Hunting Midnight

Chapter Seven: Love Bites

The crisp night air glides through my white furs, my heart thudding in perfect sync to the beat of my feet against the forest floor as I race ahead of Ruhn.
"Too slow," I threw over my shoulder through our mental bond.
His feet thud behind me as he tries to catch up, before they disappear all together. I don't look into it too much, knowing that it is probably a trick, and if I stop to check if he is still following me, it will slow me down.
I keep going, but when I got back to the clearing where we started out our race, a brown wolf jumps in front of me causing me to skid to a stop. In a matter of seconds, Ruhn shifted back into his human form with a chuckle, his perfectly muscled figure on full display.
"You cheated!" I point out, shifting back to my human form as well, my hands covering my figure. Ruhn hands me my clothes over his shoulder without looking back at me, probably his way of proving his earlier statement that he was a gentleman. I take them from him and quickly change.
"Or maybe I'm just faster."
There was no way he could've passed me in such a short time without me noticing, which meant only one thing: he must've taken a shorter way when he realized I wasn't paying attention.
"You wish," I scoff, slipping into my blouse. Then, I turn to face the man I hated less than twenty-four hours ago—the man I still dislike. He only threw a grin in my direction as he pulls his own clothes back on, and I follow him out of the forest and back to the tent
   
"I saved you a seat," Ruhn says as we head back to the table with his pack. He stops before a chair in the center of the table and pulls out the seat beside it. As soon as I sit, he puts his arm around the back of my chair, letting everyone in the room know that we're now a 'couple'.
    I look around the table and I'm surprised to see Connery– a lean man looking close to Ruhn's age with deep olive skin and long black hair– sitting on Ruhn's left side– the leader of the Kaunaz Pack.
   
The Kaunaz Pack are farmers who try to avoid violence at all costs. They'll only fight if their lives are directly threatened.

    "Kenna, I'm glad you're here," Connery says with a respectful nod. "Ruhn and I were going to discuss a new trade deal now that your packs are merging.  His pack had fifteen wolves, and you had ten for a total of twenty-five wolves."
   
The Kaunaz Pack's land is rich with nutrients, so they farm food and trade it with the other packs for protection.

    "I think seven pounds of grain should be plenty," Connery continues. "Especially with the new land you both won."

    That land won't be ready to grow crops for another year. We need food now, and seven pounds doesn't seem like enough. My pack alone goes through four pounds per month.

    "And what do you want for seven pounds of grain?" I ask curiously.
    The corners of Connery's mouth turn up in slight surprise at my question. "Ruhn already covers five acres of our territory. We need him to cover eight acres with this new threat of war."
    Suddenly, my head tingles as Ruhn mindlinks with me.
    "My pack goes through at least six pounds of grain a month– and that's on the low end, unless you have enough stored for both packs?"
   "No," I reply. "We've been low on grain for months. Our last two harvests were unsuccessful and we don't have a lot of livestock since the other packs have been hunting on our territory."
    "Connery," Ruhn says aloud, breaking the mindlink, "we'll need at least ten pounds of grain per month to feed the whole pack now."
    Connery's eyes go wide and he shakes his head with disappointment. "The most I can do is eight pounds. Unless Jax is willing to go down to five pounds a month?"
    Connery nods to Jax, the Alpha of the Isrand Pack, who sits next to Connery. Jax, with his short brown hair and lean figure looks younger than both Ruhn and Connery, and yet, a large scar that traces from his temple across his left eye makes me think that he's as much of an experienced Alpha as they are.
    "Hell no," Jax shakes head firmly. "We need that grain."
    "But you only have twelve pack members," Ruhn protests. "You don't need that much grain. You're just storing it for later."
    "A deal's a deal," Jax says with a shrug, picking up a glass from the table and taking a drink of it.
    "The Chief was just talking about doing what's best for the packs," I say, leaning forward to look around Ruhn and meet Jax's eyes. "It's selfish to keep all that grain."
    "Taking care of my pack is not selfish," Jax shoots back, his eyes narrowed. "You're selfish for wanting more."
    With that, Jax gets up and stalks away. Ruhn sighs, running a hand down his face with resignation and looking back at Connery. "I guess we'll take the seven pounds and find a way to make it through."
   
As Connery and Ruhn talk business, I recline in my seat, reaching forward and grabbing my own drink from the plate set in front of me. The drink is a cider– warm and bubbly as I slowly take a sip. As I look around the tent, shouts suddenly grab my attention from the open area in the center of the tent, used for a dance floor.
    Caleb is arguing with Manteo, Ruhn's Beta. Manteo looks to be Ruhn's age, with dark hair and a scar trailing from his eyebrow to his nose. Members from both packs begin to join in the argument, voices quickly growing louder and louder. Chief Gavriel looks across the room at me and Ruhn from his table, indicating for us to deal with the problem.
    "Damn," I mutter under my breath. "Couldn't they have waited at least one night before they began fighting?"
    "I'm sure your brother is just mad because he thought he would be your pack's next Alpha," Ruhn says, rolling his eyes as he slowly pushes his chair back and gets to his feet. I follow suit and make my way to the center of the dance floor. As soon as we make our way over to the growing crowd of wolves, Caleb shoves Manteo.
    "Stop!" Ruhn's voice rings out, putting an immediate silence to the arguing. "What the hell is wrong with all of you?"
    Ruhn grabs Manteo's arm to hold him back while I step in front of Caleb, placing a hand on his shoulder.
    "The Chief just gave a speech about coming together, and here you are fighting," Ruhn continues, looking around at our packs, segregated to either side of him.
    "I was explaining to Caleb that with the packs merging, I'm still the Beta– making me your second in command," Manteo says, his voice high and mighty as he looks smugly at Caleb.
    "Which is bullshit," Caleb growls back. "I was supposed to be our pack's Alpha before this stupid merge, so I should be the Beta."
    "Now is not the time to argue," Ruhn says with a sigh. "When we get back to the pack house, I will make a decision on–"
    "You mean we will make a decision," I cut him off with a look. Ruhn meets my eyes, narrowing his own
    "No," he says firmly. "I meant I will make a decision. The Beta and the Alpha work hand-in-hand. The choice should be mine."
    My eyes narrow as I remove my hand from Caleb's shoulder and turn to face my fiancé. "It would be better to discuss this later," I say, gesturing subtly to the packs around us. "Because as the Luna, my voice should be heard."
    Ruhn's eyes are unwavering, and after a few moments of silence, he finally says, "Fine. I'll listen to your opinion and take that into consideration when making my decision."
   
