Page 26 of Wolf’s Providence (The Shadowridge Peak #3)

TWENTY-FIVE

Caleb

Standing at the foot of Shadowridge Peak, I looked up at the mountain, the ridge too high to see from here. The sun had long since set, and even with wolf sight, the Peak looked ominous in the dark.

I could feel them advancing on me. They knew I was alone, they knew I knew who they were, and like the scavengers they were, they were coming in numbers to take on a sole shifter. To get their revenge .

Let them come.

The woods rustled as I stepped onto the ground at the bottom of Shadowridge Peak. I felt the earth below my feet welcome me home. Making my way through the dark woods, I climbed with steadiness and familiarity. I could walk this in my sleep. I had walked it in my sleep. My mother had found me many a time as a young pup, curled up at the base of a tree somewhere in the woods, far from the packlands.

I had faint scars on my body from the cuts and falls on this mountain, cuts that I was too young to shift to heal. My father had told me they’d make me stronger. I wasn’t sure what he would say if he saw me now.

The outcasts had been following me since I left her. Just as I hoped. They were pissed I’d killed their friend. Well, I was pissed they targeted her .

My only focus should have been on them—the shifters who had kept Willow in their sights far too long. Eamon would keep her safe while I put an end to this threat. I knew he would. We had our differences; I knew he blamed me for what happened to our pack, and I knew he resented the fact the blood of our enemies stained my hands only.

But he would keep my girl safe because she was innocent in all this. Like his sisters had been when the Cristone Pack had come to my lands with murder on their minds. Eamon would keep her safe so that I could focus on what needed doing here with no distractions. And when it was over, she’d be free from threat…and maybe, free from me.

I pushed down the ache of leaving her behind. She’d been so willing to stand beside me, but this was not her fight. I snorted at the thought. She couldn’t fight even if she wanted to. A shifter would overpower her in seconds, and she’d be dead. The thought chilled me to the bone.

A shifter’s world was no place for someone as frail as Willow.

The sound of branches cracking underfoot brought me back to the moment. The subtle rustling of leaves beyond the clearing indicated movement, and I tensed, scenting the air and adjusting to the darker part of the forest, every muscle wound tight. They were close, closer than they should have been.

My mind went back to Willow for a heartbeat. Eamon would keep her safe , I reassured myself. I’d left her with a shifter who knew exactly what was at stake. He understood how to keep her hidden, to keep her out of this.

I pushed on ahead, my wolf itching to be free, but I wanted to make sure the fuckers were following me, thinking they were clever enough to herd me to my packlands where they would hope that my rage and grief would rule my emotions. But I’d seen what my inner turmoil did when I let go and lost control.

I’d felt it when Willow bled out in my arms.

The fact that they still followed when I was making a beeline right for the clearing confirmed they were stupid.

Careless.

In human form, Shadowridge Peak was treacherous in the dark, but my mountain seemed to grip a little firmer underfoot as I climbed it, irrespective of the snow. I relied on the strength of my memory and body as I made my way up it. I thought I heard a couple of muffled curses the higher we climbed, and the thought they weren’t fairing as well as I was made me smile grimly on the climb.

Stopping, I started to pull off my clothes. I could go no further as a human. I’d been carrying a canvas tote in my jacket pocket. It was one of Willow’s. I doubted she’d notice it was missing. Black with gold print, it wasn’t exactly inconspicuous, but it served its purpose. Folding my clothes, I packed them into the soft tote, ensuring the handles lay spread out so that when I shifted, my wolf could pick them up. It took a few attempts, but once I had hold of them, my wolf took off running.

I was fast, always had been, and I knew that I was putting distance between me and my pursuers. Which is exactly what I wanted. I wanted time to get to the clearing, shift, and dress before they came at me.

I could stay in wolf form and fight, but before I fought them, I wanted to know why they thought to target me.

And if I were being honest, I was scared to let the wolf out in case he let the darkness in .

It took another hour or so. I didn’t stop, so when I reached the ridge, I hesitated, looking down through the night, feeling that sense of oneness once again at being back on Shadowridge Peak.

I’d heard a cry on the breeze, and with a snort of amusement, I’d turned and ran the rest of the way to the packlands. The moon appearing from behind the cloud cover illuminated the clearing. The snow wasn’t deep, but it was untouched, not even an animal footprint on the blanket of white.

