Wendy staggered to her feet between us, but Christine’s eyes never left mine.She was hunting, and I was her prey.Wendy lunged forward falling into Christine’s body and knocking her on the floor before landing heavily on top of her.Wendy was sweating profusely, and I could tell she was exerting what little energy she had left trying to stop her.They wrestled on the ground, Wendy trying to pin her down, but she was no match for her.Christine threw her off, Wendy smacked into the steel table her head smacking the side of the cage Lily was trapped in.
Amber groaned and shifted in her seat, dazedly looking up.Her groan, a distraction to Christine as her eyes snapped to that of her daughter.
“Mum?” Amber said, her voice a murmur as she tried to work out what was going on.David started screaming, trying to get the attention off her own daughter.I saw his braces starting to pull from the wall when his shin bone snapped, trying to get his leg free.
I struggled with my other arm, breaking my left hand before sliding it out of the wrist cuff.I was close, I just needed to free my other arm.
Christine lunged directly over the table at Amber.Amber’s scream jolted Wendy to her feet just in time for Wendy to grab her around the waist.Adrenaline must have been the only thing that got her to move so fast because Wendy was there fighting her own best friend to stop her from destroying the one person she loved most in this world.Wendy slammed Christine into the wall next to me before Christine kicked her in the stomach, making her double over.
I saw the look in her eye, nothing was going to stop her from killing all of us once she was done with Amber.The hunger in her eyes proved there was nothing left of her to save.Tears poured down my face as she lunged forward.I moved, my hip dislocating as I threw my entire body toward her, my hand punching straight through her chest.I felt my hand smash through her ribs and sternum, her blood coating my arm before I felt the beating of her heart in my hand.
She stopped and looked down at my arm that was in her chest cavity.My fingers wrapped around her heart before squeezing.An agonised look crossing her features as I ripped her heart from her body.She stood upright for a second, still staring at the hole in her chest before her body collapsed in a heap on the floor.
“Please forgive me, Zane!” I screamed his name as I felt her link to me snap, my heart felt like it had been squeezed with hers and ripped away, as her teether to me snapped.Her life gone, and at my hands.Wendy screamed her voice piercing my ears and pulling at my soul.She threw herself at Amber trying to cover her eyes from seeing her mother’s death.Wendy was too late though, everything happening so fast.I knew she saw me; her Luna and her mother’s friend just rip the life out of her.
“I had no choice.” My voice breaking at the realisation, my entire body crying out for her, crying for Amber, crying for the heartache I know I just caused Zane.But most of all, crying out for Reid, who I know would have also felt what I just did.
Amber was hysterically screaming out for her mother, trying to break free from the cage of Wendy’s arms, as she held her trying to shield her from what I had done.
I killed one of my best friends, I know Christine would have wanted me to if it meant saving Amber, but that doesn’t stop the hurt I have caused and feel.I knew I just destroyed and traumatised her daughter, destroyed her mate.But what choice did I have?I had to choose.It was either Christine or her daughter, and I know deep down I made the right choice, the choice she would have wanted.
“You had no choice Ari,” David spoke next to me.One of his legs was free, but his arms still braced to the wall.His claws extended, and I knew whatever they gave him was wearing off, I also knew because I could feel it slowly disappearing from my bloodstream.
We need to get out of our restraints before they readminister another dose.I looked at Amber apologetically, sobs wracking her entire body.The bleeding in her mouth had stopped, but the gash on her head was still deep and not healing.I ripped my arm from the last brace.I could feel the skin tearing from my body like I was being degloved, but I didn’t care I was mad, my anger numbing the pain.I would heal quickly, I just needed out of the restraints.I won’t let them hurt anyone else.
My body fell forward smacking into the concrete floor, I felt my shins snap from the unnatural way my body was lying on the ground while they were still braced to the wall.Wendy let go of Amber and helped lift me up, she struggled under my weight.I was able to slide one leg out, having to twist my ankle to release myself.I felt my leg heal just as the door opened.Men rushing inside.I placed my leg on the ground, and Wendy went into defence mode, holding them back.I broke my ankle and manoeuvred my other leg out just in time, for them to run back out of the room sealing it shut.I looked up when I heard an exhaust fan start, I knew instantly they were trying to gas us out with Wolfsbane.After a few seconds Wendy started coughing.“Cover your mouth with your shirt.” Both Amber and Wendy covered their mouths dropping onto the floor.The room started to fill with white smoke, I turned to David and started ripping on his restraints, they started pulling from the wall with his help he was able to get free, falling on the floor next to my feet.I couldn’t see out the windows, the fog making it increasingly difficult to see.
