Realm of the Wolf: Moon Calling

Realm of the Wolf: Moon Calling
Paranormal Romance

Rating: Spicy – Contains some violence, graphic sex with scenes that include sex with werewolves in human form and transformation.

In the second book of the Realm of the Wolf saga, a new danger is lurking.
Five years ago, Kayla Chandler fell in love with the mysterious and handsome Jace, but just as they were ready to start their lives together, he disappeared into thin air. The only clues left behind are a puddle of blood, and a wolf figurine carved out of crystal. Looking for clues to her lover’s disappearance, Kayla is drawn back to Wyoming and the land of the Sungmanitu.

Vance is a Sungmanitu, and a member of the elite warrior society known as the Zen, guardians of Outerlands. He is sent to kill Kayla and eliminate the threat of her discovering the truth of the Sungmanitu legends, but he has his own reasons for wanting vengeance on the luscious blond doctor … he believes that she is responsible for the death of his best friend, Jace.

When the wolf and his prey come together, nothing matters but an all-consuming passion that threatens to destroy them both.


© copyright by Lorraine Kennedy, December 2010

Cover Art by Jenny Dixon, December 2010

ISBN 978-1-60394-475-5

Chapter One



Ten years after the Jaguar Wars



He’d know her scent anywhere, it was forever engraved in his memory. Being this close to his prey was driving him to madness. His fury erupting, he let out a low--angry growl as he watched her through his wolf’s eyes. In the fading light he could see her leaning against the hood of the car, her gaze fixed on the horizon.

The rest stop was miles from civilization, on a desolate and rarely traveled highway. Now would be the time, but he remained hidden in the thick brush--watching his prey.

He had been sent to eliminate her. The female was a danger. They thought she knew too much.

The persistent wind played havoc with her blond tresses. It was easy to see that she’d been out in the sun far too long, as her cheeks were flushed red. Even from this distance he could sense her fatigue, but still he waited.

With her legs spread slightly, she leaned over to reach into her car to grab something. When she did this, he got a good look at her inner thighs, and the way that her tight--white shorts highlighted her slight--feminine physique.

Lust tore through his body, confusing and enraging him. He howled in protest. Human thought could easily intrude--even while he was in his animal form, but it battled with the instinct of the beast.

Pulling out a sandwich, she started to eat as the last rays of sunshine vanished and the moon began its ascent. The wide-open expanse of the Wyoming desert provided a view of the darkening sky for miles, the brightness of the twinkling stars, drowned out by the bright moonlight. A cloud passed--obscuring the moon, casting the night in deeper shadows.

Painful hunger gnawed at his loins, and again he howled. The human female froze, her senses picking up on the danger that lurked in the darkness, beyond the glow of the lit parking lot. Her hand strayed to the handgun that she’d stuck in the waistband of her shorts, as if the feel of the cold--hard steel was comforting to her.

Far off in the distance, the mist was gathering around the Shadow Mountains.

Still he watched and waited.

* * * *

Kayla pulled out her phone and looked at the time, it had been over an hour and still there was not a soul in sight. Nervously, she directed her gaze to the mountain range in the distance. The peaks rose up from the desert floor--imposing--ominous. Fingers of mist gathered around the base of the mountains, reaching up toward its peaks, glowing eerily in the silver light of the full moon. The thick mist hid the mountain’s secrets--secrets that she could sense, though they somehow seemed to stay just out of reach.

Shaking off her strange thoughts, Kayla decided she might as well have a bite to eat while she waited. Unwrapping the baloney and cheese sandwich, she nibbled at the food without really tasting it. It had been foolish to come all the way out here in the hopes that she’d finally get some information about Jace.

Her parents were expecting her back in Denver by the end of the week, and this little side trip had really put her off schedule.

Kayla’s hand strayed to the carved crystal wolf that hung on a silver chain around her neck. She would never have believed the caller knew anything about Jace … if they hadn’t have mentioned the crystal. No one could have known how she’d gotten it. She’d never mentioned the details to anyone.

A brown lizard scurried across the blacktop near her feet, causing her to nearly jump out of her skin. Though the night was cooling, she could still fell warmth radiating from the dark surface of the parking lot.

The howling of a lone wolf caught her attention and she stopped to peer out into the distance. Unconsciously … her hand rested on the small, 25-caliber handgun at her waist. It had been a last minute decision to bring it along.

Normally she didn’t condone gun violence, but she had no intention of stupidly walking into a trap laid out for her by Jace’s killer. The police would do nothing so it was up to her to find out what happened to him.

Kayla checked the time once more and decided she’d wait five more minutes and that was it. She didn’t relish the idea of having to drive through the Shadow Mountains after dark, and the sooner she got it over with, the better.

