rise to my feet as fast as I can, ignoring the pain flooding my body, ignoring everything as I rush forward on shaky legs and stand between Kade and the male. Tremors run through me as I open my arms to block this asshole from going for Kade again, the small weapon in my hand hopeless. But he will not get to him. I breathe heavily as the dark-haired male watches me closely, looking at me and then to the wolf.
“Kade! What the fuck are you doing here?” I shout down the link. “Leave now and go home quickly. Please,” I plead, but it doesn’t reach him. There is nothing but silence. He has completely shut down the link.
I keep my eyes on the male, who watches on in confusion, before I peek over my shoulder at Kade. I grunt and grip the blade tighter, swallowing down the nausea that rises. His normally blue eyes are darker, bleeding to silver from the edges of his irises, and his pupils are larger. Kade isn’t in charge right now, Axis is.
Fuck!
No, no, no. “Josh, I need your help,” I rush out down his link, but still I get no reply. I bite my lip to stop the sound of panic that wants to leave me and look into Axis’ eyes, trying to find any hint of Kade in there. But there’s nothing. Kade isn’t in there. Gods, what am I supposed to do?
The sound of boots moving on the ground has my head snapping back to the male as he steps closer, and I swear my heart stops. “No!” I cry. “Don’t.” I loathe the way my voice cracks as I speak, and Runa begins to move restlessly within me, a whimper leaving her at my distress.
The male pauses, titling his head as his eyes find their way to the wildly beating pulse in my neck. They slide to Kade and then back to me, a snarl leaving him. He turns his blade so he’s holding it with the metal running along the outside of his forearm and comes closer. I lift my hand, throwing my small blade toward him as I back up closer to Kade. He easily deflects it, hitting it away with his own weapon, and I brace for him to come at me. From blade or hands, I ready myself for more pain, determined not to let him near the wolf at my back.
A savage growl comes from behind me. Just as I turn toward the wolf, he charges toward the male, knocking me to the ground as he barges past. “No!” I scream, watching as they crash into each other. I scramble to get back to my feet, but my legs refuse to cooperate. “Stop!”
The male hits Kade in the side of the head with his fist, knocking him to the left momentarily, but Kade goes for him again, rabid sounds leaving him as I watch on in terror. I dig my fingers into the dry earth beneath my hands as the male keeps knocking the wolf back every time he gets close. He’s toying with him, like he did me, and Kade just keeps going back for more. Every blow he receives adds another injury to his body. He won’t stop, he won’t let up. He’s acting like a crazed beast whose only desire is to tear the male into pieces. Blood pours from different places on his body where he’s been hit and cut as the ground turns wet beneath them. Kade’s dark, gray fur is even darker from all the blood.
Kade tries to tear into the males’ arm after he’s been flung back again, but the male slices across his shoulder, making him yelp in pain. I will my body to move and rush forward toward him, managing to grab the slick fur on his back to try and get him to stop, but he just pushes his body hard into me, forcing me to let go. I’m knocked into a tree, and I hiss as the rough bark slices into my arm and the side of my face. I bring my hand up and feel blood seeping from the cuts.
“Kade,” I whimper, pain radiating through my chest as he continues, my soul screaming at the savage growls tearing out of him. “Please… please stop,” I beg. Tears sting the back of my eyes at the sight of him so out of control. My vision blurs as I push off the tree, my movements sluggish and slow as I stagger toward him. It feels like the forest is closing in around me, the dark, twisted branches wrapping around my heart and squeezing until they pierce it, making me bleed out. “Carzan, enough,” I plead, my breathing erratic as my knees give out. I land hard on the unforgiving ground, and my knees burn with pain. “Please!” I scream at him, the raw sound tearing from my throat. He has to stop, he’s losing too much blood. He’s going to get himself killed.
He. Has. To. Stop.
The male snaps his head toward the sound of my scream, looking at me on my knees, and then to the tears in my eyes. He grunts and looks away as Kade attacks him again, but this time, he grabs Kade by the scruff of the neck and pins him to the floor on his stomach, his knees straddling the wolf on either side. He did it so effortlessly, handling the five-foot wolf with ease.
