Chapter Fifty-One

Claire

Look how scared he is, her wolf laughed. I can feel it.

Claire could feel it, too. Even through the hatred of his evil red glare, she felt the fear leaking into the air like a pierced balloon. His lycan was larger than the others, but not near as big as hers.

His claws protruded from his hands, his posture hulking as she paced back and forth, stalking him around the parlor. All the crap he'd pulled her into over the course of her first semester swirled in her head.

The audacity and entitlement he held for himself.

He tried to take her mark from her, tried to take her mate from her, without any care that he'd ruin her life. Ruin what was meant to happen … all for some army he wanted to build?

Well, the joke was on him because she planned to tear down every lycan in this place until he had no army, no kingdom, and no chance of concocting another evil plan.

The other wolves had left the parlor; she sensed they were alone, and it felt good knowing they trusted her enough to take down the lycan king. Maybe she was stronger than she ever realized. All those days of being soft-spoken and walked over vanished.

They were gone. She no longer felt like a pawn in the game of life. She was the queen.

Tristan growled lowly in his throat, his fingers opening and closing. Claire caught her reflection in the stained-glass window of the parlor, and she felt mesmerized. That creature had been inside of her all along.

She resembled a wolf more so than a lycan but was larger, bigger … apparently stronger. Her white coat reflected against the florescent lighting of the room as she crouched, barred her teeth and leaped forward, snipping at Tristan's neck.

He yelped, but quickly backhanded Claire, knocking her head sideways. Her wolf recovered, launching at Tristan in a rumble of fury. Her teeth sank into his neck, and he dug his claws into her ribs.

At first, before her wolf, she thought lycans had an advantage on two legs, but now she realized she had the weight to knock him over easily. And it didn't take much. She tugged at his neck, pulling and swaying his body like a ragdoll.

Until Claire felt something slice into her back making her wolf howl in pain. She pulled away from Tristan, putting both the lycans in front of her as she walked back into the far wall.

Jaxton glanced at the blood soaked on Tristan's chest, and she felt his anger seeping from him. He'd been a good actor, just like Cat, and a part of her wanted to end Jaxton immediately, just to leave Cat heartbroken after all the lies she told.

But she didn't want to kill out of hatred. She wanted to defend herself and the pack. Make people safe again. She crouched down, circling the two, while the sounds of fighting escalated outside.

Jaxton jumped quickly, but Claire was able to maneuver out of the way, snapping at the back of his ankle on the way. He howled in pain but didn't falter. Tristan jumped next, and she knew even though he was hurt that he was stronger than Jaxton.

She felt his teeth dig into her shoulder and the blood break the surface. Claire howled, but her wolf pushed through the pain, launching onto Tristan during his moment of weakness.

The fear in his eyes stared back at her. The old Claire would have felt guilty, but this one knew she needed to end him. She sank her teeth into his neck, feeling Jaxton jump onto her back, but it didn't phase her. She slung her body, slinging him toward wall while dragging Tristan out of the parlor and into the chaos.

He kicked and pulled at her fur, sliding his claws at any inch of her that he could. But Claire felt invincible. Even when she dragged him onto the front steps of the castle, into the midst of a war, and Tristan tried relentlessly again to stop her, she felt nothing but power.

Claire tossed Tristan onto the steps, howling into the night, drawing attention from the lycans before she jumped forward and finished him off. A crescendo of howls echoed around her, sending the kingdom into a frenzy.

Jaxton's wolf attacked her from the back, and she rolled over, knocking him off. The pain on his face turned swiftly into anger, and he launched at her again, sinking his claws in between her ribs, making her wolf wail.

Claire knew the death of their king would hurt, but not as badly as the innocent lives that would be lost because of that king. Claire snapped at Jaxton's neck, tasting the blood of her enemies would normally make her vomit, but her wolf was in control, pushing her through any physical pain to end this once and for all.

Jaxton cried out, and she heard a sound in return. Cat.

She emerged from a group of wolves, bleeding and wobbling in pain toward the two of them. Claire snarled, remembering the only friend she had in college and the coincidence of her showing up exactly when she needed a friend.

It'd all been one big lie.

None of it was real. Besides her bad taste in hair color.

Before Claire could attack Cat, she stalled, and something pierced through her chest from behind. Claire watched the light vanish from Cat's eyes, and she fell forward. Claire looked as Aunt D put her bow and arrow down and gave her one light nod before running into the nearest building for cover.

Who would have thought?

Tristan fell down to his knees beside Cat and turned to stare at Claire with disdain in his eyes. Claire readied herself for another attack, but it didn't come. He backtracked out of the courtyard and disappeared into the woods.

When Claire glanced around, she realized most of the lycans had fled or had died in battle. A few wolves were scattered amongst them, and it hurt her soul to know she was the reason for all of it.

Claire felt a warm palm on the back of her neck, and she shifted, catching herself on her hands and knees on the ground. Axel helped her up, staring at her face, he leaned in and kissed her.

It felt warm and heated. A desperate plea in the way his mouth moved against hers. "It's over," he whispered when he pulled back.

Claire wasn't sure it was. Tristan had vanished along with a handful of lycans.

"Are you sure?" she whispered.

He lowered his hand down her back, and a slight breeze brought her back to reality. "I'm naked," she whispered.

Axel lowered his gaze and smirked. "That you are."

"I need clothes. I'm not used to this."

He nodded and pulled her up the stairs and into the castle. The silence crept along her skin like needles, and each step she took felt like a lucky one. It'd been her first battle, and she felt lucky to be alive.

Axel led her toward the closet in her bed-chamber and found a simple white sundress amongst the slew of fancy dresses Tristan had made for her. "Put this on. I'll go see if the perve had underwear picked out for you, too."

Claire slipped the dress over her dirty body, feeling dizzy from being back in her own form.

We did good, her wolf whispered.

"You did good," Claire said. "I'm proud of you."

Axel returned with a sports bra and underwear for Claire and had changed into a pair of basketball shorts he'd found somewhere.

"How many didn't make it?" she asked.

Axel pushed his fingers into his hair. "Eighteen wolves died, and ninety percent of the lycans were killed."

Claire frowned.

"Hey," he said softly, pulling her into him. "You did good, Claire. Your wolf … she's beautiful and strong. I was stunned when you first shifted."

Claire nodded but didn't meet his gaze. "I'm sorry about your pack."

"It's part of being a wolf, Claire. It's not something that we want to happen, but it's just something that happens. Their lives didn't end for nothing. We saved numerous people they would have killed, and we saved our pack. I have my luna, and the pack has their future alpha."

Claire smiled half-heartedly, still feeling bad that all of the wolves didn't make it. She slipped into her underwear when the floor creaked from the bedroom.

Her dad filled the doorway, and reality hit her hard. She hadn't spoken to him about any of this, and she had tons of questions for him.

"Do you have a minute?" he asked her.

Axel leaned in and kissed her cheek, leaving her alone with her dad.

"I think we're going to need more than a minute."