***Devon***
My body was tensed and alert. Twelve men surrounded me.
It was easy to tell from the stench that they were rogues. All of them wore cut-off jeans. I had killed two of them to keep them from finding Val, but I wasn’t expecting them to be so many. From the howls we heard last night I counted at least five. Now there were more. I tried to keep them all in my line of vision, but it was hard with them surrounding me.
A man stepped out from behind a tree and slowly made his way towards us. The men stepped aside for him to enter the circle. I snarled at him when he paused a few feet in front of me. He only flashed me a smile.
“The famous Alpha Devon,” he growled. “Tell me Alpha, do you remember me?”
I frowned. “Should I?”
My words seemed to have angered him. He flashed fangs at me and took a step closer. The man clenched his fists at his side. He looked ready to launch at me. I was ready for him—for all of them. They were looking for Val. I’d die first before I allowed them to find her.
“You banished me,” the man growled. “You never allowed me to prove my innocence.”
It took me a full minute to realize who exactly he was. He had changed—his body was leaner and his hair longer—but I remembered his face now. “What was there to prove?” I asked him softly. “All evidence handed in proved that you were guilty.”
He growled. “I was innocent.”
My anger started to rise. “You beat and raped a sixteen-year-old. She had the scars to prove it. There was no doubt about it. There were witnesses.”
I wasn’t expecting his sudden attack. He tackled me around my waist, sending both of us flying backward. A punch to the face had my head snapping back. I managed to block the second hit and get one in of my own. I grunted when a fist slammed into my ribs. We rolled on the ground, throwing punches at each other. I managed to kick him away from me. He stumbled back and fell on his ass a few feet away.
Pain shot through me as I stood. I heard the tell-tale sign of someone shifting. My eyes shot towards him. He was already halfway through his shift. I knew that once he has managed to shift completely my chance of winning the fight would be over. I couldn’t shift with the still-healing injuries I had.
I sucked in breath and moved.
He was too concentrated on his shift to pay any attention to me. I grabbed the opportunity with both hands. Moving behind him, I grabbed his neck and snapped it. His half-shifted body dropped to the ground at my feet.
I slowly glanced up at the other men.
They started at me in shock, but it didn’t last long. I allowed my claws to slide from my fingertips. We were going to fight to the death. I couldn’t shift but I had some things to my advantage and I was going to fully use them.
***
***David
* **
I held my breath when I heard the mummer of voices.
My grip on the gun tightened. I pursed my lips when I raised it and pointed it towards the entrance. I could barely move. My body was stiff and the pain wasn’t helping. The headache had faded a little but everything else still hurt. My right arm was broken, that I was sure off. The wound in my leg had stopped bleeding but it hasn’t started healing yet. The glass had stabbed deep but thankfully missed an artery. After they left I had a chance to inspect my body and take note of all my injuries.
Apart from the cut on my temple and the wound on my leg, I had a few bruised ribs and a broken arm—an arm that had already started to heal. It would have to been re-broken and then set so it could heal right. I was sure the other wounds would leave scars.
I tensed when the voices died down only to be replaced by other sounds. Someone was entering the cave. Their footsteps were careful and measured. They knew someone was inside the cave. I sucked in a breath and winced. All I could smell was dirty, unwashed man and urine. I couldn’t go far to use the toilet.
The footsteps stopped. I held my breath as I waited. Then I saw the man stepping into view. I raised the gun and pressed my finger on the trigger.
“Don’t fucking shoot me.”
Relief flooded me. I lowered the gun and allowed my head to drop back against the wall. Alark chuckled as he moved closer.
“You were expecting someone else?” he asked.
“Yes,” I muttered. “I was expecting those fuckers who ran us off the road. They have been hunting for us all night.”
“We killed about twenty of them.” He dropped to his knees next to me and reached for the gun. “When Wrin called to tell me that you hadn’t returned to the pack yesterday, I knew something must’ve happened. I ordered some scouts to search the area. They found the site of the accident.”
“Good.” I licked my lips. “Have you found Val and Devon yet?”
Alark hesitated. “We arrived around twenty minutes ago. Nobody has called it in yet.”
“How many of your men are out there?”
“All of them who were willing to help. We are hoping to block them in. My men are coming from all sides. They will let me know when they find them. Did you get separated?”
“I’m hurt. Going with them would’ve slowed us down,” I told him. “It was Val’s idea and a good one. She wanted to stay with me but I order ordered her to go with Devon. He wasn’t badly injured.”
“How badly are you injured?”
I hesitated for a few seconds before I relayed the injuries I had. Alark stayed silent until I was done and then he called out to his men. Two entered and made their way over to me. The moment I was on my feet the dizziness and nausea hit. I knew it was because of the concussion. I had suffered one before a few years back, but it wasn’t so bad.
Alark ordered three of his men to escort me back to the packhouse so I could get medical care. If I was in a fit condition I would’ve helped search for my mate and Devon, but I could barely stand on my own two feet. I just hoped they were okay.
***
***Valeria
***
I stared down at the man at my feet. He had a hand pressed tightly to his neck. Blood escaped between his fingers. He flashed sharp teeth at me. Instead of making me want to run like it usually did, I stood my ground. My gums tingled—it had something to do with the sudden sharp teeth I had. I never expected my Lycan blood to be so dominant. They told me that I would never be able to shift forms as the pure-breds do. But I had grown fangs—not the same as Devon and David’s—but sharp enough to bite through flesh.
I flexed my hands. Sharp nails raked the skin of my palms. I had claws too. Maybe it had something to do with the blood they gave me. I had a lot of unanswered questions but it was no time to ponder over them.
He growled again.
