***
Mary heard the shouts and hurried outside to check what the ruckus was all about. Her eyes flashed with annoyance when she saw two wolves going at each other furiously whilst thirty-one men stood around, cheering as though they were at a wrestling match.
“Your dogs are at it again.” Mario, one of the two male warlocks sighed beside Mary.
“Break it up!” Mary shouted angrily at the two wolves that were at each other’s throats. God, they were nasty animals, she thought as she glared at the angrily snapping animals.
“Does this look like a battlefield to you?” She asked heatedly. “This is not what you were signed up for. You’re supposed to fight someone else not each other, you filthy animals. Shift back to humans immediately!” She ordered.
“I guess they can’t help themselves,” Mario muttered. “At this rate, they will kill each other before it’s time to face the enemy.”
“Not if I have anything to say about it,” Mary growled, her eyes flashing angrily as she looked at the rogue werewolves that she’d recruited to help her in their upcoming fight against the Stanwood Pack. “Now listen and listen good all of you.” Mary addressed the werewolves. “If I so much as see any of you in a fight, all of you will die.”
“Hey lady, the fact that you’re controlling us with whatever silly spell you have doesn’t mean…”
The protesting werewolf never completed his sentence because with just a wave of Mary’s hand, he dropped to the ground, dead.
“As I was saying before I got rudely interrupted,” Mary said, staring at the now defiant but nervous werewolves, “I’ve had it with your silly fights,” Mary said in an acid tone. Out of the forty rogues recruited, only thirty-three…two remained, thanks to the stupid fights-to-the-death the idiots kept having with each other. “As of today, the fastest way to die will not only be an attempted attack on any of the five of us but also, getting into fights with each other. And I don’t mean just the fighters. Every one of you will drop dead. So if you don’t want to die, stop fights instead of encouraging them. Do I make myself clear?” There were unenthusiastic choruses of yes from the scowling men. “Good. As you were.” Mary waved a hand and turned to enter the house.
The five remaining warlocks of the Wyatt clan knew that with their ridiculously limited number, they didn’t stand a chance against the Stanwood Pack and their Ojah freak. Their strategy, therefore, had been to recruit rogues and witches to help them fight. Rogues were werewolves with no packs. They were usually broken from customary behavior and killed indiscriminately and heedlessly.
Unfortunately, like any typical rabid beast that was driven to destroy, kill and tear apart, the rogues loved to get into nonsensical fights with each other which had resulted in their current number of thirty-two. The twenty witches they’d recruited were some of the sadistically wicked ones who happened to need various favours. They saw the promises from the powerful Wyatt warlocks as good as gold and were therefore ready to do anything.
Mary was pumped. Their strategy, in her opinion, was airtight. With the rogues and witches in their camp, the pack was in for mayhem. Things were looking even more positive, with their latest trophy. The only reason the Stanwood dogs had been able to defeat them in the first battle was that they’d taken them unawares. Mary still didn’t know how the wolves had managed to get close enough to Reynard to kill him. To say Reynard Wyatt’s defeat had shocked Mary would be a huge understatement.
Reynard was a very powerful and experienced warlock who had a lot of tricks up his sleeve. It was very strange that mere wolves could have defeated the man. Like the other four warlocks, Mary had fled before the battle had ended so she didn’t know how the wolves had done it. Their Ojah Alpha hadn’t even been with them for goodness sake. That had been some luck. Mary would never admit it to anyone but the pack earned her respect that day.
The five warlocks had eventually come to terms with the fact that Reynard Wyatt was no more when they’d gone back to check their home days after the battle and seen it razed to the ground. Even the dark energy which used to be present on that land couldn’t be felt. Reynard could have restored everything if the clan’s fortress…which was the seat of all their powers, had remained standing.
Well, there was power in strategy, Mary thought as she headed into a small room at the back of the house. The Stanwood Pack was in for a shock. Their land could probably become the new fortress for the New Wyatt Clan headed by herself, Mary thought with a smirk. After all, the werewolves were supernatural beings and as such, their land could have enough energy to feed their dark powers. A smile split Mary’s lips as she opened the door to the small room.
“Hello.” The warlock greeted its lone scowling occupant.
***
“Are you going to let me go now?” Paul stood up, his wary eyes riveted on the approaching woman who’d actually looked exactly like Troy the day before. One moment he was talking to his friend and the next moment, he was in a farmhouse with the woman beside him. He didn’t think he was ever going to get used to all the magic he’d witnessed since meeting Troy. “As I told you yesterday, this is a big mistake. I know some pretty powerful people, lady.”
Paul’s eyes followed the woman as she took the only seat in the room, a knowing smile on her face. The woman gave him the creeps, Paul couldn’t help but think. He’d still not recovered from the way she’d coolly informed him that he’d been kidnapped the day before.
“Oooh…I’m shaking in my boots.” Mary murmured, staring at Paul who was standing beside the window.
“Trust me, lady.” Paul snapped. “I’m not kidding you.” He could only imagine how angry his mate was that very moment. Too bad he wasn’t supposed to talk about the werewolves. He was sure the smug look on the woman’s face would have quickly morphed into terror.
“Are you talking about the werewolves?” Mary laughed when Paul’s eyes went wide.
“You know about them?” Paul gasped. “Who are you? Or should I say what are you?”