Page 2 of Stormbinder King (Stormbinder Pack #1)

N o one else seemed to notice as they chattered among themselves, but my head swiveled one way and then the other looking for the source of it.

My thick blue-black hair was sticky on my neck, individual curls stuck to my forehead.

As I narrowed my eyes, I saw a wolf running through the forest, hunting down what looked like a wild, rabid boar.

The wolf was sinewy and powerful, much bigger than any wolf I had ever seen before, with silvery-white fur. The creature’s muscular legs were long and efficient, their eyes focused like lasers on the animal in front of them.

The boar was fast, but it was no match for this wolf.

I watched the hunt with bated breath. The boar looked dangerous, maddened-eye, its tusks coated with a layer of spittle, but there was something about the power of the wolf that frightened me more.

The boar squealed, its legs churning.

But there was no escape.

My heart was in my throat at the moment the wolf pounced, suspended in the air high above the ground.

Then it fell like a blade, sharp teeth and powerful jaw, as the monstrous carnivore sunk a bite deep in the boar’s neck and brought the other creature down.

I suppressed a scream.

Such savage jungle brutality.

But somehow I couldn’t look away.

The wolf tore through the boar’s throat, a splash of bright blood on its snowy white muzzle. It was a gruesome, feral sight.

But I couldn’t drag my eyes away.

And then the wolf raised its head and turned toward me.

I gasped as the bright silvery eyes met mine, my heart pounding so hard I felt like I was going to faint.

The wolf’s creamy fur was soaked bright red with blood, but I could have sworn I tasted the coppery tang in my mouth too.

I felt a strange, wild connection between the beast and I, for one startling and breath-taking moment.

Something pulled deep inside me, and the outrigger suddenly jerked away with a splash.

I was able to tear my eyes away from the strange-eyed predator, but I still felt hot, bloody eyes on the back of my head.

What had just happened?

I didn’t dare mention the incident, and I didn’t look at the forest again.

Then the man in front of me was hopping out to the bank and tying the outrigger on a stake driven into the dirt.

He deposited me unceremoniously onto the ground and pointed through the leaves to where I could see a gate, its wooden posts high and sharp.

A guard came out, a grim man with a beard, and he waved us in immediately.

There was no opportunity to make a run for it even as the slanting sun made dark shadows across the heavy trees.

Now that I’d seen the wolf.

What else could be in the forest?

The gate creaked open and we were ushered inside.

And it was nothing like I’d ever imagined could exist in this strange, savage world.

There were a variety of well-made wood and stone buildings, surrounding a neat clearing in the middle of the village, but what caught my eye was up in the air, lovely dark-wood and moss-green roofed treehouses nestled in the lush leaves of the thick trees.

The whole village was so beautiful it had almost a fairytale-like feel to it, the heavy drops of liquid rolling down each treehouse roof, creating an ethereal fog.

Then I felt a tight grip on my shoulder, and I was being marched firmly into one of the wooden buildings and toward one of the bathtubs.

There was a unique smell that I couldn’t quite pinpoint in here, mixing with the trays of crusty bread. There were savory cheeses and slabs of meat, but I thought of the boar and shuddered.

How was I supposed to get home again?

The scene in the forest had frightened me more than I wanted to admit.

I kept replaying that moment when I met the eyes of the silver-furred wolf.

What could I possibly have in common with such a wild creature?

I must have imagined the electric zing of connection I felt.

“I don’t belong here,” I croaked to my attendant. “This is a mistake. I need someone to take me back where I was found.”

She was very tall and beautiful, like the other women in the village, with sharp cheekbones and a long, silver-blonde braid.

She turned around and glared at my voice, her eyes narrowing as she examined me.

What did she see that make her frown with such disgust?

It wasn’t like I was that hideous, surely. Long, thick blue-black hair, large azure blue eyes, and bronzed skin with freckles. Unlike the tall, goddess-like women in this village, I had high, perky breasts and small, defined curves.

Unremarkable in general.

“You’re right,” she said, to my relief. “You don’t belong here.”

With a sharp, harsh movement she shoved me toward the door, and I thought for one second I was free before another tall, lovely woman stopped me.

“ Aurelia . Orders are to bring all the women in.”

“Not this one,” Aurelia said, and I could tell from how she breathed that she was very angry.

Why?

What possible reason could she have for being pissed at me?

“All means all,” the other woman said, turning me firmly back around.

I was a little annoyed at being shoved this way and that.

“You don’t have to be so rough,” I told Aurelia, as she marched me back to the tub.

She only snorted. “Soft little girl. You probably won’t get chosen after all. But I have to bathe the stink off you. Now get in that tub.”

I reluctantly took my filthy clothes off. They weren’t much, but they were the last connection I had to my own world. I put a tentative toe in, but I was too slow for Aurelia.

