Chapter 50
LEAH
I’m on the ground.
Brian is standing in front of a bonfire and at least a dozen wolves have formed a circle around us and the flames.
It’s…eerie.
Something about these woods feels too still. Forests are normally teeming with life and this one seems desolate. I don’t think because it’s a man-made copse, that it’s vacant. The reason seems darker, deeper, like there is something wrong with the earth beneath the trees.
“Why did you bring me here?”
Brian arches a brow.
“I mean, I know why. But why here? Why not go back to your lands or somewhere else?”
It’s closing in on midnight and I need to buy time. I won’t be able to stop the transfer of power. An Alpha can connect to anyone in his bloodline or pack, and in choosing me, my father ensured that his power would go to me. I could be on the other side of the world and it wouldn’t make a difference.
I can’t stop the influx. But maybe I can distract Brian enough to stop him from ki lling me.
I’m not stu pid. Brian brought me to a scrap of land that’s in a neutral territory. We’re far from my father’s pack, from Aaron, from the Council.
I just need to keep him talking.
I twist my wrists and try to pull one of my hands free. The shackle bites into my skin and I bleed..
I use my blood to try and slicken my skin but even though I’m tugging hard, I can’t get the cuff past my bones. Desperate, I yank my thumb out of its socket and muffle a scream.
The cuff slides off, but I fist my hand around it so it isn’t
obvious.
Brian’s still talking. He’s pointing out at the rows and rows of
trees.
The men surrounding the circle start to strip.
They’re going to shift, and when the time comes, they’ll probably fight over my bones. After Brian ki lls me.
I shudder.
I would try to run, but I won’t make it a dozen feet, not with how my feet are bound, and with this many wolves, on this terrain, they’d take me down in seconds. No. I need to bide my time.
Wait for Brian to get closer. When he attacks, I need to be ready.
And I am.
I ball my hands into fists.
“Your m om d ied right here,” Brian says.
“What?”
“You asked why I chose this place.” He grins.
AARON
I’m able to see the dozen or so men spread out around the fire. Leah’s standing alone. Brian’s walking slowly in a circle around the flames. He was always dramatic.
There is no honor in what he’s doing.
By our laws, he could challenge the Roberts Alpha. If he prevailed in a battle to the death, then he’d assume control over that pack. Fair and square.
But Brian doesn’t play fair.
He never challenged Leithrow. He murdered the man in his sleep.
And taking on Leah, even if he does ‘challenge’ her and his men
are there to testify to that as witnesses, what honor is there in ki lling a woman?
A human who cannot defend herself.
He’s a co ward.
My teeth extend until my canines hang out of my mo uth and my arms are clawed and muscled entirely.
I’m going to rip his head from his body.
Part of me wonders if Leah will even be able to sustain the influx of power when it comes. She’s so si ck. I see that now. I think I’ve known for a while but just didn’t want to face what my eyes were telling me.
Abruptly Brian strikes her.
He punches her in the face and she whirls with a muffled
scream.
I don’t think. I run. I burst into the clearing.
He sees me. And smiles.
His wolves are already responding, charging in my direction. Brian grabs Leah and drags her against him. But Leah doesn’t stand still. She gouges one of his eyes and Brian roars. Then she punches him in the throat with one of the hand cuffs.
She tries to run but makes it only a few feet before her bound
legs trip her to her knees.
Brian rips off his shirt and shifts fully.
His wolf is big and pale and furious. Blood pools from its right eye. He pounces on Leah and mauls her leg.
I slash and bite at the first wolf. Then savagely attack the one
after.
And the one after that.
These wolves are circling around me. I’m gravely outnumbered. I should be focusing on them, but all I see is Leah.
Her body thrashing.
Blood staining her jeans.
I don’t hear the howls or roars.
Only the heartbreaking sound of her screams.
