Feint of Heart Read Free

my intentions a secret even from my own clan, and it gave me pause to think that this baby alpha knew more about my objectives than even my closest pack mates did.
    In fact, this very hunt was part of a long-range plan that had been percolating through my brain for a while now. My clan had purchased the territory that encapsulated Chief Wilder's estranged grandson over a year ago, the tactic being the first step toward wiggling out from under the debt the older alpha had saddled me with. And I'd hoped that winning the Winter Hunt would garner enough street cred that the other alphas would be moved to make that territory official the following afternoon.
    What I hadn't realized was that my scheming was so transparent to all and sundry.
    Still, human words and plots were the last thing on my mind at the moment. Despite my seeming advantage, I knew Gavin's cohorts would leap into the fray if—no, when—their leader appeared to be floundering. So I needed to end this fast rather than being drawn into the other alpha's patter.
    "Chief Wilder plans to support you, you know," the boy droned on. Despite myself, I pulled up short once again. I'd been about to barrel into his legs, figuring the fastest way to finish this farce was to knock the kid down and go for the throat.
    Not that I'd break the skin. The action seemed, well, dishonorable when the teenager was so much weaker than me.
    I huffed out a laugh at my own hypocrisy. And here I thought excessive honor was Gavin's weakness, not my own.
    "The Chief told me this morning that he just needs an excuse to stand as your ally," Gavin continued, seemingly unconcerned by the fact that he was standing naked in human form while my sharp teeth and claws were inching closer by the second. "He can't appear to give you preferential treatment for no reason, of course," the kid went on. "But he has faith you'll win the Hunt. And that's all the explanation he'll need to make sure your clan has official sanction to claim the territory you're squatting on."
    "Squatting, eh?" Despite my best intentions to maintain the advantage of wolf reflexes, I shifted upwards at the mild insult. It wasn't that he'd gotten my goat—human taunts rolled off my back like the current December drizzle was shed by my thick fur. But I was starting to wonder whether the young alpha had really intended to challenge me, or whether I'd simply read him wrong from the get-go.
    Usually, I could smell out subtleties best in lupine form, but Alexis's rich persimmon odor clogged my nostrils. So I figured I might as well peruse Gavin's human facial expressions with two-legger eyes. After all, I didn't want to attack if the kid wasn't looking for a fight. And it wasn't a big deal anyway—I could take him down just as easily on two legs as on four.
    I wiped one hand across my forehead, flicking away water droplets. And in the moment that my eyes were covered, the forest exploded into action.
    "Now!" Gavin ordered.
    I whipped my head around, gaze landing on the one clothed shifter who must have spent the entire evening two-legged. The lackey was already settling back into immobility, but Gavin lunged in his direction as a wicked-looking blade spun end over end through the air between the two shifters.
    Starlight reflected off the weapon that promised to even the odds between Gavin and myself. Once it finished plummeting through the night sky, that is. The blade's presence needn't change the course of the battle, though. My superior reflexes meant that I could have easily grabbed the knife out of the air before it reached its intended recipient.
    But in that critical moment of action, the pack princess behind me whined and I spun to ensure she wasn't being harmed.
    Thunk. I could hear the knife's hilt settling into Gavin's hand, but it was all I could do to force myself to turn away from Alexis's intoxicating gaze. As a result, the other alpha had closed the distance between us before I managed to face him again.
    I threw up