Page 50 of Squirrel Hunt

Burning rage built in Konrad. Someone had forced his mate to climb a tree to save his life. He rushed forward at the same time as Jyran reached the tree and scurried along its branches.

The climbing wolf made a surprised sound, but it got lost in the snarls and growls as Konrad, Gideon, Amir, and Farris descended on the two on the ground.

Konrad didn’t know who the wolf in his grip was, and he didn’t care. They’d planned on hurting his mate. He bit into his larynx and ripped. An arch of blood followed his motion, and he howled a howl filled with murderous rage and power. For a moment, everything stilled. The cheers and calls grew silent, and Konrad howled again, telling everyone he was here, and he was ready for whatever they had in store for him.

* * * *

Konrad’s howl cut through Dahy and left him quivering in fear until he realized it wasn’t aimed at him. He couldn’t tell who the others with him were, but considering Jyran was in the tree with them, he’d guess Gideon and Roan. Who the third wolf was, he didn’t know, but it didn’t matter. He’d killed the second wolf on the ground, and he’d done so swiftly and without a sound. Whoever he was, Dahy wanted him on their side.

Jyran barked, which had Dahy shifting his focus from what was going on below to what the wolf in the tree was doing. He was climbing and would soon be able to reach Myka. Dahy barked too. Myka made a distressed sound.

As the wolf reached for the next branch, Jyran jumped him and bit into his neck like a squirrel vampire. The wolf snarled, and Dahy followed Jyran’s example. He sprinted over to the branch he’d gripped and bit the back of his hand. When he let go to swat Dahy, Jyran bit him again, and Dahy hurried over to his other hand and bit into it.

They repeated the action a few times, then Myka’s foot shot down right in front of Dahy’s face and stomped the wolf on his head. With a snarl, he fell toward the ground.

Konrad and the others moved out of the way, and with a sickening thud, he landed on the frosty forest floor. A dark puddle formed around him, and Dahy looked away. He was about to climb down, when another group of wolves arrived, accompanied by Varg in human form. Fuck.

There were a lot of snarls and growls, but no one attacked. Konrad shifted back to human, and it was hard to tell from above, but Dahy was pretty sure he glared at Varg.

“Konrad.” Varg spoke on a chuckle. “What brings you to our neck of the woods?”

“You tell me, Varg. Did you think you could kidnap my mate without repercussions? Did you think you could kill my mate and live to see another day?”

Varg froze. “Your mate?”

“My mate!” Konrad’s roar traveled the forest, and more than one of the wolves around Varg dipped their heads. Myka made an effort to climb down, but Dahy jumped onto her shoulder, trying to tell her now was not the time to be on the ground.

“We were simply having a bit of fun. Your man told me there was a squirrel squatting on your pack land. I figured I’d help you get rid of the problem—”

Konrad cut him off with a snarl.

“And the human—”

One of Konrad’s wolves, Roan was Dahy’s guess, took a step forward and bared his teeth.

“Nothing good comes from mixed species. I was only solving your problems for you.”

Konrad snorted. Then he flew through the air quicker than Dahy had ever seen anyone move. The action surprised everyone, and Konrad was on Varg before anyone could react. Once they did, Varg’s wolves were closer, and Dahy’s heart stopped.

All he saw was a writhing pile of fur and teeth.

Konrad’s wolves descended on the pile, and Myka whimpered next to him.

Whines and cries sounded, then one wolf was thrown off the pile and landed some distance away where it remained unmoving. Another one followed. Someone crawled away with a back leg at a weird angle, and Dahy watched as Farris, still in human form, grabbed a wolf and lifted it above his head only to hurl it into the closest tree trunk.

Shit.

Then there was a snarl louder than any of the others, and Konrad rose to his feet. His naked body was covered in blood, sharp claws gleamed in the dim moonlight where his hands should have been. Mist formed around him as he panted, and everything stilled. Several wolves moved away, more or less injured, and on the ground, Dahy could see Varg. His vacant eyes turned to the sky and his throat was nothing but a meaty mess.

Konrad howled, a sound he shouldn’t be able to produce in human form, though Dahy guessed he was something in between a wolf and a man.

No one moved.

“Dahy.” Konrad raised his clawed hand toward the tree, and Dahy sat paralyzed on Myka’s shoulder for a second or two, then he scurried down. Once he reached Konrad, he changed into human.

“Are you hurt?” Konrad cupped his cheek, his hands now human, and looked him up and down.

Dahy shook his head. “Are you?”