The Lost Wolf

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

Val put a hand on Sam's knee, putting a stop to the incessant bouncing of the last thirty minutes. "That's not going to help them come to a decision any faster," she drawled.

Sam just huffed and propped a hand on Val's shoulder to cup her cheek. "Why is this even taking so long? We're talking about a life and death situation here, you'd think they'd be in a tad more of a hurry."

"It's a life and death situation for us," Val corrected, "they don't think they have any obligation to help."

Sam's nostrils flared. "It's not just werewolves dying here, Val, it's vampires, too. It's just that their purebloods have stayed relatively unscathed so far, so they're weighing their options. Which is bullshit, might I add. Selfish pricks."

"Okayyy," Val said hurriedly when Ian came into the room again, said pureblood waiting to turn the call off first before cracking a grin.

"I hope they heard that."

Val gave a tired smile. "Hopefully not enough to turn us down. How did it go?"

His smile dropped, but he didn't look dejected. That was a good sign at least. "They want to negotiate in person."

"They really want to waste time on idle talk?" Sam bristled. "Just call them again, you can — no — even better, I will speak to them this time." She reached for the phone but Ian just tagged her back down with a finger to her temple.

"Vampire politics are tricky," he said with an amused smile, then dropped it with a sigh. "We left behind family there, they are trying to get us to go to them."

"How far is it?" Val asked before Sam could continue with her rant. She'd been far more twitchy lately and letting her wolf out didn't seem to calm her down all that much. She drew small circles on her back.

Ian sat down next to Sam. "We can be there in less than a day, the problem is how long it'll take to convince them." He ruffled his hair in annoyance. Sam caught the motion and brushed away the stray curls from his eyes.

"Should we leave now then?"

"I'll be going alone," he said immediately. "It's vampire territory, one full of purebloods at that. I won't be bringing you with us without even knowing what we're getting ourselves in."

"You can try and stop me," Sam said deathly calm. "See how much time you waste on an argument you won't even win."

Val saw him visibly struggle with those words, the hesitation clear in his tone when he finally relented. "Fine, but you'll be glued to my side throughout, got it?"

She grinned in triumph, voice dripping in humor as she said, "No other place I'd rather be."

*****

Almost two hours later and after having debriefed everyone on the matter, Val watched Zack load a small sack into the car. "These will last you a couple of days." He shut the trunk with more strength than was needed and leaned in to speak through the open window. "Don't stay long. If they refuse, come back immediately, if they accept..." He sighed. "Make sure you bring in as many of them as you can. We'll need all the help we can get. Keep in touch as we've discussed."

Ian nodded and Erik patted the car's roof as they took off, calling out for them not to come back unless they've made themselves useful. When he turned to look at Alex with an amused grin, she just shook her head and walked closer to Zack.

"Are we sure it's wise to let them go alone?"

Zack just sighed. "The only thing I know for sure is that we need their help. If something happens..."