“Shift,” the male demands of Kade, while the wolf’s cold stare is aimed at me. Kade bites at air around him, saliva dripping from his mouth and onto the ground. The male puts his free hand on the back of his head and forces it down. “Shift, now,” he orders in a deep growl, the dominance radiating from him far superior to Kade’s young wolf.
Unable to resist the order, Kade’s pupils start to shrink, the bleeding silver around his irises pull back, and his dark blue eyes start to lighten to his normal shade. His body convulses. Bones start to move, fur starts receding into skin, and his teeth shorten. It doesn’t take long for a male to appear where the wolf once was beneath the dark-haired male. Panting for breath, Kade’s fingers dig into the ground, his face twisted in pain from his injuries and being commanded to change against his will. I sit up on my knees and take in Kade’s bloody and bruised body as the fight drains from him, and he slumps into the ground.
“Now, why don’t we start with you answering some questions,” the male aims my way. “Who the fuck are you, and what are you doing in The Deadlands?”
I stay silent, biting on the inside of my lower lip as I wonder how to answer him, how to get Kade away from him. He stares at me, waiting for me to respond. When I take too long, he grabs a fistful of Kade’s hair and snaps his head back, exposing his neck. I jolt when his blade comes up and presses against his throat, and my fingers curl, digging into my palms. I swallow hard. The male presses the blade into his skin a little more, and Kade’s eyes fly to mine.
I find exhaustion, defiance and an apology in his blue orbs, telling me everything that he can’t say. I bring my shaky hands to rest on the top of my thighs, clenching them into the soggy material of my pants as I try to reach him through the link, but it’s still not open.
“Hmmm, do you need some more motivation?” A cruel smirk slides on the male’s face, and in the next moment, Elites are coming out from within the trees, dragging my pack members with them.
My eyes widen slightly before I force my face to go carefully blank at the sight. I don’t look at them, choosing to keep my focus on the male who is obviously in charge. I see another dark-haired male dragging Josh forward out the corner of my eye, forcing him to his knees to the right of me. I glance in his direction and notice his hands are tied behind his back with rope that glows, cutting into his skin. I grind my teeth.
“It’s okay,” Josh tries to reassure me, his link finally open. “If we can find an opening, get Kade and run toward–” The link suddenly shuts down, and my eyes look to Josh as his face twists in pain. What’s going on?
“It’s rude to have a private conversation. If you have anything to say, you can answer my questions,” the asshole murmurs, and my eyes go back to him. How did he know we were talking? He wrenches Kade’s head back further, causing a cry of pain to slip from his lips. My insides revolt at the sound, and I can’t contain the warning growl that slips free. Runa bristles at what the male is doing to her pup, and the leader looks from Kade to me, confirming he has the advantage here. “Well?” he demands.
My eyes flash as Runa forces herself through my eyes, and I reel her back in. We can’t win here. There are too few of us, those that are here are tied up, and I’m completely exhausted. I also can’t risk Kade. Nothing is worth risking Kade. Reluctantly I grit out, “My name is Rhea. We live in The Deadlands.”
“Rhea,” he tests my name with distaste, and I suppress a shiver. “What do you mean you live in The Deadlands? Nothing can live here, it’s uninhabitable. It has been for all of time. Don’t fucking lie to me.”
“I’m not,” I rush out, my gaze going to Kade. His form slumping little, causing the blade to slice his skin. I close my eyes briefly. “There is an area where we live that is full of life,” I answer quickly as I panic seeing the blood that seeps from Kade’s throat. I tell him anything to let him go.
“You’re full of shit, nothing like that is in here,” he growls. Moving the blade from Kade’s neck, he aims it to the back of his shoulder, the tip pressing down through his t-shirt and against his skin. “Did someone send you to try and kill us? You must be fucking stupid to try.”
“No, no one sent us to kill you,” I answer. It’s the truth. We weren’t told to kill them, that was our decision. “I’m not lying. The Deadlands are our home.” He pauses, looking at me to continue. Fuck “I… if I come with you to the Highers, will you let them go? I was the one who set the trap stones, and I caused the bora to come for you.” I ignore the Elites’ hard stares on my face at my confession. “I knew what they would do when they found you. Some of your men died, and that’s on me and me alone.”
