Tales Of The Sazi 05 - Moon's Fury Read Online Free PDF Page A

so …
    conniving. What's so horrible about wanting to spend time with you? We used to spend a lot of time together.”
    His chuckle was bitter, and he hoped it cut her as deep as she'd cut him two years before. "Oh yah. We did. Right until the day you realized I wasn't going to challenge Josef for his position, no matter how hard you pushed me. It grated on you every single day that I was happy to remain his second in the pack, didn't it? So what—you think now that I've been told to lead a dozen families down here by the council, I'm going to be the new alpha?”
    Her voice was smug, and her peppery, sickly sweet scent said conniving wasn't too far a stretch from the truth. "You are the new alpha down here. That's what Josef announced to the pack.”
    "Well, Josef can say whatever he wants. But the reality is that there's already an alpha in place down here. We're joining an existing pack of red wolves, and I can't see any reason to upset the applecart. And after what happened last fall…Well, let's say I'm in no hurry to run the show anywhere.”
    For a moment, her voice took on a trace of the old warmth and she reached out to touch his hand. But the power that tingled his skin no longer stirred him. It was just ordinary Sazi magic—without the intoxicating sensuality it once held. He was almost sad about that.
    "It wasn't your fault, Adam. Tyr wasn't right in the mind. You couldn't have predicted he'd take such a small thing so far.”
    He yanked away from her touch hard enough that he had to overcorrect to put the truck back in the lane. Right now, he didn't want anyone to touch him, because there was no point in trying to make his life, and his choices, all better. It was hard enough for him to imagine running a pack again, after screwing up so bad. "Not so small a thing. There's no point denying it, Viv. I'm the only reason my pack leader's son is dead, a dozen families are being sent out of Minnesota in exile, and the humans might discover the secret of the Sazi."
    The pungent scent of gasoline overpowered even the fragrant bush near the pumps as Adam filled the second tank of the truck. He tried not to watch the dials spinning as another hundred dollars drained from his wallet. He'd hoped the prices would be better closer to the gulf coast, but no such luck. Viv was still sulking with her arms crossed and her foot tapping hard enough to put a permanent dent in the floor mat. The lavender flowers highlighted by the late morning sun were a pleasant respite from her icy glare. He wasn't sure why he expected anything different from her, and wondered what had compelled him to ignore his first instinct to travel alone. But hey—if he wanted to punish himself, he couldn't think of a better way to do it. Her transition from whining to sullen and back again since their little conversation a few hours back was punishment enough for five men.
    When the handle finally clicked, he turned off the switch and slid the nozzle back into place. Once the cap was on again, he paused to deeply inhale the sweet scent from the bush. He was just taming when a voice sounded next to his ear and he suddenly, without warning, couldn't move a muscle.
    "Smell sort of like grape Kool-Aid, don't they? Mountain laurels are native to these parts, you know.”
    He reacted instinctively, pushing back against the power that engulfed him, struggling to free himself. But the pressure on his body was incredible—as though an invisible hand was squeezing, compressing his flesh against his bones. There was no doubting there was a Sazi behind him, one powerful enough to withstand his best attempts to move. Even Josef had to struggle a little to hold him still, but this …his effort had all the effect of throwing a bucket of water against the Hoover Dam. Laughable and futile. So he stopped trying and remained still.
    "What an unexpected surprise to see you here in Santa Helena, Mr. Mueller. Especially since you had strict instructions not to show up until