Un.Wavering (Claimed Series Book 3) (8 page)

“I think not.”

“Don’t be so foolish.” Nicolas pointed at Hayden and tossed her the sword. “She’s quick. And she’s good with a blade. She will have a better chance of going alone. If I sent her with you, I’d be damning her. She can’t defend both herself and you.
I
can.”

She hated what he was doing. She hated even more that he was right.

It was better to send their assailants in two different directions. And it made sense that a weakened Cole would go with Nicolas. While Hayden was confident in her abilities, she knew she couldn’t protect him and herself at the same time.

The incident with Rachel was still fresh in her mind. She hadn’t killed the other woman, Evan had, but it was Hayden’s own mistake that ended her life.

“He’s right.” Hayden found herself taking Nicolas’ side once again. “We will have a better chance if we split up.” She avoided Cole’s eyes, knowing he disapproved greatly.

However, his disapproval was rather null compared to the frustration in his eyes. Hayden recognized that his frustration wasn’t with her, but at his own weakness. She knew Cole well enough to know he had an abundance of pride. It destroyed him to be a liability, to be a burden.

“We will meet there at sunset.”

Nicolas quickly pointed out a distant peak. It was rather distinct in that it had two peaks in close conjunction. Hayden thought it resembled a set of curved horns. It was a good distance away and she wondered if Cole was healthy enough to make it there by sunset.

“
Go
.”

There was an urgency in Nicolas’ tone that made Hayden jerk into action without hesitation. Her sensitive hearing picked up on several bodies making their way through the snow and towards the woods.

With one last a sidelong glance at Cole, Hayden hurriedly curled away from them and in the opposite direction. She’d been traveling in the wilderness for quite some time now, but whenever she was able to exert herself, she felt
alive.

Her adrenaline heightened as she trekked through the woods, making certain she disturbed the snow as much as possible. She bumped into many tree trunks, intentionally rubbing herself against the bark in order to leave her scent.

Their pursuers would be conflicted on which path to follow. Cole hardly had a scent because of the silver poisoning running through his veins, and Nicolas’ scent was rather faint as of late. Hayden carried a bit of both males on her coat from her earlier embrace with Cole and her close proximity with Nicolas.

At any rate, it was difficult for male werewolves to completely ignore a female’s scent. She was confident that she’d distract a good number of rogues from Nicolas and Cole’s trail.

She dodged and entwined her way through the woods. Her spirits were high now that they’d successfully rescued Cole, but it was vital, now more than ever, to remain alert.

As the sun set below the horizon, the temperature dropped eagerly with it.

Hayden pressed her back against a tree, breathing heavily. Small clouds of fog escaped her lips with each exhalation, a small indication of how cold the mountains were during nightfall.

Fortunately, her toes remained warm in her boots and her body was generally unaffected by the biting chill. Her thoughts drifted to Cole, wondering if he struggled against the unforgiving cold. She remembered when Evan had given her silver poisoning; she’d struggled with feeling human and dealing with the unfriendly environment.

Though, from the mental connection she shared with Cole, she knew he was slowly recovering. He was definitely a more prominent presence in the back of her mind. Surely he had enough wolf dominating his human side to withstand the cold temperature.

At her side, her fingers clenched around the hilt of her sword. She distractedly wiped the blade’s blood on her pant leg, marveling at her current situation.

Over ten bodies lay in her wake. She had a few lacerations and bruises to prove her altercations weren’t entirely one-sided. However, in the end, she was the last one standing.

And that was all that mattered.

Behind her, the horned peak loomed. Judging from the setting sun, she was late to her meeting with Cole and Nicolas. A subtle, persistent worry stemmed from her Alpha’s side of the bond, but he knew she was alive and well. There was no need for him to worry so much.

She could handle herself.

Hayden took another deep breath and pushed off from the tree. Silently, she moved over the snow, trying to refrain from making obvious tracks. She imagined most of the rogues either had given up or had died from her blade or Nicolas’ wrath. It was best not to lead any stray wanders to their current location.

As she trekked toward the double peak, the sound of rapid gunfire suddenly echoed across the mountains. Hayden paused abruptly, stilling in order to pinpoint its general direction. Though, as soon as she paused to listen, a high-pitched scream sounded before it was abruptly silenced.

Everything on the mountain was quiet and still.

Releasing a breath she’d been holding in anticipation, Hayden gradually began moving again, her limbs tense and coiled.

She’d forgotten they weren’t the only ones on the mountains. Amber Beard’s impromptu pack was still on the run, hunted relentlessly by Tracer’s puppets. However, she wondered if they were still mindless puppets given that their Sire was dead and no longer giving orders.