Making my way to Nell’s old cabin, I saw the boots at the door, where I’d left them when I was here before. Shifting on the porch, I pulled on my clothes from the tote, grateful that shifter blood ran hotter than humans and the chill of winter wasn’t causing me too much discomfort.

I took my time going back to the clearing. The shadows that stretched over the ground seemed to lift and curl around me. Welcoming me back. Already whispering in my ear before I shut them out.

It was longer than I thought before I heard the movement through the trees, just beyond where I stood. I stayed where I was, in the center of the clearing, open and accessible. There was no room for error, and with the strength running through me, I wasn’t about to fail.

As they closed in, a part of me took note of the difference in myself. Before meeting Willow, I may have let them track me, just for the thrill of their fear when they realized I was behind them. I wasn’t that shifter anymore. I didn’t want to take unnecessary risks. It wasn’t just my life at stake.

I wanted to end this swiftly, with minimal bloodshed. There was little satisfaction to be gained from this fight.

I caught a faint scent, unfamiliar but distinct, as it filtered through the trees. I narrowed my focus, taking in the pine, the cold frozen earth, the crisp clean scent of snow, and something else—an edge of something sharper and unmistakably hostile. Thoughts of Willow were banished; I couldn’t afford to let my concentration be clouded, not right now. Tonight was the end of this threat to her.

The scent had grown, and I’d realized that I had known the stale odor. This was who had come for her. I recognized them from the vision that Luna sent me of Willow’s house being broken into.

Now they came for me, in an attempt to make a power move, to exploit my weakness, in a territory that I had abandoned.

They expected resistance. They’d find something far worse.

Catching sight of movement through the trees in the moonlight, I saw more than one of them. They weren’t pack. Rogues were never truly a pack, but these shifters moved like it. A blend of stealth and confidence that marked them as threats. I kept my eyes on them as they used the dense trees to their advantage.

This was going to end bloody.

One of them suddenly stepped forward. Heavyset. His muscles were big, but his gut was bigger. A scar ran down his left cheek, which caught my interest. Was he in her house? He scanned the clearing as if expecting me not to be alone.

“You’re here for something that doesn’t belong to you,” I murmured under my breath, keeping my voice low, willing my wolf to be patient.

The scarred man stilled, his confidence faltering as he took in the way I was standing, completely exposed and unmoving. My shoulders were back, feet planted solidly, as I watched him with an expression as controlled as it was deadly.

“Bold move, standing there on your own,” he sneered, though I could hear the note of hesitation in his voice. His men shifted uneasily behind him, casting glances between each other and the woods as if expecting backup to emerge from the shadows.

I held his gaze, letting my silence unnerve him. “Didn’t need backup for this conversation.” I gave a slow, predatory smile, letting the message settle: it wasn’t bravery that had me here, exposed, it was sheer confidence. And I could see the first crack in his composure, a quick flash of doubt crossing his face.

“You think you’re the only one who has a claim to this territory?” he asked me, trying to regain his footing. “This isn’t some sacred ground. It’s just land.” He gave a casual shrug. “Just dirt and stone.” His boot scuffed the snow on the ground.

“Why the girl?” I asked him.

His mouth twisted into a sneer. “Convenient leverage. Got your attention, didn’t it.” His voice had an edge to it like he was trying too hard to keep it light.

She meant nothing to them. Good. The threat to her would end tonight.

I nodded my head slowly, not breaking eye contact. “Oh you got my attention alright,” I said, letting the words hang heavily between us. “But you don’t seem to understand, the only reason you’re still here, still standing on your own feet, is because I wanted to give you the chance to leave.”

His face morphed into a scowl, caught between fury and disbelief. “Leave?” He looked at his buddies, who were being pathetic in their attempt to surround me subtly. “That’s rich coming from a wolf who can’t even stand to be on this mountain. You’re packless. Alone. You’re just like us, Caleb. Rogue.”

I took a step forward, feeling my wolf press against my skin, but my control was still ironclad, even though every fiber of me was charged and ready. “I’m giving you the chance,” I told them, my voice a quiet growl, “to leave with your lives intact. Take it.”

His grin faltered, his gaze shifting to the surroundings. He seemed uncertain. I knew he could feel it—he was cornered by something far more than he’d anticipated. And for the first time, he seemed to realize that standing out here alone wasn’t a weakness.

It was a strength.

My strength.

He shifted his weight, visibly unsettled but still playing at bravado. “We’ll see about that,” he muttered as if to save face to his minions, who were now roughly circling the clearing. I could hear the edge of fear in his voice, and I was sure they could too.

