"So what exactly are you here for?" Faith asked, offering Cameron a cup of hot cocoa, then another to Leidolf. She was not in the least bit interested in joining a werewolf pack in Alaska or anywhere else.
"Have you heard of the Dark Angels?"
Faith already didn't like the sound of them as she
sat down at the dining table and sipped her cocoa, then shook her head.
"I discovered them on the Internet, describing some group that searches for abominations—Bigfoot mainly. No problem. But then there was some interest in were wolves. Usually someone in a pack monitors stuff like that. This group listed some information about real were wolf trials, which and of itself could mean nothing. But they are extremely focused on the possibility we exist."
"Real werewolf trials?" Of course Faith knew about real witch trials, but trials for werewolves?
"Sure. For centuries, trials have been conducted all over the world. Really bad in France during the witch hunts in medieval times. One of the documented cases was about a John Grenier, only thirteen, who confessed to being a werewolf. No torture involved. At the time a reddish feral dog had been attacking villagers. But because of his age, and that he came freely to the court to confess, they didn't sentence him to death." Leidolf shook his head. "The boy wore a wolf skin and confessed to killing a dog, a baby, and a young girl. He tried to kill another, but she beat him off with her staff while she was shepherding. He tried to murder a young boy, but his uncle rescued him."
"But… werewolves aren't supposed to kill just for the sake of killing, are they? If he was a real werewolf…"
Leidolf drank his cocoa and set the cup aside. "Most of our kind believe he wanted to be one of us, prob ably saw a lupus garou changing and thought killing innocents was what it took to become a werewolf. He was nothing more than a murderer, a cannibal."
"But, they released him? How could they?"
"The president of the court said that lycanthropy—the ability to change into a wolf, and kuanthropy, someone who changes into a dog, were hallucinations, that the boy was of too tender an age, and that he was too dull-witted to know what he had done was wrong. So instead, he was incarcerated for life at the monastery of Bordeaux, where he could learn morals and Christian teachings. They say he ran around the cloister and garden on all fours, devouring a bloody pile of offal—you know, the entrails and internal organs of a butchered animal."
Cameron shook his head.
"He died when he was twenty, his mind completely gone. So that's why we figured he wasn't truly one of us, just a mad youngster who wished to be."
Faith let out her breath. She'd never considered people would turn to cannibalism in the guise of being werewolves. "Still, he wasn't really a werewolf."
"Right, but the problem is that people like that give us a bad name. Some think that we truly exist. Some think those tried for being werewolves, truly were werewolves, but the authorities wouldn't believe it because of church doctrine. Then hunters of werewolves suddenly appear from time to time, reciting these old trials. Another case was Gilles Garnier," Leidolf said, getting up from the table and making himself another cup of cocoa. "He was a poor farmer who had been a hermit, then married and moved his wife to an isolated home. But he wasn't used to feeding more than himself, and he couldn't afford to feed a wife, so he started foraging for food. That's when he killed a girl, a boy, wounded another girl who was rescued but died later, and again was caught after murdering another boy. What shocked the court the most was that he planned to eat the boy on a Friday, against Catholic doctrine."
When Faith's mouth gaped, Leidolf explained, "Fish only on Fridays. There never was any sign of wolf attacks. Just a human claiming, under torture, that he was a were wolf. His story changed so many times that who knew what to believe. He was found guilty of lycanthropy and witchcraft and burned at the stake. So it's interesting to note that in one place in France, the president of the court didn't believe in lycanthropy and in another, he did."
"But he really wasn't one," Faith said.
"No, he wasn't. In another case, a man in Russia was accused of being a werewolf, and he told the court that he and his werewolf pack killed demons. He was sentenced to ten strikes with a whip for idolatry and superstition, then released."
"Was he a werewolf?"
"No. If he had been one, he wouldn't have admitted it. None of us would ever willingly give our kind away. Remember that. But now it seems we have a group who believe we exist, maybe who have even seen our kind shapeshift, and are killing them. They are trying to start a cell in Portland. That's why I'm here. To get at the root of the evil. Eliminate it here and stop them from causing trouble in my region."
"And Kintail knows this?" Cameron asked. "I wouldn't think he'd like your interference."
"He doesn't have to like it. I'm here to get the job done, then return to my pack, not before that."
"Then what if you help us and we help you?" Cameron asked.
Leidolf studied Cameron, then glanced over at Faith, who was watching his expression closely. Could he be trusted?
