ASH
The moon was nothing more than a slit in the sky as I gazed out at my gathered forces, manifestations of treachery and purchased violence. Fifty of my wolves—the dreg who are left, foolish or loyal enough to stand behind me after everything. And two hundred men who could change shape, supplied by King Jubril, their eyes hungry with predatory fire.
"Tonight," I announced to the gathering in the clearing, "we free Lena from her captors. We unbind her from the twins who have poisoned her mind toward us. We take back what is rightfully our."
The shifters squirmed and shifted, not comfortable with my words. Rescue wasn’t what they came for — Jubril called them in, promised them blood and land and power. But my own wolves, the ones who were left, they knew. They’d witnessed my commitment
