Sword of Justice (La Patron's Sword Book 3) Read online

  Hawke agreed and explained the matter to the men.

  “It’s not working,” Asia said. “I can’t bring him across.”

  Hawke heard Damian’s moan of pain through their link, and headed in the direction Asia had taken.

  “I’m so sorry, Damian,” Asia said, releasing his hand. “We thought since it worked for Hawke, it’d also work with you guys.

  Byte barked at the trees and ran in circles while Angus looked at Damian’s arm. “It’s warded for those in the pack I suppose. Since this was your mom’s pack, it recognizes you. And you and Hawke are one.” He helped Damian sit on the ground. “Go ahead, we’ll be fine. If something comes up we’ll contact Hawke. Don’t stay too late, I’d prefer not to be in these woods at night. We don’t know who owns this land, and Silas wants us to be mindful of other packs. We can return at first light every day until you’re satisfied,” he said with a stern look.

  The guilt in her chest eased and she nodded, anxious to explore her mother’s homeland. She turned and met Hawke on the other side.

  “Damian okay?” he asked, concerned.

  “Yes. Angus is sitting with him as his skin heals. Have you looked around?” She waved toward the pathways and buildings beyond.

  “No. Waited for you. Doing this together works both ways.” He took her hand. They stepped onto a worn path and walked toward the first building. When they reached it, she noticed several others scattered about.

  “Why isn’t it dark in here?” she asked, looking around for the light source.

  “Why isn’t it overgrown with grass and vines? These buildings should’ve fallen down by now, but they look like they haven’t aged. Are we in some kind of protective bubble?” Hawke searched for clues but didn’t find any logical reason for the well-preserved condition of the village. Time seemed to have stopped, leaving everything the same as the day it was sealed.

  “Look at this,” Asia said, standing in the middle of what might have been a courtyard.

  As he approached a large circle, possibly the center of the town, he saw two skeletal remains. One adult, the other a child.

  “I wonder who they were,” she said. Bending down, she looked at a chain on the child’s remains. “Think this will give us a clue?” Before Hawke answered she lifted the chain and stared at the symbol of a white wolf on the locket. Asia stared at the majestic beast for a few moments and then shoved the chain into one of her pant pockets. Standing quickly, she brushed off her pants. “Let’s look around. Angus wants to leave before dark. We can get an idea how big the place is and come back in the morning to keep looking.”

  He nodded.

  She appreciated his support. Lately she hadn’t been the most wifely mate, but she wanted answers and the delays wore on her nerves. Rather than lash out, she reined in her tattered emotions and kept quiet, keeping her thoughts to herself.

  “Which one do you want to start in?” He waved at the single level crude stone dwellings. She looked at all the buildings, some had wood doors, a few had openings in the exterior walls that may have served as windows, giving them a homey feel.

  There were several outdoor cooking areas, a water well, and drainage system. She reasoned the alpha would have lived in the largest house and continued her search. Starting in the place where her mother had lived appealed to her.

  One stood further back and overlooked the other buildings. It had two windows and an image of a wolf carved into the large wooden door. She pointed. “That one.” They headed toward the large stone building. Asia counted ten other structures before they reached their destination. The large door opened easily. She tapped down her excitement at hopefully learning more of her past, well, her family’s roots. Not some made up story from the Liege, but real facts about her mam. How and where she’d lived. Asia breathed deeply and then coughed. The musty interior was darker than the outside. Hawke pulled a halogen lamp from his bag and set it in the middle of the room.

  “This was the Alpha’s house,” she said softly, thinking of the man who’d beat his daughter and then gave her to Lord Barticus, Asia’s sire. The stone walls were cold and uninviting. The large fireplace doubled as a stove, heavy cast iron pots hung in the hearth.

  “Ahh, now this is nice.” Hawke stood beneath a large tapestry of a group of white wolves. Ruby red blood dripped from the teeth of the largest wolf, giving insight about the pack. “Would you like to take that?”