"You want me to help free your friends from Kintail's pack?" Leidolf asked.
"That's the gist of it," Cameron said.
Please, please say yes, Faith said silently to herself.
"I can't." Leidolf leaned away from the table. He exuded confidence in his mannerisms, the way he smiled, the intensity of his look, all alpha, and just as arrogant. He might seem relaxed, but Faith was quite certain if he was threatened, the man would be the devil to deal with. And that's why she figured having him on their side would help significantly in confronting Kintail and his people.
"It has to do with pack politics. I'm here about my own situation concerning danger to my pack. It has nothing to do with Kintail or his people. I can't interfere with his pack or how he runs it."
"But he's taken Cameron's friends hostage! They weren't part of his pack and he can't claim them." Faith scowled at him. "We'd help you!"
Unruffled by her outburst, Leidolf bowed his head slightly. "If you located the men who are doing the killing, you would help yourselves. Any of us are at risk. And if you want to get right down to it, both of you belong to Kintail's pack."
"Because his wolf bit me," Cameron said.
"Right."
"But Cameron bit me," Faith said, still frowning at Leidolf.
Leidolf smiled a little. "Then it seems you're Cameron's, if you're agreeable. Or if not, Kintail will surely want you. As for Cameron? I suspect Kintail doesn't want him or he would have taken him into the pack right away once one of his people bit him."
Faith looked over at Cameron, not liking any of this one bit. Cameron was masking any reaction, making her feel he wasn't part of this, or was afraid to show what he was truly feeling in front of her.
Leidolf cleared his throat. "Mate with her, and she's yours. If you don't, she's considered available. If you do mate with her and Kintail or one of his people desire her, they'll have to kill you before they can have her."
"That's barbaric." The more Faith heard about the pack rules, the more she thought they needed major revamping.
"We mate for life. The wolf's instinct is ingrained in us. It's our way." Leidolf rose from the table. "I'm going to do some exploring in the woods, then return to Millinocket for a time. I think that's where these men are from. Either of you want to come with me?"
"As a wolf?" Faith asked, hoping not, but expecting the worst.
"As a wolf."
Faith gripped her mug tightly. "I haven't changed before. And I don't plan to if I can help it."
Leidolf appeared mildly amused, then he looked at Cameron. "You?"
"We're returning to Millinocket. Charles wants us out of here." Cameron got up from his chair and joined Faith. "Good luck on your hunt." He offered his hand to Leidolf and they shook on it.
"Thank you. Good luck on yours." Leidolf headed out of the cabin and shut the door.
Faith wished Leidolf would have helped, figuring he knew the wolf ways a lot better than they did. But since it wasn't an option, no point in worrying about it.
"We can't leave here," Faith said, tugging at Cameron's hand. "What about your friends?"
"Like I said, we return to Millinocket. We can use the Internet there and I'll get in touch with Gavin. I'll find David and Owen and get them back. I don't need some red's help."
She wasn't so sure they couldn't use Leidolf's help. And she noted she was left out of the equation, but she figured as soon as she shapeshifted, and Cameron was assured she was an Arctic werewolf like him, he'd change his mind. Maybe it was fate that threw them together, or maybe it was a total mistake. But the idea she'd return without Cameron and live like this on her own, well, hell, he needed her as much as she needed him and she had no plans to return home alone!
She started to pack her bags, then considered throwing out the items that Lila had sprayed with urine. Yeah, no sense in taking them with her. Nothing that she couldn't replace. She dumped the trash bag on the floor next to the door. "I'm ready, Cameron. Let's go."
She hoped they wouldn't encounter Kintail or his people on the ten-mile trip to the trailhead and have even more difficulties again. But the way things were going for them, she halfway counted on trouble.
Leidolf's words rattled around in Cameron's brain, over and over again, like a computer program attempting to make a connection. Cameron had bitten Faith. She was his. That much he got, whether Leidolf had said so or not. But no matter how many times Cameron told himself Faith was as much his to keep and protect, he didn't like her being with him. Although there was nothing he could do about it for now. He had to get her safely to Millinocket. And from there, he hoped to get her to Bangor and on a plane for home. Werewolf killers and mate-hungry bach elor werewolves all made it too dangerous for Faith to stay here. Later, he'd hook up with her, and they'd work something out. But for now, the priority was leaving and getting a safe place in Millinocket.