Page 70 of Witch's Moon
“Don’t let him light the bonfire.”
He opened his mouth to ask why, then realized there was no time for questions. Taking a deep breath, he stepped out into the clearing. His father turned to face him, the lighter held in his hand.
Shock flashed across his face as he saw Caleb, and his arm dropped to his side. Caleb heard a low growl from Regan, but ignored her, keeping all his concentration on Ethan. He could sense the wolves all around them, circling. They were not happy, and he was hardly surprised; four of the pack had been killed in the last couple of days.
“She told me you wouldn’t be coming,” Ethan said, nodding toward Regan.
Regan growled again, a low rumbling sound.
“She tried,” Caleb replied.
“Not hard enough.” Ethan’s gaze flicked from Caleb to Catrin, who had come to stand at his side. “Who’s this?” he asked.
“This is Catrin, Regan’s sister.” He turned to Catrin. “And this is my father, Ethan Stone.”
Catrin’s eyes narrowed. “I’ve been looking forward to meeting you, Mr. Stone.”
Ethan stared at her briefly and then turned back to Caleb. “Another witch?”
“Yes.”
“Well, make sure she keeps her mouth shut. Or her sister will be sorry.”
“She’ll keep quiet.”
Caleb studied his father. He appeared in control. In fact, he appeared too controlled, too confident, and a shiver of apprehension ran down his spine.
“Step away from the fire,” Caleb said.
“I don’t think so.” Ethan raised the lighter and reached out toward the pyre.
Catrin muttered a word under her breath, and the lighter flew out of Ethan’s hand. His face contorted in fury, and Caleb saw the first cracks in his control.
“I told you to keep the witch quiet,” Ethan snarled.
He moved toward Regan. The wolf growled but stood her ground as Ethan lashed out with his booted foot. The kick took her in the ribs with a sickening crack, and the force of the blow knocked her sideways to the ground. She struggled back to her feet, but she was clearly hurt, and rage roared to life inside Caleb. Ethan’s foot came back to kick her again, and Caleb leapt forward.
Ethan paused. He looked around with narrowed eyes. “Hold him.”
Caleb realized he was talking to the pack wolves. He expected to be stopped but the other wolves kept their distance, watching.
“I said stop him,'' Ethan ground out.
“I think they’re finished with doing what you say,” Caleb said. ''I don’t think they’re very happy with you anymore.” He glanced around him at the wolves. “Do they know you murdered Kelly and Jason?”
A low growl came from the watching wolves.
“I didn’t kill them,” Ethan said. “I was with you.”
“No, you got your henchmen to do your dirty work.” Caleb looked around for his father’s seconds and spotted them at the edge of the clearing. They were trying to make their way toward Ethan, but the rest of the pack blocked their way. He turned back to his father. “You shouldn’t have done it,” he said. “I gave them my protection.”
“You had no right. The pack is mine.”
Caleb shook his head. “I don’t think so.” He gestured to the wolves all around them. “They’ve had enough of taking your orders.”
“They’ll he happy to take my orders again once you’ve gone back to your other life—forgotten them once more. They need a strong leader, not a man who hasn’t got the guts to accept what he is.”
“I’m not going anywhere, '' Caleb said, and with those words, he knew that his life was changed forever. That finally, he had let go of his dream of a life among humans. He wasn’t sure he wanted to lead the pack, but one thing he was sure of—Ethan wasn’t going to be in charge any longer.
