* * *
She was a member of the pack. Aggressive and sleek – a born predator. Lucian rarely hunted for himself now that he had faked his death so he relied on his packmates for food. She took extraordinary pleasure in bringing back more for him than anyone else, even Raze. She boasted that she’d never fail.
While he tried to deny the attraction, he was not entirely surprised when she came to him one night. He turned her down, trying to persuade her to find another. He had lost one lover to this war, he told her, he feared that losing another would surely kill him. She listened but shook her head and wrinkled her nose. She told him that the solution to that was simple. She would not die.
She came every night for a week and each night he turned her down as tenderly as he dared. The two of them talked or enjoyed the company of one another as wolves. He would not sleep with her but neither did he have the heart to drive her away completely. She assured him that she would never leave.
The night that Raze returned with news of her death at the hands of death-dealers, even Lucian was surprised at how calmly he took the news. He was quiet for a long time. He walked the halls of his lair and discussed his future plans with Raze and Singe. It was ironic. He had just begun to believe her.
THE END