As the packs disperse, Manteo and Caleb move to the other side of the room. Just as I'm about to head back to my seat with Ruhn, Chief Gavriel stands and addresses the packs.
    "We know merging your packs will be difficult, but Kenna and Ruhn have just proven why they were chosen for the job. So," he reaches down and raises a glass, "let's raise a toast and congratulate them on their engagement."
    The packs cheer and toast to me and Ruhn. I look around the room, my eyes landing on my brother, who claps slowly– then on my stepmother, who stands at Caleb's right, her eyes narrowed, mouth firmly clenched shut. Finally, I look back to Chief Gavriel, who takes a drink from his glass, his face hidden, and yet, his eyes seem to hate the very words that just came from his mouth. Drakon is nowhere to be seen, and I can't help but let out a small sigh of relief.
    As if reading my thoughts, Ruhn takes my hand, pulling me close to him.
    "See Chief Gavriel?" I ask through our mindlink as I lean my hip against Ruhn's and wrap my arm around his back, resting my hand on his hip.
   "I do," Ruhn answers quickly. His hand moves to caress my low back, and butterflies erupt in my stomach.
    "Your touch is quite possessive for someone who doesn't want to marry me," Ruhn says aloud, his voice low but full of amusement as he looks down at me.
   
As the applause dies out, Ruhn and I turn to walk back to the table. I take one look back over at Moranna, who is now speaking in hushed tones to Caleb, both of their faces as hard as stone. As Ruhn takes his seat, I turn to exit the tent, but his hand flies out and catches my wrist.
    "Where are you going?" Ruhn asks, his voice laced with concern.
    "It's crowded in here and I could use some air," I reply with a shrug. Ruhn's eyes flash pale blue, and I hold my breath, feeling like he might just see through me.
    "Do you want me to come with you?" He asks.
    "No," I say quickly, pulling my hand free from his safe grasp. "I'll be fine. But thank you."

    I walk through the dense woods, now covered in a thick layer of snow when I reach a small stream. Slowly stepping in the snow, I find a rock and brush the snow off, making a small place to sit and think.
   
I can't believe I'm moving in with Ruhn tomorrow. Will he expect us to share the same bed?

    A snap behind me has me whirling around with a growl. My body tenses when Drakon steps out from behind a tree, followed by two of his closest friends.
    "What are you doing here?" I demand, quickly getting to my feet.
    "I came to claim my faincé," Drakon replies, him and his two friends slowly beginning to circle me. I take small steps backwards, but the stream stops me from retreating further.
    "I'm not your fiancé anymore," I say, trying to keep my voice steady.
    "I disagree," Drakon says with a frown. "And I'm very disappointed that you didn't fight harder for our relationship."
    My eyes narrow as the three men continue to circle me, and I slowly turn in a small circle with them, keeping my eyes on Drakon, with the other two still in my peripheral vision. "We've only met a few times, Drakon. We didn't have a relationship."
    "Well, that's going to change," Drakon says with a grin and extends a hand. "I need you to come with me so we can be married immediately."
    "What?" I exclaim, my eyes widening in shock. "We can't go against the Chief."
    "Yes, we can," Drakon insists, taking a step closer. "You're the best she-wolf fighter out of all of the packs. Once we marry, we'll be strong enough to challenge my parents and take over."
    I take a deep breath and shake my head. "I have no desire to marry you. You aren't a strong leader and this move against your parents proves it."
    Drakon's eyes narrow and his face falls. "Quite the opposite, Kenna. Challenging my father will show everyone just how strong I am."
    He reaches out to grab my arm, but I twist and push him back.
    "If you don't come willingly, I'll have to use force," Drakon says, gesturing to his two friends who have stopped circling me and now stand on both sides, blocking my escape.
    "Don't touch me," I warned, looking between the three men.
    "Oh, I see," Drakon says with a grin, "you like to play rough." He takes a step forward and extends a hand. I go to duck, but he moves faster, the back of his hand colliding with my face. I gasp as a sharp stinging sensation floods my face, the impact causing me sy stagger. But before I can even get my hands up to fight back, Ruhn appears out of nowhere, grabbing Drakon from behind and tossing him back.
Drakon slams into a tree, crumpling to the ground with a sharp cry. The two other men turn and lunge at Ruhn, but he moves faster, pivoting and delivering a blow to the first man's throat, and then a punch to the nose for the other.
    The two men fall to the ground just as Drakon staggers to his feet, and Ruhn whirls on him, striking him hard in the jaw.
    "Get off of me!" Drakon roars, staggering back clutching his face. "I'm the next Chief! You can't do this!"
    Ruhn menacingly stalks forward, looking every bit like a blood-thirsty wolf. "You lay a hand on her again or even look in her direction, and I'll kill you."