When she’d been here five years ago, she’d heard rumors from the locals. They swore that unearthly creatures roamed those mountains under the cover of darkness. Not that she believed such ridiculous nonsense, but … Jace had disappeared in those mountains--leaving behind only scarlet bloodstains, and the crystal. Kayla didn’t believe there was anything supernatural about Jace’s disappearance, though she was confident that the strange people he’d been involved with were responsible for whatever had happened to him.

Subconsciously … Kayla reached for the crystal again, feeling comforted by its warmth.

The caller had promised to reveal information about what happened to Jace, but as she looked around for any sign of life, Kayla became convinced that the call had been nothing more than a cruel joke. But cruel joke or not … whoever had called her knew something.

She’d hoped that her caller ID recorded the number of the caller, but it was only zeros, no number at all.

Maybe the police could use her cell phone records to track the caller? She’d contact them and give them this bit of information. Not that it would do much good … nothing had so far.

With a forlorn sigh, Kayla scanned the area one last time and got back in her car. She had to be at the Tribal Clinic in the morning, and then there would be one more stop in Montana before she could go home to Denver. Strangely enough … the flu season had started in midsummer this year, and it was ravishing the children on the reservation. Kayla was sure there would be a lot of cases to see in the morning, she’d need a decent night’s sleep.

Her heart heavy with regret, Kayla decided it was time to leave … not just the rest stop, but maybe it was time to leave that whole episode behind her. Easing the blue rental car back onto the narrow state highway, she headed straight for the Shadow Mountains. She would confront their dark secrets one last time, but on this occasion when she left them behind … maybe she would be leaving behind any hope of ever finding out what happened to the man she had loved all those years ago.

For five years she had searched for answers, but she was no closer to those answers now than she was the day she’d discovered Jace missing.

As the mountain loomed closer, the mist began to gather around her car, obscuring the details of the road. Even the light of the moon could do little to penetrate the thick--almost radiant fog that had settled around the mountain. The road was barely visible within the beam of the headlights. Kayla let off the gas, slowing the car to a crawl.

The mist that encircled the Shadow Mountains was not unusual. Even in the best of weather, the majestic peaks were often hidden with fog. Going through the mountains was the shortest route to the Shoshone reservation, but now she wondered if it wouldn’t have been better to go around them.

To soothe her nerves, Kayla forced herself to think of something else, but the direction her thoughts took wasn’t much better.

She’d been offered a resident position at a hospital in California, and there was no doubt that it would pay so much better than what she was making now, but was it what she really wanted?

Since the summer she’d met Jace, she’d worked for Outreach Medical Assistance, a nonprofit program that sent doctors into impoverished communities to administer medical treatment. Helping people had been her life, and moving her allegiance to an establishment that cared more about money than people … left a sour taste in her mouth.

But it’s what Travis wanted. He was accustomed to big cities and luxury. He’d made it clear that he wanted her to take that job if they were to get married. Kayla frowned at the thought of marriage. She’d grown to like Travis, but she wasn’t so sure she wanted to marry him, though he’d been turning up the heat. He wanted them to be married so they could settle down to a nice--middleclass existence.

Isn’t that what most women wanted?

Leaning closer to the steering wheel, Kayla struggled to see through the whirling night mist.

She wondered if there was something wrong with her for not looking forward to marriage with Travis. Of course she missed Jace terribly, and it had taken her years to even start dating again … but was she ready to tie the knot?

Maybe … but in her heart she knew it would not be with Travis. Even if she took the new job, it would be to get away from her past--not so that they could get married. There was something about him that bothered her. She had lately noticed a mean streak in Travis that he could not always keep hidden.

Jace had been different--so primal, but yet so gentle. It had been a whirlwind romance, but he’d swept her off her feet just like a Texas twister. She’d never known a man like Jace, and when he disappeared, he’d left her hungering for more of that primitive passion his lovemaking had stirred within her.

Kayla’s thoughts drifted to that moment she’d gone looking for him. There was no way she could handle thinking of that horrible night right now … her mind searched for something else.

From the side of the road she’d caught movement--no more than a shadow within the thick haze. Kayla was torn between slowing the vehicle even more, or speeding up to avoid whatever was moving in the fog.

A nagging fear began to gnaw at her insides.

What if the stories were true?

After all, people around the Shadow Mountains did have a tendency to disappear at a higher rate than in other rural areas. At least that’s what she’d been told.

Her breath caught in her throat when she saw something moving in the middle of the road … just beyond the headlights.

Kayla instinctively hit the brakes. The rear-end of the car fishtailed, and the wheel slipped from her grasp. The next seconds were a haze of movement before the car came to an abrupt stop against a large pine tree.

Kayla’s vision blurred as her head fragmented into a million points of pain, and a cloak of darkness enveloped her in comforting numbness.

Gradually the darkness retreated to be filled with dancing firelight. There were creatures all around her, no matter where she looked. Their eyes glowing, emanating rage, the bloodlust in those eyes was so strong that she could actually feel their hunger.

