The Wolves Descend: Book 15 of the Grey Wolves Series

Chapter 1-1

Chapter One

“I spent much of my life thinking I was in love with a man that didn’t belong to me. I know now that what I thought was love was only infatuation, hero worship, and attraction. It couldn’t have been love because love does not seek its own selfish desires at the cost of someone else. I have a mate now. I don’t know him well enough to say that I love him. But I can say that I miss him. I long to be near him, to get to know him, and I now have hope that I will love and be loved in return.” ~Myanin

Myanin hit the floor with a sickening thud. The breath whooshed out of her causing her stomach to contract as her lungs tried to suck much needed air into them. As soon as she tried to breathe in, a sharp stabbing sensation on her right side had her vision blurring. Do not pass out, she snapped at herself as she forced her body to roll over and pushed to her feet. Despite the various bruises, aches and pains she managed to make it up in a seamless motion. She blinked several times, attempting to clear the black dots that seemed to be in her eyes ever since she’d taken a blow to the head an hour earlier. A conversation she’d had with Tenia only a few days prior filled her mind as she bounced on the balls of her feet and tried to will away the pain.

“Being human sucks troll ass,” Myanin huffed as she leaned against a tree, her arm wrapped around her midsection.

“How would you know? You sucked on any troll butts lately?” Tenia asked as she pushed Myanin’s hand away and pressed hers to the same spot.

“I know that when I was djinn, I didn’t walk away from a fight wondering if there was any internal damage that might kill me before you could get to me.” Healing warmth flowed from Tenia’s hands into Myanin’s body, and within less than a minute the damage was gone and she could breathe again.

“The fact that you’re holding your own against a bunch of supernaturals says a lot about your abilities as a fighter,” Tenia said. “You don’t have any powers and yet you still put them all on their backs.”

Cheers from around her brought Myanin’s mind back to the present as she looked at the male vampire across from her. The one who’d just managed to slam a foot into her chest that had no doubt left a boot impression. He swung the short sword he held in his right hand around in quick circles with flicks of his wrist as his eyes danced with a sort of maniacal glee. “I’d heard you haven’t been using your power to fight,” the vampire said. “The all-powerful djinn who supposedly can kick any supernatural’s ass, and yet I just knocked you on yours.” Snickers from the fighters that circled their sparring ring filled the space around her.

Myanin tapped the flat blade of the short sword against her thigh where, no doubt, there was another bruise forming to go with the many others she’d already earned that day. She narrowed her eyes on the bloodsucker as she spoke. “And I’ve heard that people who talk instead of fight are a waste of my time.” Without giving him time to respond, Myanin stepped, turned in a blur, and brought the tip of her sword to the side of the male’s neck. She pressed just hard enough to draw a trickle of blood “Your head would be laying on the ground right now if this had been a real fight, or if I was in a worse mood. And if I used my power on you, you’d be nothing but ash beneath my feet.” The djinn stepped away, lowering her blade, and then bounced on the balls of her feet. “Next.”

“Are you sure you don’t need a break?” A female fae asked as she stepped over the line that indicated where the sparring began and ended. “You’re looking a little tired.”

The djinn, if she could even call herself that anymore, chuckled. “I look like whatever I want my opponent to think I am. I can’t say the same for you,”—Myanin tilted her head as she eyed the fae—“unless you’re wanting me to think you’re a mediocre warrior desperately trying to prove herself to her superior comrades. If that’s the case, then well done. Mission accomplished.” Myanin ignored the chuckles from those who’d only moments ago been laughing at her. These warriors, and she used that term loosely, had no loyalty. They simply stood behind whoever seemed to have the upper hand at the moment, and as soon as that shifted to someone else, so did they.

The fae pulled her lips back in a feral grin and then lifted her hand. Myanin’s blade was up blocking the ball of magic. As her blade absorbed the power, she turned, grabbed a knife from her left thigh, and continued to move until she was behind the fae. Myanin lowered her hand and ran the blade of the knife along the back of the fae’s ankle, cutting into the tendon. She never stopped moving, knowing that a moment's hesitation on her part could be the difference in a bruise or a fried organ. As her body came around once again in front of the female who had dropped to one knee, Myanin swung the hand holding the short sword, backhanding the fae across the face. Her hand throbbed from the contact, but she ignored the pain and kept her momentum. As the female fell sideways, Myanin jumped on top of her, straddling her chest, pinned her arms down with her knees, and crossed both blades over the fae’s neck.

Myanin leaned down until her mouth was right next to the fae’s ear. “You need a break? You’re looking a little beat down.” Myanin chuckled as she leaned back and then slowly rose up to her feet, still keeping her knife and sword pointed at her opponent. Technically the fight was over, but Myanin didn’t trust any of the people around her as far as she could throw them, which was practically nowhere because she no longer possessed the power to do so.

After five more sparring sessions, her body was screaming at her to go find Tenia. She needed to get the injuries taken care of before they headed out for their daily rounds of new vamp recruiting. Which wasn’t really recruiting at all because they didn’t give the humans a choice. As soon as she was out of the main building, Myanin pulled out her phone to contact Tenia, but before she could click on the fae’s name, a text came through from “YM.” The first time she’d seen that pop up on her phone she’d responded with “who the hell is this,” because though she’d turned over a new leaf, Tenia told her that her manners were still lacking. YM turned out to be Gerick. It seemed he wanted to remind her with every text message who he was to her. She bit her lip to keep from grinning as she clicked on the message.

How are you?

She took stock of her aching body and decided it wouldn’t be a good idea to tell him that she felt as though she’d been beaten by a draheim tail. The first time she’d mentioned to him that she’d gotten some injuries sparring, Gerick had been insistent that she and Tenia figure out a way to get out of the Order ASAP. But Myanin knew it wasn’t time. Call it a sixth sense or intuition or the Great Luna’s prompting, but she just knew they had to stay.

I have no cotton candy. She inwardly grinned at her response because in her mind, that was actually worse than feeling the mortal wounds from her sparring.

Stay safe and I’ll build you a damn cotton candy factory.

Myanin snorted. I will hold you to that. Don’ t make promises you can’t keep.

Wouldn’t dream of it, my lady.

Her stomach dipped at the endearment he’d begun using with her. She wouldn’t admit it to anyone, except maybe Tenia, but she loved it. It made her feel wanted. With nothing more to say because they needed to keep the contact as short as possible, she ended their conversation with the same words as always.

Miss you. Myanin wondered if he understood that those two words meant so much more than just her desire to see him and be with him. They were words that her future was built upon. That when this was all over, she would be able to be with Gerick and build a life with him. They were a promise to them both.

And I you.

She let her eyes stare at his response for several seconds before quickly deleting the texts. Then she hurriedly sent Tenia a message letting her know she’d be ready to go in ten minutes. Tenia would understand that to mean that in five minutes she needed to meet up with Myanin to take care of the injuries and then five minutes after that they’d be heading out on their assignment.