Lev turned away and stared at the cave opening. She’d clearly touched a raw nerve. He sighed. “Because of my exposure to radiation from Chernobyl, I have numerous mutations not found in other werewolves. Your father ran my DNA and concurred. I’m unique. Untested. I might have powers I’m not even aware of.”
Rachel kept her tone as gentle as possible. “The single women don’t want to risk children being born with unusual mutations.”
“Rumors of three-headed pups and weres born as monsters after the change are rampant.”
She had watched a documentary on wolves of Chernobyl and how the Geiger counter went ballistic when scanning their fur. Maybe that was why he never hung around potential mates. Yet, the documentary mentioned how all of animals including wolves were thriving. Would a Geiger counter indicate he was hot? Not in a good way. “Do you exceed safe levels?”
“Don’t worry. I’m no longer dangerous to be around. My lycan blood has gotten rid of any radioactivity I might have had. I am normal. No longer radioactive. If I were, the packs would banish me altogether. Nonetheless, none see me as a potential mate.” He stood and wrapped the blanket below his waist. Clearly, no longer in the mood for sex.
“I didn’t mean to offend.”
“I’m used to it.”
“Where are you going?”
“Getting rid of evidence.”
“The other werewolves?”
“Yes.”
“You can’t go out there. Not naked. There’s still a blizzard.”
“I will shift and dig out of our temporary ice door.”
“Hurry back then. You might be able to survive a nearby explosion but not being frozen.”
Lev snorted. “We survived the avalanche.”
Even so, how would they return to her lodge with him naked? Photographers would be more than happy to post him on every social network. “You might need clothes before we hike down.”
“Outside, I have plenty to choose from.”
“What about the bear? It killed those werewolves, and there’s still a blizzard.”
Lev grinned. “I was that bear, Goldilocks.”
“Wait, I thought your kind can only go wolf?”
“That is true. However, I have a mutation that allows me to shift into other predators for a brief period. Complements of Chernobyl.”
“Does that include big cats, as in a lion?” Could he have turned into a lion and killed the Boko Haram terrorists? That would explain why the enraged lion only killed the terrorists and not the prisoners. Would he have gone through all that trouble to avenge her near death at their hands? Her gratitude for being her mysterious champion quarreled with guilt over their deaths, not because they didn’t deserve justice, but because he had turned into her own personal assassin.
“Our secret.” He winked and then shifted into the bear. No bone breaking or joint twisting. Just a shimmer and then poof. He pawed the ice pack with his massive claws and it melted.
Awestruck, she gaped as the big bear shoved snow and packed her back into the cave.
Clever woman. She figured out he had returned to Africa and killed the men who threatened her and so many others. He growled. Why had he told her so much? Now, like everyone else, she thought of him as a freak. Yet, she, her father, and a few select members of Team Greywolf were the only ones that knew he could shift into other beasts.
No time to waste. Lev shifted from bear to bipedal wolf form and gathered the dead lycans. Near zero visibility from the blizzard, Lev viewed the mess he made of them. Heads, ripped torsos and human body parts everywhere. They’d gone after him as wolves but upon death became human again. Odd. Most wolves remained in wolf form unless they died fighting as humans. This was the first time he’d run across it.
Lev memorized the tattoo of the weird wolf paw print pentagram. He’d contact Rylee and see if she knew of a pack that wore that symbol. He chose clothing and boots that belonged to the alpha. A good fit. He buried them and their abandoned clothes deep below the snow. Lev paused and gazed at the sky. How many lycans would return? Nevertheless, he and Rachel would be long gone. He wouldn’t risk being outnumbered and losing Rachel to find out who they were. Once in safe territory, they’d figure who exactly they were. In the morning, they’d get the hell out of here.
Lev covered all signs of blood and guts. When this pack returned, they’d realize she was under the protection of the LIA. He imagined they wanted her for an alpha male as a breeder of hybrids. He raged. No one would have her. She belonged to him. No matter if Rylee or the entire royal council disagreed. Sure, he was a freak, but how did they know he wouldn’t produce superior werewolves rather than mutants. Or could he be sterile? He’d refused to have his semen tested even for the sake of lycan science. His ego of being top wolf would end knowing he’d never father children. Even
mutant ones.
He sniffed around for any more evidence. Clean. Good. He glanced at the cave. Could he really control his need to feed from her blood and ravish her body and soul until his wolf sated? Guilt shadowed his desire. Maybe bringing Rachel back to be a member of the pack was a mistake. The look on her face when he’d mentioned marking her haunted him. She knew nothing of their strict pack code of behavior. Humans were considered property of their werewolf masters. He couldn’t imagine her bowing to every member from alpha to lowly omega. Not Miss Independence globe-trotting doctor.