Queen's Awakening

One Shot To Start A War

Shamus's POV

I climb the gate guard tower. My young cousin is on duty. He aims his weapon his finger on the trigger. He's bored and wants action. It's hard to believe this punk is Adam's grandson and heir. He's supposed to lead the council someday.

"What are you doing Kenneth?" I ask harshly.

"She's here the queen. I could get her. She's moved out in the open." He says in a hushed tone. His finger leaves the trigger as he looks at me.

"No!" I grouch and smack the back of his head. "There are over a hundred wolves out there. You shoot her now they will berserk. They will come through this electric fence like a knife through butter."

"Fine I won't shoot her!" He grunts and before I can stop him he takes aim and fires. I grab the pair binoculars kept up here and take a look.

"Thank God you missed. He will live." I chuckle. Nicole will be to busy healing the boy to get pissed."

"I didn't miss." He sulks.

"With a shifter you should always aim for the head for a clean kill shot." I try to explain this to the idiot. Other shots suddenly ring out. Others have taken his shot as permission to begin to fire.
"Shit!" my clan and other hunters are away and won't be here till tomorrow. That stupid ass has prematurely shot off.

I scramble down the ladder and race to my home. I have to hide my young daughters.

Nikki's POV

It's like slow motion as I watch the young man fall at Nicole's feet. She goes down to her knees immediately to examine him. Then other shots ring out.

"Everyone get out of range!" Lance hollers.

Tom has placed himself between Nicole and the incoming bullets. Jason drags Nicole away from her patient. I pick the wounded boy up and sling him over my shoulder. I feel a bullet whizz by my ear as I rush to get the boy to safety.

I lay him down near other wounded. Nicole's daughters rush in to give aid. All her elder daughters are here. It makes me sick that they are putting their lives in danger, but they are the only ones Left. Nicole's line is the last healer line in the packs.

"Nikki let me get to your son." Nicole pushes me aside. It takes a moment for her words to sink in. I look into his pain glazed eyes. I don't know him, but Nicole is right he is my blood. I take his hand and let him squeeze. Nicole can't afford to put him under on a battle field. With a small scalpel she cuts in to dig out the bullet. She good at what she does It's done quickly. She strokes his hair.

"You're going to be ok now." She whispers.

Nicole stands she looks over the wounded and the dead. Something changes in her face. Gentle Nicole is becoming something else.

Shamus's POV

They have scattered out of range for the moment. The idiots in the three front towers have made a few lucky hits. I see three dead. I lower my binoculars. Shit my daughters can shoot better than these losers. The hunters here have grown soft. They've lost some of their skill. I take a drink and then look again through the binoculars.

Fuck their coming over fifty berserkers all males. No one is a black furred female. Nicole has become Queen. She's magnificent.

"Sound the alarm." I yell to my cousin. The alarm sounds sending the few hunters in residence to retrieve weapons. My sons race to my side already armed. The men in the guard towers begin to fire. Nothing seems to slow them.
"Aim for the heads." I shout as I shoot. It's like the damn wolves dodge any fatal bullets. The werewolves begin to separate into three smaller groups. I've never seen a werewolf do anything but rage forward. They build speed and crash into the electric fence shorting it out. Tearing through it they make contact with the towers. The towers creak under the onslaught of ten werewolves each. The remaining twenty advance on us We meet them shooting. Their wounds heal before our eyes. I aim for a head shot but a werewolf knocks the pistol from my hands I leap away pulling out my knife. I hear the towers give way with a groan and crash to the ground sending hunters scurrying out of the way. They don't get far the berserkers are on them. I watch them knock out men with one hit. They are not killing. The only ones dead are the men who were in the guard towers. They were immediately killed if the fall hadn't done it first. All the hunters are down besides me and my sons. Nikki approaches me and my sons aim their weapons at his head.

"No. Back off he only wants me." I tell them. My boys step back reluctantly.

Nikki is right in my face before he stops. His teeth click as he sizes me up and prepares to slash me apart. I won't go out without a fight. I raise my knife to fight back. The asshole gives me a wolf laugh. I watch his muscles bunch in preparation to attack. A wolf growls and huffs from behind him. It's their Queen and his mate. He grumbles at her command but obeys. She oofs at him and he chuckles. I guess she told him not now but later. They begin to leave. I guess they had accomplished what they had set out to do They revenged their wounded and dead.

Glen wakes and seeing his grandson under the wreckage of the tower he crawls to him. He lifts him gently and buries his head against the boy's chest. I hear his cries, so does Nicole. She stops and returns along with her mates. She hunkers down in front of the old man.

"He was just a boy, just a foolish boy!" Glen weeps before the creatures. Nicole gently touches the boy's cheek.

"He lives. He will live." She woofs softly. I hear her, so does Glen. What the hell. She tosses the debris off the boy's legs. Then she runs her hands over his body. She's healing him. The boy wakes to her wet nose in his face. He startles.
"I've saved your life. Remember this when you take your grandfather's place someday. Remember there are things you should hunt and things you shouldn't. I hope you learn the difference." She sighs.
"Glen Adams we could have killed you all. We chose not to. We do not want to be at war. I don't think you do either. Send a message when you wish to talk peace we will be waiting." She finishes speaking to him and stares at me.
"Peace or death Shamus. It's your choice." She barks at me and then leaves us to pick up our mess.

Nicole's POV

We might have won the day but we still have wounds to lick. So many were wounded the young who didn't make it to cover quick enough. The berserkers who followed me into the compound took so many bullets. If it wasn't for my sister helping me heal them as we rushed in. There would be so many dead. I groan at memories of their bleeding bodies. They are all recovering at the community center. My daughters and I have done what we can, now it's up to their bodies to do the rest. Nikki, Jason, and Tom were hit several times too. They are refusing bed rest. Tom went with Arron to bring in a steer for butchering. We need food for the injured. Jason is on guard duty at my door. Nikki is with his new found son and his pack. They lost one of their own and they are heartbroken. Ajay and the other two boys will have a funeral tomorrow. They were all foundlings. What were those boys even doing there? They were so new they didn't even have a chance to learn to be a wolf. Thanks to the Chasen clan we are finding foundlings roaming frightened out of their minds about their shift. All of them had been unawakened hybrids. These aren't just hybrids from generations back like Nikki and Courtney. Some are half bloods several males have been careless and it needs to stop. I understand their needs, but they need to be reminded when they don't wear a condom human woman can die. As if I didn't have enough to deal with trying to make a lasting peace with the hunters I have to worry about newly awakened hybrids too.

And the male wolves making cubs their not acknowledging.