He lets out a mocking laugh. “You think you can bargain with me? In your current position? Oh, little wolf. You are all going to pay for the deaths of my trainees.”
My brows furrow. “Your trainees?”
“I’m the Alpha of the Elites,” he says casually, and my face pales. He’s not just the leader of this team… he’s the fucking Alpha. I start to tremble. “The men that were killed were my trainees. How do you feel about cutting short lives that should have long lived?” he sneers, and the men around him growl in response.
I look down, unable to look at the loathing in his eyes. I did what I had to do, what I felt like I had to do to protect my pack. We were backed into a corner. I acted with what I thought was the only option. They wouldn’t have stopped looking for Sarah as they are relentless at their tasks. They have gotten this deep into the forest and survived. It was only a matter of time before they stood atop the cliffs looking down at Eridian. Now, all that we had done didn’t matter in the slightest. I killed people, young people, for nothing. Because now we are in the grasp of the Alpha of the Elites, the Highers most fierce weapon, and I have no idea the outcome. I failed. I failed them all.
Forgive me Zahariss.
“Nothing to say?” he asks, his voice condescending. I shake my head, still looking down, trying to not let the guilt drown me, trying not to let the situation suffocate me. Shove it down Rhea. “Pathetic,” he spits, and I can’t help my slight flinch at his words.
“Pathetic, can’t even get your wolf to come out. How you were born is a fucking miracle! You should have been strangled as soon as you came out of your whore of a mother’s cunt! Aww… are you crying? Poor pathetic little girl. Do you want mommy? Well, mom–”
“Rhea!” Josh shouts, and I blink, looking up toward him. His eyes are wild as he struggles against the male holding him, trying to stand to get to me as the others do the same. I shake my head and press my knuckles into my eyes, shaking off the memory.
It has been a long time since I was sucked into a memory like that.
I clear my throat and drop my hands back to my thighs. “I’m okay,’ I whisper to Josh. I then look to the Alpha and say, “I accept sole responsibility for what I did to your Elites. I accept your decision, but leave the rest out of it.”
“Why are you accepting sole responsibility when all of you were involved?” he questions me, brow raised.
“I’m the Alpha of this pack,” I state, as I nod to my members. My spine straightens, and my chin lifts at the declaration. I’m proud to be called Alpha of Eridian. It’s an honor.
“A female Alpha with no mate?” His face shows his surprise for a split second at my nod before he controls his reaction. There are not many females that run packs on their own anymore. There is usually an Alpha male and female that run a pack together. “So, this isn’t your mate?” He nods his head toward Josh, and the question surprises me.
“No,” I shake my head. “I have no mate.”
“And this is your pack?” I nod again. “Is this all your pack?“ I hesitate, and he picks up on it. He looks thoughtful for a second, looking toward the dark, blond-haired male who has Colten on his knees in front of him. The blond male looks at the rest of the Elites, especially their injured who are a little further back. I follow his line of sight and see the woman from earlier cleaning some of the injured men’s wounds.
“Maize,” the blond calls, and the woman looks toward him. “How many injured, and how badly?”
“Six injured, three badly. They may not make the night even with shifting. I suspect one has a broken rib in his lung. He needs a healer, Leo, if he stands a chance at living,” she replies coldly, looking directly at me.
The Alpha’s face hardens again, and I look at Kade and all the blood he’s losing. His eyes are drooping as he takes slow, raspy breaths and pure fear sets in. It’s the only reason for what I say next. “I can take your injured to a healer,’ I force out in a rush, and my guys look at me in shocked surprise. They then look in the direction of Kade. Worry soon shines in their eyes. Josh struggles again, eyes on Kade as he tries to get to him, but the other dark-haired male holds him steady. I have no choice but to do what I’m about to do. Kade needs help, and there is only one person who can help him right now. “I can take you to a healer,” I say louder when no one speaks, demanding their attention. I feel all eyes on me as I continue. “I will take you if you vow no more harm comes to him.” I point at Kade. “Or my pack. Or anyone at our home,” I add.