“They will devour you.” The words were muffled and barely audible.

Kayla tried to force words from her mouth but she had no mouth, she had no body … she just was, with no physical existence.

Consciousness exploded within her mind, bringing with it--excruciating agony. The world was a contrast of light and shadow. The mist had taken on an ethereal glow, as if the light came from within the fog, and not from the moon. If it were not for the pain, Kayla would have believed she was dead.

She could hear snarling growls from outside the car, compelling her eyes into focus.

Within the mist, there was movement--and eyes that radiated an eerie, unnatural light. She bit her tongue to keep from screaming--hoping that if she played dead, whatever was outside the car would lose interest and go away.

The car shook violently, and she became aware of the sound of tearing metal as the door was ripped from its hinges. Screaming, Kayla was no longer able to control her terror, she scrambled away from the gaping hole where the car door had been just an instant before. Reaching for her gun, Kayla aimed for her unseen attacker and fired blindly, hoping that she would hit something. The mist was too thick to see, but the livid snarling grew louder.

From the mist came an anguished howl, and then nothing but silence--a silence so complete that Kayla could hear the pounding of her heart. Frozen in place, she barely breathed for fear of attracting attention to herself.

Hands were reaching into the car, grasping at her arm--they pulled her from where she was huddled against the passenger door. Her whole body quivering with fear, she pulled the trigger and fired again, but the bullet went astray. She heard it ping off of metal.

The gun was ripped from her grasp.

With flailing arms and legs, she tried to fight off the intruder, but the blows she delivered were easily pushed aside. Through her terror, Kayla realized that the arms that held her were human arms, and she calmed slightly.

He was at least a full head taller than she was, and the arms that held her up were huge, she could feel the rock hard muscle beneath the skin. Though it was difficult to take in much detail through the misty darkness, she could not miss his eyes. They were the eyes of an animal … a wolf. It was then that she realized his chest was bare, and in fact--he wore no clothing at all.

Silently he studied her with those strange, radiant eyes--eyes that she’d seen before.

The memories burst through her mind as her pulse quickened. The first time had been in a crowd. She and Susan had just stepped from the theater out onto the sidewalk. It was dusk and the Denver nightlife was starting to buzz.

The orange sunset was marred by the glow of the neon lights lining the road. Across the narrow street from where they stood, was an alley. The decaying alley was an ever-present reminder of the neglect and poverty that plagued cities everywhere. On both sides of the alley were old, red brick buildings that had seen their better days long ago. Here and there, piles of garbage provided cozy hiding for rodents. Though the city streets were still lit in fading light, the ally was already darkened by shadows.

An odd feeling crept over her, like when you know you are alone but could not shake the overwhelming sensation of being watched. She’d stopped suddenly--frozen by that feeling. She was not just being watched … she was being hunted. She’d come to a stop so quickly that Susan had nearly run over the top of her.

Kayla scanned the crowd, searching for the source. From the alleyway, he emerged from the shadows. Their eyes met and he’d held her gaze, pulling her into his fiery golden eyes.

He had been hunting her--watching her. She was sure of it, and just as sure that he was aware of her knowledge of it.

His eyes were magical--compelling and dangerous. If she had to describe the feeling with a single word--the word that came to mind was heat. Looking into the stranger’s eyes made her feel as if fire were licking at her skin.

In that single moment that she’d stood transfixed by those burning eyes, she’d taken in every detail of his appearance. He was taller than average and appeared to be of Native American descent. His black hair cascaded down below his wide shoulders, framing a face that could have been a masterpiece of art--giving him the look of untamed sensuality.

There was nothing especially different about the clothes he wore, simple blue jeans and a flannel shirt, but the way in which those clothes highlighted his exquisite male body made her want to see more.

Susan had stepped up and was waving a hand in front of her face to divert her attention from the stranger. “Girlfriend, he’s hot, but wouldn’t it be better to go ask him for his number … instead of just staring like a scared schoolgirl?”

Blushing, Kayla had looked away. If Susan had been in her shoes she would have done just what she’d suggested. She was risky and adventurous, while Kayla played it safe.

Though she’d turned away and went about her business that night, she’d never forgotten those eyes, or the erotic feeling that had flooded her senses as their gaze locked across the swarm of people between them. There had been something familiar about him, though she’d been sure she didn’t know him. Some element that pulled at her primitive instinct to be close to him--touch him.

Then she’d woken one night to see him standing over her bed, but as she’d become aware of his presence, a haze had come over her and in the morning she’d believed it to be nothing more than a dream … but here he was.

Or was she dreaming again?

Loosening his grip on her, she was forced to put weight on her feet, but her knees buckled. Only his arms around her waist kept her from hitting the ground. Before Kayla could protest, he lifted her--cradling her body against his chest.

Again her vision blurred and she welcomed the darkness.