Sacrifices

By S.L. Armstrong

Sasha is the first female to be granted leadership of her own pack in the House of Wood, a kingdom of shapeshifting Elves. It was a decision her king and regent hadn't made lightly, and the future of all the female Alphas in the House seems to now rest upon her shoulders. The transition is hardly smooth, however, and Sasha winds up at odds with Aneira, her chosen mate. Failure to maintain control of her pack would mean demotion and shame, not to mention ruining her chance to prove to the rest of the Elves that women are just as capable leaders when given the opportunity.

In a House of such long-standing inequality, Sasha now has to weigh her own needs against those of her pack and, more importantly, those of Aneira. When a solution finally presents itself, Sasha knows she should jump at it, but doing what she must could drive Aneira away forever.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Storm Moon Press
• Release date: Feb 3, 2012
• ISBN: 9781937058371

S.L. Armstrong

S.L. Armstrong and K. Piet met a handful of years ago through a joint love of Tolkien fanfiction. After a couple of years of casual friendship, they put their heads together and began writing fanfiction. It didn't take long before fanfiction wasn't enough and they began to write in their own worlds. Now, they jointly publish their work through their publishing venture, Storm Moon Press LLC.

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Sacrifices

S.L. Armstrong

Published by Storm Moon Press LLC at Smashwords

Copyright © 2011, S.L. Armstrong. All rights reserved.

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Publisher's Note

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the authors' imaginations or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

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Cover art by Dare Empire eMedia Productions

King Terfel had given her very strict orders: her pack was not to become a female dominated pack. The order had riled her, made her growl, but Regent Gauwyn—the king's chosen mate—had calmed her, as he usually did.

It isn't out of a desire to continue the oppression of the women, Gauwyn had said with a smile. The Ice Elf, so different from his Wood Elf mate, had a smile that could calm a rabid wolverine. "It's about equality, Sasha. It would make you no better than the men who forced alpha females to behave as kicked puppies for millennia."

And, damn him, he was right.

The House of Wood was beginning to see how the interloper to their ways was almost always right when it came to such matters. Maybe the Wise Woman had been right: change came with an icy hand.

Sasha was an anomaly. She was one of a handful of alpha females in the House of Wood that hadn't had the alpha beaten out of her over centuries of abuse. Out of women capable of being the alpha of a new pack, she had been chosen due to seniority. Age, it seemed, still had its benefits.

Pale hands slid over her shoulders, looped around her neck, and Sasha leaned back into the warm scent of fur and heather.

Aneira had been running in the woods.

Sasha tilted her head back and smiled up at her lover. I missed you.

I missed you, too, Aneira whispered, dipping down to brush her lips over Sasha's. But, I understood. A summons from the king could not be ignored. What did he want?

Sasha rubbed her hands along Aneira's sun-kissed arms. He has asked me to form a new pack. I am to turn in initial numbers within the week.

Aneira stilled against her. You will be pack alpha?

Yes. Sasha smiled. You will be the pack alpha's mate.

A hesitant smile curved