The Vow (Black Arrowhead #1) - Dannika Dark Page 0,43

“She doesn’t belong here. She’s a curse on our people—on our land. You know the old stories about strangers and a storm. They are bringers of death.”

Shikoba’s voice never faltered. “What would they say if a white woman walked out of here on the same day that one of their own was murdered? They’re looking for a reason to take what’s ours. We must not give them one.”

I stood up with my broken bow and arrows. “I can’t stay here. I have to go home.”

“You will stay,” Shikoba said, inviting no argument. “Do you think those men are waiting out there to save you? This is for your protection.”

“I’m not from around here. They’re not going to stop me from leaving.”

Shikoba tapped his cane on the ground. “No matter. Too much anger is poisoning the air. They might turn on you, and I won’t have your blood on my hands.”

Lakota rubbed his whiskery chin. “I can call the police and report them.”

“It’s the Council you need to call,” Tak informed him. “Not the police. Humans aren’t welcome on our land.”

“The Council doesn’t have the manpower to haul those men away, but the cops do.”

Tak folded his arms, his eyebrows drawing together. “Oh? If they’re not standing on the property, then they’re not trespassing. Cops will wonder what we’re hiding, and who knows what an angry mob will tell them. This is a show of intimidation. They’re fencing us in so we can’t go anywhere.”

I clutched Lakota’s arm and whispered, “I can’t stay. You can’t just leave me here.”

He whispered back, “If you stay, I stay.”

Shikoba noticed our whispering and drew closer.

Lakota quickly turned to the chief and closed the distance between them. “I’ll guard the woman and make sure she doesn’t run. If someone caught her escaping, it would make the situation look even worse.”

Shikoba clapped him on the shoulder. “Very well. I must make preparations for a burial. Come find me in an hour and we’ll talk.” As he walked toward the door, he raised his voice, addressing his pack. “No more fighting, and anyone who lays a hand on this woman will answer to me. You shame me with your cowardly bickering. You are all brothers.”

“You have to let me go,” I pleaded to Lakota.

He slowly shook his head and gave me a worried look. “You shouldn’t be here. It’s a witch hunt.”

“How did you recover Koi’s body?” Tak asked, closing in on our private circle.

Lakota turned to face him, still using his body to shield me from danger. “I asked the local Council of Shifters to intervene.”

Tak threw back his head. “So that’s why half the territory is at our doorstep.”

“They already knew from the footage on TV, and those who didn’t would have found out soon enough.”

Tak clapped Lakota on the shoulder. “Thank you for bringing him home, brother. I mean that.”

Lakota extended his arm to Tak’s shoulder, and they held that position for a moment before Tak turned away to rejoin his family, leaving us alone.

I strode toward my Jeep with my broken bow and tossed the mangled remains into the back seat. “What happened to the wolf?”

Lakota took my quiver and reached through the window, placing it carefully on the seat. “They found a dead girl. She belonged to a local rogue. I don’t know what her animal was, but you can bet if she had been in a pack, Shikoba’s tribe would be preparing for battle instead of a funeral.”

“What does that have to do with the wolf?”

He frowned. “Everyone liked Koi. He was twenty going on fifteen. One of Shikoba’s nephews. They found his body near the woman.”

I swallowed hard, daring to ask the question. “Did he kill her? Was it a murder-suicide?”

An eagle cried, and the wind whispered as it blew through the treetops. Lakota swept back his hair. It was deep brown with a rich luster, thicker and wilder than those in the Iwa tribe.

“I don’t know,” he said. “She might have mortally wounded him in self-defense, or maybe someone attacked them both. The tribe will inspect his wounds and try to piece together the facts, but the crime scene is the only place that will tell the whole story.” Lakota rubbed his chin and glanced back at the house. “Let’s walk.”

We sauntered toward the house, and I found myself walking closer to him than I normally would.

“It’s getting dangerous,” he continued. “From what I gather, there was always friction in the community between the tribe and everyone else. They