Around her, the woods suddenly became unbearably dark. The heavy snow was the only element preventing the forest from being pitch-black. Though, somehow, even the snow seemed darker than usual. Odd shadows and dark shapes darted through the trees, cloaked in absolute darkness and stealth.

Hayden clutched her sword tighter, trying to remain as silent as possible.

Only, as the hairs on the back of her neck stood, she knew she’d been spotted.

Whirling around, she spied the hulking figure behind her. She raced to the nearest tree and crouched behind it, her sword prepared to attack. The figure stood a good distance away. It was possible they hadn’t detected her location yet.

She pressed her cheek against the cold and unforgiving bark, waiting in trepidation as the figure approached. It was clearly a male and he wasn’t too concerned with speed. His gait was slow, yet hypnotic and stiff.

Hayden stopped breathing, least her visible breath give away her position. Something about this figure was unnerving. Perhaps the uncanniness stemmed from the sheer expanse of his rigid torso, or maybe the robotic way he moved.

Nonetheless, Hayden crouched lower, deciding to forgo a surprise attack. Her instincts told her to remain hiding, to remain docile. And a moment later, she realized
why.

As the man advanced closer, Hayden identified it as one of Tracer’s puppets. The blank, yet unnervingly invincible eyes focused obstinately ahead, as if no outside interference was of any consequence.

And it probably wasn’t.

The beast carried power like a second skin. It wasn’t like Cole’s natural aura, or even Nicolas’ predatory aura. This puppet, this monster, possessed a wickedness foul enough to raise the hairs on her body and chill her to the bone.

For a second, Hayden thought the puppet would pass her unnoticed. Her hopes sunk, however, when his thick neck turned with cruel slowness and vacant eyes stared straight through her. Gasping softly, she inched further behind the tree, as if the flimsy trunk could somehow protect her.

She needed not to have worried.

As if stuck in a trance, the puppet turned his neck back forward and never missed a stride. He walked straight past Hayden, dismissing her completely.

Slumping against the tree in relief, Hayden craned her neck around, studying the monster. Her eyes dropped to the ground, noticing immediately the snow was stained crimson. With each stubborn stride, Tracer’s puppet shed a significant amount of blood. Clearly, he was wounded, yet he didn’t let that slow him as he carried out his mission.

Further down the woods, another figure stumbled blindly, gasping and wheezing. Hayden’s eyes dilated when she identified one of the females from Amber Beard’s impromptu pack. The woman was just as wounded as Tracer’s puppet, yet she clearly didn’t possess the same amount of determination.

Desperation, maybe, but certainly not mind-numbing determination.

Hayden grimaced, clutching the tree for support as the woman struggled to get away from the advancing creature.

The suffering female hyperventilated. With each inhalation, a choked cry reverberated across the quiet, observing forest. Her face screwed up with intense concentration, though traces of deep terror lined her eyes. She dodged sharply, trying to avoid the puppet’s reaching hands.

But she wasn’t fast enough.

Hunching lower, Hayden closed her eyes. The last thing she saw were meaty hands curling greedily around the woman’s neck. Bones snapping and muscles tearing echoed in Hayden’s ears and she could do nothing to erase their memory.

Adolf once told her that Cole could kill his enemies with his hands and teeth alone. She couldn’t imagine him doing something like
this.

The sudden realization terrified her. She hadn’t thought much about Celeste’s altered werewolves being so unstoppable. But they were. Even when their Sire died, they still carried out his orders with single-minded obedience.

She remembered Nicolas’ claim the day they’d witnessed the Hunters’ massacre. While the traditional werewolves had their backs turned, Celeste had worked diligently behind the scenes, constructing and breeding an unrelenting army.

How many of these monsters Sired others, and in turn others?

Their population was enigmatic and problematic.

As much as Hayden hated to agree with Nicolas, she couldn’t dispute his earlier claim. This was no longer about fighting to
win.
This was about surviving.

When the sounds of struggle ceased, Hayden forced herself to peek around the tree. The gore was obvious where the woman once stood, but Tracer’s puppet was no longer in sight. Stiffening, she glanced over her shoulder, desperately looking through the darkness to spy the hulking creature.

Just because he bypassed her earlier didn’t mean he wouldn’t circle back around.

But no one lurked nearby.

Slowly, she got to her feet, noticing her trembling knees and her stomach growling with extreme hunger. Pushing past her vulnerabilities, Hayden continued forward. She kept her eyes focused straight ahead, refusing to study the mangled corpse on her left.

The journey to the double-peaked mountain proved a longer trek than she’d initially thought. If her scent weren’t enough to lead enemies to her whereabouts, her growling belly, which sounded more like a wounded animal, would suffice.