“See about it as you get the fuck off my mountain. This land is Shadowridge Peak packlands. You take one more step towards me, any of you”—I directed my glare to the shifter who’d stepped forward to my right—“you’re not going back the way you came.”

“Meaning?” one of the others spoke up.

I kept my gaze on the scarred spokesperson. “Meaning you’re going to die tonight.”

I saw him hesitate, I saw him look around at his minions, and saw his face fill with fury as he took in the sight of some of them who were willing to retreat.

“There’s only one of you,” he sneered.

“One is all that it will take,” I replied with a dark smirk. Taking them all in, I met the eyes of each shifter I would kill tonight to protect Willow and my territory. “This is my final warning.” I saw one of the younger shifters flick an uncertain look at the scarred guy. “Go,” I urged him. “I’ve killed more shifters on this peak than you ever will. A few more won’t make me lose any sleep.”

I wasn’t sure that was true, but I was sick of the killing. If he ran, then he would keep running, I was sure.

The young shifter looked back at me and dipped his head. “Alpha,” he murmured, and then he turned, shifted, and ran.

Turning back to the scarred shifter, I raised an eyebrow. “Your move.”

The scarred man stepped forward, four others close behind. One of them—a wiry figure from Willow’s vision, the one with her underwear pressed to his nose—locked eyes with me. He wouldn’t make it down this mountain alive. I measured each of them, calculating their intent, feeling my wolf ripple beneath the surface, ready.

“Tonight, you all die,” I told them, my voice rough, lethal. I pointed to the fucker from her house, the one who’d touched her underwear. “You will die slowly.”

“You don’t scare me.” His sneer cut through the air. “You’re nothing, Alpha .”

The first shifter spoke. “We challenge you for Shadowridge Pack.”

My mouth twisted in a sneer. They thought to make it formal, knowing I would obey the rules of the challenge. No use of my Will. Just brute strength.

I didn’t need my Will to defeat these rogues.

The heavyset shifter lunged forward, and I met his attack, his fist driving into my side. I twisted, barely dodging the force of his blow, when another attacker swung a knife toward my back. I whirled around, blocking his blade with my forearm and grabbing his wrist, twisting sharply until he dropped the weapon with a pained shout. In a flash, I slammed my elbow into his face, sending him sprawling backwards into the snow.

The third attacker moved, striking low at my ribs. Pain flared, but I held ground, keeping my wolf in check.

Keeping the beast of darkness at bay.

As they circled, I squared off against the closest shifter, whose footing slipped in the snow just enough for me to catch his arm and yank him forward. He hit the ground with a stunned gasp, scrambling to rise as I drove a brutal knee to his chest.

I steadied myself, boots crunching over the snow. The wind picked up, whipping around me, stinging my face as I squared off against my attackers closing in, their breaths visible in the cold air.

Another figure leapt at me from behind, and I twisted just in time, planting my feet firmly in the snow for leverage. I flung the assailant off, sending him sprawling back with a thud, snow scattering around him. I could feel the biting chill even as my body pulsed with adrenaline, each breath clouding in front of me. My attackers had taken a step back but were still circling me, the snow coating their boots. The more they circled me, they didn’t realize they were trampling down the snow, compacting it, making it easier to fight them. It still slowed them just enough for me to take two down, one after another, until only three remained, watching me with newfound wariness as their friends lay dead at my feet.

These three coordinated their assault.

One slammed his fist into my side, knocking me back a step, while the other struck with a sharp knee to my ribs. The pain flared, but I forced myself to turn the momentum into a savage counterattack. I rammed my shoulder into the scarred shifter’s gut, knocking him backward, and then landed a swift, solid punch to his jaw, dropping him.

Breathing heavily, I spun just as the third attacker, the largest of the group, tackled me. We crashed to the ground, his weight nearly forcing the air from my lungs. I drove my elbow into his neck, pushing him off with sheer force, until he staggered back, clutching his throat. Blood smeared my hands, and my vision blurred with fury as I watched the three regroup, my eyes widening in realization.

I knew why they didn’t shift, and it was the same reason I didn’t. They were rogue, and control was almost lost for them. If they shifted, their wolves would take over, and I knew mine would too.

The longer we could hold on to human form, the longer we had control.

But then, a scent caught my attention—a familiar scent that made my heart lurch with fear.

Willow .

