Wolf Slayer (The Order of the Wolf) (2 page)

Chapter Two

“There are wolves attacking humans,” Jaylon bellowed the moment he transformed from beast to man. The magic was like a rush of light, blinding him, the sensation jolting. Not painful exactly but jarring, and thankfully very quick.

Mayhem cocked an eyebrow and stood from his crouch, his ever-alert gaze tracking each member of his pack. “You were around humans?”

Mayhem had given them leeway to venture off the mansion’s property and outside of their usual forest territory. A brief respite after months spent on tour—the band’s growing success kept them away for longer and longer. Their shifting cycle at the mercy of the sun and moon, the boys spent their nights on stage and days locked up in hotel rooms as wolves, hidden away from discovery. Once back at the mansion, the wolves had scattered, eager for some alone time.

Jaylon shook his head, his mind racing with what he’d seen. “I was hunting a deer, stumbled onto a wolf attack in progress.”

“What kind of wolf?” Raven brushed a stray leaf from his shoulder as he stepped next to Mayhem.

“A werewolf.” Jaylon shook his head, still trying to make sense of it all. “A big white beast. Came upon him stalking a human. I got there just in time to stop an attack.”

“And you injured this werewolf? Did you sense a pack?” Dyami frowned. “Should we be worried about retribution here?”

“I engaged him, we fought. It was the girl who dropped him.” A stunning dark-haired beauty who had radiated power. It had awed him at first, her blue eyes so intense as she stared the white wolf down—unafraid, cunning, dangerous.

“The girl killed him? I thought you said she was human. It’s only a Huntress who can…” Dyami started.

Jaylon raised his hand and sighed. “She shot him with an arrow, deadly accurate.
Deadly
.” Like she’d been training her whole life. When her shot hit true and dropped the beast he’d been battling, Jaylon knew he needed to get the hell out of there before another arrow took him down.

“So not really a human then.” Raven ran his hand down his face and sighed. “Another Huntress? And I bet you didn’t just happen to stumble onto her either, did ya? You probably were compelled toward her.”

Jaylon’s wolf snapped to attention.
Huntress,
mine.
He’d been tracking a deer, caught up in the chase when he’d scented the other wolf and curiosity got the better of him. Now that he thought about it, there had been an unusual pull in that direction all morning—a mouthwatering need to herd that deer farther and farther away from the mansion’s grounds. “Ah, shit.”

“You need to go back for her,” Mayhem said as he turned toward the house.

“You think she’s his mate?” Raven asked, his gaze flicking past Mayhem to the mansion where his own mate waited.

“Only Jay can know that for sure.”

“It was chaos.” Jaylon shrugged to present the appearance of calm when, on the inside, he was anything but. His wolf growled, clawing for control. In the brief moments he’d watched her, he couldn’t rip his gaze away, even if he’d tried.

“If she’s your mate, then she’s a Hunter’s mate as well, and apparently the target of another pack.” Mayhem sighed. “Fucking complications. You need to go and get her. Dy, go with him.”

Jaylon’s wolf howled with frustration, the thought of his woman in danger forcing a change despite the ever-darkening sky. Transformed into beast once again, Jaylon took off into the woods to find his mate.

Three weeks had passed, during which time, not only had Jaylon not found the mystery Huntress, but he and the band were set to leave on a European tour for two months. He was ready to claw the walls with frustration, his wolf unrelenting in its need to claim his supposed mate.

He’d searched the forest where he’d last seen her numerous times, and had even found a little cottage not far away from it that was saturated with her smell. But her trail ended there. She’d left the day she was attacked, presumably in a vehicle and had not returned. In his desperation, he’d gone back in his human form and had broken into the cottage, searching for any information that might help him find her. All he’d come away with were a few pictures and a surname. Devlin. Not much to go on, which left him growing more and more anxious as the days ticked by and the upcoming tour schedule loomed.

“Aubrey Devlin.”

Jaylon snapped out of his reverie, his hand still clenched to the bottle of forgotten beer, his ass numb from the uncomfortable stool he sat on. He glanced up to find the band’s manager, Dave, standing at the door of the kitchen, a slip of paper in his hand.

“Sister is Corra, fraternal twins, twenty-three years old, have never been registered in any government run educational system. The family name is old, goes back for hundreds of years.”

“Aubrey,” Jaylon whispered, loving the feel of it against his tongue. He’d never been a romantic man, or even one to indulge too heartily on the plentiful groupies, but for some reason, saying her name made his heart pound a little harder and his gut clench in a way that made him all the more desperate to see her again. “But how did you…”

“Think we might be meeting our first Order Huntress?” Mayhem asked as he walked into the room, coffee cup in hand.

By werewolf standards, Jaylon and the rest of the pack were young. Thirty years old as werewolves, each having been turned in their late twenties, give or take. Mayhem was by far the most informed when it came to the lore of their kind, but even he admitted to being sadly ignorant about where they came from and what their place was in the world. They all knew there were other packs, but typically stuck to their own territory. And with the band’s growing success and popularity, Jaylon and the guys hadn’t really been too worried about turf wars. There just wasn’t time for it. And the Hunters had only become an issue now that the pack seemed to be finding mates. According to the folklore, every Huntress was destined to choose between a werewolf and a Hunter. A heavy decision that would align her with one side and make her enemy to the other.