She missed Addie and her cooking. She missed the pack home. She missed Cole, Fergus, Blake and even Nathan. She wondered where Asher was and if he knew what happened to Albertville. She wondered how Shane was doing, and if he decided to hunt werewolves after what happened to his grandfather.

How long would Nicolas lead Cole around the South, hoping to discover their parents’ past? As selfish as it seemed, Hayden hoped it didn’t take too long. She wanted to be back with her pack, back in numbers.

“As usual, I see you’re not doing as you were told.”

Snapping her neck around, Hayden spied Nicolas standing solitarily to the side. Unsurprisingly, he was tranquil and poised, revealing nothing on his expression. Blue eyes stared at her blankly, if not mockingly, no doubt amused he was able to sneak up on her.

“You were told to meet us at sunset.” He looked at the sky. “Not nightfall, my dear.”

“I ran into some problems, nothing I couldn’t handle.” She grimaced, not seeing Cole anywhere. “Did you even have any rogues following you?”

Nicolas’ lip quirked. “One or two. They were of no consequence.” He cocked his head. “I knew you could handle yourself just fine. Cole had his doubts, but that’s to be expected. He hasn’t truly seen you in action as I have.”

His eyes flickered beyond Hayden’s head and into the surrounding woods. A slow, unnerving smile crossed his features.

“Oh hello, Igor.”

As soon as the words left Nicolas’ mouth, a gun clicked audibly behind Hayden and a muzzle pressed into the back of her head. Fear washed her cold, yet she remained standing tall and composed. Shame washed through her for allowing Nicolas and
Igor the Great
to sneak up on her undetected.

“I admit killing you now won’t accomplish much. But this will be just as satisfying, if not more so.” The gun dug further into Hayden’s skull. “You destroyed our last—”

“Hope? Chance?” Nicolas finished briskly. “I am truly sorry about that, Igor. Truly.” He appeared anything but apologetic. “But your first mistake was threatening the girl instead of shooting her immediately.”

Hayden glowered at Nicolas, her mind quickly running through her options. She knew the man standing behind her was double her size, if not triple. While she was confident in her abilities, taking down a giant wasn’t on her list of specialties.

“I’m not afraid of you,” Igor stated coolly.

Nicolas remained uplift. “Nor should you be. I am over here and you are over there. I wouldn’t get to you in time. But you
should
be afraid of her mate.”

Just a short distance away, the snow churned softly as something shuffled stealthily through it. Hayden, sensing the upcoming confrontation, lunged away from Igor just as the gun fired.

Though, the bullet hadn’t been for her.

She threw a distracted look over her shoulder, watching as Cole knocked the gun from Igor’s hand. The weapon landed on the ground and Hayden quickly grabbed it before Igor retrieved it. Though, he was probably too distracted with Cole’s fury to think of anything but defending himself with his forearms.

Shuffling backwards, she stood beside Nicolas, watching in awe as Cole effectively took down the larger man. Usually one to preach control, animalistic amber outlined Cole’s dilated pupils. His strikes were fast and they were lethal.

Hayden could sense the change in him.

Whatever drug they pumped through his body remained a prevailing influence. He seemed far less in control and extremely resilient despite the silver poisoning lingering in his system.

“It will eventually wear off,” Nicolas informed, having sensed Hayden’s unease. “One of the ways Celeste holds control over her Carriers is through dependency. Any longer in Celeste’s hold and Cole would have thought nothing more important than his next dosage.”

Her stomach plummeted with disgust. “Drugs?”

“Similar, but not quite. If it were that simple, anyone could control the Carrier’s loyalty.” Nicolas glanced sidelong at Hayden. “No one can mimic Celeste’s formula. And she gave the formula to no one.”

“Cole wouldn’t have sunk that low. Even if he were held prisoner for weeks, he wouldn’t let something as meager as
dependency
get in the way of his morals.”

As she said this, Cole ripped out Igor’s throat with ridiculous ease. Hayden could only compare the scene to what Tracer’s puppet did earlier to the desperate female.

She looked away, doubting her earlier claim.

“Don’t be so melodramatic,” Nicolas scolded lightly. “Cole is just like the rest of us. Flawed. He is destructible, and he is not perfect. Celeste knows what she’s doing. She wouldn’t create mindless addicts, but she would use everything in her power to make them dependable on her alone.”

Hayden could only marvel at Celeste’s brilliancy. The woman was extremely intelligent and influential. It would be difficult to destroy her.

“Are you quite done?” Nicolas called toward Cole. “You are unsettling our pup here.”

He placed a condescending palm on top of Hayden’s head, but she angrily pushed him away. She didn’t need them to see her as easily distraught, though Cole’s current demeanor
did
put her on edge. It was as if he were a different person.