Everyone is silent as my words set in. I failed the mission, and now I’m inviting the Elites to our home. The home I was trying to keep them so very far away from that I was willing to kill for it. Have killed for it. But I must get Kade help. He won’t be able to shift for hours yet. It would put too much strain on his body, and if the Elite Alpha forces him to shift back now in his weakened state, he might not make it. And that is not an option. I put my pack before everything… everything but Kade. I will figure something out if he agrees to go to Eridian. But Kade is my priority now.
Finally, the Alpha speaks to me. “I could just torture the pup until you tell me where your home is.”
“You could,” I whisper, my voice steady despite the thought of him doing that making me want to throw up. “But he is innocent. He had nothing to do with this. He was just trying to protect me. He wasn’t even supposed to be here.”
“My trainees that died were innocent,” he spits, nostrils flaring as he glares at me.
“I know,” I agree with a nod. “You can do whatever you see fit with me, and I will take you to the healer.” He stares at me, and I stare back, letting him see the truth of my words. If he has to take me back to the Highers, then so be it. But Eridian and the lives there will stay secret. If I can’t do it, then Solvier will make sure there is a way to do it. I just need time.
He searches my face for a few moments before looking toward his injured, then looking back at me, “How long will it take to get my men to a healer?”
“I have a port stone in my pack I left behind.” I nod in the direction we came from. “If we don’t collect it and go on foot, it will take days, depending how fast we move.”
“We have a port stone. We will use that,” he decides. “Damian, grab the stone and gather everyone together,” he orders the brown-haired male that was on watch in their camp. “Leo, Zaide, round up the assholes that attacked us.” The blond male in front of Colten grabs him by the arms and hauls him up roughly, causing Hudson to growl where he’s on his knees next to him. The other dark-haired male, Zaide, does the same to Josh while Sebastian and Taylor grumble as they are pulled to their feet. I snarl at their rough handling of my pack, unable to help myself while they just smirk at me. Unconcerned. Just wait assholes.
The Alpha stands, causing me to look in his direction as he sheaths his blade. He bends and picks up a barely conscious Kade and throws him over his shoulder. Not seeming to care about the blood dripping on his clothes he moves over to the side and picks my knife off the ground. Walking over to me, his face lethal as he brings his free hand down and grips my ponytail. Tightening his hold on my hair, he snaps my head back while I glare up at him.
He growls down at me. “If you try anything stupid, I will slit the pup’s throat and make you watch. Is that clear?”
“Yes, it’s clear,” I grit out, ignoring the pain in my scalp. His chuckle is dark and low as he puts my knife back in my boot. “To see you play later.”
“Darius, everyone is ready,” calls the blonde male, Leo.
Darius, a name to put to the Alpha asshole.
He pulls me up by my hair, my head still tilted back at an awkward angle as his face hovers close to mine. “You fucked up, in more ways than you know.” He drags me over by my hair to where everyone is huddled together, ready to port. He stops when Damian hands him a stone. He puts his back to everyone and looks down at me. “Hold the port stone and set the location.”
He passes me the stone while still holding my hair tightly, but allows my head to straighten. Everyone is still touching, and the red, plaited mohawk guy stands next to Darius, flicking his eyes to me before placing a hand on his shoulder. I close my eyes and feel the tingling in my palm as I visualize where I want to port in. I would usually port to the base of the cliffs, but time is of the essence with Kade, so just inside the Eridian Forest will do. The one good thing with porting there, is that they still don’t know where it is. They could store the location in another port stone, but they don’t know exactly where it is from there toward our home, and that’s an advantage I won’t ignore. They also don’t know you can’t use magic inside Eridian’s barrier, so they can’t communicate with others about the location, giving me an opportunity to think about how the fuck I’m going to get them to keep it a secret.
Or try and kill them, again.
“It’s ready,” I tell Darius as my eyes open, and I hand the stone back.
“Then it’s time to port,” he says, staring down at me. “Let’s see where you live, little wolf.”
