Scent of Salvation (Chronicles of Eorthe #1) Read Online Free

markings on the wind. If he didn’t hurry, she’d run off the neutral ground of Temple lands and onto some other pack’s territory. He couldn’t follow if she did. “Stop! There’s danger that way.”
    She twisted and glanced at him, not watching her step. Something caught her foot at the top of the hill and she fell.
    Sorin leaped, reaching with clawed fingers. They pierced the hem of her white jacket. The delicate material tore along the sharp edges of his claws, and the shreds slipped through his fingers. Relief mixed with triumph, pumping through his veins, gave way to dread. He scrambled to grab the tatters and not lose the female, but the momentum of her flight downhill sent her tumbling head-over-heels out of his grasp.
     
     
    A cry echoed over the quiet forest of Payami lands. Kele spun toward the sound. It came from the direction of the hills, off their path.
    Her guards, in feral form, tightened the circle around her. They perked their ears forward as low growls rumbled in their chests.
    The thick forest blocked her view. She couldn’t see who cried out. Shoving past the males, she headed toward the noise.
    Ahote, her primary guard, blocked her way. “We’re to take you to the Temple and the Temple only.” He gestured at the overgrown path that connected their den and their place of worship.
    Well, her place of worship. Not many of the pack prayed anymore.
    “I’ll send someone to investigate.” He gestured to another of the males.
    She glanced at each of her four guards. It wasn’t their fault she needed protection. Her defective body made her weak. Not being able to shift to feral form, stuck as a civilian, left her defenseless in the wilds. Traveling in the forest was safer as a beast, with sharp teeth and claws to fight. Until she figured out her trigger to change shape, she’d need guards whenever leaving the pack’s den.
    But she rapped her knuckles on the tip of Ahote’s nose anyway. If she let him boss her around, the others would eventually start. Her place in pack hierarchy was a constant battle. Even her own mother didn’t know how to treat her. “I’m not ignoring a cry for help. They might be hurt.” As daughter of the Payami alpha couple, Kele was due more respect, but the fact she couldn’t shift confused everyone’s instincts.
    Ahote’s ears folded back and he moved aside, not breaking eye contact. A quiet growl stirred in his chest as she passed him. It was difficult to ignore the huge, black beast, but if she showed even the slightest scent of fear he’d attack her.
    With practiced ease, she slowed her heart rate and kept breathing in a steady rhythm. Any of her guards could tear her to pieces, but she needed to believe they wouldn’t. The only thing stopping them was her overprotective father.
    Pushing past the bushes, Kele inhaled. A strange odor blew in the wind, mild and floral.
    Not far from the path, a female in civil form lay on the ground at the bottom of the hill. She rested just over the Payami territory line, marked every four days by her father’s scent.
    The female sat and gaped at them. Leaves and twigs clung to her brown hair. What used to be a white coat was twisted around her torso.
    Kele halted in her tracks.
    A massive, silver-furred male raced down the hill toward them.
    For a second, Kele lost control of her fear as her heart took flight. He was big—bigger than her father. This boded ill. Packs were not allowed on each other’s territories without an invitation from the alpha.
    Her guards charged forward, blocking the strange shifter’s path across their border.
    The male slid to a stop but his feet remained on Temple ground. Barely. “She belongs to me.” He leaned forward and confronted Ahote nose-to-nose.
    Kele knelt next to the female. “Are you injured?” The female had a traumatized expression. “Did he hurt you?”
    She stared at the feral males and grabbed Kele’s hand, her eyes never wavering from the beasts.
    Sniffing, Kele tried