Blood Challenge Read Online Free

type to hate anyone who wasn’t like him.
    She forced herself to focus on the meeting.
    “She can’t stay. She isn’t one of us,” said a burly man with greasy hair. He shook his fist as he spoke.
    “What choice is there?” another man replied. He was slim, but with muscles that rippled as he paced across the clearing. He was handsome, with an even tone that conveyed calm.
    “You and that wife of yours should have left her out there. That’s a solution,” yet another man shouted.
    “Take her back,” said a huge woman sitting on a log. She was also shirtless, and her large breasts jiggled when she got to her feet. Graying-brown hair cascaded down her front to hide her sagging breasts, but they continued to bounce as she raised her voice. “Leave her there. It’s not our responsibility if she doesn’t find her way out of the mountains.”
    “You would leave her to die?” Rica spoke without a trace of emotion in his tone.
    “Surely you don’t want her to stay, Alpha?” There was a note of deference in the woman’s tone, but she didn’t back down. “She isn’t one of us.” She turned her glare to the younger, calmer man. “We’ve had enough outsiders brought into the Pack lately.”
    “You dare speak about my wife?”
    Ellie’s eyes widened further at the man’s display of temper. She had pegged him as a peacekeeper, until that moment. She turned her head to look at Davinia, finding the other woman huddled against the tree, with her head down. It must be Viggo down there, speaking up for his wife.
    “The subject of Viggo’s wife has been settled.” A hint of anger laced Rica’s voice. “The issue up for discussion is what to do about the outsider.” He took a few steps forward, taking time to meet the eyes of each member assembled. “I’ll allow a vote on the matter, but the decision rests with me.”
    The greasy-haired man shook his head. “But—”
    Rica turned to him, snarling. “Do you challenge me, Istal?”
    The other man sank to his knees in the snow, bowing his head. “No, Alpha.”
    Rica nodded with satisfaction. “Voice your opinion. Yea, she stays. Nay, she goes.”
    Ellie held her breath, awaiting their reaction. Her heart sank at the overwhelming majority of nays that rang out from the clearing below. She looked at Davinia, and her frightened expression didn’t improve Ellie’s confidence.
    Once the voices died down, Viggo stepped forward. “The decision is yours, Rica, but know I won’t support cold-blooded murder. If you decide to leave that woman in the mountains, you aren’t the leader I thought you were.”
    Ellie couldn’t hold back a gasp as Rica leaped at his brother, landing gracefully before him. She heard Davinia cry out when Rica grasped Viggo by the throat and lifted him to his toes. She saw her friend start to rush forward and hurried to intercept her, holding her around her thick waist. “Remember what you told me. Viggo would be in trouble if they see us.”
    Davinia’s lips trembled. “He won’t hurt him. Rica wouldn’t hurt his brother, his Beta…would he?”
    Ellie shrugged, having no answer. They ducked behind the tree together, holding hands, as they watched the scene unfold.
    “Are you challenging me, brother?” Rica’s soft purr barely carried to them, but his anger seemed to resonate around the clearing and up the hill. “Do you question my ability to lead?”
    “Not if you make the right decision,” Viggo said with a gasp.
    “I see.” Rica thrust him away, causing Viggo to land on the ground. “You’ll support me if I make the decisions you want.” He turned his back on his brother. “The woman stays.”
    Ellie expected a flurry of protests, so the eerie quiet surprised her. She looked at Davinia. “Why aren’t they arguing?”
    “They wouldn’t defy the Alpha. Only someone planning to challenge him would.”
    “Will Viggo challenge Rica?”
    Davinia shook her head. “He’s allowed more leeway, because he’s Beta…I