To my surprise I found my lips pulling up into a smile. I liked the pain I saw in his eyes. I liked the way he struggled to breathe.
My eyes darted to the knife that had fallen on the ground when he had grabbed me. Stepping over his legs, I walked towards it and bend to pick it up. It was awkward to hold it with the claws, but I managed. When I turned back towards him, he was trying to crawl away. I smirked and moved towards him. He screamed when I dug my claws into his ankle.
Satisfaction filled me. I never thought that I’d like to cause someone so much pain. When he turned onto his back, I straddled his hips and raised my hand. I slammed the knife down into his chest right over his heart with all the strength I had. His eyes widened and his mouth fell open.
“I’m not letting you take me to him,” I muttered as I twisted the knife. “I hope you rot in hell bastard.”
“F-fuck y-you bitch.”
I twisted the knife again and watched as the life drained from his eyes. It felt fucking amazing. Was I sick for loving the rush that came after killing someone? I stood and stepped over his body. After a few steps, I turned back around and pulled the knife out of his chest. Now I just needed to find Devon.
Where was he?
I tilted my head up slightly and sucked in a deep breath. There were too many smells around me. I couldn’t track him by smell. Which way did he go? Forward or back the way we were walking?
I glanced from one side to the other. There was a loud howl. My body jerked in fright. It was hard to figure out which direction it came from. My chest constricted when a pained howl followed. Somehow I knew it was Devon. My mate was in trouble. I gripped the knife tighter and took off. Desperation gave me the extra boost I needed. I forgot all about the aches and pains. Scenarios flashed through my mind. I would either make it in time or I’d be too late.
My steps slowed when I saw a clearing ahead. Movement caught my attention. A wolf was standing on top of him, snapping his jaws close to his face. Devon had one arm pressed against the wolf’s neck to stop his jaws clamping around his throat. I didn’t stop to think of my actions. Devon was in trouble and I needed to save him.
I took off running and jumped onto the wolf’s back. My claws dug into his sides and my teeth sank into his neck. The metallic taste instantly flooded my mouth. A howl of pain escaped him. I dug my claws deeper when he tried to buck me off. He was no longer focused on Devon. His jaw snapped inches from my cheek. I growled at him. The wolf stumbled backward and off of Devon who was still laying on the ground.
The wolf bucked again, but he only managed to slide my body up his back a few inches. I pulled my claws from his skin. Letting my body slide to the side slightly, I dug my claws into his chest, searching for the organ that would kill him.
I tore my fangs from his skin when he suddenly fell backward onto his back. His weight was crushing. I almost made the mistake of letting him go when pain shot through me. Warmth spread down my arm as blood poured from the wounds I had inflicted. He pressed more of his weight down on top of me but I only dug my claws deeper. I waited for him to turn his head and then bit down on his neck.
He started trashing.
I wrapped my legs around his lower body and squeezed. My claws tore through the muscle. I felt the bones that protected his heart. I had forgotten about that. Anger filled me. I wasn’t going to let that stop me from killing him. I moved my legs higher and wrapped them tightly around his torso. And then I squeezed. The sound of bones snapping filled my ears. The wolf suddenly stopped trashing. He howled loudly. I wanted to rip his heart out for hurting my mate, but since I couldn’t do that, I went for the alternative.
Within seconds his body had slummed. Blood poured from the wound I had inflected, soaking me and the dirt beneath us. I pulled my teeth from his neck and allowed my body to relax. My eyes darted over to where Devon was.
He stood staring at me with wide eyes and his mouth hanging open. Movement from behind him made me tense. I pushed the body off me, got to my feet, and ran. Instead of running towards him, I bypassed him and tackled the man who was sneaking up on him.
We hit the ground hard. The man grunted. I growled and raised my arm. His neck was my target.
“Val!”
An arm wrapped around my waist and a hand gripped my wrist before I could claw at him. I threw my arm back but missed my target. I dug my claws into the arm wrapped around my waist. The low growl against my ear made me freeze. I recognized it.
“He’s not the enemy. It’s Alark. Look, Val,” Devon muttered against my ear.
I glanced at the man who was being helped up by two others. Once he was on his feet, he glanced up and then froze. Everyone seemed to do the same. They were all staring at me the way Devon had earlier. I frowned. Haven’t they ever seen someone covered in blood before?
“Retract your claws, baby.”
I glanced down at Devon’s arm. My claws were still digging into his skin. I instantly pulled my hand away and turned my head to look at him over my shoulder. “S-sorry.”
“Well, this is. . .” Alark trailed off. “Do I need to send for an ambulance?”
“David needs one and Devon.”
“David is already at the hospital.” Alark glanced past me. “Devon seems fine.” He glanced back at me. “I was asking you, Valeria.”
“I’m fine,” I muttered.
“When you’re in shock you don’t feel the pain of an injury. I will call them and—”
“It’s not my blood,” I interrupted him. “I’m not injured. You said you found David?”
“Yes. He’s been taken to the hospital.” Alark moved around us. “Looks like you killed the last of them. Make arrangements for them to come and collect the bodies and burn them.”
Devon wrapped both arms around my waist and tugged me closer to him. He didn’t seem to care that I was covered in blood. David was safe and Devon too. We were all safe. I turned in his arms and pressed my face against his chest. He sighed.
“My little hellcat.”
I smiled. That was a new endearment. He hugged me closer. My eyes widened when I felt the hard ridge of his erection digging into my lower stomach. I pulled away to glance up at him.
“How do you have a hard-on right now?”
Colour flooded his cheeks. ”It’s a Lycan thing.”
“You’ll have to explain it to me sometime,” I muttered
“I think we need to go see the elders.”