“Darcy seems to think so,” Dave said as he folded the paper in half and slipped it into his pocket, his voice cutting through Jaylon’s thoughts and getting his focus back on the conversation.

Raven’s mate, Darcy, had been filling in a lot of the blanks since she’d joined the pack. A witch born into the supernatural world, she knew far more than anyone else about the role of the Hunters and their methods of locating the Huntresses.

“What does that mean? What is an Order Huntress?” Jaylon asked.

“It means she will most likely want to kill you on sight.” Mayhem chuckled.

“Great.” Add to that his ineptitude around women, his complete and total lack of knowing the right thing to say or the right time to say it, and he was doomed. “I’ll try to remember that the next time I see her.”

Dave glanced at his watch. “Which will be in exactly five minutes.”

“What?” Jaylon jumped from his stool, knocking it over in a clatter. “You found her? Why didn’t you fucking tell me that? You asshole.”

Jaylon’s wolf bellowed his rage, pushing to the forefront, fangs dropping down to hit his bottom lip, claws pushing through the flesh of his fingertips.

Dave raised his hand and Mayhem stepped in between them. “My orders, Jay. Wasn’t sure if we could get her here. Had to come up with a plan.”

Jaylon sucked in deep breaths, panting as he clenched and unclenched his fists, the bite of his claws against his palm helping to keep things real. “What plan?”

“Darcy thinks, given what we’ve seen and learned about Aubrey, that she comes from a family of Order supporters.”

“So what?” His words were guttural, spoken with a mouth full of fang, his brain misfiring, continually cycling back to the idea that she was on her way. To him. Finally.

“It means that she has been raised as a killing machine. She’s had the expectation that she will one day be mated to a Hunter. She’s already on their side, like I said, an Order Huntress.”

Jaylon gulped back his anger. “She’s against us?”

“She doesn’t know what we are. Unless you change in front of her, she probably won’t figure it out. Darcy’s gonna use a spell just in case though, confuse her a bit so her instincts don’t tip her off.”

“How did you find her?” The doorbell rang and Jaylon’s heart leapt to his throat.

“Just so happened she was looking for a job.” Dave smirked. “She’s our new security chief.”

“Security chief?”

“For Darcy,” Dave said with a wink.

“Huh?” Jaylon frowned. Darcy was one of the most powerful witches he’d ever seen. “Why would you hire…?”

Mayhem shook his head and gave Jaylon a hard pat on the back. “I got her here, bud. Now it’s your job to keep her here.”

“Yeah, you’ve just got to make her fall in love with you, Jay.” Dave chuckled as he walked out of the kitchen.

Jaylon’s stomach clenched.
Oh fuck.

Chapter Three

The timing had been perfect. More than perfect, if there was such a thing. Aubrey had warned her parents about the wolf situation, and declined their repeated offers to come and get her so she could stay in the safety of the Order’s compound. As if she would willingly subject herself to the misery of watching her sister in Huntress, loving bliss…
um, not interested.

She’d then contacted some of the connections she had, sympathizers and supporters of the Order and started searching for a job. Time to get her life going, move beyond the destiny she thought she’d had to the one she would make for herself. Out of nowhere came an email from some big shot rock star manager looking for a security chief to accompany his band on their European tour.

Even though she’d grown up almost completely isolated and totally devoted to training, she hadn’t been without amenities most modern families had. She knew who Riot was. She even kinda liked their music. Hard, loud, dirty. Many of their songs were on her training playlist. It was the right kind of music for a little beast ass-kicking.

It all seemed too good to be true and as her dad always said, if it was looked too good, then it probably was. She’d accepted the job, of course. The pay was outstanding, but her instincts were on high alert.

Standing on the outside of the door to the world’s biggest mansion—or at least, the biggest she’d ever seen—she couldn’t help but feel like she might be getting in over her head. Wolves were one thing, but screaming, groping, obsessed fans were something Aubrey had no experience with.

She glanced over her shoulder, where she could still hear the murmurs of those panting, sex-starved women. The ones who had clawed and banged at the limo she’d been transported in, even pressing their boobs up against the tinted window. She was certain she could detect real from fake like an expert at this point.
Ugh.
Way too much flesh on display. The experience had been like nothing she’d ever seen before and she had to wonder what would possess a woman to throw herself at a man like that.

The sound of their disappointment, the shrieks and screams when the gate closed them all out…yeah, she was gonna need to hire a team of huge, capable men, just to keep the crowds under control. She was good at killing, lethal expertise, not so much with deflecting lusty humans.

She sighed, shifted the shoulder strap of her bow case, adjusted the 9mm holstered at her hip, then ran her fingers through her hair. “They’re just humans, you can handle this.” Despite the fact that she had lied on her resume, she did know a thing or two about protection and there was only one wife she had to keep an eye on. No problem.

The door finally swung open and there was Dave, dressed in his tailored suit with his blond hair slicked back. Just as he’d looked when he interviewed her. The epitome of band manager. “Aubrey, welcome.”

