In Deep Shift: A Wolf Rampant spinoff serial (Bloodling Serial Book 2) Read Online Free Page B
Author: Aimee Easterling
his courage, cleared his throat, and halted Justin with a single word.
"Chief?" the shifter asked, then clearly wished he hadn't when Justin's cold glare sent the shifter's wolf cowering beneath his skin.
" What? " my brother demanded, tapping one foot impatiently at having his grand exit delayed. Once again, I rose to my feet and padded a little closer so I could hear the exchange more clearly. Not that I needed proximity to feel Justin's annoyance filling the air.
"Um, well..." In the face of Justin's annoyance, the guard clearly wished that he hadn't bothered his alpha in the first place, and he shot a glance toward his partner in hopes of being bailed out. The latter was an older man, probably twice my brother's age, but he seemed no more willing to stand up to Justin's wrath than the first shifter had been.
" Well ...?" Justin prompted, and I shivered again at the coldness emanating from my brother's lips. Didn't he realize that you saved that kind of set-down for when it was really needed? No point in wasting alpha compulsion when a loyal guard simply wanted to ask a question.
No, apparently my brother didn't realize that. Over the years, I'd come to the conclusion that there were two ways to keep a werewolf pack in line—loyalty or fear. Justin had clearly chosen the latter route because he growled now, the deep rumble ripping through the night air. Before him, both guards lowered their eyes to the ground and turned their necks to the side in a show of instant submission, and the tension in my brother's form eased at last. Nothing like a little kowtowing to float a bully's boat.
With my brother's wolf no longer poised to spring for his own guards' throats, the younger shifter was finally able to speak. "I just wondered if we should give the prisoner any food or water," he said quickly, showing that the shifter possessed the ounce of compassion that my brother lacked.
Looking back over my shoulder at the dangling drifter, I could tell that the boy hadn't enjoyed access to either form of sustenance in quite some time. But Justin didn't seem to think refusing his prisoner the basic elements of survival was inhumane. "Why waste food on a cur that will be in the ground tomorrow?" he asked rhetorically, raising his voice to ensure the words carried to the boy he'd just left behind. Then, pointing silently at the guards' posts, my brother walked away, leaving his underlings to exchange glances then to turn their heads away from the clearing so they weren't forced to witness the kid's pain.
Well, that was alright. I'd have the boy back down on his feet soon enough, and then he could eat and drink until his belly rebelled.
Once I found a way to get my brother's prisoner to trust me, that was.
***
Time doesn't flow in quite the same manner for a wolf as it does for a man, so I was neither bored nor impatient as I lay beneath a bush, snout on paws, and watched my blood brother's encampment settle into slumber. Finally, as the moon reached its zenith, the older guard allowed the younger to go to his bed. Then I watched as the patrolling wolves similarly halved their numbers, leaving only two lupines stalking the boundaries of their property to ward off uninvited guests.
As these final two patrollers padded past my hiding place time after time, I couldn't help feeling a bit smug that they hadn't discovered where my scent trail crossed over their boundary line in the first place. But, really, it was my brother's own fault for choosing to settle here amid the trees. Two-legged, I'd had no problem climbing a nearby trunk, then I'd shifted to animal form long enough to leap from one long limb outside the boundary onto another long limb just inside my brother's domain. Only an alpha would have been able to shift back midair the way I had, ensuring that I possessed primate paws ready to grasp the second tree and prevent myself from falling upon reentry. But wasn't All-Pack chock full of alphas? Shouldn't my brother
"Chief?" the shifter asked, then clearly wished he hadn't when Justin's cold glare sent the shifter's wolf cowering beneath his skin.
" What? " my brother demanded, tapping one foot impatiently at having his grand exit delayed. Once again, I rose to my feet and padded a little closer so I could hear the exchange more clearly. Not that I needed proximity to feel Justin's annoyance filling the air.
"Um, well..." In the face of Justin's annoyance, the guard clearly wished that he hadn't bothered his alpha in the first place, and he shot a glance toward his partner in hopes of being bailed out. The latter was an older man, probably twice my brother's age, but he seemed no more willing to stand up to Justin's wrath than the first shifter had been.
" Well ...?" Justin prompted, and I shivered again at the coldness emanating from my brother's lips. Didn't he realize that you saved that kind of set-down for when it was really needed? No point in wasting alpha compulsion when a loyal guard simply wanted to ask a question.
No, apparently my brother didn't realize that. Over the years, I'd come to the conclusion that there were two ways to keep a werewolf pack in line—loyalty or fear. Justin had clearly chosen the latter route because he growled now, the deep rumble ripping through the night air. Before him, both guards lowered their eyes to the ground and turned their necks to the side in a show of instant submission, and the tension in my brother's form eased at last. Nothing like a little kowtowing to float a bully's boat.
With my brother's wolf no longer poised to spring for his own guards' throats, the younger shifter was finally able to speak. "I just wondered if we should give the prisoner any food or water," he said quickly, showing that the shifter possessed the ounce of compassion that my brother lacked.
Looking back over my shoulder at the dangling drifter, I could tell that the boy hadn't enjoyed access to either form of sustenance in quite some time. But Justin didn't seem to think refusing his prisoner the basic elements of survival was inhumane. "Why waste food on a cur that will be in the ground tomorrow?" he asked rhetorically, raising his voice to ensure the words carried to the boy he'd just left behind. Then, pointing silently at the guards' posts, my brother walked away, leaving his underlings to exchange glances then to turn their heads away from the clearing so they weren't forced to witness the kid's pain.
Well, that was alright. I'd have the boy back down on his feet soon enough, and then he could eat and drink until his belly rebelled.
Once I found a way to get my brother's prisoner to trust me, that was.
***
Time doesn't flow in quite the same manner for a wolf as it does for a man, so I was neither bored nor impatient as I lay beneath a bush, snout on paws, and watched my blood brother's encampment settle into slumber. Finally, as the moon reached its zenith, the older guard allowed the younger to go to his bed. Then I watched as the patrolling wolves similarly halved their numbers, leaving only two lupines stalking the boundaries of their property to ward off uninvited guests.
As these final two patrollers padded past my hiding place time after time, I couldn't help feeling a bit smug that they hadn't discovered where my scent trail crossed over their boundary line in the first place. But, really, it was my brother's own fault for choosing to settle here amid the trees. Two-legged, I'd had no problem climbing a nearby trunk, then I'd shifted to animal form long enough to leap from one long limb outside the boundary onto another long limb just inside my brother's domain. Only an alpha would have been able to shift back midair the way I had, ensuring that I possessed primate paws ready to grasp the second tree and prevent myself from falling upon reentry. But wasn't All-Pack chock full of alphas? Shouldn't my brother
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