I froze. She stood in the distance, her gaze locked on me, Eamon just a step behind her already ready to fight. The wiry shifter from her house—the one who shouldn’t still be standing—broke away, advancing toward her.

A snarl ripped from my throat, deeper and more feral than I’d heard before. “Touch her, and I’ll rip you apart.”

But he only smirked, ignoring the threat. He moved closer to her, testing my patience, daring me. My control frayed, my wolf tearing at the edges, ready to end him.

Willow’s eyes widened, but she stood firm, her hand clenching around a broken tree branch she’d picked up along the way. I saw her grip tighten, her gaze flicking to me, refusing to back down. But fear laced her expression, and it drove a knife of rage deeper into me.

The beast ripped free of my control.

I moved forward, intending to put myself between them, but one of the others had shifted too and barreled into my side.

Eamon had shifted, his red-brown wolf circling the other attacker, and I didn’t care which one it was. As long as I got to Willow.

The shifter growled low at me and pounced. Spinning, my jaws snapping, I ripped into their side with fangs and claws. With a surge of fury, I tossed their broken body away from me, turning and seeing how close the other shifter was to Willow, his gaze fixed on her like prey.

She swung her branch and my heart stopped when I saw the wiry shifter grab hold of it easily and pull it out of her hands, tossing it to the side as he leapt at her. Too soon, his hand was around her throat, her body pulled into his, as he held her in front of him like a shield.

My paws froze as I took in her wide-eyed, terrified stare.

“So, Alpha ,” he spoke with triumph lacing his words. Behind me, I heard the fight between Eamon and the other rogue stop. “None of us really wanted to challenge you for this land, none of us need an alpha. But if you’re dead, the land is ours to claim.” He pulled Willow closer to him, his hand tightening around her throat. “One squeeze and she’s dead,” he told me. “One squeeze, the bitch dies.” He smiled savagely. “Or you die…and then she dies anyway.”

My wolf took a step back in shock.

“Shifters talk,” he said with disgust. “A human, ripped apart by a shifter, then lives ?” He laughed, the sound hollow. “You did something that tied her to you, didn’t you?”

I shifted into human form. “Take your hands off her,” I said as I advanced. “And I will kill you quickly, mercifully.”

“The only one dying here tonight, alpha , is you.” His grip tightened and Willow wriggled against him futilely, her lips turning blue as she struggled to breathe. His lips dropped to her ear. “You keep squirming against me like that, bitch, I may have some fun with you before you die.”

I saw her eyes widen as her body froze, her fear-filled eyes trained on mine.

I didn’t think, I only reacted.

Launching forward with a snarl, I shifted mid-air, knocking Willow aside when the shifter threw her at me as his only means of defense. I heard her cry out as she fell, but my sights were on him.

And he was no match for me.

The beast inside me roared for blood as I tackled the shifter to the ground, and my jaws clamped around his neck. Holding him there. Feeling the pulse of his blood against my fangs as I held his life in my jaws.

I felt his fists pummeling into my body as my Will ordered him to stay in his human form. I felt his body shaking with fear and heard his screams as my teeth sank slowly into his throat. His strikes became harder and fiercer, but my wolf felt nothing.

Stop .

The command of my Will stilled his movements.

You will not fight me.

Blood pooled in my mouth, and the sharp metallic taste made my blood sing. Lifting my paw, I sank my claws into his side, puncturing a lung, ripping his insides like he would have done to her.

A part of me knew he was no longer fighting, no longer screaming, his body held immobile by my Will as his blood stained the snow.

“Caleb!” Willow’s voice cut through the haze, her hands in my fur, attempting to pull me back.

The need to protect her had been taken over by the instinct to eliminate the threat to her.

“Caleb…” She was still holding on. Still here. Her hands stroked through my fur, soothing me. “Finish it, this is enough.”

My jaw snapped closed, severing his head almost from his body.

I shifted, chest heaving, my body vibrating from the barely controlled rage. I could feel her through our bond, gripping onto me, bringing me back.

Grounding me.

I turned to her, catching her worried gaze, her brows drawn tight. She didn’t flinch from the rawness in my eyes, didn’t pull away from the predator still stirring beneath my skin.

Instead, she stepped closer, reaching for me.

Only one remained. I met his terrified and broken stare.

Stay .

“Finish him.”

Eamon reached up, and in one deft movement, he twisted the rogue’s head, snapping his neck.

I met Eamon’s gaze as the shifter dropped to the ground. “What the fuck were you thinking bringing her here?”