He extended his hand as if to take the bow case from her shoulder. She shook her head, leaned down and picked up her suitcase. “I’ve got it, thanks.”

Dave took a step back, motioning her in. “The band is all here.”

And there they were—impossibly huge, outstanding specimens of downright drop dead gorgeous bad boys. The lot of them waltzing into the foyer to greet her. A shiver licked down her spine as she glanced from one man to the next. Dangerous was the first word that jumped into her head, although she couldn’t exactly say why. She scanned the men again. They were all there except for…

“I’m Mayhem.” Piercing blue eyes, long black hair, body made for licking. Mayhem, stepped forward and extended a hand.

Aubrey took it without hesitation. This was the band’s front man, no mistaking his legendary looks. She’d gazed at his picture on the internet many a night over the years.

“Raven.” Mayhem nodded to his right as he released her hand.

“Nice to meet you, Aubrey.”

This one was pierced and tattooed, not really her thing but she could appreciate a handsome man when she saw one and she had a lot of respect for Raven’s ability to melt her with his riffs. He was a talented musician.

“Dyami,” Blond and shaggy, the drummer oozed naughty with that smile.

The last band member stepped into the hallway and walked toward her, his eyes locked on hers, a look so intense it literally stopped her next breath.

“Jaylon Black,” she whispered. He had long dark hair, a deep brown bordering on black and so silky to the eye that she was desperate to run her fingers through it. He was native, his beautiful dark skin, those mesmerizing cocoa eyes… Deadly, sensual, fuckable…

Okay, get a grip you perv.

“You’ve heard of me, then?” He didn’t crack a smile and didn’t offer a hand to shake.

Aubrey felt a blush rise to her cheeks. She must have said that louder than she thought. “I…um…” she stammered, her mind completely blank of anything remotely intelligent to say. He didn’t help her out either, just stared at her, letting her stammer with embarrassment. This man was dangerous to her and her instincts screamed for attention. He was dangerous, but why? She narrowed her eyes, scrutinizing him more closely. His irises weren’t just brown—they had flecks of gold…

“So nice to finally meet you!” A young woman with a cute pixie cut swept past Jaylon, giving him a hard look and instantly snapping Aubrey from her thoughts. “I’m Darcy!” She swooped in and gave Aubrey a quick hug.

“Oh!” Aubrey felt a jolt along her back, like one doozy of a static shock came with the hug.

Darcy pulled away and winked. “Sorry about that, sometimes my hugs come with a little extra.”

“No worries, it happens.” Aubrey frowned, suddenly feeling like a fog had wrapped around her brain. Her shoulders relaxed a little and she let out a breath, releasing any concerns she might have had.

This was the person she needed to guard? Darcy wasn’t giving the expected helpless, kept woman vibes. She actually looked quite confident. Aubrey gave a mental shrug, letting that thought slither away. With the crowds as she’d seen them, Aubrey could definitely understand the need for a little added protection.

“I’d like to chat about your daily routines, get an idea of what kind of protection you’ll be needing from me,” Aubrey said.

Dave stepped forward after a quick glance at Mayhem. “Let’s get you situated in a room first. We’ll be staying here for a few days before the European tour begins.”

“Sounds good.” Aubrey adjusted her bow case’s shoulder strap again, feeling a little disoriented. She needed a few minutes alone to collect her thoughts and figure out what the fuck had thrown her off. Try to reclaim whatever it was that had tripped her instincts.

“We’ll meet in the kitchen in an hour,” Mayhem said, his voice as commanding as his appearance. “Jay, show Aubrey to her room.”

Aubrey’s gaze snapped to Jaylon’s, her face once again starting to warm. And there it was a second time—her gut telling her to watch this guy, which was all fine and good since that was exactly what she wanted to do. Watch him rip his shirt off, undo his pants, pull out his gigantic… She gulped. “No need to bother, you can just tell me—”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Jaylon said, his voice gruff, like she’d offended him or something. He stalked toward her, then took her bow from her shoulder and suitcase from her hand so quickly she’d be stammering again if she had a voice to actually use at that moment. He turned and walked down the hall, his demeanor suggesting that she’d better follow.

Damn, the man totally unhinged her.

“Did I do something to offend him?” Aubrey croaked, too stunned to hedge her words and feign nonchalance.

“Nah, he’s always like that. Just takes a bit to get to know him. He’s a softie on the inside,” Darcy said with another wink. “It’s best you don’t take that from him though. You know, the bossy shit? Strong women enthrall him.”

Aubrey frowned. Now why would that matter to her? And why did the idea of enthralling him make her heart hammer hard and her body tighten, tingle and moisten in all the right places?

Aubrey steeled herself. Darcy was right—she knew exactly how to handle a man like Jaylon. Cocky, self-assured, dominating. “I’ll have no problem giving him a smack down if he steps outta line,” she said, her confidence wavering slightly while her voice held steady. “I’m capable of taking down bigger beasts…er…men than him.”

Darcy laughed. “Oh yeah, you’re gonna fit right in here.”