The Wolf's Surrender - By Kendra Leigh Castle Page 0,82

Bane’s other side, nor the heavyset russet wolf beside him, leading their small contingent of Silverback. Kenyon Chase had been determined to come, truly worried about Mia’s fate. Nor had Tomas hesitated, despite the look in his eyes when Mia’s fae blood had been mentioned. He doubted Tomas would still be quite so eager to mate her with his second-in-command now, though Jenner knew that if Mia gave him any hope of reciprocation, Chase would fight to have her.

But that wasn’t going to happen. Because even if he had to get on his damned knees and beg, he was going to win Mia back. He wasn’t going to go through losing her once just to lose her again.

He could smell Mia now, the sweet scent of her growing stronger by the second. But the light was fading. And from what little he knew of such things, Jenner had gleaned that twilight was when it was best to call out to the Shadowkin and expect an answer. Not that he had ever tried, except to curse them on the rare occasion they’d managed to cause harm.

There were other scents in the air tonight. Madness and fire, sweat and anticipation. And now, faint but growing stronger, the unmistakable tang of blood.

Dread formed a knot deep in his belly. Please let it not be Mia, he thought. That’s all I ask. Please.

Mia, he thought, reaching out with his mind, wishing she could hear him, feel him. Wishing he could know for certain she was all right.

He was stunned when he heard her, soft but unmistakably there. She sounded uncertain, frightened...but alive. In an instant, he was surrounded by her essence, so close and real she might have been beside him. He felt her warmth, her love...and her crushing sadness.

Jenner? Is...is that really you, or am I imagining it?

I’m coming for you. Soon. I’m coming for you. Can you hear me? Mia, I’m so sorry, baby. I was wrong. I love you. I love you...

But like a bad telephone connection, her voice was gone again, as was all sense of her, blocked off by the oozing blackness that seemed to blanket this entire area, thickening the farther into the woods they got.

All around them, the light faded to silvery purple, and things began to slip from behind and beneath trees, nothing but abstract figures created of darkness itself. Bane gave the signal to stop, and the pack stood in silence as the insubstantial wisps of pure black were drawn toward whatever lay in the distance. For the first time Jenner could remember, the shadows ignored the presence of the wolves in the forest. They had more important matters to attend to tonight.

Bane, a massive black wolf with gleaming yellow eyes, turned to look at Jenner.

We need someone to go on ahead, scope it out.

Jenner knew he was the one to go. He was the Lunari, the moon hunter, the shadow slayer. And despite the uncertainty ahead, he wouldn’t have it any other way. Get them surrounded. I’ll let you know when.

Kenyon seemed to know what was going on even though, as a Silverback, he wasn’t privy to their conversation. In an instant, he was a man again, though his stance was very much that of an aggressive animal.

“You’re not going in there without me,” he growled.

Jenner had no intention of bringing a tagalong who had designs on his woman. He let his form shift, drawing himself up into his human shape, and glared at Kenyon.

“No way. One is enough. More, and they’ll know we’re there right away. They may anyway. No reason to sacrifice another wolf.”

Kenyon bared his teeth. “Spare me the altruism. I have just as much invested in this as you do, Jenner. She’s not going to forget you rejected her.”

Bane shifted form, standing between them. “We don’t have time for this, you two. Jenner, take him with you. In this case, two is better than one. And it’s his right as much as yours.”

“That’s right,” Tomas said, looking more bullish than wolfish as he materialized beside Bane. “I can’t say what the woman wants, and she seemed determined to flout Pack Law anyway, but you two need to go in. Kenyon is the best we have. She’d be lucky to have him...especially considering what she is.”

Jenner growled. “I’m sure she’d be grateful you’d overlook her mongrel status, Tomas. But Mia’s mine. I’m not giving her up.”

He couldn’t miss the flicker of relief over Tomas’s features, though Kenyon bristled. “That’s not your