Casmas Clan: Josiah and Clara
Chapter Seventeen

~ Josiah Josiah jerked away from Clara and stood before her protectively. He knew that voice, wanted its owner dead for oh so long. Josiah backed Clara into one of the lone corners of the den when he noticed Albert wasn't alone. Several high ranking members stood beside Albert, along with the Killt Alpha Rogé, and Josiah's one time best friend, Jolepar.

Josiah stared at the brown wolf standing proudly beside Albert. Josiah was once proud of Rogé and the way he led his pack, but ever since Albert joined and became Second, Rogé sickened him. The Alpha never should have allowed any of the deaths to occur.

"Father, why have allowed Albert to poison the Killt pack? Why did you allow him to kill all those humans for no reason?"

"There was a reason!"

Albert roared before Rogé could respond to Josiah's words. Josiah felt Clara cringing against his back, her scent of fear permeating the air around him, causing his wolf to push against his human side for dominance. Josiah had to fight him every second to remain in control.

"The Killt pack is now the strongest in the world. We are the purest now. All because I killed every human who wanted to tempt our wolves from the right path, who wanted to taint our bloodlines with their weak ones. The Amo pack believes in our same values and together we will destroy the Casmás Clan. After them, no one will be able to stand in our way."

"It's official, Albert. This inbreeding thing you have going on has finally rotted your brain into a state of perpetual dementia. I'm glad I'm no longer Killt now."

Anger suffused Albert's face before his wolf took over and forced him into his large, black wolf form. Josiah heard Clara's gasp and felt her shaking increase. Crap, he had forgotten she was terrified of wolves. Clara was going to hate him even

more now.

~ Clara 'It's him!' Clara thought over and over again when the large man in front of the wolf pack disappeared into the large black wolf that had killed her classmate Misty all those years ago. Unconsciously, Clara gripped the back of Josiah's shirt as her terror rose even higher. She plastered her body against his back. At the growls and snarls growing louder, Clara lowered her head to bury between his shoulder blades and closed her eyes. It was then she finally heard Josiah's words being whispered over and over again.

"I'm sorry...so sorry...you have to release me, or I can't protect you....Please, don't be afraid of me. I love you. I would never harm you...Please, don't fear me..."

It took a force of will she didn't even know she had, for Clara to push away from Josiah. She wasn't quite certain how he was going to protect her against a pack of wolves; hopefully, he had something hidden up his sleeve. She could use her magic but didn't have enough control to go after more than one opponent.

When Josiah took a step away from her and the corner she stood in, Clara's mind wandered back to her question: Was Josiah human? A spark and a flash of white caused Clara's legs to give out on her. She slid to the ground in stunned disbelief. Well, that answered that.

A large, sandy-colored wolf now stood where Josiah had only moments before. Its ears rolled back and a vicious snarl left its throat. Oddly enough, Clara felt no fear from this wolf. ...Again. It was the same wolf that had crawled up and licked her hand at the end of that last fight. To think, it was Josiah the entire time. She wasn't sure if she should be afraid, since he was a wolf, or if she should be mad at him for never telling her what he was.

Gratitude. That's what she felt for Josiah when a small, grey wolf leaped at her kneeling form. Josiah quickly switched directions, grabbed the wolf by the neck, and flung it away with ease. Clara could tell he wanted to finish the kill, but he refused to move from his protective stance in front of her. She didn't want to do it, she really didn't, but it came after her. It would come after again when Josiah was distracted. Quickly chanting a spell, Clara shot a bolt of lightning at the wounded wolf. It yelped once, then lay in a smoldering mass upon the floor, unmoving. All but Josiah's eyes swung in her direction. 'Oh shit, maybe I shouldn't have done that'.

~ Dermet Dermet rushed through Kosta with Harvey and Catalina at his side. Hoping he would reach his new den in time, or he would wind up losing two of the youngest members of his Clan. Whether Clara believed it or not, she belonged to the Casmás the moment she moved to Kosta. "Change, now!"

Dermet commanded when they neared the den. Dermet decided he would remain human to keep Clara calm since the silly girl was afraid of all shifters. He wanted to fight along with his men, but part of his job as Alpha was to keep his Clan members safe by any means. Even if it meant he couldn't fight.

The three of them suddenly dived out of the way of a stray lightning bolt shooting at them. Dermet cursed, knowing now that they had to kill all involved in this skirmish. There was no way in hell he would allow a survivor to go back to their packs and tell them that Casmás now had a witch among them.

Deciding 'the hell with it', Dermet quickly changed into his large lion form. He led the way to his new den, dodging lightning bolts the entire way. If there was lightning, then Clara did not need him to keep her calm.

'Finally', Dermet breathed a sigh of relief when the den came into view. The sidewalk was a complete and utter mess; bodies, blood, and who knew what else, covered the entire walkway. Causing Dermet to inwardly flinch. If it was this bad on the outside, then the inside would be ten times worse.

Putting on a burst of speed when he heard Clara cry out in pain, Dermet leaped through a broken window and into complete chaos. Three other members of the Clan had arrived before them, but, at the moment, the Killt pack was easily overpowering them with their sheer numbers.

A loud roar erupted from his throat when Dermet spotted a young grey colored wolf pinning Clara to the ground and snapping at her throat. All conscious thought left in a whoosh as white-hot rage exploded within him.