Chapter 83 SIEGE OF CAVE
RAY'S POV
The explosion threw me into the cave wall hard enough to crack a bone.
They had breached the entrance with military precision, and that meant someone had trained them well.
Jake's wolves poured through the smoking gap. Twenty at least and all heading straight for the healing chamber where Monty lay defenceless.
"Hold the line!" I shifted mid-stride, and my wolf tore into the first attacker.
My teeth found his throat. Hot blood filled my mouth, and I spit it out as his body dropped.
Two more replaced him. I knew we were outmatched before the fight even started.
Kia appeared at my side. His wolf was larger than mine and twice as vicious when protecting pack.
"How many?" He asked between strikes.
"Too many." I blocked a slash aimed at my ribs. "They knew exactly when to hit."
"Morrison's timing." Kia ripped into a wolf that got too close.
The cave system worked in our favour. The narrow passages forced them to come at us in smaller groups.
But they kept coming, and we were only twelve defenders against an army.
"Fall back to the second junction," I called out.
We retreated. Blood slicked the stone floor and made it hard to walk.
A wolf caught my hind leg, and pain shot through me. I twisted and caught his face with my claws.
He screamed.
"They are pushing too hard." Kia panted beside me. "Something else is happening."
He was right. This felt like a distraction, but I could not figure out what they were distracting us from.
Elara's voice crackled through the emergency communicator. "Ray, I have eyes on secondary tunnels. Jake has another group moving through the eastern passage."
My stomach dropped. The eastern passage led directly to the healing chamber through an old mining shaft.
"How many?" I asked while blocking another attack.
"Fifteen. They will reach Monty in five minutes."
"Kia, take half the defenders and cut them off." I snapped. "I will hold here."
"That leaves you with six wolves against twenty." He growled. "You will die."
"Then I die, but Monty lives, and that is all that matters."
Kia hesitated for only a second before nodding. He signalled to six wolves, and they broke off toward the eastern tunnel.
That left me with five defenders.
"Tighten formation," I ordered. "They have numbers, but we have position."
The junction narrowed to a bottleneck. We positioned ourselves where only three attackers could reach us at once.
Jake's wolves hit us like a wave. The impact nearly broke our line, but we held.
I fought like I had never fought before.
A wolf got past my guard and sank its fangs into my shoulder. I howled and threw him into the wall hard enough to hear bones break.
Blood ran down my front leg, but I could not stop to check the damage.
"They are wearing us down." One of my defenders called out. "We need backup."
"Backup is not coming." I ripped into another attacker. "So we hold until we cannot hold anymore."
The communicator crackled again. "Ray, Kia engaged the eastern group. It is bad. They had explosives."
"Is Monty secure?" That was all I cared about right now.
"For now." Elara's voice shook. "But Jake's main force is about to overwhelm your position."
"Let them try." I shifted back to human form long enough to grab a weapon that was falling. "Tell Kia to protect Monty at all costs."
The blade felt good in my hand.
I shifted back and gripped the weapon in my jaws. Not ideal, but it gave me a range the others did not have.
Jake's wolves paused when they saw the blade.
"That is Ray." One of them whispered. "The Alpha and Luna’s first mate."
"I do not care who he is. Kill him and take the chamber."
They rushed us again. This time, I used the blade perfectly.
I slashed throats and damaged legs. The weapon turned me from defender into executioner.
But there were too many, and they knew it. They started taking risks and pushing harder and accepting casualties.
One of my wolves went down, then another. We were losing.
"Fall back!" I ordered. "Regroup at the healing chamber."
We retreated again.
Jake's wolves pursued without mercy. They could taste victory now, and it made them reckless.
I caught one in the narrow passage and used the space to my advantage. He could not dodge, and my blade found his heart.
His body blocked the tunnel long enough for the rest of us to gain distance.
The healing chamber appeared ahead. Kia and his group had barricaded the entrance with whatever they could find.
"Get inside!" He yelled. "We rigged the passage to collapse."
I did not question it. We dove through the barricade just as Kia triggered the explosives.
The tunnel behind us came down in a roar of stone and dust.
Inside the chamber, I found Monty on a bed. The blood vials were empty beside him, and his breathing was steady.
"Did it work?" I asked the healer.
"Too soon to tell." She checked his pulse. "But he is stable for now."
"We need to move him. This position will not hold."
"Elara mentioned escape routes." I tried to catch my breath. "Something about her network having hidden passages."
The communicator came to life. "Ray, can you hear me?"
"Barely." I wiped blood from my face. "The main tunnel collapsed. We are sealed in with Monty."
"I know there is a passage behind the eastern wall. Old mining shaft that connects to the river caves."
"Can Monty be moved?" I looked at the healer.
"If we are careful, but he needs to be monitored constantly."
"We'll do that," I promised. "Logan, get everyone ready to move."
“I heard digging.”
"We have maybe ten minutes before they break through." Kia estimated. "Is that enough time?"
"It has to be." I helped lift Monty onto a stretcher. "Elara, guide us to the passage."
Her footsteps echoed through the communicator. "I will meet you there."
We moved fast but carefully. Monty's unconscious body swayed on the stretcher, and every bump made the healer wince.
Elara appeared from a side tunnel. Dirt covered her face.
"This way." She pressed something on the wall, and a section swung inward. "Hurry."
We filed through one by one. The passage beyond was narrow and dark and smelled of damp earth.
Behind us, the main tunnel gave way. Shouts and howls filled the chamber as Jake's wolves poured through.
"Go!" I shoved the last defender through and followed. "Seal it!"
Elara hit another mechanism. The hidden door started to close just as the first wolf spotted us.
"There! They are escaping!"
Jake himself appeared in the chamber. His face twisted with rage when he saw the closing door.
"After them!" He roared. "Do not let them reach the river caves!"
The door sealed with a heavy thud. We were safe for now, but trapped in a tunnel.
"How far to the caves?" I asked Elara.
"Half a mile." She started moving. "But the passage is unstable and we need to be quiet."
Monty groaned on the stretcher. The healer checked him quickly, and her face went pale.
"The blood is fighting his system." She whispered. "He needs proper care soon, or it will kill him."
"How soon?" Logan asked.
"An hour." She met my eyes.
Behind us, I heard more digging. Jake's wolves had found the hidden door and were working to break through.
The tunnel opened into a larger cavern. Water rushed somewhere below, and the sound echoed off unseen walls.
"The river caves." Elara pointed to a rope bridge. "Cross that, and we reach Ember Pack territory."
The bridge looked ancient.
"Everyone across," I ordered. "One at a time. The bridge will not hold more weight."
Kia went first with half the group. The bridge swayed but held.
I stayed back with Monty and the remaining defenders.
Behind us, the digging sounds grew louder. They were getting closer.
"Your turn," I told the healer. "Get Monty across."
She and another wolf carefully carried the stretcher onto the bridge. E
They were halfway across when Jake's wolves burst into the cavern.
"There!" Jake pointed at the bridge. "Cut them off!"
His elite guard rushed forward towards me.
"Go!" I screamed at the healer. "Do not stop!"
I turned to face Jake's guard alone. The rest of my defenders were either across the bridge or helping with Monty.
Eight against one and nowhere to run. T
The elite guard spread out and surrounded me.