Page 123 of Taming His Vampire Mate

It was still mid-afternoon, with hours to go before the wolves could transform and hunt the creature responsible for the hiker’s death. The same creature that had taken Ian’s life and shattered Jeremy. I had never been so grateful for daylight, even if it was weak, gray, and filtered through layers of steel-colored clouds that promised—but never quite delivered—a torrent of rain.

The pack—far smaller than I liked—was all gathered.

Reed and Lindsey sat side by side at the far end of the log I was perched on. Lindsey, who was closer, offered me a tentative smile. Between her and Reed was the dark-haired vampire named Aiden, his sandy-haired human mate Dante at his side. Lindsey’s friends.

Why she thought it wise to let them stay, I had no idea. Dante was probably a Sanguinato like James—a human who consumed vampire blood regularly, healed quickly, had slightly enhanced senses, and didn’t age. But none of that would help against what was out there.

I was almost certain Aiden must have agreed with my silent assessment because he kept casting wary glances at the tree line, practically vibrating with tension.

I understood completely.

There was no way in hell my wolf was going in there alone.

On other logs sat a pair of dark-haired twins, both mid-to-late twenties—or so they looked. Wolves aged more slowly than humans. Next to them perched a blond woman who looked more like a cheerleader than a werewolf, dressed in a pink crop top and scandalously short gray sweatpants that showed off long, tanned legs. I didn’t like the way she studied Jeremy, like she intended to help him forget everyone else—including me.

On the log furthest from the pack sat a dark-haired warlock. That had to be Daniel, whom Jeremy had mentioned several times. He was younger than I’d imagined—barely more than a boy. He seemed apart from the others in ways that had nothing to do with distance. His eyes kept drifting to the twins before sliding away. They pointedly ignored him.

Beside him sat a wizened woman with slate-gray eyes and deep red hair, despite her obvious age—Emma, the pack’s elder. Next to her was a younger woman with the same coloring. Her daughter, perhaps. Or granddaughter. Both kept shooting me strange looks: Emma’s speculative, the younger woman’s openly hostile. At the far end sat a dark-skinned werewolf with high cheekbones and haunted eyes—thirties by appearance—also casting wary glances our way.

And that was it.

The full pack. Seven wolves. Eight, if you counted Emma, the elder serving more as advisor than anything else, and one warlock who, while powerful by ordinary standards, was no Poppy. No wonder my wolf had asked Nathaniel for help.

“The threat is very bad,” Jeremy said at last, standing before us. He somehow radiated command, even just standing there. He met every gaze before adding, “We’re after the same creature that killed Ian.”

Around us, eyes widened. The wolves went pale. The twins whispered furiously to each other, but I didn’t bother to listen.

“Are you certain?” Emma rasped.

“Yes,” Jeremy said, turning to her. He looked paler himself, and through the bond I felt how close he was to unraveling. The combined weight of knowing what we were hunting and standing before his pack again after almost a full year pressed down on him. “I’ve seen a vision of what we’re facing.”

You’ve got this,I whispered.

He met my gaze for a heartbeat—his expression softening, the look in his eyes meant only for me—before turning back to Emma. In short, clipped sentences, he described the creature from our dreamscape.

“We need you and Jo to search our records,” he finished. “See if the pack has ever gone up against something like this.”

Emma nodded, exchanging a glance with the younger woman beside her—Jo, presumably.

“We need to protect the town,” Jeremy said. “We don’t know what this being wants, or why it kills. Only that it’s savage, merciless, and deadly.”

“No, we need to go after it,” the dark-skinned man said flatly. “It cannot be allowed to exist. No one will be safe until it’s gone. We cannot react to it. We mustact. We have to hunt it down.”

“There aren’t enough of us,” Reed shot back. “What happens to Crescent Springs while we’re in the woods?”

“I can put a spell around the town,” Daniel offered. “I can’t stop it from getting in—I don’t have that much power—but I can set up a warning. If it crosses the threshold, we’ll know.”

Jeremy considered this.

“Dante and I can’t stay,” Aiden said firmly, giving Lindsey an apologetic look. “We’ll be leaving soon. After—”

“—after we help track where the creature came from,” Dante finished smoothly, earning a sharp look from me.

Were they blood-bonded, too? They certainly seemed in sync.

But how could they track a creature if a full pack of wolves couldn’t?

“The creature leaves no scent,” Jeremy said, echoing my thoughts. He frowned at them. “Otherwise, we’d scour the woods. We’d leave no stone unturned.”