  She continued staring, wondering what kind of man Alpha Bertoff had been. Although Hawke had explained the mindset of men in that era, plus the responsibility of the entire pack, and she could understand times had been hard. But not hard enough to give away your kid to some sex-starved pervert. She wouldn’t ever grasp that.

  “No.” She turned and walked through each room, taking a journey through time. What a difference a century and a half made. In every room, she wondered if her mam had spent time in there or maybe in the one across the hall. None of the rooms looked inviting for a young girl. There were no female clothes or toiletries, nothing that suggested Amynta had roamed these halls.

  Frowning, Asia stood in the great room and looked around. For some inexplicable reason she knew her mother had not spent much time in this house, it lacked warmth. But where then? They explored three more buildings before finding an old book half-buried in the ground with her mother’s name written on it. The building was small. Three mats lay next to each other on the ground. There were old, ragged dresses hanging on pegs in the wall near the mats.

  “This looks like the servants’ quarters,” Asia said, touching the material reverently. Hawke flipped through pages of the book and then handed it to her.

  “She doesn’t say much in this book. Someone may have given it to her and she never got a chance to write anything.”

  Asia’s fingertip traced the leather cover and then the gold inlaid letters of her mother’s name. Her throat tightened with the sure knowledge she had found her roots. Good or bad, she now knew where she came from, which made a world of difference. Now she could begin coloring inside the lines of her history.

  “White Wolf Clan.”

  “What?” Hawke said from the other side of the room. The construction of the buildings and how well they’d been preserved fascinated him. Someone had warded the area to keep out intruders, but they didn’t understand why.

  “That’s the name of my mother’s clan.” Her voice held a ring of pride.

  “Yes, it is.” He moved toward her and stopped. “Shit, we’ve got to move.”

  Asia stared at him and didn’t like the sharp furrowing of his brow. “What?”

  Jaw clenched, he looked at her. “Angus and Damian were arrested for trespassing and are headed to Lyrill.”

  Chapter 2

  “Sit here, you’ll heal in a few minutes,” Angus said to Damian while helping the young pup sit against a tree trunk.

  “What was that?” Damian asked, staring at the place where Asia had disappeared. “Felt like an electrical shock, ran through my arm and down my back. Never felt anything like that before.”

  Angus looked down into inquisitive brown eyes and shifted through information to decide how much to share. There was no real reason the pup needed to learn about the mystical side of packs. If Chacal, his good friend, were there he’d be able to shed more light on the type of ward surrounding the pack lands and possibly break it. Those types of things weren’t Angus’ strong point.

  “Someone warded the entrance, maybe the whole place, I don’t know, to keep certain people out. Or it could be to keep everyone out, but the land recognizes its own and it’s impossible to keep them out.”

  “Them?”

  “Owners of the land, pack. Our wolf forms a bond with the land, seals it by marking his territory, and cares for it.” He stopped, not wanting to explain more about the Goddess and her decrees. When Damian shifted, he became a black wolf, but knew little about their history and culture because he’d been raised by the Liege. He had no allegiance to the Goddess and t
hat was a problem.

  “So, this is the place Timber’s been looking for all this time?” He pointed to the half-dead looking trees.

  “Inside, the place where his mam grew up. Like you, he never knew his parents. The Liege gave him false memories of his childhood. He’s wanted to know why –” Angus almost said why she’s so different and remembered Damian didn’t know just how different his father’s mate was.

  “The truth of his background,” Angus corrected, and stood now that Damian had healed.

  “Truth? Is that possible after all this time?” He scoffed and tossed a stone at a nearby tree.

  “Why do you say that?” Angus didn’t want to play counselor to the pup, but he’d noticed the distance between Damian and Asia. Not that the pup and Hawke were close like Silas and the twins, but they did converse on occasion.

  “Just wondered, what’s the big deal about digging in the past?”

  “The past offers information that helps navigate the future,” Angus said, watching closely to determine if there was more going on.

  “Didn’t help Gordon,” he muttered.