Gripping me by the hair, she shoved me into the freezing cold water of the tub.

How did they get it so cold when everything else was dripping with humidity?

Then she took a bar of disgusting-smelling soap and scrubbed my hair until my scalp stung, holding my head under the water until my lungs were bursting.

Then she brought me up and let go abruptly.

“Hope nothing gets you in the forest. But you’re as ready as I can make a weakling like you.”

Was I ready?

For what?

I just needed to figure out where I was going to go next and how to get home. If I could go home.

With frozen fingers, I put on the clothing they had laid out for me—no panties or bra but a stiff, poofy white dress. It was made for a much taller and bustier woman, so I had to do the laces up tightly and gather a long, heavy train in my arms. I looked like I was going to a Regency ball.

What in the world was happening?

“Just give them a challenge, you know?” Aurelia hissed. “They like that. Or. . . you might find yourself left and forgotten in the forest. And it’s not kind to humans at night.”

My stomach clenched with nerves as we were escorted into a large building paneled in light wood.

From the way the heavy tables were pressed up against the wall, it looked like some sort of communal dining area.

My eyes darted around to look for an exit, my chest feeling constricted by the laces.

Men dressed in light, forest-colored shirts and pants began to walk into the room. They were all big men of different races and skin colors, but all tall and muscular, their bearing confident if not arrogant. Their eyes scanned the room almost greedily, flicking quickly between each woman.

I cowered further back into a corner, my fingers pulling at the laces, trying desperately to loosen them so I could draw a breath.

However, none of the men made a move towards us.

They seemed to be. . . waiting.

“What is happening?” I gasped to the nearest woman.

She turned toward me, her pupils dilating with excitement and anticipation.

“Moonbright Night Hunt,” she said, pinching her cheeks to bring a rosy blush color there. “Maybe some of us will even find our fated mates tonight. Wouldn’t it be amazing if mine was Prince Jack? Of course, everyone else wants that too.”

Fated mates? A hunt ?

My heart pounded with fear.

So that’s why the men were looking at us, appraisingly. We were there to be hunted.

Sweat gathered between my breasts, soaking through my thin dress.

I cringed back into the shadows, the hair rising on my neck as the strangest noises broke from their throats, low vibrating growls all joining in a strange and frightening cacophony of sound.

My hands twisted together as I looked nervously up to see what had caused the sudden change, the sharp, chill expectancy in the room.

It was a man.

My heart pounded in my chest. I wanted to make a break for it, but I didn’t know how with so many people packed around me.

The new man was a few years older than me, very tall like the others, with broad shoulders and a lean, lithe strength. But he was startlingly, breathtakingly attractive, with unruly white-blonde hair, brilliant blue eyes, and a quick flashing playful grin.

He moved with a sleek, almost uncanny grace in between the women in front of him.

I heard low, throbbing exhalations from those beside me, and I felt something strange on my tongue.

An expectancy.

An awareness of every place he moved in the room.

Of course this must be the prince. The one everyone wanted.

Jack.

He was laughing, his fine white teeth bright as he grabbed a mug of something dark and bloodred, and downed it in a gulp.

But his eyes were roaming, flicking between women.

His posture was casual, uninterested, but I felt something.

Something powerful pulsing beneath the surface.

I stared down at my toes, tucking them in so I wouldn’t be seen in the shadows.

The strength of my immediate attraction frightened me.

Surely it would fade in a moment.

“No,” the prince said.

His voice was lilting, musical, but still entirely masculine.

“This isn’t everyone.”

“Where is she?”

Without meaning to, I raised my eyes and they met the prince’s.

My skin instantly pulsed with a heated, electric connection.

I’d never seen a man that beautiful in my entire life.

His gaze narrowed, and he cocked his head sideways as he looked at me. I felt the strangest sensations of sheer panic go through me, some deep primal instinct making me freeze in place, prickly sweat pouring down my back.

Why wasn’t he looking away? His arctic blue eyes felt like they bore into mine even from across the room.

My heart stopped, and I felt like I couldn’t breathe.

What if he asked me to say something and I couldn’t get the words out because I was stuttering so badly? My blood ran cold.

I hadn’t stuttered in so long, but he was so beautiful. . .

His nostrils moved, and for a moment something flared in his eyes. Something I didn’t recognize, a flash of silver, something almost. . .predatory.

But that was ridiculous

I felt something throb between my legs, a wanton wetness swelling the place between my thighs until my pussy lips stung with heat and need.

Why was he still looking at me?

There was an expectancy in the air, the women shifting around me, rustling their beautiful dresses. I clutched my skirts, not understanding what I tasted under my tongue, what I was feeling in the air.

Then the prince opened his mouth, and I saw a glint of bright metallic piercing on his tongue.

“ Run .”