Moonlight Avenger

“You know you should all visit more often.” My mates’ mother stared us down in a glare. Maya hadn’t softened up at all being the leader of her own pack. “You don’t even stay that far away to begin with. You would have thought you’d have wanted more distance between this pack and your own.” I shrugged. “It’s not like I expect any trouble from you or yours, Maya. I don’t expect any trouble from anyone period. We’ve been at peace in these lands for how long now?” she shook her head at me and I smirked. “Exactly. Hades, Cya and I have trained hard to be whatever we need to in order to protect our clan.” Maya snorted at me. “And yet you left no protection for them when you come to visit. As much as I love my children it would make more sense for one of them to remain and protect.” Unease crawled through me. I couldn’t even imagine being separated from them for longer than a few hours anymore. They were as much a part of me as the wolf that slumbered inside. Life was far sweeter when Hades and Cya were at my side rather than away from me. “Come on, Mom, do you really think anyone is stupid enough to attack our clan?” Hades demanded. “It’s like Morgan says, it’s been almost three years now. All the clans in this entire land know better than to try to mess with any of us or Morgan.” “We should get going, just in case,” Cya interrupted. “Even if no one is stupid enough to attack us, emergencies or accidents can still happen. I’m eager to get back to training again, anyway.” I nodded to his words. I wanted to train again as well, and I wanted to spend time with my mates alone. It was kind of hard to enjoy being with them when their mother was hovering around in the background always ready to interrupt us. I tested the bonds and both my mates were thrumming with arousal. They too were getting tired of being caged as we were. “Thank you again for having us, Maya. Your clan is doing incredible, especially considering where they came from. I still can’t believe that no one tried to challenge you.” Maya raised an eyebrow at me. “You can’t believe that? They saw what happened to Mason with their own eyes, and they know that if they dared to start an uprising that I would put them all down. I am very satisfied with what they have picked up from the three of you while you were here. With fighting prowess like that they will be far better guards than the hooligans that Mason had in charge.” I turned away and started my trek as Cya and Hades said their own goodbyes. I was ready to get home. Ready to return to my pack and train my own members. True we haven’t been attacked in years, but I wasn’t naive enough to believe that it would never happen again. There were other packs in this land and one day there might be those that chose to be alphas and that it would be best to rule with pain and fear instead of the much better options. And when that happened, I would be there to strike them down. “You’re walking too fast, slow down, Morgan,” Hades demanded as he jogged after me. “I know you’re in a hurry to get home but let Cya say goodbye at least.” “He can catch up,” I replied as I glanced over at him. Hade's muscles were even more defined now from all the training he did. His skin had tanned as well as we spent so much time under the sun. A drop of sweat trickled down his throat and I watched its descent. “Ah, you’re as distracted as I am, huh?” he questioned as the light of the sun sparkled in his perfect blue eyes. “I can’t wait to get you back to bed, Morgan. You will let me have you to myself for a while right?” he nuzzled the side of my neck. Unlike Cya, he didn’t hold back on showing affection in front of Maya, no matter what kind of comments came afterward. “We’ll see, Hades. You’ll have to earn it of course” I licked my lips as I thought of the ways he could do just that. It had been a while since I had been able to play with Hades. A surge of jealousy jolted through me and I turned to see Cya had caught up to us. “You guys could have waited just a few more minutes, at least you could have, Morgan. And stop hogging her to yourself, Hades. She’s my mate too, mine first, remember?” he growled at his twin. We had reached the woods now and the sounds of the pack behind us were fading into the distance. The silence of the woods embraced me and reminded me of a time before I had my mates. Birds chirped as we passed beneath them. They kept a close eye on us because though we appeared human, they knew the truth of who we were, and what we were capable of. My wolf wasn’t interested in small prey like that though, she only came to the surface when there was someone I had to take down that deserved it. “Morgan?” Cya’s soft whisper got my attention as it always did. He entwined his hand in mine and kissed the top of it. “Please, don’t leave me behind like that again. I don’t like being apart from you.” “Who likes being apart from their mate?” Hades demanded. “And especially one that is as enthusiastic of a lover as our Morgan is.” “It’s not always about s*x, Hades,” Cya grumbled. “I’m serious, Morgan. You calm me in ways no one else can just by being close.” The silence stretched and I leaned forward and framed his sweet face with my hand. I couldn’t get over the fact that my mates were so handsome and downright hot, and they were all mine. I glanced up with a frown. The birds were not chirping anymore. The silence was stretching farther than it should. Especially considering we had almost made it to our own territory. There were no guards, no sounds at all. “Something’s wrong,” Hades whispered. Before I could stop him he shifted into his giant black wolf and bounded away. Panic flared in our bond and I did my best to not focus on it. Cya tightened his hold on my hand but even he was walking faster now. His eyes would dart from side to side as he too searched for the cause of the unease. Up ahead a piercing howl made the skin on the back of my neck rise. And Cya froze in place. Along with the howl, we both felt the echo of the bond as it coursed through me and into him. Panic, fear, rage, and sadness, why was Hades so sad? I was scared to find the reason but I continued to press myself forward. We pressed on and just a few minutes more of walking told me all I needed to know about the silence and the cause. There were no animals because they were all dead. Birds littered the ground and any of the forest creatures were scattered and torn apart on the ground. Their blood seeped into the soil and I forced my wolf to silence as she threatened to overcome me. “Morgan?” Cya whispered. The dread that vibrated from him left a pit in my stomach. “Morgan, where are the kids?” I swallowed hard as I looked around. The children always played out here. Many played with the forest animals or they would try to howl in chorus with the birds. But there was no sign of them or their caretakers. Everything was still silent. Hades howled again so close that my own wolf wanted to howl along as well. “Morgan?” whispered a weathered voice. Speaking of caretakers, there was one. Hades was at her side trying to use himself as support. She was bleeding from all over and the stench of her blood almost overwhelmed me, it had such a burnt smell to it. “I’m glad you made it,” she whispered. “They’re all gone, the kids, the rest of the clan, and those of us over a certain age were left like this.” She paused and coughed hard into her fist. Specks of blood splattered the ground around her. “I’m only alive to tell you this because I was saved, but not in enough time. I wanted to say goodbye, Morgan.” “No, you’re not going anywhere. Cya, see to her wounds now,” I demanded. “Who saved you?” Hades didn’t howl this time, he snarled as his own hair rose. A giant of a wolf, easily the size of a moose crept toward us. He was a beautiful silver colored wolf with cream-colored patches around his eyes and snout. He wasn’t what surprised me though. By his side was a man I knew too well and one that made my wolf want to sink to the ground in submission as I displayed my throat. Koda.