𝓢𝓹𝓪𝓻𝓴𝓼 || Leo Valdez X OC

20) wolves, necklaces and more, oh my!

"Wolves," Piper said. "They sound close."

Jason rose and summoned his sword. Leo and Coach Hedge got to their feet too. Ada was already up, using one of her knuckles as a sword.

"Stay there," Jason told her. "We'll protect you."

Then, just outside the firelight at the entrance of the cave, she saw a pair of red eyes glowing in dark.

More wolves edged into the firelight—black beasts bigger than Great Danes, with ice and snow caked on their fur. Their fangs gleamed, and their glowing red eyes looked disturbingly intelligent. The wolf in front was almost as tall as a horse, his mouth stained as if he'd just made a fresh kill.

Piper pulled her dagger out of its sheath.

Then Jason stepped forward and said something in Latin.

Ada didn't think a dead language would have much effect on wild animals, but the alpha wolf curled his lip. The fur stood up along his spine. One of his lieutenants tried to advance, but the alpha wolf snapped at his ear. Then all of the wolves backed into the dark.

"Dude, I gotta study Latin." Leo's hammer shook in his hand. "What'd you say, Jason?"

Ada scoffed. "If only french worked like that."

Hedge cursed. "Whatever it was, it wasn't enough. Look."

The wolves were coming back, but the alpha wolf wasn't with them. They didn't attack. They waited—at least a dozen now, in a rough semicircle just outside the firelight, blocking the cave exit.

The coach hefted his club. "Here's the plan. I'll kill them all, and you guys escape."

"Coach, they'll rip you apart," Piper said.

"Nah, I'm good."

"I like the confidence but i'm not interested in fighting an entire pack."

Then Piper saw the silhouette of a man coming through the storm, wading through the wolf pack.

"Stick together," Jason said. "They respect a pack. And Hedge, no crazy stuff. We're not leaving you or anyone else behind."

The wolves parted, and the man stepped into the firelight. His hair was greasy and ragged, the color of fireplace soot, topped with a crown of what looked like finger bones. His robes were tattered fur—wolf, rabbit, raccoon, deer, and several others Ada couldn't identify. The furs didn't look cured, and from the smell, they weren't very fresh. This guy was in desperate need of a long shower. Even being neat him made Ada want to talk a shower forever just to forget the smell.

His frame was lithe and muscular, like a distance runner's. But the most horrible thing was his face. His thin pale skin was pulled tight over his skull, like a vampire who was way to interested in the key to eternal youth.

His teeth were sharpened like fangs.His eyes glowed bright red like his wolves'—and they fixed on Jason with absolute hatred.

"Ecce," he said, "filli Romani."

"Speak English, wolf man!" Hedge bellowed.

The wolf man snarled. "Tell your faun to mind his tongue, son of Rome. Or he'll be my first snack."

Ada remembered that faun was the Roman name for satyr. Not exactly helpful information, but Ada would take what she could get.

Now, if she could remember who this wolf guy was in Greek mythology, and how to defeat him, that she could use.

Maybe he's a wannabe furry, Ada joked in her head.

The wolf man studied their little group. His nostrils twitched. "So it's true," he mused. "A child of Aphrodite. A son of Hephaestus. A faun. A daughter of Nike! Rare sight that is. And a child of Rome, of Lord Jupiter, no less. All together, without killing each other. How interesting."