  Angus withheld a sigh. Gordon had taken a personal interest in Damian from a pup, treated him like a son and Damian had thrived beneath his care. Boris Lancaster killed Gordon, his partner, while escaping through a chute taking him to safety. Damian hadn’t taken the death well.

  “No, it didn’t, but it will help Timber and that’s all that matters,” he said in a firm tone to let the pup know he had no interest in hearing complaints.

  “Hmm.”

  Angus snapped his fingers and Byte ran to him. Rather than deal with Damian, Angus had Byte roll over repeatedly, jump high and touch his fingertip in the air.

  “Good boy, that’s a good boy,” Angus said, pleased and rubbing his pet’s belly.

  Byte purred for a while, enjoying the game. Then he jumped up and growled at the woods. It took Angus a moment to realize others were nearby. When he stood he saw the soldiers dressed in their uniforms of burgundy with gold stripes. He bit back a groan and watched as they circled them. Damian stood and moved closer to him in a defensive stance. Initially, Angus thought there were ten or fifteen, but they continued crowding the small area, increasing in number.

  “Silas, Lyrill’s soldiers are surrounding me and Damian. Asia and Hawke are inside the village.” Quickly he explained the ward around Asia’s mom’s home and how he wound up in this position.

  “What do they want?” Silas asked in a reasonable tone.

  “Don’t know yet. No one’s stepped forward. Wait, someone’s making their way to the front.”

  “The Prime Minister sent us to bring you to the castle.”

  Angus looked at the soldier and noticed the poor fellow couldn’t stop looking at Byte, who growled and bared sharp teeth at the man.

  “Why?” Angus asked.

  The soldier’s head snapped around. “I…I don’t know… Sir. I am simply carrying out my orders. And that’s to bring you and your party to the castle.”

  “Am I under arrest? Have I violated the law?” Angus asked, stalling for time. He waited for Silas to make a decision. Do they fight? Or go peaceably to discover what the PM wanted.

  “Yes, Sir. The Prime Minister will explain it to you.”

  “Go with them, without knowing how big the village is there’s no telling how long Asia will be searching. If you need me to help you leave the castle, let me know.”

  “Will do.” He waved toward Damian, whose eyes narrowed. “Let’s go. I’ll let Hawke know.”

  “But why? These are humans,” Damian said through their link. “Why are we going with them? Is this a part of finding Timber’s history?” He fell in line behind Angus.

  “Don’t get to close to him,” Angus warned the soldier who stepped in front of Byte. Then he spoke to Damian. “We don’t have much choice right now. Timber and Hawke are here and need more time. We’ll go see what the Prime Minister wants, tell him no, and then be on our way.”

  “I see.”

  Angus didn’t think the young pup understood and he didn’t feel like explaining. Hawke and Asia were lost inside trying to find a way out of the village to meet up with them. Angus remembered his last visit to Lyrill and was glad he’d changed his appearance since then. The American government had pulled a fast one and snatched Tyrese, Silas’ son, from their mating ceremony. Once he arrived on this continent, he’d been handed over to the Prime Minister of Lyrill as an offering. That didn’t go over well with Silas or Jasmine. Asia had led a small team over to rescue Tyrese and his mate, Danielle.

  They walked in silence for over an hour. Overhead the sun beat mercilessly on his skin. Biting insects feasted everywhere they landed on his flesh. He now understood the long-sleeved uniforms with high collars the soldiers wore in this formidable heat. When they cleared the forest, the beauty of Lyrill lay before him. With each step closer, Angus was captivated by vibrantly colored flowers, verdant green plants, clear streams, and the light airy feeling in the atmosphere.

  “This place is beautiful,” Damian said through their link.

  “Indeed. It is a feast for the eyes.”

  People milled about, a few stopped and stared, then pointed before continuing on their way. They were dressed in gay and bright colors, matching their environment and adding to the festive garden feel of the place.

  Their entourage stopped in front of a large stone building. One of the soldiers walked up the stairs and disappeared inside a door. A few minutes later, he returned.

  “Come this way, please.” He waited for Angus and Damian to comply, but objected when Byte joined them.

