Ethan gulped, trying to swallow down the growing pressure in his chest. His breath came in spurts, squeezing around the rising bile in his throat. He thought the flight would never end.
It was brutal.
From the moment their beast of a plane crossed the Tennessee state lines, the weather turned for the worst. The turbo engines roared as the pilot fought against turbulent winds, buffeting them like ragdolls. Vicious gusts pummeled into the heavy metal bird, rattling the Third Battalion warriors holed up in it.
Had Ethan not known better, he would have thought nature itself was against their mission tonight. He nearly kissed the floor in relief when the jumbo tires touched down.
Never had he been so glad to have his feet on solid ground.
He was not the only one green around the gills when they trekked out of the cargo hold. Most clutched their bellies as they sauntered off on wobbly legs.
Eri had a brand new shiner where his left eye hit the unpadded metal frame during a nasty bump in the flight. He took only a few steps before bending over. "Reegh! Bleugh!"
The nauseating sounds forced Ethan to clamp a palm on his mouth before he also threw up. The rioting contents of his stomach eclipsed any shame he felt at standing in the middle of some random airstrip in Tennessee with hundreds of people, all naked as the day they were born.
Thankfully, the weather down south was not freezing like in his home state. It was pretty mild, actually.
Sweat streamed down Brent's bare back. "Something's wrong with the winds up there. It's foul."
"Shake it off, wolves!" Zyga hollered over the pack channel. "This ain't a road trip! On fours now! Head for the trees. Thirteen klicks to our rendezvous point, and we're six minutes late. Move! Move! Move!"
Appointed as the general commander for this mission, Zyga was in his element.
His strident voice whipped the warriors into action. Course canine fur sprouted over soft skin. Padded paws replaced bare feet, and sharp fangs lengthened in tapered snouts.
"First division, take point! Owens, I need scout updates. Bannerman, get your team on alpha now!"
A lazy solitary cloud sailed over the moon, blocking her light. By the time Luna reappeared, the last of their three transport planes was speeding down the solitary airstrip, and no human was in sight. Under the cover of darkness, the wolves of Snow Pine bolted for the nearby forest.
Ethan knew his mate was close because the distinct pinewood scent hovered around him. But when he glanced back, he saw nothing but his bodyguards spread out behind him.
His heart skipped a beat, and his feet faltered. Jan!
Perhaps sensing his panic, the blond head emerged in front of him, rising out of the shadow of a tree. Jan's sudden appearance frightened two wolves skirting around the trunk, and they barked.
"Shh!" "Silence!" Zyga and Major Waller hissed from behind them.
Relieved to see his mate, Ethan's gray wolf jogged over and rubbed himself against the long, lean legs clad in fine-tailored trousers - not the best attire for a fight, but who was he to complain when he had disembarked without a stitch on?
Before he could get too comfortable, Captain Bannerman reminded him over the link. "We need to keep moving, Alpha."
Without a word, Jan patted his side, and they took off after the warriors before them.
The Meeman-Shelby State Park was less dense than Ethan's home forest, but the thick shrubs and undergrowth more than made up for it. Even so, the three battalions of wolves quietly wove through the trees with relatively little noise despite their numbers.
YOU ARE READING
Blooded Mate
Fantasy[[MATURE CONTENT]] Pack, family, mate. Loyalty, respect, honor. These are the words that form the foundation of the wolf society. At six years old, Ethan had to choose between his Alpha title and his survival on the night of his father's death. As a...
