Silence - By Kailin Gow Page 0,38

now, my sister Carol is recovering from both that loss and the torture she suffered at the hands of vampires. And our kinds have never been inclined to trust one another. Do you real y think that a vampire could walk into our camp unprotected right now without being ripped to shreds?”

Fal on could feel the truth of that in his sudden urge to argue, or better yet, to fight outright and teach this werewolf a lesson in manners. He only control ed himself with difficulty, clenching his hands into fists so tight that his knuckles whitened even beyond their usual pal or.

Josh the werewolf king continued as if nothing had happened. “Whereas if Kevin vouches for you, I wil place you under my protection and the others wil leave you alone so long as you behave yourself. After al ,” he glanced at Kevin again then, “who would dare to cross the King of al the werewolves?”

Fal on didn’t know what there was between his brother and this man, but he wasn’t sure he liked it.

Even so, he nodded. “Yes, of course, Werewolf King, I wil behave myself in your presence.”

“Good,” Josh said. “Kevin?”

“Yes, I’l vouch for him.”

Josh nodded, seeming satisfied. “Then he has my protection. We need to get back to the others now,” Josh explained to Fal on. “A few of us are out looking for some of the new vampires we have heard about in the area. Carol, Brian and I obviously want to stop the threat they represent.”

“So do Jake and I,” Kevin said, and Fal on got the feeling that he was walking in on an argument there. “We just want to see if they know anything about Palisor too.”

Josh shrugged. “I guess we could al do to learn more about it.”

“Fal on wil make things easier,” Kevin said.

“He can act as a scout for us, and can sense another vampire easier than we can.”

“Good,” Josh said. “Let’s head back to the camp. We should be around the others.”

Josh led the way as the three of them made their way through the woods, until they came to a smal clearing where Jake was waiting along with another couple of werewolves. One was a young woman, while the other was male and around Fal on’s age. They were similar enough that they were obviously related.

Presumably they were Carol and Brian, Josh’s siblings.

Carol looked up as Fal on approached, and her transformation into a wolf was almost instantaneous.

Her growl wasn’t as deep as Josh’s had been, but it was every bit as menacing.

“Stop!” Josh said, stepping closer to Fal on.

“That’s an order, Carol! Fal on here is under my protection.”

The wolf looked at her brother quizzical y.

“This vampire is Kevin’s brother,” Josh explained. “He is apparently as against Pietre as any of us, and wishes to help find Briony.”

At Briony’s name, Carol growled louder.

“He and Briony are close friends,” Josh said in a tone Fal on didn’t entirely understand. “Very close.”

That was enough to get the werewolf girl to change back, her hair wild from the transformation.

She walked over to Kevin as though she hadn’t just threatened his brother.

“He’s not as handsome as you,” she said, putting a hand on Kevin’s chest. “But if he’s handsome enough to give me a clear run at you…” Kevin just shook his head and Carol let her hand fal .

The male werewolf, Brian, stood then, looking Fal on up and down. Apparently, the same words that had just defused a little of his sister’s hostility had only served to increase his. At least he didn’t seem to be about to attack though.

“Close?” His tone said that he couldn’t believe it. “Before you became a vampire or after?”

“After.”

The werewolf snorted. “What would a girl like Briony see in a vampire?”

“As opposed to you, for example?” Fal on asked, taunting the young man just a little.

Jake chose that moment to speak up. “Fal on’s okay,” he said. “He and Briony might be kind of…

complicated, but he’s never let us down. He even helped Aunt Sophie escape from Pietre.”

“He’s stil a vampire,” Brian said. “Are you real y asking us to leave him alone, Josh?”

The werewolf king shook his head. “I’m not asking. Kevin has vouched for him, and Fal on is under my protection. You wil not harm him.”

Brian nodded, obviously reluctantly. “I’l abide by your decision. You know I wil .”

“Carol?” Josh asked. “How about you?”

“I hate al vampires, but I figure, if he’s going to be the one taking