Chapter 198

Alexis and Andreas' men were attacking in their wolf form. They were coming in from every side, and from the look of it they had The King's men out numbered. The clearing was in an uproar with men and wolves everywhere. Before Amaris knew what was happening, Lyle had transformed into his wolf and leaped between her and The King. His muzzle wrinkled as he bared his teeth and growled in warning. The King looked at him and merely laughed. He reached behind him and grabbed the staff that he had back at the palace. Lyle seemed to recognize it and backed up a few steps. The King laughed at his retreat. "Smart lad. Hand her over and I will not have to use it." Lyle backed up a few more steps and this time he leaned into Amaris pushing her back too. The fighting was still going on around them. Many of The King's men lay upon the ground, and most of the rest were fighting two or three wolves now, since they were severely out numbered. Amaris saw that many of the wolves were making their way closer to she and Lyle, creating a ring around them. A commotion from their right caught Amaris' attention. The King had reinforcements. There were more of his men flooding in from the woods. Many of the wolves on that side were falling. Some of the wolves who had banded together to fight to Amaris' left were now splitting up to help the wolves on the other side. With the new troops, the numbers were evened up. Many of the wolves were falling because The King's men were not opposed to using guns. The King watched his mens' progress with a smile. "Ah Sveta, you have impeccable timing as always my dear." The King called out. Amaris turned to look at where The King's gaze was. Sveta was walking toward them out of the woods. Amaris saw that her usual impeccable clothes and perfect hair and make up were disheveled, and she looked like she had aged 20 years in a day. The woman was clearly not taking the loss of Adam well. It did not seem to phase her father. He did not notice, or simply did not care. His games had cost her daughter her mate, and that had taken its toll. The fighting was louder, more violent now. Amaris looked around her as Sveta walked closer and saw that there were now equally as many of Alexis and Andreas' men as there were The King's men on the ground now. Tears sprang to Amaris' eyes. So much death. So many lives cut short. All this for what? So someone could have something that someone else had. For power? Amaris screamed "ENOUGH!" It poured out of her. A command that no one could ignore. They all fell to their knees. Even Sveta and The King. Lyle in front of her in his wolf form was the only on still standing. Amaris walked forward. "Enough of this." She said to The King. "You are already king. You rule over all the werewolves, and yet that is not enough for you. You spend lives in your quest for more power like they mean nothing to you. A man that has power and does not respect life does not deserve that power." She said to him. Amaris stepped forward, moving closer to The King. "You are to be stripped of your title and stripped of your power. You no longer deserve the right to rule." She said. Amaris leaned forward to lay her hand on The King. He grinned at her with a knowing smile that spread across his face. His hands came up from the ground holding the staff. He pulled it back and began to swing it at Amaris. A fierce growl erupted behind her and she was shoved out of the way at the last second. Lyle had leaped in front of her, pushing her out of the way, and took the brunt of the blow. Immediately he transformed back into a man and fell to the ground unmoving.

The King looked down at the man that had come between him and his prize. Amaris' face was striken. She did not know if he was dead, or injured, or merely unconscious from the blow. The King laughed. "What a waste." Was all he said, and then looked back at Amaris. "Well I guess that takes care of that obstacle." The King stepped over Lyle and moved toward Amaris. Sveta was right behind him. She took no notice of the man lying on the ground at her feet. Her eyes were locked on her father in front of her. Amaris moved to the side to try and gain access to Lyle who was lying perfectly still on the ground. Amaris could not even tell if he was breathing and starting to panic that she had caused his death too. The King swung around to face her, just as Sveta made a sudden movement. There was a loud metal clang and something shiny flew into the air. It landed at Amaris' feet. She bent down and picked up the knife that Sveta had just tried to stab her father with. The King's eyes grew round with surprise when he realized what had just happened. He looked back at her daughter who now threw herself at him screaming and throwing punches. "I hate you! I Hate You! I Hate You! You killed him. You killed my Adam my mate!" She screamed. The King spun to face her, and was forced backwards by Sveta's pummeling. He stepped back and tripped over Lyle's prone form on the ground. The King's arms swung out wildly as he fell backwards into Amaris. The big man collided with the small woman and they tumbled to the ground with a loud grunt. It seemed to happen in slow motion for Amaris. One minute she had bent down to pick up the knife and the next she had The King lying on top of her and she was on the ground. Amaris tried to sit up. The King did not move. Sveta who had stopped her onslaught when she could no longer reach her father stood staring with her mouth open. No sound coming out. Amaris managed to get up on her elbows. She looked into The King's face, who was lying face up on top of her legs. He was staring off into nothing. His eyes fixed on the sky. He was dead. Amaris looked down at her hands and lap to see that they were covered in blood. The King had fallen back right into the knife. It had penetrated at the base of his skull as he fell back onto her. He was dead instantly. Sveta let out a strangled howl as she transformed with anguish. Amaris pushed The King's body off her legs, and slid her body back away from the corpse. Sveta's wolf growled and stalked toward her slowly her head low. Amaris crab walked back on her hands to try and put more space between them. The feral looking she wolf slunk closer. The she-wolf's head snapped up as two wolves landed on either side of Amaris. The wolf to her right she recognized as Anna's wolf. She had gotten up close and personal with her when Anna had tried to attack Amaris when Anna was crazy with heat. Amaris could not be sure who the wolf on her other side was. Both of the wolves began to growl and lower their heads. Sveta's wolf backed off a little. Still baring her teeth, Sveta looked for another way around, or a way to take on only one wolf at a time. She began jumping from one side to the other snapping at the wolves' sides as she did. Amaris stood and then back away a little more to give the two wolves protecting her room to move. Sveta, finally tired of sizing up the wolves, chose to lunge at the smaller of the two and bit down on Anna's leg as she did not move out of the way fast enough. The second wolf dove head first with snarls of furry, and rammed Sveta in the side sending her tumbling away. The second wolf pursued and did not let up. Sveta looked at Amaris and let out a fierce growl and turned and fled into the woods. She was very fast and soon was out of sight. The second wolf followed after into the trees.