dusk. We were well protected on all sides since Thrain flanked me up front and our men were on each of our flanks. We took a brief break beside a small brook; it was

re so you could beat me," to Thrain's splash, "That will never happen, and you know it." This sparked an all-out war of splashes. Before getting out of the water, we fooled around in it for a while. We had to resume our journey. "Thrain, do you think that family will be alright?" I dressed and then turned around. When their Alpha forbade their daughter from visiting other packs to locate her mate, a family of wolves who had left their pack in the middle of the night They were in awful shape when we found them late last night; their clothes were hanging loosely, and the young child appeared incredibly ill and frail. They wouldn't likely last much longer on their own out here. I made a call to my border patrols and instructed them to keep an eye out for the family, to treat them respectfully, and to take care of them. They will be taken care of as best as they can, even if we don't currently have a pack doctor. They only need some wholesome food and a cozy place to sleep, and they will be OK. They have recently experienced a lot. We all turned into our wolves as I grinned. We took up position and retraced our steps toward the palace. ** We were starving, weary, and in desperate need of a shower when we arrived at the palace soon after sunset. We changed back into our human selves as the palace guards appeared. They welcomed us with the attitude that we were the shit on their feet. "What do you rogues want?" stated the tallest of the two. "We have an appointment to see the King in the morning." I nearly rolled my eyes. We weren't talking to you, bitch, the shorter guard snorted. I had to restrain a ferocious growl, and I knew the boys were doing the same. In this context, the word "bitch" was used to refer to a female wolf rather than as an insult. We were still living in the middle of the twentieth century. Since I knew I would slit their throats, I chose to let Thrain lead. Thrain's voice was strained, and I could tell that he was having difficulties controlling his wolf. "We have an appointment with the King in the morning, Bowers and company." The towering guard's eyes began to drift out before he nodded at us, allowing us to pass and informing us that a servant would be waiting for us outside to lead us to our rooms. I took several long breaths to keep myself from becoming enraged as we moved toward the palace. I had to explain to my wolves that they didn't realize I was an Alpha and that they didn't mean any offense, but it was di