  “He goes where I go,” Angus said in a matter-of-fact tone. “If you try to stop him you’ll be sorry.” With that warning, he continued forward, Byte on his heels. Inside, a tall thin male dressed in a long tailored burgundy coat with matching pants and white shirt stood next to a table, watching them. A pretty young woman with red hair and wearing a figure-hugging forest green dress stood next to him, watching Damian with hungry interest.

  Now that he stood in front of the Prime Minister, Angus recalled this one, the PM’s daughter, wanting Tyrese to impregnate her since he’d refused to be her prince. He didn’t like the considering gleam in her eyes as she looked over Hawke’s son.

  “I am the Prime Minister of Lyrill and this is my daughter, Miriam. You crossed our borders and were on land that has been closed off for decades. What is your purpose?”

  “So when your guards asked that we accompany them, we weren’t on your land?” Angus asked slowly.

  Damian glanced at him and then back at the Prime Minister.

  “We have an agreement with the owner of the land, and watch over it for him. If someone shows an interest, he wants to be notified.” He crossed his hands over themselves and walked toward them. Once he stood two feet away, he glanced down at a growling Byte and then at Angus. “What were you doing out there? It’s not a tourist attraction.”

  “Looking for information about the White Wolf Clan for a book I’m working on. We heard they were the strongest pack in this area at one time.” Angus watched the brow rise on the Prime Minister’s face and decided to gather more information for Asia.

  “Now that’s a name I don’t hear every day,” the older man said, looking over his shoulder at his daughter. She remained in her initial position and smiled, but turned her attention back to Damian.

  “You’ve heard of Albuslupos?” Angus injected excitement in his tone. “Can you tell me about them? Is it true the Alpha defeated every challenger and soon none would face him in battle?”

  “What?” Damian asked through their link.

  “This pompous fool may be useful and give information as to why that place is warded. Watch out for the pretty lady, she’s poison and will come after you boldly. Problem is, she plays a deep game that we cannot afford to play.”

  “Play? Never mind. I’ll ignore her.”

  “Good idea.” Angus glanced at Miriam
and then at her father.

  “Yes, our lands touch and we were once great allies. As for the Alpha, that was before my time. I don’t know how true the rumors are. How did you hear of that name? Albuslupos?”

  “Through my travels, people talk, I listen. That name’s come up numerous times, so I decided to find out the difference between fact and fiction, no harm in that.” Angus looked at the Prime Minister and the soldiers standing around.

  “I’m surprised there’s been interest in that clan after all these years. You’re not the first seeking information. Over the past month there’s been several inquiries. However you are the first to find the back end of Albuslupos land, which is surprising since there are no maps…” He eyed Angus. “No maps that I’m aware of anyway.”

  Angus shrugged and remained quiet, allowing the man’s imagination to run free. The Prime Minister’s brows furrowed deeply, he placed his hands behind his back, and rocked on his heels a few times.

  “Something must be done to stem the flow of outsiders, we don’t allow foreigners in Lyrill, it upsets the harmonious balance we strive for. Those who are not familiar with our ways cause a ripple in the atmosphere, it’s a tangible nuisance that we go to great lengths to avoid.” He stared at Angus while speaking.

  “I don’t blame you, it’s breathtakingly beautiful here. But if you recall, I’m not interested in Lyrill. Just information on the greatest pack to roam this area. I need to verify some facts.”

  “Facts? How do you plan to do that?” the Prime Minister asked.

  “By asking questions. There has to be someone who lived during that time who remembers Albuslupos,” Angus said, playing the impromptu role of historical researcher.

  “No doubt a lot of hacks with faulty memories who will create fictional tales that will make Albuslupos seem either more or less than it was at the time.” He stared at Angus for a long moment. “I may be able to help you.”

  Angus wondered why the man would do that and prepared to decline.

  “Are you hungry?” Miriam asked Damian before Angus could speak. She walked toward him with slow measured movements while holding his gaze. “We were about to sit for our meal when you arrived. Come share the table with us before you leave. If nothing else, it’ll strengthen you for the journey home.”