Calista sat huddled behind a large tree in the woods. All around her, she could hear the shouts of the hunters as they destroyed all that she loved. She had only just managed to escape; the bullet wounds in her side and leg were reminders of how close she had come to death. Her family had not been so lucky. Tears ran silently down her cheeks and she dared not make a sound, for fear of discovery. Hours passed and she was growing weak from blood loss, but the hunters finally collected the pelts and left. She staggered out from her hiding place and slowly crept into what was left of her pack's home. She collapsed in tears as the realisation hit her that all those she loved were gone.
She forced herself to gather a few treasured keep-sakes from her family home, trying not to look at the bodies. She put her items in a small pouch and shifted into her wolf form, weeping as she remembered the laughter and love that had always surrounded her here from the day of her birth twenty years ago. That was before the hunters destroyed everything. She headed west to where she knew there was another pack and remembered her father talking about the Black Wolf pack. Her father had been friends with the Alpha there many years ago. It would take her days to get there, as her wounds were slowing her down and the blood loss had drained her energy. She didn't want to call for help until she was closer, just in case there were still hunters around.
Clutching her side and panting for breath, she looked down at her blood soaked paw and wondered how she had managed to get this far with such severe injuries. Finally when she thought she could not go any further, she heard a howl coming from somewhere ahead. Maybe she had been spotted. She howled for help, and hoped they would not think her an enemy. She was so tired. She lay down and quickly lost her battle to stay conscious.
*****
Rufus was out with his Betas hunting when he heard the cry for help. They rushed to find who had called and found Calista lying crumpled on the forest floor. Rufus slowly assessed her injuries. She had been shot four times in her side and one in her thigh.
He inhaled deeply, trying to figure out her pack scent. All of a sudden, his wolf started going crazy. It was emanating fury and love. It was telling him that someone had hurt his mate. His mate? His mate!
Rufus carefully lifted her. "Keri go make sure the healer gets everything ready. She has five bullet wounds and has lost a lot of blood!" he ordered his second.
"Ok, but hurry Roo, she looks pretty bad!" She saw her brother's eyes flash when he had inhaled her scent. It meant his wolf had recognised his mate. She only hoped that she wasn't already mated.
After the arduous journey home, Rufus sat by the wounded wolf and wondered what she looked like in human form. He spoke softly to her as the healer removed the bullets.
"I've done all I can for her, Alpha, and she should be fine once she has rested. She has lost a lot of blood so she will probably sleep for a day or so," the healer said.
"Shouldn't we try and get her to change to human?" asked Rufus
"No it would be better if she remained in her wolf form. She will heal faster. I know you are frustrated by not being able to get any answers, but this way is best."
"Alright, thank you, Beth. I will stay here with her." Rufus gazed at the beautiful white wolf laid out on the bed in front of him. How he longed to claim her. He worried that she might already have a mate and felt his wolf growl at that thought. There was no way he and his wolf would let her go, now that they had finally found her.
*****
It had been one and a half days and he had not left her side for more than a few minutes at a time. He stopped dead in his tracks when he came back from one of his pit stops. There before him was the most stunningly beautiful womenhe had ever seen. She had long, waist length, light blonde hair, and amazing golden eyes, which were currently glaring at him.
He slowly walked toward her and sat on the chair next to the bed.
"Hello, I'm the Alpha of the Black Wolf pack. My name is Rufus Cane. I found you in the forest almost two days ago. Can you tell me what happened to you?" he asked, not taking his eyes of her.
*****
Calista just stared at this gorgeous man. She inhaled and shuddered. She could feel her wolf wanting to roll over in complete submission. Calista shook her head. Could it be true? Was this gorgeous, dark haired man with mischievous black eyes be her mate? It took a while to realise that he had actually asked her a question.
"I'm sorry to trespass on your land Alpha, but I needed to warn you and I needed help."
"You are more than welcome here. Please tell me what happened. But first, how about a name?" he said, giving her a heart melting smile.
"Oh, yes of course. I'm sorry. My name is Calista Everheart. I belong to the Everheart pack, or I did." A tear slowly trickled down her cheek. "Hunters came and killed everyone. The whole pack is gone." She started to sob.
Rufus was on his feet in an instant and wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight while she wept uncontrollably. "It's alright. I've got you, let it out." He rocked her gently, letting her grief pour out. The sadness that gripped his own heart at hearing that his friend Michael Everheart and his whole pack had been destroyed was overwhelming. He clung to her whispering words of comfort.
