~ ZEV ~

Stomping his feet in the dried out leathers, Zev shook his head and scanned the destruction that had greeted him. It had taken close to an hour to pick up all the pieces of leather and fur, linen and down, and figure out what he had that was still usable.

He'd been left with two blankets that each had only one hole, and a single set of clothing, with an extra shirt. But no hood.

Zev cursed again as he piled the rest into a small space at the back of the cave to be used for mending, or rags.

Fucking Lhars.

It was as if his brother had known he would be back here one day and need these things. The destruction was meaningless and spiteful. A knife had been used to cut the thicker fabrics and leather to shreds. He wasn't surprised the food was gone—the creatures of the forest would have discovered it eventually. But if they had found or needed the warmth of the clothing or blankets they would have dragged them away.

This… this was destruction to remove the items so they couldn't be useful. Why not just steal them?

Because it was his brother, and his brother wanted him to hurt.

Zev swore under his breath again, pushed the last of the ragged fur into the little hole in the cave wall, then turned around and put his hands to his hips.

He needed food and water—enough to help his body heal quickly if it was required. And he needed to start pursuing and challenging wolves at each level of the pack, forcing them to face him. Until he had worked his way through his own people, he wouldn't be acknowledged by the wider Chimera at all.

He was going to have to be careful. All the fighting he was about to do would give Lhars and Xar both an opportunity to watch him. He would have to hold back some, appear not quite as strong, not quite as skilled as he actually was.

Sweat prickled his brow at the thought of fighting Lhars. The two were so evenly matched… but Zev's Alpha strength had always been greater. Would he still feel it, knowing the people didn't see him? He was about to find out.

He was going to have to hope that he could sniff out his bag. If he had to shift suddenly, he'd lose even this set of clothing. And while he might be able to cobble something together from the rags he'd just bundled up, it wasn't ideal.

He was about to match wits and bodies with the strongest, fastest, and most capable of the Chimera. More than one of them, over several days. To make it through the ranks in time he would have to find and fight several per day. All while staying out from under the eyes of Xar or Lhars as much as possible.

Shaking off the nerves that wanted to flutter in his stomach, Zev reminded himself there was nothing to gain in waiting. He'd visit the creek for a drink, then return to the outskirts of the village and see if he could gather some supplies, or find one of the low levels wolves. Some of them would likely submit if they were cornered anyway. But he couldn't take the risk of underestimating them.

Even the weakest of wolves was stronger than a human, and it had been over a year since he'd trained with a Chimera.

He took a deep breath and, with teeth clenched against the injustice of it all, strode back out into the light.

*****

He hadn't even made it to the outskirts of the village when the ground began to tremble under his feet. Hoping it was his friend—and praying it wasn't, because if Yhet was travelling that quickly, what had happened to Sasha?—he sank into a thicket of small trees and bushes just off the trail to wait and try to catch the scent before whoever it was reached him.

Sure enough, a minute later, as the ground began to actually shake, Yhet appeared on the trail, hair flying behind him and slapping his shoulders as he ran.

His strides were so long, Zev had to leap out of the bushes to give him a warning that he wasn't alone, or he might have streamed past before he caught Zev's scent.

"Zev!" he exclaimed, sliding to a halt just feet from his friend. "You're okay. Good. Here's your bag." He threw it down on the ground at Zev's feet. "I would embrace you but I'm not sure I can cover that scent just by saying I carried the bag."

"It's fine," Zev said. "But if you're here, where's Sasha?"

Yhet scratched the back of his head. "I left her with Kyelle," he said quietly.

"You… what? Why Kyelle of all—"

"She was the only female of high enough rank that I could find, Zev," Yhet whined. "The males were already circling, and Sasha is completely unprepared for our ways! She almost stopped and thanked a male who offered her shelter!"

"Shit!" Zev closed his eyes for a moment. There were so many ways her human manners could trip her up amongst the Chimera.

"Shit is right," Yhet growled. "Kyelle is… I told her what I knew. That Sasha was with you and you were claiming her, and—"

"You told Kyelle I was claiming Sasha… then left her there with her?"

"I didn't have a choice, Zev! I had to get the bag to you, and I was afraid I might forget something important. Kyelle is going to help her because it will keep you safer."

"But—"

"Tell me who would have been a better choice, Zev? She's only ranking female left. The males will have to listen to her if she refuses them access to Sasha. Who else could, or would, do that?"

Zev cursed again, but his friend was right. There were no other choices. It was just so… "Kyelle, though," he groaned, raking his hands through his hair.

"She's a strong female and a good teacher. She'll help Sasha understand how to keep herself out of… entanglements. But now that I've gotten your things to you, I have to get back to them. Even with Kyelle there, I don't want her to have to deal with half the wolf pack without some support.

Zev nodded grimly. "Thank you, brother. I mean it."

Yhet slapped his chest in salute and turned on his heel. But before he could launch back into a run, Zev called him back. "Tell her… tell her I said seven days. That's all I need. A week. She can't give up on me inside a week. Tell her what it will be like. She'll be frightened when she sees it."

Yhet nodded sadly. "I will. She… she's unhappy that you have left."

"Did you explain?"

Yhet gave him a flat look. "Of course. But she is overwhelmed I think."

"Yes, yes, she would be. Just make sure she knows I'm coming, and not to be frightened when she sees it happen. Explain that I won't kill them unless they force me to. That worries her. Death is different in their world."

"I'll tell her," Yhet promised. "Be well, Zev. Come back quickly.." Then he was gone, and Zev picked up the bag and began running it back to the cave.