Chapter 12: Part 1

Marcus had an appointment to keep and he looked forward to it. Ivan would be waiting at the pit. It was the location of punishments, fights for position and fights to the death. He would not kill Ivan but he would make a statement. Occasionally it came to this with the wolf, he was the alpha of his pack and though he knew Marcus was stronger, it was in his blood to challenge. When they engaged in battle, it burned off steam and right now they both needed the release. He couldn't get Amy out of his mind. Her scent, her laugh and just her presence was more than he could take right now. Ivan also needed to know he was making his claim. Amy was off limits to all the wolves. She was his. He knew it as soon as he saw her again.

Other wolves were already surrounding the pit. Word spread fast throughout the family when a fight or challenge occurred. The pit was about fifty feet in diameter and twenty feet deep. Its use to settle differences and establish the pecking order commenced more than