Using his mind he called out for his Betas. "Keri, I need you and a few of our warriors to go over to the Everheart pack. They have all been murdered by hunters. See if you can pick up their trail, I want them found. We will avenge our friends. Let Alpha William Oakland know what happened as he may want to send his own warriors to join you." He had complete faith in her abilities to find the vermin that had done this. He had trained his sister well; she was now his second in command. She was his best warrior.
Calista looked up with tears welling in her golden eyes. "I'm sorry for being such a baby. I'll be alright in a moment." She sniffed.
"You are going to have to stop saying sorry for everything as there is nothing to be sorry for. No one has more right to weep then you do. You have lost everyone you love. So cry all you need my love."
Calista looked up in shock when he called her love. "What?"
He smiled at her. "Don't tell me you can't feel it -- the mating pull. You are my mate, and I bet your wolf is just as keen as mine to claim each other. Were you mated to anyone in your pack?"
"No! I have never been mated, and yes I do feel the pull. I would like to wait until I am more myself. It has all been too much for me. I can't think straight at the moment. I know my wolf wants to mate you now, but I need to grieve my family." More tears filled her eyes.
"Oh love, I have no intention of taking you as my mate until you are ready. I have waited for centuries to find you and can wait for as long as you need. Oh, before I forget, I found this tied around your neck." He reached for the scarf that had been knotted to make a small pouch. He handed it to her and she crushed it to her chest and sobbed. He felt helpless, so he just sat next to her on the bed, pulling her into his arm and comforting her.
*****
Keri was surprised that Alpha William had come with her himself. He told her he had many friends in the Everheart pack and personally wanted to seek revenge for his lost friends. He had brought ten warriors with him. Keri had also brought ten warriors with her. They arrived at what had once been the home of the Everheart pack. Keri felt a sharp pain in her heart as she saw all of the dead. They had killed them all and just left their bare carcasses to rot. She wept as she saw the small body of a pup, its fur coat gone. The pain was replaced by pure fury. She looked around and noticed the same fury on the faces of the Alpha and the warriors. They spread out to look for tracks with her in the lead. She was one of the best trackers in the pack.
They searched for half an hour before they found the trail and followed it to what looked like mule tracks. Keri nodded to the Alpha. "Looks like they used pack mules to carry the pelts, so they must have a base not too far away." They followed the tracks, but had several of their men keeping an eye out in case it was a trap. It took a few hours but the tracks led to a cabin. They spread out and carefully moved in closer. There were about fifteen men sitting around a large table eating. Will and Keri listened in on the conversation, wanting to get as much info as possible.
"Hey Buddy, are you sure Blakemore told you to kill all those wolves?" one of them asked with a mouthful of food.
"Nah, he wanted the white wolf for his collection, but it escaped. So I figured we might as well take the pelts off 'em and get some cash. Did you see all that stuff in them caves? There must have been people living there before them wolves moved in. They probably killed everyone for dinner," Buddy replied with a belch.
Will and Keri had heard enough and gave the word to attack. Since none of the men had their weapons close enough to them, the attack was over in no time. They retrieved the pelts and headed back to the destroyed pack home. They gathered wood and placed all the bodies and pelts on the wood and set it alight. The stood solemnly as the fire burned down to ashes before heading home, all lost in their own thoughts. Not a word was spoken all the way back.
Will and Keri went to the infirmary to see Rufus and meet Calista. They told them everything that happened.
"Calista, I wish we could have met under different circumstances. I knew your father well." Will said as he hugged her. "If you ever need anything please call me," he said as he bid them goodbye before heading back to his own pack.
"Hi Calista, my name is Keri. I see you and my brother are getting acquainted. I am the highest ranking female here and second in command, which makes me the Alpha bitch, a title I am more than willing to part with when you two make it official." She laughed at the look of shock on Calista's face. "I'm sure you and I will become close friends, Calista. That is, if Roo will ever let anyone get close to you!" she said as she ducked a pillow Rufus had thrown at her.
"Calista is well enough to leave the infirmary, so I will take her to my rooms. Why don't you come along? You can keep her company while I tend to some pack business. She needs time to come to terms with her loss; the mating can wait a while longer," he told his sister.
"Sounds good to me; what do you say Calista?" Keri asked.
"That would be great, but please you two, call me Cal. After all, we are going to be family," she said as her eyes welled with tears.
"Come on Cal, We'll take you to your room. You've had too much to deal with. After you have a relaxing bath, I'll fix you some herbal tea," Keri suggested.
"Thank you," Calista said as Keri and Rufus helped her to his rooms. Once there, Rufus left them after planting a tender kiss on her lips. She had a long soak in the bath, slipped on a white toweling robe and sat next to Keri on the sofa. She slowly sipped the herbal tea Keri had made them. Maybe everything really would be okay.
