned to me."

"I am not your fucking mate," Nicola snarled, her grip on the silver ax tightening.

"I had an agreement with your father, and you will fucking honor it," Kaleb said.

Thor caught a hit of his scent like a nose full of crazy obsession and a rot that nothing could cure.

Nicola spat on the snow between them. "I have a mate, but it's not you. Can't you smell him on me? I am already claimed, you psychopath." She turned to look at the other wolves. "I don't know what lies he has told you about Thor and me, but here is the truth. This piece of shit held me captive against my will. He let others in the pack beat and starve me. I got a gods damned tracker in my ass that he put in there. You might want to check your own. He's been moving to start a war with the vampires. They know. I told them and gave them proof. If you want to live, you will leave now. If you stay, you will die."

"Can you not hear yourself, Nicola? You have been glamored by this abomination! You can't think I would do anything like that to you. I love you," Kaleb said, looking genuinely hurt. "Why won't you come home to your pack that loves you."

"I'm already home," she hissed, and Thor had never been so proud.

Kaleb looked over at Thor. "Are you going to stand there and say nothing?"

"I don't need to say anything. My mate can handle herself, and she is the one you have wronged. You have started a fight you can't win, pup. Make no mistake, you are fucked. If you were any kind of alpha, you would not drag your pack into this fight. You would man up and challenge me. But you haven't because you're a bully. Like all bullies, you overestimate your power and abilities. You'll die, and no one will mourn you," Thor said with a lazy shrug. Kaleb knew he wasn't being taken seriously, and his nostrils flared in fury. Thor's smile widened.

Years of battle had taught him to keep a tight leash on his beserker, but he was going to truly enjoy killing the asshole standing in front of him. "Last chance, wolves. Leave him to his fate, or meet your gods today."

"Stay where you are! He's just trying to scare you," Kaleb shouted, a vein in his temple starting to throb.

"No, I'm trying to warn them. My wargs will scare them," Thor said. A roar of challenge went up from Bjorn, and the Blood Pack tore free of their human forms. A few of the wolves shifted instinctively, driven by fear. The smarter ones slunk away.

Kaleb pulled out a gun and pointed it at Nicola. Thor's beast broke loose, and the whole world went red.