The Best Way to Kill Your Boyfriend

Wolves

I wrinkled my nose. The tracks were almost overpoweringly pungent, smelling like a combination of rotting plants and wet dog. Ugh. Yuck.

Then again, I had been told that vampires smelt like sickly sweet bad candy to a werewolf, so I couldn't exactly complain. I still could barely believe I was actually hunting down a pack of those dogs. 

Vampires had a complex history with werewolves. On one hand, we had had to ally several times to stop both of our races from being destroyed. On the other hand, we were born to be natural enemies. Apart from our own fangs and certain magical blades, werewolf teeth were the only thing that could cut through vampire skin. Only we could catch a werewolf.

What I was doing was dangerous. I knew that. The pack I was currently tracking was probably the most reasonable of all the packs, which of course meant that they would give me about 60 seconds to convince them not to rip me apart. 

Lucky me.

A wave of wet-dog-smell washed over me, and I heard branches and undergrowth flattening between heavy paws. One - two - three - seven - twelve enormous wolves flooded into the clearing where I stood. One by one, a ripple of light shuddered through their gigantic bodies, and they shifted. Paws became hands, fur became skin, and suddenly, twelve ordinary teenagers and one young adult stood before me. Varying in height, coloring and gender, they nevertheless moved together with uncanny, loping grace, as if part of them were still wolves. 

The leader, a strong, brutal-looking female with dark hair and coffee-colored skin who looked about 21,  prowled towards me. She sniffed, nostrils flaring, and growled, "Vampire."

The word made the pack bristle, their bodies taunt and restless. They wanted to kill me, it would be safer to kill me. I was a threat, and they would fight to the death to eradicate me.

Before they could attack, I held my hands up in surrender. Addressing the leader, I said, "Tell your pack to stand down. I mean no harm."

"I'll decide that. No filthy bloodsucker is going to tell me what to do." she snarled.

I sighed. "Anna. Give me a chance. I need your help."

Anna, Luna of the Blood Moon pack, mate to their Alpha, Asher, and extremely stubborn werewolf, scowled at me. "You lost your chance when you ran out on us during the Pack War, General Ashleigh. Or is it Queen Ashleigh now?"

I smirked. "That's right." I knew I shouldn't be provoking her, but I couldn't resist. It was almost too fun to watch Anna scowl. 

The pack shifted warily. Anna glared at me, then said "Agree to let me put guards around you so you don't do anything funny, and we can go to the rest of the pack. Then we'll talk."

"Fine." I replied curtly. Guards wouldn't do anything to stop me if I decided to jump up into the treetops, anyway. Wolves couldn't climb, and even in their human forms, the dogs had an aversion to being in the air.

"Kavina. Darem." Anna gestured towards me, and two of the werewolves, one male and one female, stepped forward and shifted. The two wolves fell into place either side of me, the female eyeing me with mistrustful eyes. The pack started to move. 

Anna motioned for me to follow her, then broke into a run. Grinning, I followed, Kavina and Darem on my heels. Being a vampire, I outpaced most of the dogs in their human forms, but despite not being a wolf, Anna managed to run at the same speed as me. We reached the Blood Moon pack's camp in a matter of minutes. 

The werewolves greeted me with suspicious muttering. One of them called out, "What's the bloodsucker doing here?" A look from Anna silenced him. 

Even though she kept up her stern façade, I could tell that being among her pack relaxed Anna. She was becoming less and less the responsible, serious Luna and more the funny, kind, carefree rebel I knew from the Pack War.

Asher, Anna's mate and the Alpha of the pack, ran towards us. He and Anna embraced, then Asher stepped back and saw me. For a reputably cool-headed Alpha male, his response was hostile. 

"What's she doing here?" he snarled. I growled back, a warning. I was the Queen of Vampires - I wasn't about to let this lowly pack of dogs disrespect me. Several wolves flinched back. Taking a deep breath, I reminded myself why I was here. Just remember Jake.

"We found her in the woods," Anna said. "She says she means no harm."

"Isn't she the one who ordered the leeches to turn tail during the Pack War?"

"Yep."

I decided it was time to set some boundaries. "Ok, first of all, I'm right here, so you could be polite, given that I haven't attacked or done anything hostile at all. Second, the Pack War was a misunderstanding. I got a message from the queen at that time that our troops were needed. There was a coven of about 50 attacking, and half of them had talents. And third, I've actually come here for your help."

"What could the Queen of the almighty bloodsuckers want from us?" said Asher sarcastically.

Ignoring him, I turned to Anna. "I met a human. He knows who I am."

"And I suppose you want me to kill him?" asked Anna.

"No!" I exclaimed, panicking slightly. She raised an eyebrow, looking skeptical as I spoke. "No. If it were that, I would have already done it myself." Calming down, I continued. "He knows who - what - I am. And... I've fallen in love with him."

The reaction to this was chaotic. Several werewolves shifted, others cried out for my immediate death, since it would surely be safer than allowing this to continue.

Anna's voice was deadly quiet. "Does he love you?"

"Yes."

Anna nodded decisively. "Then what do you want us to do, Ashleigh?"

As I explained, the werewolves' eyes grew rounder and rounder. What I was asking them to do had never been done before. When I had finished, Asher stepped forward.

"And how do we know you will keep your word?" he asked. "After all, you've broken promises before."

"My heart wasn't on the line before." I answered. "Asher, Anna is your mate. I love Jake as much as you love her. If he dies, if I kill him, my very soul will shatter. I can't live without him, Asher." I added quietly. "So I ask again, will you do this for me?"

Asher nodded, then strode off. Anna and the rest of the pack shifted and bounded after him. I started running back to the only  life I had, trusting the wolves to do their job. 

I had promised that I would declare all wolf lands forbidden to vampires. In return, the pack would find something that was commonly viewed as myth. It might end in death, but if they succeeded, it would mean Jake and I could both have our wish.

The Blood Moon pack had set out to find the Scepter of Hades, the one thing, apart from the god himself, that had power over mortality.