Holocaust - Rachel M Raithby Page 0,67
as they closed ranks, giving her no place to run.
“Always such a warm welcome, Grey,” Lexia said, eyeing the largest of the wolves. “What do I have to do to earn your trust?”
Shifting, Grey answered, “You’ve earned our trust.”
She laughed sarcastically, giving them all an angry glare. “My twisted, psychotic mother gives me a warmer welcome.”
“What do you expect, hunter. You’ve killed one of our own,” snarled an alpha from behind.
Turning to face the wolf who’d shifted to speak, she watched another two shift also. They stood glaring at her with disgust. Grey was the only one of them who’d ever shifted to speak before but they obviously couldn’t contain their words anymore.
“Our friend is dead because of your kind. We should have never trusted you.”
“I did warn you,” she answered simply.
“What would you have us do? Run away with our tails between our legs?” one snapped.
“No. You should have had patience. Instead, you jumped into a fight you couldn’t hope to win and now I have more problems on my hands.”
“Is that what you are? Patient?”
“I am trapped. I have no choice but to wait for the opportune time to strike. Of course you could run head first into this battle, slaughter hundreds, but the people behind this program are not just inside that compound and every time you lose your patience, you run the risk of the board going into hiding.”
“We’re watching them,” he argued.
“They are not stupid. They’ve gone all this time without being uncovered. We need to strike at once and they need to not see us coming.”
“Lexia is right,” Grey interrupted, the weight of his voice pressing around them.
Snarling, the other eight directed their gaze at Grey. “Are you siding with her?” one barked.
“Yes,” he growled back.
Caleb chose that moment to step from the trees, the rabbits skinned and tied together. “Rabbits…” His voice trailed off as he looked up. One of the alpha wolves pounced at Grey, his snarl filling the quiet forest.
Lexia stepped back, avoiding the fighting, just as a set of angry blue eyes locked with her.
“Lex,” Caleb yelled as the wolf leaped.
Lexia didn’t move. She stared into his blue eyes as he sailed through the air toward her, knocking him sideways when he came within inches of her.
“Get back,” Caleb insisted, pushing her behind him.
“Caleb, I don’t need protecting,” she retorted, stepping around him. “Stop this,” she yelled, running toward the fighting wolves, stepping between them. “I know tensions are high, but this solves nothing. However these,” she continued, pulling the blueprints from her jacket, “these will help us put an end to the bloodshed.”
They paused, looking at the paper in her hand. “You got them?” Grey asked after shifting.
“Yes, now which one of you is ex-military?” Lexia asked.
“He’s not here. We have another few men camping deeper into the mountain,” Grey answered.
“A few?” she questioned.
“Yes, more arrive each day. Word’s out that we’re making a stand. I think you know one of them. Sammy?”
“Sammy? He’s here? What the hell is he doing here?” She shook her head angrily, “I told him to go home.”
“That’s the thing, Lexia. We shifters can’t go home. Not until this is over. We used to be a strong people but now we hide amongst the humans, living as them.”
“I just don’t want anyone else getting hurt,” she sighed.
“It’s inevitable,” Grey replied.
Lexia didn’t answer. She had no reply because he was right. Before this war ended, there would be more than just people being hurt. They’d be killed, and she couldn’t find a way out of it.
“I need to go. Please stop blowing up our supply runs,” she added as she turned.
“I can’t promise that,” Grey replied.
“Thanks for skinning the rabbits, Caleb,” Lexia said as she picked them up.
“Out of food already? We only destroyed two trucks,” Grey said.
Lexia paused. Looking back over her shoulder, she answered, “Lucy’s made a list of those she’s going to feed. I came out here to find food for the rest.”
“Send for more supplies. We’ll leave the trucks,” Grey sighed.
“It’s too late, Grey. Lucy’s locked down the compound. No one in, no one out. Whatever she plans is very near and she doesn’t need every hunter to accomplish it. She’s made a list of who she wants and the rest…well the rest are replaceable. Her words, not mine.”
“Do you have any idea what she is planning?”
“None, move quickly, Grey. Time is short,” she threw over shoulder as she walked away.
Caleb caught up a few seconds later. Weaving through the trees,