Free Howl (Winter Pass Wolves Book 1) by Vivian Wood, Amelie Hunt

them had guns in hand. No one held one, but she saw a couple of weapons holstered at the mens’ waists.
    The wind picked up for a moment, and the wolves went quiet for several beats before starting again, louder this time. Penny was pretty sure that they could smell her, knew she was close by.
    Then the wind’s direction shifted again, blowing straight at Penny. Only half aware of her actions, she lifted her nose and sucked in a breath. The metallic tang of blood hit her senses, with an underlying musk that she knew all too well.
    Harlan .
    She didn’t stop to wonder how she knew. She didn’t do anything, actually. She stood for a moment, thinking about Harlan, red blooming in her field of vision as she considered that the only decent, loving man she’d ever met was being hunted, had even been trapped and wounded by these… murderers.
    They weren’t just going to hurt him. These smug assholes were going to kill Harlan. Her man. Her mate.
    “No,” she whispered, her words carried away on the breeze.
    Somewhere deep inside her body, something dark was clawing its way to the surface, fighting for release. It smelled the blood, knew the scent of its mate.
    Howled for vengeance.
    Then Penny felt a flash of blinding pain, and her whole world went dark.

Chapter Nine
    P enny’s eyes opened . She shivered. It was cold outside. She was naked.
    She stirred, gradually growing aware that she lay in the snow. She crawled onto all fours. A glimpse down at her hands and thighs showed that she was covered in dark, icy red.
    Blood.
    She heard a soft chuffing sound. She looked up to find Harlan in his wolf form, pacing his cage. He whined, scratching at the bars, then backing away.
    Penny forced herself to get up. Staggered over to the cage. Pried the door open with shaking fingers, ignoring the searing burn of the silver where it touched her flesh.
    The wolf sprung free from the cage, jumping down from the truck bed and nuzzling her hip. She sensed he was concerned.
    Penny let her eyelids close again. Her body fell, but she wasn’t awake to feel herself hit the ground.

    “ P enny .”
    Warmth. She burrowed into the comforting sensation, not ready to wake.
    “Penny?”
    That sound… she loved that sound. That voice was important…
    Harlan . It was Harlan’s voice.
    Penny peeled her eyelids open. She was wrapped up in Harlan’s blankets, lying on his bed. Harlan himself was staring down at her, his brow creased with worry.
    “Mmmf,” was all Penny could manage.
    “I need you to eat or drink something,” Harlan said. “Here, let’s get you sitting up.”
    He slid an arm behind Penny’s neck and helped her lean forward so that he could stuff some pillows behind her back. Just that little movement made every single muscle in Penny’s body scream for mercy.
    “What…” she mumbled, unsure why she felt so terrible.
    “Have a sip of water, okay?” Harlan said.
    Penny sipped from the straw he offered, then settled back with a sigh.
    “You’ve been out for a couple of days straight,” Harlan informed her. “It’s like that, after the first shift. At least it was for me.”
    “First shift?” Penny squinted at him, her brain stuffed with fuzzy cotton balls.
    “Into a wolf.”
    Harlan gave her another concerned glance.
    “Ohhhh,” Penny said, giving a jerky nod. “The blood… the snow… Oh god, I killed them, didn’t I?”
    “You saved us,” Harlan told her. “And I’m pretty sure you only killed one of them. The rest climbed into a Humvee and got the hell out of there.”
    Penny cringed.
    “Am I a monster?” she asked, afraid what Harlan would say. She didn’t even remember the shift or anything she’d done, but he had every right to be disgusted with her. After all, she’d killed someone. In ice-cold blood, if she remembered correctly.
    “Oh, sweetheart,” Harlan said. He leaned in and wrapped his arms around her, holding her close. “You only did what I wished I could do. You protected your mate.