A Werewolf Fantasy
Chapter 27

They returned to the compound to join the others, walking hand-in-hand and smiling like the pair of loved-up newlyweds that they were. The warriors were already coming together to form their battle formation. Monah and the Prime Alpha were already standing in front of the pack, gearing up to begin the trip to Vomani.

Danshak kissed Erin one last time and whispered, "I will see you when I return."

"Make sure that you do," she said with an encouraging smile.

He nodded and walked away from her to join the others. Erin knew she'd promised her mate that she would stay back home and wait for him and his kinsmen to return from battle, but she knew that would be impossible.

She would not know a moment's peace if she didn't know what was happening to her mate, and she wasn't the type that would be able to distract herself by engaging in small talks with Zorraya or listening to empty words of encouragement from Seisa. She needed to be in the middle of the action and also be sure that Danshak was safe.

Erin knew that once the Prime Alpha and his warriors left the settlement, the guards would secure the perimeter, meaning nobody would be able to get in or go out. She had no idea how she was going to breach that security wall and join the werewolves going to war, but she needed to think of something and fast too.

"I do not know much about you, but I can tell that the wheels are turning furiously behind those glazed eyes of yours."

She turned around and saw Zorraya standing behind her, smiling. "Zorraya, I didn't hear you coming behind me," she said, surprised.

"I am well-known around here for my light feet. People hardly hear my footsteps," said Zorraya.

Erin smiled politely but said nothing further. This was what she hated the most in her life, idle talk. Was this what Danshak expected her to do for the next couple of hours while he fights off deadly beasts who were trying to kill him and his kind? She couldn't do this, wouldn't do it.

"Excuse me," she said and began to walk away from Zorraya.

"Will you not bade your mate farewell as he goes to war?"

"I have done that already," she said and kept walking. If she was going to escape from here, she had to do it now that the Prime Alpha and the warriors were still around. She could sneak away and hide in the woods and once they march out, she would follow them at a safe distance.

"If what you are playing is what I am thinking, I will suggest you quit it right now before you get into trouble," said Zorraya. "Please, stop doing that," said Erin, startled by Zorraya's voice. "Stop sneaking up on me. I don't like it nor do I replace it funny."

"I was not sneaking up on you, and you need to do away with that crazy thought in your head."

Erin turned to face her. "I didn't know you are a mind-reader. Pray tell, what am I thinking?"

"It doesn't take a sorceress to know that you are planning to join the warriors against the order of the Prime Alpha. Both of us, as well as the rest of his subjects, are to remain here until they return from battle. Did your mate not tell you?" The heat of animosity coming from Zorraya was so potent, that Erin could almost smell it. She had thought she and this comely woman could become friends but she can now see that that might just be wishful thinking on her part. "I don't know what you are getting at, Zorraya, but you are free to do as you wish," said Erin. "You can run down to the Prime Alpha right now and tell him this wild tale that you have cooked up. Go on, run over there and tell him." Zorraya glowered at her. "Do not think that because you participated in the battle in Ketjuok, that makes you special. You are just like the rest of us here, Edvana."

"I am nothing like the bitter shrew that you are," said Erin. "Your jealousy is unbecoming."

"Jealousy? Who am I jealous of? You?" She threw back her head and laughed. "You are so full of yourself, Edvana. You seem to have lost touch with reality."

"I don't have time for this," Erin said and walked away from her. She had intended to sneak away before, but now that Madam-know-it-all-Zorraya had figured out her plan, there was no point pretending about her intentions anymore. "You must be crazier than I thought if you think you can get away with what you are about to do," said Zorraya, snidely.

"You are right, I am crazy. And let me be the one to worry about the consequences of my actions. Go to the kitchen and cook."

She heard Zorraya growling behind her in anger, but she ignored her. She wasn't going to let the other woman waste her time or make her doubt her plan, so the best solution to this obstacle was to keep moving.

Vak and his pack began their journey to Vomani just as the sky began to darken. From her side-eye, Erin could see the guards filing out to take their position around their supreme leader's territory.

She quickly dodged behind the willow tree where she and Danshak had made love passionately only a couple of minutes ago.

A quick look around told her that none of the guards have noticed her, so she made a run for the woods, praying that she doesn't get discovered by anyone besides the nosy Zorraya.

Once inside the woods, she paused a bit to catch her breath and do a quick mental calculation on which route to follow for her to catch up with the warriors. Danshak would kill her if he knew what she was up to, but she couldn't help herself. She was too much of a worrier to simply, sit back and wait for news from the war front while biting her nails nervously. She would rather take this risk and have Danshak in her line of vision than be kept in the dark like everyone else at home. She shape shifted into her werewolf self and took off at a neck-breaking speed around the border of her new home settlement, careful to run low so as not to draw attention from any of the watchful guards. It took her several minutes of running to finally gain sight of the warriors running ahead of her in the distance.

She couldn't see Danshak because he was running in front along with his father and brothers. She slowed her pace, making sure that the distance between her and those she was following, was wide enough for them not to pick up her scent. She wouldn't want to be discovered so soon - that would not only put her in trouble but also ruin her plan to be close to her mate throughout the upcoming battle.

The werewolves ahead of her began to howl and run faster, meaning that they had encountered an enemy. Erin felt her heart beating faster in her chest, afraid that one of those beastly creatures might just jump out of the dark right now and attack her. What would she do then?

"Stop worrying," she said to herself. "You've got this."

The fight started sooner than she expected as the dark creatures began to emerge, growling and clawing at the werewolves. Erin couldn't tell if Nikjin was among them but from her vantage point, she could see the Prime Alpha and his subjects bashing the beats brutally with a kind of rage that she never thought he was capable of exhibiting.

She knew that Vak and his sons were fueled by the pain of losing Olna Raven and that anger might be what they needed to defeat their enemies and win this war.

Erin thought she heard a low growl from somewhere above her, but when she looked up, she didn't see anything. She kept her nose to the ground, sniffing, trying to catch a scent, but nothing turned up. "Must be my overactive imagination," she muttered to herself and continued to watch the fight happening ahead of her.

As far as she could tell, she was alone in her hiding spot, but her instincts told her that there was someone else around even though she couldn't smell them. She felt as if someone was watching her, and that feeling unnerved her.

Something caught her eye on the right and when she turned to look, she found herself staring into the glowing eyes of one of Nikjin's beats. It was already poised to attack and before she could recover from her surprise, it leaped forward and landed on her like a heavy blanket.