A Werewolf Fantasy
Chapter 10

Before Erin could even guess what Danshak was up to, he reached where she sat on the mat and pulled her to her feet by her arm, then crushed his lips against hers in a brutal kiss that was both an expression of lust and frustration. His unexpected onslaught met with fierce resistance from her as she pushed him away from her with her palms on his hard chest.

"You brute!" she spat angrily. "What the hell do you think you are doing?"

"I think I am taking what is mine, as I am supposed to do."

"I am not yours and I will never be, not with this kind of behavior."

"Oh, you are one to talk. Were you not the same one laughing recklessly and flirting shamelessly with my brother not long ago in the longhouse? Why are you suddenly acting shy now?"

Erin fought to keep her temper under control. "I've already told you, I wasn't flirting with your brother! What is wrong with you?"

Danshak glowered at her in anger. "First you embarrass me publicly, then you come here and insult me as if I am a lowly servant hired to wait on you and entertain you. I will not tolerate such disrespect, Edvana. I am your husband and the head of this union, and you must respect me and my position in this marriage."

"No, Danshak. That is not how it's going to work. There will be no leader in this marriage because we are equal partners here, that's why we are called mates. You respect me and I respect you. That's how it's going to work." "Says who? Who gave you the authority to make rules?" He asked her with mounting annoyance. "I do not know how it is even possible that you are my mate. What did I ever do wrong to be punished with someone like you?" "And here I was wondering the same thing," she countered.

Danshak gritted his teeth and marched out of the tent without saying another word. He was afraid that he might lose the reins on his temper and do something that he might regret for the rest of his existence if he spent one more minute in the enclosure with Edvana.

He strode towards the longhouse, then changed his mind and walked towards the edge of the camp where two guards stood, manning their posts.

"Do you need anything, my lord?" asked one of the guards.

"No, do not be distracted by my presence. I was merely stretching my legs," replied Danshak. That response was better than telling the guard that his newly wedded wife was determined to drive him mad with her sharp tongue and outright stubbornness.

With a sigh, he settled himself on a low boulder underneath a tree and folded his arms across his chest as a way to keep himself warm. He'd forgotten to don his leather vest in his haste to get away from that annoying creature that he was married to.

He rested his back on the tree and blew out a breath as he assured himself that he would rather freeze to death out here than share a tent with that nutcase.

The cold breeze seemed to calm his nerves and put him at ease, and he slowly began to drift to sleep. As his eyelids began their slow descent to welcome slumber, Danshak thought he saw a torch glowing in the distance. No, two torches, or three. Or were there more? He wondered if some of the servants had gone into the woods to relieve themselves.

But why would half a dozen servants go into the woods at the same time and even stand together to relieve themselves? Was there a guard with them to make sure that they were safe?

To his amazement, the torches began to come closer and closer, but they were not torches. The closer they came, the more he realized that no flames or smoke accompanied the torches.

The glowing lights drew closer slowly and in unison, holding Danshak spellbound. He was so mystified by what he was witnessing that he could not move or even blink.

"Who goes there?" one of the guards called out when he too finally noticed the unnatural light that was approaching the camp in the dark.

"Who are you?" the second guard asked as he assumed a battle stance, with his sharp-tipped spear aimed at the unknown intruder. "I will not ask you again," he warned. "Show yourself or be ready to die!"

Danshak watched with bated breath as a pair of torches sped forward, and within seconds, pounced on one of the guards. For the first time, he saw that the torches were the eyes of a monstrous beast that began to devour the guard even before the poor fellow could hoist up his spear and attack the creature. The others ran forward too, growling and yapping furiously as they invaded the camp.

As if in a trance, Danshak watched with horror as the other guards around the perimeter of the camp came running, to rescue their colleagues and repel the strange creatures.

"What is going on out there?" he heard his father call out from the entrance of the longhouse where he had been sleeping.

It was as if the wild beasts were instantly drawn by some kind of magnetic force towards Vak Smallchief because they all suddenly turned and began to run in the direction of the Prime Alpha.

It was then that Danshak seemed to regain his consciousness and he sprang to his feet running to catch up with the beasts. By now, all the guards had shape shifted into giant wolves and were in hot pursuit of the strange creatures.

Danshak shape shifted too and became a silver werewolf, running at top speed to catch up with the wild creatures that were now only a few meters away from his father who was still standing in front of the longhouse, staring wide-eyed at the shadowy figures coming toward him. He was a fast runner, but even his best effort was not enough to get him closer to these beasts that seemed to zap through the air toward their target.

As a last resort, he leaped into the air, praying fervently to all the gods of their land that this attempt was enough to save his father's life.