I started choking on the fumes, my lungs filling with its toxic gas.I dropped to the floor, covering my face with my shirt.
We just had to hold out longer, wait for the gas to be turned off.I heard Lily in the cage coughing and looked up to see her naked inside the cage, the wolfsbane must have forced her wolf to change back.She coughed and choked, gasping for air.But she had nothing to shield her face.I crawled toward the cage before tearing a piece of my shirt and passing it to her through the mesh, poking it inside with my fingers.She looked up at me panicked.And I gasped to see her eyes had remained the same as that of her wolf, half blue and half orange glowing like embers of a flame.
Chapter 48
Reid’s POV
Zoe’s friend was extremelyuseful, I could tell years of being a Hunter himself had him still wary of Abel and myself.I could also tell; he was trying his best to conceal his discomfort.Hunters are raised in families who have generations of Hunters following in the footsteps of their forefathers.I didn’t expect him to drop everything he has been raised to believe.I could tell he had only just come around to the idea that not all of us were bad, that didn’t make him more comfortable though, so Abel and I let Zoe do most of the talking.This was her area of expertise even though she retired decades ago.
Abel and I were organising what was left of both Packs into scout teams, which was easy over the mind link for me, but David’s Pack discovered Abel didn’t need to be a Pack member.Being half Lycan allowed him to communicate with David’s Pack members, he was able to contact Michael for me.I wondered why Aria never talked about the fact she could mind link any wolf.I also learned that Michael lost his mate in the war, Elizabeth.My Pack took the biggest blow; we lost two hundred and nine Pack members; David’s side only lost seventy-one members.The Crescent Pack, another neighbouring Pack outside the city, was on their way over to give us a lending hand.I was grateful, but we didn’t have the best relationship with them.We were currently waiting for the Crescent Pack Alpha to arrive before we made our move.
Abel also was able to verify Kade was, in fact, the same man from his younger years.We were still trying to figure out how the heck he had managed to prolong his life.Johnathan the Hunter that was helping had taken plenty of surveillance footage of trucks coming in and out of the city heading towards the area where the tunnels cut off one of those photos were of Kade.We knew now they must have built a headquarters just outside the city.Our scouts at the moment were verifying that’s where the tunnels lead to.
Right now, we were waiting for people to start arriving.When we heard the familiar ding of the diner bells ringing, I knew instantly it was the Alpha from the Crescent Pack.I looked at the screen above the bunker door.I looked at Abel, and he nodded.I walked upstairs.
Walking upstairs, I came to find four enforcers and the Alpha Trent and his young son.Who looked to be thirteen?I thought he was insane for bringing his son until I remembered my brother and I were taught by our father the same way with hands-on experience.
“Alpha Trent, thanks for coming,” I said, holding my hand out.Alpha Trent was a giant of man, his arms flexing as he shook my hand.He had shoulder-length blonde hair that was tied at the back of his neck and dark, almost black eyes.Anyone else would be intimidated just by the look of him, but I felt no such things.They were the third biggest Pack, but after our loss, our numbers were pretty much the same as theirs now.
“Alpha Reid, nice to finally put a face to the name, this is my son Damien.” His son put his hand out, and I quickly shook it giving him a nod.
“If you want to follow me, I will show you downstairs, please be mindful there are two retired Hunters so I would appreciate if you didn’t kill my mate’s grandmother or her friend, they are helping us locate my mate and our missing Pack members” He nodded once, but I was a little concerned still.It was unheard of to have Hunters working alongside the very thing they hunted.
I was halfway down the stairs when I felt it, a wave of emotion hit me.I grabbed onto the handrail and doubled over.Zane would be here any second, and if I feel this bad, he would be ten times worse.Forcing myself back up the stairs, I shoved past everyone.
“Alpha Reid, what’s going on?” I looked back at them.Trent looked up at me alarmed.
“I need to get to my Beta,” I gasped out, forcing my legs to keep moving up the stairs.I had just walked out to the diner’s dining area when I saw Zane’s car run straight into a telegraph pole out the front.The howl that resonated through the air chilled me to the bone.I ran to open the door just in time for Zane’s wolf to break through the door of the car, ripping it clean off.His howls agonised as he threw himself at the ground.
I ran towards him, Zane had no control left, his wolf taking over as I felt Christine’s teether to us break, her life slipping from us.Zane’s agonised screams resonating through my head at the loss of his mate.And our Beta female.I hesitantly walked over to him; his wolf was whining, completely devastated.