I could smell her even through the underbrush of ferns as my paws sank into the soft soil.
I wondered, just as my brother had before we came up with this plan, if they had sent a witch worth their salt.
Even though I had brought the witches, that didn’t mean I trusted them.
They undoubtedly were an asset though; they had already assisted two other packs that were on the verge of becoming nonexistent.
All that open territory would have just led to more bloodshed, the type that our kind couldn’t afford at this point in time.
Our numbers were too few.
I had dealt with witches a handful of times in my life, starting with our mother’s pregnancy—though of course I didn’t work with them directly for that.
The pack paid a pretty penny each time we dared to ask for help, and only a fraction of the time could they do what we had asked.
The thought was firm in my mind as my eyes roamed over the female, the smell of decaying leaves and rich soil interrupting my senses as I scooted forward slightly to get a better look.
The last two witches had been sent to help settle a war between a rival pack and a vampire attack.
The first had been little more than an ugly, crazy, spiritual witch with shit for power and even more shit for answers.
The second had trembled so much that the pack finally had to send her home after she burned her hands so severely that their beta had to drive her to the hospital.
The pack might as well have hired a human exorcist or a detective, or maybe even grabbed a random person off the street.
This matter was too important for one of their weaklings.
The person they had sent though looked so…normal.
She wore a white lace top, boot-cut jeans, and boots that looked like the soles were soft enough to feel the earth.
Brown hair that seemed to frizz at the first sign of moisture—which there was plenty of—honey-brown eyes, and a small charm in her hair.
Everything about her looked so…plain.
But her scent wasn’t like any witch I had ever met. Sure she had the magical, electrical zing that made a wolf’s nose want to sneeze, but something about it…
It was like a field of wildflowers mixed with sage and rosemary, with the electric static of a witch that made my nose itch but not in an uncomfortable way.
I shoved the thought aside instantly. Witches were bad news to tango with.
Plus, after Jewel—one of the strongest unmated females in our pack—went into heat, Seth and I had practically mutilated one another.
It wasn’t that either of us were necessarily attracted to Jewel. She was fine bed sport, but Seth and I didn’t share—at all.
Jewel had originally been my bedmate, not Seth’s. The fact that her pheromones were out of control had been the issue and the only way to fix that, well…
Even if it was only one of us. We ran the pack flawlessly as brothers, and this was one issue that needed to be fixed immediately.
The rut was a strong thing and two alphas fighting to lay with a female was a big issue.
Next time we might kill one another without meaning to, and neither of us could live with that.
The plan was to make sure this witch was worth her salt.
We had carefully constructed the contract with her coven, and then deliberately broken the contract.
It was a test to see if she could stand up to us, or at least make her presence known.
Only a strong witch could walk away without a scratch.
Witches tended to use their powers in high-stress situations.
Jewel would surely attack her the first moment she was out of sight from both of us.
Now it was time to see if she was up to par. As Seth approached her I felt the back of my neck prickle.
She wasn’t cowering, she wasn’t backing down, and she avoided his eyes.
My wolf growled in approval and I shoved it back down in my mind.
I tried not to growl as I backed into the brush to turn and come out as we had agreed.
This was the part where Seth would “call” me if she passed at least that test.
Seth hadn’t done the test right though.
